Wednesday November 25, 2009

Thai anti-government protesters postpone rally

By Chalathip Thirasoonthrukul and Ambika Ahuja

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Supporters of exiled former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said on Wednesday they had postponed indefinitely an anti-government rally due to start this weekend, which had rattled financial markets.

A demonstrator holds a banner with pictures of exiled former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen during a rally outside the Cambodian Embassy in Bangkok in this October 27, 2009 file photo. (REUTERS/Chaiwat Subprasom/Files)

The red-shirted United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) had planned to rally from Saturday to Tuesday in the historic heart of Bangkok, with marches on key roads in the capital, to press its demand for fresh elections.

But they scratched it, citing loyalty to King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world's longest-reigning monarch, who turns 82 on Dec. 5 and whose birthday celebrations may have been marred by any street violence.

Thai stock prices rose on news of the postponement.

The king, seen as Thailand's sole unifying figure over a long series of military coups and constitutional experiments, has been in hospital since Sept. 19.

In largely Buddhist Thailand, he is seen as semi-divine.

"We want to show responsibility for the country and show our loyalty to the king. So the red shirts have decided to postpone the protest indefinitely," a UDD leader, Veera Musikapong, told reporters, adding that a government plan to impose a tough security law in Bangkok for the rally was "an overreaction".

On Wednesday, Thaksin called on his supporters to reconsider the protest, saying it was "not the right time", said a Puea Thai party member, Surapong Tovichakchaikul, adding that the former leader had telephoned in to the opposition party meeting.

BACKFIRING

Some analysts said any chaos or violence ahead of the royal celebrations might have backfired against Thaksin, especially among his more moderate supporters.

"It is likely to have been a calculated move," said Sombat Thamrongthanyawong, a political scientist at the National Institute of Development Administration.

"On the one hand, they can't afford to let the government stay in power for long if they want to win the next elections by a big margin. On the other hand, they don't want to pay a price in terms of public opinion by pushing a protest under such circumstances. That's the dilemma."

Veera said the UDD leadership would meet again in mid-December to decide their next move. Official celebrations for the king's birthday are set to end on Dec. 13.

A government spokesman, Panitan Wattanayagorn, said Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva was still reviewing plans to travel to Chiang Mai province, Thaksin's home area in northern Thailand, on Sunday.

The visit has raised security concerns, especially after an indirect threat on his life by a protest leader in the province.

After two unprecedented election victories, Thaksin was ousted in a coup in 2006 and now lives in self-imposed exile, mostly in Dubai, after fleeing ahead of a two-year prison sentence for graft.

He remains widely popular among the rural and urban poor who benefited from his populist policies but is deeply reviled by the elites in Bangkok.

(Editing by Jason Szep)

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