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BANGKOK: On a giant yellow inflatable duck, a rebellious Buddhist monk in saffron robes showed a defiant three-finger salute at a protest in central Bangkok.
Dozens of pool toys swung through a crowd of about 20,000 on Wednesday (November 18) as activists descended on the Thai national police headquarters to dump paint and scrawl obscene anti-royal slogans in the streets.
The cute yellow birds are fast becoming a symbol of Thai protests after protesters used them a day earlier as shields against burning spray from the police water cannon and tear gas at a rally near parliament.
Tuesday saw the most violent clashes since the demonstrations began in July: six people were shot during fights between royalists and democracy activists.
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A man dressed in a monk’s robes and a gas mask carries a squirt gun while holding the three-finger salute during an anti-government demonstration in Bangkok on November 18, 2020 (Photo: AFP / Mladen Antonov).
Yellow inflatable ducks are fast becoming a symbol of Thai protests. (Photo: AFP / Jack Taylor)
The youth-led movement demands a new constitution, making unprecedented calls for reform of the untouchable monarchy and for the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha.
Images of Thailand’s so-called “rubber duck revolution” have gone viral on social media this week.
“If the policy is good, the ducks will only be used in the pool,” commented one Twitter user.
“Here you go, the most terrifying weapon on the protesters’ side: an inflatable duck,” wrote one Facebook user.
“Duck is a fighter, no matter how intimidated, keep smiling,” a Thai tweeted alongside a photo of a battered and slightly deflated duck.
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Large inflatable ducks line the road during an anti-government rally at a major intersection in Bangkok on November 18, 2020 (Photo: AFP / Mladen Antonov).
Thailand’s “rubber duck revolution” calls for a new constitution, reforms to the monarchy and the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha. (Photo: AFP / Jack Taylor)
The appearances of the ducks in protest have also inspired a large number of works of art.
Thai artist Wannasin “Matthew” Inpin used a tablet to create a caricature of a half duck, half strong man figure protecting protesters.
“The rubber ducks are very fragile and I think it is not a fair fight, but I think this act shows the protesters? Courage and strength to fight,” he told AFP.
“That’s why I drew the duck as a strong animal that protects the protesters and is not afraid of the dictatorship.”
The inflatable pool ducks are retailed on Lazada Thailand, an online shopping portal, for 499 baht (US $ 15).
THE DUCKS HAVE GLOBAL
It is not the first time that bath time friends have been used as symbols of defiance and protest.
In 2013, Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman’s sculpture of a 16-meter inflatable duck floated in Hong Kong harbor, but quickly became embroiled in controversy.
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A protester uses a shield to protect against water cannons during an anti-government protest in Bangkok, Thailand, on November 17, 2020 (Photo: Reuters / Athit Perawongmetha).
Protesters use inflatable rubber ducks as shields to protect themselves from water cannons during an anti-government protest outside the parliament in Bangkok, Thailand, on November 17, 2020 (Photo: Reuters / Athit Perawongmetha).
A Weibo user edited a famous image from the 1989 Tiananmen Square incident, replacing tanks with ducks, prompting a Chinese government internet search ban on the “big yellow duck.”
Giant inflatable rubber ducks appeared at protests in Brazil in 2016 during a push to impeach then-President Dilma Rousseff and highlight the economic “charlatanism” of her government amid a recession.
And they also became a symbol of protest in Russia in 2017 when it became known that then-Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev owned several luxury properties, including one featuring a special house for ducks in a pond.
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A rubber duck is seen on the fence in front of the Central Investigation Bureau of the National Police in Bangkok on November 18, 2020 (Photo: Pichayada Promchertchoo).
A protester walks with an inflatable duck during an anti-government rally in Bangkok on November 18, 2020 (Photo: AFP / Jack Taylor).
