Emergency rule casts long shadow
SPECIAL REPORT: Five months on, whether or not the decree is really curbing violence is being hotly debated
The long shadow cast by the emergency decree has hung over Thai society for five months since its invocation on April 7, but still the debate rages whether it truly helps curb violence or is itself another problem to be negotiated.
The decree was invoked by the Abhisit Vejjajiva government to maintain peace and order as the protests in Bangkok by the anti-government United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) started to gain momentum.
The area covered by the decree was initially confined to Bangkok and its immediate neighbouring provinces but, as the protests in the city gained further support from the red shirts' rural bases, it was extended. Twenty-four provinces were covered by the decree at its peak before it began to be gradually wound back to just the seven, including Bangkok, now included in its net.
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About the author
- Writer: Anucha Charoenpo
- Position: Reporter
