Thailand Junta Rule

Thailand's ousted former prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, said on Monday that the ruling military junta "manipulated" the results of an election after a party of his loyalists did worse than expected.

Thailand's ruling junta took an unexpected lead in the country's first election since a 2014 coup with more than 90 percent of ballots counted, putting it on course to return to power at the expense of the kingdom's pro-democracy camp.

Hundreds of pro-democracy Thais rallied in Bangkok on Saturday to skewer the ruling junta with T-shirts, signs and speeches, as activists grow bolder in their defiance of a ban on protests.

Dissent has been muted by Thailand's ruling generals since a 2014 coup. But there is one area where critical voices still have some space: humour.

A general election will take place in Thailand next year as planned by the ruling junta, local media reported on Monday, while Thais grieved over the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej who died last week after seven decades on the throne.

Thai students on Thursday marked the 40th anniversary of a campus massacre by state forces in the military-ruled country amid what one rights group said was a "deep-rooted culture of impunity" that has emboldened the army to intervene in politics.

Thailand's finance minister today brushed off concerns about plunging foreign investment under junta rule, saying "there is light ahead" now that voters have approved a military-crafted constitution.

Nine activists who posted comments critical of Thailand's ruling junta and a military-backed draft constitution on Facebook have been jailed, police said today, the latest opponents of the government penalised for airing dissent.

A car bomb detonated outside an urban police station in Thailand's restive south today, injuring at least seven people and offering a reminder of the region's simmering violence as the ruling junta eyes full peace talks with the insurgents.

It's the kind of poll result you'd see in a North Korean election or Saddam Hussein's Iraq: Thailand's military-ruled government says 99 percent of the country's people are happy with its performance since it took power in a coup last year.

Since taking power in a coup in May 2014, Thailand's ruling junta has stifled dissent.

Chinese fighter jets thunder through blue skies above an air force base in northeast Thailand, a symbol of the blossoming military and political ties between the junta-run country and its authoritarian northern neighbour.

Around 200 anti-coup activists today peacefully marked the anniversary of a deadly military crackdown on students in Bangkok, defying the ruling junta's ban on political gatherings.

Fourteen Thai students were taken into custody today after staging an anti-coup rally on charges that could see them jailed for seven years, police said, as the ruling junta escalates its chokehold on dissent.

Police in Thailand today arrested 14 students who had been protesting against the ruling junta, in defiance of a ban on public gatherings.

Thailand's ousted former prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, said on Monday that the ruling military junta "manipulated" the results of an election after a party of his loyalists did worse than expected.

Thailand's ruling junta took an unexpected lead in the country's first election since a 2014 coup with more than 90 percent of ballots counted, putting it on course to return to power at the expense of the kingdom's pro-democracy camp.

Hundreds of pro-democracy Thais rallied in Bangkok on Saturday to skewer the ruling junta with T-shirts, signs and speeches, as activists grow bolder in their defiance of a ban on protests.

Dissent has been muted by Thailand's ruling generals since a 2014 coup. But there is one area where critical voices still have some space: humour.

A general election will take place in Thailand next year as planned by the ruling junta, local media reported on Monday, while Thais grieved over the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej who died last week after seven decades on the throne.

Thai students on Thursday marked the 40th anniversary of a campus massacre by state forces in the military-ruled country amid what one rights group said was a "deep-rooted culture of impunity" that has emboldened the army to intervene in politics.

Thailand's finance minister today brushed off concerns about plunging foreign investment under junta rule, saying "there is light ahead" now that voters have approved a military-crafted constitution.

Nine activists who posted comments critical of Thailand's ruling junta and a military-backed draft constitution on Facebook have been jailed, police said today, the latest opponents of the government penalised for airing dissent.

A car bomb detonated outside an urban police station in Thailand's restive south today, injuring at least seven people and offering a reminder of the region's simmering violence as the ruling junta eyes full peace talks with the insurgents.

It's the kind of poll result you'd see in a North Korean election or Saddam Hussein's Iraq: Thailand's military-ruled government says 99 percent of the country's people are happy with its performance since it took power in a coup last year.

Since taking power in a coup in May 2014, Thailand's ruling junta has stifled dissent.

Chinese fighter jets thunder through blue skies above an air force base in northeast Thailand, a symbol of the blossoming military and political ties between the junta-run country and its authoritarian northern neighbour.

Around 200 anti-coup activists today peacefully marked the anniversary of a deadly military crackdown on students in Bangkok, defying the ruling junta's ban on political gatherings.

Fourteen Thai students were taken into custody today after staging an anti-coup rally on charges that could see them jailed for seven years, police said, as the ruling junta escalates its chokehold on dissent.

Police in Thailand today arrested 14 students who had been protesting against the ruling junta, in defiance of a ban on public gatherings.