Thai protestors target national airports now

Their suitcases lying stranded near the cars lining the highway to Phuket’s airport and about 15,000 foreign tourists swinging their hands in utter frustration as the anti-government protesters marched Friday on the island’s airport, the nation’s second-busiest, forcing a cancellation of all the nearly 120 daily flights.

“We don’t know what happened, we don’t know anything about Thai politics,” said one German tourist. “They keep telling us we are on standby, but they are still not sure if our flight can take off.”

Similar protests closed down the airport in nearby Krabi and the southern commercial centre of Hat Yai, cutting off air traffic to much of southern Thailand. Though Hat Yai has re-opened Thailand’s prized tourist destination, Phuket, still remains plagued by the protests.

The anti-government protests are centered on Bangkok, where up to 25,000 people have occupied the main government complex calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej. The protests turned violent Friday, with skirmishes between activists and police.

This political turmoil is taking its toll on the tourism industry of Thailand as Australia, Britain, South Korea and the United States have warned their tourists against traveling to Thailand.

“The current political stand-off will absolutely have an adverse effect on our tourism industry but the extent of the damage will depend on how long the turmoil lasts,” said Prakit Chinamourphong, president of the Thai Hotel Association.