REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BANGKOK - Ousted members of Thailand's former government turned themselves in to the country's new military junta Friday, as soldiers forcefully dispersed hundreds of anti-coup activists who defied a ban on large-scale gatherings to protest the army's seizure of power.
At least two activists were detained by troops during the protest in downtown Bangkok, which descended into scuffles but ended without injury and marked one of the first open challenges to the military since Thursday's coup.
The junta, though, remained firmly in charge, summoning more than 100 top political figures — the entire ousted government, their associates and a handful of their opponents. It also banned those on its wanted list from leaving the country.
Among the officials who showed up at an army compound in Bangkok by midday were former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, sacked earlier this month for nepotism by the Constitutional Court, and her temporary replacement Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan, according to Yingluck's aide Wim Rungwattanachinda. After about 30 minutes, Yingluck left the facility and was taken to another army location by soldiers, said Wim, who later added that it appeared she would not be immediately released.
It was unclear what the military's intentions beyond the summons, which it said had been issued "to keep peace and order and solve the country's problems." By nightfall, dozens of the VIPs who turned themselves in were still being held, although at least eight ex-Cabinet ministers had been released.
Most of the country was calm, and there was little military presence on Bangkok's streets. Although life had largely returned to normal during the day, an overnight curfew from 10 pm to 5 am was still in effect.
Thursday's dramatic events were the latest response to a societal schism laid bare after the 2006 coup deposed former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, the older brother of Yingluck and a billionaire tycoon whose populist movement has won every national election since 2001. Thaksin lives in self-imposed exile to avoid corruption charges, but he still wields enormous influence over Thailand's political affairs and remains at the heart of the ongoing crisis.
It is a divide that has led to upheaval multiple times in recent years. The latest crisis alone has left 28 people dead and more than 800 wounded since November.
US Secretary of State John Kerry condemned the takeover and warned it would "have negative implications for the US-Thai relationship," but did not announce immediate punitive steps. The State Department said it was reviewing millions of dollars in aid.
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