In photos: Thai protesters, police clash outside parliament
A man rinses his face after tear gas is fired in Bangkok on Nov 17, 2020. (Photo: Pichayada Promchertchoo)
BANGKOK: Hundreds of anti-government protesters took to the streets around the parliament building in Bangkok on Tuesday (Nov 17), where lawmakers were debating possible changes to the military-scripted constitution.
The demonstrators, who attempted to dismantle a police barricade made of concrete and barbed wire, were met with volleys of water canon and tear gas.
CNA correspondents at the scene saw protest frontliners screaming and running, with some shouting in pain after being hit by the blasts of water, which stung their skin on impact. Others were observed to have thrown up after.
READ: Thai lawmakers debate demands for constitutional changes
One group of protesters confronted several hundred ultra-royalist supporters who were staging their own rally, with the two sides throwing bottles and other objects at each other.
In the evening, protesters broke through barricades and gathered at Kiak Kai intersection, just outside the parliament house. The area was still wet from water cannon and chemical irritants hung in the air, stinging the eyes of those without goggles.
The protesters told CNA that they plan to stay there overnight to wait for the parliamentarians’ voting on the proposed charter amendments on Wednesday.
Here are some scenes from the latest clashes in Bangkok:
