Thai authorities block Bangkok march on coup anniversary
BANGKOK — Police in the Thai capital blocked a march Tuesday by pro-democracy activists protesting four years of military rule and detained several of the movement’s leaders.
About 3,200 officers were deployed, police said, to prevent about 200 demonstrators from defying a junta ban on protests with a march from a Bangkok university campus to Government House, where they were to demand that elections be held this year.
Faced with barricades, a tropical downpour and lines of police, the protesters dueled with authorities by loudspeaker, trying to outshout police warnings that the demonstration would tarnish Thailand’s image, scare tourists and cause congestion.
Activist Seriwith Seritiwat said the protesters would “never back down,” and tempers briefly flared as they pushed and shoved with police.