‘Where’s our democracy?’: Thai protesters march on German embassy, urge Berlin to pressure king
- Pro-democracy demonstrators are demanding the European country investigate King Maha Vajiralongkorn’s actions while away from the kingdom
- Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha acknowledged some of the protesters’ concerns in parliament, but warned that the country needed to control illegal rallies
02:27
Thai protesters rally at German embassy, calling for Berlin to investigate Thai king
Now, the protesters are demanding accountability of the king, with about 10,000 of them marching to the embassy to deliver a petition calling for Berlin to investigate whether the Thai king has been orchestrating domestic politics from his overseas retreat.
The embassy was ringed by police buses and a deep line of riot police – a sign of the rising tensions on the streets of the politically combustible Thai capital.
“I want Germany to see what is happening in our country while the king lives over there,” said Palm, a 24-year-old protester who was waving a German flag and asked to be identified by her first name. “Why are we so poor when he is so rich? Why do we have no democracy while he lives over there in a democratic country?”
In their petition, one of the main protest groups, Khana Ratsadon or “The People”, urged Germany to investigate the king’s actions while away from Thailand in order to “bring Thailand back to the path of the truthful constitutional monarchy”.
Thailand’s monarchy, super rich and the apogee of a power pyramid supported by the army and tycoons, is cloaked from criticism or accountability by a royal defamation law – one the protesters are openly flouting.
“We have not only been looking into that in recent weeks, but on a regular basis,” Heiko Maas said. “If there are things we consider to be illegal, that will have immediate consequences.”
04:40
Thailand protests: How it all started
“The Germans must pressure the king … then he might kick out Prayuth,” said Praew, 42, who also gave just one name on concerns for her safety.
Protesters say the palace must be constrained within the constitution as laid down by the 1932 Thai revolution, which ended the system of absolute monarchy.
Why are there protests in Thailand and what will happen next?
But their calls for reform of the monarchy have opened old divides within the country – with royalists, including the army-aligned establishment and an older generation of conservatives, outraged by the calls for changes to the way Thailand’s highest institution operates.
Faced with an unprecedented challenge to his authority, the king has made equally unseen public-relations moves of his own to rally his supporters. In a rare walkabout among yellow-shirted loyalists on Friday night outside the Grand Palace, the king was directed by Queen Suthida to a man who had held a royal portrait aloft in the middle of a recent pro-democracy rally.
But for the protesters, it meant another chance to to mock and subvert the language of Thai leaders, and on Monday night they chanted “Very good, very brave, thank you” as they arrived at the embassy.
“We are monitoring this long term,” German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Monday of Vajiralongkorn’s presence in his country. “It will have immediate consequences if there are things that we assess to be illegal.”
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Protesters say they are drawing their strength in part from the Milk Tea Alliance – a social media movement linking Hong Kong, Taiwan and Thai pro-democracy protesters against their government opponents.
Small but colourful protests in Japan and Korea in support of the Thai protesters have also signalled a widening of interest in the outcome of the pro-democracy demonstrations.
And the Thai movement has caused another ripple in Laos, a secretive communist nation where fear of the government hushes any challenge. There, the hashtag “if Laos’ politics was good” has bounced around social media in an unprecedented questioning of the government.
02:55
Thousands defy gathering ban to attend pro-democracy protest in Thailand
Also on Monday, the opposition bloc in parliament called on Prayuth to resign in a heated special session to discuss the snowballing pro-democracy protests, said Sompong Amornvivat, leader of the opposition Pheu Thai party, the largest single party in parliament.
“You should resign … and all will end well,” he said during the parliamentary session.
Opening the session, Prayuth acknowledged some of the demonstrators’ concerns but warned that the country needed to “control illegal protests”.
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Thailand has sunk into political crisis after months of protests across the country, with tens of thousands now regularly massing in Bangkok calling for the government of Prayuth, the former head of the army, to resign, the drawing up of a new constitution and the release of dissidents.
Seasoned political players see the parliamentary session as a sign the street movement is starting to gain traction in the political arena, where Prayuth and his allies have staunchly refused to respond.
“It‘s highly likely that the two-day extraordinary session will turn up the heat of the already sizzling political atmosphere,” Chaturon Chaisang, a veteran politician from the pro-democracy bloc and former activist, posted on his Facebook page.
Others said the session, which runs through Wednesday, is little more than a game of political dress-up.
With a debate-only format, the session is “all style over substance”, Khemthong Tonsakulrungruang, a law professor at Chulalongkorn University told This Week in Asia. “It doesn‘t move any needles and the protesters definitely won’t fall for it. We will see more escalation on the streets.”
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He added: “One would think that some kind of a compromise on constitutional change would quell some tensions, but it‘s very clear that the government plans to drag its feet as long as possible.”
The protesters on Monday also submitted a letter to a German embassy official.
Nititorn Lumlua, a lawyer who helped organise the gathering at the embassy, said the protesters hoped German authorities would get accurate information about the political situation in Thailand.
The German government has already warned the Thai king not to rule his country remotely from its soil.
The king, who ascended to the Thai throne in 2016, has been back home since early October and plans to stay until next month.