If peace is not achieved soon, country could be in for bigger urban warfare/Reds ready for truce talks, but dangerous showdowns continue/Thaksin again described as the real mastermind seeking heavy casualties
Thailand teetered yesterday between a last chance for peace and what could be even bigger urban warfare than has already occurred these past few days.
It all hinges on behind-the-scenes talks reportedly taking place and whether increasingly uncontrollable pockets of angry protesters can be reined in.
The casualty toll slowed its climb a bit during the day, but many observers believed the night could explode into something worse than the wee hours of yesterday morning. That is when grenades hit the prestigious Dusit Thani Hotel, trapping terrified guests, reporters and staff in a dimly lit basement until dawn.
Despite the red shirts' apparently softened stance, underlined by their leaders' readiness for unconditional truce talks, angry protesters outside of the Rajprasong rally site continued dangerous showdowns with troops throughout the day. The turmoil spread upcountry, with Chon Buri's Laem Chabang Port threatened and roads blocked in Khon Kaen.
A moment for optimism came early in the afternoon. Sources from the Pheu Thai Party disclosed a last-minute agreement had been reached for the government to revive the November 14 election pledge and grant the red leaders some legal guarantees, with the Rajprasong rally being ended in exchange.
If hope was not completely shattered, it was undermined by continued tensions between troops and out-of-control protesters, culminating in a major scare in the evening when a petrol lorry was commandeered and parked in Klong Toei district with a fire lit underneath its rear end.
The battles in Klong Toei's Bon Kai community continued sporadically, albeit with less intensity than in previous days. The red shirts managed to expand their perimeter on Rama IV Road to the Klong Toei intersection, beyond the Expressway. What looked like a permanent alternative stage to Rajprasong was set up, although the area looked more like a war zone.
Bon Kai is a largely red community, and a rally stage there could serve several strategic purposes. But questions remain over how independent the Bon Kai reds are or can be from the Rajprasong leaders, who yesterday looked more eager to hold talks with the government than ever before.
The government continued to pile on the pressure, asking the protesters to leave Rajprasong immediately after a 3pm deadline. However, high-ranking sources gave different signals as to whether a compromise was close.
The latest Centre for the Resolu-tion of the Emergency Situation announcements continued to brand the three-day bloodshed as an operation against "terrorists". Ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was again described as the real mastermind from afar, wanting to create heavy casualties to discredit the Abhisit Vejjajiva government. Newsmen, rescue workers and bystanders, as well as innocent red protesters, were warned they could be snipers' targets and urged to stay away from sensitive areas.
The financial crackdown on their alleged main sponsors seemed to affect the rank and file at Rajprasong but not those running amok elsewhere. But some observers believed last night could make or break the anti-government campaign, with troops looking to stage a major sweep of Lumpini Park, the alleged stronghold of red militants accused of stacking sizeable weaponry there.
Prime Minister Abhisit was again quiet, but his arch-rival, Thaksin, managed to create a new stir when a photo was circulated on the Internet showing him and one of his daughters in a glamorous shop in Paris. The picture was purportedly taken over the weekend, when Bangkok, as some newspapers put it, was burning and his supporters - whom he vowed to return for "when the first bullet is fired" - were either dropping or defying Army bullets.