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Thai authorities declared a strict new state of emergency for the capital on Thursday, a day after a student-led protest against the country’s traditional establishment saw an extraordinary moment in which protesters disrupted a royal caravan.
After the pre-dawn statement, the riot police mobilized to expel the protesters who after a day of demonstrations and clashes had gathered in front of Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha’s office to push forward their demands, which include resignation. of the former general, constitutional changes and reforms. of the monarchy.
Several high-ranking leaders of the protest movement were detained, and one later stated on his Facebook page that he had been denied access to a lawyer and that he was being forced into a helicopter and taken to a city in the north. from the country. Police said he had made 22 arrests.
Rapeephat Sitichailapa / AP
Pro-democracy protesters push Thai policemen with riot shields during a demonstration in Bangkok, Thailand.
The text of the emergency declaration said it was necessary because “certain groups of perpetrators intended to instigate an unfavorable incident and movement in the Bangkok area through various methods and through different channels, including obstruction of the royal caravan. “.
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Wednesday’s protest in Bangkok’s historic district, not far from gleaming royal temples and palaces, was the third major gathering of student-led activists who have been pushing the boundaries of what is considered acceptable and legal, by publicly questioning the paper from Thailand. monarchy in the power structure of the nation.
Rapeephat Sitichailapa / AP
Protesters sleep in front of Government House during a demonstration in Bangkok.
The royal family of Thailand has long been considered sacrosanct and a pillar of Thai identity. King Maha Vajiralongkorn and another key member of the royal family are protected by a lese majesty law that has been regularly used to silence critics who risk up to 15 years in prison if they are deemed to have insulted the institution.
The protest, held on the anniversary of a student-led uprising in 1973 against a military dictatorship, was complicated by the presence of royalist counter-protesters who had gathered both to show their support for the government and to greet the royal family on their journey to and from a religious ceremony in the area.
That led to a moment captured in photos and videos widely circulated on social media in which what appeared to be protesters gesticulating and shouting just meters (feet) from the actual caravan. Such actions are unprecedented in Thailand, where those waiting for a royal caravan regularly sit on the ground or prostrate themselves.
Rapeephat Sitichailapa / AP
A pro-democracy protester yells at Thai policemen during a demonstration.
Some experts say a line may have been crossed.
What appeared to be a stalemate that the Prayuth government was handling with reasonable success now, following the incident involving the procession of the queen’s caravan down a street where an active protest was taking place and the arrests of protest leaders, turning into a full-blown crisis, “said Michael Montesano, coordinator of the Thailand Studies Program at the ISEAS-Yusof Isak Institute in Singapore.” Unlike 48 hours ago, the country is now in dangerous territory. “
Government spokesman Anucha Buraphachaisri announced Thursday morning that the prime minister had ordered the police to crack down on those who obstruct a royal procession or insult the monarchy.
Maintaining order will be facilitated by the new emergency decree for Bangkok, which prohibits unauthorized gatherings of more than five people and gives authorities other powers deemed necessary to prevent disturbances, including prolonged detention without charge. It also prohibits news items that distort information or cause a “misunderstanding.”
Thailand is already under a state of national emergency as part of its efforts to combat the coronavirus, and it was not immediately clear how the new decree was different.
Rapeephat Sitichailapa / AP
Thai police dispersed a group of protesters who were holding a nighttime demonstration in front of the prime minister’s office.
One change is that the police said they will install checkpoints around Bangkok for security reasons.
The protesters were not intimidated and said they would meet again in a Bangkok shopping district on Thursday afternoon.
The deputy police spokesman, Colonel Kissana Phathanacharoen, warned that calling such a protest or attending an illegal era.
“It cannot be said that they are not aware of the order. We are making it clear, ”Kissana said at a press conference.
Rapeephat Sitichailapa / AP
A pro-democracy protester pushes the shield of a Thai policeman.
The human rights group Amnesty International criticized the crackdown. His deputy regional director Ming Yu Hah urged the Thai authorities to “engage in a constructive dialogue with the protesters.”
“The scale of morning arrests today seems completely unjustified based on yesterday’s events. The assemblies were overwhelmingly peaceful. These movements are clearly designed to crack down on dissent and sow fear in anyone sympathetic to the protesters’ views, ”the group said in a statement.
The protest movement was launched in March by university students, but was quickly suspended when Thailand was hit by the coronavirus pandemic. It returned in July, when the threat of the virus lessened, and has since grown in size.
Rapeephat Sitichailapa / AP
Pro-democracy activists, left to right, Panupong Jadnok, Arnon Nampha, Parit Chiwarak, raise three-finger salutes, a symbol of resistance, during a protest.
The movement’s original central demands were new elections, changes to the constitution to make it more democratic, and an end to intimidation of activists.
Protesters accuse Prayuth, who as an army commander led a coup in 2014 that toppled an elected government, was unfairly returned to power in last year’s general elections because laws had been changed to favor a pro-party. military. Protesters say a constitution promulgated under a military regime and approved in a referendum that campaigning against it was illegal is undemocratic.
The movement took another surprising turn in August, when students at a rally voiced unprecedented criticism of the monarchy and called for its reform. Expressing their grievances in direct language that is normally expressed in whispers, the speakers criticized the king’s wealth, influence, and spending much of his time in Germany, not Thailand.
Gemunu Amarasinghe / AP
A small group of pro-democracy protesters wave three fingers at riot police officers.
Conservative Thai monarchists accuse the protest movement of seeking to end the monarchy, an accusation its leaders deny.
However, analysts say the incident with the royal caravan may toughen positions.
“Not only is it unprecedented, it will be shocking to many,” said Kevin Hewison, a professor emeritus at the University of North Carolina and a veteran academic in Thai studies. “However, it reflects how a new generation of protesters sees the monarchy and the army-backed regime as intertwined and that political reform also demands a reform of the monarchy.”
