Asia-Pacific

Thai army vehicles bring down protest barricade

(Agencies)
Updated: 2010-05-19 11:42

BANGKOK – Thai troops opened fire Wednesday into the fortified encampment of anti-government protesters in downtown Bangkok, tearing down a part of its tire-and-bamboo barricade in what appears to be a final crackdown after a week of deadly clashes.

Thai army vehicles bring down protest barricade
Thai soldiers take up a defensive position near Lumpini Park in downtown Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, May 19, 2010. [Agencies]

Associated Press reporters saw the troops firing automatic rifles from an overpass overlooking the encampment. Groups of soldiers also fired from crouching positions on the tracks of an elevated light rail system that runs over the encampment. Police reported four people wounded, including one shot in the chest.

"This is D-Day," said one soldier when asked if this was the final push to clear the protest zone.

Thick black smoke from a mountain of burning tires darkened the skies Wednesday, billowing over the skyscrapers of this Asian metropolis of 10 million that has descended into chaos over the last week, with at least 39 killed, most of them civilians.

The violence in Bangkok, a popular stop for tourists heading to Thailand's world-famous beaches, has caused concern internationally and raised doubts about the stability of this Southeast Asian nation.

Government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn appeared on national television four hours after the crackdown began and said the operation would continue throughout the day, saying it was "to make sure that security officers can provide security and safety to the public at large."

The so-called Red Shirt demonstrators marched into Bangkok in mid-March to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, dissolution of Parliament and immediate elections.

They created an encampment in Bangkok's posh downtown Rajprasong district in April, surrounding themselves by a barricade of tires and bamboo spears, some of which appeared to be in flames Wednesday.

An estimated 3,000 people were believed to be inside the 1-square-mile (3-square-kilometer) protest zone, which has taken over several blocks of downtown Bangkok's toniest shopping and tourism district.

"This is the last push. Looks like the government really wants to end it this time," said Senator Lertrat Rattanawanit, who had tried to mediate between the two sides. "They have laid out the steps, giving out deadlines for people to move out and all that. It's a pity that using force is inevitable."

Asked if losses could be prevented, he said: "It's impossible."

At the protest zone's barricades, two Thai armored vehicles toppled a section of the tire-and-bamboo barricade of the encampment. The vehicles made no attempt to drive through the large holes punched by their operation, and troops stayed outside.

Police Lt. Gen. Jongjet Owjenpong said four people have hospitalized, including one who was shot in the stomach and the other in the chest.

Deep inside the encampment, Red Shirt leaders continued to give speeches to some 3,000 supporters gathered around them. But the crowd appeared to be unaware that the army was tightening the noose around them, and their leaders did not talk about the troops advance.

An army commander said some Red Shirt protesters were about 200 yards (meters) inside the barricade.

Several Red Shirt security personnel, who used to wear distinctive black shirts, changed their clothes and wore white arm bands with red crosses, AP reporters saw.