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Anti-government protesters sweep streets in front of the Democracy Monument in Bangkok (Image: Vincent Thian/AP/PA).
THAILAND’S ANTI-GOVERNMENT protesters and security forces today observed a temporary truce as the nation prepared to mark the birthday of the revered king, after police stepped back in a dramatic move to calm violent clashes.
In the day’s only significant demonstration, hundreds of protesters descended on the national police headquarters in Bangkok’s glitzy downtown shopping district, where police allowed them to cut barbed wire and pull away sections of a concrete barrier. The demonstrators withdrew shortly afterwards.
(Image: Vincent Thian/AP/PA)
The overwhelming mood was calm in the capital, as demonstrators joined Bangkok authorities to clean up the area around Democracy Monument, where tens of thousands have camped out in more than a month of rallies against the embattled government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.
The area is a focus for the celebrations tomorrow for the 86th birthday of King Bhumibol Adulyadej – a date normally observed in a spirit of calm and reverence for the ageing monarch.
(Image: Vincent Thian/AP/PA)
Some debris has been cleared at battle-scarred areas around key government buildings which saw ugly clashes with police earlier in the week.
The several days of street battles abruptly paused yesterday as protesters in the Thai capital gave police flowers after security forces said they would no longer use force against demonstrators trying to storm Yingluck’s offices as well as the city police headquarters.
The unexpected about-turn in tactics followed two days of violent clashes between stone-throwing mobs and police firing tear gas, water cannon and rubber bullets.
Protest leaders say they have not abandoned their campaign to overthrow Yingluck’s administration and curb the political influence of her billionaire brother Thaksin Shinawatra, who was deposed by royalist generals in a coup seven years ago.
Authorities were not worried about the gathering at the police headquarters, said Paradorn Pattanatabut, head of Thailand’s National Security Council today.
“Their movement today is merely to display their power and show that the protests are still continuing,” he added.
(Image: Vincent Thian/AP/PA)
King Bhumibol, the world’s longest-serving monarch, is treated as a near-deity by many in Thailand and any violence on his birthday would be viewed as a serious sign of disrespect.
The elderly monarch has suffered from a range of ailments in recent years. In August, he left the Bangkok hospital where he had lived for several years and moved to his coastal palace in the seaside town of Hua Hin with Queen Sirikit.
A man looks at goods near a portrait of Thai Bhumibol Adulyadej on display, in Bangkok (Image: Vincent Thian/AP/PA).
At the main rally site today, protesters began to sweep up rubbish in preparation for the royal festivities.
“We’re helping to clean up for the King as it is nearly his birthday,” said Palita Nutchoei, 37, wielding a wooden broom at Democracy Monument.
But “we will keep protesting because we feel that we haven’t won yet”, she added.
Thailand’s long-running political conflict broadly pits a Bangkok-based elite backed by the military and the palace against rural and working-class voters loyal to Thaksin, a billionaire businessman-turned-populist politician.
The demonstrations, aimed at toppling Yingluck’s government and replacing it with an unelected “people’s council”, are the biggest and most violent since dozens of people were killed in a crackdown on mass pro-Thaksin rallies in Bangkok three years ago.
(Image: Vincent Thian/AP/PA)
The rallies were triggered by an amnesty bill, since abandoned by the ruling party, which opponents feared would have allowed Thaksin to return to his home country. He fled in 2008 to avoid jail for a corruption conviction he contends is politically motivated.
Police raised the death toll in the clashes so far to five people today, confirming the remains of a young man were found on a bus set ablaze during political unrest in a Bangkok suburb over the weekend.
Protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban, a former deputy premier, late Tuesday said the fight to unseat the government was not over.
“After the king’s birthday, we will start fighting again until we achieve our goal,” he told AFP, explaining that victory would only be secured when “Thailand is rid of the Thaksin regime”.
- © AFP 2013.
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Fair play and thanks to those workers.
@Larry Whack: Fair play to them, but what is the point in all this testing? The purpose of testing is to identify and drive out onward spread. That is fine in a situation where numbers are manageable and there is no vaccine.
We know that the virus is spreading uncontrollably in society and it is going to keep going because of the omicron variant which thankfully seems to be much milder.
The only requirement for testing should be those: 1) working or living with someone vulnerable; 2) requiring international travel; and 3) requiring admission to hospital.
Testing Damo because he was in Coppers and lobbed the gob on a few moths is a huge waste of resources and money. We don’t need to know whether there are 7k cases today or tomorrow. We know it’s out there and will keep going until it burns itself out.
@LaoisWeather: So ‘Damo’ doesn’t interact, live with, meet or visit anybody in categories 1,2 or 3 then?
You need to put a bit more thought into that position I’d say.
@LaoisWeather: Agreed, the indiscriminate use of PCR tests is an ongoing waste of money and time. Also, does anyone know how many amplification cycles they are running these tests at. Is it still 40 to 45 in Ireland?
@LaoisWeather: the point in testing is so people can be responsible in society. If you knowingly have covid and spread it within the community how many people do you think could end up quite sick from it?
@Alan Kennedy: the HSE have published their PCR amplification policy.and where a retest is needed and when a resampling is needed. Link been published here a few times, have not got it to hand but s Google search may help there
@Pat ALTHEA: it also help those vulnerable people, who many says must take responsibility themselves, to know and understand the risk they take. The fewer the cases the lower the risk. Plus we must never lose sight of the fact that about 7 people a day are dying coupled with the strain on the health services. This is why testing and reporting is important, not to mention the fact that positive cases should be isolating at home or in City West.
@Lee King Buckett: Damo can take an antigen test if he’s visiting triple-jabbed granny over the Christmas following his well deserved night out on the tiles. Queuing for a PCR test in the general is a waste of time money and resources.
@LaoisWeather: It’s Mots, not moths.
@LaoisWeather: You only book a PCR test if you have symptoms in which case an antigen test is not sufficient.
This has been repeated a million times and people still don’t get it.
@LaoisWeather: what about if you work with someone who is living with someone vulnerable? What if most of the doctors and nurses get sick at the same time?.
@LaoisWeather: Exactly. Latest estimates are there are approx 30 infections for every case. Test and trace was never a viable strategy.
@LaoisWeather: I just named your ma as a very close contact…
@Larry Whack: yes we should spare a thought for the people swabbing for the next two days. No one turning up for testing is going to have much Christmas spirit. Be kind!!!
@LaoisWeather: how do you know all the cases reported today don’t fall into the categories you mentioned?? I think you should stick to reporting the weather forecast and leave the medical matters to the experts.
@LaoisWeather: I was never in Coppers!!
I hope those workers get some serious overtime pay.
@Sohoma Roanie: they won’t.
@JG: they will
@JG: treble time I’m told. I don’t begrudge them it one bit but there is an entire industry built around Covid-19 and alot of multi nationals making alot of money out of it. While the person in the street gets jabbed and stays safe there doesn’t seem to be any benefit actually as we’re back in a partial lockdown again. You can’t travel to easily and pcr tests are expensive and to be honest I think there is alot of price gouging now.
Amazing sacrifice. Thank you.
There is no need to have this operational on Christmas day. Give the people a break.
@Homes: So are you saying that Covid won’t be active on Xmas day
@In the paper: It doesn’t become active until 8pm.
@In the paper: “so are you saying that covid won’t be active on Xmas day”. Why? Why do people leave infantile comments like this incessantly on every journal article?
@Gerry from the Block: Gerry… you need to read the comments and go back around the block before you comment
@Gerry from the Block: you’re dead right. I think it’s quite obvious what the op was referring to but some can’t help themselves.
@Homes: so you want to deny the people who want to have a covid test from having one on Christmas day despite the sacrifice of those willing to give their time on Christmas day to facilitate this? Remember that people with symptoms are supposed to be isolating and am sure people isolating would like their negative results as soon as possible too.
I add that there is even less a need any day to have pubs or restaurants or any hospitality industry open at all or indeed non essential shops or travel or… the list goes on. We are fighting a pandemic still and trying to balance disease control with allowing socialising with as low a risk as possible. PCR testing would not be necessary if we were all locked down in our homes for two weeks like they did in China.
@Bad Bunny: I think the “covid not active Christmas day” was sarcasm – but I hope people isolating with symptoms today can get a PCR test tomorrow and a negative result in time to be freed from isolation for Stephen’s day thanks to the efforts of those involved
Fair play to them Thank you all Involved
Huge sacrifice from those involved in carrying out testing over the Christmas period . Well done and thanks
Are people that desperate,can they not even take a day off from covert.
@Heisen berg1: But if they did then they would be recognised and risk blowing their cover and the whole operation.
It would be more important to have the vaccine clinics open for those two days than the testing facilities.
Again, incorrect priorities by the HSE.
@Gavin Linden: Did you get a doctorate in virology and immunology in last year’s Christmas cracker? Evidently not, because you’re wrong there. Covid negative people, otherwise normal and healthy, taking the recommended precautions, are no worse off to wait a few days to get boosted. Its suspected cases that need to be diagnosed without delay so they can isolate and treat the symptoms.
@Eoin Roche: Nope…!
@Eoin Roche: I never realised that Doctorate levels of education were required to comment on a particular subject, but there you go…
While not attempting to disagree with someone as qualified as yourself I would point out the following. Given that only 1 in 4 people are testing positive which is quite a low percentage it’s a high waste of resources to accommodate Mary and Johnny swamin in for testing for God knows what reason. Given the obvious level of covid throughout the country and the anticipated surge over the coming weeks, testing should actually be scaled back and used for very specific targeted groups of people.
@Gavin Linden: and how many otherwise well people will go get a vaccine those two days then instead of after their break
It’s time All Front line Staff Got A Decent Pay Rise and HAPPY Christmas to Them All
We had positive antigen yesterday and had to drive over 60 miles to get a test. I know loads of people that just got tested in the past few days for extra peace of mind for the Christmas dinner and it will probably mean people that should really be using hse testing can’t get an appointment because if that, which will probably result in more spread because people will rely on antigen tests if they can’t get a pcr. 1 out of 3 antigens I done were negative.
Damien will want to come into the real world …none available in Galaxy city since early YESTERDAY…
@In the paper:
There is none in Connacht and Clare… is it a computer glitch?
@In the paper:
There is none in Connacht and Clare… is it a computer glitch?
Mind you we are testing 32,000 a day… last Feb we were inly doung 24,000…
System under huge pressure…
@In the paper: testing capacity is 250,000 a week and the variant is rampant
@Patrick O Connell: I am well aware of that….but the power’s to be tell us they have extra staff…and walk in centres …thats great until you need one
@In the paper: and there is extra staff hired but they can only test so much, 12 months ago they only had capacity for 100,000 despite opposition parties stating the opposite. Credit must be given to the HSE for achieving the 250,000
@In the paper: Sounds like COVID is also spreading its tentacles throughout the universe.
I hope that Star-Lord, Drax, Rocket Racoon and the rest stay safe.
Waiting two days for results so far
@John Sadlier: hope you get a negative today and in time to enjoy Christmas – merry Christmas
ridiculous. My wife is 36 weeks pregnant. Rotunda testing clinic is closed for Christmas and can’t get a test with hse.
Wouldn’t be to bad if I could get a booking confirmation.
Stop already, feeding the government machine like
Big Deal
are they walk in PCR centres ?
have your say