Thawil queries DSI's probe into 91 deaths

 

“The officers carried out their duty with conscience. Many of the officers were not comfortable about it, but had to be responsible for protecting the rights of the majority of the populace.

 

They put their own lives at risk, but were branded as being excessive [in using force]. I believe they deserve praise rather than condemnation,” he said. 

 

Thawil also accused the DSI of changing and distorting “facts” to suit the new government, adding that the so-called “men in black” who clashed with soldiers on April 10, 2010 had been arrested but some were released on bail and the news was being kept secret from the public. 

However, Thawil did not provide any concrete proof. 

 

Stopping short of directly attacking DSI chief Tarit Pengdith, Thawil said he was also a former member of the now-defunct Centre for Resolution of the Emergency Situation (CRES), which had ordered the crackdown in the first place. Hence, he said, Tarit could be held partially responsible if anything had gone wrong with the conduct of CRES. 

 

Yet, Thawil insisted that CRES did not do anything wrong as such and had, in fact, adhered to international standards in handling protesters in a “careful” manner. The former NSC chief also asked what would happen today if nothing had been done to end the protest at Ratchaprasong intersection. If anyone should be held responsible, Thawil said, then the responsibility and liability should go through the chain of command. 

 

“Officers did not invade [the protest site] but surrounded it and cordoned off the area so no new protesters could join [those at the site],” he said.

 

Thawil also said that there exists a judicial process outside the proper judicial system when it comes to the issue of the 91 deaths. 

 

In a related development, two Army snipers have asked for a postponement of their grilling session with the DSI to next Wednesday. The DSI will also ask the Army to submit all the orders issued by the CRES. DSI deputy chief Prawase Moonpramuk said the department had discovered that the media mentioned some orders issued by the CRES that had not yet been handed to the DSI. 

 

Prawase also said that the department was close to completing the investigation into the deaths of five people in the Bon Kai area. 

 

Meanwhile, an international rights group accused the Army chief yesterday of interfering with the investigation into the 91 deaths. 

 

New York-based Human Rights Watch yesterday issued a statement urging Army commander-in-chief Prayuth Chan-ocha to stay out of the probe into the people killed in the April-May 2010 crackdown. The group accused Prayuth of trying to intimidate investigators and critics in an attempt to halt criticism of the military. 

 

“Abuses by soldiers took place in full view of the Thai public and the world’s media, yet the Thai Army chief is now trying to intimidate investigators and critics into silence,” Brad Adams, Human Rights Watch’s Asia director, said in the statement. 

 

Prayuth has denied that the Army deployed snipers during the crackdown – a claim Adams called “ludicrous”. The rights group cited photographs and videos of soldiers on skyscraper rooftops with telescopic rifles aimed at street protests below. 

 

“Instead of going after critics, [Prayuth] should be ensuring accountability within his ranks,” Adams said. 

 

The Army spokesman did not return any of the several calls seeking comment yesterday. 

Human Rights Watch also expressed concerns that Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s government appeared to be siding with the military, rather than holding it accountable.