Abhisit's rise to power was controversial and opposed from the beginning. In April 2009, anti-government protesters, known as 'The Red Shirts', began its huge demonstration aiming at the resignation of the prime minister and fresh elections. The major site of the demonstration was in Bangkok. From April 8, the demonstrators spread their activities to significant location such as main intersections. The streets were also blocked and barricaded. The demonstration took place at the same time of the ASEAN summit in Pattaya. The demonstrators also moved to protest, aiming at barring the summit. Eventually a handful of protesters stormed the hotel, the site of the summit, causing the cancellation of the summit.