Home »
Bangkok
Another Warning from the Embassy
Posted by Stuart at 12:23 PM on February 10, 2006Yesterday, I received another email from the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok. It said:
Attention American Citizens:
Thailand has recently experienced a number of large, unrelated public demonstrations in Bangkok and Chiang Mai. These protests have been mainly peaceful in nature, and have targeted, among other issues, the Thai-US Free Trade Agreement, the listing on the stock exchange of a large brewery, and opposition to Thai Prime Minister Thaksin. The crowds often include several diverse groups of demonstrators which assemble with no set starting or ending times.
As stated above, these demonstrations are usually peaceful in nature, but all demonstrations are unpredictable and conditions can change unexpectedly. The Royal Thai Police attempt to have sufficient officers on hand to maintain public order, but unforeseen events can lead any demonstration to turn violent without warning.
For this reason, the Embassy encourages all Americans in Thailand to monitor local media for announcements of future demonstrations and to avoid the area where demonstrations are held whenever possible. Should you find yourself among or near the demonstrators, move indoors for shelter until the demonstration has passed, or ask for police assistance to leave the area. If a demonstration is expected to pass near U.S. Embassy facilities, Embassy entrances and functions may be restricted depending on circumstances.
For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department’s Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where the current Worldwide Caution, Public Announcements, and Travel Warnings can be found. Up-to-date information on security can also be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S., or, for callers outside the U.S. and Canada, a regular toll line at 1-317-472-2328. These numbers are available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays).
Post a comment
Another big one is to be held on February 26th to drive Thaksin out of power. This is the third time in the past 33 years that the Thais rise up to topple leaders deemed corrupt or no longer legitimate. While this points to the fact that Thai politics is far from clean, it also proves that we will not give in to abusive or immoral regimes for long.