| Submit your comments on this article |
| Southeast Asia |
| Arrest warrants issued |
| 2010-04-09 |
| [Straits Times] A THAI court on Thursday issued arrest warrants for seven people involved in the storming of parliament a day earlier, including one anti-government protest leader, the prime minister said. 'Once leaders who prefer violence are arrested, we believe we can pursuade other protesters to leave the protest site,' Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva told reporters, referring to a mass rally in Bangkok's commercial hub. The seven people targeted by the arrest warrants include Arisman Pongreungrong, a Red Shirt leader who also stormed an Asian regional summit in the resort city of Pattaya last year, forcing it to be cancelled. 'What the government wants is peace and happiness,' Mr Abhisit said in televised remarks late on Thursday, explaining that the government had clamped down on opposition media that were 'manipulating information that is creating hate'. He said that arrest warrants had been issued for seven protest leaders accused of briefly forcing their way into the Parliament compound on Wednesday. Lawmakers were forced to flee on ladders over a back wall and senior officials were hastily evacuated by helicopter. Government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said the government has shut down PTV, the satellite TV station of the Red Shirts, and was searching for websites that have put out false information such as that Mr Abhisit had authorised the use of force against demonstrators. Appearing on television, Mr Panitan broke into English to apologise to foreign tourists and expatriates for any inconvenience from the recent events. |
| Posted by:Fred |