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PakMool wars trigger fears of October strife

The Nation, July 22, 2000

ACADEMICS and activists fear the Kingdom may be drifting towards a situation such as that which led to the October 6, 1976 massacre, when right-wing forces violently crushed democratic protests and plunged the country into a dictatorship.

"The violence committed by the state and the harsh words coming from the state's mouth have been witnessed and heard before in October [1973] and May [1992], before Thais started killing other Thais," Kasien Tachapira, political scientist from Thammasat University, said yesterday at an urgent meeting at Chulalongkorn University to seek a solution to the Pak Mool dam conflict.

Kasien said he feared that ethnic politics and hyper nationalism were being played up.

He said he had seen a report in Thai Rath, the largest-circulation Thai daily newspaper, quoting special-branch police commissioner Yothin Mattayomnant as saying that there were Laotian infiltrators among the Pak Mool demonstrators. Other newspapers have alleged that Japanese non-governmental organisations are funding the protesters.

"The state wanted to make Thai people mistrust each other," Kasien added. "This is a repetition of the past."

Jaran Ditthapichai, a lecturer in politics at Rangsit University, said he feared that if the protesters were not satisfied after the cabinet resolution on Tuesday, the situation might lead to a seizure of Government House that could turn nasty and violent.

Amorn Amornratananont, secretary-general of the October Network, a group of former October 1973 and October 1976 activists, said the government's decision to send an organised mob to counter innocent protesters was reminiscent of the October 1976 incident which had led to a violent confrontation.

An open letter to the public signed by 202 academics from 15 universities nationwide condemned the government for resorting to violence. It also urged the Chuan administration to resolve the conflict by following the recommendations of the neutral committee established by Deputy Prime Minister Banyat Bantadthan and chaired by Banthorn On-dam.

Eight Thai-studies experts from the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia and Canada sent a letter to the Thai prime minister urging the government to drop all charges against the protesters.

They also called on the Thai government to show political accountability for the violence. Meanwhile 169 non-governmental organisations met yesterday and called for the government to dissolve the House of Representatives immediately because it no longer had a mandate to govern. They also called for all Thais to wear black in protest against the government until the House was dissolved.

The crowd outside Government House has grown to 3,000 as more sympathisers from other provinces join in.

In a separate development, representatives of labour unions nationwide will meet tomorrow at the Royal Hotel to discuss the future of the Thai Durable Textile (TDT) union.

On June 22, 200 female workers were beaten up by 100 hired thugs who entered the factory. The violence lasted 10 minutes, and police eventually managed to arrest only one man, who was later released without being charged.

Union leaders and labour academics described the assault at the factory as a barbaric act that infringed labour rights as well as women's rights.

Like the police crack-down on the Pak Mool demonstrators, they said, such brutality only set back the Kingdom's human-rights standard to its darkest age.

BY SUBHATRA BHUMIPRABHAS,

PENNAPA HONGTHOUNG, and

PRAVIT ROJANAPHRUK

 
 

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