Army : "No coup"

"A coup wouldn't solve the political problem," he said, quoting earlier remarks by Army chief General Anupong Paochinda.

Anupong and top military commanders made it explicitly clear they had no thoughts for power grabbing, Sansern said.

He said soldiers too have to abide by laws and that there is no military mandate to dispatch troops to quell clashes of opposing crowds - unless requested by police and authorised by the government.

He dismissed speculation that House Speaker Chai Chidchob had requested the deployment of soldiers for security at Parliament.

Meanwhile, academics and an election watchdog yesterday opposed suggestion of a military coup as a way out of the worsening political turmoil.

They disagreed to the idea floated by respected social critic Prawase Wasi, who wrote in his article "A Way Out of the Crisis" that when the current crisis leads to bloodbath, after all the peaceful means fail, the military has no other choices but to seize power to end the violence and then ask for a royal-appointed prime minister who is neutral.

Sombat Thamrongthanyawong, rector of the National Institute of Development Administration (Nida), said that Thailand had many experiences with military coup, which he said never could really solve the problems.

"Coup is not acceptable to many people. The problems will never end. It is not a good choice," he said.

The academic proposed a national unity government as a solution for the political conflict. He said a new administration should consist of all the seven political parties with elected members of Parliament.

"That new government should stay for one year. It should appoint a constitution drafting assembly to amend the charter for referendum. Then a general election is organised when the government's term ends," he said.

Parinya Thewanaruemitkul, deputy rector of Thammasat University, also voiced his opposition to Prawase's idea, saying that the conflict should be solved in a democratic way.

"What should be done now is to prevent a bloodbath. If power seizure worked, we could have permanent democracy since the coup of October 6, 1976. I think House dissolution can help reduce the tension that could lead to bloodshed," he said.

The Asian Network for Free Elections (Anfrel) issued a statement yesterday calling for Thailand to address the political problems with a democratic means.

It said a military coup was not a good choice even though those in support of the idea had good intention for the country.