Special report: Snap general election in Thailand

    BANGKOK, April 3 (Xinhua) -- A key leader of the anti-Thaksin People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) said Monday that Sunday's snap election could not in itself resolve Thailand's current political stalemate because the crisis centers on the call for Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to step down.

    Maj-Gen. Chamlong Srimuang, Thaksin's former mentor and co-leader of PAD, said the result of the parliamentary election would not resolve the current political crisis until Thaksin steps down.

    Initial election results indicated that the 'No-Vote' ballots had outnumber the votes won by Thai Rak Thai candidates, which reflects the political bankruptcy of Thaksin, he said.

    The opposition noted the PAD-led protesters did not accept the Thai Rak Thai-proposed national reconciliation process after the election as Thaksin had lost his legitimacy to rule the country.

    He warned that Thaksin should resign and be replaced by a royally-appointed interim prime minister, otherwise the protesters would go on with their rallies.

    The PAD and an additional 20 civil society groups will meet Tuesday to assess the post-election political situation, the coalition was quoted by Thai News Agency as saying. Enditem