BANGKOK — The arrest of Sombat Boonngarm-anong, a high-profile activist who has been organizing anti-coup rallies from hiding, comes as a major setback for Thailand’s fledgling protest movement against the military junta.

Since seizing power on 22 May, the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has banned public demonstrations, detained scores of activists, and censored the media in an effort to silence criticism of the coup d’etat. Security forces have also come out in large numbers to lock-down anti-coup rally sites and successfully prevent large demonstrations.

The anti-coup movement was dealt another blow last night when Mr. Sombat, a de facto leader of the movement, was arrested by soldiers in his hiding place in Chonburi province. Mr. Sombat is being held in custody at the 21st Infantry Regiment headquarters and is set to face trial in martial court, the army says.

Mr. Sombat, aka the Dotted Editor, has been hiding for the past two weeks in defiance of a summons order from the NCPO. Instead of turning himself in, Mr. Sombat wrote on his social media, “Catch me if you can,” and went into hiding where he organised a series of flash protests through social media.

When Khaosod English asked him last week whether he believed the military would find him soon, Mr. Sombat replied, “We will have to see whose luck will outlast the other.”

Mr. Sombat’s arrest came as a surprise to many supporters, especially after the army claimed the Computer Crime Suppression Division tracked him down through his IP address, which is considered easy to hide.  Mr. Sombat is known to be a tech-savvy activist who has taught supporters how to cover their tracks on the internet.

“If the military wants to find me, I believe they can do it, but only after they search every corner of the country,” Mr. Sombat taunted on his Facebook only few days before he was detained.

Mr. Sombat’s arrest has also caused many activists to worry about who will take the helm of what appears to be a leaderless movement.

“I think I will continue to campaign, but I won’t be the one who leads,” said a regular participant of Mr. Sombat’s flash protests who declined to give his name. “I will have to see the situation first.”

According to army spokesperson Col. Winthai Suwaree, the military will spend the next 7 days “creating understanding” in  Mr. Sombat and “adjusting his attitude.”

“There is no punishment for him yet,” said Col. Winthai, adding that Mr. Sombat will be sent to the military court next week to face charges of violating NCPO’s summons order and inciting unrest through social media.

Nevertheless, some opponents of the coup still remain hopeful that the protests will continue.

“[The arrest] surely affects the movement. A lot of people lost their morale,” said one activist. “But I think this atmosphere of harsh repression on liberty will eventually drive people to come out and show their defiance again.”

BANGKOK — On the second night of his detention at a military camp in Bangkok, Kengkit Kitirianglarp found himself seated in the middle of a room, surrounded by a dozen security officers who were interrogating him and looking up information on their computers to challenge his answers with.

"'You lie! We have information about you!' they would tell me," recalled Mr. Kengkit, a political science lecturer at Chiang Mai University and a long-time leftist activist. "They tried to accuse me of many crimes and link me to many people."

Mr. Kengkit was among the 18 academics and activists who were summoned by the military junta’s National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) to an armybase in Bangkok last week. Fifteen people showed up, including Mr. Kengkit. He was detained for three days of interrogation before the military released him.

Other "invitees" included Suthachai Yimprasert, a history lecturer at Chulalongkorn University; Thewarit Maneechai, a journalist at the non-profit news site Prachatai; and Kathawut Boonpitak, a Redshirt activist and producer of an online talk show known for taking swipes at the establishment.

Since seizing power in a coup d'etat on 22 May, the NCPO has summoned over 300 people, the majority of whom are considered allies of the former government. However, Mr, Kengkit said he suspected the NCPO summoned him and the 14 others he was grouped with because they were considered potential violators of Thailand’s strict lese majeste laws.

In Thailand, lese majeste — criticism of the monarchy —  is a criminal offense punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

"Some officers actually told me they wanted to establish links we had with people who produced content [violating lese majeste]," Mr. Kengkit said. "I believe they will summon the people who allegedly produced those materials in future announcements."

To establish those links, the security officers placed photos of different individuals before Mr. Kengkit and asked him how he knew each person. The photos included images of Sombat Boonngarm-anong, an anti-coup activist who is now arrested; Somsak Jiamteerasakul, a historian and critic of monarchy; and Giles Ungpakorn, a former Chulalongkorn lecturer who lives in the UK and was summoned by the NCPO two days ago.

Mr. Kengkit said the interrogation was chaired by a colonel, along with several army officers, three police officers from the computer crimes unit, three officers of the Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC), and one representative from the police. 

"They all sat around with their computers, and they typed whenever I spoke," Mr. Kengkit said. 

The interrogation started with an army officer taking a survey of Mr. Kengkit’s opinions on the monarchy, lese majeste laws, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his political clan, and the military takeover on 22 May.

"When I answered in ways that contradicted what the military thought, an army officer would interrupt and lecture me on what  I misunderstood," Mr. Kengkit told Khaosod English. He said he eventually realised, "the army only wanted me to listen. My duty was to listen. So I answered only when they asked."

ISOC officers told Mr. Kengkit they had been monitoring him for a long time, displaying a collection of photos they had of him in different locations as evidence.

Mr. Kengkit said the ISOC officers also accused him of knowing people he didn't know and being invovled in events he had nothing to do with, such as the play, "Bride of the Wolf," which was organised by a group of activists last year and has been accused of criticising the monarchy. 

"They told me I wrote the script for that play, that I lent my idea to the producers, but it isn't true," Mr. Kengkit told Khaosod English.

According to Mr. Kengkit, "bad cop" soldiers would aggressively contradict his remarks, call him liar, and repeatedly ask him the same questions with different wording in an effort to confuse him and force him to accept their charges. 

However, despite their show of force, Mr. Kengkit said he believes the army’s intelligence reports on him and his associates were actually very disorganised. Mr. Kengkit said that several of the photos ISOC officers had of him were lifted straight from Google and other public websites.

Mr. Kengkit said that cooperating with the military appeared to be a crucial determinant of when detainees are released. He explained that the colonel who chaired the session told him after several hours of interrogation on the second day that he appreciated Mr. Kengkit’s cooperation and would release him the next morning.

"So I cooperated with them, yes. I admitted knowing people that I know. But I also insisted on my innocence when they accused me of doing things that I didn't do, or knowing people I didn't know," Mr. Kengkit said.

Like all other detainees, Mr. Kengkit was released on the condition that he will not participate in any political movements. Asked whether he plans to continue to campaign against the coup, Mr. Kengkit replied, "The ceiling of freedom is very low right now. We have to chip away at that ceiling, to make it higher than it is. We can't just break it with a hammer, because that would put us in danger."

Mr. Kengkit told Khaosod English he believes it will be a long time before the military returns power to a civilian administration.

"That is why we have to adjust our lives,” he said. “We have to live. How can we stay out of trouble yet still stick to our calls for democracy? It seems we have to design a whole new way of life."

BANGKOK — The military has approved a bail release for former Education Minister Chaturon Chaisang, a prominent critic of the military coup who was arrested during a press conference last month.

Mr. Chaturon is the first civilian to be tried in military court since the military coup d’etat on 22 May. After seizing power, the military junta’s National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) granted martial courts jurisdiction over offences related to "national security," which include violation of the NCPO's orders, public protests, and criticism of the monarchy.

The military summoned Mr. Chaturon along with scores of other politicians from the previous government in the wake of the coup, but he refused to surrender himself for almost a week. He emerged from hiding six days later and was arrested during an interview with media at the Foreign Correspondent Club of Thailand on 28 May. He has been held in Bangkok Remand Prison since his arrest.

This morning Mr. Chaturon arrived at the military court, wearing prison apparel and a pair of handcuffs, to apply for his bail release. 

Over 50 supporters of Mr. Chaturon gathered at the entrance of the court to show their support. Some brought flowers for Mr. Chaturon, while others shouted his name as he arrived at the military court. 

Only eight reporters were allowed to attend the court hearing and all were prohibited from taking photos or notes.  

Mr. Chaturon asked judges to release him as he has shown no intention of fleeing the country or resisting authorities, citing his willing surrender to the army at the FCCT. 

The military judges initially rejected his plea, ordering authorities detain him for 12 more days. Shortly afterwards, however, the court decided to grant him release on bail at 400,000 baht.

The bail comes with two conditions: Mr. Chaturon cannot participate in any political activities or leave the country without notifying the NCPO. 

According to Thitima Chaisang, Mr. Chaturon's sister, Mr. Chaturon remains in good spirits and health despite his week-long detention, though she said his elderly father has been greatly troubled since Mr. Chaturon’s arrest.

"He knows he has a son who is a leader," Ms. Thitima said, "But as a father, he is worried for his son. Regardless of where he is held, prison or military camp, it's still considered a loss of [Mr. Chaturon's] basic rights and freedom."

She defended Mr. Chaturon's initial refusal to surrender himself to the military and his criticism of the coup, saying that "he did the right thing, because he didn't want to see people living in inequality. He wants the country to progress … He didn't use any way that advocates violence. He was communicating to the people, so that they understand him."

Although Mr. Chaturon was permitted to seek counsel from his lawyers, the military restricted lawyers' visits while he was detained. Ms. Thitima said he was only allowed to talk to one lawyer at a time.

Meanwhile, Pruek Prueksunan, a well-known Redshirt activist, was released from military custody this morning. Mr. Pruek, aka "Uncle Smile Whose Eyes Are Opened," surrendered himself to the military on 3 June following a summons order by the NCPO.