Amnesty International Thailand handing letter to Ministry of Justice demanding that The Act on Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance be enforced in its entirety

The Amnesty International Thailand, activists and relatives of survivors of torture and enforced disappearance have submitted a letter to the Minister of Justice demanding that they stop postponing or extending the enforcement of the Act on Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance and reiterate that the Act must be enforced in its entirety. This can attest to the Thai government’s realization of the need to protect an individual from such grave violations and to restore justice to the affected persons and their families who have been denied justice for a long time. The letter was handed to Mr. Kerdchoke Kasemwongjit, Deputy Director-General of Rights and Liberties Protection Department (RLPD).

On 14 February 2023, the cabinet has decided to postpone the enforcement of the Act on Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance’s Sections 22-25 to 1 October 2023 citing the need to have time for improvement of the implementation, roles and duties among personnel in the law enforcement and those at the practical level as well as problems concerning the procurement of cameras and other personal preparations including the training on how to use such equipment. 

Piyanut Kotsan, Director of Amnesty International Thailand, reveals that Amnesty International Thailand has been monitoring progress of the Act on Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance B.E. 2565, which was supposed to come into force since 22 February 2023. Such postponement applies to the enforcement of the law that has been promulgated after more than a decade of advocacies. It can play a very crucial role to prevent the act of torture and enforced disappearance in Thailand, one of several commitments Thailand has made to international community. This has given rise to questions concerning how genuine the government is to address the need of the affected persons and their families to ensure they have access to the rights to demand justice from the judicial procedure as survivors of torture and enforced disappearance.  

“By postponing the enforcement of the Act on Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance’s Sections 22-25, the cabinet has deprived the injured parties from having access to justice and this may have deterred other injured parties from filing their complaints. It also signifies to public officials that they can continue to commit such crime while enjoying impunity.”  

“Survivors of torture and relatives of survivors of enforced disappointed are still determined to advocate for the enforcement of the Act to ensure they have access to justice, truth, and remedies for their families. This law could be an avenue for them to have such access” said Piyanut. 

Delay in the enforcement of the Act does not just hamper people’s access to justice process, but also affect Thailand’s credibility concerning its commitments on human rights, particularly its obligations toward the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) and the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (ICPPED). In addition, Thailand has accepted 39 recommendations on the suppression of torture and enforced disappearance during the third Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Thailand and has offered voluntary pledges on two such recommendations. 

“Until now, Amnesty International has documented 74 cases of the violations of the right to life and body as a result of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment during custody between 2014 and 2015. In addition, the UN Working Group on enforced or involuntary disappearances has stated in its reports between 1980 and 2019 that there are at least 92 individuals being subjected to enforced disappearance in Thailand with the outstanding number of 76. This shows how the situation has been left protracted and does not seem to decline.”

Therefore, Amnesty International Thailand urges that the Ministry of Justice in its capacity of legal development and enhancement of judicial procedure management to ensure its cohesion, transparency and protection of people’s rights and freedoms and its obligations; to raise the awareness on laws and to communicate with other agencies and the public to fulfil its commitments to act as follows; 

1. Ensure the full enforcement of the Act without any exemptions made to certain Sections to fulfil Thailand’s obligations to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) and to ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (ICPPED) as well as the Optional Protocol of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OP-CAT).
2. Coordinate with concerned authorities to develop regulations or secondary laws at the Ministerial level to facilitate the enforcement of the Act as required by law, and to monitor the implementation by various authorities as well as to take other steps necessary to promptly revise the laws to ensure its full compliance with international human rights laws and standards.
3. To facilitate its enforcement, an effort must be made to raise the awareness, communicate and inform the public about access to the mechanisms, measures and rights under the Act and to collaborate with rights holders to ensure maximum benefit as far as the protection and fulfillment of people’s rights is concerned. 

Background

The Royal Ordinance on the Amendment of the Act on Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance B.E. 2565, which was supposed to come into force on 22 February, has postponed the enforcement of Sections 22-25, keys provision of the Act, to until 1 October 2023 with detail as follows;  

Section 22 During the custody, it is incumbent on the competent public official to ensure the recording of pictures and audio continuously from the arrest to the detention until handing over the individual to an inquiry official or releasing them

Section 23 During the custody, it is incumbent on the competent public official to record information about the person being deprived of liberty

Section 24 Access to information of the person being deprived of liberty 

Section 25 Nondisclosure of information pertaining to the person being deprived of liberty if such information affords protection under personal information protection law, or if it may harm the person, or it may pose an obstacle to the ongoing investigation. 

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