Thai rights defender takes fight to region
“Human rights knows no borders.”
This was the bold statement of soft-spoken Angkhana Neelapaijit, one of this year’s Ramon Magsaysay Awardees.
Neelapaijit, a mother of five and what she calls a “human rights family,” is a known defender and advocate of human rights, not only in her home country of Thailand but in the ASEAN region.
Tides are changing in the field of human rights, she pointed out, with victims and defenders now speaking louder against injustices. But louder does not mean shouting for attention, which is apparent with how she has been fighting her battles even with how mildly she speaks.
Neelapaijit was recognized for her “unwavering courage in seeking justice,” not only for her husband but for the many other victims of violence and conflict in southern Thailand.
“Her systematic, unflagging work to reform a flawed and unfair legal system, and the shining proof she is that the humblest ordinary person can achieve national impact in deterring human rights abuses,” the foundation of Asia’s highest honor said.
Neelapaijit lost her husband, Somchai, a human rights lawyer, who was abducted in 2004 and killed in the midst of violent insurgency and militarization in southern Thailand. Even with five children to care for, she pursued efforts to seek justice for her husband, which led to founding the Justice for Peace Foundation.
The Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation acknowledged her work in reforming the legal system.
Neelapaijit recently stepped down as commissioner of the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand after questioning a policy that bars them from speaking publicly about their investigations.
She noted that the human rights network across different countries is proving to be one of the cornerstones in the movement for justice, with women also leading the way.
“Now, more and more people are trying to change the system,” she told
The STAR in an interview. “Now, more and more human rights defenders, especially women—sometimes they are victims, they used to be victims—became actors for human rights. We can see what happened nowadays that many victims are trying to speak. It is not the same as in the past that they were silent,” Neelapaijit added.
Despite the strides in the field of human rights, several issues—from crackdowns to harassment, to enforced disappearances—are similarly prevalent across countries in the region.
Neelapaijit said there is a new kind of threat for those working for the protection and advancement of human rights: judicial harassment.
She stressed that every human rights defender must have to be more active against this threat, noting that there is still a long way to go for her vision of a full democracy for Thailand and for those who are seeking justice in the Philippines, especially for victims of the drug war and the marginalized indigenous communities.
Having been taught English by a Filipino teacher, Neelapaijit said she is no stranger to the Philippines. As she travels to the country a few times each year, she hopes that the human rights situation in Thailand, the Philippines and the region will get better.
“I still have hope and I think we have to work harder and raise our concerns, speak louder. And we need people organizations to support us,” she added.
Aside from founding the Justice for Peace Foundation in 2009, Neelapaijit is a member of several others organizations that include the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances and the Asian Human Rights Commission.
She said that despite her resignation from the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand, she is not slowing down on her work to forge more connections and share her experiences with the vast human rights network in the region.
“From my experience, human rights have no borders. We have the network, sharing the experiences,” she added.
Other Ramon Magsaysay Awardees this year are Kim Jong-ki from South Korea, Ko Swe Win from Myanmar, Ravish Kumar from India and Raymundo Cayabyab from the Philippines.