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UPDATE (Thailand): Inaction by Thai authorities in investigating the disappearance of Mr. Somchai Neelaphaijit

October 13, 2004

UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAM

Update on Urgent Appeal 14 October 2004

[RE: FA-06-2004: THAILAND: A human rights lawyer Mr. Somchai Neelaphaijit missing; UP-14-2004: THAILAND: Mr. Somchai Neelaphaijit is still missing and the police may be involved in his disappearance; UP-26-2004: THAILAND: 5 suspects in the alleged abduction of missing human rights lawyer Mr. Somchai Neelaphaijit bailed out]
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UP-58-2004: THAILAND: Inaction by Thai authorities in investigation the disappearance of Mr. Somchai Neelaphaijit

THAILAND: Disappearances; Human rights defenders; Government inaction
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is gravely concerned by the delay in investigating the disappearance of a prominent human rights lawyer, Mr. Somchai Neelaphaijit, who has been missing since 12 March 2004. This case has been pending for a considerable time, due in large part to inaction by the authorities. Despite assurances by the Thai Minister of Justice that the matter is being investigated by the Special Investigation Department, and that this department has made "a lot of progress", no evidence or satisfactory explanation has been put forward by Thai authorities regarding Mr Somchai's disappearance to warrant such a statement.

The five police officers accused of carrying out Mr Somchai's disappearance have been charged with only 'coercion by threatening bodily harm or death', and 'gang robbery'. Failure by the investigative authorities to positively identify Mr Somchai's remains has meant that it has not been possible to charge the accused officers with the more serious crime of depriving a person of liberty resulting in death. This charge would carry a greater penalty than those mentioned above.
 
As no significant progress has been made regarding the disappearance of Mr Somchai, we ask you to please send a letter to the Government of Thailand requesting them to conduct a thorough inquiry into this case.

To see our previous appeals on the case please visit FA-06-2004, UP-14-2004 and UP-26-2004.

Urgent Appeals Desk
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
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BRIEF REMINDER OF THE CASE:

Mr. Somchai was last seen in Bang Kapi district on the night of 12 March 2004. His disappearance followed public statements made by him about the excessive use of force against five of his clients accused of taking part in the January 4 raid on an Army camp in Narathiwat. Mr Somchai also requested that the court give permission to have his clients medically checked and transferred from police hands. The court agreed to this request and had the five suspects transferred from the Special Branch Jail, where they were allegedly beaten, to Bang Khen Central Prison. It is reported that the police were upset with Mr Somchai regarding his allegations and the subsequent transfer of his clients.

Mr. Somchai's car was found abandoned on Ramkhamhaeng road in Mor Chit and its rear bumper showed signs of being hit. Khunying Porntip Rojanasunan, deputy director of the Justice Ministry's Central Institute of Forensic Science, inspected the car on 20 March 2004. She said she was confident Mr. Somchai was in an accident on the night of March 12 when he disappeared. Mr. Somchai had renewed his car insurance two weeks before his disappearance and had not demanded compensation for the damaged bumper. It could be assumed that the car accident had just occurred, she said.

Subsequently, five police officers from different parts of the force were identified as the alleged culprits of the removal of Mr Somchai from his car. Although these officers have been charged, as noted above, they have denied involvement in the case. Meanwhile, no light has been shed on what happened to Mr Somchai subsequently. 


SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please send a letter, fax or email to the Minister for Justice of Thailand, Mr Ponthep Thepkanjana, requesting that a full and thorough investigation take place in regards to the disappearance of Mr Somchai, and that no further delays should occur in locating the victim's whereabouts. Please also send a copy of your letters to those people listed below. A suggested letter for Mr Pornthep follows.

Sample letter:

_________

Dear Mr Pornthep

Re: The Government of Thailand should take speedy action to locate Mr. Somchai Neelaphaijit

I am writing to raise my concerns regarding the considerable, and indeed unacceptable, delay in investigating the disappearance of a prominent human rights lawyer, Mr. Somchai Neelaphaijit, who has been missing since 12 March 2004. This case has been pending for a considerable period now due in large part to the inaction of Thai government authorities.

Despite assurances by your office that the matter is being investigated by the Special Investigation Department, and that this department has made a lot of progress, no evidence or satisfactory explanation has been put forward by yourself or any other Thai authority regarding Mr Somchai's disappearance to warrant such a statement. Failure by the investigative authorities to locate Mr Somchai's whereabouts has meant that it has not been possible to charge the accused officers with the more serious crime of depriving a person of his liberty resulting in death. This charge would carry a greater penalty than those mentioned above.
 
I strongly urge the Government of Thailand to conduct an independent and thorough inquiry into the circumstances surrounding Mr Somchai's disappearance. The Government of Thailand must bear responsibility for his disappearance and must take speedy action to locate his whereabouts.

I also strongly urge the Government of Thailand to take steps to establish a domestic law prohibiting forced disappearances. Forced disappearance is a heinous crime, condemned by all civilised societies. Thailand's failure to enact such a law means that those who are responsible for forced disappearances and those who conceal the fate or whereabouts of disappeared people go unpunished for their crimes.

Yours truly



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PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:

Mr Pongthep Thepkanjana
Minister of Justice
Office of the Ministry of Justice
Ministry of Justice Building 22nd Floor
Jangwatana Road, Parkket
Nonthaburi 11120
THAILAND
Fax: +662 502 6699


PLEASE SEND COPIES TO:

1. Mr. Thaksin Shinawatra
Prime Minister
Government house,
Pitsanulok Road, Dusit District,
Bangkok 10300
THAILAND
Fax: +66 2 282 8631
Email: govspkman@mozart.inet.co.th

2. Professor Saneh Chamarik
Chairperson
The National Human Rights Commission of Thailand
422 Phya Thai Road
Pathurn Wan District
Bangkok 10300
THAILAND
Fax: +66 2 219 2940
Email: commission@nhrc.or.th

3. Mr Pongthep Thepkanjana
Minister of Justice
Office of the Ministry of Justice
Ministry of Justice Building 22nd Floor
Jangwatana Road, Parkket
Nonthaburi 11120
THAILAND
Fax: +66 2 502 6699

4. Dr Bhokin Bhalakula
Minister of Interior
Ministry of Interior
Thanon Atsadang
Bangkok 10200
THAILAND
Tel: +66 2 224-6320/6341
Fax: +66 2 226-4371
Email: webteam@moi.go.th

5. Mr. Diego Garcia-Sayan,
Chairperson
UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances
C/o OHCHR-UNOG, 1211 Geneva 10,
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 9179830
Fax: +41 22 9176009

6. Pol. Gen. Kovit Watthana
Commissioner-General
Royal Thai Police
Rama I, Patumwan,
Bangkok 10330
THAILAND
Tel: +66 2 205-1313, 205-220, 205-1840-9
Fax: +66 2 251-5956 

7. Mr Dejudom Krairit
President
Law Society
7/89 Mansion 10, Rajdamnoenklang Avenue,
Bovonnivet Sub-District,
Phranakorn District,
Bangkok 10200
THAILAND
Tel: +66 2 629 1430
Fax: +66 2 282 9907-8
E-mail: president@lawsociety.or.th


Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Update
Document ID :
UP-58-2004
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.