More than 500 government supporters gathered outside Thailand's parliament today, police said, ahead of a special debate on street protests that have threatened to bring down prime minister Samak Sundaravej.
They took routes that avoided areas of Bangkok where anti-government protesters are massed, including Mr Samak's official compound, which thousands have occupied since Tuesday, forcing the prime minister to work from a military building.
Mr Samak remained defiant in a weekly radio address but suggested his patience was wearing out.
"I am not afraid but I am concerned about chaos in the nation," he said. "We cannot let the seizure of Government House continue indefinitely without taking action."
He flew to see head of state King Bhumibol Adulyadej yesterday at the king's palace in the coastal town of Hua Hin. Reporters had expected him to make some sort of statement on his return to Bangkok but he avoided them at a military airfield.
The violence reached a peak on Friday when Bangkok police fired teargas and rubber bullets to repel an assault on their headquarters by around 2,000 protesters.
Unrest has spread around the country, with demonstrators forcing some airports to close on Friday and unions halting many rail services.
Thousands of foreign tourists are stranded on the island of Phuket and the airport there -- Thailand's second-busiest after Bangkok -- was unlikely to reopen until 6 pm (1100 GMT) today at the earliest, an airport official said.
The stock market has fallen 23 per cent since the protests began in May, amid fears of major unrest and policy paralysis at a time when the government should be concentrating on slowing in economic growth and the highest inflation rate in a decade.
The six parties in the government coalition have expressed support for Mr Samak and he insisted that he would not resign, telling thousands of supporters at an official event yesterday that he had been constitutionally elected in December and would never bow to the demands of the protesters.
"I came to this job under a legal mandate. I will only go if the law does not allow me to stay and not simply because someone issues threats and puts pressure on me," he said.
But speculation is growing that he will call a snap election, especially as his People Power Party is popular outside Bangkok.
Analysts said he would want to hold on until Wednesday, when parliament will debate, and probably approve, the government budget for the fiscal year starting in October. That would give sitting ministers funds to spend in ways that would support their election prospects.
The protests are led by the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), a motley group of businessmen, academics and activists who accuse Mr Samak of being an illegitimate proxy of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, ousted by the army in 2006.
Mr Samak denies the accusation. Mr Thaksin is in exile in London.
The PAD also proclaims itself to be a defender of the King against a supposed Mr Thaksin plan to turn Thailand into a republic, another charge denied by both Mr Thaksin and the government.
Reuters