Thailand's army-installed Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont denied yesterday that he had fallen out with the junta leader after refusing to declare a state of emergency in Bangkok.
General Sonthi Boonyaratglin, the junta chief, had publicly called on Surayud to impose emergency rule in the capital to quell protests against the coup last September.
But Surayud refused, saying late on Thursday that the situation in Bangkok did not merit such a drastic measure. Instead, he laid out a plan for elections to restore democracy in December.
`No rift'
"There is not any rift. We held a reasonable discussion. General Sonthi as well as the other [junta] members explained their reasoning," Surayud told reporters.
"We reached a unanimous agreement" against declaring an emergency, he added.
"I told Sonthi that my government will do its best to prevent the situation from deteriorating," he said.
Surayud said the junta leader wanted to be prepared in case the protests staged in recent weeks -- which have drawn up to 2,000 people -- continued to grow.
The protesters, who have called for the junta to step down, vowed to stage another rally last night, despite the announcement of the December election date.
Easing hinted
Surayud hinted that the government would consider easing bans on activities by political parties for the first time since the military ousted elected prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
"We think that political parties should have time, starting in September, to prepare for the election," he said.
Political parties have complained that the ban on their activities has prevented them from preparing for elections and from joining in the process of drafting a new Constitution.
A new charter is being written by a team appointed by the junta, and is to be put to the public a referendum in September.
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