A high school student has been summoned by the police for participating in an anti-government protest in Ratchaburi on 1 August and accused of violating the Emergency Decree and the Public Assembly Act.

The demonstration at Ratchaburi on 1 August

The student activist group Free Youth posted a picture of the summons on their Facebook page yesterday (9 September), stating that a 17-year-old high school student who participated in the anti-government protest in Ratchaburi on 1 August has received a police summons alongside 4 other university students, and that this is the first time since the mass protest on 18 July that the authorities have issued a summons for a high school student.

The summons states that the students are accused of violating the Emergency Decree and the Public Assembly Act and of using a sound amplifier in public without permission.

Student activists Panuwat Songsawatchai and Theerachai Rawiwat said that they also received a police summons for participating in the same demonstration.

“For what reason does a peaceful protest without arms by young people calling for a better future, something that is guaranteed by the 2017 constitution which the NCPO dictatorship themselves wrote and which enables this, lead to young people being summoned at this time?” wrote Free Youth on their Facebook page.

“Stop making the country darker than it already is by silencing young people and stopping them from demanding a brighter future. If we still have a twisted structure like the 2017 constitution, if we still have a government which disrespects the people in this way, a bright future for this country will be something that is difficult to bring about.”