Anti-Government Protests Grow Again in Thailand

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This week's protests, however, were a signal to Thai leaders that the youth-led movement for political reforms hasn’t stalled despite numerous charges against many of its activist leaders, including allegations of defamation of the monarchy. Thailand lèse-majesté law carries up to 15 years in prison per conviction for insulting or defaming prominent royals.

In an attempt to fix economic woes, Prayuth recently vowed in a televised broadcast to reopen the country to tourism, which constitutes an estimated 12 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product, by October.

Despite the economy being hit hard in 2020, the International Monetary Fund projects Thailand’s economy to grow by 2.6 percent in 2021.

A partial reopening of Thailand's tourism sector will begin next week, as Phuket, the popular island hot spot, is set to welcome fully vaccinated international visitors starting July 1.

Thailand has documented more than 236,000 Covid-19 cases and more than 1,800 deaths since the pandemic began, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, which says more than 8.9 million vaccination doses have been administered within its borders.