
Asia Pacific May 20, 2021
Japanese language opens doors for Thai students
by Achawin Chitranondh
Driven by a love of anime and manga, and enticed by employment opportunities, the number of people wanting to learn has risen.
Japanese language opens doors for Thai students
Driven by a love of anime and manga, and enticed by employment opportunities, the number of people wanting to learn has risen.
'Like water eroding rocks': Thai protesters prepare for long fight
As they paraded through a Bangkok shopping mall in crop tops to mock Thailand's king, protesters made an incongruous sight among the festive decorations. They brought stares, smiles and some muted cheers, but the few dozen activists were far short of the tens of thousands ...
Some students at Thailand's Thammasat University posed with cardboard cutouts of well-known critics of the monarchy on Saturday in a protest as King Maha Vajiralongkorn was to present degrees amid growing calls for royal reform. Youth and student-led demonstrations that began in July by demanding ...
Focused on Thai king, protesters vow to persist even if PM quits
Even if Prayut Chan-ocha steps down, protesters say they aren’t going anywhere until the political system engineered by the royalist elite is also gone.
Thailand steps up response as anti-government protests escalate
Protesters were forcibly dispersed and two of the movement’s participants were charged with violating an obscure law against endangering the royal family.
Thai leaders have no easy options to end protests
In Thailand, crackdowns usually bring an end to street protests and life goes back to normal. But this time the Thai establishment has a bigger problem.
Thai protesters defy emergency decree and plan to keep gathering
Anti-government protesters plan to defy a ban on gatherings in Thailand’s capital for a third day and hold rallies across the nation, escalating a three-month old movement in support of monarchy reform and greater democracy. Pro-democracy protesters will return to stage a demonstration in Bangkok ...
Thai protesters critical of monarchy to stage largest event yet
Thai protest leaders are planning the biggest gathering since the 2014 military coup, as they seek to build momentum in monthslong demonstrations for greater democracy and reform of the country’s powerful monarchy. As many as 100,000 protesters are expected at Thammasat University campus in Bangkok ...
Virus forces tourism rethink in Bangkok, the world's most visited city
A record 39.8 million foreign visitors visited Thailand last year, accounting for 11 percent of gross domestic product. This year, a maximum of 8 million are predicted.
Thousands protest in Bangkok against government and monarchy
The protests are breaking deeply entrenched taboos in Thailand, where openly criticizing the monarch can lead to long jail sentences and worse.
Plastic piles up in Thailand as virus fight sidelines pollution battle
Thailand began the year with a ban on single-use plastic bags that Bangkok office worker Nicha Singhanoi hoped would cut back the waste that puts her country among the world's top five choking the oceans with plastic. Then the coronavirus pandemic forced school closures and ...
Public suicide attempt highlights plight of millions of Thais waiting for virus aid
A woman who took rat poison this week outside Thailand's finance ministry over the slow rollout of aid during the coronavirus lockdown was promised on Tuesday she would get her money soon. For millions of other Thais, the waiting continues. Thailand announced last month it ...