Thai Premier Somchai Wongsawat inspected his new offices on Friday at an abandoned airport terminal where he is moving the seat of government to avoid protesters trying to force him from power.
Somchai is converting a terminal at Bangkok’s domestic Don Mueang airport into temporary offices for the more than 2,000 staffers who normally work at Government House, which has been besieged by protesters for more than three weeks.
The airport was Thailand’s main international gateway until a new hub opened two years ago and most of the sprawling complex on the northern edge of Bangkok has since been empty.
“Today I come to survey the site and I find that it’s solid,” Somchai told reporters, adding that he would work from the airport “until Government House returns to normal.”
PROTESTERS
Thousands of royalist protesters stormed the main government complex on Aug. 26, setting up a camp on the lawn to demand that the ruling People Power Party (PPP) leave government.
This week the protesters installed a large tent for shelter from the rain and spread 80 truckloads of sand to cover the once manicured lawn that had turned into a mudpit. They have set up washing machines in the garden and provide free food and haircuts.
Supporters of the government planned their own rally at a nearby plaza late on Friday but insisted that they would stay clear of the Government House to prevent any clashes.
Rival protesters fought in the streets on Sept. 2, leaving one government supporter dead and prompting a state of emergency in Bangkok that was only lifted last Sunday.
NEGOTIATIONS
Thai media have reported that Somchai called protest leader Sondhi Limthongkul to propose opening negotiations on ending the standoff but the prime minister declined to confirm the reports.
“We are all Thais so we can talk to one another. We do not harbor permanent hatreds although we have different opinions,” he said.
Somchai declined to answer questions about his efforts to name a Cabinet, saying only that he would announce the new government soon.
Parliament elected Somchai as prime minister on Wednesday after his predecessor Samak Sundaravej was forced from office by a court that ruled he had been paid illegally for hosting TV cooking shows.
The protesters accuse the PPP of acting as a front for ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra, who was toppled in a military coup two years ago.
That complaint has taken new resonance with the election of Somchai, who is married to Thaksin’s sister.
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