Five years since disappearance of Muslim lawyer-WGJP

[FACT comments: This is a terrible anniversary but one we must never forget. If we allow government to kidnap, torture and kill Thai citizens, none of us can have any hope for the future.]

THAILAND: 5th Anniversary, Disappearance of Somchai Neelapaijit
Working Group on Justice for Peace: March 10, 2009

http://www.ahrchk.net/pr/mainfile.php/2009mr/621/

Somchai Neelapaijit has been missing since 12 March 2004, when he was last seen in Bangkok being forced into a car with a group of men. At the time of his disappearance, he was Chairman of the Muslim Lawyers Association and Vice-Chairman of the Human Rights Committee of the Law Society of Thailand, and was representing five Muslims accused of terrorism-related activities in the Southern provinces. Five years on, the investigation into the circumstances of his enforced disappearance remains incomplete and the whereabouts of his body are still unknown. His wife and four children remain in the dark as to what happened to their husband and father.

On 12 January 2006, the Criminal Court convicted a senior police officer of coercion and assault – but not of the enforced disappearance itself – and was sentenced to three years imprisonment despite evidence presented at trial indicating that a more serious crime has been committed. The police officer was released on bail pending his appeal, which is still outstanding.

The fifth anniversary of a person’s disappearance takes on particular significance in Thailand as the person is considered legally dead for the purposes of civil law. The series of events commemorating Somchai Neelapaijit’s disappearance will (i) highlight the continual pursuit of truth and justice of this particular case; (ii) underscore the abhorrent nature of enforced disappearances; and (iii) represent public and high-profile efforts at seeking justice for an emblematic case in the fight against impunity in Thailand.