‘Holy traffic cones’ symbolise the turmoil that engulfs Thai politics
In the lawless political environment of Bangkok people are being bashed and stabbed for moving barriers put up by protest groups
Thailand's political lexicon has a new term: the holy traffic cone.
The term went viral this week after a series of vicious attacks on motorists who moved traffic cones that anti-government protesters had arbitrarily placed near rally sites.
This is not just ridiculous and absurd, this is lawlessness
A mix of outrage and creativity sparked political cartoons and online postings, including a widely shared Facebook photograph shows five men kneeling in prayer with heads bowed to a cone on the street.
The message, "Don't touch the cone!" is circulating online. A cartoon listing objects that cannot be moved in Thailand depicts historical monuments and a traffic cone.
Thai Politictionary, a website of Thai political terms, added the term "Holy Cone" to its site on Monday. Definition: "a sacred traffic barrier" deployed by security guards for the protest movement. "Whoever dares to touch, move or destroy the cone may be physically assaulted."
The orange cone has come to symbolise the growing sense of hopelessness many Thais feel over the sometimes violent upheaval that has left the country in political disarray.
Last week a court sacked Yingluck Shinawatra as prime minister for nepotism, although her party remains heavily influenced from abroad by her brother, former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Government opponents vow to keep protesting until a new, unelected government takes over to begin reforms, while Yingluck's supporters say they will take to the streets if that happens.
