Thai protest leader on hunger strike given IV drip in prison

BANGKOK (AP) — One of the leaders of Thailand’s pro-democracy movement was being administered an intravenous fluid drip in prison on Friday after officers said they found him weakened because of a hunger strike that has lasted longer than two weeks.

Parit Chiwarak, 22, was charged in February with sedition and defaming the monarchy for his role in leading demonstrations. Parit’s lawyer requested bail for him and three others charged with the same offences, but the court denied it.

Corrections officials at Pathumthani Detention Center north of Bangkok started giving Parit intravenous fluids last Saturday, a spokesperson from the Department of Corrections said.

Parit was one of several leaders behind the protest movement that has campaigned since last year for Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and his government to step down. They want the constitution amended to make it more…