Arrests mark first anniversary of Thailand coup as protesters rally against junta
PUBLISHED : Saturday, 23 May, 2015, 2:56am
UPDATED : Saturday, 23 May, 2015, 2:56am
Reuters in Bangkok
Prayuth Chan-ocha. Photo: AP
Police arrested several anti-junta activists yesterday for small protests marking a year since Thailand's generals seized power from the elected government, as the coup's leader said the country "may have collapsed" without his intervention.
The sporadic but rare acts of defiance against Thailand's generals came as self-exiled and ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra - who sits at the heart of the kingdom's bitter political divide - gave an interview overseas saying he was happy to bide his time to make his comeback.
There were scuffles between a handful of student protesters and police in downtown Bangkok evening as anti-coup demonstrators tried to chain themselves together outside a popular mall.
Earlier there were at least four arrests as die-hard campaigners called "Resistant Citizen", who have repeatedly defied the junta's ban on political protests, were prevented from marching to a court in Bangkok to file treason charges against junta chief Prayuth Chan-ocha.
Seven students were also wrestled to the ground and detained for holding an anti-coup banner in the northeastern city of Khon Kaen, a bastion of support for Thaksin and his sister Yingluck, whose government was toppled by the coup.
She now faces up to 10 years in jail over criminal negligence charges linked to a costly subsidy scheme to her rice farming support base.
The junta says its power grab restored order after months of protests against Yingluck left dozens dead and the economy in a straitjacket, a view roundly defended by former army chief-turned prime minister Prayuth yesterday.
"I did it [the coup] myself because I thought that both the country and the people were in severe danger... I made up my mind alone," he told reporters. "If I didn't do it I wonder if our country may already have collapsed."
Although so-called "Red Shirt" supporters of former premier Thaksin largely ignored the anniversary of the coup, he marked the day by coolly asserting he would wait for the right moment to re-enter Thai politics.
"I'm just waiting here. I'm in no hurry. I'm just keeping myself fit," he told CNN in a rare interview. "That's all I need. Being patient. I can wait. Time will come."
Thaksin, who was also ousted in a coup in 2006, has repeatedly told supporters to stay off the streets. His sister was dumped out of office by a court ruling two weeks before the coup. Martial law was imposed two days before the coup by the military.
Her supporters say the putsch was the latest assault by the royalist Bangkok-centric elite on the kingdom's burgeoning democratic forces.
Fresh elections were pencilled in for early-mid 2016 but Prayuth has said that timetable may be revised if a referendum is held on the charter many see as a barely concealed attempt to pare back the Shinawatras' political dominance.
