Thai Ambassador Chosen As New Head Of UN Human Rights Council

[webfact]

UN HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL

Thai ambassador chosen as new head of UNHRC

Sihasak Phuangketkeow, Thailand's Ambassador to the United Nations Office in Geneva was named on Monday as the newest President of the UN Human Rights Council.

The UNHRC is the panel formed in 2006 to tackle human rights violations worldwide.

Sihasak becomes the fifth president of the 47-member Council, which replaced the earlier UN Commission on Human Rights that was scrapped amid concerns about its effectiveness.

He was the candidate of the panel's Asian members.

Sihasak told the Council in Geneva Monday that he wanted to concentrate over the next year on how members can use their "rich diversity" to forge a more united agenda on key human rights issues.

Council members "need to draw synergy from such diversity, recognizing that human rights are indeed universal, indivisible and interdependent, and recognizing� that we all share a common stake in the credibility and effectiveness of the Council as a whole," he said.

He succeeds Alex van Meeuwen of Belgium as the Council's President.

Sihasak was former Thai foreign ministry's spokesman and deputy permanent secretary.

-- The Nation 2010-06-22

[Musongman]

That's a brilliant choice...NOT!!

[basjke]

Very good choice.

I assume that with his appointment now human rights will also be introduced in Thailand.

[Chiangmai Cheers]

Perhaps Thaksin would have been an even better choice.

[gotlost]

I'll bet he did not get the US vote.

[jayboy]

I have no issue with this Thai diplomat.

However the council itself has an appalling record of hypocrisy and selective indignation.

[Payboy]

The lunatics have taken over the asylum.

[jackdawson]

i mean , could u make the s h * t up ?

[Thai at Heart]

Seems as though Thai politics ins't the only place where the inexplicable happens.

How can a country that only a year or so ago sent refugees out to sea in barges with no provisions end up with a representative as HEAD of the Human Rights Council? Maybe I am still asleep and it will all be a comedy/bad dream.

[lowbo]

same S H * T, different day!

[geriatrickid]

Excellent timing.

In an open letter AHRC director Basil Fernando said that AHRC and other concerned organisations and individuals have voiced outrage at the shackling and otherwise barbaric treatment of accused criminal prisoners in Thailand. (Their adjectives, not mine.) Basically the letter cites two examples of non - implicated citizens caught in the crossfire that have been accused of being terrorists. Despite there being no firm evidence that they were even protestors, they were interrogated while still under anaesthsia after surgery to remove bullets and then shackled to their beds.

Perhaps the Ambassador should immediately return to Thailand to investigate.

And people wonder why the UN has zero credibility with the taxpayers in the nations that provide most of the UN's budget.

[Hardback]

Practice what you preach

[invex]

This is the world we live in; you and me cannot change this.

It is all about money and power, as simple as that.

He is there to put the cover on the pot for Thailand. Many issues you will not hear from anymore. Remember the truck and the killings at the temple in the South, under Thaksin? Remember the drug related killings? The people left with nothing in open sea..... the..........

Mark my words; not hear of anymore or investigation will finish and nobody to blame coz lack of proof. blablabla

This cover up happens every day, around the clock and around the world, and right now in the (Gulf) States.

[eggomaniac]

Maybe he can start with implementing freedom of speech in Thailand and look at all of the exiled Thais, and those in jail, who cannot even visit their homes, because they spoke the truth as guided by Buddhist principles of speaking honestly.

Have none of the political prisoners ever using religious freedom as a defense?

[Carib]

Ofcourse it should have been someone from a `developed` country, maybe a country with secret prisons all over the world and torturing outside their own country to keep it nice and clean and according to the internal laws.

Or he should have come from a country which is starving people they don't like by denying them supplies, or by a country ....or.. on and on and on and on.............

I don't think the smuck reactions here can all be justified by the behaviour of the so called developed nations. When push come to shove and taking a real good look, some nations calling themselves civilised are plain barbaric.

Please drop the holier then thou mentality.

[juanmedin]

And the Cuban ambassador as vicepresident. A match made in heaven!

[yesdavy]

i mean , could u make the s h * t up ?

If it were a novel or a movie, suspension of disbelief would fly out the window, books would be put down, audiences would leave theaters. Do you think maybe he introduced them to the concept of paying for a promotion to head a council at the UN? Then again, this guy could turn out to be legitimately principled and he should not be judged, yet, based on any actions of his home country, because he may rise to the occasion and bring about positive change in some way.

[mazeltov]

Taken from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs special page on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Thailand's Human Rights Commitments and Pledges

[mazeltov]

Excellent timing.

In an open letter AHRC director Basil Fernando said that AHRC and other concerned organisations and individuals have voiced outrage at the shackling and otherwise barbaric treatment of accused criminal prisoners in Thailand. (Their adjectives, not mine.) Basically the letter cites two examples of non - implicated citizens caught in the crossfire that have been accused of being terrorists. Despite there being no firm evidence that they were even protestors, they were interrogated while still under anaesthsia after surgery to remove bullets and then shackled to their beds.

Perhaps the Ambassador should immediately return to Thailand to investigate.

And people wonder why the UN has zero credibility with the taxpayers in the nations that provide most of the UN's budget.

An Open Letter to the Prime Minister of Thailand by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)

Dear Mr. Abhisit

THAILAND: Chaining of wounded detainees under Emergency Decree

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is writing to you regarding the treatment of detainees under the state of emergency that your government has imposed in Bangkok and other provinces of Thailand in response to protests that gripped the capital in recent months. (photo: Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva , source:Prime Minister Media office)

The AHRC has numerous grave concerns regarding circumstances of arrest and detention under the state of emergency imposed via the Emergency Decree BE 2548 (2005), which the AHRC strongly opposed from the time of its introduction under the government of your predecessor, Pol. Lt. Col. Thaksin Shinawatra.

One of these concerns relates to the highly problematic provision that detainees under the decree not be held in official places of detention by virtue of their peculiar legal status as persons under custody but not charged with any offences. According to information currently available through various sources, among detainees being held in non-official detention facilities are persons who were wounded during the protests, who are being held in separate wards in medical facilities, and who are allegedly being chained to their beds.

...

to continue to read the full statement go to:

[AHRC Open Letter] THAILAND: Chaining of wounded detainees under Emergency Decree

[Colabamumbai]

Congratulations to the U.N. for giving this position to a Thai. Hopefully it will also improve things in Thailand. Maybe that is the reasoning behind it.

[Bakseedaa]

Excellent timing.

In an open letter AHRC director Basil Fernando said that AHRC and other concerned organisations and individuals have voiced outrage at the shackling and otherwise barbaric treatment of accused criminal prisoners in Thailand. (Their adjectives, not mine.) Basically the letter cites two examples of non - implicated citizens caught in the crossfire that have been accused of being terrorists. Despite there being no firm evidence that they were even protestors, they were interrogated while still under anaesthsia after surgery to remove bullets and then shackled to their beds.

Perhaps the Ambassador should immediately return to Thailand to investigate.

And people wonder why the UN has zero credibility with the taxpayers in the nations that provide most of the UN's budget.

Are you making this up again, or do you have some proof... show us where you found these claims... you never have any links to back up your statements...

[Bakseedaa]

Excellent timing.

In an open letter AHRC director Basil Fernando said that AHRC and other concerned organisations and individuals have voiced outrage at the shackling and otherwise barbaric treatment of accused criminal prisoners in Thailand. (Their adjectives, not mine.) Basically the letter cites two examples of non - implicated citizens caught in the crossfire that have been accused of being terrorists. Despite there being no firm evidence that they were even protestors, they were interrogated while still under anaesthsia after surgery to remove bullets and then shackled to their beds.

Perhaps the Ambassador should immediately return to Thailand to investigate.

And people wonder why the UN has zero credibility with the taxpayers in the nations that provide most of the UN's budget.

An Open Letter to the Prime Minister of Thailand by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)

Dear Mr. Abhisit

THAILAND: Chaining of wounded detainees under Emergency Decree

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is writing to you regarding the treatment of detainees under the state of emergency that your government has imposed in Bangkok and other provinces of Thailand in response to protests that gripped the capital in recent months. (photo: Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva , source:Prime Minister Media office)

The AHRC has numerous grave concerns regarding circumstances of arrest and detention under the state of emergency imposed via the Emergency Decree BE 2548 (2005), which the AHRC strongly opposed from the time of its introduction under the government of your predecessor, Pol. Lt. Col. Thaksin Shinawatra.

One of these concerns relates to the highly problematic provision that detainees under the decree not be held in official places of detention by virtue of their peculiar legal status as persons under custody but not charged with any offences. According to information currently available through various sources, among detainees being held in non-official detention facilities are persons who were wounded during the protests, who are being held in separate wards in medical facilities, and who are allegedly being chained to their beds.

...

to continue to read the full statement go to:

[AHRC Open Letter] THAILAND: Chaining of wounded detainees under Emergency Decree

Exactly the same thing happens in Victoria State in Australia... and many other places with dangerous prisoners..

[geriatrickid]

Are you making this up again, or do you have some proof... show us where you found these claims... you never have any links to back up your statements...

First you accuse me of making my statement up, but prior to this someone provides an image of the leg shackles along with the formal complaint and then you immediately go into spin control with an ineffective attempt to justify the action with this comment;

Exactly the same thing happens in Victoria State in Australia... and many other places with dangerous prisoners..

Please note the following;

1. You claim that I never have any links to back up my statements. False. I am usually faulted for having posts that are too long because I do indeed usually provide documentation. In this case, as the story was all over the news and discussed in detail (except at nation media outlets), I did not think it necessary to repost. However, I thank mazel tov for posting the letter and photos.

2. The shackling of hospital inmates under these circumstances is not acceptable in Australia, or most other countries for that matter,but there are guidelines that apply, despite sensational articles to the contrary. Prisoners receiving care in hospitals in many western nations can be shackled to hospital beds. However, this is done for two reasons and the situation is not comparable to the Thai case(s);

a. Workers Compensation regulations and/or workplace safety rules and/or collective agreements with prison guard unions require that prisoners that present a risk to staff at the hospital or to others require such methods. A nurse or physician cannot be expected to work in close proximity to a violent offender unless preventative measures are taken. Do you understand that there is a problem with Hepatitis B & C & HIV in many prisons? Prison guards have to deal with inmates spitting or throwing blood and feces at them. Many inmates in western prisons are mentally ill and this is how the prison system copes with society's decision to use prisons as a dumping ground for the mentally ill. The Thai patients in this case did notpresent a physical threat. Look at the charges. They were not accused of terrorism, but of assembling unlawfully. Hello? Do you understand the charges? These were not violent offenders.

b. Much is made of the shackling of some female inmates in the USA during "labour" as they are transported to a hospital or even while in a hospital. What is not mentioned is that the restraints are used mostly during transport. Hospital staff usually require the removal of restraints during procedures, unless there is a demonstrable threat and it is the health staff that makes the assessment, Almost all restraints used are at least 1 m in length, which is considerably longer than the chains used for the Thai prisoners. There are special restraints used in Australia, Canada, USA etc. that incorporate material that will not dig into the flesh nor constrict circulation. That is not the case with the Thai prisoners

You offer the argument that what has occurred in Thailand is ok because it is common in Libya, North Korea, Iran, etc. Please keep in mind that there is no evidence that the people that were shot and subsequently shackled to their hospital beds were carrying arms or engaged in violent activities. The two young men were apparently caught in the crossfire, in the wrong place at the wrong time. I might be more sympathetic to your position if the accused had indeed been killers on the rampage and had a likelihood of killing or attacking people. However, there is nothing the two accuseds' background to support that link. Do you have evidence to show that these two have a criminal history of violent acts? Again I remind you, that these 2 at the time were not charged with a violent crime.

In Thailand, if one is poor and without connections, justice sometimes is handed out differently. Are you aware that the two prisoners in the photos are Bangkok residents? They did not come down down from Issan for the party. Tell me how these two kids were violent protestors worthy of being restrained as violent offenders?

Nattapon was reportedly shot three times in front of the Lumpini Police Station on 14 May 2010. According to Nattapon, around noon on 14 May he and his friends were driving motorbikes from Petchburi Road to meet friends at Sathorn Road. When they reached the area in front of Lumpini Police Station, a group of protestors were burning a police bus on Wireless Road. When soldiers shot into the group of protestors, a shotgun blast went into his shoulder, and an M16 bullet went into his hand. He tried to get up to ask for help, but another shotgun blast hit his left leg. The protestors brought him to the Police Hospital. Nattapon explained that one day after that, as he was coming out of anaesthesia following surgery, police came to interrogate him. They accused him of violating the Emergency Decree. He was moved from a bed for ordinary people to a room for people facing accusations; there was another injured protestor in the room with him. He has since been shackled to his bed, guarded by police officers and allowed only short visits from family.

Jaran was reportedly shot twice at Pratunam intersection on 19 May 2010. The first shot was from a shotgun and was embedded in his left leg. The second bullet was from an M16 and went through his hand. According to Jaran, on the afternoon of 19 May, he was walking towards the area of Pratunam intersection. He saw a group of 4-5 soldiers walking about 20 metres in front of him. He was afraid and so he began to run away. But this group of soldiers shot at him. Jaran said that after he was hit by the shotgun he tried to get up and run again and the soldiers shot him with the M16. Jaran has also reportedly been shackled to the hospital bed, and he is being guarded by police officers

Know what? I think these two people were shot in error, collateral damage if you will. It happens. Sometimes it's not the police or army's fault. When people are all over the place and there is confusion, civilian non combatants usually end up dead or injured. Instead of responding to the error, the authorities are trying to prevent a loss of face and proceeding as if these guys were urban rambos.

Edited June 22, 2010 by geriatrickid

[asiawatcher]

Excellent timing.

In an open letter AHRC director Basil Fernando said that AHRC and other concerned organisations and individuals have voiced outrage at the shackling and otherwise barbaric treatment of accused criminal prisoners in Thailand. (Their adjectives, not mine.) Basically the letter cites two examples of non - implicated citizens caught in the crossfire that have been accused of being terrorists. Despite there being no firm evidence that they were even protestors, they were interrogated while still under anaesthsia after surgery to remove bullets and then shackled to their beds.

Perhaps the Ambassador should immediately return to Thailand to investigate.

And people wonder why the UN has zero credibility with the taxpayers in the nations that provide most of the UN's budget.

An Open Letter to the Prime Minister of Thailand by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)

Dear Mr. Abhisit

THAILAND: Chaining of wounded detainees under Emergency Decree

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is writing to you regarding the treatment of detainees under the state of emergency that your government has imposed in Bangkok and other provinces of Thailand in response to protests that gripped the capital in recent months. (photo: Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva , source:Prime Minister Media office)

The AHRC has numerous grave concerns regarding circumstances of arrest and detention under the state of emergency imposed via the Emergency Decree BE 2548 (2005), which the AHRC strongly opposed from the time of its introduction under the government of your predecessor, Pol. Lt. Col. Thaksin Shinawatra.

One of these concerns relates to the highly problematic provision that detainees under the decree not be held in official places of detention by virtue of their peculiar legal status as persons under custody but not charged with any offences. According to information currently available through various sources, among detainees being held in non-official detention facilities are persons who were wounded during the protests, who are being held in separate wards in medical facilities, and who are allegedly being chained to their beds.

...

to continue to read the full statement go to:

[AHRC Open Letter] THAILAND: Chaining of wounded detainees under Emergency Decree

Shackled or not, guilty or not, the human race is dastardly in its treatment of others. But the UN is a complete farce. However, having said that, a lady in Thailand had hit her husband over the head with a cooking pot and the police grabbed him whilst unconscious in hospital and then on her complaint of beating her family and children, chained him to a bed. His brother paid off the police who removed his chains and the man returned to his home and executed his wife and two children. So as a precaution, would suggest if they were at the rally site perhaps they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Considering the disposition of the police (tomatoes) there is more to this than meets the eye! So before we all run in and call 'foul' any prisoner can and will be able to be chained to a bed. And this is what 'stage' it is at! Let time solve the issue. They have roof over their head, are being fed and are receiving medial attention so not all bad! Not many purported terrorists would be treated like this despite the shackles.

[Ulysses G.]

the UN is a complete farce.  

That's for sure.

[hideki]

The rest of the AHRC letter that mazeltov posted in another thread yesterday... and AHRC's shortcomings in that regard addressed today in that thread:

Two cases reported in the media in recent days were of Mr. Jaran Loiphun (age 39) and Mr. Nattapon Thongkhun (age 20), of Bangkok, both of whom were shot during the military crackdown on the Ratchaprasong protest.

Nattapon was reportedly shot three times in front of the Lumpini Police Station on 14 May 2010. According to Nattapon, around noon on 14 May he and his friends were driving motorbikes from Petchburi Road to meet friends at Sathorn Road. When they reached the area in front of Lumpini Police Station, a group of protestors were burning a police bus on Wireless Road. When soldiers shot into the group of protestors, a shotgun blast went into his shoulder, and an M16 bullet went into his hand. He tried to get up to ask for help, but another shotgun blast hit his left leg.

The AHRC letter says that Mr. Nattapon was shot 3 times (twice with a "shotgun" and once with a M-16). In the photo he is pointing at the wound on his left leg (the last of the "shotgun" wounds mentioned in the AHRC report. Now it doesn't take a forensic pathologist to surmise that the blemish on his left leg was left by a rubber bullet and not a "shotgun" wound.

To me it's pretty clear that they were not hit by conventional shotgun shells (be they shotgun pellets or shotgun slug), but were hit by rubber bullets.

The AHRC is taking rather dramatic license with the term "shotgun blast".

Exactly the same thing happens in Victoria State in Australia... and many other places with dangerous prisoners..

A sampling of the whole lot of other places, too (links in the other thread):

Belgium

USA

India

UK

Kenya

[Bagwan]

Very good choice.

I assume that with his appointment now human rights will also be introduced in Thailand.

Don't hold your breath. 

Can we assume that no African politician or Muslim cleric wanted to the job? 

 

[monkfish]

Have to agree the UN is a farce they did nothing at all to stop the massacres in Thailand.

[monkfish]

Taken from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs special page on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Thailand's Human Rights Commitments and Pledges

His face is so sweet you can almost believe what he's saying.

[simon43]

So where does this appointment leave Thailand, as far as investigating charges of human rights abuses committed during the government/redshirt clashes in Bangkok?

My understanding was that there had been calls for the UN to investigate abuses committed by both sides. I presume that the chances of having an external, independent enquiry on these incidents, (and possibly future incidents) is now rather unlikely.

Whilst no country can claim to be 100% free of human rights abuses, I find it very disturbing that a country which has severe internal problems (Redshirts, Yellowshirts, Deep South issues etc), and resulting human rights abuses, can be leading the UN Human Rights Council.

Simon