More than 100,000 protesters rallied in Bangkok yesterday in their biggest bid yet to topple Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, deepening the country’s political crisis just days before an ASEAN summit.
Demonstrators dressed in signature red shirts massed outside the house of a top royal aide whom they accuse of masterminding the 2006 coup that ousted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
They also gathered outside the offices of the British-born Abhisit, where protesters have staged a sit-in for the past two weeks, chanting “Bring Thaksin back, Abhisit get out!”
Thousands of security forces guarded key sites across the capital, but there was no immediate sign of violence despite the prime minister’s warnings that a core group of protesters would try to provoke bloodshed.
“We came here to expel the government,” protest leader Nattawut Saikuar told the cheering crowd of so-called “Red Shirts,” adding that they planned to stay in place until tomorrow.
Abhisit rejected the protesters’ demands to dissolve his four-month-old administration and hold fresh elections, warning of strong action if there was any violence.
He said some protesters wanted to trigger “chaos on the streets,” adding that an attack on his car on Tuesday showed there were deliberate efforts to provoke the government.
Police issued a warning to protesters not to enter the house of General Prem Tinsulanonda, a former prime minister who is now a key aide to King Bhumibol Adulyadej, after thousands of demonstrators ringed the compound.
Bangkok Deputy Police Commander Lieutenant General Chakthip Chaijinda said he had informed Abhisit that there were more than 100,000 protesters in the city and that more were expected overnight.
“We are worried that third parties may act tonight and may launch a bomb attack,” he said. “But we have enough officials and also a large number on stand-by.”
Abhisit insisted there was no threat to a summit of Asian leaders due to start tomorrow in the resort of Pattaya.
“All of the leaders still confirm that they will attend the meeting,” he said.
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
RSS