DHAKA: Thai anti-government protesters began mobilising in Bangkok on Sunday, a day ahead of their planned ‘shutdown’ of the capital as they step up efforts to topple the government and halt upcoming elections.

The politically-turbulent country has been shaken by weeks of opposition rallies against prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra and her divisive former premier brother Thaksin, which have caused the government to call snap February 2 polls.

Demonstrators, who have vowed to disrupt the vote, began packing possessions and equipment at their main Bangkok rally site as they prepared to fan out to seven locations across the city on Monday in an attempt to choke off transport into the capital.

‘We hope everything will change in a good way tomorrow. The change we want to see is for this government to stop being corrupt or they should resign,’ said Komol, a protester at the site who gave only one name, reports The Straits Times.

BDST: 1508 HRS, JAN 12, 2014
Edited by Robab Rosan, Current Affairs Editor