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Thailand remains in administrative chaos despite the government's declaration of a state of emergency and the deployment of troops in Bangkok on Tuesday. Antigovernment protests by the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) attracted more supporters after pledging to fight until Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej steps down.
Samak is seen by many as a proxy for former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who has fled corruption charges to Britain. The anti-Thaksin protesters gained further momentum when the Election Commission asked the Constitutional Court to disband SamakĄ¯s People Power Party, which leads the ruling coalition.
In the front yard of the prime minister's official residence in Bangkok around 11 a.m. on Tuesday, a speaker on the podium told the crowd the news. Some 10,000 citizens who have been occupying the area for eight days now welcomed it with thunderous applause and cheers.
The EC had unanimously decided to ask the Constitutional Court to disband the PPP over vote buying in the last general election. If the court agrees, the PPP, which leads a coalition of six parties, will be disbanded and Samak will find it even harder to stay in office.
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A banner with mock police mug shots of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and wife Potjaman stands over anti-government demonstrators as they face off with government supporters near Government House in Bangkok on Tuesday. At least one person was killed and 34 hurt, four critically, in the clashes on Tuesday, a Thai health ministry official said. /REUTERS
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The number of protesters swelled to tens of thousands in the afternoon. Right after the state of emergency was declared at 7 a.m., protest organizers called on the people to join them to "fight against armed soldiers." Pricha (69), a protester and former civil servant, said, "We had a crowd of 100,000 people last night. But there will be more than 200,000 tonight." A senior PAD figure said the group received donations totaling 101 million baht (US$1=34.38THB) as of Monday.
Thousands of soldiers armed with shields and clubs massed in the area near Government House since early morning to restore order after at least one person was killed in violent clashes between the PAD and pro-government groups. Samak banned public assembly of more than five people and urged an immediate end to the occupation of government buildings.
The government obtained arrest warrants for nine leaders of the PAD, including former Bangkok governor Chamlong Srimuang. But Chamlong, a co-chairman of the PAD, rejected the government order to disperse and pledged to occupy seven local airports unless Samak steps down. The PAD and the unions at state enterprises called for a nationwide general strike starting Wednesday.
Satorn (44), a manager of a construction firm, said, "The fight is between the PAD, which supports the king (Bhumibol Adulyadej), and the PPP, which supports Thaksin and Samak. But despite the deployment of troops, the determining factor will be which side the key military leaders will support."
The South Korean Foreign Ministry on Tuesday issued travel advisories for Thailand, asking citizens to postpone nonessential travel to the country.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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