ASIA: Thai troops crack down on anti-government protesters
14 Apr 2009 12:03 AM
BANGKOK, April 13 AFP - Thai troops unleashed volleys of gunfire in street battles with anti-government protesters across Bangkok on Monday, forcing them back to their main rallying site in a final push to end days of turmoil.
At least 90 people were injured as troops fought with demonstrators who sent buses hurtling towards lines of advancing soldiers and torched a government ministry with blazing molotov cocktails.
The red-shirted protesters later retreated to their camp around the offices of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, a day after the embattled premier imposed a state of emergency in the capital.
Still reeling after the supporters of ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra forced the cancellation of a major Asian summit at the weekend, Abhisit warned that the protesters should go home or face the consequences.
"Those who want to help the government restore normality can return home," Abhisit said in a televised address. "The government has carefully mapped out a plan to implement the law."
He denied a claim by Thaksin that authorities were covering up protest deaths.
A spokesman for Bangkok's main emergency service said that 90 people were hurt, 33 of them hospitalised.
Abhisit said 23 troops were among the injured.
Thailand has been mired in turmoil since the military toppled Thaksin in a coup in 2006, but the unrest confronts British-born Abhisit with his biggest challenge since he took office in December.
The so-called "Red Shirts" want him to quit and call fresh elections, saying that he came to power through an undemocratic parliamentary vote following a court ruling that drove Thaksin's allies from power.
Troops began the crackdown just before dawn, firing hundreds of rounds into the air after demonstrators blocking a major intersection pelted them with rocks and petrol bombs, AFP reporters said.
Further clashes erupted in the same area throughout the day, with protesters weighing down the pedals of at least three buses with water bottles and pushing them at soldiers, who responded with long bursts of warning shots.
As night fell, they began to encircle the protesters inside an area of several blocks and trucks carrying hundreds of troops drove them out of Royal Plaza, less than one kilometre away from Abhisit's office.
On their way the mob threw several petrol bombs into a building in Thailand's education ministry complex, setting it ablaze.
A senior military official confirmed that the aim was to "contain protesters in one single spot and prevent more protesters from going in."
He said there were now up to 4,000 protesters in front of Government House, the demonstrators' de facto base.
Supreme military commander Songkitti Jaggabatara vowed to restore order using "all possible means" and said that while his troops would not instigate violence, they reserved the right to self-defence if attacked.
The military's support after a period of apparent reluctance on Sunday strengthened the embattled Abhisit's hand in the crisis. The army refused to enforce emergency decrees by previous pro-Thaksin governments last year.
But the chaos will hit Thailand's vital tourism industry hard, with the bulk of the trouble erupting just streets away from malls where tourists who had come to Bangkok for the Thai New Year were faced with closed signs.
"You can't see where the situation is going. It's pretty scary and I have two little ones with me," said 43-year-old tourist Sharon Pangilinan, from the Philippines.
Australia, Russia and Hong Kong on Monday joined governments around the world in urging their citizens to avoid or reconsider travelling to Bangkok.
The government here said it would move to protect airports and ports.
Abhisit remains under intense pressure after the "Red Shirts" stormed the venue of an Asian summit Saturday, forcing it to be cancelled and leaders to be evacuated - some by helicopter.
The trouble moved to Bangkok Sunday, when demonstrators attacked a convoy carrying Abhisit out of the interior ministry. Demonstrations also reportedly spread to northern Thailand, Thaksin's stronghold.
Thaksin, who is living in exile to avoid a jail term for corruption but still has considerable influence, appealed for peace in an interview with CNN despite issuing calls for "revolution" in previous speeches to supporters.
"I would like to urge everybody to come together peacefully, not just by force," Thaksin said.
