Protesters demand Thai PM’s ouster over leaked call

Thousands of protesters gathered at Victory Monument in Bangkok on Saturday demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra over a leaked phone call between her and former Cambodian premier Hun Sen.

Thousands of protesters gathered at Victory Monument in Bangkok on Saturday demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra over a leaked phone call between her and former Cambodian premier Hun Sen.

The gathering, the largest anti-government protest since the Pheu Thai Party came to power in 2023, was led by the Ruam Palang Paendin Pokpong Athipatai (United Power of the Land to Protect Sovereignty), according to the Bangkok Post.

Police estimated the crowd at 6,000 people, based on a drone camera overflight at 3.30pm, said Pol Maj Gen Thawat Wongsanga, a deputy commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB). Police anticipated that the crowd would surpass 10,000 by Saturday evening.

A large number of the demonstrators were over 50 and veterans of past rallies against the governments of Ms Paetongtarn’s father Thaksin and her aunt Yingluck.

While there were fewer people wearing yellow shirts than in the past — the protest leaders all wore white — participants sported the same flag-themed accessories seen during the Bangkok Shutdown gatherings of 2014.

Intermittent downpours sent many rally-goers scrambling under the skywalk for shelter but did not dampen the enthusiasm of the crowd.

Traffic around Victory Monument remained manageable, although congestion was increasing, Pol Maj Gen Thawat Wongsanga said at a briefing at 4pm.

Authorities closed inbound traffic from Ratchawithi Road at noon, followed by the closure of inbound Phahon Yothin Road at 2pm, urging motorists to use the Din Daeng expressway underpass instead.

People waving Thai flags began arriving at the site at 9am. Activities began with a merit-making ceremony, followed by the group leaders taking turns giving speeches and musicians performing on the stage facing Din Daeng Road.

The listed speakers included renowned political activists Jatuporn Prompan, Panthep Puaponfpan, Phichit Chaimongkol and Sondhi Limthongkul.

They are scheduled to give speeches in the evening after a mass singing of the Thai national anthem at 6pm, which they said would be a symbolic act to demonstrate unity in defending Thai sovereignty over the border.

Ultra-royalist politician Warong Detkijwikrom warmed up the crowd with an address in which he said that unlike her father, who is “corrupt”, PM Paetongtarn simply “sells the country” to Cambodia.

Police were stationed throughout the area, including along the skywalks where crowds of general people and press were seen flocking in to witness the large rally site.

Over 200 CCTV cameras and drones, operated by the police, are monitoring the area, with Explosive Ordnance Disposal units and eight K9 dogs on patrol.

As of 4pm, officers at security checkpoints had confiscated seven knives and 17 box cutters. One man is facing an assault charge for scuffling with an officer after objecting to a search. Police also arrested one person wanted on an arrest warrant for violating the Computer Crime Act, said Pol Maj Gen Theeradej Thamsuthee, the MPB commander.

Four ambulances were on standby for any emergency. Nearby hospitals are Police General Hospital, Phramongkutklao Hospital and Rajavithi Hospital.

In Nakhon Ratchasima, about 200 gathered at the Thao Suranari Monument, or Ya Mo Plaza, in Muang district and boarded four tour buses and two vans bound for Bangkok on Saturday morning.

They were led by Supot Piriyakiatsakul, the provincial leader of the People’s Patriotic Network.

“We are determined to fight to the very end to remove Paetongtarn from office,” Mr Supot said.

In Phitsanulok, 80 people departed in a tour bus and three vans, heading to the capital. The group wore colourful shirts and carried a variety of Thai-flagged items.

Ms Paetongtarn, who was in Chiang Rai to inspect the severe flooding situation, told reporters she had instructed security authorities to monitor the situation.

“It is their right to protest, and I personally have no intention to respond,” she said, and affirmed that she was open to talks if the protest group wanted to hold a peaceful discussion.

While past protests did not directly cause the downfall of the Thaksin and Yingluck governments, they built up pressure that led to judicial interventions and military coups in 2006 and 2014.

Ms Paetongtarn already faces judicial scrutiny after a group of senators petitioned the Constitutional Court and the national anti-graft body to investigate her conduct over the leaked phone call.

The court has said it would hold a meeting on Tuesday to consider whether to accept the complaint, which could result in her being suspended pending a final ruling.