APSN | Police on alert for Thai poll

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Police on alert for Thai poll

Sydney Morning Herald - July 3, 2011

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Lindsay Murdoch – Thirty-five million Thais vote today in an election in which the rival parties have promised strikingly similar policies aimed at the rural poor, with populist inducements including raising the minimum wage and subsidies for farmers.

Trailing badly in polling, the Democrat leader and incumbent Prime Minister, Abhisit Vejjajiva, launched a scathing attack on the opposition Puea Thai (For Thais) party in a rain-soaked final rally, saying the party's aim was to clear the name of the exiled billionaire former prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, and return more than $1US billion of assets seized from him.

In a reference to Mr Thaksin, the Oxford-educated Mr Abhisit, 44, warned voters not to put one individual's importance above the people.

With the theme "Moving Thailand Forward", the Democrats promised pensions for the elderly, free education up to 18 years, interest-free mortgages for first home buyers and fuel subsidies.

But Puea Thai's leader, Yingluck Shinawatra, 44, a political novice, has electrified large rallies across the country with promises that include free computer tablets for schoolchildren, tax cuts and high-speed rail lines.

Ms Yingluck, who is Mr Thaksin's younger sister, told her final rally in Bangkok that a Puea Thai-led government would foster reconciliation after six years of political conflict. If the pre-polls are anywhere near accurate, Puea Thai will win the most seats in the 500-seat parliament but will fall short of being able to form government without recruiting the support of at least one minor party.

Analysts say that unless Puea Thai wins in a landslide it may struggle to find a willing coalition partner, paving the way for Mr Abhisit to stay in power.

With Thailand deeply polarised between the urban and rural poor on one side and the Bangkok business and government elite on the other, analysts say it is likely the losing side will not accept the result, inflaming the crisis.

The military, which has staged 18 coups or attempted coups in the past, has vowed to remain neutral in any post-election political horse trading. About 170,000 police will protect polling stations for the tense vote, little more than a year after Bangkok was rocked by its worst civil violence in decades.

Australia and Britain warned their citizens living in Thailand about the potential for violence.

"There remains a risk that political developments may lead to violence," the British embassy in Bangkok said on its website. "Thai authorities have indicated that security may be enhanced in various parts of Thailand against the possibility of unrest." (With AFP, Bloomberg)