Nordics a tiny minority among 16,000 foreign inmates in Thai prisons

[webfact]

Nordics a tiny minority among 16,000 foreign inmates in Thai prisons


In this file photo, ScandAsia Editor-in-Chief Gregers Moller is briefed by Corrections Department officials about conditions in a typical Thai prison.

BANGKOK: -- There are a small number of citizens of Nordic countries among some 16,000 foreign inmates in Thai prisons, according to Thailand’s Department of Corrections. As of August 2014, nine Swedes, four Danes, three Icelanders, three Norwegians and two Finns were being incarcerated pending trials or serving their sentences, said Manuch Sroypetch of Foreign Affairs sub-bureau, Department of Corrections.

“Generally speaking, inmates from Scandinavia and Finland are well behaved,” Manuch said.

Most of the Nordic citizens in Thai prisons were accused of or convicted for criminal offences, including possession of illicit drugs and credit card frauds. A few are standing trial for violent crimes, such as murder or sexual assault.

According to the Corrections Department’s latest statistics, there are about 300,000 inmates in 143 prisons throughout the country. Overcrowding is among problems that the Corrections Department has been struggling to contain.

Thai prisons use group confinement, no beds, inmates have access to mattress and not much space per person.

Lenient rules for family visits

Foreign inmates are treated no differently from their Thai counterparts.

“But for humanitarian reasons, foreign inmates may be allowed more generous family visitation as their families have to travel a long way at great expenses to see them,” Manuch said. In most cases, the family will be allowed to see the inmates in a private room that can receive 10 relatives under supervision of corrections officials.

“Family members may be allowed to see the inmate everyday during their stay in Thailand. Normally Thai inmates are allowed family visit once or twice a week.”

Inmates have access to library services, taped TV news – not up-to-date programming for security reasons. Letters are censored by prison officials. But inmates have the right to lodge complaints which must be sealed if those complaints are addressed to relevant authorities, such as Office of the Ombudsman or National Human Rights Commission of Thailand.

Transfer back home

Manuch Sroypetch explained that Nordic prisoners, like other foreign inmates, can look forward to being transferred back to their respective home countries after having served a minimum of one-third of their sentences in Thailand, or four years – whichever is the shorter.

Embassy officials from Nordic countries are in regular contact with Thai authorities in ensuring general wellbeing of their citizens and in safeguarding their rights to apply for transfer back to their home countries.

At present, there are no pending transfer requests from Nordic citizens in Thai prisons. Thailand’s Department of Corrections is keen on prisoner transfer because of language barrier that makes communication difficult. Besides, skill training on offer used as rehabilitative measure may not be relevant when inmates leave prison and go back to their home country.

Thailand has signed bilateral prisoner transfer treaties with Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland, along with 31 other countries. To date, 15 Swedes, three Danes, and one Norwegian have been repatriated to serve the remainder of their sentences in their countries of origin thanks to the prisoner transfer treaties.

Under the arrangement, a foreign inmate who qualifies for prisoner transfer has to first give consent, then the relevant authorities in the receiving country will be asked to decide whether to take the prisoner. Next, applications and supporting documents will be submitted to Thailand’s Committee for Consideration of the Transfer of Prisoners, chaired by the Permanent Secretary for Justice, which will decide whether to grant the prisoner transfer request.

In case in which a foreign prisoner is required to pay a fine, make restitution of property, or pay compensation for the cost of damages according to a Court’s judgement in a criminal case or according to the order of a competent authority, then the foreign prisoner shall be required to make full payment of the fine, restitution of the property, or compensation for the damages before the Committee shall issue the order approving the transfer.

Depending on the provisions of the governing treaty, prisoners who are convicted of certain types of crimes (an offense against the person of the Monarch, the Queen, or the Monarch’s son or daughter, an offense against national security from within the Kingdom or outside the Kingdom; or an offense against the laws governing national art treasures) or who have less than a year of time remaining on their sentences – are not eligible for transfer.

Requirement for prisoner transfer

The inmate has already served one-third of the sentence. For example, for a sentence of 9 years, the inmate can apply for transfer after having served three years.

But if the inmate was sentenced to 20 years in prison, he or she will be eligible for transfer request after having served 4 years. That is because the Legislation Procedure for Cooperation Between States in the Execution of Penal Sentences Act B.E. 2527 (1984) says the foreign prisoner must have served a minimum of one-third of period of imprisonment, or four years, whichever is the shorter.

The inmate must have more than one year left to serve in order to qualify.

Source: http://scandasia.com/nordics-a-tiny-minority-among-16000-foreign-inmates-in-thai-prisons/

-- ScandAsia 2014-09-01

[bangkokgabe]

To be certain i don't want to go to prison. If i did have to go though I'm certain I'd prefer thai prisons over the usa....especially my state of louisiana....A white guy has to be very lucky to complete a prison sentence over there in one piece. Not rascist, just a fact.

[chainarong]

Sixteen Thousand foreign inmates seems a high number of people , although adds up to what I have thought for long time , lots come to Thailand to carry out activities they wouldn't dare do back in their home country for one reason or another, especially the sex trade side, they abuse Thailand's hospitality , thinking that because I am not at home I can do what I like, you can till like at home you get caught.

[jmccarty]

Sixteen Thousand foreign inmates seems a high number of people , although adds up to what I have thought for long time , lots come to Thailand to carry out activities they wouldn't dare do back in their home country for one reason or another, especially the sex trade side, they abuse Thailand's hospitality , thinking that because I am not at home I can do what I like, you can till like at home you get caught.

Non-Thai's are more likley being watched by the public than Thai's in any case. Best to be on better behaviour than at home unless you are in a private establishment that encourages bad behaviour! There may be 1 or 2 of those left in Thailand!

[otherstuff1957]

So, how many foreigners are actually in Thai prisons and what countries do they come from?

I couldn't find any current numbers, but here are some statistics from 2009:

TOP 10 OF FOREIGN NATIONALS IN THAI PRISONS (2009)

1. Myanmar (3,787)
2. Lao (1,994)
3. Cambodia (1,445)
4. Malaysia (325)
5. China (252)
6. Singapore (115)
7. Nigeria (94)
8. Taiwan (91)
9. Vietnam (85)
10. Ghana (65)

Not many "Farangs" listed there. Here are the figures for the Farang Prisoners:

Europe: 149
USA: 47
Australia: 15

[Boxclever]

Of the 149 from Europe I bet 130 of them are Brits

[nowork114]

I have been to Bang Kwang prison about a year back (had some installation project there) and have seen a few farangs in leg irons there. We had fairly free movement within the compound (except for the area housing inmates sentenced for life) so I estimated the number to around 20+. It was quite scary experience being just 100m from buzling market yet locked there...

[sanuk711]

Sixteen Thousand foreign inmates seems a high number of people , although adds up to what I have thought for long time , lots come to Thailand to carry out activities they wouldn't dare do back in their home country for one reason or another, especially the sex trade side, they abuse Thailand's hospitality , thinking that because I am not at home I can do what I like, you can till like at home you get caught.

That's 0.69% chainarong....& its all the foreign prisoners but I think your spite is aimed at Caucasians (if its not then my apologies) they make 110 people out of the 16,000---I see "otherstuff1957" has already posted the figures --Thank you ,

That in anyone's mind--are tiny figures --maybe I read you wrong chainarong & you feel that the Burmese/ Cambodians & Laos people are running the "sex trade inside Thailand"

That must be it, because I am quite sure your not the kind of person to put the boot in to an entire race because 110 of their people are in Jail.......................

[pbeieio]

Of the 149 from Europe I bet 130 of them are Brits

I'll bet you they are not you ignoramus!

[Prbkk]

Being repatriated to a Nordic prison would be like an extended stay at a Holiday Inn Express.

[NongKhaiKid]

To be certain i don't want to go to prison. If i did have to go though I'm certain I'd prefer thai prisons over the usa....especially my state of louisiana....A white guy has to be very lucky to complete a prison sentence over there in one piece. Not rascist, just a fact.

I'm sure the prison visitor was shown what needed to be shown not the ' real ' prison conditions.

[waynethor]

Sixteen Thousand foreign inmates seems a high number of people , although adds up to what I have thought for long time , lots come to Thailand to carry out activities they wouldn't dare do back in their home country for one reason or another, especially the sex trade side, they abuse Thailand's hospitality , thinking that because I am not at home I can do what I like, you can till like at home you get caught.

I really have to question that number of 16,000. here's the data from previous years. I can't believe that the foreign prison population has changed that much in 5 years.

Also, I see the NGO's have got into your head. Notice that only 1.34% of prisoners were there for sex offences?

FOREIGN NATIONALS IN THAI PRISONS

2003: 9,797

2004: 8,332 (7,094 male and 1,238 female)

2005: 9,592 (7,674 male and 1,918 female)

2006: 10,408 (8,377 male and 2.031 female)

2007: 7,258 (5,541 male and 1,717 female)

2008: 9, 372 (7,589 male and 1,783 female)

2009: 7,258 (5,541 male and 1,717 female) *

* The year 2009 is not complete

NATIONALITY OF FOREIGN PRISONERS in 2009

Asia: 8,528 (93.81%)

Africa: 274 (3.01%)

Europe: 149 (1.64%)

USA: 47 (12.52%)

Australia: 15 (12.16%)

Minority: 55 (0.6%)

Other: 23 (12.25%)

TOP 10 OF FOREIGN NATIONALS IN THAI PRISONS (2009)

1. Myanmar (3,787)

2. Lao (1,994)

3. Cambodia (1,445)

4. Malaysia (325)

5. China (252)

6. Singapore (115)

7. Nigeria (94)

8. Taiwan (91)

9. Vietnam (85)

10. Ghana (65)

FOREIGN PRISONERS CLASSIFIED BY TYPE OF OFFENSE (June 2009)

Offence Against Narcotics Law – 5,524 (60.76%)

Immigration – 1.423 (15.65%)

Offence Against Property – 681 (7.49%)

Forged documents – 406 (4.47%)

Offence Against Life – 589 (6.48%)

Firearms – 41 (12.45%)

Sex Offence – 122 (1.34%)

Other – 109 (1.2%)

[bangkokgabe]

Im sure youre right...I don't really know I've never been to a thai prison but the ones where I'm from are sub human...it's the other prisoners you have to be wary of.....the gangs run the whole thing...i imagine it's the same here in thailand but the racial issue and inability to move freely inside the prison that make for a living nightmare in the usa...

[Baerboxer]

Of the 149 from Europe I bet 130 of them are Brits

Gambling is illegal in Thailand. Careful or you'll be increasing the number by one not so clever.

[thairay]

Of the 149 from Europe I bet 130 of them are Brits

I'll bet you they are not you ignoramus!

watch out, you can go to prison for gambling

[Emster23]

C'mon Vikings! Get those numbers up to something respectable!

[PaulHamon]

Australia : 140 people for 100,000 population

Thailand : 455 people for 100,000 population

WOW.

[Bangmod]

A few are standing trial for violent crimes, such as murder or sexual assault.

But your numbers only state a few Nordic's.

[steveG]

Of the prisoners from Europe it would be very interesting to know the percentage from each country.

[Suradit69]

“Generally speaking, inmates from Scandinavia and Finland are well behaved,” Manuch said.

Describing those who have committed murder or sexual assault as "well-behaved" may be a slight stretch.

Most of the Nordic citizens in Thai prisons were accused of or convicted for criminal offences, including possession of illicit drugs and credit card frauds. A few are standing trial for violent crimes, such as murder or sexual assault.

Of the prisoners from Europe it would be very interesting to know the percentage from each country.

"...it would be very interesting to know..."

You're being facetious, right?

Edited September 1, 2014 by Suradit69

[Benmart]

Of the 149 from Europe I bet 130 of them are Brits

A guess.

[Bender]

nothing more than a sensationalistic headline

[lvr181]

Sixteen Thousand foreign inmates seems a high number of people , although adds up to what I have thought for long time , lots come to Thailand to carry out activities they wouldn't dare do back in their home country for one reason or another, especially the sex trade side, they abuse Thailand's hospitality , thinking that because I am not at home I can do what I like, you can till like at home you get caught.

I really have to question that number of 16,000. here's the data from previous years. I can't believe that the foreign prison population has changed that much in 5 years.

Also, I see the NGO's have got into your head. Notice that only 1.34% of prisoners were there for sex offences?

FOREIGN NATIONALS IN THAI PRISONS

2003: 9,797

2004: 8,332 (7,094 male and 1,238 female)

2005: 9,592 (7,674 male and 1,918 female)

2006: 10,408 (8,377 male and 2.031 female)

2007: 7,258 (5,541 male and 1,717 female)

2008: 9, 372 (7,589 male and 1,783 female)

2009: 7,258 (5,541 male and 1,717 female) *

* The year 2009 is not complete

NATIONALITY OF FOREIGN PRISONERS in 2009

Asia: 8,528 (93.81%)

Africa: 274 (3.01%)

Europe: 149 (1.64%)

USA: 47 (12.52%)

Australia: 15 (12.16%)

Minority: 55 (0.6%)

Other: 23 (12.25%)

TOP 10 OF FOREIGN NATIONALS IN THAI PRISONS (2009)

1. Myanmar (3,787)

2. Lao (1,994)

3. Cambodia (1,445)

4. Malaysia (325)

5. China (252)

6. Singapore (115)

7. Nigeria (94)

8. Taiwan (91)

9. Vietnam (85)

10. Ghana (65)

FOREIGN PRISONERS CLASSIFIED BY TYPE OF OFFENSE (June 2009)

Offence Against Narcotics Law – 5,524 (60.76%)

Immigration – 1.423 (15.65%)

Offence Against Property – 681 (7.49%)

Forged documents – 406 (4.47%)

Offence Against Life – 589 (6.48%)

Firearms – 41 (12.45%)

Sex Offence – 122 (1.34%)

Other – 109 (1.2%)

Lies, damned lies and statistics! 41 for firearms offences equals 12.45% and yet 122 for sex offences is 1.34%!! Hence my comment.

Makes you wonder if any of the figures mentioned are correct.

[SoFarAndNear]

WOW! And I thought regards to media foreigner criminals are such a big problem in this country.

I don't know new numbers but in Germany in year 2010 22% of all sentences were Foreigners. In 2014 the are 62.000 inmates in German prisons. Population is 80.7 mio.

So you can't really say that Thai has a high foreign inmate rate, especially fa-rang and I guess most are more drug-consume related instead of drug-selling. And anyway most are from neighbor countries.

I would worry more that so many are in jails in Thailand for immigration offences...

Edited September 1, 2014 by SoFarAndNear

[montereyjp]

I am also surprised by the low number of Europeans and those from the western countries.. Since those numbers are from 2008, 2009 does anyone have more recent figures? It is amazing what the NGO's and politicians lead you to believe, specially the low number for sex related crimes... I guess there are issues near the Myanmar and Lao borders that the NGO's can help with but I often wonder why so many are in and around Pattaya...if I was a NGO sign me up for Pattaya duty..Lol..

[csabo]

So, how many foreigners are actually in Thai prisons and what countries do they come from?

I couldn't find any current numbers, but here are some statistics from 2009:

TOP 10 OF FOREIGN NATIONALS IN THAI PRISONS (2009)

1. Myanmar (3,787)

2. Lao (1,994)

3. Cambodia (1,445)

4. Malaysia (325)

5. China (252)

6. Singapore (115)

7. Nigeria (94)

8. Taiwan (91)

9. Vietnam (85)

10. Ghana (65)

Not many "Farangs" listed there. Here are the figures for the Farang Prisoners:

Europe: 149

USA: 47

Australia: 15

When did Europe become a single country?

[Docno]

Sixteen Thousand foreign inmates seems a high number of people , although adds up to what I have thought for long time , lots come to Thailand to carry out activities they wouldn't dare do back in their home country for one reason or another, especially the sex trade side, they abuse Thailand's hospitality , thinking that because I am not at home I can do what I like, you can till like at home you get caught.

I really have to question that number of 16,000. here's the data from previous years. I can't believe that the foreign prison population has changed that much in 5 years.

Also, I see the NGO's have got into your head. Notice that only 1.34% of prisoners were there for sex offences?

FOREIGN NATIONALS IN THAI PRISONS

2003: 9,797

2004: 8,332 (7,094 male and 1,238 female)

2005: 9,592 (7,674 male and 1,918 female)

2006: 10,408 (8,377 male and 2.031 female)

2007: 7,258 (5,541 male and 1,717 female)

2008: 9, 372 (7,589 male and 1,783 female)

2009: 7,258 (5,541 male and 1,717 female) *

* The year 2009 is not complete

NATIONALITY OF FOREIGN PRISONERS in 2009

Asia: 8,528 (93.81%)

Africa: 274 (3.01%)

Europe: 149 (1.64%)

USA: 47 (12.52%)

Australia: 15 (12.16%)

Minority: 55 (0.6%)

Other: 23 (12.25%)

TOP 10 OF FOREIGN NATIONALS IN THAI PRISONS (2009)

1. Myanmar (3,787)

2. Lao (1,994)

3. Cambodia (1,445)

4. Malaysia (325)

5. China (252)

6. Singapore (115)

7. Nigeria (94)

8. Taiwan (91)

9. Vietnam (85)

10. Ghana (65)

FOREIGN PRISONERS CLASSIFIED BY TYPE OF OFFENSE (June 2009)

Offence Against Narcotics Law – 5,524 (60.76%)

Immigration – 1.423 (15.65%)

Offence Against Property – 681 (7.49%)

Forged documents – 406 (4.47%)

Offence Against Life – 589 (6.48%)

Firearms – 41 (12.45%)

Sex Offence – 122 (1.34%)

Other – 109 (1.2%)

Something doesn't add up here. You say 94 Nigerians in prison. Last month it was over 500 for drug trafficking alone (http://www.thaiprisonlife.com/news/over-500-nigerians-in-thai-prisons/). Another piece in 2011 estimated 700 for all crimes! So your numbers for the Nigerian/African contingent seems to be a massive underestimate, even if it is from 2009. That raises questions about the other numbers in your list.

[kalama]

more statistics ( note who is on top by incarceration rate ) :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_incarceration_rate

http://www.prisonstudies.org/highest-to-lowest/foreign-prisoners?field_region_taxonomy_tid=All

[sirineou]

C'mon Vikings! Get those numbers up to something respectable!

What a bunch of slackers,

[sirineou]

Of the 149 from Europe I bet 130 of them are Brits

Actually 127 Brits, do the math

nine Swedes, four Danes, three Icelanders, three Norwegians and two Finns

and one German trying to get them all to march in a straight line

Edited September 1, 2014 by sirineou