THAILAND: Bangkok Burns after Protest Leaders Surrender

By Johanna Son

BANGKOK, May 19 (IPS) - If there were any hopes that Wednesday’s surrender by the leaders of Thailand’s biggest anti-government protests in decades would instantly ease tensions, these were dashed by the ugly spasms of violence that wracked this capital soon after they turned themselves in.

If anything, the attacks by protesters, who were angered by the end of the rally and set fire to buildings and shopping malls, confirmed what everybody knows – that while the protest site of the United Front of Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) has been cleared and its leaders detained, the political crisis is far from over.

The sprawling and glitzy Centralworld mall, beside which thousands of UDD protesters had camped out for six weeks to demand a new election but never broke into, was in flames on Wednesday afternoon.

At least 27 buildings and locations were on fire as of 9 p.m. local time, including the Thai TV 3 building, the Metropolitan Electricity Authority, Siam Theatre, several banks and part of the Stock Exchange of Thailand, officials said.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva imposed a curfew from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. to allow the military, which has been carrying out a blockade against the red- shirted UDD protesters since May 13, to put a stop to the mayhem that had central parts of the city burning. On national television, he said, "We’re confident and determined that we will solve" the unrest.

Earlier, government spokesman Panithan Wattanayagorn said the military would "initiate operations throughout the night" and control "a few pockets of trouble in several areas of Bangkok." 

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