Thailand PM Dismisses Parliament, Calls for Early Election

TEMPO.CO, Bangkok - Thailand Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, has decided to dismiss the Thailand Parliament and called for an early election in a bid to defuse the wave of anti-government protests in Bangkok.

"At this stage, when there are many people opposed to the government from many groups, the best way is to give back the power to the Thai people," she said. "The Thai people will decide."

Al Jazeera's reporter Scott Heidler said that the King will have to approve the move.

"We expect elections to take place around the end of January or the beginning of February [2014]," he said.

However, the leader of the protest movement Suthep Thaugsuban, whose aim was to oust Yingluck, said that he would not end his demonstrations despite the announcement.

"Today we will continue our march to Government House. We have not yet reached our goal. The dissolving of the Parliament is not our aim," he told Reuters.

Another Al Jazeera's correspondent Wayne Hay, added that "the opposition wants the government gone, not the resignation of Yingluck. They want the whole Shinawatra family out of politics."

AL JAZEERA | CHOIRUL