<p>UN human rights experts&nbsp;urged today (22 October)&nbsp;the Thai government to guarantee the fundamental rights of peaceful assembly and free speech and called for an end to a crackdown on peaceful protests.</p>

<p>The Thai police&#39;s use of water cannons to disperse protesters on&nbsp;16 October was unwarranted and excessive, says Amnesty International, who calls on the Thai authorities to release peaceful protesters and lift restriction on freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Thai authorities have issued an order under the Emergency Decree for an investigation into and possible suspension of four media outlets: Voice TV, Prachatai, The Reporters, and The Standard, as well as the student activist group Free Youth&#39;s Facebook page, for their coverage of the recent protests in Thailand.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Anti-government protests persisted in Bangkok for the fourth straight day despite the severe state of emergency which bans mass gatherings, the order to shut down Bangkok&rsquo;s electric rail systems, and the use of water cannons to crack down on the protest at Pathumwan intersection on 16 October, with at least 20 parallel protests taking place in other provinces.</p>

<p>Police in full riot gear have used water cannon to disperse thousands of protesters gathered at the Pathumwan intersection, defying the ban on mass gatherings imposed during the severe state of emergency.</p>

<p>Thousands of people joined a protest at the Ratchaprasong intersection on Thursday evening (15 October) following the crackdown on the protest at the Government House earlier in the day despite the declaration of a severe state of emergency, which bans mass gatherings.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The&nbsp;Thai&nbsp;government&rsquo;s declaration of a state of emergency in Bangkok is a pretext for a crackdown on peaceful demonstrations, <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/10/15/thailand-emergency-decree-pretext-crackdown">Human Rights Watch</a> said yesterday (15 October).</p>

<p>Tens of thousands of anti-dictatorship protesters gathered at the Democracy Monument on the morning of 14 October. Their gathering and their planned march risked confrontation with pro-monarchy groups and people stationed along their path.</p>

<p>20 activists who were <a href="https://prachatai.com/english/node/8839">arrested</a> on Tuesday afternoon (13 October) after they tried to set up camp at the Democracy Monument have been denied bail, while 1 activist who is a minor has been granted bail by the Juvenile Court.</p>

<p>After police dispersed the protest at Government House earlier this morning (15 October), over 20 protesters, including several protest leaders, have been arrested.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The student activist group Bad Student on Friday (2 October) organized a series of protests at various high schools in Bangkok to protest against abuse and mistreatment of students in schools, before going to the Ministry of Education to call for Education Minister Nataphol Teepsuwan to resign.</p>