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August 29, 2008

Thai Police Fire Tear Gas to Disperse Anti-Government Protesters
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Demonstrators calling on police to turn over any officers responsible
for clashes earlier Friday at main government compound, where protesters
have been consolidating 
Riot police scuffle with demonstrators outside the government house in
Bangkok, 29 Aug 2008Thai police have fired tear gas to disperse some
2,000 anti-government protesters gathered outside police headquarters in
Bangkok. The demonstrators were calling on police to turn over any
officers responsible for clashes earlier Friday at the main government
compound, where protesters have been consolidating. Hundreds of riot
police had stormed the fences of the Government House, pushing their way
past protesters to deliver a court order demanding that they leave the
area. More than 10,000 activists aligned with the opposition People's
Alliance for Democracy have controlled the compound since last Tuesday.
They are calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej,
accusing him of being too close to former Prime Minister Thaksin
Shinawatra. Mr. Thaksin was ousted in a 2006 coup and is accused of
corruption. The prime minister says he will not step down. But the
protests are spreading across Thailand. Anti-government demonstrators
forced officials to shut down the airport in the southern resort island
of Phuket, after blocking the runways. Mr. Thaksin is in self-imposed
exile in Britain. His allies, led by Mr. Samak, won parliamentary
elections in December 2007.Mr. Samak has accused the opposition of
trying to trigger another military coup. But the military has said it
does not plan to overthrow the government.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.


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