20 Dead in Bangkok Anti-government Demonstrations

During this past month the temperature has climbed well past 100 degrees, the perfect time for a demonstration. The anti-government forces have been in a month-long demonstration outside government buildings. Tired of being ignored they changed strategies and moved the restless crowd to the heart of the elite financial center in Bangkok in a bold move to escalate and provoke a governmental response. Today the two groups clashed violently and when the anger was exhausted twenty people lay dead (14 demonstrators, 6 police). The ground was littered with debris, spent shell casings and pools of human blood. One Japanese journalist/cameraman was shot directly in the chest and died.

Political tensions in Thailand have been rising for 20 months. The Reds (communists and supporters of former Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra) have been protesting for months and this weekend moved from their former base in the old city quarter to the upscale shopping district where they blocked access to the area. Yesterday their numbers swelled to an estimated 80,000 protesters. The military-backed government has ordered them to disburse, but the crowd shows no signs of abating.

In recent days the Reds got the attention of world media by pouring out 300 liters of their own donated blood in front of the Thai government house. The group is calling for the resignation of the current prime minister and reformation of the government. Thaksin was overthrown by the military in 2006 and was the only Thai prime minister to have ever served out a full term (the military steps in a lot). He remains hugely popular as a man for the middle and lower classes. Political trouble often opens a nation spiritually so please pray for this. Thanks!