Thai PM Watches His Own Coup Unfold From New York Hotel Room

Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was staying at the Grand Hyatt hotel in midtown Manhattan in September 2006 when military commanders launched a coup against his government in Bangkok, leaving him to follow events on television from more than 11 time zones away.

As tanks moved through Bangkok and coup leader Lieutenant General Sonthi Boonyaratglin declared martial law and announced Thaksin's removal, the prime minister's aides in New York struggled to maintain contact with Thailand after military forces seized government communications lines.

In the early stages of the takeover, Thaksin broadcast live on Thai television from his hotel suite, dismissing the army chief and declaring a state of emergency. Aides insisted he remained calm and that he intended to defend the constitution, rescheduling his UN General Assembly address to address the crisis.

Outside Thailand's UN mission in New York, a small group of anti-Thaksin demonstrators gathered. One protester, a New York City employee originally from Thailand, said: "We normally don't like coups, but this time we welcome it."

At Thailand's Washington embassy, staff said they were also following developments on CNN and had no further information to provide.

Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in September 2006, in its own words.