Thai anti-gov't protesters begin to mass for rally

[March 12, 2010]  BANGKOK (AP) -- Anti-government protesters massed around Thailand on Friday ahead of a march they hope will paralyze the capital and force Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva to call new elections. Authorities mobilized 50,000 security officers and set up checkpoints around Bangkok.

Several schools closed in Bangkok and foreigners were advised by over 30 embassies and the Tourism Authority of Thailand to stay away from the protests, as Thailand braced for violence in the latest chapter of a four-year political crisis.

The so-called Red Shirts, who support fugitive ex-leader Thaksin Shinawatra, have vowed to keep their protest nonviolent -- and some in Bangkok carried single stem roses that they handed to policemen. Demonstrators started meeting around the country Friday, including at several locations in the capital, where they plan to converge in a mass rally Sunday.

The group includes followers of Thaksin and other people who oppose the 2006 military coup that toppled him. They believe Abhisit came to power illegitimately with the connivance of the military and other parts of the traditional Thai ruling class who were fearful of Thaksin's popularity while in office in 2001-2006.

The group's last major protest in Bangkok last April deteriorated into rioting that left two people killed, more than 120 people injured and buses burned on major thoroughfares. The army was called in to quash the unrest.

In a televised news conference, Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban addressed a mood of national anxiety and sought to assure the public they were not targets.

"So far, people in Bangkok can still live their lives normally," he said. "They should be on the lookout for violence but do not panic. There have been reports that targets would be government offices, not people's homes."

The government, while saying it will honor the right to gather for peaceful protest, has set up roadblocks at all main access points to the capital, and has been stopping and searching cars for weapons. A force of 50,000 soldiers, police and other security was mobilized for the Bangkok area.

Hundreds of red-shirted protesters on motorcycles and pickup trucks clogged streets in central Bangkok before gathering at scattered rally sites, including the national police headquarters. One group of several hundred rallied outside an army command center on the outskirts of Bangkok where Abhisit was monitoring the day's events, and then dispersed peacefully.

Leaders of the mostly rural movement say they are aiming for a "million man march" and a blockade of government offices to protest what they call undemocratic rule that serves the urban elite.

"As long as there is no justice, Thailand cannot be united," Jaran Ditthapichai, a Red Shirt leader, told a crowd outside the police headquarters, which dispersed after a brief rally "We want the power to be returned to the people."

Government supporters claim the Red Shirts will dress up as police and soldiers to shoot demonstrators in order to create martyrs; Red Shirt leaders says provocateurs pretending to be protesters will incite violence to discredit their movement.

Ahead of the rally, the government invoked its Internal Security Act to give the military special powers to restore order if necessary.

Sean Boonpracong, a spokesman for the Red Shirts, said Thursday that confrontations could occur at checkpoints on the outskirts of the capital if soldiers try to block protesters from entering.

[Associated Press; By THANYARAT DOKSONE]

Associated Press writer Jocelyn Gecker contributed to this report.

Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.