At least four of the dozens wounded were said to be in serious condition [AFP]

At least one person was killed and dozens wounded in Bangkok as police and both pro- and anti-government protesters clashed overnight on Monday.

That was enough for Samak Sundaravej to suspend some civil liberties and give the army control of public order early on Tuesday.

Under the sweeping emergency powers announced on television and radio, all public gatherings in the capital are banned and restrictions have been imposed on media reports that "undermined public security".

"There is an urgent need to solve all these problems quickly. Therefore the prime minister declares a state of emergency in Bangkok from now on," the announcement read.

But leaders of the anti-government protest movement that has occupied the prime minister's official compound for the past week said they would not be moving.

They are camped in behind makeshift barricades of razor wire and car tyres.

"There are not enough jails to put us all into," Chamlong Srimuang, one of the leaders of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) that is leading the anti-government protests, told thousands of supporters inside the compound.

Around 400 soldiers armed with batons and shields were sent to back up police struggling to contain the skirmishes on Tuesday in the worst violence since the PAD launched its street campaign against the prime minister in May.

Samak's announcement blamed unnamed people for "wreaking havoc" and undermining the economy and national unity.

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