Anti-government protesters walk beneath a large Thai flag near Government House on Dec. 9. Photo: Coconuts Bangkok
One day after the opposition Democrat Party announced it would sit out Feb. 2 elections, protesters are on the march again throughout Bangkok.
Thailand’s weeks-running political crisis seems set to deepen as protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban rejected overtures made by caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and insisted again her government must be removed and replaced by an unelected “people’s council.”
On Dec. 9, Yingluck dissolved parliament and called for new elections on Feb. 2, as the Thai constitution stipulates they must be held within 60 days.
On Saturday, Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva announced his party would sit out the polls, but not attempt to thwart them. A similar action in 2006 helped destabilize the government and was followed by a military coup.
Meanwhile, Yingluck said electoral reform would be made after the elections, with a new round of voting to follow one year later.
“In fact, the elections are necessary for these reforms to take place,” she said. “This is because we need the legislative branch to serve as a core mechanism to drive the reforms.”
Her Pheu Thai Party committed itself to developing and implementing such reforms, should it win in the elections, as it has for the past 12 years, Bangkok Post reported.
Traffic has begun to be severely affected:
Roads from Din Daeng to Victory Monument are closed, as has Ratchadamri Road from Ratchaprasong to Pratunam intersections, The Nation reported.
Asoke and Sala Daeng intersections are also reportedly impacted. Check traffic conditions online before venturing out.
