PM Threatens to Tear Thai Border Map

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen addresses the audience at the inauguration of the new tourism ministry headquarters on Monday.

Written by DAP NEWS -- Tuesday, 29 September

(Post by CAAI News Media)

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Monday warned he would personally tear up a Thai border map if the Thais try to use the map again during the next session of negotiations.

The premier’s warning made following deputy supreme commander and chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces [RCAF] tore Thai party border map during their talk at Sombok Khhmoum as Thai black uniform soldiers used this map to solve with Cambodia.

“If Thai Prime Minister uses its map to talk and negotiate with Cambodia next time, we will tear this map,” said the premier at the inauguration of the new tourism ministry headquarters on Monday.

The premier said he admired Pol Saroeun for tearing a copy of the Thai map during previous talks.

Hun Sen stressed that Cambodia doesn’t want war, but will fight in self-defense against enemies.

“The illegal encroachment of last year [took place] as Cambodia was busy with election campaign, if not so, you will have blood from your head; do not push the chest more,” the premier said in an apparent threat to unspecified Thai officials.

The premier also rejected Thai deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaug- suban allegations that the road Cambodia is constructing to Khmer Preah Viheah will cross Thai territory. “Do not use Preah Vihear as your political issue,” the premier said.

Srey Doeuk, Cambodian Preah Vihear Army Chief, on Monday told DAP News Cambodia that the situation is still normal. “The situation is still normal, but we are in high ready station,” he added.

The Land Demand Pilgrim Group, apparently a different group of Thai protestors to those who recently demonstrated, on September 29 will hold a protest demanding 4.6 square kilometers of Cambodian territory near the Khmer Preah Vihear Temple be handed over to Thailand.

Srey Doeuk said that Cambodian soldiers don’t care as they protest on their own territory.

“They can do whatever they want, but do not do or protest in our territory. If they do, we cannot be patient,” Srey Doeuk warned.

Thai Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban has warned protesters not to complicate political issues and not to encroach on Cambodian territory.

Abhisit hits back over dispute

Sep 29, 2009

(Post by CAAI News Media)

BANGKOK - PRIME Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva hit out at his Cambodian counterpart on Tuesday for saying that Thai trespassers would be shot near a disputed temple on their border.

Cambodian premier Hun Sen said on Monday that he had ordered his troops to shoot anyone from neighbouring Thailand who crossed onto land around the 11th century Preah Vihear temple.

Mr Hun Sen's comments came a little over a week after Thai protesters rallied near the ancient temple, the site of clashes that have killed seven soldiers since tensions flared last year.

'Whenever he gives interviews to the foreign media he always has this attitude where he wants to make headlines,' Mr Abhisit told reporters of his opposite number.

He said Mr Hun Sen wanted to 'retaliate' for the Thai protests on September 19. But he insisted that Thailand still wanted to find a 'peaceful' solution to the dispute over the temple through a joint border commission set up by the two countries.

Cambodia and Thailand have been at loggerheads over the land around Preah Vihear for decades, but tensions spilled over into violence last July when the temple was granted UNESCO World Heritage status. The World Court ruled in 1962 that it belonged to Cambodia.

Mr Abhisit said he had raised the issue with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon during the UN General Assembly in New York last week, saying that UNESCO had worsened tensions between Thailand and Cambodia.

He also sought to reassure protesters who rallied at the temple earlier this month and who accused the government of failing to defend its claims over the disputed 4.6 square kilometres of land around Preah Vihear.

'Thai people have nothing to worry about. We will assert our rights,' Mr Abhisit said.

Soldiers from Cambodia and Thailand continue to patrol the area, with the last gunbattle near the temple area in April leaving three people dead. The border between the two countries has never been fully demarcated, in part because it is littered with landmines left over from decades of war in Cambodia. -- AFP

No Disputed Land’ Near Border Temple: Hun Sen

By Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer

Original report from Phnom Penh

28 September 2009

(Post by CAAI News Media)

Prime Minister Hun Sen on Monday said there was no disputed land near Preah Vihear temple, contrary to Thai statements.

The temple is at the center of a longstanding military standoff and saw a number of Thai protesters amassed last week.

Though leaders have sought to solve the border dispute bilaterally, Hun Sen said he would raise the issue with Asean at a summit in October if Thai leaders continued to make public statements about the temple and nearby border.

On Thursday, Thai Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said roads leading to the temple from the Thai side had been made by the previous government, claiming, "even if there are roads in the border area, it does not mean that the land belongs to Cambodia."

On Sept. 20, around 5,000 Thai demonstrators gathered on the Thai side of the border, near the temple, as leaders of the protest claimed Cambodian civilians and soldiers had settled in disputed areas near the temple.

"I would like to request that Thai leaders stop using Preah Vihear temple in their internal political conflict," he said.

Claims by the Thai prime minister and others about 4.6 kilometers of land near the temple "are not acceptable," he said. Thailand was making unilateral claims using a unilateral map, he said. "Cambodia does not recognize the overlapping or disputed area."

Cambodia uses a map from French surveys in 1904 and 1909 and argues that a 1962 decision at the International Court of the Hague and other documents provide a claim to land near the temple.

"If the Thai prime minister brings a unilateral map to me, I will tear it up in front of [him]," Hun Sen said Monday. "If Thailand militarily invades Cambodia, we will complain to the United Nations Security Council."

Preah Vihear temple was put on a Unesco World Heritage protection list, under Cambodian ownership, in July 2008, sparking demonstrations in Bangkok and an immediate military build-up. Ensuing skirmishes along the border have killed at least seven soldiers.

Thai protesters mark coup's 3rd anniversary, nationalists spark brawl near Cambodia

Demonstrators and supporters of ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra listen to Thaksin's speech during a rally marking the third anniversary of the coup that overthrown Thaksin from power at Royal Plaza in Bangkok, Thailand Saturday, Sept. 19, 2009. Thai nationalists clashed with police and villagers Saturday as they tried to march on an ancient temple on the Cambodian border, while anti-government protesters in the capital marked the third anniversary of a coup that continues to create political turmoil. (AP Photo/Apichart Weerawong)

Ousted Thailand's Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is seen on a gaint screen as he addresses his supporters from an undisclosed location during a rally marking the third anniversary of the coup that overthrew him from power in Bangkok, Thailand Saturday, Sept. 19, 2009. Thai nationalists clashed with police and villagers Saturday as they tried to march on an ancient temple on the Cambodian border, while anti-government protesters in the capital marked the third anniversary of a coup that continues to create political turmoil. (AP Photo/Apichart Weerawong)

By GRANT PECK (AP)

BANGKOK — As thousands of demonstrators marked the anniversary of a 2006 coup in the Thai capital Saturday, a rival group of protesters clashed with police and villagers near the Cambodian border, showing the country's long-running political crisis is far from settled.

In the three years since the coup there have been multiple violent demonstrations, court rulings that have purged two prime ministers from power, and massive damage to the tourist industry after protesters shuttered the airports last year.

The country now appears locked in an endless cycle of protest and counter-protest by supporters and opponents of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in the Sept. 19, 2006 coup on accusations of corruption, abuse of power and disrespect for the constitutional monarch. Thaksin himself remains in self-imposed exile, able to rally his followers only by phone.

"Thai politics three years after the coup has become more confused, convoluted, and the stakes have increased. There has been no progress, no headway towards reconciliation and reform," Thitinan Pongsidhirak, a political scientist at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University said this week. "The political situation has become more combustible."

The alliance that led demonstrations culminating in the coup tried Saturday to march toward the gates of a temple on disputed land near the Cambodian border, triggering clashes that left 17 people injured, according to local hospitals. The People's Alliance for Democracy demanded that the Thai government recover the territory that is claimed by both countries.

Supporters of Thaksin and pro-democracy activists rallied in Bangkok to mark the coup's anniversary, with more than 6,000 police on hand to prevent a repeat of rioting that killed at least two and injured hundreds in the last major anti-government protests in April.

Saturday's crowd — which drew 20,000 to 30,000 people in Royal Plaza, a major public square — was addressed by Thaksin via video.

"I want to ask people who hate me and those who love me to review the past three years and answer if you have seen anything changed for the better," he said. "Is the economy better? Have people reconciled? How about the people's rights and justice? Have the past three years hurt the country enough?"

Saturday's protesters want current Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva to step down, claiming he came to power illegitimately with the help of the military and the judiciary, seen as pillars of the Thai ruling class. Abhisit took office late last year by wooing Thaksin's supporters in Parliament after the former leader's allies were forced out of office by court rulings of conflict of interest and electoral fraud.

Despite early promises, Abhisit has made little effort at effecting reconciliation, with his government frequently castigating Thaksin and his supporters. On Friday, it launched a campaign, the "United and Strong Thai Project," calling on all Thais to sing the national anthem at 6 p.m. daily to promote "unity and patriotism."

Thaksin's supporters, many from poor rural areas that benefited from his social welfare programs, say the coup was a blow to Thailand's democracy and was engineered by the country's traditional Bangkok-centered elite — dubbed the "aristocracy" — who feared losing their privileges if the people in the countryside were empowered.

"I'm here to show I'm against the coup and all undemocratic interventions, it's so backward of our country and everything's become unfair," said Pop Saenplum, a 45-year-old lawyer. "The government should come from the people. The Abhisit administration didn't and it also failed to fix social and economic problems."

Abhisit's government warned that demonstrators might try to stir up trouble, though protest leaders denied they had violent intentions. The government invoked an emergency law earlier this week that would allow the military to restore order, and police were mobilized around the site.

The crowd began to dissipate late Saturday and no major trouble was reported.

Saturday's clashes near the Thai border with Cambodia were linked to a decades-old dispute over land. Cambodia was awarded control over the 11th century Preah Vihear temple in 1962, but Thailand claims a portion of the land.

The People's Alliance for Democracy seized on the land issue last year to stir up nationalist sentiment and attract support, accusing the government of failing to defend Thailand's sovereignty.

Hundreds of Thai villagers who opposed Saturday's protest and hundreds of marchers clashed, both sides armed with sticks, slingshots and other homemade weapons. Police, who were ordered to show restraint, only carried riot shields making it difficult for them to fend off attacks by the alliance's marchers.

Abhisit told the army and police to negotiate with the protesters, who agreed to send a small group near the temple to make their statement on Sunday. The protesters began withdrawing Saturday night under police escort.

MediaWATCH: HM The King in Hospital, says Palace

By Phuketwan Reporters
Sunday, September 20, 2009

Associated Press
Eighty-one-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world's longest-serving monarch, has been hospitalised after suffering from a fever and fatigue, the palace announced Sunday. A statement from the Royal Household Bureau, read on the evening television news, said the king was taken to Siriraj Hospital on Saturday night on the advice of his doctors. It had been rumored since late last week that the king had visited the hospital, but the Thai press only reported the matter widely Sunday.

Agencies Australia's Michael Katsidis, who reportedly trained at Tiger Muay Thai camp in the ''jungle'' at Chalong on Phuket, has won his interim lightweight boxing world title bout at the MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas. Katsidis scored a split points decision over American Vicente Escobedo. Katsidis is now the mandatory challenger to fight World Boxing Organisation lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez.

Phuketwan MediaWATCH
TWIN protests damaged Thailand's image internationally on Saturday as red shirts and yellow shirts continued to show that Thailand remains a nation where unity is not a priority.

PHUKET'S red shirt leader, Suntorn Tomas, told Phuketwan yesterday that three mini-bus vans of supporters from the island had gone to Bangkok for the protests there. ''If the protest concludes tonight, there will be no reason for more of us to go,'' he said. No live television coverage of the event is being permitted by the government, he said.

Phuket's yellow shirt Peoples' Alliance for Democracy leader Aparat Chartchutikumjorn, one of the 21-member board charting the directions of the New Politics Party (Karn Muang Mai), said two min-bus loads of Phuket supporters had headed for the temple protest on the Cambodia border. Southern provinces had each sent about 20 protesters, she said. That protest was violent.

bbc.co.uk Headline: 'Thailand rocked by rival protests' Thousands of troops were deployed in Thailand as rival political groups held separate protests, one of which turned violent. Crowds of demonstrators turned out in Bangkok to mark the third anniversary of the coup which ousted controversial Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. On the Cambodian border an anti-Thaksin group clashed with police as it tried to enter a disputed border temple.

aljazeera.net Headline 'Thaksin: Thailand risks failure' Thaksin Shinawatra, Thailand's former prime minister, has urged his supporters to bring him back to power, saying the country risks becoming a ''failed state''. His comments on Saturday came in a live video link to about 26,000 Red Shirts rallying in Bangkok to demand the resignation of Abhisit Vejjajiva, the current prime minister. Three years after he was ousted in a bloodless coup, Thaksin told the crowds: ''Our country has deteriorated and risks being a failed state. There is no justice in society.''

cnn.com Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Bangkok on Saturday to mark the third anniversary of a military coup that ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. About 30,000 protesters, who wore red shirts in support of Thaksin, gathered in the country's capital near the Government House, said police Lt. Gen. Tritote Ronnarithvichai. The crowd was calm and there was no sign of violence, he said.

Straits Times Tensions soared from the Cambodian border to the Thai capital on Saturday as protesters from rival political groups rallied at separate locations. On the border, Thai nationalists bent on stopping Cambodians from building on alleged Thai territory overwhelmed police and clashed with local villagers near the Preah Vihear temple. In Bangkok, a rally by the red-shirted United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) to mark the third anniversary of the September 2006 coup attracted up to 20,000 people, despite a prolonged downpour in the afternoon.

scmp.com Former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra last night pleaded for national reconciliation in a live video speech to thousands of his supporters, who amassed in the capital to mark the third anniversary of the billionaire's ousting by the military. Thousands of protesting ''red shirts'' defied the presence of several thousand riot police and soldiers, and rallied in front of the main government offices to demand elections and the resignation of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva.

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Sister of Khmer Rouge murder victim John Dewhirst hopes for UN trial

http://www.sundaysun.co.uk

Sep 20 2009
by Coreena Ford, Sunday Sun

KHMER Rouge murder victim John Dewhirst’s sister has revealed how she hopes good can come from his killer’s trial.

John was the only Briton among 17,000 to die after being captured during the communist Khmer Rouge’s rule over Cambodia in the 1970s.

Now, 31 years after his death, his murderer, Kaing Guek Eav, known as Comrade Duch, is being tried by a UN-backed tribunal on genocide charges.

He has already confessed to John’s murder and invited victims of the regime to visit him.

But John’s sister Hilary Holland, 53, a solicitor from Brampton, Cumbria, has refused to attend and says she has not even been able to bring herself to utter John’s name in more than 30 years.

An aspiring novelist, John left home after finishing his A-levels to explore and bought a one-way ticket to Tokyo, where he got a teaching post and a part-time job on a newspaper.

He quit in 1978, aged 26, after deciding to join pals on travels around the Gulf of Thailand in their boat The Foxy Lady.

But when they drifted into Cambodian waters, a Khmer Rouge military launch swooped.

Stuart Glass was shot dead instantly and the other two were taken to the S21 torture centre – a former school – where, after enduring a catalogue of horrors, they were forced to sign confessions they were CIA agents.

John’s note even said his father, who died before his capture, was a CIA agent whose cover was as head of Benton Road Secondary in Newcastle.

Hilary said: “I have experienced death and grief. This is different. It’s everlasting.

“I can accept death completely. It’s what happened to my brother that I can’t accept.

“The fact that torture was so extreme, lasting not half a day, but months, makes it an inhuman act. It takes the humanity of the person.

“The person my brother had been was taken away during that torture. For a human being to do that to another human being, that’s not a human act.

“What happened in Cambodia isn’t generally known to today’s generations. It should be a part of history lessons. People should remember what happened there.

“I don’t know how my brother died. I have heard reports of people bleeding to death and having their heads smashed from behind beside mass graves. I don’t know if knowing what really happened can make me feel any worse. If I feel like this after 31years, a whole country must feel the same.”

Protesters read statements; PM expresses regret over clashes near temple

September 20, 2009

BANGKOK, Sept. 20 — Representatives of the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) read out two statements at Pha Mor E-Dang, close to the disputed area, claiming Thai sovereignty in the matter while Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said Sunday he is saddened over clashes between protesters and local residents near the disputed Thai-Cambodian border zone in Si Sa Ket.

Thirty protesters of the PAD Sunday read out two statements at Pha Mor E-Dang, close to the disputed area, asserting the demand that the disputed area around Preah Vihear temple belongs to Thailand.

Veera Somkwamkid, a leader of the PAD protesters, told a news conference that Thai Army chief Gen Anupong Paochinda should use martial law as a tool to push back the Cambodians to return to their homeland.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said Sunday he is saddened over clashes between protesters and local residents, and police who tried to end the discord near the disputed Thai-Cambodian border zone adjacent to the ancient temple of Preah Vihear which left many persons injured on Saturday.

In his weekly television and radio address, Abhisit said his government is not sitting idly over the disputed 4.6-square-kilometre area and that negotiations continue with the Cambodian government which will lead to an eventual troop withdrawal from the area.

Several dozen PAD protesters and villagers living in Si Sa Ket province and police were injured in Saturday’s clash.

Emphasizing that Thailand has not lost its sovereignty in the area, Abhisit said the border problem is being solved through negotiations and that Thailand would be impacted if clashes occurred and it would also affect relations with its neighbour as well as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Both Thailand and Cambodia are ASEAN members. Security officials permitted the demonstrators to read statement so that the situation could return to normal, said Abhisit, adding that the protesters should end their activities after reading them.

The International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that the Preah Vihear temple belongs to Cambodia. Tensions along the Thai-Cambodian border, especially at the disputed area, have been seen after the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) granted Cambodia’s application for Preah Vihear temple to be designated a World Heritage Site in July 2008. (PNA/TNA)

PAD vows to uphold Thai sovereignty over disputed aera

By The Nation
Published on September 21, 2009

Yellow-shirt activist Veera Somkwamkid yesterday vowed to uphold Thai sovereignty over 4.6 square kilometres of terrain near Preah Vihear Temple claimed by Cambodia. Veera also threatened to take legal action against officials condoning the encroachment.

Veera also threatened to take legal action against officials condoning the encroachment.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said his government was trying to resolve border problems via the legal process and not force.

Former premier Thaksin Shinawatra said on Twitter that Preah Vihear actually does belong to Cambodia by a decision of the International Court of Justice.

He accused the government of favouritism for letting the yellow shirts, who clashed with local villagers in Si Sa Ket on Saturday, read out a statement reaffirming Thailand's dominion over the temple area.

Local villagers had tried to block access to the area by the yellow shirts.

To pacify the rival groups, authorities allowed Veera and about 30 yellow shirts to climb up to Pha Mor-I-Daeng, a cliff inside the Phra Wiharn National Park located in Kantharalak district opposite the temple, to read the declaration.

"We Thai patriots want to declare our intent to form a people's network to restore Thai sovereignty to the surrounding areas of Prasat Phra Wiharn," Veera said.

He pledged to pursue every legal means to reclaim Thai territory. He also warned officials that they would be penalised if they were caught involved in the territorial violations.

He went on to complain against the Cambodian government for allowing Cambodian villagers and soldiers to settle and build a road on Thai soil.

He called for an immediate withdrawal by Cambodia from Thai property. He urged the Thai military to take action under martial law to repel the transgression.

The five co-leaders of the People's Alliance for Democracy have remained in close contact with Veera and the people's network over the temple issue, PAD spokesman Suriyasai Katasila said.

The PAD fully backed the attempts to protect Thai territorial integrity and was not back-pedalling from Veera as alleged, he said.

The scuffle between the villagers and yellow shirts was instigated by the authorities, he said, adding that the yellow shirts were not going on the warpath to recover land lost to neighbouring countries.

"We agree with the option for a negotiated settlement of the border dispute and do not want war, but the government must be clear about the timetable and guidelines for negotiations," he said.

Abhisit said police were trying to mediate between the rival groups but the running battle broke out because the barricades were inadequate.

He insisted that Thailand has not surrendered sovereignty over the disputed areas and that the two countries have already agreed to forge a peaceful settlement.

He said his government had no hidden agenda but just the desire to safeguard Thai territory.

He admitted, however, that several border issues were too sensitive to bring up in public, so interested parties should hold discreet discussions with the government in order to update themselves on the status.

Democrat MP Boonyod Sukthinthai said Veera and the PAD should soften their stance on the temple issue in order to avoid inflaming the stand-off.

"It looks like Thais are fighting Thais and becoming the laughing stock for Cambodians," he said.

Thai Authorities Allow Rally a Day After Violent Protests

Thai authorities allowed protesters to rally peacefully at a disputed temple site on the border with Cambodia, a day after violent clashes that injured about 20 people. Analysts say the threat of violence may have eased as more people focus on economic recovery.

Olabiyi Babalola Joseph Yai, center, president of executive council of UNESCO, views Cambodia's Preah Vihear temple (File Photo - 13 Mar 2009)

A tense standoff on the Thai-Cambodian border ended peacefully after authorities cleared the way for Thai nationalists to gather near an 11th century Khmer temple that has been at the center of raised tensions between the two countries during the past year.

The demonstrators from the People's Alliance for Democracy, who are known for wearing distinctive "yellow shirts", read a statement calling for the Thai government to ensure Thai sovereignty over the area.

The event stood in contrast to Saturday when about 5,000 yellow-shirt supporters clashed with local residents and soldiers, injuring several people.

Thailand and Cambodia have sought to ease tensions after Cambodia unilaterally sought U.N. World Heritage status for the Preah Vihar temple. Thailand had sought a joint application over the site that is easily accessible only from Thai territory.

The yellow shirts were at the center of demonstrations leading up to a 2006 coup that ousted then prime minister Thaksin Shinatwatra, who is in exile.


The group occupied the Bangkok international airport in November, calling for the resignation of a pro-Thaksin government. Thousands of tourists were stranded, costing the country millions of dollars in lost revenue.

An author and commentator on Thai politics and business, Chris Baker, says the People's Alliance for Democracy protests on the Cambodia border appear to be aimed at defining the group as an ultra-nationalist party before general elections expected next year.

"The temptation is to see it that they are really playing a very crude nationalist game that a lot of issues that the PAD has been representing over the last couple of years rather have fallen off the agenda," said Baker. "There is really nothing substantial at stake there at all, but groups are trying to build it up and use it to make political capital. In the end both countries are suffering."

Ousted Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra talks to his supporters in front of the Anan throne at the Royal Plaza in Bangkok, 19 Sep 2009

During his weekly television broadcast, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva expressed regret over the violence and said the government is working to ensure there is no loss of sovereignty or territory.

On Saturday, more than 20,000 Thaksin supporters rallied peacefully in Bangkok to mark the third anniversary of the coup that ousted him from power. But initial fears of violence during the anti-government demonstration were put to rest after Thaksin addressed the crowd by video conference link.

Analysts and government officials say the passing of the weekend without further violence indicates an improving political climate.

In April, pro-Thaksin "red shirt" supporters forced the cancellation of an ASEAN summit and street protests in Bangkok led the government to declare a state of emergency.

A Thai government spokesman told VOA he is not expecting a repeat of the trouble earlier this year because people want political stability and economic recovery.

Thaksin supporters vow new protests in Thailand

A supporter of the exiled Thai former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra holds up a placard during a rally in Bangkok on September 19. Supporters of the ousted Thai premier have vowed to hold further protests, a day after rallying in Bangkok to mark the third anniversary of a coup that toppled their leader.


September 20, 2009

BANGKOK (AFP) - Supporters of fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra vowed Sunday to hold further protests, a day after rallying in Bangkok on the third anniversary of the coup that toppled their leader.

The troubled kingdom was rocked by two separate demonstrations on Saturday, with hardline anti-Thaksin protesters also clashing with police near an ancient temple on the disputed border with Cambodia.

In the capital, around 26,000 so-called "Red Shirts" dispersed early Sunday after gathering outside the main government offices the previous day to hear a speech by exiled billionaire Thaksin.

"We will continue to stage our rallies. The fight will not end until democracy is restored in Thailand," Nattawut Saikuar, one of the main leaders of the Red Shirts, told AFP as the protesters went home.

He said the movement, which draws its support from Thailand's rural north where people benefited from Thaksin's populist policies, would now open schools to "educate people about democracy."

In his videolink speech on Saturday night, Thaksin urged current prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva to call fresh elections to foster reconciliation, warning that Thailand was becoming a "failed state".

The charismatic Thaksin is living in an unknown foreign location to avoid a two-year jail term for corruption but he remains a vastly influential figure in Thai politics.

The Red Shirts say Abhisit came to power unfairly after protesters from the rival "Yellow Shirt" movement blockaded Bangkok's airports and effectively forced the previous, pro-Thaksin government from power in December.

The Yellow Shirts were back in action on Saturday, clashing with police and villagers at the 11th century Preah Vihear temple on the Cambodian border. Dozens of people were injured including a villager who was shot in the neck.

Authorities were to allow them near the 11th century Preah Vihear temple on Sunday to read a statement urging Thailand to push Cambodian troops from the area, where there have been several cross-border battles in the past year.

"We will reaffirm Thailand's sovereignty in the five square kilometres (two square miles) around the temple and ask Cambodia to leave our territory," said Veera Somkwamkid, one of the Yellow Shirt leaders.

Ownership of the temple was awarded by the World Court in 1962 to Cambodia, but a dispute over the surrounding land was reignited after the crumbling ruins were awarded UNESCO world heritage status last year.

Oxford-educated Abhisit apologised for the temple incident.

"I am sorry that there was a clash and injuries to people," Abhisit said in his weekly television programme, adding that his government was not conceding territory to Cambodia.

"The government is not ignoring this problem, we are working on it. What we are doing is not causing the country to lose territory or sovereignty," he said.

Thailand remains deeply divided three years after the September 19, 2006 coup, which ousted Thaksin while he was out of the country attending the United Nations general assembly in New York.

Abhisit was due to leave Thailand on Sunday to fly to the same event, but the chief of the kingdom's powerful army scotched rumours that there would be another putsch in his absence.

Abhisit is largely backed by the Bangkok-based elites in the palace, military and bureaucracy -- the same groups that loathe Thaksin and want to keep him and his allies out of government.