FILE: File footage shows various public appearances of Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who will turn 86 on December 5

Record ID: 860482

  • Title: FILE: File footage shows various public appearances of Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who will turn 86 on December 5
  • Date: 3rd December 2013
  • Summary: BANGKOK, THAILAND (FILE - JUNE 9, 2006) (ORIGINALLY 4:3) (REUTERS) KING BHUMIBOL GIVING SPEECH PEOPLE PAYING RESPECTS TO KING BHUMIBOL
  • Embargoed: 18th December 2013 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Thailand
  • City:
  • Country: Thailand
  • Topics: Royalty
  • Reuters ID: LVA4F04EM1AVDBUCENHRUB1IVTYN
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  • Story Text: Thailand's King Bhumibol (pron. pu-mi-pon) Ajulyadej will turn 86 on Thursday (December 5), against a backdrop of tensions in the country.
    Anti-government demonstrations have entered their second week aimed at toppling the government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.
    The king is the longest serving Thai head of state.
    King Bhumibol's last appearance was in August, 2013, when he left hospital after almost four years of treatment. He was admitted to hospital in Bangkok for a lung infection in September 2009.
    He has been suffering from a range of illnesses, including what the palace said was "subdural bleeding" in the brain last year.
    The king plays no official political role, but is widely respected as a unifying figure in the country. There were more than a dozen coups and attempted coups during his long reign, but all factions always claimed loyalty to the king.
    King Bhumibol, a semi-divine figure whose portrait is hung in almost every Thai home, enjoys almost universal respect as a champion of the poor and the environment.
    On his birthday, many Thai's wear yellow, the colour of the flowers that represent the king and to show their respect for him.
    Thailand has some of the world's toughest lese-majeste laws, with royal insults punishable by up to 15 years in prison for each offence committed.
    Even though the king said in a 2005 speech that he should not be above criticism, the number of lese-majeste cases has spiralled following the 2006 coup that toppled former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra who was accused of republican sympathies.
  • Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
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