Thailand protest leaders escape arrest

Attempts by Thai authorities to halt month-long anti-government demonstrations suffered a further blow on Friday when a group of protest leaders evaded arrest, one of them staging a dramatic escape by rope off a hotel room balcony.

“We will arrest and suppress the terrorists,” said Suthep Thaugsuban, the deputy prime minister, on television Friday morning while announcing that special forces had surrounded the hotel. “We have set up special task forces hunting for the terrorists.”

One of the most controversial leaders of the red-shirted protesters, Arisman Pongruangrong, escaped by climbing down a rope from his hotel room on the second floor.
He was lowered into the back of a truck full of baying supporters who had come from the main protest site to thwart the police operation. He and three associates were then driven back in a protective convoy and welcomed as conquering heroes by a cheering crowd.

“It is an unsuccessful operation, but we will continue further operations,” said Panitan Wattanayagorn, the government spokesman, aftereward. “We have to wait for reports from the operation team.”

Meanwhile, the government’s language appears to be hardening after a lull this week during the Thai new year holiday.

Mr Suthep described Mr Arisman as a “terrorist” and warned of new operations against the protesters, who have taken over an intersection in central Bangkok, closing down some of the city’s biggest shopping malls and smartest hotels.

“Innocent people should leave the protests because the authorities have to take decisive measures against terrorists,” Mr Suthep said.

The government has declared the demonstrations illegal under the Emergency Act they invoked last week, and has frequently declared its intention of arresting the leaders.

Mr Arisman is one of the most controversial of the group of about 20 men who are directing the demonstrations. He led the break-ins at both the Association of South East Asian Nations Summit in the resort town of Pattaya last year, and of parliament last week.

The face-off between the demonstrators and the government seems no closer to resolution. The protesters have emerged more confident after the military failed in its attempts to shift them from one of their main protest sites last Saturday, despite clashes which left 23 dead and more than 800 injured.

The protesters are demanding the immediate resignation of Abhisit Vejjajiva, the prime minister, questioning the legitimacy of an administration that came to power 16 months ago in a controversial parliamentary vote.

Mr Abhisit has offered to dissolve parliament and call elections in December, a year before his term expires, but that has failed to satisfy the protesters, who are demanding he go immediately.

Thai stocks were down 2.1 per cent at midday on Friday, continuing a steep fall which has seen values tumble by 8.3 per cent since Mr Arisman’s invasion of parliament provoked the government to declare a state of emergency nine days ago.