Update | Thai protesters launch ‘final fight’ as government clings on
Violence erupts during anti-government protests in Bangkok as police open fire with water cannon and tear gas to stop demonstrators entering a government compound
Thai police fired teargas on Friday at protesters who called for the nation’s Senate to aid their bid to topple the embattled government, two days after the prime minister was stripped of office.
Scenting blood after Wednesday’s court decision to remove Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban handed a petition to the upper house urging it to decapitate a government they say has lost all legitimacy, and appoint a new premier.
“We want the president of the upper house and the members of the upper house to think about the way out for the country,” said Suthep.
With the government weakened but still standing, the call for an appointed administration appears to lack legal grounds.
Earlier Suthep led thousands of protesters, who had fanned out from their main encampment in a park in the city’s commercial district and brought traffic to a standstill in a day of choreographed actions.