Xi Masks Feature in Bangkok Rally After Alleged Chinese Embassy Request to Delete Photos
Xi Masks Feature in Bangkok Rally After Alleged Chinese Embassy Request to Delete Photos
BANGKOK, 9 July 2026 — Thai activists wearing masks depicting Chinese President Xi Jinping rallied outside the Chinese Embassy in Bangkok on Wednesday, demanding government accountability over the violent dispersal of a demonstration in Chiang Mai and action against Chinese-linked businesses accused of causing severe pollution in major rivers.
The protest began at around 10am outside the Chinese Embassy on Ratchadaphisek Road, where the NGO Coordinating Committee on Development and other civil society groups issued a statement condemning police actions during a demonstration near the Chinese Consulate-General in Chiang Mai on 6 July.
Some participants wore masks depicting Xi, a day after reports emerged alleging that Chinese Embassy officials had asked Thai media outlets to remove photographs showing protesters wearing similar masks from their news coverage.
The latest demonstration followed clashes between Chiang Mai police and members of a network campaigning to protect the Kok, Sai, Ruak and Mekong rivers. According to the activists, two protesters suffered serious injuries during the confrontation, with one sustaining a broken arm requiring emergency surgery and another suffering a dislocated shoulder.
The civil society groups maintained that the 6 July demonstration had been peaceful, unarmed and conducted in accordance with constitutional protections and Thailand’s Public Assembly Act.
They questioned whether police had used excessive force in dispersing the protesters and called for greater scrutiny of whose interests authorities were protecting.
In their statement, the groups issued two main demands. They called on Thailand’s national police chief to take responsibility for the incident and establish an independent joint committee to transparently investigate the use of force by Chiang Mai police.
The activists also urged the Thai government to change development policies that they said force local communities to bear environmental and health costs caused by projects they did not create. They demanded stronger legal measures against Chinese transnational businesses accused of causing severe pollution affecting the Kok, Sai, Ruak and Mekong rivers.
Lertsak Khamkongsak, chairman of the NGO Coordinating Committee on Development, said structural weaknesses in Thai law dating back to the period following the 2014 military coup had contributed to environmental problems linked to foreign investment.
He called on the government to abolish the Eastern Economic Corridor development framework, arguing that Chinese investors should be required to operate under stronger environmental and public health standards. He also urged authorities to investigate the alleged use of Thai nominees by foreign businesses to circumvent the law.
Lertsak further argued that Thailand must abandon legislation introduced after the 2014 coup if it hopes to meet the high environmental standards required for membership of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
The campaigners said they plan to submit petitions to parliamentary committees in both the House of Representatives and Senate and coordinate civil society groups across different regions to increase pressure on the government.
The demonstration comes amid growing controversy over allegations that the Chinese Embassy attempted to influence Thai media coverage of protests involving images of Xi. The embassy has not been cited in the report as publicly responding to the allegations.
