Thailand’s PM asks student-led protesters ‘not to create chaos’

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha on Tuesday asked student-led protesters “not to create chaos” in Thailand, after some broke longstanding taboos by openly calling for reform of the constitutional monarchy, Reuters reports.

General Prayuth, a former army chief who staged a coup six years ago and has led military-backed governments ever since, also promised that parliament would consider protesters’ demands to amend the constitution. “I beg people not to create chaos at this time. We are solving these problems together,” he told reporters after a cabinet meeting.

The prime minister said he was “worried” about the young protesters who have been gathering in small groups across the country calling for the dissolution of parliament and for new elections.

Opposition activists say that, under the constitution, General Prayuth was virtually assured of staying on as prime minister by the creation of a junta-appointed Senate after the disputed 2019 general election.