Taxi motorcyclists win retraction
The Naew Na newspaper yesterday bowed to pressure from taxi motorcyclists to correct a report that they had been paid to attend the pro-Thaksin rally on Friday.
About 200 taxi motorcyclists gathered in front of its office yesterday. The Thai-language newspaper had reported the riders were signing up for money to join the rally when in fact they were giving their telephone numbers and addresses for contact. "We taxi motorcyclists have never been paid by anyone. We gathered on that day because Thaksin helped us to have a permanent occupation and ensured we don't have to pay protection money to local influential people. No government had done this much for us before. We love our dignity. The media shouldn't have treated us like this," said Surayud Kamolpradit, 30, a taxi motorcyclist from Bangkok's Huay Kwang district who led the group. He threatened to gather in front of the newspaper's office every day if it did not retract its report. Pol Maj-Gen Amnuay Nimmano, commander of the Metropolitan Police Bureau's division 2, said the motorcyclists gave their contact details for help in case any of them were bullied.
Kornwika Kongdejsakda The Nation
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