Anything & Everything About Thailand

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The Nation dated Tuesday 28 March 2006 :-

City malls preparing for rally 'chaos'

Plans by the People's Alliance to camp in central Bangkok have alarmed retail executives, who fear business will be hit

The Siam Paragon shopping mall and other upscale retail outlets in central Bang-kok started preparing for "chaos" yesterday as anti-Thaksin demonstrators unveiled plans to camp in front of their premises for three days, from tomorrow.

Siam Paragon, the city's largest retail complex, said it would consider closing temporarily if the situation gets out of hand.

Paiboon Kanokwattanawan, senior vice president of The Mall Group, which co-owns the multi-billion-baht complex, said management could not stop people from staging the rally, scheduled to take place ahead of Sunday's national election.

"However, if the situation gets chaotic, we could close the doors temporarily," he said, admitting that massive rallies could turn off foreign tourists. Foreign visitors are some of the mall's main customers.

Suriyasai Katasila, spokesman for the People's Alliance for Demo-cracy (PAD), said the anti-Thaksin movement had decided to camp out at Siam Paragon and nearby areas so it could be joined more easily by working and middle-class people.

"We want to step up the pressure on Thaksin to quit [before the April 2 poll]. Over there, we can hand out leaflets and spread information about Thaksin's misdeeds to more people," he said. Demonstrators would also ensure they do not disturb Royal Family members who live in the nearby Sa Pathum palace.

Siam Paragon's top executives held an urgent meeting yesterday, led by Chadatip Chutrakul and Supaluck Ampujh in response to the PAD's planned camp-out.

Tomorrow, Paragon is scheduled to kick off its first summer sale since the mall opened its doors in December. "The 1st Midnight Phenomenon" will run from 6pm to 10pm. The campaign, which is being run with its affiliate The Emporium complex further down Sukhumvit Road, is expected to generate some Bt800 million in sales.

Also tomorrow, exhibitors at the Bangkok International Toys Show 2006 are expected to start bringing in items for the show, which will run from Saturday until April 10. HRH Princess Somsavali has reportedly been confirmed to preside over the opening ceremony.

"We have sent invitations to VIP guests and we don't know what to do as the demonstration will cause severe traffic congestion," said a source at The Mall Group who asked not to be named.

She said that as the area is privately owned the demonstrators would have to ask for the owner's permission first. "Till now, there has been no official request to use the area."

While Siam Paragon prefers to wait another day before making any move, the nearby Siam Centre decided to delay a fashion parade to showcase Thai fashion designers, due to take place in front of Siam Discovery Centre on Friday.

On Sunday, The Emporium closed its main entrance for two hours after protesters staged a rally inside the shopping complex and became involved in quarrels with the store's security guards. Other malls, such as Central World Plaza, Central Chidlom and Erawan Bangkok, however, have warned that their businesses could be hit hard if protests are held in downtown areas for an extended period.

"This would inevitably hurt shoppers' sentiment. We're closely monitoring the situation," said Preecha Ekkunagul, president of Robinson Department Store, which has an outlet on Sukhumvit 19.

Police, meanwhile, warned that city traffic could grind to a halt if the anti-Thaksin movement occupied all traffic lanes near Siam Paragon. "The rally there will wreak havoc," Deputy Prime Minister Chidchai Vanasatidya said after meeting with security agencies. He said he hoped PAD would review its decision.

Traffic Police chief Maj-General Wissanu Kerdlarpphol said if the PAD set up stages on Rama I Road, half of the capital's traffic would be paralysed.

He said the gridlock would spread to Sukhumvit Road, Phetchaburi Road and Phya Thai Road. Inbound traffic on Paholyothin and Vibhavadi-Rangsit roads would bear the brunt, he said.

"Personally, I think the PAD has made this decision to deliberately cause havoc because the rally could take place anywhere," Wissanu said. He said the PAD should rally on Henri Dunant Road instead.

At the moment he had no mandate to stop the demonstrators from going to Siam Paragon.

National Police assistant commissioner Achirawit Suphan-naphesat, called on the PAD to sympathise with other people in the capital.

"The traffic around Pathumwan Intersection (close to Siam Paragon) is already congested. The rally will just aggravate the conditions," he said.

Ekkaporn Rakkwamsuk, a Thai Rak Thai candidate, said the PAD was now causing problems. "It has caused an adverse impact on traffic as well as on Bangkok residents. It's coming close to breaking the law," he said.

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The Nation dated Tuesday 28 March 2006 :-

Trio chases Thaksin from Silom

Caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra finally met his match on Silom Road yesterday when hostile shopkeepers shouting "Thaksin get out!" hounded him out of a popular shopping area.

Thaksin's face turned ashen as a trio of female shopkeepers unleashed a verbal assault in a shopping mall near the headquarters of Bangkok Bank.

Unlike many of his critics, the women appeared without a script.

Thaksin has been able to handle the high-profile trio of Sondhi Limthongkul, Chamlong Srimuang and Thirayuth Boonmee, as well as the countless academics and media pundits who have lined up against him.

But he was caught off guard by the onslaught from the irate shopkeepers and appeared completely at a loss as to what to do.

Thaksin immediately cancelled his plans to do a bit of shopping at a market in a soi near Trinity Complex.

To some that witnessed the premier being driven off by shouts from contemptuous shopkeepers, the incident signified a shift from organised to spontaneous protests.

The harangue began while Thaksin was having lunch with Thai Rak Thai MP candidates Chakrapob Penkair and Orathai Thanajaro in the food court at Trinity Complex.

He told reporters that he selected the venue because it was not "luxurious" and was near a market in Soi Lalaisap where he intended to do spend Bt400 to Bt500 shopping.

But Thaksin's down-market visit turned into high drama while he and his companions were dining on noodles and somtam.

A female shopkeeper emerged from nowhere and created the first scene. She shouted, "Thaksin get out!"

Her shout drew others. One screamed: "Thaksin, seller of the national assets!"

The fury was impromptu and raw. Thaksin appeared stunned by it, but managed to finish his lunch.

At about 12.30 his son Panthongtae joined him and they departed the food court.

But they had walked less than 10 steps when one of the shopkeepers who had accosted Thaksin earlier climbed to the second floor of the car park opposite them and began shouting, "Thaksin get out!"

A group of bystanders clapped their hands in support of her.

Thaksin waved at the lady and tried to persuade her to come down to talk to him, but she refused.

Panthongtae looked up at the shouting shopkeeper and, according to one witness, said: "B...tch!"

Varaporn, the 45-year-old shopkeeper who first yelled at Thaksin (she declined to give her last name), said she would only let camera crews from ASTV and UBC film her.

In an interview with ASTV she said many shopkeepers in the area, most of whom sell garments and gifts, disliked Thaksin but only a few were bold enough to shout at him.

One shout was not enough, so she continued yelling and others joined her, she said.

But Thaksin supporters were there too, and they also began yelling.

The prime minister cancelled his shopping trip and headed for Ban Phitsanulok instead.

Chamlong Srimuang, a leader of the People's Alliance for Democracy, praised the shopkeepers' bravery.

"How can the prime minister continue to hang on [after this kind of verbal attack]? He should have resigned by now," Chamlong said.

Varaporn said that after Thaksin left a middle-aged man in a safari suit photographed her at her shop.

She said she tried to prevent him from taking her photo, but he claimed he was an investigator from Thung Mahamek Police Station and said she could pick up the photos there if she wanted to.

"I don't understand what's wrong with yelling like this. It's my right to express my opinion," she said.

She then called the police station to ask the superintendent about the man.

The superintendent said the man was not an officer at the station.

Colonel Charoen Srisasaluk, the station's superintendent, said he had talked to Varaporn. The man she described was not an officer at his station and he would investigate the matter, he said.

Last year most of the shopkeepers in Soi Lalaisap voted for Thaksin's Thai Rak Thai Party and welcomed him warmly when he campaigned there, Varaporn said. But now they are upset with the government's policy on free trade and the privatisation of Egat, she said.

A 32-year-old garment seller named Piangpen, who asked that her surname not be published, said that before Thaksin arrived at the mall, two men tried to distribute roses to the shopkeepers so they could present them to Thaksin. The shopkeepers refused.

Yesterday's incident was not the first time a member of the Shinawatra family encountered verbal harassment.

Thaksin's wife, Khunying Pojaman, was called "thick face" (meaning thick-skinned) while shopping at The Emporium with her daughter Paethongtarn a couple of months ago.

Thaksin last night flew to Chiang Mai, saying he needed a short break. He will attend today's Cabinet meeting via teleconferencing.

[U-Need]

A 'Fragile Foundation'; Massive anti-Thaksin street protests underscore a growing disillusionment with democracy in Asia.

By George Wehrfritz and Joe Cochrane; With Marites Vitug in Manila, Jonathan Adams in Taipei and B. J. Lee in Seoul
1000 words
3 April 2006

It might look as if history were repeating itself: just as in the 1970s, ' 80s and '90s, defiant protesters have taken to Bangkok's streets in a bid to oust a Thai leader they revile. Yet this time their nemesis isn't a swaggering general who seized power in a coup, but a populist prime minister who won re-election in a landslide barely a year ago. Thaksin Shinawatra, say his critics, has abused state power to enrich himself and undermine representative government. But that doesn't negate the irony on display as self-professed democrats attempt to oust a still-popular elected leader--with force, not votes. "It's the only way to fight a tyrant," says anti-Thaksin political analyst Chaiyan Chaiporn.

What about elections? Thaksin has called a snap vote for this Sunday--yet, knowing he'd win handily (rural Thais remain steadfastly loyal), the three main opposition parties have opted to boycott the contest and even appealed to Thailand's revered monarch, King Bhumibol Adulyadej, to name a new leader. Their frustration with the electoral system has echoes across the region's youngest democracies. Protesters in the Philippines have similarly sought to oust an elected president, and even in South Korea and Taiwan, voters are increasingly tuning out of a shrill and deadlocked political culture. Indeed, what Chu Yun-han, professor of political science at National Taiwan University (NTU), calls "democracy fatigue" is spreading from Seoul to Jakarta.

The disillusionment has grown because the social improvements people dreamed of when first casting their votes haven't materialized. The East Asian Barometer, an annual comparative study of political attitudes in 10 East Asian nations, has recorded consistent dissatisfaction with democratic governance since 2001. According to a recent poll, just 41 percent of respondents in Taiwan, and 49 percent in South Korea, agree with the idea that "democracy is the best system under all circumstances." In the Philippines and Thailand, "sympathy for authoritarian alternatives" runs so high, says Chu, that democracy rests "on a rather fluid and fragile foundation."

Part of the problem is that elections have in many cases failed to produce cleaner, fairer governance. In the Philippines, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has never come clean about her role in a 2004 vote-rigging scandal despite an opposition-led impeachment drive and the resignation of key ministers in protest. That led to a recent coup attempt (the nation's ninth since dictator Ferdinand Marcos fled the country in 1986) and talks for her to resign. Many of those calling for her early departure picture themselves as champions of democracy. "The distrust for this administration has become so deep that an alternative most people do not like suddenly becomes attractive to them," says Guillermo Luz of the Makati Business Club, an elite group of executives.

Where elections have been close or contested, as in the United States in 2000, politics have also become nastily partisan. In Taiwan, President Chen Shui-bian's narrow re-election triumph in 2004, just one day after he was shot and slightly injured in an assassination attempt, has spawned a cottage industry of conspiracy theories. "Before the election, there was enough mistrust already. And many people were hoping, after the election, we could start over," says NTU political scientist Huang Chang-ling. "But the shooting and controversy afterward made things even worse." So has media sensationalism: much of what fills TV airtime in Taiwan are politicians playing to the cameras over minor disputes. "The smaller the differences, the fiercer the fight," says Shelley Rigger, a Taiwan expert from Davidson College in North Carolina.

While the West is no stranger to such vitriolic partisanship, Asia's young democracies are still plagued by relatively immature political institutions. Since military rule ended in the 1980s, for instance, South Korea has enacted laws befitting a modern democracy. Yet experts say that politics remains hamstrung by a culture guided by charismatic figures and a "gotcha" media culture. "On the surface, Korean democracy has improved greatly over the past two decades," says Lee Jung Hee, a political scientist at the Hankook University of Foreign Studies in Seoul. "But in reality, it is still mired in the old political paradigm of empty promises appealing to shallow emotions." The country's prime minister, Lee Hae Chan, resigned this month after being spotted playing golf with allegedly corrupt businessmen. Seoul Mayor Lee Myung Bak, a presidential contender from a rival party, has been slammed by the media and political opponents for playing tennis at an exclusive city court without paying fees.

Voter turnout still remains high everywhere, but public cynicism runs deep. In Thailand, the middle-class protesters furious at Thaksin simply don't trust elections to produce good leaders. Media mogul Sondhi Limthongkul, a key member of the anti-Thaksin alliance, believes the rural Thais who form the backbone of Thaksin's support are too uneducated and easily manipulated to be allowed to choose the country's next leader.

The campaign to oust Thaksin, driven by Bangkok's middle and upper classes, has thus taken on undertones of a class war. If balloting goes ahead this weekend, the poor are likely to vote in large numbers, and largely for the prime minister. But the opposition's boycott could push voter turnout low enough that many pro-Thaksin candidates fail to garner ballots from 20 percent of eligible voters, the legal threshold to claim seats in Parliament. That could force another election, or more demonstrations on Bangkok's streets. Either way, the partisan split will be deepened, and the ultimate casualty could be democracy itself. "People in other countries protest for elections, but here they are protesting against elections," observes Chayachoke Chulasiriwongs, a lecturer at Chulalongkorn University. They should be careful what they wish for.

[U-Need]

BANGKOK, March 28 (TNA) - Anti-Thaksin demonstrators led by the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) on Monday rejected a call that they temporarily end their rallies and resume the anti-government movement after the April 2 general election.

Core members of the PAD, including Maj. Gen. Chamlong Srimuang and Mr. Suriyasai Katasila, insisted that the PAD would continue to fight on the way to garner wider public support until its aim to oust caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is achieved.

Earlier, a leading Thai academic and one of Mr. Thaksin's arch critics, proposed that the anti-Thaksin campaigners end their rallies to respect people's electoral rights and resume their demonstrations with wider public support after the election when more wrongdoings of the single Thai Rak Thai Party government would be seen.

The leading academic, Thirayuth Boonmee, who is a Thammasat University lecturer and a former democratic movement leader, suggested that the constitution be sustained by observing the people's rights.

"An administration can be suspended, but the charter courses must be upheld," he said.

A core of the constitution focuses on respecting people's rights and decisions through elections, he noted.

The election law bans rallies after 18:00 hours on the eve of the election day. (TNA)--E002

[U-Need]

234 words
28 March 2006
English

Bangkok Post:

-- A leading scholar has proposed a change in strategy by the anti-Thaksin movement, but leading members of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) say it would be difficult to implement.

Thirayuth Boonmi, an eminent sociologist, outlined his proposals and a string of dire predictions Monday, suggesting they take a strategic break, let the April 2 elections go ahead and then slowly rebuild momentum.

The Nation:

-- The Siam Paragon shopping mall and other upscale retail outlets in central Bang-kok started preparing for "chaos" Monday as anti-Thaksin demonstrators unveiled plans to camp in front of their premises for three days, from Wednesday.

Siam Paragon, the city's largest retail complex, said it would consider closing temporarily if the situation gets out of hand.

Sing Sian Yit Pao:

-- A Chinese diplomat said in Beijing that China will probably sign cooperation agreements with Australia on peaceful use of nuclear energy and uranium mining during Premier Wen Jiabao's upcoming visit to Australia.

Liu Jieyi, director of the North American and Oceanian Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said at a news briefing about Wen's visit to Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Cambodia that the cooperation between China and Australia has seen "good" and "substantial" progress.

[U-Need]

By ALISA TANG
The Associated Press

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) — Since Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra took office five years ago, dozens of journalists who criticized the government have been fired or sued for libel, television talk shows have been canceled and radio stations yanked off the air.

Thaksin, a telecom tycoon-turned-politician, has repeatedly blasted reporters who question his policies as ignorant and unpatriotic. He and his close associates have taken over media companies and pressured journalists into subservience, taming what was once hailed as one of Asia's freest presses.

But as an anti-Thaksin movement has gained momentum with almost daily street protests, journalists have begun to report the news as they see it — not as the premier wants it seen. And even state-owned outlets are offering more coverage of government opponents.
"When people rose to criticize Thaksin, the media — whether they worked for the state or not — could no longer close its eyes and ears and pretend not to see it and not report it," said Pattara Khumphitak, president of the Thai Journalists Association and political editor of the Post Today.

Late last year, tens of thousands of protesters started demonstrating and calling for Thaksin's resignation on allegations of corruption, but most television stations did not even mention that an anti-Thaksin movement was brewing.

Then as the movement gained momentum, Thaksin dissolved parliament and called snap elections, and the press had to cover the news the people in power could no longer cover up.

Thailand's media have been threatened since Thaksin became prime minister in 2001.

Shortly after he took office, Shin Corp., the telecom giant once owned by his family, fired 21 journalists from its ITV television station. The journalists, who won a court case and years of back pay for being illegally dismissed, claimed they were pressured to downplay negative news about Thaksin and his Thai Rak Thai party.

The dismissals turned out to be a harbinger of more attacks on the media.

Several television and radio talk shows were subsequently taken off the air, editors and reporters were fired, and the government liberally filed lawsuits against its critics.

[U-Need]

468 words
28 March 2006
English

BANGKOK POST:

- A time-bomb was found at the Democrat party's head office yesterday morning and defused before it exploded.

- The shifting of an anti-Thaksin rally to the street outside the Siam Paragon shopping mall tomorrow evening has raised fears of major traffic snarls in downtown Bangkok.

- The privatisation process of PTT Plc, formerly the Petroleum Authority of Thailand, was properly managed, says Piyasvasti Amranand, a former top energy technocrat.

- Dhanarak Asset Management plans to issue 8.2 billion baht worth of securitised bonds in the fourth quarter.

- Robinson Department Store Plc plans to open 10 new outlets over the next five years after exiting business rehabilitation last year.

- ING Funds (Thailand) is embarking on an aggressive plan to improve the efficiency of its local network and increase its distribution channels.

- SET-listed Ascon Construction Plc plans to gain 15% of a targeted 1.5 billion baht in revenue through its involvement in government megaprojects.

THE NATION:

- Plans by the People's Alliance to camp in central Bangkok have alarmed retail executives, who fear business will be hit.

- Caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra finally met his match on Silom Road yesterday when hostile shopkeepers shouting "Thaksin get out!" hounded him out of a popular shopping area.

- Masterkool International Co, a firm specialising in outdoor water-mist cooling systems, plans to spend Bt60 million this year to increase its production capacity and create a domestic market among homeowners.

- Foreign tourist arrivals to Thailand in January and February rose over the same period in 2005, a high-season tainted by fallout from the tsunami in late 2004, according to statistics compiled by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT).

- The Finance Ministry conceded yesterday that the government's cash flow is slowing, but insisted that the problem will ease over the next two months when tax revenues start flowing in.

- Liquor producer Thai Beverage Plc yesterday announced net profit for 2005 of Bt10.41 billion, or Bt0.47 per share, virtually unchanged from 2004's Bt10.42 billion and Bt0.47 per share.

- The government and sugar millers agreed to supply 4 million tonnes of sugar for local consumption this week to prevent a shortage.

- Unilever Thai Trading yesterday launched an Bt80-million marketing campaign to promote its sun-block creams, with hopes of expanding sales of those products by at least 20 per cent this summer.

- Ascon Construction Plc, a medium-sized builder, plans to acquire a construction firm that has experience in state projects as it wants to take part in bidding for government infrastructure jobs this year.

- Central Group is using Chiang Mai's boutique hotels as a channel to lure high-spending international tourists to its Jing Jai Market.

[U-Need]

88 words
28 March 2006
09:33
Dow Jones International News

BANGKOK (Dow Jones)--Thailand's MCOT PCL (MCOT.TH), a state-controlled television broadcaster, may buy iTV PCL (ITV.TH), the Post Today reported quoting a government source.

The paper said MCOT may turn iTV into a 24-hour news channel after the possible takeover which could cost MCOT more than THB10 billion.

[U-Need]

371 words
28 March 2006
08:01
Agence France Presse

Singapore's Temasek Holdings announced Tuesday that it had agreed to buy a nearly 12 percent stake in Standard Chartered PLC, making it the biggest shareholder in the British bank.

The estate of Singaporean billionaire Khoo Teck Puat, who died in 2004, agreed to sell 152.4 million shares representing 11.55 percent of Standard Chartered's ordinary share capital to Dover Investments, a subsidiary of state-linked Temasek.

The agreement is subject to regulatory approval, said a joint press statement issued by the estate and Temasek, which already holds about 0.07 percent of Standard Chartered shares directly or indirectly.

The terms of the transaction were not disclosed but based on Standard Chartered's closing price on Monday of 15.24 pounds, the Khoo estate's shares were worth 2.3 billion pounds (four billion US dollars).

Cash-rich Temasek, one of Singapore's two national investment vehicles, has stepped up its overseas acquisition program aimed at boosting the value of the city-state's massive savings, a drive that has occasionally met opposition overseas.

Temasek is currently embroiled in a political controversy in Thailand over a Temasek-led group's dealings with the family of Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Standard Chartered has extensive operations in Asia, where it competes with rivals like fellow British lender HSBC in key markets.

Khoo was Standard Chartered's single largest shareholder when he died in February 2004 at the age of 87.

His daughter Elizabeth Khoo, a trustee of the estate, said in the joint statement: "My late father would be happy as he had wanted the block to be sold to a proven long term investor and had a high regard for Temasek."

Simon Israel, a board member of Temasek, said Standard Chartered "has successfully developed a distinctive strategy, delivered a growth track record, and created shareholder value over the last few years."

Gan Chee Yen, senior managing director for investments of Temasek, said Standard Chartered was well-positioned to benefit from Asia's economic growth and the share acquisition was "an important part of our ongoing efforts of achieving a balanced portfolio."

[U-Need]

本報訊】國家氣象廳負責人表示，由於目前的降雨量頻繁，使今年從2月中旬至5月中旬的傳統熱季不會像去年那 樣酷熱，而根據目前的氣象資料進行分析，今年的酷熱季節將於5月中旬結束，然後才開始進入雨季 。



氣象廳表示，今年的夏季從上月中旬階段已經開始，而最熱的期間仍是在4月的宋干節前後，但是從目前的各種情 況進行分析，今年的氣候不會象往年那樣異常炎熱，因為目前在各地均有持續的降雨天氣出現，降雨量也超過以往 的水平，但仍沒有全面緩解民眾用水量以及農業灌溉用用水量，但是明顯好於去年同期所處於的大面積乾旱水平， 目前預計熱季將於5月中旬結束，然後才是真正進入雨季時期。



氣象廳負責人表示，前段時間在北部地區出現了一些熱帶季風天氣，並且帶來了一些降雨，而且這些不斷形成的熱 帶季風逐步南下，目前擔心季風過度增強會給農作物的種植帶來一些不利影響。但無論怎樣，今年在東北部地區沒 有出現像去年那樣大面積的乾旱，民眾生活用水問題也沒有處於較為嚴重缺乏的地步，因乾旱而引發的山火也比往 年大幅下降。

[U-Need]

185 words
28 March 2006
Thai News Service
English

Section: Economy - The World Bank has donated around 290 million baht (US$7.25 million) to Thailand to help strengthen the economic position of the country's poor, according to a senior government official.

Suwit Rojanavanich, policy and planning bureau director of the Office of Public Debt Management, said the World Bank would administer nine projects under the scheme, now in its second phase.

The scheme aims to develop the national work force and empower ordinary people economically.

Funding was secured through the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) process.

Mr. Suwit said there was a need to produce labour to meet the market's demand so that people could find employment. It was also necessary to provide financial assistance to those who had no access to capital, as well as to educate local people about successful business management.

He said the projects were being considered by a study that would be complete by August, and the Office of National Economic and Social Development Board would then include the projects in its next work plan.

[U-Need]

145 words
28 March 2006
Thai News Service
English

Section: Government & Politics - Bangkok residents are increasingly fed up with a lengthy campaign to oust Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra while more people support the Thai leader, a poll released on March 23 said.

Fewer people wanted Thaksin to quit and more people wanted him to stay in compared with the first week of March, according to a poll of 1,500 people by Assumption University this week.

Only 28.1 percent of respondents now wanted Thaksin to resign as compared to 48.2 percent on March 6, while those who wanted him to stay had risen to 47.2 percent from 35.5 percent, the poll said.

Eight out of 10 people said they wanted all rallies to end and nine out of 10 favoured a negotiated end to the impasse, it said. - VNA

[U-Need]

BANGKOK, March 28 (TNA) - The caretaker government has called for the former opposition bloc to reconsider a proposal that they join a "National Government" after the April 2 general election.

Caretaker Minister Attached to the Prime Minister's Office Suranand Vejjajiva said here Tuesday morning that the proposed "National Government" would pave the way for the second-round political reform desired by all parites.

Caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra proposed during his election campaign in the Wong Wian Yai area here Sunday evening that the "National Government" be set up after the upcoming snap election. He invited all political parties, including those which do not run in the early poll, and representatives of anti-government groups led by the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) to join the "National Government" to brainstorm ideas to solve national problems and forge ahead the second-round political reform.

"The caretaker prime minister has a good intention to invite all parties to participate in a national drive for the political reform through constitutional amendments. It's unfortunate that the former oppostion bloc rejected the proposal. I'd like them to reconsider the proposed idea," Mr. Suranand told journalists at Government House here before the cabinet's weekly meeting.

Mr. Thaksin's proposal was rejected by both the PAD and the former three opposition parties--the Democrat, the Chart Thai and the Mahachon Parties--which have boycotted the April 2 snap election.

Mr. Suranand said that the caretaker government resorts to reconcilatory means and exercises restraint to the utmost for the sake of national unity.

Meanwhile, Mr. Thaksin, who is on a two-day visit to the country's northern province of Chiang Mai, his hometown, chaired the cabinet meeting via video conference from his private residence near the Mae Rim area.

Mr. Suranand told journalists that the caretaker premier wants to avoid confrontations with his opponents.

[singrakthai]

Originally Posted by U-Need

Section: Government & Politics - Bangkok residents are increasingly fed up with a lengthy campaign to oust Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra while more people support the Thai leader, a poll released on March 23 said.
Fewer people wanted Thaksin to quit and more people wanted him to stay in compared with the first week of March, according to a poll of 1,500 people by Assumption University this week.

U should post today's news about how 2 lady vendors chased Thaksin out of their stalls when Thaksin visited.... their photos fierce, sia! Only in Amazing Thailand.

[U-Need]

BANGKOK, March 28 (TNA) – Maj. Gen. Chamlong Srimuang, a core member of the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) leading anti-Thaksin demonstrators, on Tuesday reaffirmed an intention to shift the movement's rally site to the front of Siam Paragon Shopping Complex despite mounting concern it would bring traffic in the downtown city and surrounding business districts to a standstill.

Giving a live interview at Sapa Tha Phra Arthit TV program run by ASTV, he reiterated that the PAD needs to move the rally site to the area because it is convenient for people to travel to join the rally.

The place is also suitable for demonstrators to stay put since they could rally in the shade for a whole day.

As well, he said, it is a popular business spot where people of young generation prefer to gather and go shopping.

The PAD has an intention to give the young generation an access to political development-related information, he said.

Maj. Gen. Chamlong said he was sympathy with police who have to work harder to cope with the traffic congestion and commuters who might be obstructed by the demonstration.

But they must understand that the demonstrators devoted themselves to doing that for the sake of common interests.

The political maverick said more people had begun to join the anti-Thaksin movement as could be witnessed by a shout of “Thaksin, Get Out” slogan by vendors in the Silom area while caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was having a lunch with his Thai-Rak-Thai Party’s candidates on Monday.

So, he believed the anti-Thaksin sentiment would gain momentum and press the caretaker premier to step down before the election day on April 2. (TNA) – E005