The Gulf Time Newspaper One of the finest business newspapers in the UAE brought to you by our professional writers and editors.
Bloomberg
Thailand is clamping down on its growing anti-government protest movement that’s calling for an end to the military-backed government and limits on the monarchy’s power.
A Thai court has issued arrest warrants for six protest leaders on charges of sedition, computer crimes and disease control breaches, Pathum Thani Police Chief Chayut Marayat said. The six had organised a demonstration at Thammasat University and demanded a sweeping change to the laws concerning the monarchy.
Last week, the student-led protest made 10 demands — including a call to revoke the country’s strict lese-majeste laws that criminalise insults against top members of the royal family. The demonstrators are breaking deeply entrenched taboos in Thailand, where openly criticising the monarchy can lead to long jail sentences and worse.
Other demands include changing the constitution to allow criticism of the king, separating the monarch’s properties from the Crown Property Bureau, aligning the budget
for the monarchy with economic conditions, banning the monarch from expressing political opinions and prohibiting the monarchy from endorsing any coups.