Published April 14, 2009

Pitched battles in Bangkok

At least two dead and 113 injured as demonstrations and confrontations escalate

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(BANGKOK) Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva yesterday urged demonstrators seeking his removal to disperse after clashes left two dead and at least 113 people injured as soldiers battled to restore order to Bangkok's streets.

Hotting up: Demonstrators preparing for confrontation by setting city buses on fire to block the troops

One person was shot dead in fighting between the protesters and residents, Satit Wongnongtaey, a minister at the prime minister's office, said on television.

Near dusk, soldiers advanced into an area held by protesters near Government House, the prime minister's office, setting the stage for a final push to end demonstrations that have further hobbled a country still reeling from political chaos last year and the global financial crisis.

Hundreds of soldiers with riot police behind them lined up on two roads approaching Government House, where protesters who support exiled former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and are known as the Red Shirts have been encamped since late March.

The army also set up roadblocks to stop demonstrators elsewhere from returning to the Government House area.

Preparing for conflict, protesters lit several city buses on fire to block the troops. One side of a government building was on fire, and a Thai television channel said that it was caused by a firebomb. Black smoke billowed into the Bangkok sky.

Several thousand Red Shirts were still at Government House as night fell. Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva appeared on television urging people to leave and guaranteeing their safety. Mr Abhisit had declared a state of emergency in Bangkok on Sunday.

The clashes came two days after Red Shirt protesters forced cancellation of a high-profile Asian summit in Thailand, a big embarrassment for Mr Abhisit, whom they have been trying to oust. He took office only in December.

Standard & Poor's and Moody's, which already have a negative outlook on Thailand's sovereign ratings, yesterday said that the renewed political unrest increased the risk of a downgrade.

'Tourism can rebound, but investor confidence will be very hard to get back,' said S&P analyst Kim Eng Tan. 'Going forward, we expect investors will become a lot more risk averse.'

Several countries issued travel advisories for Thailand.

'I believe the darkest days in Thailand's history are yet to come as we see no swift solution to ongoing divisiveness,' said Prinn Panitchpakdi, a CLSA Asia-Pacific analyst.

Dr Thaksin, the figurehead of the protests, told CNN from an undisclosed location that people had died.

Thailand's Emergency Medical Institute said that at least 94 people, including soldiers, were injured in yesterday's clashes, including 24 still hospitalised.

The violence began before dawn at the start of the Thai New Year holiday, much of it near one of the city's central traffic hubs Din Daeng junction, which Red Shirts had blockaded.

Even as soldiers and protesters battled in the streets, in other parts of town squealing children and shrieking adults blasted each other with squirtguns as part of New Year celebrations. Songkitti Chakabakr, Thailand's top military commander, said in a televised statement yesterday that the committee charged with restoring order would strive 'through every peaceful means' to bring things back to normal as soon as possible, but reserved the right to use force if necessary. -- Reuters, AFP