Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva made two television speeches in early hours of Monday in a bid to restore people's confidence on his government's capability to control situation, after anti-government protests turned violent and forced him to declare state of emergency twice in two days.
Abhisit appeared on state TV NBT after midnight, first time flanked with ministers, army and police top officials in charge of securities, the second alone. The two speeches carried the same key information, which was that the Abhisit government was not as soft and lonely as some people has judged from what they have seen in events in the past 48 hours.
|
|
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva speaks during a news conference at the interior ministry in Bangkok April 12, 2009. [Xinhua]
|
In the last speech, the PM made an appeal to the tens of thousands of "red-shirt" protesters who camped outside the Government House throughout Sunday, to start negotiation with the government rather than continuing the "unlawful" rallies in Bangkok.
He had discussed security measures with ministers, police and military top brass to find ways, effective while legal, to bring peace and order back to the country.
He told people not to panic, and not to be misled by some false information about the lack of coordination between government, police and the army.
|
|
Anti-government protestors congregate in front of Government house in Bangkok, capital of Thailand, on April 12, 2009. Red-shirted protestors forced into the Interior Ministry on Sunday, soon after Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva declared a state of emergency in Bangkok and some districts in five nearby provinces. [Zhang Fengguo/Xinhua]
|
The remarks were believed to be responding to rumors that the Abhisit government lacked support from the police and army, which was why the security forces were reluctant to act against the red-shirted protesters who stormed the ASEAN and related summits venue in Pattaya on Saturday and state institutions in Bangkok on Sunday.
