Anti-government protesters stage demonstrations across Thailand amidst growing anger at the country's ruling military party.

The peaceful events saw tens of thousands of locals take part in organised fun runs called 'Run Against Dictatorship' to show their discontent with the military ruler General Prayuth Chan-o-cha and his allies.

Footage shows people in Pattaya, eastern Thailand, while similar rallies were staged in Bangkok, Chiang Mai and other major cities.

Participants wore t-shirts with slogans defying warnings from the military government and a strong police presence monitoring the events.

One of the many triggers for the protests were moves by the government to ban a progressive new political party, Future Forward, which picked up a large chunk of votes at last year's election and threatened to destabilise the military's power.