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Bhavan Jaipragas

Thailand’s revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej has died at age 88.
King Bhumibol, the ninth king of the 234-year-old Chakri dynasty, died at the Siriraj Hospital in the capital Bangkok.
“His Majesty the King Bhumibol Adulyadej has died at the age of 88,” state broadcaster Thai Public Broadcasting Service posted on Twitter, with an image of the palace announcement.
Prior to his death Bhumibol had held the title of world’s longest reigning living monarch.

He had spent the bulk of his time in recent years in a dedicated royal wing in the facility following multiple age-related ailments including renal failure.
There is widespread expectation that his named successor, the 64-year-old Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn, will ascend to the throne.

Bhumibol was venerated as a sentinel of stability in a country that has seen some 20 coups – including 12 successful ones – in the past century.
The nation of 67 million people was plunged into mourning following the king’s death. Hundreds of people were gathered outside the hospital along the scenic Chao Phraya river as the government announcement was made.
Earlier, social media users in the kingdom changed their profile pictures to a template image that had the messages “Love the king”, “Long live the king” and their names inscribed on it. The image featured a yellow heart on a pink background.

“King Bhumibol Adulyadej will be remembered as Thailand’s longest reigning monarch,” said Patrick Jory, a historian at the University of Queensland focused on the history of the Thai monarchy.
“The end of King Bhumibol’s reign is the end of an era for Thailand, but also the start of a new one,” he said.

Market watchers said the Thai stock market and the baht would remain under pressure after sharp declines this week.
“In the aftermath of this sad event we are expecting investor nervousness to intensify due to political uncertainty,” said Jeffrey Halley, a Singapore-based senior market analyst with Oanda.
“Although the Thai baht and the SETI (Stock Exchange of Thailand Index) will remain under pressure, a lot of the uncertainty premium is already built into the price of both and thus losses will be limited from here,” he said.

Bhumibol ascended to the throne in 1946 after his elder brother King Ananda Mahidol died in a mysterious shooting.
Thai monarchy observers say the succession will be a seamless affair. Commentary from within Thailand about the king’s health and succession plans is scarce because of the country’s tough royal defamation laws, which have seen increased usage under the military government.

“I believe it is cast in stone. There is no alternative to Vajiralongkorn,” said Serhat Unaldi, the author of a recent book about the Thai monarchy.
“According to the Palace Law of Succession, he is the rightful heir to the throne. Another choice as successor would have lacked legal legitimacy, but also the charismatic sources of royal power that are inherent in the blood of the successor and that the elite draws upon,” said Unaldi, the author of Working Towards the Monarchy: The Politics of Space in Downtown Bangkok.

Longtime Thai palace watcher Kevin Hewison said: “My view is that the prince will become king. I do not anticipate opposition.
Thai junta chief Prayuth abruptly cancels all official engagements to meet crown prince as king’s health fears grow
“The junta has made it clear enough that they are behind the prince,” said Hewison, referring to the current civilian rulers led by former army general Prayuth Chan-ocha, who seized power in 2014.
Tyrell Haberkorn, an Asian politics expert at the Australian National University, said the king’s death would be weighing heavily on the minds of both his supporters and detractors.

“For those who have been critical, or simply raised questions about the role of the institution of the monarchy in politics, the possibility of a transition, and uncertainty about whether or not it will bring even greater repression, is of primary concern,” she said.
Other experts said the death of Bhumibol could compel the junta to push back a general election it had said it would hold late next year.

Prayuth said in August he would push through with the plan after voters backed a new military-crafted constitution in a referendum.
The country has not had polls since 2011, and has been bitterly divided since the 2006 coup against then prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, the billionaire telecom tycoon turned politician.
After the restoration of democracy, the military again intervened in 2014 to topple a government led by Thaksin’s sister Yingluck Shinawatra.

The Shinawatras are popular among Thailand’s north and northeast rural poor, but are opposed by the royalist elite.
Hewison said in the event of the king’s death, the military would “postpone the promised election next year”.
Thailand’s ‘day of reckoning’ delayed? Junta has delivered stability but critics warn fundamental problems remain
Jory said the military rulers were likely to remain in power during the mourning period and until the royal succession was completed “in order to guarantee political stability”.
He added: “The test will come when Thailand returns to civilian rule and the ban on political activities is lifted”.

Halley, the Singapore-based market analyst, said the Thai central bank would “be ready to step in to smooth any disorderly currency moves”.
“The military government will extend its tenure by at least a year to ensure a measure of political stability [and] this will give support to the SETI once the initial knee-jerk moves have worked through the system,” he said.


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Thais gather in front of the Bangkok hospital where Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej was receiving treatment. Photo: Kyodo

Well-wishers wear pose for a photograph in front of a picture of Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej at Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok, Thailand, October 11, 2016. REUTERS/Chaiwat Subprasom

Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej takes a picture of his well wishers from his chest at Siriraj hospital in Bangkok, 20 July 2006. The Thai King checked into hospital to undergo surgery on his spine, as hundreds of people prayed outside the building for his speedy recovery. The king, who last month celebrated his 60th year on the throne, fractured a rib when he fell while walking around the palace grounds on June 24. AFP PHOTO/ Saeed KHAN / AFP PHOTO / SAEED KHAN

epaselect epa05580514 A Thai soldier walks next to a decorated portrait of Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej outside Government House in Bangkok, Thailand, 11 October 2016. According to the royal palace officials on 09 October 2016, Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej, 88, the world's longest reigning monarch, is in an unstable condition following a hemodialysis treatment. The king's health has been carefully monitored in the country where the monarch is widely revered. EPA/RUNGROJ YONGRIT

Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha walks outside of Government House before a routine cabinet meeting in Bangkok on August 30, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / LILLIAN SUWANRUMPHA

King of Siam Rama VIII or Ananda Mahidol of Thailand stands during an official ceremony on January 1946 in Bangkok after his return from Switzerland to Thailand. Rama VIII born on September 20, 1925 in Heidelberg, Germany, was mostly away pursuing his studies in Switzerland before returning to Thailand in 1945. On June 9, 1946 he was found dead in his bed of a mysterious gunshot wound at the palace in Bangkok. His brother King Bhumibol Adlyadej succeeded him on the throne. / AFP PHOTO

epa05582011 (FILE) A file picture dated 14 August 2015 shows a large portrait of Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej hanging on the facade of the Siriraj hospital in Bangkok, Thailand. According to media reports on 12 October 2016, the world's longest living monarch, 88 year old Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej is in unstable condition after undergoing blood dialysis at Bangkok's Siriraj hospital. EPA/DIEGO AZUBEL

His Royal Highness Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, accompanied by HRH Princess Bajrakitiyabha, pays homage to the statue of King Rama I at the Memorial Bridge to mark Chakri Memorial Day 06 April 2016. Post Today photo/SEKSAN ROJJANAMETAKUN

Thais pray for Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej at Siriraj Hospital where the king is being treated in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Oct. 13, 2016. The royal palace said in a statement late Wednesday that the 88-year-old king's blood pressure had dropped, his liver and kidneys were not working properly and he remained on a ventilator. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

BANGKOK, THAILAND - OCTOBER 07: Thailand's former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra receives gifts from her supporters during her arrival at the Supreme Court in Chaeng Wattana Government Complex as she will give evidence at her negligence trial for losses incurred by her government's rice pledging scheme in Bangkok, Thailand on October 07, 2016. Guillaume Payen / Anadolu Agency

This picture taken on September 17, 2016 shows people holding images of Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej at a parade during the "Khong Dee Muang Nara" (Good Products of Narathiwat) festival in Thailand's southern province of Narathiwat. / AFP PHOTO / MADAREE TOHLALA

Over decades, Thai royal family has forged personal bonds with China’s leaders

Royal Thai guards escort Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej (right) and visiting Chinese President Jiang Zemin shortly after Jiang's arrival at Bangkok’s military airport on September 2, 1999. Jiang was in Thailand for a five-day visit. Photo: AP

BAN06D:THAILAND-CHINA:BANGKOK,3SEP99 - Chinese President Jiang Zemin (C) holds binoculars for a better view of a procession of Royal Thai barges on the Chaopraya River in Bangkok September 3, as he continues his five-day visit to Thailand. Jiang witnessed 48 Royal barges pass in a rehearsal for celebrations for Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej's 72nd birthday which will be celebrated later this year. jir/Photo by Jason Reed REUTERS

(110406) -- BEIJING, April 6, 2011 (Xinhua) -- Wu Bangguo (L), chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, meets with Thai Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, in Beijing, capital of China, April 6, 2011. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin) (xzj)

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Delegates from the Chinese embassy in Thailand pay their respects for victims killed in a bomb blast at a religious shrine in Bangkok on August 23, 2015. The August 17 attack on a religious shrine in a bustling Bangkok shopping district killed 20 people, mostly ethnic Chinese tourists from across Asia, leaving police scrambling to find the assailants and sending shock waves through the nation's vital tourism sector. AFP PHOTO / PORNCHAI KITTIWONGSAKUL

epa05320694 Thai Marine Corps line up during the opening ceremony of the Blue Strike 2016 joint military exercise at a military base in Chonburi province, Thailand, 21 May 2016. Thailand and China hold joint 'Blue Strike' military exercises, naval exercises focused on humanitarian relief including maritime transport, positioning training, onshore joint exercises and overall retreat. More than 700 personnel from Thailand and China are taking part in the drills, which will be held in Thailand until 09 June 2016. EPA/NARONG SANGNAK

epaselect epa04626719 Performers wearing traditional Chinese New Year masks parade through the streets of Chinatown during celebrations for the Chinese Lunar New Year in Bangkok, Thailand, 19 February 2015. Chinese people around the world celebrate the Chinese New Year, also called Spring Festival, which this year falls on 19 February 2015, the first day of the Year of the Goat. EPA/RITCHIE B. TONGO

TO GO WITH Thailand-China-unrest-tourism-economy,FOCUS by Preeti JHA Chinese tourists pose for a group picture before visiting the Grand Palace in Bangkok on August 21, 2015. Busloads of visitors from China flocked to Bangkok's glittering Grand Palace on August 21 but, days after a bomb at another of the city's popular attractions killed five Chinese tourists, Thailand's biggest spending holidaymakers are rattled. AFP PHOTO / Christophe ARCHAMBAULT

(120405) -- BEIJING, April 5, 2012 (Xinhua) -- Jia Qinglin (R), chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), meets with Thai Princess Sirindhorn in Beijing, capital of China, April 5, 2012. (Xinhua/Zhang Duo) (ljh)

Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha (left) and Premier Li Keqiang at a Mekong summit meeting in Bangkok in December 2014. Photo: Reuters

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King Bhumibol – the world’s longest reigning monarch – has died at a hospital in Bangkok, the Thai government confirms


King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the ninth king of the 234-year-old Chakri dynasty, died at the Siriraj Hospital in the capital Bangkok.


Thailand's Junta

Thailand’s king dies: nation plunges into mourning – and uncertainty

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}King Bhumibol – the world’s longest reigning monarch – has died at a hospital in Bangkok, the Thai government confirms

King Bhumibol – the world’s longest reigning monarch – has died at a hospital in Bangkok, the Thai government confirms