Thai PM threatens force against airport protesters

Protesters holding Bangkok’s airports were facing a crackdown tonight as the government warned it would use force to remove them.

Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat declared a state of emergency around the airports which would allow security forces to remove the thousands of anti-government demonstrators crowded inside..

The move came as plans were announced to use military airports to fly out some of the stranded tourists.

Somchai accused the protesters of “holding the country hostage and the public hostage”.

The measures raised the possibility that violent clashes could break out as police and soldiers move on Suvarnabhumi international airport and the city’s older, smaller Don Muang airport.

The declaration, which applies only to the two terminals, allows the government to suspend some civil liberties, including restricting the movement of people and prohibiting mass assembly in certain locations.

The People’s Alliance for Democracy, which has been demanding the resignation of Somchai and his government, seized control of Suvarnabhumi international airport on Tuesday, forcing the cancellation of all flights in and out of the capital and sending thousands of tourists back to Bangkok hotels.

The stand-off, which began three months ago when the group occupied the prime minister’s office compound, has paralysed the government, battered the stock market, spooked foreign investors and dealt a serious blow to the tourism industry.

A government Spokesman called the seizure of the airports “a terrorist act”.

“The prime minister says we have to use peaceful means,” he said. “(Security officials) will negotiate first and we will go step by step, adhering to international standard and the law.”

Somchai said navy personnel would help police in clearing Suvarnabhumi international airport. The air force will assist at Don Muang. He did not say when the authorities would act.

Amid the stand-off, coup rumours swirled around the capital after Thailand’s powerful army commander General Anupong Paochinda suggested yesterday that Somchai call new elections, and the prime minister rejected the idea. The rumours were further fuelled by press reports of tank movements that the military later said were only a training exercise.

“The government is asking all troops to remain in position and not to move anywhere in order to quell a rumour of a coup,“ said the spokesman. ”We ask the public not to panic or to worry about the situation.“

In September 2006 the military staged a bloodless coup to oust former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra after months of protests staged by the same group that is demanding the resignation of the current government. The protest alliance says the prime minister, who is Thaksin’s brother-in-law, is merely the former leader’s puppet.

They accuse Thaksin and his allies of corruption and abuse of power. Thaksin is in exile, a fugitive from a conviction for violating a conflict of interest law.

Despite assurances that there would be no coup this time, government supporters called on their supporters to resist any military takeover attempt against Somchai.

Vipu Talang, a leading pro-government activist, said Somchai’s supporters were moving to gather at a large open field in Bangkok.

“We will not accept, and the people will resist, any attempt by the army to take power,” he said.

The government is drawing up plans to begin flying out thousands of tourists with “urgent needs” from one or two military bases in the next 48 hours. That could include parents with young children and people with medical conditions, said Weerasak Kowsurat, Thailand’s tourism minister.

They would be flown on Thai Airways flights to Singapore or Malaysia. The planes could then return with incoming passengers, Weerasak said. The government also may use buses and trains to transport tourists to other airports in Thailand.