Key developments on the protest situation in Bangkok, 6 - 13 January 2014

Key events on 6 January 2014

            The Election Commission (EC) disqualified 87 out of 1,249 candidates in the party-list candidate registration as they did not meet the qualifying criteria. The candidates had either failed to cast their vote in the last election or had been a member of their political party for less than 30 days. The disqualified candidates could appeal to the Election Cases Division of the Supreme Court. 

The Director-General of the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) said that DSI would apply to the Criminal Court for arrest warrants to be issued against 33 PDRC leaders on 8 January 2014 after they had failed to report to the DSI, as per the summons issued, without showing reasonable grounds.

The People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) announced the routes for the protest march on 7 January 2014 from Ratchadamnoen Avenue to Thon Buri and back to the main rally site near Democracy Monument.

Key events on 7 January 2014

            The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), by a vote of 7 to 2, resolved to press charges against 308 out of 381 former Members of Parliament  and Snators for proposing and passing a draft amendment of the Constitution regarding the composition of the Senate. The NACC found that the group’s attempt to amend the Constitution by making the Senate a fully elected chamber was a violation of Sections 291 and 68 of the Constitution.
            The United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) called a meeting of its leaders from across the country in Nakhon Ratchasima to discuss plans to counter any possibility of a coup which they believe could be triggered by anti-government protesters' efforts to paralyze Bangkok. 

             Various government and private organizations/entities have assessed the impacts of the PDRC’s shutdown of Bangkok as follows:

- Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce said that if the political conflict deteriorates and turns violent to the point where it affects public spending, the country’s economic growth in 2014 will be 3 – 3.5 per cent from the previous forecast of 4 – 5 per cent;

- The Deputy Minister for Commerce assessed that the political rallies have impacted the stock and financial markets and tourism. The rallies also resulted in higher production costs for manufacturers, a reduction in retail sales and consumer  confidence;

- The spokesperson of the Bank of Thailand said that the impact of the proposed shutdown of Bangkok cannot yet be assessed, but as Thailand has overcome political crises and major flooding in the past, both the public and the private sectors are resilient enough to continue to discharge their duties effectively;

-  The President of the Tourism Council of Thailand said that the number of Chinese and Russian tourists for 2014 will see a 25 – 30 per cent drop from previous forecasts. For the whole of January 2014, the number of tourists will fall by 400,000, amounting to 18 billion baht in lost revenue. The President of the Thai Hotel Association said that occupancy rates in Bangkok have fallen from 80 to 70 - 75 per cent;

-  The Director-General of the Department of Civil Aviation said that Singapore Airlines had announced its plan to cancel 19 flights to Bangkok from 15 January to 22 February 2014, while Cathay Pacific planned to reduce one inbound flight per day from 7 to 14 January 2014;

-   The President of the Federation of Thai Industries said that the Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking (JSCCIB) had held a meeting to discuss the current political rallies and concluded that: 1) the JSCCIB does not agree with the use of violence under any circumstances; 2) the JSCCIB wants to see the conflict resolved peacefully at the earliest opportunity; 3) As for the planned shutdown of Bangkok on 13 January 2014, the JSCCIB called on all parties involved to take into account its side effects such as the impact on SMEs.

Key events on 8 January 2014

            The Constitution Court ruled by a majority vote that the draft amendment to Section 190 of the Constitution was unconstitutional. The Court found that amending Section 190 of the Constitution would be tantamount to excluding the general public from issues that are of vital national interest and, therefore, undermine the principle of checks-and-balances between the administrative and the legislature as it would give the Government almost full authority to commit the country to most international agreements without prior consent of the legislature. The Court deliberated on both the proposed content of the draft amendment and the procedure, both of which were found to be flawed as the Opposition was not given enough time to properly debate the draft amendment in detail.
                Permanent Secretary for Foreign Affairs Sihasak Phuangketkeow and Police Lieutenant Colonel Kritsana Pattanacharoen, Deputy Spokesperson of the Centre for the Administration of Peace and Order (CAPO), briefed foreign diplomats about the Thai government's preparations as well as measures taken to reduce the impacts of the PDRC’s planned shutdown of Bangkok. Concerns were raised regarding the safety and security of diplomatic premises, diplomatic representatives and foreign nationals residing in the Kingdom. The Permanent Secretary and CAPO Deputy Spokesperson assured foreign diplomats that the Government has dispatched combined army and police forces to maintain peace and security. Members of the diplomatic corps and international organizations should alert the authorities of any untoward activity. With regard to passage of diplomatic vehicles through blockaded intersections, the Permanent Secretary said he would relay the message to the Thai media that all sides involved should take into account Thailand’s obligations under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations in according diplomatic representatives due immunities and privileges.

Key events on 9 January 2014

          The Criminal Court dismissed the DSI’s request for the issuance of arrest warrants for 35 key PDRC leaders, stating that the DSI had failed to issue a second set of summonses. Some of the accused had received the summonses and their legal representatives had sent formal letters stating that their clients   acknowledged the charges and would testify before the DSI.

           The PDRC marched to Thonburi to garner support for the planned shutdown of Bangkok on 13 January 2014 before heading back to the main rally site at the Democracy Monument.

            The Office of the Auditor-General sent a letter to the EC requesting the latter to review plans to hold general elections on 2 February 2014, due to the high possibility that the budget for organizing the elections might be wasted and not the optimal use of state funds.

            The Director of the Centre for Economic and Business Forecasting, the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, forecasted that the proposed shutdown of Bangkok would reduce the GDP by 0.1 to 0.2 per cent.

Key events on 10 January 2014

             The PDRC announced that it would blockade 7 major locations in Bangkok: Chang Wattana Government Complex, Lad Phrao intersection, Victory Monument, Pathum Wan intersection, Lumphini intersection, Asoke intersection and Raj Prasong intersection.

            The Public Health Ministry announced that it would operate medical service units in 26 locations as part of the measures to cope with the planned shutdown of Bangkok proposed by the PDRC. The Permanent Secretary for Public Health met with representatives from hospitals under the Public Health Ministry’s supervision and state agencies to work out plans to provide medical coverage to affected areas. The Public Health Ministry urged non-emergency patients to seek medical care in non-affected areas.

            DPM and FM Surapong made a televised announcement informing the public of measures taken by the Government to cope with the planned shutdown of Bangkok and urged the public to go about their lives as normal. The Government had dispatched army and police combined forces to maintain safety and security. The DPM also announced key emergency contact numbers during the planned shutdown, including: 1111 for information about the protest, 199 for fire, 1669 for medical attention, 1356 for public transport-related queries, 1197 for traffic queries and 1155 for tourist call centre. The DPM also advised the public to take extra care in sharing news or messages to avoid disseminating misinformation.

            DPM and FM and DPM Pongthep gave a press interview to members of the foreign media regarding the current political situation and the Government’s precautions to address the planned shutdown of Bangkok on 13 January 2014.

Key events on 11 January 2014

            The EC made a public plea to the Government to consider postponing the date of the general elections from 2 February 2014 to a later date, possibly 4 May 2014. The EC insisted that the elections can be held on 4 May 2014, which is still within 180 days after the House resolution on 9 December 2013, in line with Article 93 of the constitution.

            The Army Commander-in-Chief asked the public not to lend credence to rumors that the armed forces were on the verge of staging a coup d'état. The army had been requested to supply additional units to assist CAPO in maintaining law and order and provide security to key government buildings and other important sites. The movement of troops was strictly in line with CAPO’s orders.  

Key events on 12 January 2014

            The EC submitted a formal request to the Prime Minister for the Government to consider postponing the upcoming general elections scheduled to take place on 2 February 2014.

            At 15:00 hrs., the Prime Minister chaired a meeting attended by CAPO and representatives from security agencies concerned to prepare for the shutdown of Bangkok.

            Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Surapong, Deputy Prime Minister Niwatthamrong, Transport Minister Chatchard and the CAPO Deputy Spokesperson held a press briefing for foreign media on: 1) the Government’s measures in dealing with the shutdown of Bangkok; 2) the emergency contact numbers and media outlets through which to monitor the protests; 3) suggested means of transport during the shutdown; and 4) the issuance of media arm bands and  security measures for the safety of foreign media covering the protest.

            The UDD and other pro-government protesters held rallies in various provinces to show support and solidarity with the Government. Mass evening rallies were held in Ayutthaya, Chiang Mai, Udon Thani and Khon Kaen.

            The PDRC started blockading Lad Phrao intersection and the traffic lanes in front of the Chang Wattana Government Complex ahead of schedule. A protester was shot at night near the Government Complex. A drive-by shooting also took place at Democrat Party Headquarters but no injury was reported.

Key events on 13 January 2014

            The PDRC staged a shutdown of Bangkok at the seven key intersections it had earlier announced, paralyzing traffic flows in Bangkok. Traffic on the outskirts of the city and the greater Bangkok areas were not severely affected.

            The Prime Minister formally acknowledged receipt of the EC’s Note requesting the Government to consider postponing the election date and has assigned Deputy Prime Minister Pongthep Thepkanjana to invite all relevant parties, including the EC, Office of the Council of State, People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC), as well as members of the Democrat Party, to discuss the EC’s recommendation. The meeting will take place on Wednesday, 15 January 2014.

            Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Surapong reiterated that the Government saw no basis to invoke the Emergency Decree for the time being as the measures in place sufficed to deal with the protesters.

            The DSI issued summonses for 55 key protest leaders on various charges related to the security of the State.

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News Division

Department of Information