Activists to rally at border, demanding release of Thai detainees

via CAAI

BANGKOK, Jan 2 -- Thailand Patriot Network (TPN) representatives on Sunday gathered at Government House to protest the case of seven Thais detained in Cambodia and announce their plans to rally at the Thai-Cambodian border in Sa Kaeo on Tuesday, aiming to pressure the neighbouring country to release the group.

Chaiwat Sinsuwong and Karun Sai-ngam on Sunday led the civil society activists to gather at the gate of Government House to issue a proclamation on the case of the seven Thais alleged to have trespassed on Cambodian territory last week.

The activists said that the seven Thai nationals who are detained in Prey Sar prison did not intrude onto Cambodian soil but were nonetheless captured by the Cambodian military on charges of illegal entry.

The seven, including Democrat Party member of parliament Panich Vikitsreth, and members of the so-called 'Yellow Shirt' People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) protest movement, were charged by the Phnom Penh Court with illegal entry and illegally entering a military base along the border, crimes carrying penalties of up to six months and one year, respectively.

To support the announcement, the activists displayed documents showing the border area at Boundary Marker No. 46, where the seven Thais were detained by Cambodia, is located in Thai territory and belongs to a Thai villager who has paid land tax to the Thai authorities.

In addition, Mr Karun also displayed Thai residents’ land deeds showing that several plots of land were possessed during 1944-1952 and claimed that the land currently was occupied by the Cambodian military. He said that Sa Kaeo’s Khok Soong Land Office cannot measure and survey these areas.

In case of Democrat MP Panich Vikitsreth, in his capacity as a member of the joint House and Senate panel to examine the three memos provided by the Joint Boundary Commission (JBC), was also apprehended while inspecting areas where local residents complained that their rice fields were occupied by Cambodian soldiers for about two months and that their complaints have been ignored by concerned agencies.

As scheduled, the Thailand Patriot Network will gather at Government House Monday at noon to demand that Cambodia free the Thai detainees. TPN will rally and speak at a Thai village border area at Boundary Marker No. 46 on Tuesday. (MCOT online news)