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Pro-democracy protesters march towards Government House during an anti-government rally in Bangkok on October 14, 2020 (Photo by Lillian SUWANRUMPHA / AFP)
BANGKOK, Thailand – Thai pro-democracy protesters said Saturday they would defy an emergency decree banning gatherings for the third day in a row after clashes the night before saw riot police use water cannons against activists , mainly young people.
Some 3,000 protesters in the city’s main shopping center district demanded the release of the arrested protesters and some shouted obscenities at Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha before the police dispersed them.
Juventud Libre, one of the main protest groups, called on its supporters Saturday morning to return to the streets on Saturday morning.
“Be prepared both physically and mentally for the demonstration and to face a crackdown if it occurs,” the group’s online publication said.
Several hundred riot police dispersed protesters Friday by firing blue-tinged water mixed with a chemical agent from cannons.
Police later said the dye would mark protesters for future legal action.
The youth-led movement has rocked the kingdom’s political elite with its demands for the government to resign and reforms of the previously impregnable monarchy.
The ultra-rich and powerful King Maha Vajiralongkorn has not directly addressed the civil unrest, but during a ceremony broadcast on Friday reminded people that Thailand “needs people who love the country, people who love the institution of the monarchy.”
– ‘Impunity’ –
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights told AFP that 65 activists had been arrested since Tuesday, including nine of the leading figures in the pro-democracy movement.
Earlier on Friday, two activists were arrested under a rarely used law prohibiting violence against the queen because they were among a group surrounding a royal caravan Wednesday during a large demonstration.
Both men could face life in prison if convicted.
A Thai journalist was also briefly detained during Friday’s protest, according to his online news outlet Prachathai.
Prime Minister Prayut has extended the emergency decree banning gatherings of more than four people until mid-November, ignoring calls from activists for him to resign.
The former army chief was the mastermind behind a 2014 coup before he was elected to power in last year’s elections that protesters said were rigged in his favor.
The opposition party Pheu Thai has called on the government to lift the emergency measures and release the detainees.
Human Rights Watch warned on Saturday that the emergency decree gave police “the green light to commit human rights abuses with impunity” and called for international condemnation.
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