By Meg Davis
Asian NGOs and government representatives met in Bangkok from March 29-31 at the Asia-Pacific Regional
Consultation on Universal Access. They consulted together to make recommendations on how to ensure universal access to AIDS treatment – one of the Millennium Development Goals. This time, human rights was included, and it was fascinating to see the process and participate in it.
By Pipob Udomittipong
The following is an eyewitness account of the
demonstrations in downtown Bangkok over the past several days. In the wake of
lost lives and massive damage done to infrastructure and buildings in the area,
the government has claimed success in “taking back the area” from the Red Shirt
demonstrators. Much media attention has focused on the property damages, often
overshadowing the human cost of the clearing operation. Images of sabotaged
infrastructure have been featured extensively and repeatedly to vilify the Red
Shirts and justify one of the most brutal suppressions in Thailand’s history. This piece
outlines the gulf that still exists between the government and the
demonstrators, and the unresolved anger on both sides, fueled by an incomplete
narrative in the media. The lingering anger and questions in the minds of many
Thais must be addressed if the country is to move beyond this current tragedy.
