Thai man arrested for wearing red

BANGKOK: A Thai man was arrested and detained yesterday for declaring on social media last week that he would wear red on the day late king Bhumibol Adulyadej was to be cremated.

Ekachai Hongkangwan, 42, was taken by 11 soldiers from his house in Bangkok early yesterday supposedly to Kanchanaburi province, 125km west of the capital, according to his friends who spoke to him on the phone at the time of his arrest.

“He told me the soldiers gave him a choice between a resort in Kanchanaburi or a military camp there,” said Anon Nampa, Ekachai’s friend and human rights lawyer.

“He said he should be back by October 27, before turning off his phone. I couldn’t reach him afterwards,” Anon said.

Thailand has gone back to black this month to commemorate the oneyear anniversary of the late king’s death, and out of respect for the cremation ceremony scheduled for tomorrow.

As the cremation marks the last chance Thais can bid farewell to their king, emotions are running high, with many social media users becoming vigilantes, criticising others for not wearing black.

A Thai celebrity was recently under fire for wearing red while holidaying in Hungary.

The incident drove Ekachai to protest against such behaviour by declaring he would wear red tomorrow, leading to numerous death threats against him.

Ekachai previously served two years and eight months in prison for selling CDs with contents deemed to insult the monarchy. He was released in 2015.

Thailand’s tough lese-majesty law prohibits criticism of, and insults towards, the royal family. Perpetrators can face up to 15 years in prison per offence if found guilty. – dpa