Koh Tao murders: Petition seeking new probe to be handed to PM David Cameron

[Ve37]

Over 80,000 signatures last time I looked.

Finally,....this is a huge difference from a deputy foreign minister summoning an NCPO diplomat like last week. Wonder what Gen Prayuth's astrologer thinks about it.

[kleelof]

A completely useless gesture. One country cannot just walk into another country and start investigating a murder.

It seems Thailand is set on moving forward no matter the circumstances. The best thing anyone can do is get their hands into the trial where they, hopefully, they can persuade the court to consider the flaws in the case.

[Carrerakiss]

It's shocking to see how official government announcements, many on behalf of the PM himself, are so distorted as to be untrue or are just flatly untrue.

First attributing comments to the British Ambassador that he denies making, the latest that there was a meeting between the UK and Myanmar representatives, that the Thai Foreign Office " mediated".

Mediated?

Add to the above the conflicting statements coming from the PM, some on the SAME day, and the credibility of the Thais must be less than zero in the eyes of the British. If they can't trust the PM, why would they trust the BIB?

[SteveFong]

What we have here a basic case of FACE, the Thais have probably screwed up and cocked up a simple investigation of murder of two people and as they are harassed to find the killers they have managed/ manipulated and concocted a scenario that fits in with their bumbling investigation, at no time are they intending nor will they ever admit that they are wrong and they dare the world to do that, and as they hold all the evidence with the inept and corrupt practices then evidence can be and probably has been manipulated to fit the current situation.

Thailand being asovreign nation it is hard for anyone to call foul without insulting the Government and that is something most countries will not do .

The public quite rightly being Thai do not really want an outside investigation or even corroboration to the investigation as they deep down are fully aware that it is probably flawed. The problem here is the NEW PM's refusal and insistence that all is OK when he must know it is NOT, so again scapegoats will pay the price and to make it go away they may well pay the ultimate price, by dying in custody , made to be seen as suicide which will exonerate the Police and pour blame on them with no legal and public reply. As dead men in Thailand cannot talk. As they are also illegal than it is a fait accompli and it will go the way of the Dodo.

I don't think it's just a case of the BIB being harassed to find a culprit. It seems to me to be a case of a known culprit being replaced by scapegoats.

Just look at some of the initial evidence and announcements. Arguments with locals, a local fleeing on the first boat out etc etc, all pointing to a local person. Then it all went dead. Nothing mattered but migrants. Any other leads were ignored.

the police stopped a speedboat, racing from the scene towards bangkok,

surely, it was spotted by helicopter first, so they knew where it was coming from

then there is the headmans statement that said his son had already left the island before the murders, and the son himself saying he was never there,

there was the two guys hiding in the cave that were so stoned they couldnt speak, which, is what killers often do,

but instead,

two young kids, with everything to lose, who were sleeping at the time of the murder, are being paraded to the world

how do you say, what idiots, in Thai?

[kkup]

Why doesn't someone find out from Britain if they took sample DNA from both bodies after they left Thailand. If they did I don't see why it's so hard to take a hair / saliva from the suspects send it to the lab in UK and see if it matches the victims, just get it done for Christ sake and put everyone out of their misery. Doesn't even need any permission from Thailand.

If DNA from the bodies was not independently analysed in Britain when they were taken back then no one can do anything, the case is closed, end of story.

[mattk1]

Can anybody put a link to the site where I can sign the petition? I really want to sign it but I can only seem to find Thai language sites :-/

Thanks

[dieseldave1951]

a brave statement i wonder if was your brother if you would say the same, maybe your business is suffering just like most of us

but unlike you we BELIVE in fair play, the only one who will forget will be you as by your statement you are an uncaring unfeeling posterior

Get 'em tried, incarcerated and hopefully it will all fade into insignificance soon......and the world will forget!

[BoristheBlade]

Just imagine that if the British have DNA from ALL the relevant parties, and I believe they do, wait until after the "Trial" verdict.

The two Burmese are convicted....24 hours later the British reveal their findings! WAM BAM!!

[jaidam]

What we have here a basic case of FACE, the Thais have probably screwed up and cocked up a simple investigation of murder of two people and as they are harassed to find the killers they have managed/ manipulated and concocted a scenario that fits in with their bumbling investigation, at no time are they intending nor will they ever admit that they are wrong and they dare the world to do that, and as they hold all the evidence with the inept and corrupt practices then evidence can be and probably has been manipulated to fit the current situation.

Thailand being asovreign nation it is hard for anyone to call foul without insulting the Government and that is something most countries will not do .

The public quite rightly being Thai do not really want an outside investigation or even corroboration to the investigation as they deep down are fully aware that it is probably flawed. The problem here is the NEW PM's refusal and insistence that all is OK when he must know it is NOT, so again scapegoats will pay the price and to make it go away they may well pay the ultimate price, by dying in custody , made to be seen as suicide which will exonerate the Police and pour blame on them with no legal and public reply. As dead men in Thailand cannot talk. As they are also illegal than it is a fait accompli and it will go the way of the Dodo.

I don't think it's just a case of the BIB being harassed to find a culprit. It seems to me to be a case of a known culprit being replaced by scapegoats.

Just look at some of the initial evidence and announcements. Arguments with locals, a local fleeing on the first boat out etc etc, all pointing to a local person. Then it all went dead. Nothing mattered but migrants. Any other leads were ignored.

the police stopped a speedboat, racing from the scene towards bangkok,

surely, it was spotted by helicopter first, so they knew where it was coming from

then there is the headmans statement that said his son had already left the island before the murders, and the son himself saying he was never there,

there was the two guys hiding in the cave that were so stoned they couldnt speak, which, is what killers often do,

but instead,

two young kids, with everything to lose, who were sleeping at the time of the murder, are being paraded to the world

how do you say, what idiots, in Thai?

The news report concerning the fleeing speedboat was followed by a comment from police that this aspect should not be discussed. Something about not wanting to tip off suspects that they were about to have their collars felt.

So now that the case is closed and 2 horned quadruped ruminants caught, can we now discuss the speedboat? Did anybody ever check with harbor office to see who owns the boat?

[johnlandy]

Get 'em tried, incarcerated and hopefully it will all fade into insignificance soon......and the world will forget!

and the world will forget!....."dream on" the world has a very long memory.

[SteveFong]

The UK government has surely been briefed by their people in Bangkok.

There is not any doubt in my mind that the Ambassador to Thailand is not 100% up on this case,

The Twitter feeds are ablaze with this, and CSI LA is all over them too, and his reader count has tripled,

People that think this is just another scapegoat case, and just another unfortunate back packer death,

are as out of touch as the PM, who, has offered a reward to the same people that are stomping on the chests of young burmese boys trying to get them to lie about their friends

I dont think the case can be called perfect anymore, when they were forced to release their 3 star witnesses and the first thing they do, is reveal they were tortured

[johnlandy]

Get 'em tried, incarcerated and hopefully it will all fade into insignificance soon......and the world will forget!

and the world will forget "dream on" the world will not forget, the world has a very long memory.

[alfalfa19]

Get 'em tried, incarcerated and hopefully it will all fade into insignificance soon......and the world will forget!

But what about the alleged altercation between the victims and the sons of an "influential" person, who refused to give DNA samples and were told "Oh, that,s OK, you can go" ?

Why reply to this assclown? Clearly he just craves attention, and his only joy in life is getting other people outraged.

[kkup]

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Just imagine that if the British have DNA from ALL the relevant parties, and I believe they do, wait until after the "Trial" verdict.

The two Burmese are convicted....24 hours later the British reveal their findings! WAM BAM!!

Lets hope so

[thailandchilli]

Just imagine that if the British have DNA from ALL the relevant parties, and I believe they do, wait until after the "Trial" verdict.

The two Burmese are convicted....24 hours later the British reveal their findings! WAM BAM!!

I think you have a very strong point there. The British obviously have the DNA from the victims even if its only through the family members, all they need is the DNA from the family of the suspects who are due to arrive today and thats it. Surely the Thai's must know this and that the truth will out. If the British do decide to go down this route then the reprecussions for Thailand are enourmous.

To be honest I've been here 9 years now and starting to get a plan B into place.

[SteveFong]

Get 'em tried, incarcerated and hopefully it will all fade into insignificance soon......and the world will forget!

and the world will forget "dream on" the world will not forget, the world has a very long memory.

more importantly,

the internet continues to spread out like a wave,

this is only getting worse, and the Twitter people and Facebook people are making sure of it

[Norvabc]

Can anybody put a link to the site where I can sign the petition? I really want to sign it but I can only seem to find Thai language sites :-/

Thanks

The site is here, If TV will allow it.

https://www.change.org/p/the-government-of-the-united-kingdom-independently-investigate-the-horrific-murders-of-hannah-witheridge-and-david-miller#supporters

[Bender]

Can anybody put a link to the site where I can sign the petition? I really want to sign it but I can only seem to find Thai language sites :-/

Thanks

http://www.change.org/p/the-government-of-the-united-kingdom-independently-investigate-the-horrific-murders-of-hannah-witheridge-and-david-miller?recruiter=161652099&utm_campaign=signature_receipt&utm_medium=email&utm_source=share_petition

[soupkitchen]

https://submissions.epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/70451

[kamahele]

If it had not been for the complete bungling of the investigation in full public view, these two Burmese would be assured to be convicted and with support from both locals and foreigners. However, belief by both seems to run towards belief in the Burmese men's innocence and the idiocy of the police.

[Toscano]

I agree that a second independent verification of the DNA would give reassurance that the right people were in custody .

Personally I believe the culprets have been found , despite the apparent ineptness of the Thai police .

If they have indicted the wrong people , Koh Tao may see a similar murder and have to answer for that too , as well as a failure this time .

Thailand is not a country where anything goes , even on off islands ; tourist need to respect Thai customs and code of behaviour .

Edited October 17, 2014 by metisdead
Bold font removed.

[klauskunkel]

how do you say, what idiots, in Thai?

The Thai word for 'idiot' is 'tamruat'

[gemini81]

Get 'em tried, incarcerated and hopefully it will all fade into insignificance soon......and the world will forget!

and the world will forget "dream on" the world will not forget, the world has a very long memory.

more importantly,

the internet continues to spread out like a wave,

this is only getting worse, and the Twitter people and Facebook people are making sure of it

It involves lots of international people and in a touristy spot, can't just pay it off, make it go away like son of red bull, the wiphawadee incident, hired local murders... the UK and family & friends, social media won't just forgive and forget! Just as deserving, tourism on the island has plummeted, and the place is getting what it deserves for poor credibility... somebody ought to really clean that up before worrying about clamping tires, and banning e-cigarettes. Police are the biggest crisis here.

[razer]

The junta needs to do the right thing to restore face to Thailand and "bring happiness to the people". Clean up the police force and get compitent training for them. Thai police usually don't investigate murders and when they do it is not to modern standards. Investigation is primarily limited to CCT video.

[alfalfa19]

I agree that a second independent verification of the DNA would give reassurance that the right people were in custody .

Personally I believe the culprets have been found , despite the apparent ineptness of the Thai police .

If they have indicted the wrong people , Koh Tao may see a similar murder and have to answer for that too , as well as a failure this time .

Thailand is not a country where anything goes , even on off islands ; tourist need to respect Thai customs and code of behaviour .

I find the bulk of your post preposterous, however, the final sentence really stands out. Are you implying that the couple were murdered because they did not respect Thai customs and codes of behavior? I'm not trying to be funny. I really want to know your answer to my question.

[Sparkles]

Get 'em tried, incarcerated and hopefully it will all fade into insignificance soon......and the world will forget!

Candidate for the most stupid comment of the year.Although its only October I think we can give you the award now.

[smedly]

Thailand is not a country where anything goes , even on off islands ; tourist need to respect Thai customs and code of behaviour .

and if you don't you'll be brutally raped and murdered - f-f-s what sort of dumb a-s-s would write such a thing

you honestly could have made a good post without the last sentence

[bongoz]

The junta needs to do the right thing to restore face to Thailand and "bring happiness to the people". Clean up the police force and get compitent training for them. Thai police usually don't investigate murders and when they do it is not to modern standards. Investigation is primarily limited to CCT video.

You can't restore FACE.

You are not meant to lose to either.

[smedly]

The junta needs to do the right thing to restore face to Thailand and "bring happiness to the people". Clean up the police force and get compitent training for them. Thai police usually don't investigate murders and when they do it is not to modern standards. Investigation is primarily limited to CCT video.

agreed, most people are thinking that Thailand and the PM would lose face if they allow independent investigation and tests - it is exactly the opposite IMO - they have all lost face already because of this circus

Edited October 16, 2014 by smedly

[stevehaigh]

it interesting how much international attention this case is getting versus the hundreds of other unsolved murders of farangs in Thailand which barely get a single headline in their home countries. I suspect it has a lot to do with one of the victims been a beautiful young woman.