LONDON - Over 5,000 Thais living overseas and friends of Thailand gathered in London's Trafalgar Square to sing the Thai Royal Anthem and pay respect to King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who passed away on Oct 13.
Hosted by Samaggi Samagom, the Thai Students' Association in UK, and various Thai groups and individuals in the UK, Sunday's gathering consisted of two sessions of 90 seconds of silent contemplation and three sessions of singing the Thai Royal Anthem.
Many Thais arrived in the square as early as 11am (6pm Thailand time), long before the scheduled start of activities at 3.20pm. They held pictures of the late King and some carried Thai national flags. A number of attendees were Britons with Thai spouses or friends or who had lived and worked in Thailand.
As singing of the Royal Anthem began, many people burst into tears.
Saisunee Pettitt, a former nurse from Chumphon province who is in her sixties and has been living in England for over three decades, travelled about two hours from Bath to London with her British husband and 10 other people.
"Many Thai people here want to express their feelings for the King, but they can't go back to Thailand at the moment. Some people could not come because they work today," she said. "We have plans to go [to Thailand to pay respects to the King]."
"I didn't cry, but I feel very sad. For my entire life, I have followed his footsteps. I do what he says. I came from the South of Thailand. When I was young, the King addressed problems in the South, building dams and reservoirs. I remember when he first visited the South by train, me and my friends held flags to welcome him."
MR Narisa Chakrabongse, a Thai publisher whose second home is the UK, recalled she felt strange on hearing about the King's passing.
"I couldn't believe it at first. I really wanted to go home to Bangkok but I also had to go to the Frankfurt Book Fair so I stayed. I am really pleased that Thais in London have organised this tribute and I have also seen some moving scenes in Bangkok."
"I will be very proud to show my love for the King today in Trafalgar Square. Then I will go back to Bangkok and attend prayers there," she noted.
Watit Prachumchan, 26, a Thai resident in the UK handing out brochures to event participants said Thais in the UK have made merit for the late King at Thai temples there and the Royal Thai Embassy in London has books of condolences for people in the UK to sign.
Some of the participating non-Thais were able to sing the Royal Anthem. Steven Mitchel was seen singing the anthem, assisted by phonetic lyrics prepared by his Thai ex-wife and her daughter.
"I go to Thailand a lot. I live in the UK. Everywhere in Thailand, people like the Royal Family and the King is the Father of your land; he looked after you all," he said
Pornpet Gale, from Nong Khai, remarked that His Majesty tried to help everyone with his sufficiency economy principles and her family followed his footsteps by growing organic vegetables in Berkshire and in Thailand.
Her British husband, Chris Gale, also joined the tribute, saying: "I remember he [the King] has done a lot of good things for Thailand. It was a thing I learned through materials I read and TV programmes I watched in the UK and Thailand. He will be missed."
About 1,600 inmates at Samut Prakan Prison prostrate before a portrait of the late King during a mourning ceremony in which they sat in rows to form the number 9 in traditional Thai script to refer to the ninth reign of the Chakri Dynasty. (Photo:Somchai Poomlard)