Demands For Democratic Reform Surge In Thailand

August 17, 20206:27 AM ET


MICHAEL SULLIVAN

Lighted cellphones held up by demonstrators calling for an end to the military backed government, in Bangkok, Sunday.Michael Sullivan/NPR

Thousands of Thais gathered on Sunday in the capital, Bangkok, for the largest anti-government demonstration since the 2014 coup that brought the military to power.

Protesters, many dressed in black, thronged the streets around the Democracy Monument at the intersection of Ratchadamnoen Avenue and Dinso Road.

Many chanted "down with dictatorship" and "the country belongs to the people" as they displayed the three-fingered gesture of defiance popularized by the Hunger Games movies.

Speaker after speaker reiterated the Free People movement's core demands: that coup leader turned prime minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and his government step down, that a new constitution be written and that Thailand end harassment of government critics.

Some also called for curbs on the political influence of Thailand's powerful monarchy.

The monarchy has long been the country's most revered institution and any criticism of it carries serious consequences. Thailand's lèse-majesté law calls for prison terms of up to 15 years for defaming or insulting the royal family. A few weeks ago, however, protesters began calling for reforms to make it more like constitutional monarchies in other countries.

Members of a musical group performing at Sunday's pro-democracy demonstration in Bangkok make a gesture of resistance popularized by the Hunger Games movies.Michael Sullivan/NPR

Thailand's current king, Maha Vajiralongkorn ascended to the throne following the death of his much loved and admired father, King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who ruled for seven decades. Vajiralongkorn spends almost all his time abroad, primarily in Germany.


Last week, at another student rally at Thammasat University on the outskirts of Bangkok, more than 3,000 people turned out to hear student leaders outline a ten-point manifesto for reforming the monarchy. Much of the mainstream Thai media ignored or gave short shrift to this dramatic turn of events, fearful of angering the palace.

Some Thais worried that Sunday's huge gathering in Bangkok might end in a confrontation between students and ultra-royalists furious with the students' demands. But the six-hour plus event was a peaceful and often joyous affair. Both the organizers and the police put the number in attendance at more than 10,000.

There was a small counter-protest by a few dozen arch-monarchists. Dressed in yellow—a color associated with the monarchy—some waved huge Thai flags while others held up photos of the king for the television cameras.

The pro-monarchy group had threatened to stay the entire rally to ensure that the monarchy was not maligned. But most, if not all, dispersed quietly before sunset as the main rally got into full swing with student leaders and others taking turns at the microphone.

"We want a new election and a new parliament from the people," student activist Patsalawalee Tanakitwiboonpon told the gathering, and a "monarchy which is truly under the constitution."

A new generation demands change

The current prime minister, Prayuth Chan-ocha, took office after elections most independent observers agree were rigged in favor of the military backed parties. A newly formed opposition party popular with young people that finished third in the elections was dissolved earlier this year by the constitutional court in a move widely seen as politically motivated. Several leaders of the latest wave of student led protests have been arrested, then released. Police say there are warrants for more than a dozen more.

The student-led protests have been growing in recent months, despite a state of emergency that remains in effect because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But yesterday's demonstration drew a more diverse crowd. Thailand has been largely spared by the virus, with fewer than 4,000 confirmed cases and just 58 deaths. But the economic fallout from a ban on international tourists and a two-month long lockdown have left many Thais out of work and angry with the military backed government.

The students, some analysts say, have seen enough.

"They want their future back," says Thitinan Pongsudhirak, who teaches political science at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University. "They've seen ineffectual, incompetent military government followed by an elected coalition government still backed by the military, leading Thailand to nowhere," he says.

At the end of Sunday's rally, student leaders urged the government to act on their demands within a month or face more rallies. Their enthusiasm caught the imagination of some of the older, more jaded Thais at the rally.

"Even though I'm just, like, a tiny voice, if a lot of us get together I hope we can make a change," said 32-year-old social worker Won, who declined to give her last name. "But I cannot get my hopes too high," she added quickly. "I have had my heart broken many, many times. But I still want to believe. That's why I'm here."

Pro-democracy movement draws thousands in Bangkok

Mostly student protesters demand dissolution of parliament, with some calling for reforms to the monarchy


Rebecca Ratcliffe in Bangkok

Mon 17 Aug 2020 04.37 BST
 

Demonstrators march during a protest demanding the resignation of Thailand’s prime minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha, in Bangkok, Thailand. Photograph: Jorge Silva/Reuters

Thousands of people have taken to the streets of the Thai capital Bangkok to step up demands for political change in one of the biggest protests against the country’s military rulers since the 2014 coup.

At least 10,000 demonstrators, mostly students, gathered at the city’s famous democracy monument on Sunday, some of them calling for reforms to the monarchy.

It follows a month of almost daily rallies that have drawn support from high school and university students across the country.

Protesters – who chanted, “Down with dictatorship, long live democracy” and “Stop harassing the people” – have called for the dissolution of the military-backed government. They have also demanded an end to the intimidation of activists and reforms to the constitution, which was written under military rule. Critics say the constitution unfairly allowed the prime minister, Prayuth Chan-o-cha, who first came to power during the 2014 coup, to win last year’s elections.

A statement released by Free People, a coalition of mostly student-led groups, which organised Sunday’s protests, said it aspired to see “democratic reform of government with the monarch truly under the constitution”.

In recent weeks, students have voiced increasingly direct criticisms of the monarchy, breaching a long-standing taboo.

Last week, at a rally attended by thousands, a protest group issued a 10-point list for reform of the monarchy – a move that shocked many – including allowing criticism of the monarchy, and called for the king’s powers to be curbed.

Thailand’s lèse-majesté laws are among the strictest in the world. Criticising the king can lead to a jail sentence of up to 15 years, though Prayuth has said the king requested that it should not be used at the moment. Such laws also limit media reporting within the country that relates to the royal family.

Parit Chiwarak, a pro-democracy student, talks to the media at the Giant Swing. Photograph: Soe Zeya Tun/Reuters  SWING?I THOUGHT IT WAS A GUILLOTINE!

No protesters have been charged under lèse-majesté laws, though three people have been arrested on other charges.


On Sunday, some students carried signs that made reference to the monarchy. One student wore a T-shirt that said: “Send love to Germany.” The king has been criticised by some for spending most of his time in Germany. Others in the crowds carried placards that reiterated previous demands for monarchy reform.

The protests are led by a new generation of emboldened young activists who use social media to mobilise.

“During my time, anybody who was an activist, they were called a redshirt and a low-key bandit or nation hater,” said a protester who graduated from Chulalongkorn University, a more conservative institution, in 2012.

After the 2014 coup, the military-backed government promised that it would offer stability and allow Thailand to prosper. “Such promises have not materialised,” he said, adding that this had left many young people, including students at his former university, feeling compelled to speak out.

On top of frustration over the economy, which was struggling even before the coronavirus pandemic, students say they are fed up with a government they accuse of undermining democracy.

Anger among students flared in February when the government dissolved an opposition party, Future Forward, which was especially popular among young people. Then, reports emerged that pro-democracy activist Wanchalearm Satsaksi had been abducted in Cambodia – the latest of several exiled activists to disappear in recent years. The government and the military have denied involvement.

“I don’t think that human rights can exist in a dictatorship,” said a 22-year-old student who asked not to be named.


In its statement on Sunday, the Free People group said there must be no coup d’état, nor a government of national unity installed.

Prayuth has said he was uncomfortable with comments made about the monarchy, but that he would listen to the concerns in relation to the constitution. Young people should be allowed to express themselves, within the limits of the law and with respect to others’ rights, his spokesperson has said.

Three protesters have been arrested over recent weeks, on charges including sedition, which carries a maximum seven-year sentence, and violating an emergency decree than bans public gatherings. The charges have been condemned by rights groups, who have accused the government of harassing its critics.