Sunday Times 2
Gunman in deadly attack on Thai opposition rally
View(s):BANGKOK, Dec 28 (AFP) -A gunman opened fire at an opposition rally in Thailand today in a deadly attack that inflamed tensions in the politically divided kingdom, where anti-government protesters wreaked fresh havoc in election preparations.
Thai anti-government protesters rally next to riot policemen (AFP)
The shooting, which killed one demonstrator and wounded several others, follows weeks of mass street protests seeking to oust Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and curb her billionaire family’s political dominance.
Yingluck has called February elections in the hope of bringing an end to the rallies, which have drawn tens of thousands of people calling on her to step down.
But the protesters have vowed to block the February 2 vote, saying it will only return the Shinawatra clan to power.
Anti-government demonstrators besieged a number of candidate registration venues in Thailand’s opposition-dominated south today, forcing officials to suspend the process in several provinces, Election Commission secretary-general Puchong Nutrawong told AFP.
Thailand has been periodically convulsed by political bloodshed since Yingluck’s older brother Thaksin Shinawatra was overthrown by royalist generals in a coup seven years ago.