The Peacekeeping Operations Command set a deadline for the protesters to start leaving the Rajprasong Intersection at 9 pm.
Speaking at a press conference, Deputy PM's Secretary General Panithan Wattanayakorn and Army spokesman Col Sansern Kaewkamnerd said the protesters must agree to leave the intersection at 9 pm or the POC would invoke the Internal Security Act to issue conditions for them to leave the area.
A representative of the Justice Ministry told the same press conference that refusing to comply with ISA act to leave the area could carry one-year imprisonment.
Panithan, the acting government spokesman, said the POC would send officials to negotiate with the red-shirt leaders to vacate the area.
"We had send a team of police to negotiate with the red shirts leaders but failed to convince them to cease the protests which clearly affected the lives and rights of other people as well as businesses there," he said in a special television programme.
Therefore the government will send another team which would comprise high ranking police officers to talk to the leaders in another bid to encourage the protesters to leave the site.
"The rally is not peaceful, not line with Ahingsa or non violence as the protesters claimed," he said.
In response to the concerns that there could possible be some groups of people who could exploit the situation to create chaos, police would be deployed to the site to provide security for the protesters.
If the talk, which may take about two hours fail, the POC would issue conditions in line with the ISA to officially inform the protesters to leave the area, Panithan said.
the POC would use sound truck to inform protesters that they were breaking the laws and were not rallying in line with the constitutional rights.
"We hope talk will succeed. If not, we will enforce the law according to the guidelines that we have set." Sansern said.
He said the protesters had already occupied the intersection for hours.
But Sansern stopped short of saying that the government would use force to break up the rally, saying he would talk about it only when the deadline comes.
Panitan said the government would not announce curfew yet.
