Thailand Protest News
Thailand protest news, political demonstrations, and social movements—stay updated with real-time reports, analysis, and insights on public gatherings and their impact. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted source for protest news in Thailand.
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Former Pheu Thai chair to challenge legality of State of Emergency
Thai politician and former chair of the Pheu Thai Party, Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan, has confirmed she plans to challenge the legality of the state of emergency in court. She joins a number of opposition MPs and other activists who are petitioning to have the order lifted. Bangkok awoke to a state of emergency declared by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha in the…
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Letter calling for Thai PM’s resignation signed by over 1,000 academics
A petition calling for the resignation of Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha, has been signed by up to 1,118 academics and delivered to Government House. The petition was created by the Thai Academic Network for Civil Rights. Nation Thailand reports that a group of university lecturers and students have marched to Government House to deliver the letter. They include Anusorn Unno,…
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Thai police accuse anonymous social media users of inciting looting during protests
A spokesman for the Thai police says the Digital Economy and Society Ministry has asked for action to be taken against 58 social media accounts accused of “encouraging looting” at anti-government protests. Siriwat Deepor says the anonymous Twitter accounts are pointing to political demonstrations in other countries where looting occurs and property is destroyed. “Chats in Twitter are claiming this…
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2 Thai protest leaders immediately re-arrested after being released on bail
Authorities have re-arrested 2 of the leaders at the centre of anti-government protests right after they were granted temporary release on bail. Panasaya Sitthijirawattanakul, known as “Rung”, and Parit Chivarak, aka “Penguin”, were released yesterday from Patum Thani prison, north of Bangkok. They were being held on charges of violating the emergency decree and released alongside fellow protester Nutchanon Pairote,…
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House Speaker confirms agreement for special parliamentary session
The Speaker of the lower house of Parliament has confirmed that there is cross-party agreement for an extraordinary parliamentary session to be convened in the wake of the ongoing political unrest in Thailand. Chuan Leekpai has notified PM Prayut Chan-o-cha of the agreement to hold the special session in a bid to seek a resolution to the conflict. Anti-government protests…
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Opposition MPs petition for Bangkok State of Emergency to be lifted
A group of opposition MPs and other activists will today petition to have the emergency decree currently in force in Bangkok revoked. Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha imposed the state of emergency last Thursday morning, in the wake of escalating political unrest in the capital. Now a number of Pheu Thai MPs and other opponents of the State of Emergency are…
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Police threaten jail time for anyone taking selfies at protests
The State of Emergency recently imposed on Bangkok amid escalating political unrest carries some sweeping powers, some of them rather creative. According to a report in Coconuts, police are warning that anyone taking a selfie at anti-government protests is risking 2 years in jail and a fine of up to 40,000 baht. You’d have to really want that photo… The…
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Police deny plans to restrict online access, as media groups issue warning
Thai police have confirmed the legitimacy of a document released by the Free Youth group, which reveals that their Facebook page was targeted by authorities for allegedly spreading disinformation and inciting civil unrest, in breach of the State of Emergency, enacted last Thursday morning. The Free Youth group have now moved to “Telegram”, a popular messaging and telephony app, after…
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K-Pop fans show their support for the young Thai protesters, donate 3 million+ baht
Art meets politics again, this time with hundreds of thousands of K-Pop fans raising funds in support of the growing student protest movement in Thailand. So far they’ve raised more than 3 million baht (as of 10am this morning) but the amount is rising quickly as Thai and overseas K-Pop fans respond. The most popular band in Thailand at the…
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Thai authorities push to ban, censor news outlets and social media
Police are now cracking down on local media outlets covering the pro-democracy protests as well as activist group Facebook pages because they are a “threat to national security”. In addition to the police’s request to ban the content, the Digital Economy and Society Ministry is attempting to censor the Telegram social media application, saying it too poses a “threat to…
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Dozens of protester arrests since emergency decree was imposed
Dozens of people have been arrested since the State of Emergency was imposed early Thursday morning to break up a pro-democracy protest. The government order bans people from holding public gatherings of more than 5 people until November 13, but hundreds and thousands of people have continued to gather. Police warn they can arrest those who violate the order. 74…
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Pro-democracy protests grow across Thailand, plans to continue
Despite Bangkok’s State of Emergency banning public gatherings of more than 5 people, pro-democracy protesters continue to rally throughout the city every evening and are determined to do so until their demands are met. The movement, calling on the resignation of PM Prayut Chan-o-cha, an end to Thailand’s military-run government and rewrite of the 2017 Charter, has spread to other…
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The 3 finger salute. Why did it become the symbol for Thai protesters? – VIDEO
The 3 finger salute, now adopted by Thai protesters as their “go to” symbol in the current round of rally’s and protests against the Thai government and establishment, emerged originally from pop culture. In the Hunger Games movie franchise, the residents of a dystopian future North America, forced to compete in a televised death match for the pleasure of…
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Former Thai PM Yingluck reminds Prayut of protests calling for her resignation
Former PM Yingluck Shinawatra has taken to social media to remind the current Thai leader of the situation she found herself in 6 years ago, when she faced mounting calls for her resignation from Prayut Chan-o-cha and the People’s Democratic Reform Committee. The PDRC were instrumental in organising anti-government protests between 2013 and 2014, which culminated in a military coup…
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Thai PM adopts more conciliatory tone with protesters
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has switched to a softer tone with the young protesters calling for his resignation, as anti-government protests sweep the country… there were several smaller protests in other provinces over the weekend. The new, more conciliatory approach, is in contrast with his recent declaration that he had no intention of resigning, and that the police had acted “within…
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How can the Thai government resolve the current protest crisis?
OPINION The Thai Government has no easy way out of the current protest situation. Over the past months an organic, mostly young Thais, political movement has been building. It’s different from every protest movement in the past. The people attending the rallies don’t really align themselves or identify with the past political factions. They’re not red shirts or yellow shirts.…
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Protests continue at 5 locations around Bangkok this evening – VIDEO
With the latest announcement from protesters about a new round of protests today, from 4pm, Police scrambled their resources to try and second guess the locations. Whilst the protesters are out-gunned by brute force and equipment, they remain nimble, digitally connected and committed to continue the latest round of protests, defying demand from the police that they are breaking the…
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Thai PM says he won’t resign as he has done “nothing wrong”
Unsurprisingly, Thailand’s PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is dismissing calls for his resignation as protests continue to escalate and protesters defy bans to rally in the streets of Bangkok. Rally organisers have already announced that they will be massing again today from 4pm, rumoured to be at numerous BTS stations around the central capital area. Out of a list of 10 key…
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Another protest scheduled in Bangkok at 4pm, police deny using tear gas last night
Another pro-democracy rally has been called today by protest organisers. With many of the original leaders now in custody, many more have stepped up to take their place and are using a sophisticated network of messaging and social media to stay one step ahead of the police and authorities that are trying to intercept their plans. Another rally is planned…
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Police break up Bangkok protest with high-power water cannons, more protests planned today
The latest round of protests took a violent turn last night when more than 400 police resorted to aiming high-powered water cannons directly at the students who were assembled in an otherwise peaceful display of unity. The protesters, mostly secondary and tertiary students, and young Thai adults, continued their demands for the release of their fellow protesters who had been…
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Bangkok in “State of Emergency” for 1 month, PM warns about possible curfew
For the next month, Bangkok will be in a “State of Emergency” with a ban on public gatherings of more than 5 people. If protests persist and get out of hand, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has warned today that the government will invoke a nightly curfew, prohibiting people from leaving their homes during certain hours. It should be said, that even…
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Bangkok city intersection closed and secured ahead of next rally at 5pm
Police have closed Bangkok’s Ratchaprasong Intersection and Ratchadamri Road, just hours before the next round of anti-government protests were scheduled to begin at 5pm. Ratchadamri Road is being closed all the way to the Pratunam intersection. The closure, on a Friday afternoon, provides the city an additional traffic headache. The police secured the area just before 2pm today. Early yesterday…
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2 activists could face life in prison for alleged violations against a royal motorcade
2 pro-democracy activists could face life in prison for alleged intention to harm HM the Queen’s liberty during Wednesday afternoon’s rally in Bangkok, which happened to coincide with the same time and same route as a royal motorcade. The Criminal Court issued the arrest warrants yesterday. Violence against the Queen or her liberty, in Section 110 of Thailand’s Criminal Code,…
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Human rights NGO, opposition parties, say State of Emergency infringes human rights
A Thai human rights NGO has criticised the government’s decision to declare a State of Emergency in Bangkok, as political unrest escalates in the capital and around the country. iLaw says the imposition of the emergency decree gives the PM the unrestricted right to use special powers that violate citizens’ human rights. iLaw points out that the new ban on…
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Activists vow to push ahead with political protests in Bangkok today
A mass gathering of protesters at Bangkok’s Ratchaprasong intersection and Ratchadamri Road ended around 10pm last night, with activists vowing to return for more of the same today. Members of Khana Ratsadon 2563 (People’s Party 2020) announced they will reconvene today to keep pouring pressure on PM Prayut Chan-o-cha’s government. Among the group’s demands are a call for the PM…
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5,000 pack Bangkok’s central shopping district to continue the protest
Police have been taken aback by the huge amount of support for a protest at Bangkok’s famous Ratchaprasong Intersection, the site of the 2015 Erawan Shrine bombing incident where 20 people died. Bangkok, currently under a State of Emergency, declared by the Thai government in the early hours of this morning, is on edge this evening as huge crowds swarmed…
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Human rights lawyer Anon Nampa arrested, flown to Chiang Mai for sedition charges
After being arrested in Bangkok early this morning, along with numerous other protesters, human rights lawyer and pro-democracy activist leader Anon Nampa is apparently being flown up to Chiang Mai to face sedition charges for allegedly criticising the Thai Monarchy at a past event in the northern province. In Bangkok today, at least 20 protesters, who intended to camp out…
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Protester arrests after emergency decree “unjustified,” Amnesty International says – VIDEO
The State of Emergency imposed in Bangkok at 4am this morning, banning public gatherings and leading to the arrests of at least 20 people, is a “vague, drastic order that will lead to more people unfairly arrested, detained and prosecuted,” according to an official from the human rights group Amnesty International. The emergency decree broke up a pro-democracy demonstration intended…
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UPDATE: Bangkok under a State of Emergency, protests ‘cleared’, 20+ arrested,
Bangkok awakes to a State of Emergency, imposed at 4am to quell the growing support of the latest protest movement. The Thai government has used its emergency decree powers to impose a “State of Emergency” in Bangkok, and placed a ban on gatherings of any more than 5 people. The tough new security laws, put in place early this morning,…
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Protest planned at Bangkok’s Rathchaprasong intersection, despite State of Emergency
Despite the recent emergency decree banning public gatherings, as well as warnings from police, pro-democracy activists are planning to gather at Bangkok’s Rathchaprasong intersection at 4pm today. Bangkok’s State of Emergency was imposed at 4am this morning, banning gatherings of more than 5 people. At least 20 people were arrested after the decree was announced, according to deputy police spokesperson…
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