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WORLD NEWS Wednesday 8 May 2019

Official Thai election results favor anti-military party

BANGKOK (AP) — Thai- allocation of seats in the
land's Election Commis- lower house.
sion on Tuesday officially One constituency seat was
endorsed results from the left unendorsed after the
country's March 24 general Pheu Thai candidate who
election, declaring that the topped the vote was dis-
Pheu Thai party associated qualified for breaking an
with fugitive former Prime election rule by donating
Minister Thaksin Shinawatra money to a Buddhist monk
topped the field by winning during the campaign.
136 constituencies. Thaksin, a billionaire who
The commission said the ri- made his fortune in tele-
val military-backed Palang communications, became
Pracharath party ran sec- prime minister in 2001 as the
ond with 97 seats. head of a party he found-
It is still unclear who will ed. His populist policies
form the next government, won him support among
as both of the top two the less well-off rural ma-
competitors are seeking jority but drew the wrath
partners to achieve a par- of the country's traditional
liamentary majority. In this Sunday, March 24, 2019, file photo, an election officer counts votes at a polling station in ruling class, led by the mili-
The Election Commission Bangkok, Thailand. tary and conservative roy-
came under heavy criti- Associated Press alists, who felt his electoral
cism for releasing delayed strength threatened their
and confusing preliminary House of Representatives, list seats will be awarded mission must allocate them influence. When asked
vote totals, and has been and the committee en- based on a proportion of by Thursday. It has hedged when the commission will
accused of tilting in favor dorsed 349 of the 350 won the overall nationwide vote on exactly how the formula finish investigating all cases,
of the military. by direct vote. The remain- derived from a complicat- will be applied, making it he said "we will try to inves-
There are 500 seats in the ing 150 so-called party ed formula, and the com- difficult to project the total tigate as fast as possible."q

All directly involved in Sri Lanka attacks dead or arrested

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) cide bombers died at their jewelry. Authorities had
— Two bomb experts were targets while another ex- repeatedly said another
among the suicide attack- ploded his device later at a attack from the extremist
ers who struck churches guesthouse after his device group was possible.
and hotels on Easter in Sri failed at a leading tourist Sri Lanka's Catholic church
Lanka and all those directly hotel. A ninth killed herself hierarchy closed churches
involved in the bombings to avoid capture by police for a second weekend on
are either dead or under at her home. Sunday as the faithful cel-
arrest, police said. Police have detained 73 ebrated Mass from home
Acting police chief C.D. suspects for investigations watching live on television.
Wickramaratne also said in since the bombings and But on Tuesday, one of
a statement late Monday have seized stocks of ex- the churches targeted in
that explosives the Islamic plosives, improvised explo- the attacks, St. Anthony's
State-linked group stacked sives devices and hundreds Shrine in Colombo, opened
for use in more attacks of swords. Also they have a section of the church to
have been seized. found $140,000 in cash in the public for the first time Sri Lankan Catholic devotees light candles outside the St. An-
The bombings killed 257 bank accounts connected since the bombing, en- thony's church after it was partially opened for the first time
people and wounded hun- to the group and another abling devotees to pray in since Easter Sunday attacks, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Tuesday,
dreds at three churches $40 million worth of assets in the church as was custom- May 7, 2019. Associated Press
and three hotels. Seven sui- land, houses, vehicles and ary every Tuesday.q