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Thailand vows to protect summit from protesters
(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-04-09 23:31

The protestors are supporters of Thaksin, whom they say was wrongfully deposed in the 2006 coup. After a two-week sit-in outside the prime minister's office, protestors marched Wednesday to the home of King Bhumibol Adulyadej's top adviser, 88-year-old Prem Tinsulanonda, whom they accuse of undermining democracy by orchestrating the coup.

Thailand vows to protect summit from protesters
A taxi driver waves a Thai national flag as they block the road during an anti-government protest at the Victory monument in Bangkok April 9, 2009. [Agencies]

On Thursday, the number of protestors was down to about 20,000 people, police said. The crowd size tends to swell in the evening when Thaksin addresses his supporters via video link from abroad.

Protersters left the road outside Prem's residence where a woman earlier drove a car into a group of protestors before speeding away. One protestor was slightly injured, said Bangkok Police Chief Lt. Gen. Worapong Chiewpreecha. The driver wore a yellow shirt, which is the color favored by anti-Thaksin activists.

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Protest leaders later called off the gathering outside Prem's house, saying he was unlikely to be inside. Most returned to the seat of government while others joined the protest at the Victory Monument.

Scattered protests that drew hundreds of people were staged elsewhere in Bangkok, including outside Abhisit's Democrat Party headquarters and at the Constitutional Court that ruled against Thaksin-allied governments last year. Others marched to the Foreign Ministry to call for the resignation of Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya, who was a prominent supporter of anti-Thaksin protests last year.

Prem, who has denied any involvement in the coup, remained inside his home while police and soldiers stood guard in the streets and within the compound's walls.

King Bhumibol Adulyadej, 81, is widely revered, and by tradition the utmost respect has also been extended to his inner circle. To issue public attacks against his top advisers, known as the Privy Council, is unprecedented in recent Thai history.

The protests are the latest episode in Thailand's protracted political turmoil, which has been a tug-of-war between Thaksin supporters and opponents since 2006.