THE protest at the Democracy Monument today (Feb. 13) ended at 8.25 p.m. after a melee at the City Pillar Shrine which led to one of the key leaders, Mr. Panupong Chadnok, or Mike, ending the rally and setting a seven-day deadline for the authorities to free four detained leaders and if not they would be staging another demonstration on Feb. 20, Sanook.com reported.
Timeline of this evening’s protest is as follows:
5:30 p.m. – Protesters removed potted plants around the Democracy Monument and wrapped the 30×30-metre red cloth on which various messages had been written around it. The protest leaders then moved the rally to the City Pillar Shrine.
6:46 p.m. – Protesters reached Khok Wua intersection, most of them shouting scrap “Section 112”. A police vehicle beamed strong lights at the protesters and there was an announcement to stop their gathering. Barbed wire was rolled out to hinder their march while a large number of policemen surrounded the City Pillar Shrine to guard it.
Read earlier report: Protesters write messages on red cloth at Democracy Monument
7.17 p.m. – Four water cannon trucks entered the area. Police announced that they had come to take care of safety so that a third party would not move in to attack them. They asked protest leaders to negotiate peacefully.
8 p.m. – Police allowed four protest representatives to perform a ceremony at the City Pillar Shrine. The representatives said they are going to ask for all that is sacred in the country to be on the people’s side.
8.10 p.m. – A fracas broke out with some people starting to throw things and the protest leaders had to ask them to stop.
8.25 p.m. – The protest leaders ended their demonstration but said they would be staging another one on Feb. 20 if lawyer Anon Nampa, student leader Parit “Penguin” Chiwarak, Mr. Somyot Prueksakasemsuk and Mr Patiwat Saraiyaem, also known as “Mor Lam Bank” are not released. They were denied bail and sent to pretrial detention by the Criminal Court on Tuesday over charges of violating the lese majeste law.
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Top: The melee this evening. Photo: Voice TV published by Sanook.com
Home Page: Four protest representatives performing a ceremony at the City Pillar Shrine. Photo: Sanook.com
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