Blood protest at parliament 'symbolic sacrifice'
Red-shirted demonstrators poured their own blood on the gates of Government House in Bangkok on Tuesday. One of their leaders told RFI that the act is a symbolic sacrifice as part of their campaign for fresh elections.
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Thousands of Red Shirts, loyal to deposed premier Thaksin Shinawath, queued up in Bangkok on Tuesday morning to offer a small amount of their blood in an unusual show of determination.
It is the latest move in an anti-government street demonstration that has drawn hundreds of thousands of protesters to the streets of the capital since the weekend and that caused the government to postpone its Tuesday session amid security concern.
Q+A: Red Shirt leader Sean Bungprakorn
The blood-shedding was a sacrificial offering and a "bond of willingness" between the movement's chiefs and supporters, says Red Shirt leader Sean Bungprakorn.
“They are enraged and they are full of passion," he told RFI. "They’re doing it because they need to make a point that they’re fighting for a peaceful goal - the dissolution of the parliament.”
Bungprakorn said the blood collection was carried out under the surveillance of volunteer nurses and doctors who were adhering to hygienic standards. They collected blood from some 50 people - 0.6 litres of blood in total – and poured it all over the six entrances of Government House.
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