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From the Guardian UK: here.
Also, in the NY Times:
PATTAYA, Thailand — A summit meeting of Asian nations was abruptly canceled here on Saturday after hundreds of protesters forced their way past security forces into a convention center…
The cancellation of the meeting, involving leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or Asean, was deeply embarrassing for Thailand and a missed opportunity for Asian leaders to discuss the severe economic downturn that is causing some of the region’s export-dependent economies to contract…
Arisman Pongruengrong, one of the protest leaders, said the goal was to force the resignation of Mr. Abhisit [The Prime Minister], who took office in December…
The subtext of the country’s political crisis is an ailing king and disagreements about the future of the monarchy, friction between opposition politicians and a powerful influential military and, not least, an ailing economy.
The country’s political crisis, now three years running, pits lower-income supporters of Thaksin Shinawatra, the prime minister ousted in a September 2006 coup, against the royalist elite that backed the coup.
The protesters who raided the venue on Saturday wore red, the color of backers of Mr. Thaksin, who since being convicted of abuse of power in a highly politicized trial last year has remained overseas…
Filed under: international politics, News Tagged: | Asean, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, economic hardship, Thailand
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