Thailand's influential King Bhumibol Adulyadej has urged the new government to restore stability after months of political turmoil and damage to an economy on the brink of recession.
"If you help to restore peace and order, the country will do well because it is what everyone wishes," King Bhumibol said at a swearing-in ceremony yesterday for prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's new cabinet.
It was the first public appearance by the frail, 81-year-old monarch since he cancelled his annual birthday speech more than two weeks ago because of a throat infection.
Seen as semi-divine by many Thais, the king has limited constitutional powers but wields enormous personal influence in the country of 65 million people.
During the latest escalation in Thailand's three-year-old political crisis, the monarch was thrust into the centre of the fray by anti-government protesters who invoked his name in their fight with former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
The People's Alliance for Democracy, which occupied Government House for three months and Bangkok's main airports for over a week, ended its street campaign after a court sacked the pro-Thaksin government for electoral fraud.
Mr Abhisit, whose Democrat Party formed a seven-party coalition with a slim majority in parliament last week, has made reviving the economy and national unity his top priorities. - (Reuters)