Where is way out of Thai Gov't?

By Ling Shuo

BANGKOK, Aug. 28 (Chinese media) -- The Thai criminal court

has already issued arrest warrants to nine leaders of the protesting People's

Alliance for Democracy (PAD), who are charged with rebellion and rebellious

attempt, organizing gatherings of 10 or more people to cause public disturbances

and defying police orders to disperse.

However, the PAD obviously will not surrender to the

court or the police. On Thursday, ignoring Civil Court's injunction, the PAD set

up tents and shower room on the lawn in front of the Thai Kufah Building, the

main building inside the Government House Compound. The area is often used as

forming lines of guard of honors to welcome guests of the government.

A government, as a ruling authority of a country,

usually has two tools to enforce laws. One is the police force and another is

the army force but only under emergency decree. As for the Thai military, its

leader has emphasized that it will not enroll the political turmoil. Then, the

police is the only access for the government to disperse the rally.

Since the first day after the PAD broke into the

Government House, the Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej has appointed his deputy

and interior minister Kowit Watana as the commander to control the situation.

However, so far the former national police chief did not have any clear orders

to disperse the rally yet.

During the past three days, thousands of armed

policemen have been deployed to several sites around the Government House

Compound. On the nights of Aug. 27 and Aug. 28, they came out twice and

surrounded the compound. They carried tear gas guns and stun bombs. They set up

medical center to accept possible injured demonstrators. They also distributed

gas masks to foreign and local correspondents who have stationed there around

the clock.

But nothing happened.

It is really a hard work for the police to disperse

the mass rally, since thousands of protestors have fulfilled the compound. Only

one stun bomb could cause chaos and casualties, a policemen said.

Moreover, on Thursday, the PAD closed two iron gates

of the Government House, only leaving a small gap as the entrance to the

compound.

Prime Minister Samak, now working at the Superior

Command Headquarters, said on Thursday that the government will not use force to

solve the problem, but hopes the PAD leaders to surrender themselves. The PAD

leaders shrugged it, saying that he should cheating with the protestors and

insisted that the disperse operation could start at any time.

Several independent organizations also called on both

the government and PAD to concede to each other. But nobody knows who is willing

to concede to whom.

For the government, it is now in a crag-fast

situation. As some analysts said, if the government uses force to disperse the

rally, the possible bloodshed could trigger a military coup; but if it just

stands by and watches the protest, there is no clear day for the prime minister

to return to his office.

Meanwhile, sensitivity could be found everywhere

inside the compound now, as both the PAD and government are analyzing tactic of

each other. On Thursday afternoon, a local reporter based inside the Government

House was besieged by dozens of protestors since they doubted her as the "spy of

the government or the police."

"A political game or a political war?" is a frequent

chatting topic in the press room of the Government House, where many reporters,

both from Thailand and foreign media, have been waiting for the fictitious

"upcoming operation" for three days.