Thailand's prime minister said Sunday the government was preparing to clear an area of Bangkok defended by thousands of anti-government protesters, seeking to end a crisis which has virtually paralyzed the capital, AP reported. Many Thais have grown increasingly frustrated with the stalemate, which has dragged on for nearly eight weeks, claiming the lives of at least 27 people and costing the country tens of millions of dollars. It has sparked concerns of a flare-up of civil unrest. «We are sending a clear signal that we have given people enough time to leave (the occupied zone). We are now in the process of sealing off and cutting off support before we actually move in,» Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said in an interview with several foreign journalists to be nationally televised. Thousands of so-called Red Shirt protesters have occupied a barricaded encampment in the commercial heart of Bangkok, centered on its most upmarket shopping district, forcing the closure of several malls and hotels. Abhisit declined to elaborate on an earlier announced plan to end the crisis which he said did not include the declaration of martial law. In an emergency meeting Sunday, the Cabinet approved special funding for the police to contain the demonstrators. «My belief is that the majority of the people want the protest to end. Increasingly their patience is running out. This is a situation we have to handle,» he said in the interview. The protesters, mostly from the rural and urban poor, view the government as an illegitimate puppet of Bangkok's elite and the military, are demanding Abhisit resign, dissolve Parliament and call new elections. -- SPA
