Thailand continues to hold Australian refugee footballer after Interpol notice lifted

[webfact]

Thailand continues to hold Australian refugee footballer after Interpol notice lifted

 

Bangkok: Thai immigration authorities are continuing to hold a former Bahraini national soccer player who is an Australian permanent resident despite the lifting of an Interpol red notice.

 

Hakeem al-Araibi was detained on November 27, after arriving at Suvarnabhumi Airport from Australia, as a result of the red notice issued at Bahrain's request.

 

His arrest has prompted fears he will be deported to the Gulf country where his safety would be at risk. The 25-year-old, who was granted asylum status in 2014, has had permanent residency in Australia since 2017 and was entering Thailand on holiday with his wife.

 

Full story: https://www.smh.com.au/national/thailand-extends-detention-of-australian-refugee-footballer-20181204-p50k8g.html

 

-- The Sydney Morning Herald 2018-12-05

[Darcula]

Hmmm. What does Bahrain have that Thailand wants?

[kannot]

10 minutes ago, Darcula said:

Hmmm. What does Bahrain have that Thailand wants?

Sand for Pattaya beach?

[Lungstib]

Came for a holiday and according to one report even checked with the Thai consulate in Melbourne to see if he was safe. Given Thailand history for sending people to countries where they are not wanted and ignoring appeals from a country that will take them, his future is now in doubt. I cant understand why any government would want to get itself embroiled in this type of international issue when all it had to do was, in effect, nothing. A fine case of immigration working to the detriment of a nation.

[ChipButty]

Does Bahrain have the death sentence? is there not some rules regarding extraditing people to a country that still carries out the death sentence? or did Thailand never agree to that?

[Kerryd]

53 minutes ago, ChipButty said:

Does Bahrain have the death sentence? is there not some rules regarding extraditing people to a country that still carries out the death sentence? or did Thailand never agree to that?

Bahrain and Thailand both have the death sentence and Thailand doesn't have any problem with extraditing people to any country that also has the death sentence. Like when they deported those Uighur's back to China a couple years ago.

The only thing I can think of is that the Interpol notice was active when he entered Thailand so possibly Thailand is holding him for entering the country illegally (by lying on a Visa application perhaps) ? I'm guessing that even though he has PR in Australia, he may have been travelling on his Bahrain passport, so he may have had to apply for a Visa to Thailand and if he didn't say anything about being wanted in his home country that could be viewed as lying on the application and thus entering the country illegally.

But I, like everyone else here, don't have all the details so there could be other things at play behind the scenes (on a diplomatic level) between Thailand and Bahrain.

Remember how the USA set up a sting in Thailand to frame a Russian arms dealer and then tried to (illegally) sneak him out of the country while his extradition hearing was still in progress. Bout was arrested by the Thai police, but Thailand couldn't charge him with breaking American laws so instead they charged him with being in the country illegally. That was how they were able to keep him in jail until the case was heard and he was (eventually) extradited to the US. A lot of diplomatic stuff went on behind the scenes (and in public) over that fiasco.

(At one point the Americans even tried to sneak Bout out of jail and onto a plane so they could fly him to the US in secret, before his extradition case was heard in court. They were caught before they could get him on the plane though and I'm sure some people had their hands slapped over that.)

[Langsuan Man]

1 hour ago, ChipButty said:

Does Bahrain have the death sentence? is there not some rules regarding extraditing people to a country that still carries out the death sentence? or did Thailand never agree to that?

Since Thailand has the death penalty, they certainly couldn't use that as an excuse for not returning the guy

 

I think you are thinking about the the EU prohibition against extradition to death penalty countries  

[mickymouse1]

3 hours ago, ChipButty said:

Does Bahrain have the death sentence? is there not some rules regarding extraditing people to a country that still carries out the death sentence? or did Thailand never agree to that?

Both kingdoms do execute certain criminals.This lad is not a criminal though . Thailand should have released him immediately upon the the red alert being revoked. BUT ????