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Protesters to see PM on his turf 

Insist NGO advisers also attend talks 

Post reporter, Bangkok Post Dec 18, 2002 

Pak Moon dam protesters have decided to accept the government's invitation to discuss possible solutions to the dam conflict at Government House on Friday, Wanida Tantiwittayapitak, an adviser to the Assembly of the Poor, said yesterday. 

The decision has defused the latest row over whether the villagers' chosen representatives should go to Government House or whether Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra should go to the makeshift pavilion made for the occasion by protesters at their camp across the street. 

Mr Thaksin earlier issued an invitation to 30 leading villagers to attend the discussion at Government House on Friday to ``solve the problem once and for all''. 

Upon learning of the invitation, the protesting villagers built a sala ruamjai (pavilion of unity) as an alternative venue for the talks. 

They wanted Mr Thaksin and his advisers to be there talking among the villagers and their own activist advisers, and to ensure the event was widely covered by the media.

Mr Thaksin put his foot down. 

``If they don't come to Government House on Dec 20, I will consider my job [of resolving the conflict] done,'' he said. 

His ultimatum appeared aimed less at the villagers than the Assembly of the Poor advisers. His invitation came with one condition: he would talk to ``real villagers only, not their brokers''. 

``I don't want protest leaders because I'd really like to hear from the affected parties. The number is limited to 30 because we have limited space,'' the prime minister said. 

To ensure the villagers get their wish of wide media coverage, Mr Thaksin said TV Channel 11 would broadcast the entire meeting. 

Ms Wanida said as long as the talks were transparent and its proceedings broadcast, the villagers would have no objection to going to Government House. 

However, the villagers insisted they needed their advisers because they were not well-versed in the ways of bureaucracy and formalities. 

Somkiat Ponpai, a protest villager, said at least academics should be present at the talks and relay the information to the public. 

``The prime minister has advisers to consult with when there are problems. Our advisers can't solve the problems for us but they can give advice,'' Mr Somkiat said. 

Observers said it was clear from the prime minister's latest action that he considered activists from the Assembly of the Poor an obstacle to the government's attempt to end the decade-long Pak Moon dam conflict, and he was determined to separate them from the villagers through means such as discrediting the group. 

The Thai Rak Thai party has alleged that activists staged Sunday's raid and set fire to the protesters' camp on the Pak Moon river dam site in Ubon Ratchathani and then blamed it on the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, which operates the dam. 

The activists have flatly denied the allegation. 

Lt-Gen Sitthisak Inthomya, chief of Police Region 3, said 20 people were involved in the raid. One of those who surrendered to police was Sawek Bantao, an opponent of the Assembly of the Poor. 

Mr Sawek said yesterday he was not fond of the activist group and had taken part in the raid out of spite. However, he denied he and his men had set the shelters on fire. 

Mr Thaksin also alleged the activists had incited the latest controversy as a way of ``showing performance'' to their foreign donors. The activists denied this. 

A source said that at yesterday's cabinet meeting, Mr Thaksin alleged that the villagers had been promised 1,000 baht each by the Pak Moon Cooperative. 

The source said Mr Thaksin asked Deputy Agriculture Minister Newin Chidchob to look into this. 

He said he remained determined to fight corruption in all sectors of society.

 
 

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