Thai capital to get back to business after clean-up

Thailand's prime minister said that Bangkok would get back to business tomorrow after a massive clean-up, and defended a crackdown on protest rallies that unleashed a rampage of arson and looting.

Premier Abhisit Vejjajiva said that schools, streets and government agencies would reopen after being shuttered to keep
civilians out of central Bangkok during clashes between security forces and "Red Shirts" protesters.

"Everything is calm and returning to normalcy," he said in his regular today television address, appearing relaxed and confident as two months of crisis that has left 86 dead and 1,900 injured abated.

However, authorities extended a curfew in force for four nights in Bangkok and 23 other provinces, saying the measures would remain in place until Tuesday "for security reasons". 

On the streets of Bangkok, a frenzied clean-up was under way to remove tonnes of debris and garbage after Wednesday's offensive on a protest encampment that had paralysed the shopping district for six weeks.

Hordes of workers and volunteers, including foreigners, scraped away political graffiti and posters, wielded power hoses and poured foaming detergent to scrub the streets clean.

Many wore T-shirts printed with a slogan that read "Together We Can" and a heart drawn in the colours of the Thai flag.