Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said there would be a public holiday in Thailand on Friday to help the government cope with the effects of political protests that have caused chaos in Bangkok and threaten an Asian summit.
In a televised address to the nation late on Thursday, Abhisit also said he would not give in to demands to step down made by thousands of red-shirted supporters of ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a military coup in 2006. "I believe dissolving parliament under current circumstances is highly inappropriate as it is unlikely to lead to an election that helps promote a democratic image," he said. Banks and the stock exchange are expected to open as normal.
Thaksin now lives in self-imposed exile but his absence has not healed the divisions between the royalist, military and business elite, who say he was corrupt, and the poor who benefited from his populist policies. His supporters in the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) say Abhisit, elected by parliament in December, is a pawn of the influential army and called a mass rally in Bangkok this week in a bid to force new elections.
They are also threatening to disrupt an Asian summit meeting that starts in the resort town of Pattaya, 150 km (90 miles) south of Bangkok, on Friday. The UDD said it would block access to the hotel where the summit will be held, bringing together 16 Asian leaders. As many as 100,000 Thaksin supporters had assembled on Wednesday in a sea of red in the area around Abhisits office, Government House. On Thursday the numbers were put by witnesses at around 30,000 but other flashpoints were appearing.
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