Date – March 15, 2010
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has come out to spurn the demands of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) saying that it was something that was not possible although his government would continue to talk with all parties in order to find a solution that would be satisfactory to all parties.
“The demands of the protestors to dissolve the parliament before noon, is something that we cannot do. This is a unanimous decision by the coalition members present at the meeting,” Mr. Abhisit said from the 11th Infantry Regiment in Bang Khen area of Bangkok which is in the process of being besieged by the UDD supporters.
Mr Abhisit who as seated next to some of the coalition parties including the Chart Thai Pattana party’s leader, said that the government would try to listen to all parties and heed to their grievances but a house dissolution was out of the question.
He said that the aim of the government was to bring the country out of the economic problems and that is what his government has done so over the past 15 months.
He said that the statements by the UDD leaders over the past 24-hours have indicated that their intention is not for the ouster of this government alone but it goes beyond, an indication of the statements made by the UDD to oust the Privy Council President Prem Tinsulanonda.
Mr. Abhisit said that everybody was of the agreement that the government was on the right path to control the situation and that the government would not be the first to use violence to crack down on the protestors.
“We will respect the rights of the people and not to use force or talk about dispursing the protestors, we do not feel there is a need to aggravate the situation and to further divide the country,” he said.
“We recommend all parties to remain in the framework of the constitution and that we will not do anything that would have hidden agenda.”