Government warns travellers to avoid Bangkok

Australia, Russia and Hong Kong have joined governments around the world in urging their citizens to avoid or reconsider travelling to the protest-hit Bangkok.

The warnings were issued as troops fired warning shots and tear gas in clashes with petrol bomb-hurling protesters in Bangkok, leaving 70 injured, although there were no reports of tourists being involved or hurt.

Under-pressure prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on Sunday issued a state of emergency in the capital, after a similar measure was imposed the day before in the popular resort city of Pattaya, 150 kilometres away.

"We urge Australians not in Bangkok to reconsider their need to travel to Bangkok,'' Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith told reporters in Canberra as the security situation in the "Land of Smiles'' deteriorated.

"Those Australians who are in Bangkok, we urge them to stay within their homes or their hotels, to certainly avoid demonstrations and to certainly avoid large gatherings of people,'' Smith added.

Smith's warning echoed an official travel advisory issued Monday, the fourth time in three days that the Australian government's advice on Thailand has been revised in the face of a rapidly evolving crisis.

In Tokyo, the Japanese foreign ministry warned travellers to be on high alert and to stay away from government buildings and street rallies.

The ministry also recommended that Japanese travellers and residents refrain from wearing red or yellow T-shirts to avoid being mistaken for either anti- or pro-government protesters.

A particular feature of the unrest in the past year has been the strong allegiance to colours, with the current anti-government demonstrators wearing red, while last year their opponents adopted yellow as their signature colour.

After an Asian summit in Pattaya was cancelled because of the protests on Saturday, Moscow quickly moved to advise its nationals against travel to Bangkok. Thailand has become increasingly popular with Russians in recent years.

"Russia's foreign ministry recommends that Russian tourists refrain from visiting Bangkok as long as protests continue, and those who stay in the town of Pattaya not to leave their hotels if possible,'' a ministry statement said.

The Philippines, Malaysia and South Korea on Monday also told travellers to stay away from Bangkok or exercise extreme caution there.

And Hong Kong stepped up its travel advisory.

"(The government) strongly urged Hong Kong residents to avoid travelling to Thailand, particularly Bangkok, unless they have an urgent need to do so,'' a spokesman said in a statement.

"Those who are already there should pay close attention to the situation there and stay away from large crowds or protesters.''

Hong Kong's Travel Industry Council estimated there were around 8,000 visitors from Hong Kong currently in Thailand, many who had jetted there over the long Easter weekend holiday.

Songkran is over

The Bangkok governor has cancelled all Songkran activities hosted by city hall after the government declared a state of emergency yesterday.

ML Sukhumbhand Paribatra said the emergency decree would disrupt activities and spoil the atmosphere of the water festival, so he decided to scrap the ceremonies.

City hall had scheduled a range of activities across the city from April 11 to 15 to celebrate the festival.

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Songkran celebrations at Khao San road - one of the most popular activities hosted by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration - were also cancelled as the political turmoil worsened.

But many tourists shrugged off the state of emergency declaration and embraced the water-splashing activities with gusto.

Dozens of revellers flocked to have their picture taken in front of a tank positioned at Khao San road after the emergency decree was declared.

Restaurant and tourism operators in the Khao San area said crowds were down 30% on last year's festival.

Thanathorn Madeesuthikul, a restaurant owner, blamed the shrinking tourist numbers and his falling revenue on the political turmoil. He urged the government to "quickly end the red shirt rally".

Tour agency manager Sirisak Surarattanawattana said 80% of Taiwanese tourists had cancelled their bookings since Saturday, when the red shirt protesters stormed the Asean summit venue in Pattaya.

Meanwhile, the death toll from Songkran-related road accidents has risen to 95 as of Saturday, with more than 900 accidents and almost 1,000 injuries reported.

Deputy permanent secretary for transport Tawanrat Ornsira said the number of road accidents and traffic-related injuries was down from the corresponding period last year, but the death toll was about the same.