Thailand is still in the middle of civil unrest, and the country's Prime Minister shows no sign of stepping down. He has not lifted the restrictions imposed on the city last week after days of protests in Bangkok and other cities in Thailand.
Thailand has lifted its state emergency
On October 22, Royal Gazette announced that the severe situation which had resulted in an enactment of emergency decrees has been resolved and halted.
In the new order, the state has returned to normal where law enforcement can address the situation. Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha addressed the issue in a pre-recorded televised speech on October 21. He states that he is taking the first steps to de-escalate political tensions that have promoted thousands of protesters to take action in the streets in recent months.
Prayut had lifted the state of severe emergency in Bangkok. However, he had stated a condition wherein he wanted to make sure that no violent incidents will happen, and he had asked the demonstrators to work with the parliament.
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The Prime Minister added that he asked the protesters to reciprocate with sincerity, turn down the volume on hateful and divisive talk, and let everyone disperse the "terrible dark cloud" before it moves over country, as reported by ABC.net.
Meanwhile, a parliamentary session was given royal assent and will be convened from October 26. Thailand's parliament is in recess but will be recalled to debate the ongoing crisis. King Maha Vajiralongkorn approved the session for the interest of the nation.
Demonstrators led by students in the country continued to defy an emergency decree imposed on October 15 that banned public gatherings of more than five people, restricted the publication of any information deemed to incite fear to the public, and granted broader powers to security forces.
Fighting for democracy
Thousands of protesters calling for democracy rallied in Bangkok and other cities in the country over the weekend.
The civilians and the police clashed on October 16, and many people, including celebrities, have publicly condemned the police's use of force to disperse the peaceful protesters, as reported by Vice.
On October 21, protesters have given Prayut three days to resign or face more demonstrations. A representative of the protesters gave a mock resignation letter to the Bangkok metropolitan police chief and the government representative. At the bottom of the letter was a blank space for Prayut to sign.
According to the protesters, they would suspend their activities for three days to respond to the government. Prayut has said that he will not step down, as reported by CNN.
The group is also demanding the release of the protesters that were arrested last week. Thai police had stated that 77 people had been arrested from the protest in Bangkok since October 31. Thai lawyers for human rights put the number of people arrested around the country at 87, with 81 prosecuted.
The charges against the arrested protesters have ranged from smaller offenses to more serious crimes such as sedition, which is equivalent to seven years in prison and violating the Computer Crime Act.
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