| Home > South-East Asia >> Thailand | |
Red shirts bust up summit in Thailand
Sydney Morning Herald - April 12, 2009
Tom Allard – Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's flight to Thailand was turned around last night when protesters stormed the five-star hotel that was hosting the East Asia Summit, forcing the Thai Government to cancel the meeting.
"The Australian Government has been informed by the Government of Thailand that the East Asia Summit has been postponed," a spokesman for Acting Prime Minister Julia Gillard said. "As a result, the Australian Prime Minister is now returning to Australia." Mr Rudd was expected to arrive back in Australia early this morning.
In an embarrassing setback for new Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, hundreds of "red shirt" activists who oppose his Government breached security for the second day running, smashing through several glass doors at the Royal Cliff Beach Resort and running through the resort, waving Thai flags and chanting slogans.
Pattaya, a seedy seaside resort town 150 kilometres from Bangkok, had been tense all day, with pro-Government supporters in blue garb facing off against their red-shirted rivals. The blue shirts carried steel pipes, golf clubs and planks of wood and were watched from a distance by Thai police and military personnel.
Mr Vejjajiva announced the summit had been cancelled yesterday afternoon and declared a state of emergency in Pattaya and surrounding regions.
"The Government has been forced to postpone the meeting," he said from inside the summit venue. "The ASEAN countries understand the situation and expressed their thanks to the Thai Government for trying to host the summit."
Leaders of the 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nations as well as China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand were to attend the summit and discuss responses to the global recession and North Korea's missile test last week. China and ASEAN were also expected to sign a trade and investment agreement.
Shortly after Mr Vejjajiva issued an "emergency decree", Thai security forces began marching through Pattaya looking for protesters. The decree, at the highest level possible, allows police to detain anyone without explanation or reason.
It is the second time such a summit has been cancelled in Thailand in recent times. Last year protesters in yellow shirts, a movement that succeeded in ousting the former, democratically elected Thai government, shut down Bangkok and the ASEAN meeting was moved to Jakarta.
The yellow shirts were closely aligned to the country's middle and upper classes and royal family. Mr Vejjajiva was subsequently appointed Prime Minister. The red shirts – mainly from the rural masses – have demanded his resignation ever since. They are closely aligned to deposed prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Mr Shinawatra was forced into exile by a military coup in 2006 and has been addressing his supporters by video conference every day.
See also:
 |