20/02/2014 18:10
Thai anti-government protesters gather outside defense compound
Thai anti-government demonstrators massed Wednesday outside the Prime Minister's makeshift office, a day after clashes with police in the streets of Bangkok killed five people, CNN reported.
The protesters have been rallying in the city for months, demanding that Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra step down.
Their long-running campaign has deepened political divisions in Thailand, undermined the functioning of the national government and stirred outbreaks of deadly violence.
The demonstrators want to rid the country of the influence of Yingluck and her older brother, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who they say controls the government from self-imposed exile. They are calling for the creation of an unelected "people's council" to oversee electoral and political changes.
With Thailand still scarred by a severe bout of civil unrest in 2010 -- in which a crackdown on pro-Thaksin protesters by security forces left scores of people dead -- police had until recently largely refrained from using force on the current demonstrations.
But last week, police began attempts to clear sites occupied by protesters for months. Government officials said the protesters' actions were blocking public access to government services.
The police measures encountered strong resistance from protesters in central Bangkok on Tuesday, and clashes between the two sides erupted into gun fire. Five people, including a police officer, died in the violence, and more than 70 were wounded.
Police have suspended efforts to seize the protest sites for the time being, said Lt. Gen. Paradon Patthanathabut, the national security chief.