泰国示威者威胁破坏东亚的经济峰会
Fears of further chaos in Thailand deepened Thursday as anti-government protesters paralyzed parts of the Thai capital and threatened to disrupt a major economic summit in the coastal beach resort of Pattaya this weekend.Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva responded by saying he would call in army reinforcements to ensure the East Asia summit goes ahead. Leaders from China, South Korea, and Japan are scheduled to meet with their counterparts from Southeast Asia and Australia, India and New Zealand to discuss how the region can help pull the world out of its deep economic slump.
Political analysts say the protesters' threat to target the summit is partly designed to embarrass Abhisit's government. 'If we have to shut down the whole town they we have to,' Nattawut Sai-kua, one of the protest leaders, told reporters.
But people familiar with the protest leaders' thinking say the threat may also be aimed at provoking a sharp police crackdown. That could draw further attention to the growing protest movement, which pits pro-democracy activists and supporters of ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra against their conservative opponents in the armed forces and bureaucracy.
The protesters, most of them wearing bright red, followed up Wednesday's show of force by occupying the Victory Monument intersection in central Bangkok. Several thousand demonstrators yelled and cheered as trucks, motorcycles and taxis ferried them into the plaza in scenes reminiscent of the seizure of Bangkok's international airports last year by anti-Thaksin protesters.
Those earlier protests helped forced the collapse of an elected, pro-Thaksin government, enabling the current premier, Abhisit, to take power in a parliamentary vote after Thailand's Constitutional Court banned the pro-Thaksin parties for alleged electoral fraud.
Thursday's demonstrators were well aware of the contrast. 'We can do what the other side did,' said Vikrom Jeerathit, 32 years old. 'We want our democracy back.'
On Thursday, Abhisit told Thai television that there was no reason for him to resign and call snap polls. 'Democracy can only move forward within the parliamentary system,' he said. 'We cannot just satisfy one group of people.'
泰国反政府抗议人士周四使首都曼谷的部分地区陷于瘫痪，他们还威胁要破坏本周在泰国海滨度假胜地帕塔亚召开的的一次重要经济峰会；这使得外界对泰国陷入更严重动荡的担忧情绪进一步加剧。
前总理他信的支持者在街头游行泰国总理阿披实对此回应说，他会要求军队增援，确保东亚峰会顺利进行。届时，来自中国、韩国、日本、东南亚地区、澳大利亚、印度、新西兰的各国首脑将开会讨论该地区如何帮助世界走出严重的经济萧条。
政治分析人士说，抗议人士威胁抵制峰会一定程度上是为了令阿披实政府难堪。抗议活动领导人之一Nattawut Sai-kua对记者说，如果我们必须让整个城市停顿，那我们也只能这么做。
但知情人士称，这一威胁可能还意在引发警方激烈的镇压行动。这可能会吸引外界对泰国不断壮大抗议活动的更多关注。在此次示威活动中，民主运动人士和前总理他信的支持者把矛头指向了军方和官僚阶层的保守派人士。
大多数抗议人士都身着鲜艳的红衫，他们占领了曼谷中心的胜利纪念碑广场以展示自己的实力。卡车、摩托车和出租车载着数千名示威者来到这一广场，抗议人士欢呼雀跃，这使人不禁想起了去年反他信的示威者占领泰国国际机场的一幕。
去年的抗议活动推波助澜地导致了民选的亲他信政府被迫下台。去年年底，泰国宪法法院以涉嫌选举欺诈为由取缔了亲他信的政党，现任总理阿披实随后经议会表决上台执政。
周四的示威者很清楚自己在做什么。32岁的示威者Vikrom Jeerathit说，他们以前所做的，我们现在也能做。我们希望迎回自己的民主。
阿披实周四对泰国电视台说，他没有理由辞职并提前大选。他说，民主只能在议会制度内逐步推行。我们不能纵容某一人群。
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