Public
forum cancelled as row over venue continues
7 hunger strikers taken to hospital
|
Prasert Pokhuntod, a hunger striker, is helped
by friends to a car headed for hospital. The man had been fasting
for 12 days. _ APICHIT JINAKUL |
Bangkok Post, Aug 8, 2000
Ampa Santimetanidol, Anchalee
Kongrut and Yuwadee Tunyasiri
A public forum on the Pak Moon dam dispute was cancelled last night as the
government and protesters continued to fight over where it should take
place.
The Assembly of the Poor, which is leading the
protest by villagers who claim the dam had destroyed their livelihood,
yesterday remained firmly against the government's decision that it be
held at the state-run Channel 11 television station.
The forum scheduled for last night for all
parties in the dispute to present their views and facts had to be put off,
announced Alongkorn Polabutr, the prime minister's secretary, yesterday.
Mr Alongkorn did not give any new date but
stressed the forum must be held at Channel 11.
He also said the forum would be joined by
Banthorn On-dam, the academic who headed a government-appointed committee
tasked with finding solutions to the protesters' problems.
But Mr Banthorn yesterday denied he had agreed to
participate.
The academic said he disagreed with the way the
government picked the venue without consulting other participants.
However, efforts were continuing to make the
forum happen. The assembly had approached several academic institutions,
including Chulalongkorn and Thammasat universities, in an attempt to find
a new venue acceptable to all concerned.
Wanida Tantiwittayaphitak, an assembly adviser,
said yesterday the forum was meant to hear and thoroughly discuss all 16
problems raised by the poor concerning dam projects and land encroachment.
She said Channel 11 was unacceptable as the venue
because the planned format would impose a severe time limit on each issue
that needed to be discussed thoroughly.
"Each participant would be given only one
minute to talk about each problem. With such a time limit, facts about
each problem could be misunderstood," she said.
Meanwhile, the number of hunger strikers at the
anti-Pak Moon dam protest in front of Government House plunged from 472 on
Sunday to 295 yesterday.
Many of them were found to be unfit to continue
fasting. Seven elderly hunger strikers were rushed to hospital after
doctors found they had diabetes.
Prasert Phobkhunthod, 54, from Chaiyaphum, who
had been fasting for 12 days, quit yesterday upon doctor's advice
Chuan
chided for his new-found backers
Anchalee Kongrut, Bangkok Post, Aug 8,
2000
Protesters congratulated Prime Minister
Chuan Leekpai yesterday on winning the backing of figures who justify
force against the people.
Chaiphan Praphasawat, an adviser of the Assembly of the Poor, said Mr
Chuan had found soulmates among Gen Suchinda Kraprayoon and FM Thanom
Kittikachorn.
Gen Suchinda, blamed for the 1992 Black May violence, offered sympathy
to Mr Chuan for using force against the protesters last month. In July FM
Thanom, accused of crushing democracy activists in 1973, expressed a
similar sentiment.
"Mr Chuan has had the thumbs-down from people like Dr Prawase Wasi
and Anand Panyarachun," he said. "But at last he found a league
of his own with two personalities embracing him and taking his side." |