People gathered in Bangkok on Sunday for one of the biggest demonstrations against the country's military rulers since the 2014 coup. The student-led movement has three core demands: hold new elections, amend the constitution and end the intimidation of government critics
Continue reading...Category Archives: Thailand
Pro-democracy movement draws thousands in Bangkok
Mostly student protesters demand dissolution of parliament, with some calling for reforms to the monarchy
At least 10,000 demonstrators, mostly students, gathered at Bangkok’s democracy monument on Sunday, as they stepped up their demands for political change, and some called for reforms to the monarchy.
The protest was one of the biggest since the 2014 coup, and follows a month of almost daily rallies that have drawn support from high school and university students across the country.
Continue reading...Thailand protests: police arrest student activist for sedition
Pro-democracy rallies continue with large event due to be held in Bangkok on Sunday
A prominent student protest leader in Thailand has been arrested on charges of sedition as pro-democracy rallies continued across the country.
Parit Chiwarak, 22, whose arrest was livestreamed on social media, was stopped on the outskirts of Bangkok on Friday night. As he was physically carried into a car, he raised his hand in a three-fingered salute – a gesture borrowed from the Hunger Games that is used by protesters and symbolises opposition to the military-backed government.
Continue reading...William Norways: a prisoner of war’s sketches on the Thai-Burma railway – in pictures
British soldier Bill Norways was captured by the Japanese after the fall of Singapore and forced to work on the infamous Thai-Burma railway. During his time as a PoW he created sketches and artworks under appalling conditions
• Families of British prisoner and Japanese guard united by poem 70 years on
Continue reading...Thailand protesters ‘cross the Rubicon’ and risk all to criticise the monarchy
Anger has been building since 2014 coup in which prime minister Prayuth Chan-ocha seized power, with students now holding rallies almost daily
Thai protesters have broken a long-standing taboo, risking lengthy jail terms to criticise the king, after weeks of student-led pro-democracy rallies that have swept across the country.
Over recent weeks, high school and university students have targeted the government of prime minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha, calling for its dissolution and for democratic reforms. Now, some protesters have begun openly criticising the country’s wealthy and powerful monarchy.
Continue reading...Thailand protesters openly criticise monarchy in Harry Potter-themed rally
Demonstrators issue rare rebuke in country where defaming royals is punishable by up to 15 years in jail
Speakers at a Thai anti-government protest have demanded changes to the monarchy and called for its powers to be curbed in unusually frank public comments.
Defaming the royal family is punishable by up to 15 years in prison under Thailand’s lese majeste laws. Police did not stop the six speakers but said any suspected offences would be investigated.
Continue reading...Thousands of anti-government protesters rally in Thailand’s capital
Demonstrators call for new constitution, new elections and end to repressive laws
Several thousand anti-government protesters rallied in Thailand’s capital on Saturday to call for a new constitution, new elections and an end to repressive laws.
Chanting and waving placards, the demonstrators, comprising mainly young Thais, converged on Bangkok’s iconic Democracy Monument in the old part of the city.
Continue reading...‘Let’s do karaoke!’: Bangkok nightlife eases out of lockdown
The city’s bars, clubs and even massage parlours are beginning to buzz again but the absence of tourists is taking its toll
A mix of K-pop, sweet Thai love ballads and 90s music reverberates along the corridor of one of Bangkok’s popular karaoke spots. In private rooms, parties of friends strike poses and bellow into microphones.
After three months of silence, Thailand’s nightlife was allowed to reopen on 1 July – provided venues follow government rules to prevent the spread of coronavirus. “You can dance, as long as you keep a distance from your friends,” explains Planisara Suksit, branch manager of Yes!! R&B Karaoke in Thonglor, her voice muffled by a face mask and plastic shield.
Continue reading...The week in wildlife – in pictures
The pick of the world’s best flora and fauna photos, including a perky grasshopper and a sleepy turtle
Continue reading...‘We live in a cage’: residents hide as macaque ‘gangs’ take over Thai city
Officials in Lopburi plan to sterilise the animals that have turned nasty after tourists’ bananas were replaced with junk food
Residents in Lopburi, Thailand, are hiding behind barricaded indoors as rival monkey gang fights create no-go zones for humans. The ancient Thai city has been overrun by a growing population of monkeys super-charged on junk food – as locals try to placate the macaques with snacks. The monkeys usually enjoy a steady supply of bananas from tourists, who have dwindled amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Pointing to the overhead netting covering her terrace, Kuljira Taechawattanawanna said: “We live in a cage but the monkeys live outside.”
Continue reading...Divers in Thailand attempt to free whale shark entangled in rope – video
A group of divers in Thailand tried to save a whale shark whose tail was tied by rope. Video filmed on Saturday shows the whale shark swimming with a nylon rope tied around its tail.
But the knife was too small and could not cut through the rope. Injured and with a rope still tied to its tail, the whale shark eventually swam away
Bathing bears and bungee-jumping mayors: the week’s most uplifting clips – video
As countries around the world adjust to life with Covid-19, people are finding new ways to enjoy themselves responsibly. From the restaurant using plush pandas to help with social distancing, to a drive-in rave in Germany, these are the week’s most cheering clips
Continue reading...Malaysia and Thailand urged to help stranded Rohingya refugees
Amnesty International makes plea over hundreds of people stuck on as many as five boats
Hundreds more Rohingya refugees remain stranded at sea, rights groups have warned, just one day after it emerged that dozens of people died onboard a boat that was refused entry to Malaysia and left adrift for two months.
On Friday, Malaysia’s air force confirmed it had denied entry to a second boat carrying about 200 Rohingya people, claiming it had done so to prevent further spread of the coronavirus within the country, which remains under lockdown.
Continue reading...Wildlife rescue centres struggle to treat endangered species in coronavirus outbreak
Shortages in funds, medicines and masks threaten charity work around the world
Last Thursday morning Louisa Baillie drove down the five-kilometre dirt track that connects her jungle home in the Amazon rainforest to the main road. At the junction, she parked, hiking the rest of the way into Mera, a town of about 8,000 people.
After filling her backpack with fruit and vegetables from local sellers, she grabbed some leaves and set about plucking termites off trees along the roadside, stuffing them into a bucket containing small fragments of the insects’ nests. Baillie works as a veterinarian at Merazonia, a wildlife rescue centre in Ecuador. The termites were dinner for Andy the anteater, a baby recently confiscated at a police checkpoint.
Continue reading...Mass monkey brawl highlights coronavirus effect on Thailand tourism
Fewer visitors mean less food for troops of wild monkeys at Prang Sam Yod
The coronavirus outbreak has left Thailand’s hotels empty, its tour guides without work and its markets unusually quiet. The country’s wildlife may also now be noticing the lack of visitors.
A video filmed this week in Lopburi, north-east of Bangkok, showed large crowds of monkeys brawling in the streets, apparently fighting over a yoghurt pot. Residents in the city, which is famed for its monkey population, say the fall in tourist numbers means there are far fewer people offering food.
Continue reading...Floating for two weeks: passenger describes life onboard cruise ship refused port – video
Thailand has become the fifth country to deny the MS Westerdam permission to dock over fears that some of its more than 2,000 passengers and crew may be infected with the new coronavirus. A passenger describes life onboard, with no cases of the virus yet found
Continue reading...Deaths of 16 Rohingya at sea raises fears trafficking ring has been revived
Smugglers responsible for mass atrocities in Thailand may be linked to capsized boat carrying refugees from Bangladesh to Malaysia
Activists fear a dangerous transnational trafficking network is being revived after at least 16 Rohingya refugees drowned in the Bay of Bengal on Tuesday morning.
Bangladeshi officials said a wooden fishing boat carrying about 138 people capsized near Bangladesh’s St Martin’s island in the early hours.
Continue reading...Thailand shopping mall shooting: what we know so far – video report
A soldier shot dead 26 people and injured at least 52 before he was killed by police at a Thai shopping mall. Eight people were held hostage by the gunman in the city of Nakhon Ratchasima, according to sources quoted by Reuters. Dozens more were trapped for hours on Saturday night as police attempted to regain control of the seven-floor building
• Rogue soldier shot dead after Thai shopping mall massacre
Thai PM defends security at military base after soldier’s killing spree
Rogue soldier stole weapons from base and opened fire at mall, leaving at least 29 dead
Thailand’s prime minister has denied suggestions that arms were not properly secured at a military base where a rogue soldier stole multiple weapons before killing at least 29 people in a mass shooting.
Prayuth Chan-ocha described the attack as unprecedented and responded abruptly when he was asked about details of the operation to stop the attack and about the theft of the weapons.
Continue reading...Thailand shooting: footage appears to record gunshots – video
Video shared on social media appears to capture sounds of gunshots heard from a car travelling in Nakhon Ratchasima in north-eastern Thailand. Police have said at least 20 people were killed when a soldier opened fire in different locations in the city
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