Thai 'Reds' hint at end to protests, press demands

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BANGKOK, May 5 (AFP): Thailand's 'Red Shirts' hinted Wednesday they could soon end weeks of anti-government protests, but demanded a firm date for the dissolution of parliament before tearing down their barricades.
Despite signs the crippling political crisis could be nearing a resolution, thousands of protesters remained camped out in Bangkok's main shopping district behind piles of tyres, razor wire and bamboo stakes.
The red-clad demonstrators, whose two-month campaign has sparked outbreaks of civil unrest that have left 27 people dead, agreed Tuesday to join Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's proposed reconciliation process.
The mainly poor and working class Reds now want Abhisit to specify when he will dissolve parliament for elections promised for November, and to withdraw troops from the capital, which is under a state of emergency.
But Reds leader Veera Musikapong voiced optimism that the end was in sight for supporters who have spent weeks sleeping rough under flimsy shelters, and who are now enduring the start of the rainy season.
"I have a feeling that we will soon return to our hometown as our goal to fight for true democracy and return power to the people is about to be achieved," Veera told the crowd.
"We have been together for some 50 days, I really feel that we may soon return home," he said.
Another Reds leader Kwanchai Praipana also said the rally -- which has forced luxury hotels and shopping malls to close and caused huge economic losses -- would disperse soon despite the outstanding demands.
"I as well as other leaders think it is likely that by Sunday everything will be resolved and we can go back home," he said. "We feel that we don't want to torment our people any longer as they have given us their whole heart."
Revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who has been in hospital since September, left briefly on Wednesday and travelled to the Grand Palace along roads lined with cheering well-wishers marking the 60th anniversary of his coronation.
The 82-year-old monarch -- seen as the nation's central unifying force -- spoke on television last week for the first time since the protests began. He talked of the need for peace, but avoided specific mention of the crisis.
Abhisit said in a national address Monday that he was ready to hold elections on November 14 if all parties accepted his reconciliation plan and dropped their demand for snap polls.
Lawmakers from the ruling Democrat Party will meet on Thursday to discuss the roadmap and may set a date for the dissolution of parliament, a party spokesman said.
Sirichoke Sopa, a Democrats lawmaker seen as close to Abhisit, criticised the Reds for demanding a dissolution date and said that security forces remained on standby to clear the rally by force if necessary.
He said the dissolution would fall between September 15-30, under laws that mandate a 45-60 day election campaign.
The Red Shirts are mostly supporters of fugitive ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra and say the current government's rise to power on the back of a court ruling in 2008 that ousted Thaksin's allies was undemocratic.
The telecoms tycoon-turned-politician, who was toppled in a 2006 coup and now lives overseas to avoid a jail term for corruption, has called on the two sides to settle their differences.
The Reds have said the government is intent on clinging to power until September to ensure the new army leadership line-up is appointed and the national budget is approved in parliament before it holds elections.
Crowds at the vast Reds camp have swelled to as high as 100,000 in past weeks, and although numbers have steadily fallen many protesters remained resolute.
"When parliament is dissolved, I will go home," said Montein Prujan, 27, a clothes vendor from the Reds' heartland in Thailand's northeast who has been at the rallies since they began in mid-March.
"I'm from upcountry. This is very normal for me. We usually sleep like this," he said, gesturing at a mat on the road in front of a shuttered five-star hotel.