Thai protesters take second airport as both sides defy army

Thai anti-government protesters shut down a second Bangkok airport on Thursday, isolating the capital, as both sides in the dispute defied a call from the army chief to end the turmoil.

Supporters of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) started massing at the old Don Mueang airport late Wednesday, aiming to prevent ministers from flying to Chiang Mai in the north to meet Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat.

"I authorised Don Mueang's director-general to close the airport from midnight. It is closed indefinitely until normalcy is restored," Saererat Prasutanond, president of operator Airports of Thailand, told Thai television.

"The two airports that serve Bangkok are completely closed."

A fresh gunbattle also broke out at a Bangkok protest site a day after an anti-government activist was killed, police said, heightening fears that tensions between rival groups could explode into widespread bloodshed.

Somchai on Wednesday refused to heed pressure from powerful army chief General Anupong Paojinda to dissolve parliament and call elections.

Anupong also ordered protesters to leave Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi International Airport, which they besieged late Tuesday forcing the airport to suspend flights and leaving 3,000 tourists temporarily trapped inside.

In open defiance of his calls, the protesters instead blockaded Don Mueang, which serves a handful of domestic routes. It is also the site of Somchai's temporary offices, since his own premises were seized by protesters in August.

The PAD launched their campaign to topple the democratically-elected People Power Party (PPP) government six months ago, accusing it of being a puppet of ousted and exiled premier Thaksin Shinawatra, who is banned from politics.

Somchai -- Thaksin's brother-in-law -- landed in Chiang Mai on Wednesday evening from Peru, where he had been attending a conference. He has called a cabinet meeting for later Thursday.

The premier has refused to yield to the pressure from the army chief, saying: "my government will preserve democracy."

The PAD, meanwhile, has vowed to stay at three protest sites -- Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang and Somchai's Government House offices in central Bangkok -- until the premier quits.

"The PPP has repeated its slogan of no house dissolution, no resignation. The PAD will repeat our slogan: no pull out and we are not going home," PAD spokesman Suriyasai Katasila told reporters late Wednesday.

At Suvarnabhumi, thousands of PAD supporters clad in their signature yellow clothes -- symbolising support for the revered king -- massed outside listening to rousing songs.

Others freshened up for the day in the airport toilets.

Thai television reported that a court ordered the approximately 8,000 PAD supporters to end their occupation of Suvarnabhumi Airport -- the 17th busiest in the world -- but they appeared entrenched.

Of the 3,000 tourists who were stranded and spent a night sleeping on trolleys and crates, most were evacuated Wednesday afternoon. No passengers were in Don Mueang when it was seized.

Also Thursday, provincial police confirmed that a man killed in Chiang Mai on Wednesday was the father of a local PAD leader. The 60-year-old was shot dead when a gun fight erupted between pro- and anti-government groups.

Shooting broke out again early Thursday outside the Government House protest site in Bangkok's historic district. Emergency services said no one was hurt.

The outbursts of violence between rival groups have raised fears of escalating unrest.

"Certainly there will be bloodshed because protesters have refused to cave in," said Manit Jitchanklab, a pro-government activist, labelling the PAD "guerrillas."

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