The 60-year-old cab driver, Nuamthong Praiwan, broke his ribs and cut his chin and lips in

the stunt when he crashed his taxi into a tank parked at the Royal Plaza.

The front of the taxi, including its windscreen, was badly damaged while the armoured vehicle at the receiving end had some scratches.

Graffiti spray-painted around the taxi read: "Sacrificing life" and "You destroyers of the country".

Nuamthong, a resident of

Nonthaburi, said he was disappointed with the coup that overthrew the government of Thaksin Shinawatra, who was popular among taxi drivers.

"I did it intentionally to protest the junta that has destroyed our country, and I painted all the words myself," he said from his bed at Vachira Hospital.

His doctor said the taxi driver had swollen eyelids in addition to four broken ribs and a cut chin. She declined to give further details, citing the medical code of ethics.

A soldier on guard who witnessed the event said that the taxi had circled the area where tanks were parked at the Royal Plaza a few times.

The graffiti on the vehicle made it appear more suspi-cious and therefore he signalled the driver to stop. The driver instead sped up and slammed into steel barricades before hitting the tank, said the soldier, who requested anonymity.

Police said the cab driver was charged with damaging state property.