Thai student accused of mocking king with crop top protest denied bail | Thailand

It was last December that Panusaya Sithijirawattanakul, a Thai student activist, and her friends strolled into a shopping mall in Bangkok wearing crop tops. They ate ice cream and carried dog-shaped balloons. Phrases such as “I have only one father” were written in marker pen on their skin.

Now, four of them are in pre-trial detention over the outing, which royalists say was an insult to the monarchy.

Their clothing, as well their messages and physical expressions were an attempt to publicly mock the Thai King, Maha Vajiralongkorn, according to a legal complaint filed against the group. It alleged they had tried to make others lose faith in the institution, and accused them of breaching Thailand’s lese-majesty law, which can lead to a sentence of up to 15 years.

The king is known for owning poodles, and royalists consider the monarch as the “father” of the nation. But it was…