Asia-Pacific

Thai govt to seek arrest warrant against red-shirts' leaders

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-04-04 19:03

BANGKOK - Legal officials of the Thai government's Peacekeeping Operations Command is going to seek an arrest warrant against the red-shirts' leaders on Monday, Thai News Agency reported here Sunday.

Suthep Thaugsuban, deputy prime minister in charge of security affairs who chairs the Peacekeeping Operations Command, disclosed the court order which is aimed to make the red-clad protesters leave the Ratchaprasong Intersection.

The latest move followed the Peace-Keeping Operation Command's issuance of an official order at 11:30 p.m. on Saturday night, which required the anti-government protesters to leave the intersection but was later turned down by the red-shirts.

The order has cited the reason that the red-shirted protesters are not gathering in a peaceful manner, but disrupting traffic and commerce, which is against the law.

Tens of thousands of red-shirted people, many of them supporters of the ousted former Premier Thaksin Shinawatra, have stormed into capital Bangkok since March 12, demanding the incumbent premier to dissolve the House and pave the way for a new general election.

They started their anti-government rally at the Ratchaprasong Intersection in the center of capital Bangkok on Saturday morning.