Dramatic scenes as Bangkok protest turns violent скачать в хорошем качестве

Dramatic scenes as Bangkok protest turns violent

(17 Nov 2020) Thailand's political battleground shifted on Tuesday from the streets to the country's Parliament, where lawmakers are considering proposals to amend the constitution, one of the core demands of the nation's student-led pro-democracy movement. Chances that sparring would be limited to words inside the legislative chamber vanished in the afternoon, however, as pro-democracy protesters at the site were pushed back by police water cannon as they tried to breach barriers set up on several streets to stop them from penetrating the Parliament compound perimeter. Protesters said they believed the water contained an irritant, which would not be unusual for crowd control. As the initial small number of protesters increased later in the day to as many as 1,000, they achieved at least a tactical victory by removing some of the barbed-wire barriers in front of the main gate of the compound. They accomplished that even though police at one point fired tear gas canisters, some of which were tossed back by demonstrators. Video broadcast from the scene showed a large number of people being helped or carried from the scene after water cannon and tear gas were deployed, though there were no reports of serious injuries. Many of the protesters wore white construction helmets and other protective gear. Several lawmakers left the scene by boat from a pier behind Parliament even as the debate inside was scheduled to continue for many more hours, until midnight. Seven draft constitutional amendments are scheduled to be voted on in a two-day joint session of the House and Senate. Constitutional changes require a joint vote of those two bodies. Any motions that are passed will have to go through second and third readings at least a month after this week's vote. It is not expected that Parliament at this point will agree on specific changes for inclusion in a new charter, though the protesters back a draft that would roll back aspects of the current 2017 constitution — enacted during military rule — that granted extra powers to unelected branches of government, such as the Senate. Instead, Parliament is likely to establish a constitution drafting committee to write a new charter. This would allow the government to say it is willing to meet the protesters' demands at least halfway, while buying time with a process that could extend over many months. The student-led movement has staged mass rallies around the country for months and has called for substantial changes to the constitution and reforms to the monarchy. The Parliamentary session is an effort by the government of Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha to take the initiative away from the ongoing pro-democracy movement, which wants Prayuth and his government to step down. The protesters have alleged that Prayuth, who as army chief in 2014 led a coup that ousted an elected government, was returned to power unfairly in last year’s election because laws had been changed to favour a pro-military party. The protesters have also said that the constitution, written and enacted under military rule, is undemocratic. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...