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BANGKOK: Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said on Wednesday (October 21) that he was preparing to lift the emergency measures imposed last week to stop protests in Bangkok and that disputes should be resolved in the parliament.
The emergency measures last Thursday sparked demonstrations of tens of thousands of people, the largest in three months of demonstrations demanding the removal of Prayuth and reforms to curb the powers of King Maha Vajiralongkorn.
“I will take the first step to reduce this situation. I am currently preparing to lift the severe state of emergency in Bangkok and will do so immediately if there are no violent incidents,” he said in a speech to the nation.
The measures had prohibited political gatherings of five or more people and the publication of information deemed a threat to security.
Riot police stand guard behind barbed wire as protesters march during an anti-government rally in Bangkok on October 21, 2020 (Photo: AFP / Mladen Antonov).
“Now we must step back from the edge of the slippery slope that can easily slide into chaos,” added Prayut.
The protests have become the biggest challenge to Thailand’s establishment in years and have drawn the most outspoken opposition to the monarchy in decades despite lese majesty laws that set jail terms of up to 15 years for insulting royalty. .
As Prayut spoke, tens of thousands of protesters marched to his office in Government House to demand his resignation, as well as the lifting of emergency measures and the release of dozens of activists arrested in a crackdown.
“GIVE UP”
“It is not enough. You must resign,” said Too, 54, one of the protesters.
Protesters say Prayut engineered an election last year to maintain the power he took in a 2014 coup. He says the choice was fair.
The protesters’ other demands are for a new constitution and reforms to a monarch that they say has allowed years of military rule.
A government supporter (center) tries to stop a march of pro-democracy protesters during an anti-government rally in Bangkok on October 21, 2020 (Photo: AFP / Mladen Antonov).
A Thai protest leader, Tattep Ruangprapaikitseree, said that Prayut must resign despite the lifting of emergency measures.
Tattep told Reuters that other demands by the protesters could be discussed in parliament.
“Prayut must resign first and that is the easiest thing to do,” he said.
The palace has a policy of not commenting to the media.
In his speech, Prayut said that disputes must be resolved in parliament. Its supporters are a majority, the entire upper house has been appointed by its old board.
Protesters march from the Victory Monument during an anti-government rally in Bangkok on October 21, 2020 (Photo: AFP / Mladen Antonov)
“The protesters have made their voices and opinions heard,” Prayut said. “The time has come for them to allow their views to be reconciled with those of other segments of Thai society.”
Dozens of Thai royalists and anti-government protesters previously clashed at Ramkhamhaeng University.
The yellow-shirted royalists advanced on the student protesters and the two sides insulted each other. Some threw bottles of water and other objects before the students left and the police intervened to separate the sides.
