Thailand agrees to cease-fire - if protesters return to base
Source: Agencies |
May 18, 2010, Tuesday
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THE Thai government yesterday accepted a cease-fire offer from a Red Shirt protest leader if their fighters return to their camp in central Bangkok, as street battles that have killed 37 people raged for a fifth day.
The offer was made by Red Shirt leader Nattawut Saikuwa, who called the government's chief negotiator, Korbsak Sabhavasu, on his cell phone.
It was the first direct talks between the two sides since the fighting started last Thursday, but Korbsak said it was unlikely to achieve much as the two sides remained far apart.
Nattawut's response was not immediately known.
Earlier, a Thai government ultimatum passed for the thousands of protesters to vacate the barricaded encampment by 3pm or face up to two years in prison.
Unrest flared in parts of the downtown area outside the barricades, with troops firing live ammunition at protesters who were lighting tires to hide their positions. The thick smoke darkened the sky.
The Red Shirts, many from the impoverished north and northeast, are trying to unseat Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and force immediate elections.
They say the coalition government came to power through manipulation of the courts and the backing of the powerful military, and that it symbolizes a national elite indifferent to their plight.
Previous attempts to negotiate an end to the two-month standoff, which has destabilized a country once regarded as one of Southeast Asia's most stable nations, have failed.
A government offer this month to hold November elections floundered after protest leaders made more demands.
Korbsak said he talked to Nattawut for five minutes, during which the Red Shirt leader proposed a cease-fire.
He said he told Nattawut that the army would stop shooting if he pulled his fighters back from the streets to the core protest site.
"If they call their people back to Rajprasong there will be no single bullet fired by the soldiers," he said, referring to the 3-square-kilometer area in central Bangkok where thousands of Red Shirt protesters are encamped.
"If he is serious about solving the problem he is capable of doing it. He can simply call back his people. Once he calls them back who would the troops shoot at?"
The Rajprasong area is encircled by troops in a wide perimeter, and protesters have spilled out into surrounding streets that have become a battleground. At least 37 people - nearly all civilians - have been killed and more than 250 injured.
The political conflict is Thailand's deadliest and most prolonged in decades, and each passing day of violence deeply divides this nation of 65 million.
It is unknown how many people are rioting outside the main protest zone.
Also yesterday, the so-called military strategist of the Red Shirts, who was shot in the head in an apparent sniper attack last week, died from his injuries.
The shooting last Thursday of Khattiya Sawasdiphol sparked the latest unrest and his death raised fears violence could get worse.
The offer was made by Red Shirt leader Nattawut Saikuwa, who called the government's chief negotiator, Korbsak Sabhavasu, on his cell phone.
It was the first direct talks between the two sides since the fighting started last Thursday, but Korbsak said it was unlikely to achieve much as the two sides remained far apart.
Nattawut's response was not immediately known.
Earlier, a Thai government ultimatum passed for the thousands of protesters to vacate the barricaded encampment by 3pm or face up to two years in prison.
Unrest flared in parts of the downtown area outside the barricades, with troops firing live ammunition at protesters who were lighting tires to hide their positions. The thick smoke darkened the sky.
The Red Shirts, many from the impoverished north and northeast, are trying to unseat Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and force immediate elections.
They say the coalition government came to power through manipulation of the courts and the backing of the powerful military, and that it symbolizes a national elite indifferent to their plight.
Previous attempts to negotiate an end to the two-month standoff, which has destabilized a country once regarded as one of Southeast Asia's most stable nations, have failed.
A government offer this month to hold November elections floundered after protest leaders made more demands.
Korbsak said he talked to Nattawut for five minutes, during which the Red Shirt leader proposed a cease-fire.
He said he told Nattawut that the army would stop shooting if he pulled his fighters back from the streets to the core protest site.
"If they call their people back to Rajprasong there will be no single bullet fired by the soldiers," he said, referring to the 3-square-kilometer area in central Bangkok where thousands of Red Shirt protesters are encamped.
"If he is serious about solving the problem he is capable of doing it. He can simply call back his people. Once he calls them back who would the troops shoot at?"
The Rajprasong area is encircled by troops in a wide perimeter, and protesters have spilled out into surrounding streets that have become a battleground. At least 37 people - nearly all civilians - have been killed and more than 250 injured.
The political conflict is Thailand's deadliest and most prolonged in decades, and each passing day of violence deeply divides this nation of 65 million.
It is unknown how many people are rioting outside the main protest zone.
Also yesterday, the so-called military strategist of the Red Shirts, who was shot in the head in an apparent sniper attack last week, died from his injuries.
The shooting last Thursday of Khattiya Sawasdiphol sparked the latest unrest and his death raised fears violence could get worse.
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