Thai Police Take First Steps to Enforce State of Emergency and End Airport Protests | Voice of America - English
Thai police have called for anti-government protesters to vacate the main airports in Bangkok, which the group seized earlier this week.
Thousands ofanti-government protesters occupying the international and domesticairports in the capital were bracing Friday against efforts by securityforces to end the occupation. Leaders of the People's Alliancefor Democracy on Friday said they remain determined to press on withthe protest despite the threat of police action and a growing loss ofpublic support. The police say they want to negotiate with thePAD, but it is possible they will use force to clear the terminals.There is concern about violence, particularly because there arechildren among the protesters. Sunai Pasuk, the Thai representative for Human Rights Watch, says the government realizes the world is watching the situation. "Noone I believe in the outside world and the majority of the Thai public- no one is siding with the PAD. [But] they don't want to see amassacre at Don Muang and Suvanabhumi airport. The police need to takeincremental steps," he said. Sunai says the government isoffering the PAD an exit strategy by allowing the alliance to return tothe government house compound which it seized in late August. "Ifthey want to continue the protest - well go ahead - and this is a verydeliberate decision not to declare a state of emergency at thegovernment house as well. The government has thought through verycarefully this time by providing an exit and if the PAD still refusesto take this opportunity then things can get [a] little ugly," he said. Thousandsof travelers have been stranded by the protest, which is costing theeconomy millions of dollars in lost revenue. The airport blockadesparticularly hurt the tourism industry, a cornerstone of the Thaieconomy. The government is using airports just outside Bangkokto move passengers, but only a limited number of flights have takenoff. Efforts also are under way to transport up to five thousand ThaiMuslims traveling to Saudi Arabia for the Haj. OnThursday Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat declared a state of emergencyat the airports. He has rejected calls by the military and the PAD forhim to resign. Around the city this week there have beensporadic outbursts of violence between the PAD and governmentsupporters. An anti-government TV station and a pro-governmentcommunity radio station have suffered attacks. NaishinawatraParboonpart is the manager of the community radio station, run by ataxi radio service. He expects police to move against the PAD protestlater Friday. He says extra police have been brought in fromthe provinces and they will move quickly and once the airports arereopened it will be better for the nation. The PAD accuses Mr.Somchai of acting as a proxy for former Prime Minister ThaksinShinawatra, who fled Thailand in August in the face of corruptioncharges. He was ousted in a coup two years ago. Many Thaisspeculate that the military may stage a coup, although senior militaryofficers have denied it plans to unseat the government. Pro-Thaksinsupporters have vowed to challenge the army if there is a coup.