Red shirts warn against Thai premier ouster

Thousands of pro-government demonstrators march on the outskirts of Thailand’s capital, warning against any attempt to dislodge Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawat.

The Red Shirt rally is part of a three-day action to counter five months of anti-government protests, calling for Shinawat’s removal from power.

The Red Shirt protesters warn that they would fight back in case of any attempts to oust Shinawat’s government through legal action, stressing that the move could trigger a civil war.

They accuse judicial institutions of trying to take over power without elections.

Thailand’s United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD), namely Red Shirts, expected that 500,000 to 700,000 people nationwide would show up at Sunday rally.

“We are here to tell anyone who tries to get rid of the government by undemocratic means that they will have to confront us. If there is a coup or any use of special powers, the Red Shirts will rise up,” Jatuporn Prompan, the leader of the UDD told supporters.
Thailand was hit with unrest in November last year when the ruling party widened an amnesty bill that would include premier’s brother Thaksin Shinawat– who’s facing corruption charges.

Opponents see the premier as a proxy for her elder brother, a former prime minister toppled in a coup in 2006. The ex-premier has been in self-exile since 2008 to avoid a two-year prison sentence.

The violence has left at least 24 dead and hundreds injured since November.

Thailand held a general election on February 2 in an attempt to curb anti-government protests. However, on March 21, Thailand’s Constitutional Court ruled the elections disrupted by anti-government protesters invalid.

The protesters say Yingluck Shinawat should step down so that an unelected “people’s council” could enact reforms.