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Blood on the streets but few hurt in Thai red-shirt protest
Sydney Morning Herald - March 17, 2010
Ben Doherty, Bangkok – Falling in numbers and failing to gain political traction, Thailand's "red-shirt" protesters have turned to stunts, pouring their own blood at the entrance to Government House in an angry confrontation with police and the army. And they may repeat the act today in front of the Prime Minister's house.
On its fifth consecutive day, the anti-government rally, which brought more than 100,000 people on to the streets on Sunday, was down to barely a quarter of that number yesterday.
But the faithful who remained, many of whom had travelled hundreds of kilometres to call for the Prime Minister's resignation, queued for hours to donate blood in makeshift medical tents.
"Our blood is together. We are all united, our voices speak together. We want democracy," one of the first donors, Dai Yongsiripat, told the Herald.
Red-shirt leader Weng Tojirakarn, a medical doctor, said he believed the protest would convince the Prime Minister, Abhisit Vejjajiva, of the protesters' commitment and force him to resign.
"Now that people have agreed to sacrifice their blood like this, how can he not make a sacrifice by dissolving the parliament?"
Late in the afternoon, the protesters marched to Government House, carrying more than 40 vessels, including old water bottles, filled with blood. They were met by more than 1000 troops and combat police, backed up by water-cannon trucks and razor wire ringing the perimeter. But a small section of the crowd forced the troops back and made it to the front gate of Government House where they poured several bottles of blood on the ground and the front gate.
The reds leadership has not outlined any long-term plan for their protest, only to remain on the streets as long as they can.
"We are taking it one day at a time. What happens next? Your guess is as good as mine," the protest chairman, Veera Muskihapong, said. But there are suggestions the red-shirts will daub with blood the ruling Democrat party headquarters and Mr Abhisit's home.
But their efforts to unseat the government appear doomed. While they still occupy several streets in the old part of the city, many have had to return to the country to tend to farms and families and their Bangkok supporters have drifted away.
Bangkok was crippled by the initial rallies but the city returned to work yesterday, with shops, schools, banks and government offices reopening.
Mr Abhisit, while offering to meet the red-shirt leaders, has refused to dissolve parliament. A joint session of both houses of parliament was postponed yesterday due to the lack of a quorum. An official said some MPs feared for their safety.
Most of the protesters are from the poor, rural north. Many remain loyal to the fugitive former prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, ousted in a military coup in 2006 and convicted of corruption.
The reds view the government as illegitimate because it came to power in a "silent coup" in 2008, when the ruling party, supported by the red shirts, was dissolved by a court ruling.
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