Thai police arrest leader of volunteer guards for pro-democracy protesters one day before major scheduled protest

Thailand-

Thai police arrested a prominent pro-democracy protest leader who leads a group of pro-democratic protester volunteer guards this afternoon, November 24, 2020.

Mr. Piyarat Chongthep, or Toto, the head of the group “We Vo”, short for we volunteer, was arrested at 2:39 PM and detained at the Saladaeng police station. He will later be taken to the Ubon Ratchathani province on alleged sedition charges dating back to a prior rally in August, according to the Royal Thai Police.

Toto has been a prominent leader of the “frontline” groups of volunteer guards at protests who have been seen at all the major recent protests marching in the vanguard of protest marches. The We Volunteer group claims they are protecting the bulk of protesters and providing security, while Thai government officials have stated they have allegedly broken many rules, such as taking down barriers, trespassing, assault, refusing to disperse, disobeying mass assembly laws, vandalism and other alleged offenses.

Reaction on social media has been swift, with many pro-democracy protesters calling for Toto’s immediate release. The action has taken place on the evening before a planned major rally tomorrow at the Crown Property Bureau in Bangkok. Some observers on social media claim the action is an attempt to disrupt the planned rally tomorrow in which almost 6,000 police officers have reportedly been assigned for law enforcement activities.

Photo credit: Sunaibkk, Twitter.

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Adam Judd
Mr. Adam Judd is the Co-owner of TPN Media since December 2017. He is originally from Washington D.C., America, but has also lived in Dallas, Sarasota, and Portsmouth. His background is in retail sales, HR, and operations management, and has written about news and Thailand for many years. He has lived in Pattaya for over nine years as a full-time resident, is well known locally and been visiting the country as a regular visitor for over a decade. His full contact information, including office contact information, can be found on our Contact Us page below. Stories please e-mail Editor@ThePattayanews.com About Us: https://thepattayanews.com/about-us/ Contact Us: https://thepattayanews.com/contact-us/