Amnesty Urges the Thai Authority to Dismiss the Charge against Three Human Rights Defenders who Published the Report on the Torture in the South

17 February 2017

 

Amnesty urged the Thai authority not to prosecute and dismiss the charge against the human rights defenders who made the report concerning the torture by the government officials in the south. Those three defenders are going to report themselves in Pattani again this 21st February.

 

The Office of Secretariat, International Amnesty, London, United Kingdom took an urgent action inviting more than seven million activists around the world to write letters, emails, facsimiles and make calls to the Commissioner of the 9th Provincial Police and the Pattani Provincial Public Prosecutor in order to urge them not to prosecute and dismiss the charges of criminal defamation and committing a computer offense pressed against three human rights activists who published the report concerning the torture by the government officials in the Southern Border Provinces, as well as amending the Criminal Code by repealing the criminal penalties for defamation.

 

The three human rights activists are Mr. Somchai Homlor, Ms. Pornpen Kongkajornkiat and Ms. Anchana Heemina. It is expected that the prosecutor will either press the charge or dismiss the charge after the three defenders have been accused of criminal defamation and committing a computer offense after making information and publishing it on the internet. The inquiry officials at Pattani Provincial Police Station previously summoned the three defenders to the police station on 21st February 2017 and denied the extension of time for interrogation as the three human rights defenders proposed.

 

 

However, it was reported that the police have concluded the investigation and it is expected that the three human rights defenders will be taken to the Prosecutor's office for prosecution. Such charges are subject to a term of imprisonment not exceeding seven years and imposition of fine not exceeding 300,000 Baht.

 


Amnesty Internationals around the world, especially in Australia, Canada, France, Nepal, Sweden, Luxemburg, Belgium, Venezuela, Poland, etc. have been campaigning to urge the Thai authority to dismiss the charge against the three human right activists.