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Reuters

Thousands of anti-government protesters began a blockade at major intersections in Bangkok on Monday as they sought to paralyse Thailand’s capital, stepping up pressure on Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to resign.
Police and soldiers kept watch as the city of some 12 million people ground to a halt, but there were no signs that the government was preparing to resist the protesters with force.
Watch: Thai opposition protesters launch Bangkok "shutdown"

In Pictures: Thailand crisis: Bangkok shutdown
The upheaval is the latest chapter in an eight-year conflict pitting Bangkok’s middle class and royalist establishment against the mostly poorer, rural supporters of Yingluck and her self-exiled brother, billionaire former premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
Thaksin was ousted by the military in 2006 and sentenced to jail in absentia for abuse of power in 2008, but he still looms large over Thai politics and is the dominant force behind his sister’s administration from his home in Dubai.

Eight people, including two police officers, have been killed and scores wounded in violence between protesters, police and government supporters since the campaign against Yingluck’s government started in November.
Shootings were reported overnight near a government administrative complex the protesters began to blockade late on Sunday and at the headquarters of the opposition Democrat Party, which has thrown in its lot with the protest movement.
The protesters have set up permanent barricades and encampments at seven big intersections, but others are being blocked, too.
At one, near the American and Japanese embassies, around 100 protesters sat on the road to halt traffic. Som Rodpai, 64, said they would leave after nightfall, amid fears their citywide protest could spark a violent reaction.
“I’m not scared,” said Som. “We came here unarmed.”
In a bid to end the campaign, Yingluck, who has a commanding majority in parliament, has called a snap election for Feb. 2. But her Puea Thai Party would probably win again and protest leader Suthep Thaugsuba has rejected the poll.
His stated goal is to eradicate the influence of the Shinawatra family on Thai politics.
Suthep however said he would call off the protests if, as some fear, violence escalates into civil war. “If it becomes a civil war, I will give up. People’s life is precious for me,” he told the Sunday Nation newspaper.

Pro-Thaksin groups started rallies in several provincial regions on Sunday but are steering clear of Bangkok for now.
The government has deployed 10,000 police to maintain law and order, along with 8,000 soldiers at government offices.
“We don’t want confrontation with the protesters ... In some places we will let them into government buildings,” Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul said on Sunday.
“SIT AND MEDITATE”
National security chief Paradorn Pattanathabutr said around 20,000 protesters had joined a march from what has been the movement’s main camp at Democracy Monument in the old quarter.
Among them was Prasert Tanyakiatpongsa, a small business owner, who backed Suthep’s plans for electoral reforms.
“I’m not sure if we can achieve what we want in a day but maybe we can after a week ... We are not out to clash with police. We will sit and we will meditate,” Prasert said.
Although rumours of a coup are rife, the military, which has staged or attempted 18 coups in 81 years of on-off democracy, has tried to stay neutral this time and army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha has publicly refused to take sides.
But some fear extremists or agents provocateurs could instigate violence to provoke military intervention, leading to a repeat of 2010 when more than 90 people, many of them Thaksin supporters, were killed in an army operation to put down a rally that had closed parts of central Bangkok for weeks.
“The government will let Suthep play the hero tomorrow ... It will be his show,” Labour Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung said on Sunday. “There won’t be a repeat of 2010 because the government will not use that strategy. There are no plans to use force.”
The latest protests took off in November, when the government tried to push through a political amnesty that would have let Thaksin return home without serving jail time for corruption. The bill was ultimately withdrawn but the protests gathered pace.
Thaksin, a former telecommunications tycoon who redrew Thailand’s political map by courting rural voters to win back-to-back elections in 2001 and 2005, gained an unassailable mandate that he then used to advance the interests of major companies, including his own.
He is opposed by the elite and establishment, who feel threatened by his rise, and regard his sister as a puppet. Thaksin’s opponents include unions and academics who saw him as a corrupt rights abuser, and the urban middle-class who resented, as they saw it, their taxes being used as his political war chest.
Nevertheless, Yingluck’s party would probably win the February poll thanks to support from voters in the north and northeast.
But a smooth election looks increasingly unlikely, with the protesters determined to install an appointed “people’s council” to change the electoral system and bring in other reforms to weaken Thaksin’s sway.
The unrest has hurt tourism and further delayed huge infrastructure projects that had been expected to support the economy this year at a time when exports remain weak. Consumer confidence is at a two-year low.
City officials told 140 schools to close on Monday and universities near the protest sites have suspended classes.
Protest leaders want to stop ministries functioning but say they will not shut down public transport or the city’s airports. Anti-Thaksin protesters shut the airports for several days in late 2008, causing chaos for tourists and exporters.


Thai protesters start Bangkok 'shutdown' in bid to topple PM

Protesters at Victory Monument in Bangkok. Photo: Reuters

Thai anti-government protesters wave national flags as they march through the streets of Bangkok. Photo: AFP

Thailand's Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. Photo: Reuters

Thai protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban with anti-government protesters. Photo: AFP

Countdown begins for Thailand protesters' shutdown amid worries it will lead to coup

An anti-government protester holding national flags on Sunday arrives with a group to block one of city's the key intersections as a part of the shutdown. Photo: Reuters

A protester in Bangkok yesterday. Photo: Reuters

A Thai police officer secures a gate outside the Government House in Bangkok on Sunday ahead of the shutdown. Photo: AFP

Caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. Photo: EPA

Traffic piles up in Bangkok as protesters start their attempt to shut down the capital. Photo: EPA

General Prayth Chan-ocha has refused to rule out the possibility of a military takeover. Photo: AP

Gun attack on anti-government protesters in Bangkok raises fears of escalating violence

Anti-government protesters sit in an opposition camp in central Bangkok. Photo: Reuters

With do-it-yourself riot gear and fiery words, Thai protesters prepare to ‘shut down’ Bangkok

A Thai protester waves the national flag during a rally. They are planning to take over the capital on January 13. Photo: AFP

Thai anti-riot policemen. Photo: AFP

Protest Suthep Thaugsuban, who faces a murder indictment, collects donations from supporters at a march on Thursday. Photo: AFP

Bangkok residents debate democracy ahead of looming city shutdown

Hundreds of protesters of all ages have been camping near the Democracy Monument located in the center of the city since November. Many come from outside the capital, with some sleeping in nearby temples. Photo: Joanna Chiu 

A protester surveys one of many tables set up near the Democracy Monument selling snacks and patriotic kitsch. Photo: Joanna Chiu 

Since November, 41-year-old Pitchaya Apisirawiwat has traveled to Bangkok every Saturday from a nearby province to join the protests. She said she does not want to see an election in February. "If a new government comes now, it would be the same same. People want change. I support the Democrat Party because they want to take away corruption, while Thaksin's party just gets popularity from helping farmers." Photo: Joanna Chiu 

At night, a larger number of protesters than in the daytime gather to listen to speeches from protest leaders. Sporadic clashes with police have taken place. There are now at least eight people dead and 400 wounded. Photo: Tom Grundy 

A trader from Shanghai stands in Chinatown, Bangkok, reading a newspaper article about the planned city shutdown on January 13. "I think this could be dangerous," he said. "Until now, it's been easy for normal people in the city to avoid the protests. I usually come to Bangkok once a month to work but I will stay away until after Chinese New Year." Photo: Joanna Chiu 

Chinatown shopkeeper Mr. Xi, who was born in Bangkok and whose family is from Chaozhou city in Guangdong Province, is a staunch supporter of the current government. "Those protest leaders talk very well about ending corruption, but they don't do anything. That is the worst kind of people," he said. "Thaksin follows his word and is good for businesses and poor people." Photo: Joanna Chiu 

Protesters flocked to the Democracy Monument to take photos. Protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban said the rally stage would be taken down next week as demonstrators prepare to occupy major intersections of the city instead. Photo: Tom Grundy 

Mimi, 25, a hotel executive living in Bangkok, says she feels torn between the two sides. "I am in the middle but my family supports the protesters. I think everyone is just greedy for money and power. I am worried that the military will get involved and will support the protesters while the police will get involved in support of the government. There could be civil war. I hope that an election will happen soon." Photo: Joanna Chiu 

Meanwhile, one block away, international backpackers continue to drink and buy souvenirs on Khaoson Road as usual. This t-shirt stall owner says that business has been good and said that he supports the protesters. "The protesters tend to have jobs and are educated, while about 80 per cent of Thaksin's followers are from rural areas who are easily led and support him because they want his money." Photo: Joanna Chiu 

Rose Ramanwong, a 24-year-old law student from Bangkok's Ramkamhang University, has been volunteering at the demonstration's canteen since November. She argued that protesters do want democracy, but only when it's the right time for it. "In Thailand we love the king. But Thaksin does not respect the king. I don't like Yingluck too because Thaksin  tells her what to do. If we have an election now, they will just use money to buy the votes. We have to work to fix and clean the country first before holding elections." Photo: Joanna Chiu 

Map of the 20 proposed intersections that protesters will try to occupy from January 13. Graphic: Komsan Jandamit

Protesters on the march again in Bangkok

A poster showing protest leader and former politician Suthep Thaugsuban, who wants a 'people's council' to oversee reforms. Photo: EPA

Anti-government protesters wave national flags during a rally in Bangkok on Sunday. Photo: AFP

Protesters wave national flags during Sunday's rally in Bangkok. Photo: AFP

Thai anti-government protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban. Photo: AFP 

News

Asia

Tens of thousands occupy streets as campaign to force out prime minister steps up before election


Thai protesters start Bangkok 'shutdown' in bid to topple PM

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Tens of thousands occupy streets as campaign to force out prime minister steps up before election

Tens of thousands occupy streets as campaign to force out prime minister steps up before election