BANGKOK • Hundreds of Thai royalists marched to Parliament yesterday to oppose calls from anti-government protesters for changes to the Constitution as the assembly met to consider amending it.
The special session of Parliament was convened after nearly two months of protests - the biggest of which drew tens of thousands of people at the weekend in Bangkok.
Protesters are seeking to change a Constitution that they say was engineered to ensure former junta leader Prayut Chan-o-cha stayed on as prime minister after last year's election.
They are demanding his departure, with some protesters also saying the Constitution gives too much power to King Maha Vajiralongkorn.
The 2017 Constitution was written by a military-appointed committee and passed a nationwide referendum in 2016 at which opposition campaigning was banned.
Mr Prayut has said the 2019 election was fair.
Mr Warong Dechgitvigrom, who led the march to Parliament by the royalist Thai Pakdee group, said he had submitted a petition with 130,000 signatures opposing constitutional change.
"To amend the 2017 Constitution, another nationwide referendum must be done," Mr Warong told Reuters. "Nothing good would come out of this amendment. It will only benefit politicians."
The group's move came after Thai legal watchdog group iLaw on Tuesday submitted a charter draft to Parliament for consideration earlier yesterday.
But the Parliament secretary said that draft, backed by over 100,000 signatures, would not be considered this week because the signatures must be verified first.
Parliament will decide today what part of the Constitution will be amended and how. Anti-government protesters plan to rally outside the Parliament building to apply pressure.
The Thai Parliament is made up of an elected Lower House of Representatives, in which Mr Prayut's backers increased their majority after a ban on a major opposition party early this year.
Members of the Senate, Parliament's Upper House, were all selected by Mr Prayut's former junta.
On Tuesday, Thailand's Parliament imposed maximum security at its premises ahead of the protest today.
Secretary-general of the House of Representatives Sorasak Pienvej said an open space had been set aside for demonstrators to stage their protests.
He also allayed fears that the protest may get out of hand, saying helicopters will be employed to evacuate parliamentarians and officials if necessary.
REUTERS, XINHUA
