It's been about a week since the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) started protesting, hoping to oust the current government (which has only been in power for about 7 months). Until last night, things had remained peaceful, aside from the fact that the PAD protesters have broken many laws. Earlier in the week, the highest court in Thailand gave the police the authority to arrest the leaders of the PAD group but that still hasn't happened. Last night, pro-government supporters clashed with the PAD protesters and as a result, there was one fatality and many others were injured. As a result, the government declared a state of emergency in Bangkok and the military has stepped in in order to try and control the situation.
Although the group of protesters are called the People's Alliance for Democracy, they really don't want democracy. They have openly said that most of Thailand's population is too uneducated to support a democracy. It sounds to me that they think only the rich elite have the right to vote, but unfortunately much of Thailand's population is still fairly uneducated and poor. There are thousands of protesters protesting in Bangkok and getting paid to do it, often times getting paid more than what they could make at their normal jobs. If they weren't being paid to protest, these protests would have fizzled out already. I think it is funny, the uneducated shouldn't be able to vote, but it is fine to allow them to help with the protests.
In regards to us and what is happening here in Chiang Mai. Other than people being offered money to protest, I haven't seen anything out of the ordinary. The train station is closed down but I haven't seen any protests happening in or around Chiang Mai because the north where we live is pretty pro-government and a major part of the reason that this government is in power. With that said, please continue to pray for the country and the safety for everyone.
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