Thailand’s military launched a coup Thursday, detaining leaders of rival factions and sweeping into the streets in a move it said was necessary to end months of political turmoil.
In a nationally televised announcement, Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, commander in chief of the Royal Thai Army, said the military takeover would help a fractious country “return to normal quickly.” But the move could also inflame tensions, eliminating an elected government and marginalizing a boisterous opposition group while putting power in the hands of military leaders who have largely stood on the sidelines in recent months.
“The military has to return peace and order to the country as soon as possible,” Prayuth said.
Soon after the coup, the military said it had suspended the constitution and officially dismissed the caretaker government. Prayuth was announced as the head of a council that will temporarily run the country.
Though the extent of military control of the country was not immediately clear, major television stations went off the air. Thailand’s army announced a nationwide curfew from 10 p.m. until 5 a.m., in effect until further notice. Meanwhile, soldiers went to various pro- and anti-government sites across the capital, Bangkok, detaining some of the leaders deemed responsible for Thailand’s protracted political crisis.
Thailand is notorious for its political instability and periodic military takeovers. Since the establishment of a constitutional monarchy in 1932, there have been 12 successful coups and seven attempted ones. But Thailand now finds itself at a particularly dangerous moment, and some analysts warn that its intensifying divisions could lead to armed clashes or, in the worst case, civil war.
The Thai military launched its coup Thursday under the guise of peace talks, which it was brokering between sparring factions. For the second day in a row, representatives from both sides of the country’s main political divide showed up at a military site in the afternoon. This time, according to local media reports, at least some were not allowed to leave, and other protest leaders were soon rounded up across Bangkok.
Among those detained was Suthep Thaugsuban, the leader of the anti-government movement. The pro-government group, known as the Red Shirts, said on Twitter that some of its leaders were also detained.
The coup comes just two days after the military declared martial law, pledging it would not remove the government. In imposing martial law, the military cited a century-old law that gave it broad powers to censor the media, detain civilians and outlaw meetings or assemblies.
For the last half-year, Thailand has been nearly paralyzed by a conflict that has left about 30 people dead and hundreds injured. The conflict, at its core, is a power struggle between rural voters in the vast northern part of the country and urban elites in Bangkok. The rural voters outnumber the urban ones, and over the last 13 years, they have found a political party they love. Again and again they vote it into office — even as the party cycles through names and leaders. And again and again, those leaders are ousted with court decisions or coups.
The conflict is testy, because both sides have major grievances. Those who oppose the ruling party, now known as the Pheu Thai, say it is ruled by a de facto strongman, Thaksin Shinawatra, who has let corruption run rampant and consolidated power among his family and cronies.
Thaksin’s supporters say that the country has found dubious ways to oust a democratically elected party. Thaksin himself was removed as prime minister by a military coup in 2006and now lives in self-imposed exile in Dubai.
His sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, became prime minister in 2011 when Pheu Thai won general elections. But she was booted from office two weeks ago after Thailand’s Constitutional Court found her guilty of abuse of power.
Coups in Thailand are often bloodless, but this is the first to come at a time when the country’s beloved king, Bhumibol Adulyadej, 86, appears too ill to play his traditional mediator role.
Opposition to Yingluck mounted late last year when parliament attempted to pass legislation that would have given amnesty to Thaksin and others facing political charges. The law, had it passed, would have enabled Thaksin to return home without fear of arrest.
After the implementation of martial law on Tuesday, the military set up what it described as a Peace and Order Maintaining Command. A day later, the military summoned representatives from the caretaker government as well as the two major rival political factions for supposed peace talks. When talks ended Wednesday, the military said the various representatives had been sent home with “homework” and told to return with solutions to the protracted dispute.
Thursday, the attendees were taken into custody.
Thailand’s caretaker prime minister — Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan, who replaced Yingluck — did not attend the meetings. Niwattumrong was not detained in any of the subsequent roundups, but some media reports said he has been ordered to turn himself in.
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