By Chalinee Thirasupa

With flawless makeup and costume that blends cabaret with catwalk and rainbow pride with royal court pageantry, Aunchalee Pokinwuttipob symbolises how Thailand's protests are about much more than calls for a change of government.

Aunchalee, 26, is a transgender drag queen and reality television show winner who is riding the momentum of youth rallies against the military and royalist establishment, hoping to advance a drawn-out struggle for same-sex marriage and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights.

Alongside the broader calls for greater democracy, is anger at government failure to change laws and policies that transgender Thais see as discriminatory.

"We really want human rights. We've wanted it for a long time. It's related to freedom of speech and equality," said Aunchalee, better known by the stage name, Angele Anang.

"This is a new phenomenon in Thailand, because they didn't have this kind of opportunity to speak up in the past." Read more via Reuters/Openly