Thailand: Bangkok protesters decry IMF and World Bank, warn of destructive capitalism

Demonstrators carried banners, wore masks depicting world leaders and pulled giant floats, including a piggy bank and an octopus symbolising global capitalism. They accused the financial institutions of making decisions that affect local communities without giving residents a meaningful say. Police blocked the march near the meeting venue, while brief scuffles broke out as protesters tried to hang a banner from a pedestrian bridge. Protesters from across Thailand gathered to voice their concerns, rejecting the official forum as a platform where ordinary people would have little influence. They used a giant octopus to symbolise powerful economic interests tightening their grip on local communities and their resources. The march briefly disrupted traffic at a busy intersection, but protesters eventually managed to display their banner calling for an end to destructive capitalism.