The political upheaval in Thailand has claimed its first prominent victim: the
Foreign Minister Tej Bunnag handed in his resignation, apparently because of
his wife’s health problems, but so far it has not been accepted.
Protestors demanding the resignation of the Prime Minister and his whole
government continue to keep up the pressure, despite the imposition of a state
of emergency in Bangkok.
The protestors called a nationwide strike to heap more pressure on the
government, but it had little impact. Power and water flowed despite union
threats of cuts, and road and rail links saw little disruption. But it is
thought Prime Minister Samak Sunderavej will quit soon:
“Samak’s position appears untenable now,” said Thitinan Pongsidhirak, a
political scientist at Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University. “I think his time is
up. We are talking about hours and days, perhaps weeks, but not months.”
Critics say Samak is a mere proxy of the ousted former Premier, Thaksin
Shinawatra, who fled to Britain to evade corruption charges.
The continuing unrest is having an effect: tourism numbers are down, hurting a
sector which is one of Thailand’s major sources of income and employment.
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