Thailand has decided to move the venue for ASEAN's annual meeting from Bangkok to Chiang Mai, citing the pleasant climate and a desire to showcase another part of the country. However, officials privately admit that the decision is actually a response to the ongoing protests by the People's Alliance for Democracy in Bangkok, as they try to avoid any potential trouble. This sudden change has raised concerns about Thailand's stability and potential embarrassment for the government during the summit. The meeting will be attended by government leaders from the 10 Association of South East Asian Nations countries, as well as China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand. Diplomats in Bangkok are upset about the sudden change in location for the summit, which will coincide with the peak tourist season. It will be difficult for a city with a population of 200,000 to accommodate the thousands of government officials and foreign media expected to attend on short notice. When Laos hosted the meeting in Vientiane four years ago, it restricted entry to foreign visitors to ensure enough space. A diplomat in Bangkok described the situation as a major inconvenience. "We haven't budgeted for any of this and we are wondering how we will find hotel rooms during this busy time of year. It looks like we will have to share rooms and sleep on the floor." The Shangri La hotel in Chiang Mai, where the meeting is being held, has reserved the entire hotel from Dec. 11-19, but tourists with existing bookings will not be affected. It seems that the original venue for the meeting, the Centara Grand hotel in Bangkok, is unaware of the change in location.