http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/13/world/asia/thailand-king.html 2016-10-12 16:01:42 Worries Over King’s Health Shake Thailand The country’s prime minister returned abruptly to Bangkok and well-wishers waited at the hospital where the 88-year-old monarch was being treated. === BANGKOK — Concern for the health of King A government spokesman said that Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, chief of the junta that runs the country, returned to meet with Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn, the heir to the throne, who lives most of the time in Germany. The country, which has been under military rule since 2014, is deeply polarized, but King Bhumibol has been a unifying figure, even in ill health. The military’s authority derives from the king, and there is a sense of national anxiety about his condition and what will happen when he dies. All of the king’s children — the prince and his three sisters — were reported to have arrived on Wednesday at Siriraj Hospital, where King Bhumibol, one of the world’s longest reigning monarchs, has been confined for most of the past few years. He last left the hospital in January. The royal palace announced on Sunday that the king, a widely revered figure who suffers from kidney failure and receives hemodialysis to filter his blood, was in unstable condition and that he was breathing with the help of a ventilator. In a health bulletin issued Wednesday evening, the palace said that he remained on the ventilator and was in unstable condition. His blood pressure was low, his liver function was abnormal and he appeared to have a blood infection, the announcement said. “The king is a father of the entire Thai people,” said Suwanna Kaennamtiew, 62, of Bangkok, who came to the hospital to pray for him. “We are living under his virtue. We love him very much. Nothing can compare to him.” Like many of the king’s supporters, she was wearing pink to promote his well-being. Throughout most of his reign, the king offered moral leadership and promoted economic development. A strict lèse-majesté law prohibits defaming, insulting or threatening the king, queen, heir-apparent or regent. Most Thais have known no monarch other than King Bhumibol, who ascended the throne in 1946, and have never lived through a succession. Rumors began circulating around noon that he was near death and then flooded social media. The Stock Exchange of Thailand fell 6.9 percent, although it recovered to close down about 2.5 percent. The Thai currency, the baht, fell about 1 percent against the dollar. Srikaew Attasana, 48, a hotel housekeeping manager from Bangkok, was among the crowd at Siriraj Hospital wearing pink and offering prayers. “Thai people worship him like a god,” she said. “He is like a god to me. I always feel grateful to be in his country.” Ms. Srikaew said she felt happy to be close to the king, even though she could not see him. “I come here to at least see the building where he lives,” she said. “That’s good enough for me.” Ms. Suwanna, who was wearing a badge on her shirt that read “Love Father,” said that all she wanted was the king’s recovery. “I wish I could sacrifice my life for his majesty,” she said. “I can endure pain for his majesty. If I could die so he could live, that’s what I would do.”