Thai protesters disrupt Bangkok commuter service!
BANGKOK, Thailand - April 27, 2010 - Anti-government protesters forced a rush hour shutdown of Bangkok's busy elevated train system Tuesday and promised to expand protests that have plunged the Thai capital into chaos by sending teams of demonstrators throughout the city.
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, who has broken off negotiations with the protesters occupying parts of central Bangkok, said he hoped to resolve the crisis soon without resorting to force, but he also deployed hundreds of soldiers armed with automatic weapons to guard stations and other major city boulevards.
"We recognize that as every day passes by, the people of Thailand suffer, the country suffers, but we want to make sure that there is rule of law," Abhisit told CNN, according to quotes posted on the news channel's website. "We will try to enforce the law with minimum losses and we will try to find a political resolution, but it takes time, patience and cooperation."
At least 26 people have been killed and nearly 1,000 wounded since protesters known as the Red Shirts - who hail mostly from poor, rural provinces and view the government as illegitimate - began occupying parts of Bangkok in mid-March, closing down five-star hotels and shopping malls and devastating the country's vital tourism industry.
