Quisling Uses Army To Seize Control

Chronicle (Levin), 10 November 1947, Page 5

Quisling Uses Army To Seize Control

(N.Z.P.A.-

— Reuter*

Copyright j

Received Sunday, Midnight. BANGKOK, Nov. 9. , In a lightning' eoup the S.amese. Army toolv over the control of' Siam early today. The army took; the Premier Tham Rong Nawa Suwat prisoner while he was attending a dance. The coup was carried out hy a group helieved to l)e supporting, Marshal Luang Phibun Song; Gram, the Japanese puppet dicta-i tor during the war, and is eomposed mostly oi' air force and l'ormcr imppet gi'ound force officers. Philtun. in a statement to the

Siame.se peo])le, said the old and experienced administrators had returned to power and the country 's ills would quiekl.v be remedied. Ple appealed to all to carry on as usual. The city is n.ormal except that srowds are gathering everywhere. The mrategic areas are cord'oned olT and- all Government offices are worlving under heavy guards Phibun controls transport, communieations and broadcasting. The commander-in-chief Adul this

morning entered into an agreement with Phibun and is expected to hold the post. Phibun will confer with the Gpposition leaders this afternoon. "Wartime dictator and Premier until 1944 Field Marshal Phibun Song Gram made a political comebaek in April 1947 leading the Tharmathipat ' or "Right is Might" party, says Reuter 's Singa])ore eorrespondent. Phibun was one of the most prominent suspeets in the Siamese war erimes trials at the end of the war, but was released as the result of a eourt deeision that the law was not retrospective. The leading' Fnglish daily, the Bangkok Post, in a leader on the comehaek, deserihed Philtun as "one of the Quislings of World War IT". .