THAI PROTESTERS EASE DEMANDS, OPEN TO FRESH TALKS
Supunnabul Suwannakij and Daniel Ten Kate
Bloomberg, April 24, 2010
Thai protesters offered to end their demonstrations if Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva holds an election three months from now, easing tensions in a six-week standoff that has killed 26 people and paralyzed Bangkok.
“We’re willing to open a new round of negotiations under new conditions,” leader Veera Musikapong told supporters yesterday from the protest site. About 6,000 demonstrators remained camped out in Bangkok’s shopping and tourist district today, army spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd said.
At least five grenades exploded this week on Silom Road, a business artery that is home to several of the nation’s largest banks. Talks last month collapsed after Abhisit rejected the group’s demands to dissolve parliament immediately, offering instead to call an election by year’s end.
The proposal for negotiations may lead to a peaceful solution as rising tensions prompted the U.S. and United Nations to call for dialogue. A failed effort to disperse protesters on April 10 killed 25 people and left more than 800 injured.
“The best way out for both sides right now is to sit down together and agree on the timing of the election,” said Somchai Phagaphasvivat, a lecturer at Bangkok’s Thammasat University. “A lasting solution for the Thai conflict will still take a few years,” he said.
Supunnabul Suwannakij and Daniel Ten Kate
Bloomberg, April 24, 2010
Thai protesters offered to end their demonstrations if Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva holds an election three months from now, easing tensions in a six-week standoff that has killed 26 people and paralyzed Bangkok.
“We’re willing to open a new round of negotiations under new conditions,” leader Veera Musikapong told supporters yesterday from the protest site. About 6,000 demonstrators remained camped out in Bangkok’s shopping and tourist district today, army spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd said.
At least five grenades exploded this week on Silom Road, a business artery that is home to several of the nation’s largest banks. Talks last month collapsed after Abhisit rejected the group’s demands to dissolve parliament immediately, offering instead to call an election by year’s end.
The proposal for negotiations may lead to a peaceful solution as rising tensions prompted the U.S. and United Nations to call for dialogue. A failed effort to disperse protesters on April 10 killed 25 people and left more than 800 injured.
“The best way out for both sides right now is to sit down together and agree on the timing of the election,” said Somchai Phagaphasvivat, a lecturer at Bangkok’s Thammasat University. “A lasting solution for the Thai conflict will still take a few years,” he said.
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