Lawyers urge rights body to fight abuse

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) must be more active in addressing growing rights violations by the military government, human rights lawyers say.

Saovalux Po-Ngam, a human rights lawyer with the Chillies Activism Group, said the NHRC could not “stay in the closet and beat around the bush” as abuses by the regime are becoming more “blunt and barbaric”.

“Harassment and threats are occurring every day, not only against activists who simply want to scrutinise the government, but also against their families and friends in rural areas and inside universities nationwide,” Mr Saovalux said.

Earlier this week, the NHRC hotline was flooded with calls urging the commission to locate the whereabouts of Thanet Anantawong and Thanakorn Siripaiboon — arrested by authorities in connection with the Rajabhakti Park scandal.

The seven-member rights body later called on security agencies to disclose the whereabouts of Mr Thanet. Mr Thanakorn, 27, a factory worker, was arrested at his Samut Prakan workplace on Dec 8 on charges of breaching the Computer Crime Act and the Criminal Code.

His whereabouts were unknown for five days until he was tracked down to Bangkok Remand Prison where he is being held without bail. Mr Thanet was arrested at a Bangkok hospital on Sunday, but his close friends were denied access to him and believe he has been detained at the 11th Military Circle, said Pawinee Chumsri, Mr Thanet’s lawyer.

Ms Pawinee, of the Thai Human Rights Lawyers Centre, which has handled more than 60 cases of human rights violations since last year’s coup, said both were urgent cases which the NHRC could have taken up immediately without waiting for any request.

She asked the Criminal Court to free Mr Thanet, arguing he had been unlawfully arrested. The court rejected the request, citing insufficient evidence.

Ekachai Chainuvati, a law lecturer at Siam University, said the “NHRC must be blindfolded to not know what’s going on in Thailand”.

The Thai rights body, recently downgraded by an international human rights body, should prove they are up to doing their job, he said.

Newly appointed NHRC chairman What Tingsamitr said the commission takes time to study each case before making any response. “We don’t want to be seen as a part of a conflict,” he said.