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BANGKOK: Orange-clad motorcycle taxi drivers have become allies of anti-government protesters in Thailand who gather in traffic-congested Bangkok to provide elevators and keep an eye out for problems.
When authorities closed the train lines this month in an effort to curb the daily demonstrations, motorcycle taxi drivers in the capital came to the rescue and drove the stranded protesters to the demonstration sites.
But they have long waited on the sidelines of the youth-led movement, cheering on student leaders as they demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and issued unprecedented calls to reform the kingdom’s monarchy.
“I support these children,” said 41-year-old pilot Supatr Manapornsiri, adding that he keeps his prices low because he supports his goals.
“My income has increased a bit,” he told AFP, saying that it jumps from 1,000 baht ($ 32) a day to 1,300 to 1,400 baht during the protests.
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Another driver, Pakin Kamhamauk, 44, sometimes even grants free rides.
“If it turns out they don’t have money, that’s fine,” he said.
Motorcycle taxis may seem like a cluttered transportation option for Bangkok’s congested roads, but there is order out of the chaos, with passengers lining up at specific corners to wait for drivers.
Drivers, who congregate around demonstrations in their distinctive orange vests, are also useful as lookouts.
Many motorcycle taxi drivers say they sympathize with the protesters’ goals and are happy to lend a hand. (Photo: AFP / Mladen ANTONOV)
In October, when authorities deployed water cannons for the first time since protests began in July, it was drivers who rushed to give early warnings and then blocked some roads so activists could safely escape from riot police.
Supatr said he is concerned about most of the young protesters, who have demonstrated peacefully for their goals.
“They are very disciplined. They are not going to do stupid things,” he said.
“I want each and every one of them to be safe.”
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Thailand has a history of street politics that has turned violent, with mass demonstrations in the past sparking harsh crackdowns by the authorities.
Motorcycle taxis have aligned themselves in previous protest cycles with the so-called “Red Shirts,” mostly working-class blocs that support the ousted populist prime ministers Yingluck and Thaksin of the prominent Shinawatra clan.
While today’s growing movement is led by college students, the drivers, who often hail from rural northeastern provinces and Bangkok’s slums, have bravely joined.
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Mass demonstrations have rocked the Thai capital for months. (Photo: AFP / Lillian SUWANRUMPHA)
Dubbed by some as the “Orange Shirts,” a game of Thailand’s color-coded political factions, motorcycle taxis can meander past tens of thousands of protesters, drawing on their intimate knowledge of the capital’s back streets.
“If there are protesters who faint, we are usually the first to help them,” driver Yom, 49, who declined to give his full name, told AFP.
Happy to support a movement seeking to topple Prayut, he said the former military chief has done little to boost Thailand’s ailing economy since the 2014 coup that brought him to power.
“He doesn’t know how to handle a single thing,” Yom said.
“The country continues to approach a precipice. I think it is time to replace it with someone new.”
