Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and opponents who want him to step down were tangling yesterday over the possibility of holding talks to ease the crisis, which has brought the country's political system to a standstill.
Both sides have said they are willing to have discussions, but Thaksin's critics want such a meeting televised, while the prime minister prefers to talk first behind closed doors.
In a Thai TV interview on Friday night, Thaksin appeared to say he would be willing to debate a representative of the People's Alliance for Democracy, which has been staging street demonstrations against him, and someone from the opposition political parties, which are boycotting a snap election he called for next month.
But an executive committee member of his Thai Rak Thai Party, Suranand Vejjajiva, said yesterday that the Thai leader first wants to meet privately with his foes.
"We are quite open, but we don't want a debate style, it is too confrontational in this kind of situation," said Suranand, who is also a member of Thaksin's Cabinet. "We are willing to sit down and talk with all parties concerned, but still think it should be a closed-door session."
Suranand said such a setting could result in "fruitful discussion," and the public could be informed afterward of the results.
Thaksin's critics have insisted that any meeting be televised to ensure transparency.
The qualified offer to talk came as political tension, already high because of street protests and an election boycott directed against Thaksin, has been rising because of mystery bombings in Bangkok.
It also follows pleas from various third parties, including the top adviser to the king, for the feuding parties to ease their confrontation and hold talks with each other.
Demonstrations against Thaksin that have drawn tens of thousands of people have so far been nonviolent. Both sides have appealed for calm ahead of the snap elections set for April 2 that the opposition has vowed to boycott.
Thaksin called the polls in an effort to squelch criticism by winning a new mandate.
The movement to force Thaksin from office swelled last month after his family announced the sale of its 49.6 percent stake in telecommunications conglomerate Shin Corp to Singapore's Temasek Holdings for US$1.9 billion. The sale was the biggest ever of a publicly owned Thai company. Temasek is the investment arm of the Singapore government.
Critics of the deal allege the sale involved insider trading and tax dodges and complain that key national assets -- including communications satellites -- are now in the hands of a foreign government.
In his television interview on Thai Channel 9, Thaksin said he is ready to set up a neutral committee to investigate the deal.
"I have not done anything wrong. No one can confiscate my property," he said.
Meanwhile, the government is seeking those responsible for a small bomb that exploded on Thursday outside the home of former prime minister Prem Tinsulanonda, now the chief adviser to the Thai king.
Harmless firecracker-sized devices were also set off on Thursday night at two sites identified with the anti-Thaksin movement.
Defense Minister Thammarak Isarangura Na Ayutthaya has blamed "people with ill intentions who want the political situation to get worse."
Thaksin was re-elected a second term last year when his party won 377 of the 500 seats in the House of Representatives.
A new online voting system aimed at boosting turnout among the Philippines’ millions of overseas workers ahead of Monday’s mid-term elections has been marked by confusion and fears of disenfranchisement. Thousands of overseas Filipino workers have already cast their ballots in the race dominated by a bitter feud between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and his impeached vice president, Sara Duterte. While official turnout figures are not yet publicly available, data from the Philippine Commission on Elections (COMELEC) showed that at least 134,000 of the 1.22 million registered overseas voters have signed up for the new online system, which opened on April 13. However,
ALLIES: Calling Putin his ‘old friend,’ Xi said Beijing stood alongside Russia ‘in the face of the international counter-current of unilateralism and hegemonic bullying’ Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday was in Moscow for a state visit ahead of the Kremlin’s grand Victory Day celebrations, as Ukraine accused Russia’s army of launching air strikes just hours into a supposed truce. More than 20 foreign leaders were in Russia to attend a vast military parade today marking 80 years since the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II, taking place three years into Russia’s offensive in Ukraine. Putin ordered troops into Ukraine in February 2022 and has marshaled the memory of Soviet victory against Nazi Germany to justify his campaign and rally society behind the offensive,
ENTERTAINMENT: Rio officials have a history of organizing massive concerts on Copacabana Beach, with Madonna’s show drawing about 1.6 million fans last year Lady Gaga on Saturday night gave a free concert in front of 2 million fans who poured onto Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro for the biggest show of her career. “Tonight, we’re making history... Thank you for making history with me,” Lady Gaga told a screaming crowd. The Mother Monster, as she is known, started the show at about 10:10pm local time with her 2011 song Bloody Mary. Cries of joy rose from the tightly packed fans who sang and danced shoulder-to-shoulder on the vast stretch of sand. Concert organizers said 2.1 million people attended the show. Lady Gaga
CONFLICTING REPORTS: Beijing said it was ‘not familiar with the matter’ when asked if Chinese jets were used in the conflict, after Pakistan’s foreign minister said they were The Pakistan Army yesterday said it shot down 25 Indian drones, a day after the worst violence between the nuclear-armed rivals in two decades. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif vowed to retaliate after India launched deadly missile strikes on Wednesday morning, escalating days of gunfire along their border. At least 45 deaths were reported from both sides following Wednesday’s violence, including children. Pakistan’s military said in a statement yesterday that it had “so far shot down 25 Israeli-made Harop drones” at multiple location across the country. “Last night, India showed another act of aggression by sending drones to multiple locations,” Pakistan military spokesman Ahmed