BANGKOK — The Thai military junta further consolidated its power tonight by dissolving the Senate and transferring top officials allied to the previous government to inactive posts.

The announcement was made in a statement released by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) this evening.

The NCPO provided no reasons for dissolving of the Senate, whose members are half-elected and half-appointed by the Courts and other independent agencies allied with the establishment. This Senate was largely controlled by its appointed members, who were considered to be sympathetic to the anti-government protest movement's cause. 

The announcement effectively voided the last remaining legislative body in Thailand, granting the coup leaders all law-making powers. The House of Parliament and the Cabinet were dissovled by the NCPO when it seized power. 

General Prayuth Chan-ocha, who declared a coup d'etat on 22 May, is now the acting prime minister. There has been no word on whether he will appoint a civilian premier, as was the case under past coups.

The NCPO also announced tonight that it would be transferring three officials to “assistant” duties at the Office of Prime Minister, which are understood to be inactive posts. 

The three transferred officials include chief of the Division of Special Investigation (DSI) Tharit Pengdith, Royal Thai Police chief Adul Saengsingkaew, and Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Defence Nipat Thonglek.

All three men have been close allies to former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, the influential former Prime Minister who was ousted in the 2006 military coup, but remained the de facto leader of the former government while living in self-imposed exile abroad.

Since seizing power, the NCPO has summoned hundreds of politicans, activists, and academics. Many of those summoned, including former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, have been detained in undisclosed locations.

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BANGKOK — Hundreds of anti-coup protesters demonstrated in Bangkok for a second day of public protest against the military coup d'etat, despite the military junta’s ban on public gatherings of more than five people.

Earlier in the day, at least 150 demonstrators gathered in front of Major Cineplex shopping mall on Phahonyothin Road. The protesters, who held placards condemning the coup, repeatedly shouted "Ai Ley Org Pai!" ("Cross-eyed, get out!") in reference to coup-leaer Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, who is said to be cross-eyed.

"I am frustrated, I can't stand this," said a 33-year-old protester who declined to be identified by name. "Why should I bow down to this lawless power who is using guns to threaten people?"

Although the protest was largely peaceful, commotion broke out when a prominent royalist activist, who has previously filed a lese majeste charge against a student activist, was spotted near the soldiers. The crowd rushed to surround Ponnipa Supatnukul, which prompted soldiers to hail a public minivan and whisk her away.

At around 3 pm the protesters attempted to march down Phahonyothin Road to join other protesters at Victory Monument, but were stopped by rows of soldiers and riot police near Soi Phahonyothin. 

Minor clashes broke out, and several protesters were detained but later released by the military after a shoving match and more fistfights. Meanwhile, soldiers took a visibly more aggressive stance toward reporters, asking some journalists not to take photos. 

When it was clear that the soldiers would not yield, protesters changed their plan and took the Skytrain to Victory Monument, where hundreds of other protesters awaited them with huge banners, placards, and paper signs denouncing the coup and demanding an immediate return to a civilian administration.

The protesters initially occupied the elevated Skywalk surrounding Victory Monument, but as the crowd grew the demonstrators took to the road and marched clockwise around the iconic monument.

Dozens of soldiers were stationed near the monument but a large group of protesters later chased them away, forcing soldiers to take positions around the elevated skywalk and the nearby Skytrain station. Many of the soldiers were armed with automatic rifles, but they did not attempt to disperse the protesters.

The protest was initially scheduled to end at 6 pm, but many protesters remained in the area as the sun began to set.

The situation became increasingly tense after sundown, especially when one protester – understood to be one of the event’s organisers – was taken away by the military. An enraged crowd followed, streaming onto Phaholyothin Road, and the group of soldiers who arrested the activist were eventually outnumbered and forced to release the suspect.

Several other protesters were also reportedly arrested. Reports indicate that some soldiers behaved aggressively toward the demonstrators and attempted to detain those who held protest signs.

It is not clear who has been organising the mass protests, but the location of the rally was announced on an anti-coup Facebook page.

Another smaller protest was held in front of the Bangkok Art Cultural Centre today, which was the location of a similar protest yesterday. At least one protester was detained by security forces. 

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Human Rights Watch Press Release, 24 May 2014

NEW YORK – The Thai military should immediately revoke abusive martial law powers, end censorship, and release all people who have been arbitrarily detained, Human Rights Watch said today. The military should urgently restore democratic, civilian rule.

Since the military coup was announced on May 22, 2014, the National Peace and Order Maintaining Council (NPOMC), comprised of all branches of armed forces and the police, has arrested more than 100 ruling party and opposition politicians, activists, journalists, and others accused of supporting the deposed government. While some have been released, the army has also ordered some 155 others to report, including deposed acting Prime Minister Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan. Those summoned by the military face arrest and prosecution if they fail to report, and are prohibited from leaving Thailand.

The military has also imposed widespread censorship and other broad restrictions on broadcast, print, and electronic media across the country. The NPOMC has imposed a curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. and banned public gatherings of more than five people. Military authorities ordered rallies of both the pro-government United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) and the anti-government People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) to disband.

“Military rule has thrown Thailand’s rights situation into a free fall,” said Brad Adams, Asia director. “The army is using draconian martial law powers to detain politicians, activists, and journalists, to censor media, and to ban all public gatherings. This rolling crackdown needs to come to an end immediately.”

The military began arresting people on May 20, after the imposition of martial law nationwide.

According to the army spokesman Col. Werachon Sukhondhadhpatipak, more than 100 people have been arrested, including former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and other politicians, leaders of political movements, and financiers of the ruling Pheu Thai Party in order to “keep them away from the situation.” The spokesman said that Yingluck would be held for two to three days because, “She is one of people involved in the conflict.” A number of Pheu Thai Party leaders reportedly remain in military custody.

Immediately following the coup, military authorities in Bangkok and across Thailand summoned officials from government agencies, professional associations, and civil society groups to report to the military, where they are being instructed not to defy regulations issued under martial law.

Soldiers have dismantled UDD and PDRC rally sites and sent protesters back home by bus. Several people protesting against military rule in downtown Bangkok, including Thanaphol Eiwsakul, the well-known editor of Fah Diew Kan magazine, were arrested by soldiers on the evening of May 23. The whereabouts of those arrested remain unknown.

Incommunicado Detention 
Reports that the military is detaining people in unofficial places of detention, such as military camps, raise grave concerns. There are unconfirmed reports that some UDD leaders and supporters last seen being arrested by soldiers at the Aksa Road rally site outside Bangkok have gone missing. UDD leaders and supporters in other provinces have also reportedly been detained in undisclosed military camps without access to their families and lawyers.

Among those detained incommunicado in secret locations are Boonlert Ruengtim, a core leader of the UDD’s militia who was arrested on May 20, and Chantana Warakornsakulkij and Chawawat Thongpuak, who were arrested on May 21 following raids on alleged UDD weapons caches. The military authorities have thus far provided no information about the names and number of detained or their current whereabouts. The risk of torture and ill-treatment significantly increases when detainees are held incommunicado in unofficial locations and under the control of the military, which lacks training and experience in law enforcement.

“The military’s mass arbitrary arrests are made all the worse by holding people in secret detention,” Adams said. “Those who have allegedly committed crimes should be properly charged and face fair trials in civilian courts.”

Military Media Blackout
Censorship and other restrictions on media and free expression that began after the coup have intensified. Immediately after the coup was declared, military authorities ordered TV and radio stations to stop their regular programs and link their broadcast to the army TV Channel 5 for almost 24 hours. Armed soldiers arrested the deputy director of Thai PBS TV, Wanchai Tantiwittayapitak, and held him for several hours after his station defied the order by broadcasting its regular programs through Internet feeds. Even though those TV stations are now allowed to resume their regular programs, they have to strictly follow the junta’s order not to air any information critical of the military intervention.

The military has directed print media not to publicize commentaries critical of the military’s actions. TV and radio programs have been instructed not to invite on their programs anyone who might make negative comments about the military or the political situation in the country. Military authorities have told journalists that failure to comply will lead to prosecution. 

The NPOMC has invoked censorship against information it considers to be “distorted” or likely to cause “public misunderstanding” in broadcasts, printed publications, on social media, and on websites. At the time of writing, the military has forced off the air 15 satellite and digital TV channels, as well as many community radio networks. Cable and satellite operators were ordered to disconnect their TV links for all international news and entertainment channels, resulting in the nationwide blocking of international stations such as CNN, BBC, Al-Jazeera, and Bloomberg. Soldiers have been placed in newsrooms to censor “negative” reports and comments. On May 23, the military summoned all Internet service providers and ordered them to strictly self-censor content related to the country’s political situation.

“Widespread censorship and threats to the media are aimed at silencing any and all critics of military rule in Thailand,” Adams said. “Thailand’s friends and allies should demand an end to this assault on the media. In a political crisis, free speech is needed more than ever.”

Constitution Suspended Under 1914 Martial Law Act
When army commander-in-chief Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha announced the coup on May 22, the military suspended most of the 2007 constitution and took over national administration from the government. Prayuth invoked the century-old Martial Law Act of 1914, which grants the military virtually unlimited powers to restrict fundamental human rights and freedoms and provides effective immunity for abuses committed. Under the act, all civilian officials must act in strict compliance with the requirements of the military authority. Furthermore, all the provisions of any law, including human rights safeguards, that are inconsistent with martial law are suspended and replaced by martial law provisions.

Under the Martial Law Act, the military, without judicial oversight, can prohibit any activity, censor the media at will, outlaw meetings and assemblies, search and seize any item, occupy areas, and detain people without charge for up to seven days. There is no effective redress for harms caused since the law bars remedy or compensation to individuals or companies for any damage caused by military actions done in line with martial law authority.

Prayuth said the nationwide intervention will continue “as long as necessary.” He claimed the intervention was needed to prevent imminent riots and widespread disturbances arising from increasingly violent political confrontations between anti-government protesters and government supporters.

The power seizure took place immediately after the military brokered negotiations among representatives of rival factions – including the caretaker government, the ruling Pheu Thai Party, the opposition Democrat Party, the pro-government United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship, and the anti-government People's Democratic Reform Committee. The negotiations failed when the caretaker government was unwilling to resign.

The apparent target of the coup is former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a 2006 coup, and his political allies in the ruling Pheu Thai Party. Thaksin, a populist leader with a poor human rights record as prime minister from 2001-2006, has been in exile since 2008, evading a corruption conviction, and has continued to finance and oversee the Pheu Thai Party, installing his sister, Yingluck, as prime minister after the Pheu Thai Party won the last national election in 2011.

“The military and others in Thailand are so desperate to rid the country of Thaksin and his allies that they are now holding the entire country hostage to their whims,” said Adams. “The Thai army needs to recognize that the government should be determined by the ballot, not the bullet.”

BANGKOK — The military junta summoned for 35 more people to the Army Club, among them activists and academics who spoke out against the coup.

In an announcement broadcast this morning, the National Peace and Order Maintaining Council (NPOMC) said the 35 individuals must report in person to the armed forces at the Army Club in Thevet district, Bangkok, by 4 pm today for the sake of the "peace maintaining effort."

Those who fail to report to the army by 4 pm today will be subject to a maximum penalty of 2 years in prison and 40,000 baht fine.

The list includes prominent political leaders from a cross the political spectrum, such as the firebrand pro-monarchy media mogul who founded the 'Yellowshirts' movement in 2005, Sondhi Limthongku, and former MPs of the Pheu Thai Party, Prasit Chaiyasrisa and Sunai Chulpongsathorn.

However, the list also includes activists and academics who are not officially affiliated to any political party. Among the summoned academics are Somsak Jiamteerasakul, a historian and well-known critic of the Thai monarchy; Worachet Pakeerat, a lecturer and co-founder of the progressive law activist group "Enlightened Jurists"; and Pavin Chachavalpongpun, a political scientist and critic of Thai lese majeste law. 

Activists summoned by the NPOMC include Thanapol Eiewsakul, editor of left-leaning Fah Diew Gun (Samesky) magazine, and Sarun Chuichai, transgender student activist who is also known as "Aum Neko." 

The academics and activists summoned by the military junta have recently spoken out against the coup, either on the social media or through participating in public rallies. 

Yesterday, the military summoned prominent members of the previous government, including former Prime Minister Niwatthamrong Boonsongphaisarn and his predecessor Yingluck Shinawatra. Leaders of the Redshirt movement, which is allied to the former government, were similarly summoned en masse. 

When they reported to the armed force, however, the invitees were detained and later transported to "safehouses" designated by the military.

"The military detention of senior politicians and civilians is very disturbing and I urge the NPOMC to immediately release them," said Navi Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva.  

Although the latest summons includes pro-establishment figures such as Mr. Sondhi, opponents of the former government have been previously released from military detention, such as former Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, who was rounded up with other pro- and anti-government politicians when the army staged a coup on Thursday.

Human rights activists argue that the NPOMC's summon orders are being used to silence the movement critical to the military takeover. Five anti-coup demonstrators were arrested yesterday by the military.

Earlier today, Amnesty International released a statement criticising the army's detention of peaceful anti-coup demonstrators. The organisation calls such behaviour "a dangerous precedent."

BANGKOK — Former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinwatra may be detained by the military for at least “3-7 days,” reports say.

Ms. Yingluck, younger sister of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra who was ousted in another military coup in 2006, arrived at the Army Club this morning in compliance with orders from the military junta and has yet to be released.

Other prominent politicians of the previous government were also summoned to the Army Club, including former Prime Minister Niwatthamrong Boonsongphaisarn and former Deputy PM Pongthep Thepkanchana. 

None of these top politicians have been publicly released. Dozens of vans were seen leaving the Army Club after dark, and it is believed that the politicians were ferried away to military barracks for a prolonged detention.

A source said Ms. Yingluck was sent to a military base in Saraburi, north of Bangkok, where she might be held for at least "3-7" days.

Ms. Yingluck's aides were told in the evening to prepare personal belongings for the former leader, the source said.

A senior military officer told Reuters that they would not detain Ms. Yingluck for more than one week. "That would be too long," the officer reportedly said. "We just need to organize matters in the country first."

The source declined to say where Yingluck was being held.

The military’s National Peace and Order Maintaining Council (NPOMC), which seized power on Thursday, has also detained dozens of Redshirt activists and allies of the previous government. More than 100 have been banned from leaving the country.

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BANGKOK — The army has reportedly detained four protesters who were part of a 300-strong anti-coup rally in downtown Bangkok today.

The demonstration, held in defiance of the military junta's ban on public gatherings, was held on the elevated walkway in front of the Bangkok Art and Cultural Centre this evening.

"Soldiers get out!" protesters screamed at the rows of soldiers who were silently watching the rally take place. 

Others shouted, "Prayuth get out!" in reference to army chief Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, who installed himself as the acting Prime Minister after seizing power yesterday.

The soldiers refrained from taking any action against the protesters until sundown, when the crowd began to dwindle. 

Four protesters were reportedly detained by the military after a minor confrontation between soldiers and demonstrators. No injuries have been reported. 

Earlier in the day, the crowd successfully forced soldiers who were initially stationed at the BACC to retreat toward Hua Chang Bridge. Many protesters chased after the troops, prompting the soldiers to form a new line and block the road in front of Sra Pathum Palace, the official residence of Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn.

The event was organised through a Facebook page titled "We Vote." Despite the military junta's warning of a crackdown on "disruptive" websites, social media has continued to serve as forum for political discussion and dissent. 

The rally was one of several public displays of protest against yesterday’s military coup.

Earlier today, student activists successfully forced their way into a memorial dedicated to 1973 student uprising on Ratchadamnoen Avenue, where they proceeded to hold rally condemning the army’s takeover. 

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