Thai Coup Highlights Struggles Over Democracy

The coup has brought swift international condemnation. The Bush administration is now in the process of reviewing military and other aid to Thailand and has said a pending free trade agreement with Bangkok cannot go forward without a restoration of democracy.

Thaksin, who was in New York preparing to address the United Nations at the time of the coup, is now in London, where he told reporters he was taking a "holiday" for the time being. In a statement, Thaksin appeared resigned to his ouster, saying he would remain in Europe for the time being to promote Thai unity.

But foreign investors remained jittery, with the Thai currency, the baht, and the stock market going on wild rides as rumors of a counter-move by officers still loyal to Thaksin have raged through Bangkok. So far, there have been no serious indications of violent resistance to the provisional military authority.

Anti-Thaksin forces here insist the coup is being misrepresented outside Thailand. They describe it as the result of Thaksin's attempt to usurp the constitution and set himself up as a "democratic dictator" in a nation where King Bhumibol Adulyadej remains the beloved head of state. Public protests against Thaksin, they said, had grown in the aftermath of a corruption scandal in which his family sold its controlling stake in a major telecommunications company to a Singapore state investment firm for $1.9 billion without paying a cent of taxes. But those protest rallies were confined to Bangkok.

Still, the spark that finally ignited the coup appeared to be Thaksin's recent interference in the military promotion system to elevate his allies to top positions.

In a signal that the royal household had effectively endorsed the coup, the king officially named Sonthi the head of an interim council.

On Friday, Sonthi again promised to swiftly name a civilian caretaker, with foreign observers calling for the appointment of a well-known and respected figure to prevent the impression of a puppet government. Attention has focused on former World Trade Organization chief Supachai Panitchpakdi and Thailand's central bank head, Pridiyathorn Devakula. But on Friday, speculation also turned to a less renowned figure, Ackaratorn Chularat, president of Thailand's Supreme Administrative Court.

Analysts note that Thaksin's adversaries had yet to exhaust all legal means of opposing him, and they said the checks and balances of Thailand's constitutional monarchy had recently begun to function.

With a nod from the king, Thaksin loyalists on an election commission were purged by the still largely independent Supreme Court -- opening the way for a more level playing field in elections that were set to be held in the coming months. Thaksin's critics say his party was already gearing up for a cash-for-votes campaign that would have kept him in power.

Instead, with the military now in charge, Thailand has reverted to martial law. At least four of Thaksin's top aides have been detained by military authorities, who have also outlawed political meetings of five or more people. TV and radio stations have been warned to prevent criticism of the new military government, with armed soldiers stationed inside or near major domestic networks as a reminder. The military authority on Friday also named an official body to probe allegations of corruption under Thaksin.

Resistance to military control has already begun to fester. A group of about 100 university students staged an ingenious protest on Friday near an upscale shopping mall. To avoid violating the new military rules against political gatherings, they clustered themselves in groups of twos or threes across a broad public area.

"This coup is not what we wanted," said a 19-year-old university protester who declined to give his name, but held a sign saying: "No to Thaksin, No to the Coup."

"Thailand needs real democracy," he said, "and we don't feel this was the right way to achieve it."