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Thai Premier warns of "nightmare" as opponents begin fresh protest

P. S. Suryanarayana

Activists ask the King to appoint a new head of Government

FOR PEACE: Thousands of Buddhist monks gather to pray for peace near the Royal Palace in Bangkok on Saturday. -- PHOTO: AP

SINGAPORE: The opponents of Thailand's Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra began organising a new rally in Bangkok on Saturday night, appealing to the revered King, the constitutional monarch, to appoint a new head of government.

By nightfall, there was no definitive indication from the King or his advisers. The Opposition has been holding weekly anti-Thaksin rallies, and the Prime Minister' office in Bangkok is still under a symbolic "blockade."

At the other end of the political spectrum, Mr. Thaksin stayed the course in his campaign for the April 2 snap general election, which the Opposition vowed to boycott, alleging that his abuse of authority and corrupt practices had already vitiated the proposed poll.

Battle of attrition

With the King and his advisers monitoring the situation, the protagonists on both sides of the political divide intensified their battle of attrition. Mr. Thaksin warned the country of a "nightmare" if the ongoing poll process were to be rolled back. He called upon the Opposition to "respect people power" and "respect the democratic process."

The Opposition Alliance for Democracy, an umbrella group of activists including academics and politicians, was quick to counter with the argument that it was Mr. Thaksin who was steering the country towards a "nightmare" by refusing to call off the imminent parliamentary elections.

The electoral authorities, requisitioned by the Opposition to cancel the scheduled general election, took the line that the poll decree, which was issued with the King's approval, had not been withdrawn.

At the centre of the current controversies is the accusation that Mr. Thaksin is trying to "subvert" the democratic process by refusing to call off a poll that he is alleged to have ordered only to "whitewash" his political excesses. These excesses, according to the Opposition, ranged from alleged human rights violations in the battles against drug traffickers as also "Muslim insurgents" in the Buddhist kingdom, at one end, to a blatant "manipulation of the tax laws" to suit the business interests of his family.

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