Bangkok ( CNN ) Thailand has lifted martial law , replacing it with it a controversial new security order granting sweeping powers to the ruling military junta . Critics have expressed alarm at the move , with Human Rights Watch 's Asia director Brad Adams saying it marked the country 's `` deepening descent into dictatorship . '' Martial law was lifted Wednesday when the Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej approved a request from Prime Minister General Prayuth Chan-ocha to proceed . Prayuth -- head of the National Council for Peace and Order ( NCPO ) junta -- immediately invoked Article 44 of the country 's interim constitution `` to curb acts deemed harmful to national peace and stability . '' Article 44 states , in wide-ranging terms , that when the head of the junta believes it is necessary in the name of public harmony or to prevent the undermining of national security , then he has the power to act as deemed necessary . According to a statement issued by the NCPO , the new order grants military personnel powers to issue summons and arrest those who commit crimes against the royal family or against national stability , who commit crimes involving war weaponry , or who violate the orders of the NCPO . Designated military personnel were granted powers to seize assets , to block media from reporting or publishing , and to detain suspects up to seven days , the statement said . Unauthorized political gatherings of more than five people were banned , while those who defied NCPO orders could be imprisoned for up to a year , it said . Those who were detained could not leave the country without the approval of the head of the NCPO . Human Rights Watch said in a statement that the new security order would allow Prayuth `` to issue orders without administrative , legislative , or judicial oversight or accountability . '' `` Thailand 's friends abroad should not be fooled by this obvious sleight of hand by the junta leader to replace martial law with a constitutional provision that effectively provides unlimited and unaccountable powers , '' Adams said in a statement . Sunai Phasuk , Human Rights Watch 's senior researcher on Thailand , told CNN the move would see Prayuth `` become a strongman with ultimate power in his hands to wield as he wishes . '' `` This is a dangerous indication that the junta is not going to keep its promise to restore democracy and respect for human rights in Thailand , '' he said . Rupert Abbott , deputy director for Asia Pacific at Amnesty International , called in a statement for the NCPO to `` reinstate the rule of law and constitutional protections for human rights which the 2014 coup steamrolled over . '' Meanwhile , the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein expressed alarm at the news . `` Normally I would warmly welcome the lifting of martial law -- and indeed strongly advocated for it to be lifted in Thailand , '' the High Commissioner said . `` But I am alarmed at the decision to replace martial law with something even more draconian , which bestows unlimited powers on the current Prime Minister without any judicial oversight at all . This clearly leaves the door wide open to serious violations of fundamental human rights . '' Martial law was imposed shortly before Thailand 's military seized power last May , ousting the democratically-elected government of Yingluck Shinawatra after months of sometimes violent street protests . Since then , the NCPO has curbed civil liberties , muzzled the media and rounded up opponents . Amnesty International says that since May , hundreds of people have been arbitrarily held and dozens brought before military courts for engaging in peaceful political gatherings or expression . Thai political scholar and coup opponent Pavin Chachavalpongpun told CNN that the move from martial law to the new security order amounted to `` pouring the same wine into a new bottle . '' `` The junta is trying to reinvent itself , but the substance is still there , '' he said . `` In a word : it 's absurd . Everyone knows in Thailand they had to abolish the martial law because of international pressure . `` But Article 44 is a lot worse than the martial law because it gives total power to the NCPO . '' Thailand 's military rulers have insisted that such restrictive measures are needed to maintain stability , following a decade of political conflict which has pitted a royalist , middle-class Bangkok elite against Shinawatra 's supporters , mostly drawn from the urban working class or the rural north . But Pavin did not believe there was a sufficient threat to national security to justify the new order . `` The notion of national security has been exploited over and over , '' he said . A spokesperson for the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok said it was important that Thai citizens were allowed `` to freely exercise their fundamental rights , including the rights of freedom of expression and peaceful assembly . ''
Martial law has been lifted in Thailand after 10 months . It has been replaced by a new order granting sweeping powers to the military junta . Critics warn the move deepens the country 's `` descent into dictatorship ''