Thailand

Police surround Suvarnabhumi airport

Article published on the 2008-11-29 Latest update 2008-11-30 11:15 TU

Thai navy soldiers stand in front of a police checkpoint at Suvarnabhumi Airport, 29 November 2008
(Photo: Reuters)

Thousands of Thai police officers surrounded Bangkok’s main airport, Suvarnabhumi, late Saturday after protestors in the morning forced them to abandon trucks at a nearby checkpoint.

“The police wanted to block the access to the airport because they did not want the [People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD)] supporters to come from the city,” reports Bangkok correspondent Arnaud Dubus.

He described demonstrators mobbing police officers.

“A group of policemen and women were caught by the PAD and one of the police women was actually taken by the PAD people and almost lynched,” he said. “About 50 other policemen could escape and they took refuge in the Novotel hotel, which is the biggest hotel nearby the airport.”

Late in the day 2,000 police officers were deployed to set up four more checkpoints on the road to the airport.

"We have set them up just for weapons checks," airport security commander Major General Rarshane Reunkomol told the AFP news agency.

An estimated 3,000 people are camping out in Suvarnabhumi airport, which was seized on Tuesday, and about 1,000 are in the smaller, domestic Don Mueang airport, which was taken over Thursday. Demonstrators say they will not leave until Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat resigns.

Police have warned them to leave Suvarnabhumi overnight.

"The government is still in the process of negotiations and I have asked my men not to use force whatever happens,” said Rarshane. “The gunfire will not be heard from police.”

The government says it wants to resolve the crisis peacefully, but is under pressure to end the standoff, which has already cost the country billions of dollars.

Somchai warned that the protests risk isolating Thailand from the international community.

"To lay siege to the airports is extremely dangerous,” he told reporters. “It will make foreign countries lose confidence in Thailand. They will not fly their aircraft in or allow their citizens to travel here.”

The pro-government United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD), known as the Red Shirts, is planning to hold a rally in Bangkok on Sunday.

Sporadic clashes between pro- and anti-government groups have broken out across the country, and the planned rally has raised fears of large scale violence.