The Migrant Working Group has provided legal representation for the Rohingya, who have become trafficking survivors and have successfully requested to become co-plaintiffs in the case filed by the public prosecutor of Pak Phanang, Nakhon Si Thammarat against Mr. Sunon or KoMit Saengthong, defendant no.1, Mr. Suriya Yodrak, defendant no.2 and Mr. Warachai Chadathong, defendant no.3 in the Black Case no.768/2558 for collaborating with two persons and upwards committing the following offences:
• Trafficking in person, abetting the trafficking in person, a violation as per the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act B.E 2551 (2008);
• an offence related to liberty, for enslavement of people or forcing a person to work as a slave per the Penal Code;
• an offence of bringing into the Kingdom of Thailand an alien, harboring and providing them a hiding place, an offence against the Immigration Act B.E. 2522 (1979)
• an offence of being members of transnational organized crime against the Anti-Participation in Transnational Organized Crime Act B.E. 2556 (2013) with the survivors who are a child aged 15-18 years and those over 18 years.
On 31 August 2016, the Provincial Court of Pak Phanang, Nakhon Si Thammarat, has found Mr. Sunon Saengthong, defendant no.1 guilty per Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act B.E 2551 (2008) for collaborating with two persons and upwards in the trafficking of person and the offence had been committed against children aged 15-18 years and those younger than 15 years; for the offence related to liberty, for enslavement of people or forcing a person to work as a slave per the Penal Code; and for bringing into the Kingdom of Thailand an alien, harboring and providing them a hiding place, an offence against the Immigration Act B.E. 2522 (1979). The defendant no.1 was sentenced to 35 years and a fine of 666,000 baht. The conviction of the defendant no.1 on the trafficking offence could be attributed to major evidence showing the bank transactions and telephone contact relating to the trafficking syndicate involved with the offence against trafficking victims, some of whom had been rescued in Songkhla province. Then, the bodies of unidentified Rohingya and other trafficking survivors had been rescued from Tambon Padang Beasr, Sadao District, Songkhla in May 2015.
As to the defendant no.2-3, based on the evidence, the Court has found their offence was only concerned with bringing aliens into the Kingdom without permission, an offence against the Immigration Act B.E. 2522 (1979) and has sentenced them both to one year. Given that the defendant no.2 had pleaded guilty to the charge, his sentence was reduced by a half to six months.
In this case, two other alleged offenders who had been arrested at the same time with the defendants, have jumped the bail. There are also 18 other individuals alleged to have arranged for the boat and for facilitating the trafficking of the Rohingya. They are now being held in custody and have been indicted in offences concerning trafficking in persons. The case is being tried in the Criminal Court’s Human Trafficking Division.
Background of the case: On 11 January, Pol Col Noppadon Petkhaokiaw, Superintendent of HuaSai Police Station, Nakhon Si Thammarat province, was informed that a group of Rohingya was to be trafficked from Ranong province to Songkhla province passing through Hua Sai District. He had instructed his officials to set up a checkpoint on Route 408 Nakhon Si Thammarat-HuaSai and spotted five suspicious vehicles driving together. They were waved to pull over for a search. After the search in two vehicles, the drivers of the three other vehicles had decided to leave their cars and run away. The two other drivers were then held in custody. From the search of the five vehicles, the officials have found 98 Rohingyas (30 men and 26 women, plus 42 minors younger than 15 years). They appeared to be extremely exhausted. Among them, some were found dead from suffocation. The surviving Rohingyas were then screened as victims of trafficking in persons per the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act by the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security in charge of looking after the injured parties prior to entering the criminal justice process (refer to previous statement: http://hrdfoundation.org/?p=1651)
For more information, please contact:
Ms. Janjira Janpaew, lawyer, phone: +668 3907 2032
Mr. Kritsada Sanyadee, lawyer, phone +668 8768 3887
