Scuffles broke out as thousands of mainly young and black-clad Thai protesters converged on Saturday at Bangkoks Democracy Monument, in the citys rowdiest anti-government protest in years.<\/p>\n
Thailand, a kingdom whose rambunctious politics is defined by coups and often deadly street protests, is facing an unprecedented economic shock due to the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n
With the economy in freefall, anger against a government stacked with elderly former generals and supporters of the royalist establishment is bubbling.<\/p>\n
The crowd sang vitriolic anti-government rap songs and waved placards denouncing the administration of former army chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha and calling for the abolition of the Thailands strict royal defamation law.<\/p>\n
The government doesnt care about us, so either we come out or we lose anyway, said 18-year-old student called Sang, giving one name only.<\/p>\n
The laws protect the rich and leave the people with nothing.<\/p>\n
Placards against the royal defamation law dubbed 112 after the criminal code it falls under protects Thailands monarchy and its unassailable and super-rich King Maha Vajiralongkorn from criticism.<\/p>\n
We have to come out, we have nothing else left, added Sangs friend Mee, also wearing the black uniform of the protesters, which several said was borrowed from the pro-democracy protests that rocked Hong Kong last year.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of police tried to block off access to the Democracy Monument, whose concrete concourse was suddenly filled in on Saturday afternoon with pot plants.<\/p>\n
Scuffles broke out as protesters tipped over metal barriers and forced their way through police lines to hold a noisy rally at the memorial, which was built to mark the 1932 revolution that established a constitutional monarchy.<\/p>\n
Analysts say the kingdom is slipping back towards absolutism under the reign of Rama X and the hardline royalist generals around him.<\/p>\n
Saturdays protest could be the largest since the countrys 2014 coup, led by former army chief Prayut.<\/p>\n
The years since have seen the economy cramp up, freedoms shrink under new laws and Prayut reinvent himself as an elected premier under a constitution the army drafted.<\/p>\n
Thailands previous tit-for-tat rounds of political street politics were led by pro- and anti-establishment billionaires with large political machines.<\/p>\n
But leaders of the nascent student and youth movement say their activism is organised organically across social media, where anger fuels top trending daily Twitter hashtags against the government.<\/p>\n
Thailands economy is forecast to lose up to 10 percent this year due to the pandemic which has floored tourism and exports, battering the middle and working classes.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of thousands of students are expected to be jobless when they graduate in September.<\/p>\n
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Scuffles and song as Thai youth protest in Bangkok - Macau Business<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Scuffles broke out as thousands of mainly young and black-clad Thai protesters converged on Saturday at Bangkoks Democracy Monument, in the citys rowdiest anti-government protest in years. Thailand, a kingdom whose rambunctious politics is defined by coups and often deadly street protests, is facing an unprecedented economic shock due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With the economy in freefall, anger against a government stacked with elderly former generals and supporters of the royalist establishment is bubbling Continue reading