's political impasse clings on after declared in 08:44, September 03, 2008

Thai Army Commander-in-Chief Anupong Paojinda, who was assigned by Prime Minister to take charge of enforcement of Emergency Decree in Bangkok, pledged that the military would stand along with "the people" and no force will be used against protesters who seized the administration seat.

The confusion was that by "the people," who weighed more in the army chief's mind -- supporters to the anti-government coalition People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) or demonstrators led by Democratic Alliance Against Dictatorship (DAAD)?

Violent clashes between the two groups of demonstrators in the early hours of Tuesday, which has left at least one person dead and 44 injured near the Government House compound, has prompted Prime Minister Samak declared a state of emergency in Bangkok at 7:00 a.m. Tuesday (2400GMT, Monday) through TV pool and radio broadcasters nationwide.

Thailand's Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej speaks during a news conference at the Supreme Command Headquarters in Bangkok September 2, 2008. Sundaravej declared a state of emergency in the country's capital Bangkok on Tuesday and gave the army control of public order after a man died in overnight clashes between pro- and anti-government protesters. Samak announced that the government has bee acting with utmost restraint and tolerance with the PAD supporters, who have occupied the administration seat since Aug. 26 in what they called a "final showdown" to push for step-down of the Samak-led government, which the PAD has labelled as a proxy of ousted premier .

Thai Army chief speaks during a news conference at the army headquarters in Bangkok on September 2, 2008. Anupong said on Tuesday he would not use force to evict protesters occupying the prime minister's official compound despite a state of emergency giving him the power to do so. But after the early morning violence incidents, the government had to rely on the military and police forces to bring the situation back under control.

Riot policemen separate the two sides of clashes in Bangkok, capital of Thailand, early Sept. 2, 2008. Fierce clashes erupted between thousands of pro-government and anti-government protestors in Bangkok early Sept. 2, leaving at least three people dead and more than 20 others injured. Samak later assigned Anupong to chair a committee to take charge of the enforcement of emergency decree, which bans gathering of five or more persons -- meaning the protesters in or outside the Government House should disperse whether voluntarily or forcedly.

Protestors holding sticks stand after the intervention of riot policemen in Bangkok, capital of Thailand, early Sept. 2, 2008. Samak's declaration was matched with a seemingly reluctant response from the military.

Army Chief Anupong, after calling a urgent committee meeting, said at a press conference in early afternoon that the army's enforcement of the emergency decree will be based on the "principle of democracy" and rely on negotiation, rather than use of force, and with an aim to prevent further confrontations.

Soldiers or police to be despatched to enforce the emergency decree will not carry any weapons, but only be armed with shields and batons, according to Anupong.

They will also negotiate with anti-government protesters in a bid to remove them from rally sites, which the police had been doing with anti-government protesters who have camped in the Government House for seven days, but to no avail.

Everything will be carried out in peaceful means, Anupong said.

Samak had not give a timeframe for the enforcement of emergency decree, but he said it will only be for a short time before the situation get controlled. He also assured that people's normal living and working would not be greatly affected.

After the state of emergency was declared, the DAAD immediately said that they would follow the law and dispersed its rally at Sanam Luang (Royal Field) in central Bangkok, where they have assembled since Saturday to confront with PAD protest.

However, the PAD remained defiant and vowed to carry on their protest despite that its nine leaders faced arrest warrants.

By evening, more people have joined the PAD protest at an around the Government House compound. In southern provinces Songkhla, Phuket and Surat Thani, airports and government institutions were stormed by PAD supporters in response to the emergency decree. The international airport in Songkhla province was forced to shut down again after blocked by PAD protesters.

Imposing a state of emergency was deemed a last resort on the government side as laws allow it to do, as the prime minister has ruled out a resignation of his own -- as the PAD demanded and a House dissolution.

However, with the defiance of PAD and the military's soft approach, a quick solution to the political impasse seemed out of easy reach.

An urgent parliament session jointly attended by the Senate and the House of Representatives was held on Sunday, aiming at sorting out a peaceful solution for the political turmoil, but turned out a blame game on each side.

Adding to the government's pressure, the Election Commission on Tuesday voted unanimously to seek the dissolution of the core ruling party People Power Party (PPP) with the Constitution Court.

The EC based its resolution on the vote-buying conviction against PPP's former deputy leader Yongyuth Tiyapairat, who resigned as House Speaker this April and later in early July got stripped of his seat in the House of Representatives after convicted by the Supreme Court.

Some observers said the government now was left with no other options but either to dissolve the House, call an early election or to resign in order to quell the unrest that has spread to other provinces.

On Tuesday, more than 300 academics and educators from various institutes issued a joint statement to call for a House dissolution.

The political turmoil has shown impacts on the country's business, tourism and diplomatic image.

Several countries including , South Korea, Australia and New Zealand have warned or cautioned their citizens of security concern about travelling in Thailand.

International ratings agencies Standard & Poor's and Moody's Investors Service both issued statements warning of the undermining effect of rising political tension on Thailand's investment-grade credit ratings.

The fell to 34.47 against the U.S. dollar in morning trade, from 34.32 on Monday. The Bank of Thailand said it had intervened in the foreign-exchange market to prevent further weakening of the currency after the government declared state of emergency in the capital.

Apichart Sangaree, president of the Association of Thai Travel Agents (ATTA) said the current situation had impacts on travel agents as September was the high season of Australian and Asian travelers.

If the turmoil does not end soon, the tourism industry would suffer further, as from October onwards is the 'high season' period during which usually about a million European tourists would travel to the kingdom, said Apichart.

The local stock market dropped 15.71 points or 2.3 percent to end at 659.51 points on Tuesday.

ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan, former Thai foreign minister, also expressed concern that the ongoing political turmoil in Thailand could impact the kingdom's image as new ASEAN chairman, months ahead of a Bangkok-hosted ASEAN summit in December.

On Tuesday, traffic around the Government House was closed off but commutation in other parts of the capital remained much in normalcy. All 436 schools in Bangkok will be closed for three days effective, though.

This is the first-time enforcement of the Emergency Decree in accordance with the new 2007 Constitution since pushed through last year by the junta which governed the country after the Sept. 19, 2006 bloodless military coup that ousted then elected premier Thaksin Shinawatra.

The last similar case was when the country's military top brass led by then army chief Gen Sonthi Boonyaratkalin staged the 2006 coup, the junta immediately imposed martial law throughout .

"Source:Xinhua"