Uber Inc., has decided to play with fire in the Kingdom of Thailand by simply ignoring a ruling that it is no longer allowed to operate….while the country is under martial law.

As we reported yesterday, the Thai Department of Land Transport said that Uber is illegal because the company uses private cars rather than licensed taxis. They made the point of saying that mobile application services aren’t banned, but Uber is banned in its current form.

Tech in Asia reported that as of Wednesday local time (+7 GMT) that both the UberX and UberBlack services are still up and running in the Thai capital of Bangkok.

The fine for the use personal vehicles for commercial use, which is the case with Uber drivers, is 2,000 baht (US$61), however the fine for the company as a whole could be far larger. It’s not clear what presence Uber corporate has on the ground in Thailand, but it would have to have a local office of some sort to co-ordinate the program in the Kingdom.

As of Wednesday morning EST the Bangkok page for Uber remains public, advertising its services. It also operates in the Southern Thailand resort island of Phuket.

Uber has a history of simply ignoring laws and legal decrees when it comes to operating in various countries, but they were in democratic Western countries which involved a court process; Thailand isn’t one of those countries.

Thailand was taken over by the Royal Thai Military in a coup on May 22nd, 2014. Martial law, which restricts a range of rights was implemented the same day, and remains in affect across the country today.

While Uber certainly doesn’t fall into the category of political target (yet,) and its executives are unlikely to be hauled off to a happiness camp (re-education camp, the slogan of the coup is “returning happiness to the people” and those opposed are obliged to find happiness in a camp), the country has been beset by an increasing level of xenophobia since the coup.

Proposals have been put forward to further restrict foreign ownership in the country, and there have been crackdowns on foreigners across the board; from tightening visas, harassing them on the streets of Bangkok, and targeting foreign groups that may be involved in crime. Added to the mix is that Phuket, and Bangkok Airport taxi services are run by various Thai mafias.

Nothing may occur; the Thai bureaucracy has chugged along through 12 successful coups since 1932, and it has a habit of saying things and then either doing nothing about it, or changing its mind later. That said with the number of taxis in Bangkok alone believed to be over 20,000, all who pay for a license and provide revenue to the Government, a foreign upstart not complying with the rules is unlikely to be ignored for long.

Img credits: first image mashup from Uber/ เปลี่ยนฉากหลังให้ทั่นผู้นำ. Second image Duncan Riley.