Enforced disappearance has happened again and again in Thailand. The number of victims may be over 3,000. Still, no one has ever been held to account for these crimes. This story explores how the practice has become systematic and part of the 'culture' of the land of smiles.

The Asian Human Rights Commission has been following with concern news of the police targeting of gay and transgendered people in Burma, or Myanmar, and has recently obtained detailed information on a number of cases of alleged arbitrary arrest, detention and torture of persons on the grounds of sexual orientation. The AHRC is troubled both by the manner in which this minority group appears to have been deliberately targeted by the police, and by the implications of these police abuses not only for the rights of minorities in democratizing Burma, but also for the rights of all people living there.

AHRC-STM-086-2010 May 28, 2010 A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission ASIA: AHRC calls for one month from May 26th to June 26 to be devoted to finding ways to eliminate use of torture The Asian Human Rights Commission will work to draw the attention of civil society and governments to the endemic torture that is prevalent in almost all Asian countries. Despite many declarations by governments, torture is carried out every day in almost all police stations throughout Asia. The routine practice of torture in normal criminal investigations, including petty crimes, is an experience that many people face in these countries.