BANGKOK – Thailand basks in yellow as nation celebrates longest-reigning monarch’s 70th anniversary of accession to the throne.
Thailand yesterday celebrated the 70th anniversary of His Majesty the King’s accession to the throne. Roads around the Grand Palace were closed yesterday morning for an alms-giving ceremony involving 770 Buddhist monks to celebrate the King’s reign. Hundreds of people gathered before dawn to take part in the ceremony led by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and members of the Cabinet. Almost all wore yellow.
In addition to the Buddhist ceremony held at the Grand Palace, religious ceremonies were also held by worshippers of Islam, Christianity, Hinduism and Sikhism at different places in the capital yesterday.
Thai expatriates living overseas also joined their compatriots in Thailand in marking the auspicious occasion during ceremonies held at Thai embassies and consulates.
Chanting by Buddhist monks was held and Thai expatriates and students wrote messages wishing for the King’s good health. Participants also sang the Royal Anthem together.
In Nepal, newly ordained monks and lay people took part in a ceremony at the Royal Thai Monastery of Lumbini in honour of the King. People wore yellow – the colour of His Majesty’s birthday Monday – and took part in various philanthropic activities throughout Thailand to mark the occasion.
Buddhists offered alms to monks to make merit in the name of the King. People planted trees in the forests in their provinces.
In Phuket, residents and tourists released 470 turtles into the sea as part of activities marking the occasion. Similar events were also held in five other Andaman Sea coastal provinces – Phang-nga, Satun, Krabi, Trang and Ranong – where a total of 500 turtles were released.
Residents of the seaside Samut Sakhon province yesterday planted 770 saplings in a local mangrove forest.
In Lop Buri, more than 200 local residents helped with the dredging of canals and removing weeds to clear the waterways. Long queues formed at commercial banks all over the country yesterday, as people flocked to buy commemorative 70 baht (S$2.70) banknotes printed by the Bank of Thailand to mark the 70th anniversary.
The banknotes were sold at 100 baht each and the sale was limited to two banknotes per person. Despite the limit, all the commemorative banknotes sold out at many bank branches just hours after the sale began.
Commemorative banknotes
A total of 20 million of the commemorative banknotes have been printed. The central bank said more could be printed if demand was high. Chuanpit Luapattanapadung, a 65-year-old resident of Surin, said she had obtained two 70 baht banknotes and that she would give one of them to her mother. “I wish His Majesty good health and speedy recovery from illness,” she said.
One of those participating in the alms-giving ceremony at the Grand Palace, 68-year-old Bangkok resident Chonmanee Smativat, said: “I want to make merit for the King for him to have good health. That’s how I can show loyalty to him.”
“I want him to know that we all love him,” she added.
“I pray for his speedy recovery so that he can continue to guide us, his children,” said Usa Paeliew, a farmer from Pathum Thani.
His Majesty is recovering from heart surgery performed on Wednesday. His Majesty, the world’s longest-reigning monarch, ascended to the throne on June 9, 1946, after the passing of his elder brother King Ananda Mahidol.
In the following decades, the King earned the adoration of millions through his work in public health and rural development. “The King travelled up and down the country and met the people. He heard and fixed our problems and that is why we love him,” said Yaovapha Thaitae, a noodle vendor working near Siriraj Hospital, where the King is being treated.
“The relationship between Thais and the King is deep, more than one can actually begin to explain,” said Colonel Winthai Suvaree, a spokesman for the National Council for Peace and Order. “He is father to the land.”
“If I lived a hundred lifetimes, I would consider myself lucky to be born in His Majesty’s reign,” said Somporn Maejai, a sanitary worker in Bangkok.
