Bangkok and surrounding provinces now merit a Level 4 travel warning (the second highest: “reconsider your need to travel”) according to Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The full travel advice is available here. The rest of Thailand (except, of course, for the troubled far southern provinces) remains at the more benign Level 3. As I have noted previously, a Level 4 travel warning puts an area into a category with some pretty extreme company. Bangkok, Nonthaburi, Samut Prakan, Nakon Pathom, Ayuthaya and Pratum Thani now rank up there alongside these tough neighbourhoods.

The last time I highlighted a Level 4 travel warning for Bangkok, back in December 2008, I asked “how the average People’s Alliance for Democracy trooper would react to this clear statement of concern from the Australian government”. Concern manifests itself in many ways. Are foreign governments soon going to be making public suggestions for how the Thais should deal with this crisis? I notice that such suggestions are already being aired in some comments here on New Mandala.