Dezenas de milhares de manifestantes antigovernamentais espalharam-se domingo por Bancoc, Tailândia, exigindo que o governo renuncie, numa das maiores manifestações da tumultuada história da Tailândia.
Comboios de agricultores em picapes e ônibus lotados de famílias vestidas com as camisas vermelhas que são a marca registrada dos dos manifestantes cobriram um bairro de ministérios e escritórios do governo.
“Nós estamos aqui para declarar uma guerra de classes, em paz e pela democracia,” disse Nattawut Saikua, um carismático lider manifestante, a uma clamorosa multidão que nem o escaldante Sol deteve.
Os organizadores estimaram a multidão em 250.000 pessoas e disseram que outros estavam a caminho pela estrada ou barco. A polícia calculou o número de manifestantes em 55.000, mas disse que a quantidade deles deveria aumentar à noite. Os líderes dos protestos prometeram continuar com a manifestação semana adentro e suas exigências não forem atendidas.
Nos quatro anos de tumultos políticos, as divisões da sociedade tailandesa têm sido complexas e variadas. Mas domingo, os protestantes e seus líderes retrataram as demonstrações como um esforço dos pobres e descontentes contra um governo apoiado e controlado pela elite.
O Primeiro-Ministro Abshit Vejjajiva, um ex-professor de economia, que estudou em Oxford, foi descrito em discursos por líderes dos manifestantes com filho de “privilégios” que se safou do serviço militar e agora preside uma ditadura camuflada.
Muitos moradores de Bancoc receiam que os manifestantes se tornem violentos, e algumas famílias mais ricas deixaram a capital, enquanto outras permaneceram em suas casas. Mas a maior parte de Bancoc, com 8 milhões de habitantes, estava em calma e não foi afetada pelos protestos.
Tens of thousands of anti-government protesters poured into Bangkok on Sunday demanding that the government step down in what was one of the largest demonstrations in the recent tumultuous history of Thailand.
Convoys of farmers in pickup trucks and busloads of families wearing the protesters’ trademark red shirts blanketed a district of ministries and government offices.
“We are here to announce class warfare, in peace and for democracy,” Nattawut Saikua, a charismatic protest leader, said to a roaring crowd not deterred by the scorching sun.
Organizers estimated the crowd at 250,000 people and said more were on the way by road and riverboat. The police estimated the number of protesters at 55,000 but said the number was likely to increase into the night. The protest leaders have vowed to continue their demonstration well into the week if their demands are not met.
In four years of political turmoil here, the divisions in Thai society have been complex and manifold. But on Sunday, protesters and their leaders portrayed the demonstration as a struggle of the poor and disaffected against a government supported and controlled by the elite.
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, a former economics professor educated at Oxford, was described in speeches by protest leaders as the son of “privilege” who had evaded military service and now presided over a veiled dictatorship.
“They have never felt pain,” Mr. Nattawut said of the ruling class. “We don’t have their connections, but we’re ready to die.”
Mr. Abhisit came to power in December 2008 with backing from the military after a court forced the dissolution of the previous government by disbanding a political party loyal to Thaksin Shinawatra, the prime minister ousted in the military coup four years ago.
Mr. Abhisit’s government, which has two years left in office before it must call elections, has poured money into rural development projects, but Mr. Abhisit remains unpopular among voters in the rice-growing area of northeastern Thailand, a stronghold for Mr. Thaksin. Mr. Abhisit rarely travels to the northern part of the country, partly out of concern for his security.
In his weekly television address Sunday, Mr. Abhisit rejected the protesters’ demands to step down, calling them “unpractical.”
“I cannot accept any demand that is considered a threat,” Mr. Abhisit said. “I came to power in a constitutional way,” he said, adding, “I have the right to complete my term.”
The depth of the distrust of the elite and the sense of victimization was on display among protesters at the rally Sunday. Vendors sold hats that said, “Whatever you do is right. Whatever I do is wrong.”
“We’ve come to ask for justice and democracy,” said Sompaan Nhongbor, a 63-year-old rice farmer from the northeast who drove to the protest in a pickup truck jammed with 12 people and a large bag of sticky rice to sustain themselves.
“We’re not doing this for Thaksin,” Mr. Sompaan said, referring to the deposed prime minister. “If Thaksin was a bad person, we would be chasing him out, too.”
The protesters, or red shirts as they are called here, say they had more opportunities during the five years when Mr. Thaksin, a telecommunications tycoon, was prime minister. They credit him for creating a heavily subsidized health care system and for cracking down on illegal drugs.
“There were always jobs available during Thaksin’s time,” said Thanison Srithong, a 34-year-old farmer, also from the northeast, who attended the protest Sunday.
Voters from the northeast still speak bitterly about the 2006 military coup that ousted Mr. Thaksin, a move they say was carried out by the Bangkok establishment.
A Thai court in February decided that the government could seize $1.4 billion of Mr. Thaksin’s assets because he had used his position in government to advance his business interests.
Many here say they perceive the decision as continued persecution of Mr. Thaksin by a shadowy elite.
Although the protest leaders did not mention Mr. Thaksin’s name on stage, vendors sold T-shirts with his image and some groups who arrived described themselves as chapters of a “We Love Thaksin” club.
Near the Thai Parliament building, the protest resembled a tailgate party with hundreds of pickup trucks, bearing license plates from across the rural heartland, serving as makeshift kitchens.
Farmers ate northeastern specialties that can be found in Thai restaurants around the world: green papaya salad, sticky rice and grilled chicken.
Many Bangkok residents say they fear the demonstrations will turn violent, and some wealthier families have left the capital, while others have stayed indoors. But most parts of Bangkok, a vast metropolis of about 8 million people, were calm and unaffected by the protest.
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