군부 무혈 쿠테타, 태국 장악
태국 군부, 계엄령 이틀만에 쿠데타
계엄령을 선언한 지 이틀만에 각 정파간 타협에 실패했다며 쿠데타를 선언했다.
프라윳 찬-오차 육군참모총장은 22일 TV 방송을 통해 정치 위기를 해결하기 위한 정파간 회의가 실패로 돌아갔다며, 군과 경찰이 전국 통제권을 장악했다고 발표 했다.
프라윳 총장은 군 수뇌부와 함께 TV 방송에 등장해 "신속하게 국가의 평화를 회 복하고 정치 개혁을 하기 위해 육군, 해군, 공군, 경찰이 22일부터 계속 권력을 장 악할 것"이라고 밝혔다.
그는 "모든 국민은 평정을 유지하고, 평소 생활을 유지해야 한다"며 "정부 관리 들은 그동안 해왔던 것처럼 규정에 따라 업무를 계속한다"고 강조했다.
군은 헌정 중지, 오후 10시부터 오전 5시까지 통금, 5인 이상 집회 금지, 군에 대한 내각 보고, 반정부 및 친정부 시위대 해산 등을 발표했다.
쿠데타 발표는 정부, 친정부 시위대, 반정부 시위대 등 각 정파의 대표들이 정국 위기 타개 방안을 논의하기 위해 이날 프라윳 총장의 소집으로 이틀째 회담장에 모여 회의를 연 뒤 나왔다.
목격자들은 지난해 말부터 7개월째 반정부 시위를 주도해온 수텝 터억수반 전 부총리가 회담장에서 군에 의해 구금됐다고 전했다.
니와툼롱 분송파이산 과도총리 대행은 이 회의에 참석하지 않았으며 다른 각료 4명이 정부 대표로 참석했다가 군에 의해 억류된 것으로 알려졌다.
방콕 시내에서 점거시위를 벌이던 반정부 시위대와 방콕 외곽에서 시위중이던 친정부 시위대는 군의 명령에 따라 해산했다.
군인들은 시위대 해산 과정에서 공포탄을 쏘기도 했으며 일부 시위 지도자가 억류됐다고 목격자들은 전했다.
이에 앞서 프라윳 총장은 지난 20일 새벽 치안과 질서를 유지하기 위한 것이라며 계엄령을 선포했으며, 계엄령 선포는 쿠데타가 아니라고 강조했다.
이로써 대규모 반정부 시위로 인한 정치 위기는 결국 군부 쿠데타를 초래했으며 , 동남아시아 제2의 경제대국인 태국의 민주주의와 정치는 또다시 큰 위기를 맞게 됐다.
군은 지난 1932년 입헌군주제가 도입된 후 19번째, 탁신 친나왓 전 총리를 실각시킨 지난 2006년 쿠데타 이후 8년만에 다시 쿠데타를 일으켰다.
정치 관측통들은 시위 사태로 인한 정국 불안이 계속되자 군부의 쿠데타 가능성이 큰 것으로 관측해왔다.
탁신 전 총리를 지지하는 이른바 '레드셔츠' 등 친탁신 진영은 군부의 쿠데타 감행시 전국에서 대규모 봉기가 발생하고, 이는 자칫 내전으로 비화할 수 있다고 경 고해왔다.
이 때문에 친탁신 진영이 이번 쿠데타에 어떻게 대응할지 주목되며, 레드셔츠 시위대들이 군에 항거하면 대규모 유혈사태를 배제할 수 없는 실정이다.
북부지방 레드셔츠 지도자는 "당장은 방콕으로 가지 않을 것이며, 아무 계획이 없다"며 "우선 상황을 지켜볼 것"이라고 밝혔다.
반정부 시위 사태로 지난해 말부터 지금까지 28명이 숨졌으며, 800명 가까이 다쳤다.
잉락 친나왓 전 총리는 부정부패로 유죄를 선고받아 해외도피 중인 탁신 전 총리의 사면과 귀국으로 이어질 수 있었던 사면법 추진을 계기로 대규모 반정부 시위 가 발생하자 의회를 해산하고 조기 총선을 실시했다.
그러나 헌법재판소는 친탁신 진영의 승리 가능성이 높았던 조기총선을 무효화했 으며, 지난 7일에는 잉락 전 총리에게 권력남용을 이유로 해임 결정을 내렸다.
잉락 전 총리는 계엄령 선포 이후 국내에 머무는 것으로 알려졌으나 소재는 파악되지 않고 있다. (연합)
Thai military seizes power in bloodless coup
Without firing a shot, Thailand's powerful military seized control of this volatile Southeast Asian nation Thursday, suspending the constitution and detaining Cabinet ministers in a risky bid to end half a year of political upheaval that many fear will only deepen the nation's crisis.
The coup, the second in eight years, accomplished in a few minutes what anti-government protesters backed by the nation's traditional elite and staunch royalists had failed to achieve on the street: the overthrow of a democratically elected government they had accused of corruption.
The new junta leader, army chief Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, announced he was taking power almost immediately after talks between the nation's bitter political rivals _ which lasted a mere four hours over the last two days _ ended in deadlock and the government refused to resign.
Prayuth claimed he had to act to restore stability and ``quickly bring the situation back to normal'' amid increasing spasms of violence that together with controversial court rulings had rendered the government powerless and the country profoundly divided.
But troubles for Thailand, a regional economic hub whose idyllic white-sand beaches and elephant-filled jungles draw millions of tourists a year, could be just beginning.
``We're likely to see dark days ahead,'' said Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a political analyst at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University, referring to the possibility of violent resistance from the ousted government's supporters.
The deposed administration of acting Prime Minister Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan, which was summoned to appear before the junta Thursday night, seemed to have gone into hiding and made no statement condemning the coup. Four of its ministers, ordered to an army compound for talks earlier in the day, were in custody, along with top protest leaders.
``The rest of us who are outside are still fine and in safe places,'' said the ex-premier's adviser, Paradorn Pattanathabutr. ``The situation is very worrying. We ... don't know what else can happen.''
The army, which imposed martial law in a surprise move Tuesday that many sensed was a prelude to taking full power, imposed a nationwide curfew that began at 10 p.m. _ a clear sign it is concerned about potential unrest. During the last coup, in 2006, Bangkok residents moved freely and wrapped yellow ribbons and flowers around tank turrets until dawn.
Prayuth called on the public not to panic this time, either. But the vast capital's elevated train, subway and bus stations shut down early, filling with long queues as anxious office workers rushed home along increasingly empty streets.
After nightfall, troops deployed armored personnel carriers to block main roads, including one in front of the U.S. Embassy, and diverted traffic at key intersections. Major highways were virtually devoid of traffic, extraordinary for the normally bustling metropolis of 10 million.
International cable news channels, including CNN and BBC, were taken off air.
Earlier, armed troops dispersed demonstrators from protest sites where competing groups were camped out _ one filled with thousands of Red Shirts who support the now-ousted elected government, the other with those who had struggled for seven months to unseat it.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry condemned the takeover and warned it would ``have negative implications for the U.S.-Thai relationship,'' but did not announce immediate punitive steps. The State Department said it was reviewing millions in aid.
``There is no justification for this military coup,'' Kerry said in a statement that also called for the release of detained political leaders and a return of press freedom.
The day's dramatic events were the culmination of a societal schism laid bare after the 2006 coup deposed former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, a billionaire tycoon whose populist movement has won every national election since 2001.
The conflict pits a majority rural poor in the north and northeast, who benefited from Thaksin's populist policies, against an urban-based elite based in Bangkok and the south that is concerned it is losing power.
It is a divide that has led to upheaval multiple times in recent years, and sometimes death. The latest crisis alone has claimed 28 lives and left more than 800 wounded since November.
Thailand's political tensions have played out against a backdrop of fears about the future of its monarchy. Thaksin's critics have accused him of disrespecting ailing King Bhumibol Adulyadej and trying to gain influence with Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, the heir to the throne.
On Wednesday, a day after Prayuth declared martial law _ and insisted a coup was not underway _ he summoned protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban to talks with rival Red Shirt leader Jatuporn Prompan and senior government ministers at an army complex in Bangkok.
They met again Thursday, but the impasse was unresolved. After just two hours, Prayuth left the meeting, and the situation quickly deteriorated.
The power grab appeared to be well-orchestrated.
Armed troops swiftly entered the conference room, and olive-green military trucks blocked the building's entrance, sealing everyone else inside. Troops with automatic weapons drawn fanned out and took positions, waving journalists away. Suthep and Jatuporn were escorted out by soldiers and taken into custody, as were the four Cabinet ministers.
Regular TV programming was suspended, and half an hour later, Prayuth appeared, flanked by the heads of the armed forces and police.
The National Peace and Order Maintaining Council was duty-bound to ``take over the governing of the country,'' he said, adding that the aim was ``to let the people have love and unity as in the past, and to reform the political and economic systems, and to grant equality to every side.''
``We ask the public not to panic and carry on their lives normally,'' Prayuth said, adding that the military would ``provide protection'' for foreigners in Thailand.
Although Prayuth had tried to cast himself as a neutral mediator, shutting down partisan TV stations and summoning leaders from both sides, analysts say he had a simple goal. ``I think the intention was to get the government to resign, and when that didn't happen, they took over power,'' Thitinan said.
In the hours following the takeover, TV stations broadcast only decades-old military and patriotic music, interrupted periodically by edicts from the junta, including one announcing the government's dissolution and the suspension of the 2007 constitution _ a charter the military had drawn up itself after the last coup.
The junta, however, said the Senate would remain in place.
Ominously, it also ordered 18 Cabinet ministers, including the premier, to report immediately to the country's new rulers.
A similar order was issued after midnight to Thaksin's sister, former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, who came to power in a landslide vote in 2011 and was removed by the Constitutional Court this month for alleged abuse of power.
The anti-government protesters have declared the destruction of the Shinawatra political machine as one of their major goals, and the announcement seemed to indicate the army was pursuing a similar agenda.
Although there remains profound anxiety about Thailand's fate _ the pro-government Red Shirt supporters have warned they would not tolerate the unconstitutional installation of an unelected leader.
The coup Thursday was the 12th since the end of the absolute monarchy in 1932.
In Bangkok, there was relief that protesters were finally gone from the streets they had occupied for so long.
``I hope the soldiers have come out this time to solve the problem once and for all,'' said Pinkaew Pipatada, 65, a flower vendor at the Erawan shrine, a popular tourist site in central Bangkok. ``This is the fourth coup I've seen in my life now.''
In a statement in Bangkok, Karim Lahidji, who heads the International Federation for Human Rights, said ``the military's seizure of power has become routine and a sad reality of Thai politics'' and warned it would plunge ``Thailand into a deeper political crisis.'' (AP)
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