Thailand’s military government sent thousands of troops and police into central Bangkok yesterday and effectively stifled protests against its seizure of power on May 22, limiting them to small groups of demonstrators in and around shopping malls.
The military took over on May 22 after the government of former Thai prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra had been weakened by months of protests that had forced ministries to close for weeks on end, hurt business confidence and caused the economy to shrink.
The political turmoil pits the Bangkok-based royalist establishment dominated by the military, old-money families and the bureaucracy against supporters of former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who is adored by the poor in the north and northeast.
Thaksin, who was ousted as prime minister in a 2006 coup, is the brother of Yingluck and was considered the real power behind her government. He has chosen to live in exile since fleeing a 2008 conviction for abuse of power.
Since the latest coup, the military has banned political gatherings of five or more people and protests that have taken place in Bangkok have been small and brief.
Deputy police chief Somyot Poompanmoung had said that 5,700 police and soldiers would be sent into central Bangkok yesterday and rapid deployment units were ready to stop protests that might spring up elsewhere.
Some top-end malls in the Ratchaprasong area chose to close or have reduced opening hours and the operator of the Skytrain overhead rail network shut several stations in the central area.
In the morning, Ratchaprasong had been swarming with police and media, but there was barely a protester to be seen.
By mid-afternoon there were only a handful of shoppers in the mall, parts of which were burned to the ground in the mayhem after an army crackdown on pro-Thaksin red shirt protesters in 2010.
“I feel safer now so, no, I didn’t change my plans to come,” said an expatriate American woman who has lived in Thailand for 30 years. “This country has been in turmoil for three years. It couldn’t move forward under the previous government. I hope things can be resolved now.”
A group of protesters gathered on an elevated walkway leading to the nearby Bangkok Art and Culture Center, scene of small protests in the days after the military declared martial law on May 20, prior to its full takeover of government.
Hundreds of troops with riot gear arrived and suddenly stormed the walkway, sending protesters and onlookers fleeing.
Earlier, a group of about 30 people had protested inside the Terminal 21 mall in the Asoke area.
Most signalled their opposition to the coup by holding three middle fingers of one hand up in the air, which some said stood for freedom, equality and brotherhood. Police detained one of the protesters.
On Saturday, as on the two previous days, the authorities had effectively closed down the normally busy roads around Victory Monument, which was becoming a focal point for opposition to the coup. The area was flooded with police and troops but no protesters turned up.
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