Thai authorities seek to censor coverage of student activists
BANGKOK — Thai authorities worked Monday to stem a growing tide of protests calling for the prime minister to resign by threatening to censor news coverage, raiding a publishing house and attempting to block a messaging app used by demonstrators.
The efforts by Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha’s government to drain the student-led protests of support and the ability to organize comes as demonstrations have grown in the capital and spread around the country, despite an emergency decree, which bans public gatherings of more than four people in Bangkok, outlaws news said to affect national security and gives authorities broad power to detain people.
Thousands of mostly young protesters massed in northern Bangkok Monday evening, as they have in various locations in the capital over the past six days to push their demands, including a controversial call for reform of the monarchy. At one point, they raised their arms in unison and flashed a three-fingered salute, a sign of resistance borrowed from “The Hunger Games” movie series.
The protesters charge Prayuth, an army commander who led a 2014 coup, was returned to power unfairly in last year’s general election. The protesters say a constitution written and passed under military rule is undemocratic.
Authorities have used water cannons to disperse protesters and detained some. They’re now increasingly turning to censorship to clamp down after protesters heckled a royal motorcade last week in a once unthinkable scene. With protests continuing, a top official with the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission confirmed reports that the agency had been ordered to block access to the messaging app Telegram. Police also confirmed an order that could allow officials to block access to news sites that give “distorted information.”