Thailand faces uncertainty, grief without King Bhumibol
Thousands of weeping Thais on Friday lined the route the body of their beloved King Bhumibol Adulyadej will take to the riverside Grand Palace ahead of a funeral and a traditional royal cremation that will need months to prepare.
The world's longest-reigning monarch, who was worshipped as a father figure during his 70-year reign, died in a Bangkok hospital on Thursday. He was 88.
The king stepped in to calm crises on several occasions during his reign and many Thais worry about a future without him. The military, which took power in a 2014 coup, has for decades invoked its duty to defend the monarchy to justify its intervention in politics.
Many people sheltered beneath umbrellas on the route from the hospital to the palace or cooled themselves with fans along the narrow, sun-seared pavements.
Military government leader Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said on Thursday security was his top priority and he ordered extra troops deployed around the country.
Security was tight on Friday in the city's old quarter of palaces, temples and ministries with soldiers at checkpoints, government offices and intersections.
The king had been in poor health for several years but his death has shocked the Southeast Asian nation of 67 million people and plunged it into grief.
Most people in the capital and in towns across the country dressed in black but shops opened for business.
The cabinet declared a government holiday for mourning but the Stock Exchange of Thailand and other financial institutions opened as normal.
ORDERLY SUCCESSION
The stock market's benchmark index .SETI rose at the open and was up 4 percent at 0600 GMT while the baht currency THB=TH strengthened about 1 percent against the dollar, on hopes that there would be an orderly succession. The central bank governor said there had been no abnormal speculation.
Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn is expected to be the new king but he does not command the same adoration that his father earned over a lifetime on the throne.
At the Grand Palace, thousands of mourners, some sobbing, lined up to kneel before a portrait of the king and make a ritual pouring of water as part of royal funeral rites.
"I still feel like I'm dreaming. I can't believe it happened," said Supawan Wongsawas, 64, a retired civil servant.
Suthad Kongyeam, 53, said it felt like losing a father.
"He was the heart of the whole country," said Suthad. "Everything is shaken. There is nothing to hold on to anymore."
Thailand has endured bomb attacks and economic worries recently while rivalry simmers between the military-led establishment and populist political forces after a decade of turmoil including two coups and deadly protests.
Military government leader Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said on Thursday the country was in "immeasurable grief ... profound sorrow and bereavement".
He said security was his top priority and called for businesses to stay active and stock investors not to dump shares.
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