The General Protests

THROUGHOUT THE WEEK, DEMONSTRATORS POURED into Bangkok’s streets to protest. On one day more than 100,000, headed by opposition politicians and student leaders, gathered outside parliament to vent their anger at the appointment of General Suchinda Kraprayoon, the army’s Chief of Staff, as Prime Minister.

Providing moral focus for the demonstrations was Chamlong Srimuang, a retired general and former governor of Bangkok who heads the opposition Palang Dharma party. A Buddhist, Chamlong announced that he would fast unto death to force Suchinda to resign. That vow sparked the antigovernment rallies. Suchinda fought back by accusing critics of promoting social unrest and declaring that he would resign only if his coalition suffered a parliamentary defeat. Suchinda’s defiance was undermined, however, when his five-party coalition, clearly shaken by events, agreed to four constitutional amendments, including one that would require the Prime Minister to be an elected member of parliament. The opposition was not appeased, though Chamlong gave up his fast. At week’s end King Bhumibol Adulyadej dispatched an envoy to the opposition camp to discuss ways to resolve the crisis.