Thailand protests: What’s different this time around?

Protests in Thailand have entered their second month. Activists feel the military dominates too much of the government, and that the country has slid further and further away from democracy. What’s different this time from previous protests over the years has also been the call to reform the country’s monarchy. While the people protest, Thai King Vajiralongkorn has reportedly spent much of the pandemic at a luxury hotel in southern Germany. Protesters want to limit the king’s power, his finances, and they want to have the right to criticize him, something they can’t do under Thailand’s strict laws at the moment. Meanwhile a plaque that protesters installed near Bangkok’s Royal Palace has been removed. The plaque became a major symbol for the protest. It declares that Thailand ‘belongs to the people.’