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6,000 paint Bangkok red
Red Shirts defy State of Emergency to mark Thaksin ouster, May crackdown
05:55 AM Sep 20, 2010
BANGKOK - Thousands of Thai anti-government Red Shirts massed yesterday to mark four years since a coup ousted their hero Thaksin Shinawatra and to commemorate those slain in a May crackdown on their protests.
In their biggest show of strength in Bangkok since their rallies in April and May, during which 91 people were killed, police said about 6,000 Red Shirts gathered in the city's commercial centre, closely monitored by security forces.
Police estimated that 3,000 also massed in northern Chiang Mai city - the former stronghold of fugitive former Premier Thaksin, who was toppled from power in 2006 - with some waving banners calling for the dissolution of Parliament.
The mainly poor and working class Reds largely support Thaksin for his populist policies when in power, and their April and May rallies demanded snap elections, accusing the current government of being elitist and undemocratic.
Those protests paralysed parts of Bangkok, while deadly street clashes with the security forces injured nearly 1,900, ending with a bloody army crackdown on May 19 and an angry campaign of arson by militant protesters.
Yesterday, army-led command centres closely monitored events in both cities, but by early evening there was no sign of further violence as protesters began to disperse in the capital, where several thousand policemen had been deployed.
However, the afternoon's red-clad activities disrupted traffic in central Bangkok, defying a State of Emergency currently in place across the city and six other provinces, which bans political rallies of more than five people.
After tying red ribbons around the Ratchaprasong intersection - the focus of their two-month rally - protesters released 10,000 red balloons and lit candles in remembrance of those who died or were injured during the crackdown.
"I came here in memory of my dead Red friends who fought with us during the protest," said a 68-year-old demonstrator who gave only his first name, Sunai.
Thaksin, a telecommunications billionaire who lives abroad to avoid a jail term for corruption, called on his followers via Twitter to avoid further violence ahead of the double anniversary.
"I want everyone to look to the future. I want to see the healing of people who suffered from the conflict. I want to see people forgive each other," he said, adding that he was currently in Lebanon. AFP
Red Shirts defy State of Emergency to mark Thaksin ouster, May crackdown
05:55 AM Sep 20, 2010
BANGKOK - Thousands of Thai anti-government Red Shirts massed yesterday to mark four years since a coup ousted their hero Thaksin Shinawatra and to commemorate those slain in a May crackdown on their protests.
In their biggest show of strength in Bangkok since their rallies in April and May, during which 91 people were killed, police said about 6,000 Red Shirts gathered in the city's commercial centre, closely monitored by security forces.
Police estimated that 3,000 also massed in northern Chiang Mai city - the former stronghold of fugitive former Premier Thaksin, who was toppled from power in 2006 - with some waving banners calling for the dissolution of Parliament.
The mainly poor and working class Reds largely support Thaksin for his populist policies when in power, and their April and May rallies demanded snap elections, accusing the current government of being elitist and undemocratic.
Those protests paralysed parts of Bangkok, while deadly street clashes with the security forces injured nearly 1,900, ending with a bloody army crackdown on May 19 and an angry campaign of arson by militant protesters.
Yesterday, army-led command centres closely monitored events in both cities, but by early evening there was no sign of further violence as protesters began to disperse in the capital, where several thousand policemen had been deployed.
However, the afternoon's red-clad activities disrupted traffic in central Bangkok, defying a State of Emergency currently in place across the city and six other provinces, which bans political rallies of more than five people.
After tying red ribbons around the Ratchaprasong intersection - the focus of their two-month rally - protesters released 10,000 red balloons and lit candles in remembrance of those who died or were injured during the crackdown.
"I came here in memory of my dead Red friends who fought with us during the protest," said a 68-year-old demonstrator who gave only his first name, Sunai.
Thaksin, a telecommunications billionaire who lives abroad to avoid a jail term for corruption, called on his followers via Twitter to avoid further violence ahead of the double anniversary.
"I want everyone to look to the future. I want to see the healing of people who suffered from the conflict. I want to see people forgive each other," he said, adding that he was currently in Lebanon. AFP
