For a while yesterday it appeared as if peace was being given a chance. Though both sides continued to refuse to budge, for the first time proper attempts seemed to have been made for truce talks to start. Or, at the very least, somebody was trying to be a mediator.
That is until Thaksin Shinawatra showed up on his video-link. The hour-long address largely repeated what he had said the day before, with one new crucial element - a no-holds barred attack on the National Human Rights Commission.
After much coaxing, the NHRC had managed to get the rival camps to utter the word "negotiation" in public yesterday, though their declared conditions were not that new.
The red shirts insisted that Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva dissolve the House of Representatives before heading to the negotiation table, while he, in turn, said the protesters should behave better before talks could begin.
A TALL ORDER
Abhisit's demand was a tall order, particularly with the red shirts planning a Bangkok-wide campaign tomorrow. Thousands of vehicles will be sent to various corners of the city, though the intention of this action remains unclear.
To add to that, reds from Samut Prakan are threatening to place plastic bags filled with human excrement at various locations deemed symbolically hostile toward the movement.
However, neither side took the NHRC to task, though Thaksin took up that job, slamming the panel's political "prejudice" in his emotional address to his supporters. This outburst will give the red-shirt leaders, who were obviously waiting for a signal, with no option but to renounce the NHRC's initiative.
The number of protesters on Rajdamnoen Avenue dropped to below 10,000 yesterday, the lowest since the campaign to oust the Abhisit government began last week. Thaksin, apparently worried, repeatedly asked his supporters to "hold on a bit longer".
"What happened to me is of the least significance compared to what happened to our country," he said.
The fast-dwindling number could also force the red shirts to become more aggressive. Yesterday, they threatened to hound Abhisit wherever he goes, after upsetting his family by pouring their own blood in front of his house on Wednesday.
"I don't think we can negotiate with a government that is acting so superior," said red leader Jatuporn Promphan. "Talks have to be held on equal ground." His accusation is not too far from reality. High-ranking government sources said their strategy was to be patient, ensure that there are no untoward incidents and let the rally lose steam and wilt.
For Abhisit, his statement yesterday could have been interpreted as a "willingness" to negotiate. But looking closer, he could simply have been saying what he had to. On TV, flanked by human-rights commissioners, he could hardly say the government would never negotiate. Saying that talks are only possible if the red shirts behave themselves was a smart move, because whenever protesters cause trouble, he can point and say: "This is why I'm not negotiating."
The red-shirt movement yesterday remained in the process of rebuilding the rally. Red-shirt leader Veera Musigapong announced on stage last night that Pheu Thai MPs were now ready to help the campaign. If true, this could be a big boost, since the MPs' virtual non-involvement had badly affected the rally in terms of the numbers of protesters and immediate funding.
But Veera's statement later also needs to be interpreted. "[On Saturday] we will go around paying courtesy calls to Bangkokians. After that, 1 million protesters will come back to gather at this venue again to show our force, if not to celebrate victory," he said.
Was he suggesting the red shirts would return home after these "courtesy calls"? Wouldn't that be against Thaksin's plea for protesters to hold on for another week? Or is Veera just saying that red shirts are now ready for a mighty reinforcement? Which scenario is correct will be known very soon.
