DW-World.de
Deutsche Welle

Thousands of anti-government protesters in Thailand have defied a court order to end their siege of government offices in Bangkok. Protesters vowed to stay on the premises of Government House until the administration of Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej stepped down. Police have so far failed to arrest nine leaders of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) who are organising the protest. They are charged with inciting unrest and trying to overthrow the seven-month-old government. The PAD accuses the government of being an illegitimate proxy of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.