“We in the Church of Christ in Thailand, along with many others, are despairing at the situation. There seems to be no obvious solution,” Sayam Muangsak, the denomination’s general secretary, said in an April 27 letter circulated among ecumenical organizations in the region.
The church leader emphasized that Thai people “wish for peace to return” after a month long standoff between “Red-Shirts” protestors and the pro-government camp. He said, “We are, however, aware that peace without justice and equity would be a bitter pill to swallow for many in our society who have suffered for years from systems of oppression and corruption.”
Sayam added, “We pray therefore for change that benefits the least and the poorest in our society. It is only with that combination that we will ever have lasting peace.”
The Church of Christ and the Roman Catholic Church in Thailand joined in prayers for peace and for the country on April 25, and other interdenominational prayer meetings have been held in the country in recent weeks.
Archbishop Louis Chamniern Santisukniran, the president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Thailand, called for negotiations and prayers to resolve the political crisis.
At a church function on April 22, the archbishop was quoted by the Bangkok-based Catholic news agency UCANews as urging forgiveness, saying, “Thais are not each other’s enemies, even though there may be different political ideologies. All Thais are one family.”
The worst violence was in a bloody clash between the military forces and the anti-government camp on April 10 that resulted in the deaths of 24 people and hundreds being wounded. More recently violence erupted after grenades were hurled into a crowded downtown area in the Thai capital on April 22.
