The Deputy Prime Minister says that the red shirts can hold protests, but warns of legal action if they break the Emergency Decree.

On 16 Sept, Suthep Thaugsuban said that the media should not indulge in pessimistic speculation or panic about the red shirts’ activities this weekend to mark the 4th anniversary of the 2006 coup.  The government will take all due care and is prepared to deal with the situation.  The authorities have been instructed to inform protesters that political expression is allowed under a democracy, but as the Emergency Decree is still in force in Bangkok and surrounding areas, they are not allowed to block roads or traffic, to block the entrance to any premises including hotels, police stations and government offices, to cause trouble or disrupt public life through, for example, setting up stages or using loudspeakers, or to provoke violence or threaten the public or the authorities.   

He appealed to all sides that if the country was in turmoil, everybody would lose.  Tourists and investors are not coming, and all Thais are worried.  So far, we have helped each other solve the situation, and the country seems to be moving on.  If anyone holds any grudges, he or she should address them through peaceful means.