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Charoen Wat-aksorn was a well-known activist who, together with people of Bo Nok and Ban Krood, relentlessly fought coal-fired power plant projects in Prachuab Kirikan, until the government decided to relocate the projects to other provinces.   After that, he still continued to obstruct local influential figures from encroaching common lands for prawn farming.

Until June 21, 2004, around 10.00PM, after getting off a bus at Bo Nok intersection, he was gunned down.

Early next morning, his wife Korn-uma Pongnoi with hundreds of villagers took Charoen's body to Justice Ministry in Bangkok to demand justice.

Murder case manipulated by authorities

5 culprits have been arrested and prosecuted.  The first two were gunmen who initially confessed and implicated the other three, but later retracted their confessions and claimed their personal conflict between them and Charoen was the motive of the killing, as Charoen had scolded the mother of one of them.   They also claimed they had not planned beforehand.  They were having alcohol drinks at the bus stop, when they saw Charoen getting off the bus, then they got angry and killed him.

The other three are not the real masterminds.  The real ones still wander around.

"The authorities tried to hint personal conflict and adultery as the possible motives, and tried to pin down to the personal conflict.   There's been no attempt to find the real mastermind," Korn-uma said.

No progress with the DSI

On July 30, 2004, the Justice Ministry's Department of Special Investigation (DSI) took over the case from the police.   It conducted more investigation into the common lands encroachment for prawn farming involving influential figures with connection to the coal-fired power plant project developer.   The three other culprits including a former village head and his two sons were arrested. 

Korn-uma said at first the DSI seemed serious with the case, but after a while no progress was made.

"It was said that there was an attempt to conclude the case with just the two gunmen.   Some officers even said it was enough, so far so good.  Now the case has come to the court.  We are very suspicious about it," she said.

She expressed her suspicion that the case seemed to be pre-determined.  There has been an attempt to sever the links between the gunmen and the father and sons, and between the father and sons and the masterminds.

The Criminal Court transferred the case back to Prachuab provincial court.

"We demanded to transfer the case to the Criminal Court in Bangkok, because the one of the defendants is a lawyer associated with influential persons in the provincial court.  Now that the case has been sent back to the province, very much upset the villagers," Korn-uma said.

The two gunmen died in prison.

Both died in 2006, while detained in prisons.  There were no autopsies to confirm the causes.  The deaths dealt a blow to the court case.  

The gunmen, Saneh Lekluan and Prachuab Hinkaew, confessed that they committed the murder, but did not implicate the masterminds.  Later, the police arrested two brothers, a local politician and a lawyer.   After the DSI took charge, the father also got arrested.  However, no progress has been made since then. (1)  The two gunmen had been detained in prisons, while the other three were released on bail.   

On March 21, 2006, before the hearing of witnesses began, Prachuab died reportedly from infection.  And during the course of witness hearing, on August 3, 2006, Saneh also died reportedly from malaria.

According to Bangkok Post on August 9, the prison hospital director said that Saneh had not shown any symptoms of malaria.  Many have doubts about the two deaths happening in a matter of months, during the crucial trial in court.   Their relatives were heard of saying that they did not expect the two to come out alive.

Activists called for autopsies, but there has been no report.

Irregularities in the Justice

June 21, 2007, is the 3^rd anniversary of Charoen's death.

Korn-uma, now leader of Rak Tong Tin group, said that the justice system is not dependable and dragging its feet. 

"Udomporn Kotchahiran, then deputy governor of Prachuab Kirikan, said that the public were much interested in this case, so he set up an investigating panel.  I was a witness.   They recorded video tapes for use as evidence, but now the tapes just disappear.  I asked the prosecutor.  He said he never received such video tapes.   That's an irregularity," she said.

Korn-uma said that the gunmen had implicated the masterminds, and some evidence was found such as telephone conversations.  But nothing has been done.   

"Recently, I heard that the court was going to dismiss some witnesses, claiming the prosecutor was slow with the hearing.   The court should have upheld our rights."

When asked if the Surayud government pays attention to the case, Korn-uma said that all governments are the same, whether it is Thai Rak Thai, or the junta.   She has given up hope with the government log time ago.  People can only rely on themselves, she said.

3^rd anniversary commemoration

On June 20-21, the commemoration will take place at Wat See Yak Bo Nok, Prachuab Kirikan.   There will be live concerts by many artists and bands like Surachai Jantimatorn, Pongtep Kradonechamnan on the night of the 20^th.  On the 21^st, there will be religious ceremony and installation of Charoen's statue.

And there will be speeches led by Dr Nidhi Eawsriwong of Midnight University and other representatives of people's movements.  

Interview with Korn-uma Pongnoi     "I feel desperate with the state mechanism.  In fact, there are many other cases of local people in the hands of the DSI."   How do you view the judicial system in Surayud administration regarding Charoen's case?             "We have to go back to the previous government (Thaksin). I've been desperate with the state mechanism.   Now under the new circumstance, the CNS seems trying to change the structure of the Justice Ministry, right from the minister, permanent secretary, to its departments including DSI.   The chief of DSI has been changed.  We're discussing to go to the ministry to talk about the case.   We have to discuss when we'll go.  Soon, I think.   There are many points that need to be addressed.  For example, DSI told us that it had to send all 5 defendants to the court as its authority to detain them within 84 days was exceeded.   They said the case was not closed, and investigation still continued.  Since then there's no progress.   Another point that still unsettles in our mind is that Saneh, one of the gunmen, said to the police that after the shooting he made 3 phone calls to his boss, Manoch Hinkaew, one of the defendants.   But we found out that the police reported in their papers that they could not find evidence of the phone calls.  But we know that there is such evidence.   We did raise this point with the DSI.  The DSI told us that it already looked into it, and also found no evidence, showing us some documents which we could see that they were altered."   You didn't believe that it's authentic? It was in no way authentic.  The DSI officials told us that it was not an official document.   For an official one, it has to take months.  That's a lie.  They are authorized to access the information in a day.     When did they ask for the information?   After DSI took over the case for a month.  All in all, we don't know if they ever asked for the official document.   How did they get the unofficial document they showed us?   Did you check if they really asked for the official document?   We always kept in contact but they always said they still did not get a reply.   Now the case has gone to the court and the two gunmen have already died.   What has been concluded so far?   It's a high profile murder case.  When they died, there was no official statement.   It's us who publicized the deaths.  One of them died on August 2, only after we spoke to the press did the Correction Department Director come out to say on August 8.   What about the issue of the "origin of the gun" that was used to kill Charoen?   The gun was a 9mm pistol used by Saneh Lekluan.  Its registration number led the DSI to find out that it was a gun belonging to a policeman in Prachuab named Chokechai Tadsi.   Originally another policeman Bunlert was the one who ordered the gun but later bought another one and failed to procure it.    So the gun was in the hand of Chokechai who disbursed it from the provincial police.   He told the DSI that he pawned the gun with Jua Hinkaew, one of the defendants and boss of Saneh the gunman.   So far the DSI has never managed to bring Chokechai to testify in the court, despite the fact that the policeman is a crucial link between Jua and Saneh.   Chokechai has failed to show up in court twice, and the DSI can't find him.  The court has issue an arrest warrant for him.   The DSI testified in court that Chokechai told them that he didn't think of redeeming the gun.   That meant he intended to sell it.  It is against the law to sell a public asset.  But I see no one bothers.   As far as we know, Chokechai was a native in Prachuab, having a mistress in Bo Nok.   His wife sells food in Prachuab town.  The wife happens to be a close friend of Charoen's relative.  The relative told us that Jua and his son lawyer Thanu, another defendant, told Chokechai to flee, and they would take care of the case.   The father and sons have been released on bail.  Have they ever threatened anyone?         I've never received any threats so far, but I have to be very careful.  They were instantly released on bail.  I'm afraid some key witnesses have been threatened.   Have you demanded the bails be revoked?   It's what we can call for. But it all depends on the court.   What are other issues that still unsettle in your mind?   There are many.  But I'm not sure if saying this will affect the court case.   There's been an attempt to pre-determine the case.  Now the gunmen already died.  If they were still alive, the truth will inevitably prevail.     Will you demand investigation into their deaths?   We have demanded it.  But there has been no response to make it clear.   Only the correction director-general came out.  The forensics has never said anything.  The gunmen's relatives are surely afraid of the other defendants.   Now do you want the DSI to re-investigate the case?   More or less, if possible.  I used to talk to the DSI team in the previous government that if they were in a rush like that, it'd make a weak case.   We could wait for 20 years until the statute limitation.  But they insisted to bring the case to the court.   Will you bring your demand to the CNS or the government?   We might not go to the CNS, but want to go to the Justice Ministry permanent-secretary who oversees the DSI.   Will you also urge on other cases like the murder of Pra Supoj?   We have to treat all cases equally.      (Source from Prachatai, 7 December 2006)

Translated by Ponglert Pongwanan