Death and funeral of Bhumibol Adulyadej

Death and funeral of Bhumibol Adulyadej

King's portrait displayed at Sanam Luang for public mourning
Date 13 October 2016 (death)
Location Dusit Maha Prasat Hall, Grand Palace, Bangkok
Participants Thai Royal Family

King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand died at the age of 88 on 13 October 2016 after a long illness. A year-long period of mourning was subsequently announced. Formal Thai customary mourning practices and the cremation of the body have not yet been scheduled and may extend beyond the one-year mourning period.[1][2] Following cremation his ashes will be taken to the Grand Palace and will be enshrined at one of the palace's Buddhist temples.[3]

Illness and death

King Bhumibol Adulyadej had been treated at Siriraj Hospital since 3 October 2014.[4] The king had a high fever due to a blood infection. His health improved after his doctor gave him antibiotics.[5] Until 28 September 2016, he had a low grade fever and pneumonitis. His doctor then treated him with antibiotics and hemodialysis owing to hypotension. His health later worsened due to a liver infection, and his condition remained unstable.[6]

The king died at the hospital on 13 October 2016 at 15:52 local time, as announced by the Bureau of the Royal Household later that day.[7][8]

Funeral

Thai national flag flown at half mast at defence ministry building on 28 October 2016

On 14 October 2016, the body of the king was carried by an autocade from Siriraj Hospital to the Grand Palace. His body left Gate 8 of the hospital around 16:30. As the cortege passed Arun Ammarin Road, Phra Pin Klao Bridge, and Ratchadamnoen Road, crowds of Thais, most clad in black and many openly sobbing, paid homage. Led by Somdet Phra Wannarat (Chun Brahmagutto), the abbot of Wat Bowonniwet Vihara, the autocade entered the palace via Thewaphirom Gate. Upon arrival at the palace, the body was given the bathing rite, presided over by the king's son, Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn. The event was live broadcast on television by the television pool of Thailand.[9][10]

The general public were allowed to take part in a symbolic bathing rite in front of the king's portrait at Sahathai Samakhom Pavilion within the Grand Palace later that day.[11]

Foreign dignitaries who attended the lying-in-state:

CountryTitleDignitaryDate
 Bhutan King of Bhutan Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck 16 October[12]
Queen of Bhutan Jetsun Pema 16 October
 Bahrain Prime Minister Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa 18 October[13]
 Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong 21 October[14]
 Maldives Special Envoy of the President Mohamed Saeed 21 October[15]
 Malaysia Prime Minister Najib Razak 22 October[16]
 Cambodia Prime Minister Hun Sen 22 October[17]
Deputy Prime Minister Tea Banh 22 October
 China Vice-President Li Yuanchao 22 October[18]
 Singapore President Tony Tan 24 October[19]
 Laos Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith 24 October[20]
 Gambia Special Envoy of the President Bala Garba Jahumpa 25 October
 Indonesia President Joko Widodo 25 October[21]
 Vietnam Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc 28 October[22]
 Sri Lanka President Maithripala Sirisena 30 October[23]
 Lesotho King of Lesotho Letsie III 2 November[24]
 Myanmar President Htin Kyaw 9 November[25]
 Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte 9 November[26]
 India Prime Minister Narendra Modi 10 November[27]
 Bangladesh Special Envoy of the President Tarana Halim 15 November[28]
 Timor Leste Special Envoy of the President Hernâni Coelho 22 November

Cremation

The public square Sanam Luang will be used as the cremation ground, where the construction of an elaborate, temporary crematorium will be started in early 2017 and will take more than one year to complete.[29] The construction will cost the taxpayer ฿1,000,000,000.[30] Once the cremation is over, the crematorium will be torn down.[31]

Designs for the cremation complex were officially unveiled on Monday, 28 October, and a special ceremony will be held on 19 December for the royal funeral chariots to be used at the Bangkok National Museum.[32][33] The construction work for the complex will officially commence in January 2017 with the building of the central column with a September target completion date.[34][35]

On 19 November the Ministry of Culture's Fine Arts Department head Anant Chuchote visited Nakhon Pathom, where the royal funeral urns have been manufactured for centuries out of old sandalwood trees. He asked for public support and assistance for the making of the royal urn alongside 150 artisans from the Traditional Arts Office.[36]

Mourning

The government declared a year-long mourning period for Bhumibol. Citizens were asked to refrain from participating in "joyful events" and entertainment for 30 days following his death; as a result, a number of events, including sports (such as the Thai League football season, which ended entirely),[37] were cancelled or postponed. Entertainment outlets such as cinemas, nightclubs and theatres announced that they would shut down or operate under reduced hours during this period.[38][39][40] The mourning period prompted concerns from Thailand's tourism industry, who felt that the mood of the country, as well as the cancelled events, would reduce interest in visiting Thailand.[39]

Upon the announcement of his death, all television channels suspended regular programming and simulcast special programmes from the Television Pool of Thailand, which consisted of monochrome videos and photos of Bhumibol, and coverage of royal events. International channels were also blacked out and replaced by this programming. Following the funeral procession on 14 October 2016, the channels continued to air the pooled tribute content until midnight local time, after which they were allowed to resume regular programming. However, for the remainder of the 30-day mourning period, all broadcasters will be forbidden from broadcasting programmes that feature "any element of entertainment, dancing, joy, violence, impoliteness or overly expressed emotion", nor any non-official information, speculation or criticism related to the deceased King and his successor. Most Thai media outlets and websites switched to greyscale colour schemes as well.[41][42]

To mark the mourning period even Thai shopping malls reduced their Christmas displays as a mark of respect, while planning to install memorial displays in the late King's memory.[43]

Reactions

Aftermath

Since the death of the king, ultra-royalists in Thailand have criticized and harassed those who did not wear mourning black.[44]

They also subjected to witch-hunts people whom they accused of disrespecting the deceased monarch. On 14 October 2016, angry ultra-royalist groups in Phuket Province thronged the residence of a man who posted on social media a number of comments which they thought offensive to the late king and violated the lèse-majesté law, despite the local police having declared that the comments were not in breach of the law. The groups dispersed after the police agreed to prosecute the man for the crime of lèse-majesté.[45][46] Similar incidents happened on the following day in Phang Nga Province.[44]

In November 2016, Nangrong School in Buriram Province seized colourful winter jackets from students and required them to wear those in mourning colours only. The students were reportedly distressed to lose their jackets due to the cold weather, and many did not own multiple warm articles of clothing.[47]

On 28 November, the director of a public school in Ranong Province was removed from office for not wearing mourning black on her first day at work.[48]

The National Council for Peace and Order, the junta ruling Thailand, also announced after the death of Bhumibol that it will hunt down lèse-majesté fugitives.[49]

References

  1. "Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej, world's longest-reigning monarch, dies". Reuters. 13 October 2016 via The Hindu.
  2. "Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej dead at 88". BBC News. 13 October 2016.
  3. "Thai Royal Burial Sites".
  4. "Siriraj Hospital plans statue, museum for the King". Bangkok Post. 20 Oct 2016. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  5. Tanakasempipat, Patpicha; Thepgumpanat, Panarat (16 February 2016). "Thai king recovers from infection, fever still high – palace statement". Reuters. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  6. Paddock, Richard C. (12 October 2016). "Worries Over King Bhumibol Adulyadej's Health Shake Thailand". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  7. "Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej dies, aged 88". The Straits Times. Retrieved 13 October 2016.
  8. "Beloved Thai king dies after long illness: palace". Retrieved 13 October 2016.
  9. "Thousands line the streets of Bangkok as a convoy returns Thailand's king to his Grand Palace and the crown prince presides over the bathing of his body in a traditional Buddhist funeral rite". Daily Mail. 14 October 2016. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  10. "Thousands flock to cortege". Bangkok Post. 15 October 2016. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
  11. Fredrickson, Terry (14 October 2016). "Huge crowds for procession, bathing ceremony (Updated)". Bangkok Post.
  12. "Bhutanese royals pay respects to King". Bangkok Post. 16 October 2016. Retrieved 18 October 2016.
  13. "Bahraini PM pays respects to late king". Bangkok Post. 19 October 2016. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  14. "PM Lee Hsien Loong pays respects to late Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej in Bangkok". Straits Times. 21 October 2016. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  15. "Special Envoy of the President departs to Thailand to pay respect to the Late King". The President Office. 20 October 2016. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  16. "Death of King Bhumibol felt by all in Southeast Asia, says Najib". New Straits Times. 22 October 2016. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  17. "Najib, Hun Sen, Chinese vice president pay respects". Bangkok Post. 22 October 2016. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
  18. "Special envoy of Chinese president pays respects to late Thai King". Global Times. 23 October 2016. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  19. "President Tony Tan pays respects to late Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej in Bangkok". The Straits Times. 24 October 2016. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
  20. "ปธน.สิงคโปร์-นายกฯลาว วางพวงมาลาถวายสักการะพระบรมศพ". The Straits Times. 24 October 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  21. "Jokowi pays respects to King". Bangkok Post. 25 October 2016. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
  22. "Viet Nam pays homage to Thai King". Viet Nam News. 29 October 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  23. "President pays last respects to the late king of Thailand". The Official website of the President. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  24. "กษัตริย์เลโซโท เสด็จฯ มาถวายราชสักการะพระบรมศพ". Komchadluek. 2 November 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  25. "ผู้นำหลายประเทศวางพวงมาลาถวายสักการะพระบรมศพ". Matichon. 9 November 2016. Retrieved 9 November 2016.
  26. "Duterte pays respects to King". Bangkok Post. 9 November 2016. Retrieved 9 November 2016.
  27. "PM Narendra Modi Makes Stopover In Thailand To Pay Respects To Late King". NDTV. 10 November 2016. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
  28. "รัฐมนตรีช่วยว่าการกระทรวงไปรษณีย์ โทรคมนาคม และเทคโนโลยีสารสนเทศแห่งสาธารณรัฐประชาชนบังกลาเทศ วางพวงมาลาถวายราชสักการะพระบรมศพพระบาทสมเด็จพระปรมินทรมหาภูมิพลอดุลยเดช". The Government Public Relations Department. 2016-11-16. Retrieved 2016-11-16.
  29. "Kǭthǭmǭ long prap phư̄nthī sanām lūang trīam kānkǭsāng phramērumāt chūang ton pī nā" กทม. ลงปรับพื้นที่สนามหลวง เตรียมการก่อสร้างพระเมรุมาศช่วงต้นปีหน้า [Bangkok Metropolitan Administration visits Sanam Luang for location adjustment in preparation for building of royal crematorium early next year]. Coconuts Krungthep (in Thai). Bangkok. 3 November 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  30. "ครม. อนุมัติ งบกลางปี 60 หนึ่งพันล้านบาท เพื่อพระราชพิธีพระบรมศพ". BBC Thailand (in Thai). BBC. 2016-11-30. Retrieved 2016-11-30.
  31. "ความรู้เกี่ยวกับ พระเมรุมาศ ชิ้นส่วนพระเมรุมาศหลังการรื้อถอน". Campus-star.com (in Thai). Bangkok: Campus Star.
  32. http://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/2016/11/28/royal-crematorium-design-unveiled-photos/
  33. http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/1146604/construction-of-funeral-pyre-for-king-set-for-jan-10
  34. http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/national/30300859
  35. http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/national/30301039
  36. http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/1138893/skilled-folk-allowed-to-help-make-royal-urn
  37. "Kirins bag title as league ties are cancelled". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  38. "WHAT'S CANCELED, CLOSED AND OPEN IN BANGKOK DURING MOURNING PERIOD". Khaosoden English. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  39. 1 2 "Drinking, Partying Off Limits in Thailand as Death of King Hits Tourism". Bloomberg. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  40. "Thai king death: Thousands mourn at royal palace". BBC News. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  41. "All TV channels carry monochrome broadcasts". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  42. "TV, radio programmes to resume, with restrictions". Bangkok Times. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  43. http://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/business/2016/11/26/not-beginning-look-lot-like-christmas/
  44. 1 2 Charuvastra, Teeranai (16 October 2016). "Ultra-Royalists Guilt-Shame People Who Don't Wear Mourning Black". Khaosod. Khaosod English. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  45. "Chāo phūket hư̄ lǭm bān lūkchāi rān khāi taohū klāng dưk 'āng phōs 'ēfbī čhāpčhūang čhǣngkhwām mǭ nưng nưng sǭng lǣo" ชาวภูเก็ตฮือล้อมบ้านลูกชายร้านเต้าหู้กลางดึกอ้างโพสต์ FB จาบจ้วง แจ้งความ ม. 112 แล้ว. Prachachat (in Thai). Bangkok: Matichon. 15 October 2016. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  46. "Phuket man accused of lese majeste, his shop mobbed over social media post". Bangkok: Coconuts BKK. 15 October 2016. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  47. Thaitrakulpanich, Asaree (3 November 2016). "Buriram school seizes students' colorful winter jackets". Khao Sod English. Bangkok: Khao Sod. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  48. "New public school director removed from post for wearing red dress". Coconuts. Bangkok: Coconuts Bangkok. 2016-11-29. Retrieved 2016-11-29.
  49. Audjarint, Wasamon (26 October 2016). "Hunt for lese majeste fugitives". The Nation. Bangkok: Nation Multimedia. Retrieved 26 October 2016.

Further reading

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Death of Bhumibol Adulyadej.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/30/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.