Thailand and Myanmar protesters exchange displays of dissent

BANGKOK — Pro-democracy demonstrators in Thailand and Myanmar are pooling ideas as they peacefully protest against their respective governments, including statements of defiance like the three-finger salute inspired by The Hunger Games, a Hollywood film series.

“Abolish 112,” Thai protesters yelled on Wednesday as they clanged metal pots and clattered everything from ladles to chopsticks, mimicking recent expressions of discontent in Myanmar.

Banging pots and pans in protest has been around since at least the 19th century, when Parisians used their kitchenware to protest economic conditions and food shortages.

The people of Myanmar have recently been using cooking utensils as a way to project civil disobedience. In Yangon, Myanmar’s former capital and largest city, people have been striking up at about 8 p.m. each day since Senior General Min Aung Hlaing staged his coup in the early…