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Ousted former premier Thaksin Shinawatra urged his supporters not to leave him "dying in the desert" of Dubai on Saturday as he made an impassioned address to a rally in Bangkok.

The fugitive politician, who is living in exile to avoid a jail sentence for corruption, made a 50-minute telephone address to tens of thousands of anti-government protester who gathered despite heavy rain in the Thai capital.

"We come here because we want to see real democracy. We hate injustice and double standards,'' Thaksin told the cheering red-clad crowd, which numbered 25,000 according to police estimates.

"I am fine and doing some business and travelling around but I am really lonely, I want to go back,'' Thaksin said. "Why do you have to leave me dying in the desert when I can work for our country?"

Appealing to his grassroots support base in the poorer north of Thailand, Thaksin said the government of premier Abhisit Vejjajiva should wipe out household debt and attacked its record on the economy.

"This government is good for three things: borrowing, hiking taxes and hounding Thaksin," the exiled media tycoon said.

The crowd of "Red Shirt'' protesters in the historic quarter of Bangkok made up the biggest anti-government rally since bloody riots erupted two months ago.

Protest leader Jatuporn Prompan said it would organise three more gatherings, without saying when they may be.

"They (the government) hoped that they had wiped out the Red Shirts after the last crackdown but instead we are getting stronger and red over Thailand,'' said Jatuporn.

He repeated the group's demands to a jubilant crowd _ that Abhisit must dissolve parliament and call fresh elections _ and berated royal adviser Prem Tinsulanonda, whom they accuse of instigating the 2006 coup that ousted Thaksin.

The group have said they will stay at the site until dawn on Sunday but have promised a peaceful demonstration.

Police said more than 3,000 officers and 1,000 soldiers were on hand to guard government offices and search the crowd for trouble-makers.

Soldiers shooting in the air and firing tear gas have cleared the first small group of red shirts from an area near the Victory Monument. Dozens of people were injured.
Troops began moving in to disperse red-shirt protesters at about 4 a.m. Monday morning in their attempt to open traffic at Din Daeng intersection which has been blocked since Sunday.
Army spokesman Col Sansern Kaewkamnerd said that troops first ordered the protesters to leave, but they answered with tear gas, gunshots and petrol bombs hurled from the expressway.
He added that a protester rammed a hijacked bus into the troops, injuring some.
In retaliation, the troops fired tear gas and their automatic rifles into the air as they moved in to break up the protesters. The troops managed to disperse the rowdy crowd and open part of the road to traffic half an hour later.
About 10 troops and 49 protesters were injured, mostly from tear gas.
Despite the clash at Din Daeng, the red-shirt protesters were still blocking traffic at several main road intersections, including Si Ayuddhaya and Ratchadamnoen. Most protesters were in front of the Government House and its surrounding areas as their leaders urged on the protesters to resist the government.
The situation is still very tense with thel ikelihood of more violence or, in the worst case scenario, a riot, if government forces decide to break up the protest at and around the Government House.
The spokesman also said some of the red-shirt core leaders were held in custody at an undisclosed location. He did not give details.
Government spokesman Panitarn Wattanayakorn insisted that the government would “do everything within the limits of the law to restore order and peace in the country”. He urged the public in general to understand and to have trust in the government and to report to authorities any suspicious movements.
Meanwhile, authorities said that three M79 grenades were fired into the Constitution Court building around 1am on Monday, causing some damage but no casualties

Police said that only one grenade exploded and it was unknown who the perpetrators were.

In Pattaya, one improvised explosive device went off, apparently detonated by a mobile phone, causing damage to a water pipe. Three other IEDs were also found at the scene.
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva went on the nationwide television with the commanders of the three armed forces at about midnight on Sunday.
He repeated the need for the government to take tougher actions against the red-shirt protesters charging of blatantly breaking the law under the guise of struggling for democracy.

Supreme Commander Gen Songkitti Jakkabat has been appointed director of peace-keeping in Bangkok to enforce the state of emergency law.

Earlier report:

Several hundred troops opened up with tear gas against a few hundred red shirts near the Din Daeng intersection.

Hospitals and protesters reported that 49 people were injured, several of them seriously. No deaths were reported.



Most of the reported injuries were from tear gas inhalation.

There were no other reports of clashes between the security forces and protesters. Under the Emergency Decree, troops are authorised to take any steps to break up groups of more than five people, and can detain anyone at any time.

The 4am military attack was shown on TV. Footage showed protesters scattering as the troops moved in.

Source from Bangkokpost

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, appearing on the national television again on Sunday, called on the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) protesters to stop inciting unrest because the army is now ready to use force under the Emergency Decree.

In the afternoon, Mr Abhisit announced a state of emergency in Bangkok and five neighbouring provinces of Nonthaburi, Samut Prakan, Pathum Thani, Nakhon Pathom and Ayutthaya, in an attempt to restore order quickly.



However, he said the anti-government protesters had been trying to create mayhem despite the enforcement of the decree.



He asked public members to remain calm, and assured them that the government would do anything to bring peace back to the country.



Private and public hospitals are prepared to look after injured people, should the decree be seriously implemented, the prime minister added.



Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban, who is in charge of security affairs, called on police and army officers to strictly carry out the policy, and as the enforcer, he is ready to be responsible for the consequences.



The protesters are breaking the law by detaining and hurting state officials, including Prime Minister's secretary general Niphon Prompan, he said.

Source From Bangkokpost

By: AFP

Thai and Cambodian troops fought heavy gunbattles on their disputed border Friday, leaving at least two soldiers dead in the biggest flare-up for months in a bitter feud over an ancient temple.

Bangkok (Own Source) – The government is ready to hold talks with fugitive ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra in a hope to end a week-long rally at the Government House.

Deputy PM Suthep Thaugsuban is optimistic that the red shirts will stop their protest after the court’s injunction.

"I am ready to open talks with Thaksin as he's the real protest leader and decision-maker," Suthep said. "I will wait for his reaction this evening."

Suthep said the government was ready to negotiate with Thaksin anywhere to bring peace back to the country, according to AFP.

He admitted that some of Thaksin’s demands are not possible.

About 2,000 Thaksin supporters who have camped outside the Government House vowed to make an aggressive movement against the Abhisit government.

Thaksin, who is on the run due to several legal charges, keeps making his phone-ins to urge the red supporters to rise up against the government, accusing notable figures as well as the invisible hand of causing his misfortune.

Bangkok (ASTV Manager Online) – Fugitive and former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra will give his speech via video link at 8:00 pm to update his supporters on Thailand’s current situation.

Natthawut Saikua, leader of the Democratic Alliance Against Dictatorship (DAAD), said the then-premier would certainly deliver his speech after the two-day break.

Thaksin is going to talk about Thailand’s political situation, economic problem solving and the red shirts’ mass rally on April 8.

About 200,000-300,000 people are expected to join the rally.

Thaksin’s spokesman Pongthep Thepkanchana said Thaksin was ready to hold talks with Deputy PM Suthep Thaugsuban, according to The Nation newspaper.

Suthep earlier proposed to hold talks between the government and Thaksin in a bid to end the one-week rally at the Government House.

The government insisted that it would not use violence against the DAAD protesters to bring peace back to the Thai society.

LONDON (AFP) - Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva cautioned Wednesday against over-ambitious aims at the G20 summit in London but said Southeast Asian nations would strongly back a coordinated fiscal stimulus.

Abhisit, who will attend the summit as the current head of the 10-country Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) bloc, warned that Thursday's one-day meeting was at risk of trying to achieve too much.

"It is a very ambitious agenda... but we are here to voice the issue of priorities," he said in a speech in London.

Comparing the crisis-hit world economy to a building in flames, Abhisit said: "The building is still on fire and there are still some people left inside.

"We need first to put out the fire and get the people out. That should be the priority."
British-born Abhisit said ASEAN supported calls by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and US President Barack Obama for a fiscal stimulus -- a move strongly opposed by some European nations such as France and Germany.

Asia recommended stimulus measures because it could draw on its own experience of the 1997 Asian crash, he said, echoing comments made Wednesday in the Financial Times by Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso.

"But we still need to set clear targets, including the size of such a stimulus," Abhisit said.

ASEAN, which includes countries heavily dependent on exporting manufactured goods such as Vietnam, also wants to see the Group of 20 industrialised and developing nations take a strong stance on preventing protectionism.

Abhisit said that while world leaders publicly voiced opposition to protectionism, "the reality is that 40 or more cases of protectionist measures have been adopted since the (G20) Washington meeting" in November.

The Thai prime minister said Southeast Asian nations strongly backed moves to reform global institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam as well as Thailand. It represents a collective population of more than 500 million people.
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