Dam
protesters demand clarification
THE
221 Pak Mool Dam protesters who were arrested on Monday for trespassing on
the grounds of Government House, demanded the government clarify the
conditions on which they were released.
Sakorn
Srisai, one of the arrested villagers, said he was unsure whether he and
his colleagues were still criminal suspects. He said police claimed the
arrested villagers had been released on bail, while they were under the
impression the release was unconditional.
"We
never asked any lawyer for bail. If the government believes we are
suspects, it should jail us and let us face judicial proceedings. If it
wants to free us, there must be no conditions," he said.
The
221 villagers were released on Wednesday after the chairman of the Law
Association of Thailand (LAT), Chamroen Waraporn, posted bail with police.
The
villagers said, however, they thought Chamroen was a lawyer from the Law
Society of Thailand (LST), which is providing them with legal assistance,
and thus the charges had been dropped.
Senator
Saeree Suwanpanont from Bangkok, a member of the LAT, said the association
was not involved in posting bail. He said Chamroen had not informed him
before posting bail and thus he was personally responsible.
However,
Chamroen said he had been unable to contact Saeree on Wednesday before
posting bail, but that he had informed other members of the association.
"This
is an urgent issue. I, as chairman of the association, have full authority
to do this," said Chamroen, who has close relations with certain
Democrat MPs.
Wilaiporn
Jitprasan, deputy secretary-general of the Student Federation of Thailand,
suspected politics was involved in the release of the villagers.
She
said Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai's visit to the villagers on Wednesday
night was a political ploy.
"If
he is really concerned about the villagers, he should have come to see
them earlier. And he shouldn't allow them to suffer any violence. His
visit could be interpreted as an attempt to reduce the political pressure
on him [from the incident]," she said.
Sarawut
Pratoomraj, a lawyer for the villagers, said he would accompany villagers
today to file charges of theft and physical assault against the police
officers who were at Government House. He said police had seized a
six-wheel truck belonging to a villager parked near Government House.
The
Assembly of the Poor yesterday released a statement condemning the
accusation of Special Branch Police Commissioner Pol Lt Col Yothin
Matayomnan that a leading political party was supporting the protest.
The
statement called the accusation an attempt to distort the facts and
discredit the villagers, who have suffered at the hands of the
government's destructive development policies.
"His
words show that he [Pol Lt Col Yothin] is politically immature," the
statement said.
Meanwhile,
the House yesterday debated the violence concerning the Pak Mool Dam
protest. The debate was initiated by Vichai Chaijitwanichkul, a New
Aspiration MP. Interior Minister Banyat Bantadtan said police had done
their best under the circumstances.
"Police
told me that at the time [of the arrests], police officers were not
carrying batons, as they were all stored away. Anyway, it was possible
that one or two police officers had batons with them," he said during
the meeting.
Many
people who were not involved with the protest had gone to the protest site
to offer moral support to the villagers. The well-wishers included Bangkok
Governor Bhichit Rattakul and Deputy Education Minister Somsak
Prissanananthakul.
Bhichit
said he went to the site to check whether the villagers had received
sufficient facilities such as mobile toilets and drinking water from the
Bangkok Metropolitan Administration.
BY
SUBHATRA BHUMIPRABHAS
The
Nation July 21, 2000
I'll
fix Pak Mool woes on return, Chuan says
BEFORE
catching a late-night flight to rub shoulders with the Group of Eight
leaders in Japan, Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai has one more mission to
complete: he must convince protesters outside Government House he cares
about them.
Villagers
protesting about the Pak Mool Dam were on Tuesday night stunned when Chuan
visited them.
He
left them with a promise: he would address their grievances after
returning on Saturday from his overseas trip.
The
Northeastern villagers have maintained a weeklong vigil outside Government
House. They travelled to Bangkok to demand a comprehensive and speedy
solution to their plight related to the Pak Mool Dam.
On
Tuesday night, Chuan, his deputy Banyat Bantadtan and Democrat Party
secretary-general Sanan Kachornprasart made a sudden appearance, mingling
with the villagers for the first time during their week of protest.
Although
the villagers have been camping out a mere stone's throw from Chuan's
office, until then they seemed unable to catch the prime minister's
attention.
Tension
rose, and the government drew fire from academics and activists at the
weekend after riot forces beat up some villagers who were trying to scale
the wall of Government House.
To
dispel any resulting hard feelings, Chuan on Tuesday told the villagers
they had his complete attention, because he also hailed from a village.
Protesters,
excited at the prospect of having a villager's son among them who had
managed to become prime minister, seemed to stare in awe as Chuan worked
the crowd.
None
seriously questioned him about his plans to solve their grievances.
After
the departure of Chuan and his entourage, one of the protesting villagers
said: "Well, I'm very excited to have met Chuan in person, but he
didn't say anything concrete about solving problems [at] the Pak Mool Dam,
did he?"
The
Nation July 21, 2000
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