The Thai government has imposed tough new security measures.

These are in anticipation of a mass rally due later this month.

The Internal Security Act will allow Thai security forces to impose curfews, checkpoints and restrict the movement of protesters if things turn violent.

Supporters of the former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra are planning to demonstrate for at least seven days.

That's a concern for Thailand's current government, according to a spokesman.

[Panitan Wattanayagorn, Thai Government Spokesman]:
"We are expecting to face a situation that will pose a threat to internal security. Thus we will impose internal security law in areas of Bangkok and seven other surrounding provinces."

The government though, and its supporters, have been criticized for using scare tactics ahead of the upcoming rally, repeatedly warning of violence or sabotage by the opposition, known as the "Red Shirts."

Last month, Thailand's Supreme Court confiscated 1.4 billion U.S. dollars from Thaksin Shinawatra after he was convicted of graft charges in 2008, two years after he was ousted by a military coup.

Yet far away from Bangkok's economic hub, support for him continues, such as here in Ban Salang Tone village. The farmers rely on a Thaksin-initiated bank scheme, which helps provide funding to those in some of Thailand's most rural provinces.

As demonstrators prepare for another rally, Thailand's government heightens security measures to avoid another repeat of the violence that gripped the country last April.