Thai police sought on Monday to arrest eight leaders of an anti-coup protest that turned violent at the weekend, resulting in injuries to 100 police and demonstrators. Six protesters have already been detained for throwing rocks and bottles at police lines outside the house of Privy Council chief and top royal adviser Prem Tinsulanonda, whom they accuse of masterminding last year's putsch against Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.Bangkok police chief Adisorn Nonsee said the courts had been asked to issue arrest warrants for the leaders of the Democratic Alliance Against Dictatorship (DAAD), as the protest movement calls itself.
From now on, officers would be allowed to use greater force to bring unruly demonstrations under control, especially as the political temperature rose in the run-up to a referendum on a new post-coup constitution on August 19, he added.
"If the situation escalates, police can use batons, shields and other equipment, including tear gas, to restore order," Adisorn said.
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