Thai Airports Reopening After PM Ousted by Court

Somchai had become increasingly isolated in recent weeks. Neither the army, a key player in Thai politics, nor King Bhumibol offered firm backing. Palace circles have not hidden their enmity toward Thaksin and his allies, rattling a decades-old consensus of absolute respect for the monarchy.

An anti-goverment protester reacts to the news that Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat's ruling...

An anti-goverment protester reacts to the news that Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat's ruling People's Power Party must disband at Suvarnabhumi Airport Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2008 in Bangkok Thailand. Somchai says he has accepted a court ruling to step down because of electoral fraud committed by his political party. (AP Photo/Ed Wray)

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The alliance, often referred to by its acronym PAD, claims Thailand's rural majority — who gave landslide election victories to the Thaksin camp — is too poorly educated to responsibly choose their representatives and says they are susceptible to vote buying.

It wants the country to abandon the system of one-person, one-vote, and instead have a mixed system in which most representatives are chosen by profession and social group. They have not explained exactly how such a system would work or what would make it less susceptible to manipulation.

The alliance's rivals, government supporters who adore Thaksin for the generous social welfare policies his government implemented for the poor and rural majority when he was in power in 2001-2006, were angry, though uncertain what to do.

"People aren't going to just sit and watch another elected government toppled," said Pracha Niemjaroen, an electronics technician discussing politics with his friends at an open-air restaurant in the northern city of Chiang Mai.

Chaturon Chaisaeng, a former Thaksin Cabinet member, suggested there could be civil war if the protest alliance presses for a non-elected government.

"Why do we still condone the PAD, who are waging terrorist attacks against government buildings and the democratic system?" he said. "Do all Thai people have to bow to the PAD's orders and demands?"

Travelers were the clearest immediate beneficiaries of Tuesday's developments. Thai authorities had been running flights in and out of a naval air base at U-Tapao east of Bangkok, but its limited facilities left many travelers looking more like refugees than tourists.

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