Prior to the massacre, four to five thousand students from various universities had demonstrated for more than a week against the return of former military dictator Thanom Kittikachorn to Thailand from Singapore.
Sebelum pembantaian, empat hingga lima ribu mahasiswa dari berbagai universitas telah berunjuk rasa selama lebih dari seminggu menentang kembalinya mantan diktator militer Thanom Kittikachorn ke Thailand dari Singapura.