Economist.com, 26 Nov 2008
Thailand and the Philippines give Asian democracy a bad name
THAILAND’S three-year-old political crisis continued to rage this week, as the increasingly desperate anti-government movement, the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD), made a last-ditch effort to provoke violence and force the army to stage another coup. It invaded Bangkok’s main airport, prompting the army chief to call on the government to dissolve parliament and for the PAD itself to cease its protests. The PAD’s thuggish tactics have lost it much of the support it once had among Bangkok’s middle classes. Only a fraction of the promised crowd of 100,000-plus materialised this week for its “final” push to overturn the government. Pro-PAD union bosses’ calls for a general strike were generally ignored. But compensating for its dwindling public support is the high-level backing the PAD apparently continues to enjoy from elements in the military and the royal palace, including Queen Sirikit, which has so far rendered it untouchable.
Read More
