Popular uprising against Thailand's God-like monarchy

A small but increasingly vocal group is calling for reform of the monarchy - a radical idea in Thailand, where the powerful royal institution is regarded with deity-like reverence. The country has some of the strictest lese majeste laws in the world and defaming the king, queen, heir-apparent or regent can mean a 15-year jail sentence. It was an act unthinkable in Thailand mere months ago - 10,000 anti-government protesters packing Bangkok's Democracy Monument on Sunday, with some calling for reform of the country's monarchy. 


The protest was the biggest anti-government rally since the military seized power six years ago, and came after a month of almost daily demonstrations started by students across the country that have since attracted a large cross-section of society. Anger among disaffected youth has been bubbling since before the March 2019 elections, which gave General-turned-Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha another four years in office. 

But on Sunday, young and old were seen calling for democratic reforms, changes to the military-written constitution, and for the dissolution of parliament. "I am so thrilled to see a lot people turned out to join the protest today," said Arnon Nampa, one of the protest leaders. "The movement has gone beyond just the youth group -- as you see there are more older people, and some of them even attended the protest with their family."...

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