BURMESE MIGRANT RIGHTS GROUPS SEE CAUSE FOR HOPE IN COURT RULING

UNCLAS CHIANG MAI 000228

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM PREL PGOV KDEM TH BM
SUBJECT: BURMESE MIGRANT RIGHTS GROUPS SEE CAUSE FOR HOPE IN COURT RULING

REF: A) CHIANG MAI (03) 284 B) CHIANG MAI (03) 238


1. Summary. Two years after the brutal slaying of six Burmese
workers in Mae Sot, a Thai provincial court has convicted four local Thai officials for the crime. Legal and human rights organizations say that conditions for Burmese migrant workers have improved since the 2003 murders and that this first-of-a-kind trial indicates a positive trend in the Thai
judicial process. End summary


2. The Provincial Court of Mae Sot in Tak Province last month convicted four local officials for detaining, killing, and despoiling the corpses of six migrant Burmese workers on May 14,

2003. According to representatives of the Mae Sot-based Yaung
Chi Oo Workers' Association (YCOWA) and Burma Lawyers' Council (BLC),Chiang Mai-based Migrant Assistance Program (MAP) and Bangkok-based Lawyers' Council of Thailand (LCT) who attended the reading of the verdict September 29, this trial was the first time anyone in Thailand had faced criminal charges for violence against migrant workers. Sentences for the four men added up to the death penalty; the verdict is subject to appeal.



3. Media reports from 2003 suggested that the murders originated in an extortion attempt by village security officers. Seven Burmese workers were taken from their workplace in a ceramic factory in Mae Sot and later detained for questioning by a civilian security squad from the nearby village. One of the workers fled and reported that the other six had been killed.
Bodies of the six men were later found handcuffed, shot in the
head, and burned. Public and media attention to the gruesome
killings prompted local police to take delayed action a week later. Subsequent investigations led to the arrest and trial of six local officials, a process that lasted over two years.

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Pattern of Abuse
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4. While the brutality of the May 14, 2003 murders caused a public outcry, they were part of a widespread pattern of migrant worker abuse. According to a Bangkok Post article of May 26, 2003, a government policy to crack down on unregistered migrant workers gave local criminal gangs with links to officials free
rein to extort money from migrant workers. YCOWA Secretary Mo
Swe, whose association handles migrant labor disputes and provides emergency shelter for workers in trouble with employers, estimated the then-murder toll at one per week.
Admitting that he had not been sure the Mae Sot court would find the defendants guilty, Mo Swe said the trial gave him new confidence in Thai adherence to due process.


5. MAP Coordinator and 2005 International Visitor Pranom Somwong credited the convictions to solid evidence and the accounts of eyewitnesses, who were housed in the Mae Sot police station compound for protection during the trial. She said that international and domestic attention to the case also
contributed to the successful outcome. Extensive media
accounts as well as reports by the National Human Rights Commission and Amnesty International helped prompt a relatively quick police investigation and influenced the state attorney and court offices to allow for the pre-trial testimony of the
repatriation-bound workers. Because of the clarity of the
evidence and the cooperative attitude of the court, Pranom expressed confidence that the upper courts would uphold the
verdict. She noted that MAP and YCOWA are publicizing the
case in order to educate migrant workers about their rights and possibilities for assistance.
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Positive Impact
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6. BLC staff described the case's positive impact on the situation of migrant Burmese workers in Mae Sot and elsewhere in Thailand. While reports persist of physical assault, extortion or harassment of those without work permits, no mass killings
have been reported in the past two years. The BLC reported
that the immigration police now take a more lenient approach toward Burmese workers and are more cooperative with local
non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The new labor
registration system also helps deter harassment as more workers have access to legal status.


7. In contrast to wide media coverage two years ago and to the significance that migrant-related NGOs see in the verdict, only
two Thai newspapers have reported on the convictions. MAP
Coordinator Pranom recounted that reports filed by stringers from the English-language Bangkok Post and Nation did not make the papers.


8. Comment: A look back at this crime and at human rights
reports of migrant worker abuse in 2003 show that the situation
for migrant workers is significantly better today. NGOs see
additional cause for optimism in the Thai judicial system's increased willingness to take on local officials who abuse their power.