After Thai protestors camped outside of the Prime Minister’s office last week, no harm has been done to them. Thai soldiers say there will not use force to “evict” protestors, army chief Anupong Paochinda assured the public on Tuesday, despite “a state of emergency giving him the right to do so.” (Nopporn Wong-Anon, Reuters)

“If we thought we could use police and soldiers to get them out with a peaceful conclusion, we would do it. But we think that that would create more problems,” Paochinda told reporters after a man died and 45 people were injured because of the current politic unrest.

Because of the protesting, government buildings have become off limits, Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej banned public meetings and media reports are kept under strict control of the government, restricting stories about the conflict. However, no one is prepared to put the state of emergency plans into action, so there will most likely be a game of cat and mouse for quite some time. A couple schools and shops were shut, but there was no curfew in effect for the 10 million people who inhabit the city of Bangkok. The Thai economy is also suffering, as it’s at an all time low at the moment, mainly because of the lack of tourism coming in.

Some believe the lack of force has to do with the lack of jail room. Leaders of the current protest movement have coaxed others to join them at Government House because, “there are not enough jails to put us all into,” Chamlong Srimuang said. Srimuang is the leader of the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) and announces his speeches on a PAD radio and satellite television, “despite the emergency degree.” (Reuters) But others are worried the 400 soldiers, who were earlier armed with batons and shields, will come back at night and try to demand order. “I did this to douse the fire, not to cause a fire,” Prime Minister Samak told a news conference at military headquarters. 

Londoner’s and tourists alike celebrated China’s closing ceremonies outside the gold-tipped gates of Buckingham Palace on Sunday and began the countdown celebration to the London Olympics 2012. The event centered on the Mall, where royal processions and celebrations tale place. The crowd filled the air with red, white and blue Union Jack flags.

Britain won 19 gold medals this year in Beijing, coming fourth overall at the medals table, behind both China and the United States. The number is a step up from the Athens games, where the country only snagged 9 medals.

Queen Elizabeth congratulated the winning athletes. “The golden triumphs of the present British team can only serve as further inspiration to those who will be working hard over the next four years to make the London Games a shining example of Olympic success,” she said in a statement following this year’s games.

The popular western city has already begun construction and preparations for the games, improving transportation lines and the city’s geography and architecture. A giant flat screen television aired the entire Olympic ceremony in London’s famous Trafalgar Square. Sebastian Coe, chairman of the London organizing committee and former Olympic gold winner, said, “the eyes of the world would now turn to London.” (Peter Griffiths, Kate Kelland, Reuters) The city hosted the games back in 1948, the first Olympic ceremony since World War Two. “It is a very proud moment for us,” Coe added.

The next Olympic ceremony may be lacking controversy, but won’t fail to disappoint and impress. American swimmer Michael Phelps, who won a record breaking 8 gold medals in Beijing this year, told Sky television London was going to host a successful Olympics. “It will be a first class everything,” Phelps proclaimed.