Bangkok protesters oppose 'dictatorship,' demand equal rights

Police in Thailand have arrested several protest leaders and charged them with sedition for statements made at a small rally in July. They were released on bail and vowed to attend today’s rally in the capital Bangkok, in what appeared to be defiance of the terms of their release.

Many young people at Sunday’s protest were undeterred.

A 10th grade student from Satriwithaya School, an elite secondary school for girls, said it was not the first protest she had attended. The 14-year-old, who gave her name only as Pang, was with friends at a table selling books and other items to raise funds for the protest movement.

“I came to this protest today because I want to express my standpoint in opposing the dictatorship, asking for equal rights and having a better future,” she said.

It has been unclear how the escalation of the activists’ demands to include the monarchy has affected the popularity of the movement, since it could alienate some followers or make them fearful that the authorities will crack down heavily on them.

The government may also be faced with a dilemma, since it is committed to defending the royal institution but likely wary of acting with too heavy a hand that might tilt public support to the protesters.

Prime Minister Prayuth’s government has done well in coping with the health aspects of the coronavirus, but its management of the economy had been lackluster even before the coronavirus battered it.

Royalists have responded to the student movement by defending the monarchy in online statements and petitions, and in person with a small presence adjacent to today’s rally. They declared earlier that they were there to observe and bear witness to any insults to the monarchy.-AP