Why doubt the nurse yet believe the authorities?

Letter-writer A Johnsen reckons that the credibility of the recently detained medical nurse as a neutral eyewitness to the fatal shootings at Wat Pathumwanaram is undermined by the fact that she has been seen making the three-fingered salute, which marks her out as an “activist”.

Well, I can appreciate that an eyewitness’s credibility might be affected by their political leanings, but that approach can work both ways. There have been repeated denials by politicians in power at the time, and senior military figures, that the Army had anything to do with these shootings, but I do not recall Mr Johnsen ever challenging their credibility.

It is worth bearing in mind that this nurse is not the only eyewitness to these tragic events. It is to be hoped that, eventually, once all the available evidence has been gathered and analysed, those responsible for these needless deaths will be identified and brought to justice.

Robin Grant