Kingdom fares badly in civil justice ranking

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Thailand sits near the bottom in some categories of a ranking of countries by rule of law compiled by a Washington-based think-tank, particularly in civil justice, in which it holds the 80th position out of 97.

Evaluated according to eight criteria by 97,000 members and 2,500 experts in all 97 countries, the World Justice Project (WJP) found Thailand still rated poorly in terms of civil conflict and political violence, and lowest of all in civil justice, partly because of delays in processing cases and difficulties enforcing court decisions.

Australia, Japan, New Zealand and Singapore lead the East Asia and Pacific region in most dimensions of the rule of law, the WJP said of its index this year, which was released on Wednesday.

Details of Thailand's WJP ranking in previous years were not immediately available.

Thailand's scores in the eight criteria - higher numbers indicate poorer performance - were: limited government powers, 55/97; absence of corruption, 65/97; order and security, 71/97; fundamental rights, 38/97; open government, 42/97; regulatory enforcement, 53/97; civil justice, 80/97 (the country's lowest score); and criminal justice, 35/97.

"Achieving the rule of law is a constant challenge and a work in progress in all countries," said WJP founder William Neukom. "The WJP's Rule of Law Index is not designed to shame or blame, but to provide useful reference points for countries in the same regions, with comparable legal cultures and similar income levels."

According to the report, "Thailand earns high marks on absence of crime and effectiveness of the criminal justice system (ranking fifth globally and seventh among its income peers). However, civil conflict and political violence are significant problems.

"Corruption is common, particularly within the legislature and the police.

"The country's lowest scores are in the dimension of civil justice (ranking 80th), partly because of delays in processing cases and difficulties in enforcing court decisions."

-- The Nation 2012-12-01

No shocks there, miracle Thailand!

Japan is one of the countries leading the region in justice? Stroll on, even if you did not commit the crime there, you could be liable to having your collar felt. That justice is swift there is all to do with nailing someone and looking good. No thanks. And Singapore; as clean and swish as it is, drop some litter or eat food on the MRT, then look out. No thanks. Australia, no thanks.

"Corruption is common, particularly within the legislature and the police.

absolute nonsense, I think it's time for a spurious libel suit to keep these people quiet.

Japan is one of the countries leading the region in justice? Stroll on, even if you did not commit the crime there, you could be liable to having your collar felt. That justice is swift there is all to do with nailing someone and looking good. No thanks. And Singapore; as clean and swish as it is, drop some litter or eat food on the MRT, then look out. No thanks. Australia, no thanks.

We all have opinions but I enjoy the cleanliness of Singapore And there are those well known "Litter Police" stings in Bangkok- drop a piece of trash and you are fined 2,000 baht.

In Pattaya I see the local government upgrading the storm sewers; however, they seem to quickly fill up and become blocked with trash.

Some enforcement/civil obedience is no more than consideration for others.Have you crossed the street at a pedestrian crossing (Zebra stripes) lately and have all the drivers yield to you? Yeah, I know the retort "I've lived here for 10+ years and never had a problem in Thailand..."

:)

And Singapore; as clean and swish as it is, drop some litter or eat food on the MRT, then look out. No thanks.

And thats a problem? You like dropping litter, or places where it is strewn around rotting in the sun? Or sitting in a seat on the BTS that has had chocolate milk spilled on it?

"Corruption is common, particularly within the legislature and the police.

Surely this can't be correct. I'm sure that all of those police generals that are PT MP's and Cabinet members are all above reproach.

There's something missing in the report. I can't see the word "hub".

Hub of Civil Injustice?

Hope the Prime minister gets a copy of this on her desk and does something about it.

Hope the Prime minister gets a copy of this on her desk and does something about it.

Sure thing, that is gonna happen ... as soon as hell freezes over

Hope the Prime minister gets a copy of this on her desk and does something about it.

She has already addressed the council of prosecutors at the beginning of November. Earlier thread in TV.

The Prime Minister spoke about the Rule of law in her remarks at the 17th Annual Conference and General Meeting of the International Association of Prosecutors

The talking has happened, now for the hard part, walk the walk.

Hope the Prime minister gets a copy of this on her desk and does something about it.

As John McEnroe might have said: 'You cannot be SERIOUS!! She's not part of the SOLUTION - she's part of the PROBLEM !"

Edited December 1, 201213 yr by GazR

And Singapore; as clean and swish as it is, drop some litter or eat food on the MRT, then look out. No thanks.

If you drop litter in Singapore you receive a fine.

Better than paying the cops a bribe when they try and extort and the benefits are obvious. After all, it works.

Singaporeans live closely together and most understand the need for these laws, especially with a large, uneducated, immigrant workforce from countries (similar to Thailand) where such laws don't exist or are just ignored.

Nowadays there are so many immigrant Chinese from the mainland that Singaporeans are getting sick of it. Visa and immigration laws have been tightened as a result but you can regularly see mainland Chinese spitting, littering and taking food onto the MRT.

The severity of Singaporean laws is necessary and is to be applauded IMO.

And Singapore; as clean and swish as it is, drop some litter or eat food on the MRT, then look out. No thanks.

And thats a problem? You like dropping litter, or places where it is strewn around rotting in the sun? Or sitting in a seat on the BTS that has had chocolate milk spilled on it?

Probably those who like littering must have come from a country practising such habit..

And Singapore; as clean and swish as it is, drop some litter or eat food on the MRT, then look out. No thanks.

If you drop litter in Singapore you receive a fine.

Better than paying the cops a bribe when they try and extort and the benefits are obvious. After all, it works.

Singaporeans live closely together and most understand the need for these laws, especially with a large, uneducated, immigrant workforce from countries (similar to Thailand) where such laws don't exist or are just ignored.

Nowadays there are so many immigrant Chinese from the mainland that Singaporeans are getting sick of it. Visa and immigration laws have been tightened as a result but you can regularly see mainland Chinese spitting, littering and taking food onto the MRT.

The severity of Singaporean laws is necessary and is to be applauded IMO.

Singaporeans don't have much else to do. They have no emotional well being at all according to a recent survey.. Life to them is all about money, what a life!!

Social engineering by PAP in Singapore stinks and is rotten to the core.. I don't understand why ppl thinks Singapore is the best place on earth. After living there for 12 odd years.. you can keep the country.. I would never go back to Singapore for all the tea in China

Not intended to shame and blame but it doesn an excellent job.

I'm interested in the hell holes that nestle below Thailand in the list.

Parts of war torn Africa I expect. Haiti I wouldn't expect much of. Most of what ends in .... ishstan and where they are fighting in the streets. Forgot. That does include Thailand.

I've always said Thailand doesn't hit home until you fall foul of the law, legal system, police. Howeevr, it manifests itself when it goes wrong here how deeply you will yearn for those home shores you rejected for this accident waiting to swallow you whole.

As for 80th .............. has the country climbed the ladder or dropped a few places?

Does any body care?

And Singapore; as clean and swish as it is, drop some litter or eat food on the MRT, then look out. No thanks.

If you drop litter in Singapore you receive a fine.

Better than paying the cops a bribe when they try and extort and the benefits are obvious. After all, it works.

Singaporeans live closely together and most understand the need for these laws, especially with a large, uneducated, immigrant workforce from countries (similar to Thailand) where such laws don't exist or are just ignored.

Nowadays there are so many immigrant Chinese from the mainland that Singaporeans are getting sick of it. Visa and immigration laws have been tightened as a result but you can regularly see mainland Chinese spitting, littering and taking food onto the MRT.

The severity of Singaporean laws is necessary and is to be applauded IMO.

Singaporeans don't have much else to do. They have no emotional well being at all according to a recent survey.. Life to them is all about money, what a life!!

Social engineering by PAP in Singapore stinks and is rotten to the core.. I don't understand why ppl thinks Singapore is the best place on earth. After living there for 12 odd years.. you can keep the country.. I would never go back to Singapore for all the tea in China

Or all the rice in Thailand.

Details of Thailand's WJP ranking in previous years were not immediately available.

They don't know how to use google?

http://www.scribd.com/doc/57978914/The-World-Justice-Project-Rule-of-Law-Index-2011

I haven't had time to read it. Maybe they were a bit rushed to.

Hope the Prime minister gets a copy of this on her desk and does something about it.

She's so pro-active that she solved the problem already.

What..? You didn't notice any change?

"Corruption is common, particularly within the legislature and the police.

absolute nonsense, I think it's time for a spurious libel suit to keep these people quiet.

That's right, or even a completely frivolous one!

Suprised the Foreign Volunteer Force with all their experience of policing in Western countrys have not made any in roads into this.

No shocks there, miracle Thailand!

The surprise is that they did so well in criminal justice.

I wonder if they realize this is a huge loss of face in the international community.

"Thailand earns high marks on absence of crime and effectiveness of the criminal justice system (ranking fifth globally and seventh among its income peers)"

Is that even possible???

"Corruption is common, particularly within the legislature and the police.

Surely this can't be correct. I'm sure that all of those police generals that are PT MP's and Cabinet members are all above reproach.

Yeap, when they have immunity.

Japan is one of the countries leading the region in justice? Stroll on, even if you did not commit the crime there, you could be liable to having your collar felt. That justice is swift there is all to do with nailing someone and looking good. No thanks. And Singapore; as clean and swish as it is, drop some litter or eat food on the MRT, then look out. No thanks. Australia, no thanks.

We all have opinions but I enjoy the cleanliness of Singapore And there are those well known "Litter Police" stings in Bangkok- drop a piece of trash and you are fined 2,000 baht.

In Pattaya I see the local government upgrading the storm sewers; however, they seem to quickly fill up and become blocked with trash.

Some enforcement/civil obedience is no more than consideration for others.Have you crossed the street at a pedestrian crossing (Zebra stripes) lately and have all the drivers yield to you? Yeah, I know the retort "I've lived here for 10+ years and never had a problem in Thailand..."

you need to get out more..10 years locked up in your house is a long time

Hope the Prime minister gets a copy of this on her desk and does something about it.

And I hope I win the lottery, even without buying a ticket :-D

"Thailand earns high marks on absence of crime and effectiveness of the criminal justice system (ranking fifth globally and seventh among its income peers)"

Is that even possible???

"Thailand earns high marks on absence of crime and effectiveness of the criminal justice system (ranking fifth globally and seventh among its income peers)"

Is that even possible???

Because in Thailand criminal justice normally applies to little people.

Criminal cases involving important people, the few that actually reach that stage, are very few and don´t make that much of an impact on the overall statistics.

Japan is one of the countries leading the region in justice? Stroll on, even if you did not commit the crime there, you could be liable to having your collar felt. That justice is swift there is all to do with nailing someone and looking good. No thanks. And Singapore; as clean and swish as it is, drop some litter or eat food on the MRT, then look out. No thanks. Australia, no thanks.

We all have opinions but I enjoy the cleanliness of Singapore And there are those well known "Litter Police" stings in Bangkok- drop a piece of trash and you are fined 2,000 baht.

In Pattaya I see the local government upgrading the storm sewers; however, they seem to quickly fill up and become blocked with trash.

Some enforcement/civil obedience is no more than consideration for others.Have you crossed the street at a pedestrian crossing (Zebra stripes) lately and have all the drivers yield to you? Yeah, I know the retort "I've lived here for 10+ years and never had a problem in Thailand..."

[/quote

Yes but what is the most worrying thing? IMHO it is the abysmal civil justice score - couldn't really be much worse could it. Having attended a few cases involving foreigners in the past 12 months I can honestly say the courts are horrendously biased, corruption is endemic on the face of it if you cannot trust police to write a report correctly, take care of the case papers, not tip off the other side then who do you turn to? The lawyers are at the same game sacrificing your case for a small corruption payment and if you are foreign you are most unlikely to pick it up.. The police won't even make an arrest without a bribe even if you present the criminal with a valid court arrest warrant; I cannot see why any country would entice businesses to invest here when there is little to no chance of getting justice. How would you ever enforce a contract - the most basic of business transactions.

You would think the Embassies might be making some attempt at enlightening their businesses to avoid this place like the plaque. Plague being a good word - a plague of corruption and a civil justice system that has been abrogated to corrupt groups.

"Thailand earns high marks on absence of crime and effectiveness of the criminal justice system (ranking fifth globally and seventh among its income peers)"

Is that even possible???

"Thailand earns high marks on absence of crime and effectiveness of the criminal justice system (ranking fifth globally and seventh among its income peers)"

Is that even possible???

Because in Thailand criminal justice normally applies to little people.

Criminal cases involving important people, the few that actually reach that stage, are very few and don´t make that much of an impact on the overall statistics.

I still don't understand how you can be ranked fifth in the world for something yet only seventh in a subset of it.