More than 8,000 Thais rallied in Bangkok Saturday to demand an end to the country's army-backed government, police said, with many calling for a return of deposed premier Thaksin Shinawatra. "We want Thaksin to come back. He is not corrupt," a doctor in his 50s said as he joined the anti-junta rally in Sanam Luang plaza near the Grand Palace.
The doctor, who declined to be named, held a banner saying: "The Coup. Get Out!" while some protesters wore T-shirts emblazoned with the face of Thaksin, who was ousted by the military in September 2006.
Since the bloodless coup, Thaksin has lived in exile. Thaksin's allies, who have organised daily anti-junta protests, claimed some 40,000 people joined Saturday's rally. Authorities deployed more than 1,300 policemen around the plaza in central Bangkok but there were no reports of violence. Rally organisers have said they will continue daily demonstrations until a major anti-junta rally scheduled for June 24.