Responding to last night’s fatal shooting of Malay Muslim human rights defender Roning Dolah in Thailand’s insurgency-ridden southern border region, Amnesty International’s Thailand Researcher Chanatip Tatiyakaroonwong said:
“This tragic incident highlights the dangers faced by human rights defenders in Thailand’s southern border region.
Background
On 25 June 2024 at 9pm, Roning Dolah was shot and killed by two unidentified men in front of his home in the Yarang district of Pattani province.
Roning was a coordinator working with local civil society organization Duay Jai Group under the UN Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture to provide rehabilitation support for other torture survivors in the region.
According to the Duay Jai Group, Roning joined the group after allegedly being tortured by military officers while he was held in custody in June 2017 in Pattani province.
Since around 2004, Thailand has seen a rise in insurgent attacks carried out by armed Malay Muslim groups against the Thai state in this southern border region next to Malaysia.
The region covers the provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat, as well as four districts of Songkhla (Saba Yoi, Tepha, Chana and Natawee). Local think tank Deep South Watch reported that at least 7,594 individuals have been killed between January 2004 and April 2024.
Since the outbreak of the insurgency, Amnesty International has documented widespread impunity in the region, with authorities failing to deliver justice in suspected cases of unlawful killings, torture and other ill-treatment.
26 June is the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture.