On 14 March 2019, the International Federation on Human Rights (FIDH) held a press conference at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Thailand to launch More Shadows than Lights: Thailand’s Political Parties and Their Human Rights Commitments, a survey  of the human rights situation and 32 political parties in Thailand (read the full report here).

More Shadows than Lights

Mr. Andrea Giorgetta, Director of FIDH Asia, Ms. Debbie Stothard, Secretary-General of the FIDH, Angkhana Neelaphaijit from the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand, and Yingcheep Atchanont from iLaw, joined the press conference. The Ambassador of Switzerland and diplomats from European countries, also attended.

The conference began with a brief summary by Mr. Andrea Giorgetta, starting with a statement that junta’s repressive NCPO orders are still in place and the junta has been interfering with the election process, most evident in election date delays. With 250 senators appointed by the junta and a 20-year strategy which ties the hands of future governments, the military will still have influence over Thailand even after the general election.

The report highlights positive developments regarding human rights defenders, refugees, and detention conditions. According to the report, 42% of the political parties hold regular meetings with human rights defenders, 56% promote legislation that incorporates the principle of non-refoulement, while a significant number of political parties promise to solve overcrowding and improve detention conditions in line with international minimum standards.

However, the shadows remain regarding freedom of expression, the death penalty, and the role of the military. 88% of political parties still do not support removal of jail terms for violators of the lèse majesté law, 63% still support retention of the death penalty, and less than half (41%) support a reduction of the military budget in the context that the junta still tightly controls the election environment and its repressive legal framework remains in place.

Ms. Debbie Stothard highlighted impunity. The political parties have to work harder to support impartial investigations into allegations of torture, enforced disappearances, and extra judicial killings by the police and military. Ms. Stothard also highlighted women’s rights in Thailand, saying that only 16% of political parties are committed to decriminalizing abortion and only 31% promote more women’s participation in local and national government.

Ms Stothard also mentioned big corporates in Thailand and their investment and infrastructure projects which may have an impact on local communities. Thailand’s National Action Plan for Business and Human Rights is currently in development but has little participation from civil society.

Thailand’s long history of impunity

Two days before the event was the 15th anniversary of Somchai Neelaphaijit’s enforced disappearance, and his wife, Angkhana Neelaphaijit of the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand, highlighted the issue of impunity.

Angkhana Neelaphaijit

“While Thailand has a long history of impunity, I haven’t seen any political party with a clear policy to end impunity. No party mentions the right to know the truth of the victims of the major human rights violations and how perpetrators will be brought to justice – especially in the emblematic cases of the Tak Bai and Krue Se massacres in the southern border provinces, or the killings during the political crackdown in Bangkok in 2010.”

However, Angkhana also highlighted the prospects. “On 7th March, when Amnesty International Thailand organized a public debate on human rights policies, one of the questions was about enforced disappearance,” said Angkhana. “And many political parties made the commitment that if they join the government they will ratify the Convention on Enforced Disappearances and amend the draft organic law on Torture and Enforced Disappearance to comply.”

Angkhana Neelaphaijit also discussed the Deep South. According to Angkhana, many political parties want to replace the special laws with the Criminal Code and the Criminal Procedure Code to avoid arbitrary arrests and detentions.  Many parties focus on civilian-based policies to promote decentralization in the Deep South. However, in these areas, people who also suffer are women and LGBT.

“On the question of the mother tongue in the Deep South, no party promises to allow the Malay language to become an official language. Regarding gender equality for Malay Muslim women and LGBT persons, it is still not clear for Malay Muslim women how to end forced marriage and all kinds of gender-based violations including the lack of the right to divorce under Islamic Family and Inheritance Law, the lack of the right to work and access to education.”

However, there are some positive signs. “More candidates are from ethnic minorities such as Karen activists, Shan, Yunnanese and Malay Muslims in the south. Political parties are more inclusive of vulnerable groups such as Malay Muslim women in the Deep South. The Mahachon Party is outstanding as the party of LGBT candidates and its policies focus on the 6-7 million LGBTs eligible to vote in this election. … There are more policy debates, including on human rights policies, but Palang Pracharat hasn’t been very interested to join these.”

Surprised, not surprised

After reading the report, Yingcheep Atchanont from iLaw said that he was surprised and not surprised. The findings that surprised him are the political parties’ commitment to support refugees and asylum seekers and prisoners. But the finding about the death penalty did not surprise him. He said he sympathizes with the Future Forward Party which did not mention the abolition of the lèse majesté law and capital punishment in order to go along with the public sentiment. Yingcheep also emphasized the importance of having a free and fair election, as now the country will have 250 unelected senators and is still under the NCPO’s restrictions.

Pravit Rojanaphruk, Senior Journalist of Khaosod English, made an interesting observation that the Future Forward Party may be being pragmatic during its election campaign. As it is under constant attack, it avoids talking about it for now. He also asked the FIDH why Pheu Thai and Palang Prachara, the big political parties in Thailand, are not in the report. Giorgetta answered that some parties refused to answer the survey from the outset, such as Palang Pracharat, whereas Pheu Thai said it would answer the survey, but the reply never came.

FIDH is an international human rights NGO federating 184 organizations from 112 countries.