Street protests have in the past weeks revisited Bangkok, stirring up fear that all sides of the political divides could turn violent in order to achieve their different objectives. Thailand's political crisis has shown no sign of subsiding. Since the military coup of 2006 ousting the elected government of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, Thai politics has been colored by relentless conflicts that seem to have centered solely upon Thaksin and his political domination.
Recently, the Thaksin-backed government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, Thaksin's youngest sister, abruptly pushed the troubled amnesty bill through Parliament. The manner in which the bill was quickly approved by the parliamentarians, mostly from the ruling Pheu Thai Party, was rather odd. Given the controversial nature of the bill, the Thai Lower House successfully endorsed it with little struggle. The bill was then passed to the Senate for its endorsement. But it was rejected by the Senate due to public pressure. Now, the government has up to 180 days to resubmit its bill. It is however unlikely that the government will try to do it again.
Why is it so controversial? The Yingluck government decided to amend the final draft of the amnesty law that would prevent prosecutions of those responsible for ordering and killing Thai protesters in May 2010, supposedly in exchange for the amnesty given to Thaksin for his corrupt charges.