A group of anti-establishment protesters, calling itself the People Go Network (PGN), has defied police warnings not to camp overnight in front of Government House, and are settling in for a long stay at that very spot.
The leaderless PGN plans to set up a village, to be called Ban Thalu Fah ("Through the Sky"), there and stay put there until their four demands are fulfilled.
Their demands are for the release of all the Ratsadon core leaders and other members remanded in custody; the writing of a new constitution with public participation; resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and abolition of the lese majeste law or Section 112 of the Criminal Code.
Interestingly, the demand for reform of the monarchy, which is one of the priority demands of the Ratsadon group, was not mentioned.
The protest on Saturday was peaceful and late at night after several demonstrators had gone home, police asked those who remained to remove to a nearby site next to the Save Bang Kloi community -- a gathering of indigenous Karen villagers from Ban Pong Luek Bang Kloi in the Kaeng Krachan National Park and their supporters.
The demonstrators agreed, and the vocational students who were involved in the protest helped to collect litter left on the site by their fellow protesters. Previously, police had predicted there might be violence because of the presence of vocational students.
Unnamed protest organisers said there would be political activities, public speeches and street performances among other activities staged every day to attract more people to join their cause. But how long this encampment strategy will last remains to be seen.
One major factor is logistics. Who will supply the protesters there with food and water as well as other necessities?
This may not be a problem if the crowd is small, as appears to be the case due to the Ratsadon group seeming to be already in decline and losing supporters after several unprovoked violent protests which backfired on the movement.
The movement itself is also suffering from internal conflict and its key leaders have been remanded in prison on lese majeste charges. Among them are Parit "Penguin" Chivarak, human rights lawyer Arnon Nampa, Somyos Prueksakasemsook, Patiwat Saraiyaem, Panusaya "Rung" Sitthijirawattanakul, Panupong Jardnok, alias Mike Rayong, Jatupat Boonpatthararaksa, alias Pai Daodin and Piyarat "Toto" Chongthep, leader of the WeVo guards. Only Piyarat was spared the lese majeste charge.
Since the indictment and remand in prison of the first group of four Ratsadon core leaders in mid-February on lese majeste and other charges related to the protests at Thammasat University and Sanam Luang on Sept 19-20, subsequent protests have been leaderless and prone to violence due to the presence of some hot-headed young participants.
The Feb 13 protest in front of the Supreme Court in which over 20 police were injured, mostly by projectiles and smoke bombs hurled by this younger mob marked the turning point in the decline of the Ratsadon movement.
The protesters' mentor, exiled former Thammasat lecturer Somsak Jeamteerasakul, said later that protests without leaders do not work and urged the protesters to return home, regroup and start over.
It remains unknown if and when those key figures being remanded in prison will be granted bail by a court that has already turned down five bail appeals.
It is down to the court's discretion and that may be swayed by the behaviour of those who are still free just as much as those under remand.
The peaceful protest on Saturday was a good start for the protesters despite the encampment strategy. They should realise that violence in any form will not win them support from the people.
There was a valid point made recently by Thammasat law lecturer Prinya Thaewanarumitkul that the government and the judiciary should seriously consider the bail request.
He maintained the accused have the right to be freed on bail as stipulated in Section 107 of the Criminal Procedural Code because they must be considered innocent until proven guilty, and the court has every right to use its discretion over whether to grant the group bail, singularly or collectively.
He also cited Section 29 paragraph 2 of the constitution which says that nobody accused or suspected of a crime should be treated like a convict until he or she is convicted and therefore should not be held in a prison for a prolonged stretch.
That means those Ratsadon core leaders should not be forced to stay in cramped jail cells alongside those who have actually been convicted of a crime, but in other facilities which befit their real status.
That is because they are still innocent until proven otherwise and should be treated as such.
Veera Prateepchaikul is former editor, Bangkok Post.