Anan ‘Boy’ Loket, 27, a former student activist who worked for the Move Forward Party (MFP), was found dead, hanging at a bus stop in Chaloem Phra Kiat District, 30 km from where the MFP held a seminar. The cause and reason of death are still unknown.
A portrait of Anan Loket
Yutthana Loonsamrong, MFP coordinator for the lower Northeastern Region, told Prachatai after finishing with the police interrogation, that he last saw Anan at a hotel in Muang Nakhon Ratchasima District. They stayed in the same room while taking part in an MFP seminar for individuals planning to stand in the upcoming general election.
According to Yutthana, on 18 April, the final day of the seminar when team members were checking out of the hotel and preparing to leave at noon, Anan was nowhere to be seen. After unsuccessfully looking for him, they filed a complaint with the police.
At 04.00 on 19 April, Anan's dead body was found hanging at the bus stop. Yutthana was contacted by the police, went to the scene and was able to confirm the identity of the body.
Later that day, Anan’s body was sent to Chalerm Phra Kiat Hospital for a further forensic probe. According to Yutthana, investigators at the scene found minor scratches on his body, which was also wet, possibly due to heavy rain the night he went missing.
After seeing her son’s body at the hospital, Anan’s mother gave a short interview, saying that Anan was a modest person with neither a history of conflict with others nor mental health issues that might have prompted him to take his own life.
Yutthana, a longtime acquaintance of Anan, agrees. Anan was a political activist during his student days at Ramkamhaeng University. Yutthana, a former activist at Mahasarakham University, recalls regularly crossing paths with him. According to Yutthana, during the course of their relationship, Anan never displayed any suicidal tendencies and did not appear to have any interpersonal conflicts that might prompt someone to kill him. Theft also seemed unlikely as Anan’s valuable belongings were not taken and the body was found hanging beside a public highway.
“He never got into brawls. When we were together, when he was in the company of colleagues, he showed no sign of depression, no sign of stress. Even when he spoke of personal matters, he never appeared stressed.”
“The day before he disappeared, we were all having fun hanging out … he wasn’t sad, wasn’t stressed and didn’t say anything [worrying],” said Yutthana. “When we heard the news, everyone was sad. It happened so fast. I’ve been trying to figure out what was up with him, trying to understand why he didn’t tell me. We used to speak to each other about almost everything. Maybe I should have dug deeper.”
File photo: Anan (in the middle) at Bangkok Remand Prison
Before coming to work as an MFP officer, Anan was involved in organising opposition to the 2017 Constitution draft in the run up to the public referendum. On 23 June 2016, he and six others were charged for encouraging people to vote no.
Later the same year, he was charged again in Ratchaburi Province for riding in a car with vote-no rally stickers. Taweesak Kerdpoka, a former Prachatai journalist, was also charged for riding in the same car.
All cases have been dropped by the Court.
On 20 April, 13.20, Prachatai changed a headline as it was unintentionally pointed out a cause of death. The cause of death is still completely under investigation.
