Thai Government Rejects Talks with Red Shirts
Ron Corben | Bangkok 18 May 2010
The Thai government appears to have rejected a proposal for talks to end days of conflict in Bangkok that have cost at least 37 lives. The government says it will not talk with anti-government protesters until they abandon their camp in the center of Bangkok.
Thai Cabinet officials have rejected the senate speaker's offer to mediate talks. Protest leaders had offered to halt fighting and pull demonstrators back to their main camp in Bangkok's center if talks were held.
The government says there will be no talks until the protesters disperse.
Pressure has been mounting for negotiations because of fears the Thai military is preparing a final crackdown against the protesters' camp in central Bangkok. The military began surrounding the camp last Thursday, sparking widespread violence during the past four days.
Earlier, a protest spokesman, Sean Boonnpracong, called the talks a last chance to avoid more bloodshed.
"This is a last chance before things get out of control and hopefully, there is always some backdoor negotiations," he said. "We agree to leave this if the army go back to base - something that simple ... and we leave the premises so that nobody will lose lives ... it has to be what we call a useable proposition."
The government told the remaining 5,000 or so protesters to leave by Monday or face a possible military operation to clear the area. The deadline passed with no immediate action Monday.
But several trucks loaded with troops were seen moving early Tuesday from holding areas toward the protest camp perimeter and by mid-afternoon, the sound of gunfire and explosions could again be heard in the city.
The government has declared a city-wide holiday for all of this week. The financial and tourist district on Silom Road, under military guard, is largely deserted, like most of central Bangkok.
Small groups of people gather in the morning at the few shops open.
One man says holding talks is the way to solve the problem. He says it is best to hold talks so it can finally end and the people could go back to work the way they are used to.
One woman, who calls herself Om, worries that the violence is spreading around the country.
She says for the authorities should do what is necessary to finish the current situation because it is now wasting time. Bangkok, she says, is difficult to live in now and protests have spread to other regions.
The protesters, known as Red Shirts, largely support former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and want the government to resign and call new elections. Mr. Thaksin was overthrown in a coup in 2006, but is supported by the rural and working poor. But many in Thailand's middle class and urban elite accuse him of corruption and abusing his power.
Meanwhile, concerns are growing about human rights violations as the crisis stretches on. Rights group Amnesty International called on Thai forces to stop firing live ammunition to control the protesters. In a statement Tuesday, Amnesty's Thailand specialist, Benjamin Zawacki, said firing at unarmed people is unlawful and a "gross violation" of human rights.
U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay urged the Thai government and the Red Shirts to resolve their conflict through negotiation. Pillay appealed to the protesters to "step back from the brink," and she urged the security forces to exercise maximum restraint.
Thai troops have allowed Red Cross workers to enter the area to provide humanitarian aid to women and children sheltering in a Buddhist temple.
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