King Vajiralongkorn also radically changed the composition of the Privy Council. King Vajiralongkorn also delayed signing the junta’s decree announcing the March election, publicly putting the generals in an uncertain and awkward position in the meantime . Perhaps more significant, he has deprived the military of one of its main tools of repression: Thailand’s extremely severe lèse-majesté law. The junta had been using it — in military courts operating under its control — to prosecute political opponents. And so it is that on the eve of a long-awaited election, Thailand’s curious political system — the military tutelage of civilian politics, but under royal command — seems more entrenched than ever.

Source: New York Times February 10, 2019 03:56 UTC