THAI CHANGE ASEAN SUMMIT VENUE TO HUA HIN

By D. Arul Rajoo
BANGKOK, Jan 7 (Bernama) -- Host Thailand has again changed the venue of the
14th Asean Summit and is now planning to hold it at the seaside resort of Hua
Hin from Feb 27 to March 1.

However, meetings with Asean dialogue partners have been re-sheduled to
April.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said the change was necessary to ensure
smooth running of the summit of the 10-member countries as there were threats
from anti-government supporters to block the event which was initially slated to
be held here.

"There won't be any more changes to the venue. We selected Hua Hin because
it has a good environment for holding such meetings," he told reporters after
chairing a preparatory meeting of the summit.

Abhisit said his Democrat-party led coalition government, which came to
power last month after the previous People's Power Party (PPP) was dissolved by
the Constitution Court, picked a venue outside Bangkok to avoid confrontation
with the protesters under the United Front of Democracy against Dictatorship
(UDD) umbrella.

The UDD, noted for its red shirted supporters and linked to ousted prime
minister Thaksin Shinawatra, has vowed to block the summit and is also planning
to send letters to all the other nine Asean members, claiming that Abhisit was
illegally elected to the post.

The summit, as well as the East Asian Summit with China, Japan, South
Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand, was originally scheduled from Dec 15 to
18 in Bangkok, before the previous government of prime minister Somchai
Wongsawat moved the venue to the northern city of Chiang Mai due to street
protests by the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD).

But when PAD besieged and closed down the Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang
airports at the end of November, the then-Thai government postponed the event to
March.

As a result, a ceremony to mark the historic enforcement of the Asean
Charter was shifted to the Asean Secretariat in Jakarta last month.

Abhisit said the security departments had given the green light to hold the
summit in Hua Hin, about three hours' drive from here and known for its beaches
and King Bhumibol Adulaydej's summer palace.

On Asean Plus 3 and Asean Plus 6 meetings, Abhisit said it would be held in
April but the actual date and venue had not been fixed. The two meetings could
not be held with the Asean Summit as Chinese leaders would be busy with their
National Congress.

Other Asean members are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia,
Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam.

-- BERNAMA