Bang Khae Residents Block Expressway: Bangkok

[webfact]

Bang Khae residents block expressway

The Nation

Demand explanation of sluice gate opening from FROC; traffic backs up on both sides of Outer Ring Road

Bang Khae residents yesterday blocked a section of the Western Outer Ring Road to demand an explanation from the government of its "unfair" floodprevention measures.

The protest, starting in the afternoon and running into late evening, caused traffic to back up for many kilometres on both north and southbound lanes.

The group refused to disperse or open a few lanes for traffic at the request of police until representatives of the government's Flood Relief Operations Centre met them on site for direct talks, but no one showed up.

Angry motorists were kept away from the demonstrators to prevent brawling after a blockade of a tollway in northern Bangkok on Wednesday ended up in a clash that resulted in injuries and damaged cars.

The group insisted on learning the details of several measures including the opening of three sluice gates on Maha Sawat Canal, as demanded by Nonthaburi residents. The group said the move could cause their district, located south of Nonthaburi, to be inundated.

Residents in Pathum Thani's Rangsit area demolished a section of a sandbag fence intended to facilitate the drying of Rangsit Market.

Around 100 people living in the Rattanakosin Bicentennial estate began their protest at 10.30am and started dismantling the sandbags after local and Irrigation Department officials failed to make a 30minute deadline to meet them.

Protest leaders said the 500rai estate has been under chesthigh putrid flood waters for five weeks without any explanations or viable measures in place, and would now face more problems with the sandbag wall, which they did not want and had torn down.

Deputy mayor Decha Klinkusum, who was not at the scene, said the protestors had sabotaged the wall without understanding the situation and he would meet with some of them later.

The temporary measure was needed to prevent flood waters from entering the market before drainage could begin and an earthen fence could be built around the market.

Another group of residents in the Rangsit area threatened to obstruct traffic on the tollway tomorrow if no FROC officials were present by today to explain floodprevention measures for the Ban Fa Lagoon estate, where they live.

Besides blocking the elevated tollway in front of Future Park Rangsit mall, the group also vowed to demolish whatever sandbag walls and big bag barriers they saw fit and thought were causing the monthlong inundation of their estate.

Pol General Pongsapat Pongcharoen, the new deputy police chief, called on all protestors to use only lawful and nonviolent means in their rallies or protests, or else police would have no choice but to deal with their crimes when they arose.

After the fight between drivers and protesters on Wednesday during a tollway blockade near the Zeer Rangsit mall, police fined the motorist who drove through the crowd.

A man who smashed the motorist's windshield agreed to pay him Bt2,700 for the damage and both sides agreed not to take further action against each other, Pongsapat said.

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said her statement asking the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration to work with the government and other agencies to implement floodprevention measures "as a whole" did not mean she wanted Governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra to solve the problem across the country.

Justice Minister Pracha Promnok said during a House session on flood prevention that it was difficult to deal with the problem in the capital, because the flood would move on to a new area after it was drained from other areas.

Deputy Prime Minister Yongyuth Wichaidit pledged to do whatever it took to ensure that people could resume their normal way of life before December 5, "even though flood waters have not completely gone away". He did not elaborate.

-- The Nation 2011-11-25

[robblok]

Justice Minister Pracha Promnok said during a House session on flood prevention that it was difficult to deal with the problem in the capital, because the flood would move on to a new area after it was drained from other areas.

That is why you should not dam it all up. You cant let water stay in one area hoping it goes away. It will have to pass other area's. If there are no good options to drain it let it in the other area until it reaches the river.

[IAMSOBAD]

Who are the suspects and who are the victims?

The police are so totally inept dealing with Thais when more than 5 assemble.

I lived in the USA under Nixon and in Spain under Franco and these 2 dick-taters at least tried to keep large crowds from killing and attacking eachother.

Thai police never act unless their pockets are involved.