Nighttime attack on Thai antigovernment protesters wounds at least 20

The government denied attacking demonstrators, who have called for the ouster of the prime minister.

By Huma Yusuf

posted November 20, 2008 at 10:20 am EST

One person has been killed and 23 others wounded in a grenade attack Thursday against antigovernment protesters occupying the Thai prime minister's offices in Bangkok. The attack marks an escalation in violence after a six-day lull and may herald an aggressive push to dislodge members of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), who seized Government House in August.

This is the first fatal attack inside the government compound where hundreds of PAD protesters are camped out in a fortified tent city, reports CNN.

The grenade, fired early Thursday morning, landed in one of the many tents that protesters have set up inside the premises as they continue their movement to unseat the democratically elected Thai government, authorities said.

According to Agence France-Presse (AFP), the attack occurred just hours after the cremation ceremonies of Princess Galyani – the late sister of King Bhumibol Adulyadej – ended. There had been a respite in violence during the princess' six-day funeral.

The fatal blast did not cause PAD protesters to disperse, reports Reuters. Instead, more people flocked to Government House to show their support for PAD.

Minutes after the suspected M-79 grenade dropped from a tent awning onto sleeping protesters at 3:30 a.m., the movement's own satellite television showed others dancing to live music on a stage only meters away.

The explosion, the fourth and the most serious assault on the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), drew more people to the Government House protest zone to offer their support to a hard core of a few hundred.

After the explosion, PAD leadership accused the government of launching the grenade attack and called for renewed mass protests, reports the Bangkok Post, an English-language Thai daily.

The People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) will organise a massive anti-government demonstration on Sunday, starting 2pm.

After a bomb went off at the demonstration site at Government House early Thursday... PAD leader Sondhi Limthongkul claimed that the government was behind the incident.

The PAD issued its 24th announcement, saying the mass gathering on Sunday is aimed at toppling the "proxy" government, stopping the government from amending the constitution, and putting an end to the "Thaksin regime." War weapons were repeatedly used to kill its supporters, including women, old and young people, according to the announcement.

Following the bombing incident, another PAD leader Chamlong Srimuang sent a letter to relevant army and police chiefs, demanding them to help prevent the usage of war weapons and protect the demonstrators.

The Thai government has rejected PAD's accusation and denied responsibility for the attack, reports AFP. Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat immediately denied any involvement and vowed a swift police investigation into the incident.

"It is not government policy to use force or violence," Somchai told reporters. "No one wants bloodshed or killing among Thais."

According to the BBC, however, the grenade attack may indicate a new push to remove PAD protesters from Government House.

While the protesters have been targeted by small bomb attacks in recent weeks, the latest explosion could herald the start of more aggressive efforts to dislodge them, [a BBC] correspondent adds.

The months-long standoff between PAD protesters and the Thai government first turned violent on Oct. 7, when police fired tear gas at demonstrators blocking parliament, sparking clashes that left two dead and hundreds injured, reported The Christian Science Monitor.

PAD's staying power has been evident in its ability to force the resignation of a prime minister and two cabinet ministers in recent months, reports the BBC. The antigovernment alliance accuses the current administration – headed by the People Power Party – of being a proxy government for former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The current prime minister, Somchai Wongsawat, is Thaksin's brother-in-law.

The new government says it wants to start negotiations with the PAD. But it is also pushing ahead with controversial plans to amend the constitution – a key grievance of the protesters who see it as part of a plan to rehabilitate Thaksin.

It accuses him of corruption and abuse of power while he was in office, and has suggested he and his allies have a hidden republican agenda – a serious charge at a time when the country is beset by anxiety over the future of the monarchy.