Protest leader shot dead in Bangkok unrest
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Anti-government demonstrators trying to derail contentious elections due in Thailand next week swarmed dozens of polling stations yesterday, chaining them shut to prevent hundreds of thousands of people casting ballots in advance voting.
A protest faction leader was shot dead in a confrontation near a polling station that also left 11 people wounded, and isolated street brawls broke out in several parts of Bangkok.
BangkokÕs emergency medical center said at least one person was killed in the clash in southeast Bangkok.
The slain man was Sutin Tharatin, a protest faction leader who was shot in the head, according to Suriyasai Katasila, a politician who was close to him.
The chaos underscored the increasing powerlessness of Prime Minister Yingluck ShinawatraÕs democratically elected administration, which had called the February 2 vote in a failed bid to ease months of street protests and declared a state of emergency last week. Police took no action to disperse the crowds, following government orders aimed at avoiding violence that could trigger a military coup.
Although most polling stations in Bangkok and many in the opposition stronghold in the south were forced to close, voting proceeded largely unhindered in the rest of the country.
Still, the upheaval proved that demonstrators struggling to overthrow Yingluck have the ability to disrupt the main vote, which the Election Commission also wants postponed.
Ruling party officials suggested over the weekend that they were willing to delay the ballot, but only if protests end and the main opposition party abandons its boycott.
There has been no sign yet that YingluckÕs rivals would agree to any deal, however, and yesterdayÕs unrest appeared likely to push the two sides further apart.
Suthida Sungkhapunthu, a 28-year-old office worker, turned back from one polling station after reading news of the mayhem on her phone.
ÒI saw this coming but IÕm still quite disappointed,Ó she said, denouncing the protesters as Òundemocratic.Ó
All across Bangkok, demonstrators waving the Thai flag physically blocked electoral officials, ballot boxes and voters from getting inside polling centers, ultimately prompting officials to shut at least 48 of the cityÕs 50 voting stations.
In the south, 11 more voting stations were also shut, bringing the total number closed to 59 out of 152 nationwide.
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