Following the anti-government protests in Bangkok of the last weeks, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has decided to dissolve the government and called for early elections. She said it was best to ‘give back the power to the Thai people and hold an election’. Royal approval is needed before holding the elections which are scheduled for 2 February.
However, Suthep Thaugsuban, former deputy prime minister, Democrat Party member and a key figure in the demonstrations, said the protests would continue despite the elections. ‘We have invested a lot together and we have to succeed, or we won’t return home,’ he said according to Thai newspaper The Nation.
The initial response by the Thai police to the ongoing demonstrations had been tough, until they reversed their line and began to seek conciliation with the protesters two days before the King’s birthday on December 5. They allowed demonstrators through the barricades outside Bangkok’s Government House, which marked an abrupt change from countering the anti-government protests which had led to violent clashes.
The issues underpinning the protests, however, are more than just the controversial amnesty bill that could have allowed former leader Thaksin Shinawatra to return from exile without facing jail for corruption charges. The protests first erupted after the lower house had passed the bill on 1 November. Even though the bill, which was proposed by his sister and current Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s Pheu Thai Party, was rejected by the Senate already on 11 November, the protests have continued to deteriorate. On 9 December, around 150,000 protesters were on the streets of Bangkok.
The main groups in support of the protests are the Democrat Party, the former People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) and students. They criticise the government for corruption and nepotism and are united in their goal to remove the Yingluck government which they allege is orchestrated from abroad by Thaksin.
Suthep Thaugsuban resigned from the Democrat Party in order to be able to join the protests. He is not only in opposition to Yingluck and Thaksin, but has also unveiled a plan for political reform. Suthep proposes the establishment of a non-elected ‘people’s council’ which will draft legislation and push for anti-corruption reforms and electoral reform. He is still holding on to his proposal after Yingluck called for new elections. Last week, she had said that she would try to ‘open every door’ for negotiations. However, protester’s demands for a people’s council were irreconcilable with the constitution.
According to the Thai government, at least four people have been killed and 256 injured in the demonstrations so far.
Thaksin, business tycoon and former prime minister, was ousted in a military coup in 2006 and lives in self-imposed exile. He fled the country in 2008 before the end of his trial on corruption charges. While the middle class and royalist elite oppose Yingluck’s government, she has strong supporters in rural areas.
Protests halted for the Thai King’s 86th birthday on 5 December only to continue afterwards.
Catherine Ashton visited Thailand in mid-November to discuss bilateral relations and common objectives. In a statement, she expressed concern about the current situation and called ‘upon all parties to respect the rule of law and to abide by democratic principles.’
In 2010, disputes between pro-Thaksin groups and opponents had led to a crackdown on Thaksin supporters that killed 90 people.
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