Continuing their hunger strike, 2 leaders in the pro-democracy demonstrations that were jailed for speaking out against the king’s power are experiencing declining health. Parit “Penguin” Chiwarak and Panusaya “Rung” Sithijirawattanakul stopped eating over the last few weeks in protest against the denial of bail as they sit in jail waiting to be tried using Thailand’s harsh lese majeste laws in which criticizing the monarchy carries a strict penalty. The two Thammasat University students have been active in the protests over the last year especially pushing the radical agenda of limiting the powers of Thailand’s royals.
For many years previously, demonstrations like this were unthinkable in the Kingdom where the royal family is beyond reproach and speaking out against them can carry a 15-year prison sentence. But over the last year Thailand has seen an astonishing…
