Thai protests target army in campaign against power of monarchy
HUNDREDS of pro-democracy activists took to Bangkok’s streets again yesterday, pushing their campaign for sweeping reforms, including to the army and Thailand’s monarchy.
Around 800 protesters gathered in the afternoon and in early evening marched to the base of the 11th Infantry Regiment, which is closely associated with the country’s royal palace. Their number grew to well over 1,000 as they listened to speeches by protest leaders.
An advance group of protesters had already pulled away two decrepit buses that had been used to block the entrance to the base and removed strands of razor wire.
A large contingent of riot police, several rows deep, stood their ground in front of the gate but no violence was reported by the end of the rally.
The protesters believe that the army undermines democracy in Thailand, and that King Maha Vajiralongkorn wields too much power and influence in what is supposed to be a democratic constitutional monarchy.
The student-led protesters for months now have been demanding reforms to make the monarchy more accountable, even though criticism of the institution has long been considered taboo and comments judged defamatory of the king and key royals are punishable by up to 15 years in prison.
“People should be able to criticise the king. People
should be able to inspect what he does. In this way, people will respect and love him more,” said activist Somyot Pruksakasemsuk, who served seven years in prison for defaming the monarchy and is facing criminal charges in connection with this year’s protests.
The protesters also want Prime Minister Prayuth Chanocha and his government to step down and the constitution to be amended to make it more democratic.
As the army chief in 2014, Mr Prayuth led a coup ousting an elected government. His military junta oversaw the rewriting of the constitution, which shifted power from elected politicians to unelected bodies, and Mr Prayuth was returned to power after elections held under the new rules last year.
Mr Prayuth faces a legal challenge on Wednesday, when the Constitutional Court is supposed to rule on whether he illegally stayed in army housing after he retired from the military at the end of September 2014. If found guilty, he could be forced out of the prime minister’s post.
Protest leader Parit “Penguin” Chiwarak urged the crowd to rally outside the court on the day of the verdict.