Thailand apologizes for 2004 massacre of 85 Muslims; UN rights experts fear justice fading

Thailand apologizes for 2004 massacre of 85 Muslims; UN rights experts fear justice fading
Demonstrators show the names of the victims of the October 2004 "Tak Bai massacre" when scores of Muslim protesters suffocated in army trucks, in Narathiwat on October 15, 2024. (AFP)
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Updated 25 October 2024
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Thailand apologizes for 2004 massacre of 85 Muslims; UN rights experts fear justice fading

Thailand apologizes for 2004 massacre of 85 Muslims; UN rights experts fear justice fading
  • UN rights experts "extremely alarmed that without further action” the cases “will end prematurely when a statute of limitations expires”
  • The "Tak Bai Massacre" took place under the administration of Paetongtarn’s father, Thaksin Shinawatra, a key figure behind her ruling Pheu Thai Party

RIYADH: Thailand’s prime minister apologized on Thursday for the massacre of 85 Muslim protesters 20 years ago for which no one has ever been held responsible.

“I am deeply saddened for what happened and apologize on behalf of the government,” Paetongtarn Shinawatra said. The massacre took place under the administration of her father, Thaksin Shinawatra, a key figure in the ruling Pheu Thai Party.

The security crackdown in the southern town of Tak Bai in 2004 was one of the most high-profile events of a separatist insurgency that re-ignited that same year and has since killed more than 7,600 people.

The "Tak Bai massacre" in predominantly Buddhist Thailand captured international attention and drew widespread condemnation.

It started when security forces opened fire on a crowd protesting outside a police station in Narathiwat, one of the Muslim-majority southern provinces Thailand colonized more than a century ago.




Thailand's Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra. (REUTERS/File Photo)

Seven people were killed by gunfire. Subsequently 78 people suffocated after they were arrested and stacked on top of each other in the back of Thai military trucks, face down and with their hands tied behind their backs.

It remains one of the deadliest days in the decades-long rebellion by Malay Muslims against rule by the Thai state, which rumbles on to this day.

Attempts to prosecute security personnel have failed, including two in the past two months.

In August, a court accepted a criminal lawsuit by victims’ families against seven senior officials, among them a retired general and ruling party lawmaker, but all of those failed to show up at a hearing. A separate case against eight other personnel filed by the attorney-general last month has made no progress.

The defendants last week missed their final scheduled court date before the deadline to try them, heightening the chance they will never face justice.

In their absence the court said that it was scheduling the next hearing for October 28, at which point the proceedings are expected to be dismissed.

Paetongtarn said the incident should not be politicized, adding the statue of limitations could not be extended because it would be a breach of the constitution.

Thai police have said they were actively tracking all 14 suspects and had issued Interpol red notices.

“Although the case is expiring, history and memories do not,” Ratsada Manooratsada a lawyer for the victims’ families told Reuters.

“(The families) will never forget because the perpetrators were not brought to justice.”

UN experts weigh in
In Geneva, UN rights experts said they were extremely concerned that no one would be held accountable over the massacre.
In a joint statement, the UN experts said they were “extremely alarmed that without further action,” the cases “will end prematurely when a statute of limitations expires.”
“Failure to investigate and bring perpetrators to justice is itself a violation of Thailand’s human rights obligations,” the UN experts said.
“International law also prohibits statutes of limitations for torture and other forms of ill-treatment.”
The statement was issued by the UN special rapporteurs on extrajudicial executions, the right to freedom of peaceful assembly, protecting freedoms while countering terrorism and freedom of opinion, as well as the working group on enforced disappearances.
UN experts are independent figures mandated by the Human Rights Council who do not speak on behalf of the United Nations itself.
“Families have waited for nearly two decades for justice,” the experts said, urging the Thai government “to prevent further delays in accountability and ensure their rights to truth, justice and reparations are upheld.”
They also called for further investigations into the fate of seven people who disappeared in the incident.

(With Agencies)
 


Austria says stabbing attack suspect swore allegiance to Daesh

Austria says stabbing attack suspect swore allegiance to Daesh
Updated 16 February 2025
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Austria says stabbing attack suspect swore allegiance to Daesh

Austria says stabbing attack suspect swore allegiance to Daesh
  • Daesh calling for lone wolf attacks in America and Europe following a New Year attack in New Orleans, according to SITE Intelligence.
  • Daesh has not claimed responsibility for the attack so far

VILLACH: The Syrian asylum-seeker suspected of carrying out a deadly stabbing rampage in the Austrian town of Villach had sworn allegiance to Daesh and was radicalized online, authorities said on Sunday.
A 14-year-old boy was killed in Saturday afternoon’s attack in the center of Villach and five other people were wounded, three of whom are in intensive care, police said.
Interior Minister Gerhard Karner told a press conference in Villach that the 23-year-old Syrian man, who was arrested seven minutes after the first call to the police, had been rapidly radicalized on the internet and that the Daesh flag had been found in his apartment.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Police said the man, who is being charged with murder and attempted murder, had recorded himself swearing an oath of allegiance to Daesh.

• More harm would have been done had it not been for another Syrian, a food delivery driver, who saw the attacker and drove into him with his vehicle to stop him, authorities said.

Karner, a conservative, told reporters there was sadness and sympathy for the victims, then added: “But in these moments there’s also understandably often anger and rage. Anger at an attacker who randomly stabbed innocent people here in this town.”
Police said the man, who is being charged with murder and attempted murder, had recorded himself swearing an oath of allegiance to Daesh.
More harm would have been done had it not been for another Syrian, a food delivery driver, who saw the attacker and drove into him with his vehicle to stop him, authorities said.
Daesh has not claimed responsibility for the attack so far. However, the media section of Daesh’s Afghan branch, Daesh-K, recently circulated a post by Daesh calling for lone wolf attacks in America and Europe following a New Year attack in New Orleans, according to SITE Intelligence.
The bloodshed in Villach followed the thwarting of a plot in August to carry out a suicide attack at a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna by a teenager who had also sworn loyalty to Daesh.

 


Wife of detained Ugandan politician ‘worried’ over hunger strike

Wife of detained Ugandan politician ‘worried’ over hunger strike
Updated 16 February 2025
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Wife of detained Ugandan politician ‘worried’ over hunger strike

Wife of detained Ugandan politician ‘worried’ over hunger strike
  • Besigye was abducted in Kenya in November, and has been facing the death penalty on treason charges in a court martial

ADDIS ABABA: The wife of detained Ugandan opposition figure Kizza Besigye said on Sunday she was “very worried” about his health, nearly a week after the ex-presidential candidate began a hunger strike.
Besigye, 68, is a leading opponent of the country’s President Yoweri Museveni — in power for nearly 40 years — whom he has unsuccessfully challenged in four elections.
On trial for “threatening national security,” Besigye went on hunger strike on Feb. 10 to protest his detention, with his lawyer describing him as “critically ill.”
“He’s not been eating, he’s only drinking water,” his wife, UNAIDS executive director Winnie Byanyima, said on the sidelines of an African Union summit in Addis Ababa.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Kizza Besigye, 68, is a leading opponent of the country’s President Yoweri Museveni, whom he has unsuccessfully challenged in four elections.

• On trial for ‘threatening national security,’ Besigye went on hunger strike on Feb. 10 to protest his detention.

“He says it’s his only act of protest at the illegal detention that he’s being put through.”
When Besigye was last seen in public, during a court appearance on Friday, “he looked very frail and dehydrated,” she said.
She added that she was “very worried about his condition now.”
Besigye was abducted in Kenya in November, and has been facing the death penalty on treason charges in a court martial.
Museveni rejected last month’s Supreme Court ruling that civilians should not be tried in military courts.
Byanyima has previously labelled the trial a “sham.”
“I am in a fight for justice,” she said. “If this happens to him, that he continues to be held illegally, that some trumped-up process is used to convict him, this is not just about him, it’s about the fate of democracy and the rights of Ugandans,” she said.
The UN and several rights organizations have voiced their concern about the suppression of the political opposition in Uganda in the run-up to the 2026 presidential elections.
Rights group Amnesty International branded Besigye’s case a “travesty of justice.”

 


US-Russia talks should not rewrite Europe’s security: Finland

US-Russia talks should not rewrite Europe’s security: Finland
Updated 16 February 2025
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US-Russia talks should not rewrite Europe’s security: Finland

US-Russia talks should not rewrite Europe’s security: Finland
  • The new US administration has warned its NATO allies that Washington will no longer be primarily focused on the continent’s security and may have to shift forces elsewhere to focus on China

MUNICH: Finnish President Alexander Stubb on Sunday said that talks between the US and Russia over the Ukraine war must not rewrite European security and allow Moscow to establish “spheres of interest.”
Washington blindsided Kyiv and its European backers this week by launching talks on ending Moscow’s three-year invasion in a call with Russia’s Vladimir Putin.
The new US administration has also warned its NATO allies that Washington will no longer be primarily focused on the continent’s security and may have to shift forces elsewhere to focus on China.
The Kremlin has pushed for the negotiations to discuss not just Ukraine but also broader European security.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Washington blindsided Kyiv and its European backers this week by launching talks on ending Moscow’s three-year invasion in a call with Putin.

• The new US administration has warned its NATO allies that Washington will no longer be primarily focused on the continent’s security and may have to shift forces elsewhere to focus on China.

That has sparked fears among Washington’s allies that Putin could return to demands he floated prior to the 2022 invasion aimed at limiting NATO’s forces in eastern Europe and US involvement on the continent.
One issue talks “should not discuss is new European security arrangements,” Stubb, whose country shares a 1,300-kilometer border with Russia, told the Munich Security Conference.
“There’s no way we should open the door for this Russian fantasy of a new, indivisible security order, where it can do spheres of interest.”
The stance from the new US administration has sown further concerns in Europe as Trump demands NATO countries spend more on their own defense.
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth this week warned that Washington will no longer be primarily focused on the continent’s security and may have to shift forces elsewhere to focus on China.
Stubb insisted that Ukraine’s push to join NATO and the EU should be “non-negotiable,” even after Washington appeared to rule out Kyiv joining the military alliance as part of a peace deal.
Stubb laid out a vision for how negotiations could work — saying that the West should hit Russia with tough sanctions ahead of talks to pile on the pressure.
He said European countries should help support any eventual ceasefire, with the US acting as a “backstop.”

 


Osaka meets Saudi Arabian culture ahead of the 2025 Expo

Osaka meets Saudi Arabian culture ahead of the 2025 Expo
Updated 16 February 2025
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Osaka meets Saudi Arabian culture ahead of the 2025 Expo

Osaka meets Saudi Arabian culture ahead of the 2025 Expo
  • Similar cultural showcases are scheduled for several cities across Japan in the coming weeks

TOKYO: To promote the country, its culture and heritage, as well as its pavilion at the Osaka Expo, which opens in April, Saudi Arabia is staging events around the country to give people a taste of life and culture in the Kingdom.

On Saturday and Sunday, Saudi Arabia put on a cultural experience showcasing its heritage in Osaka’s busy Namba district. The event used interactive experiences to help give the local people a taste of the nation’s rich traditions.

Visitors were able to experience Saudi Arabian hospitality and sample traditional food and drink.

The event also highlighted the country’s artistic heritage with displays of intricate handmade items that demonstrated the craftsmanship behind Saudi Arabia’s traditional arts.

A special Immersive VR Experience took guests virtually to the heart of the Arabian Peninsula, allowing them to explore cultural landmarks in a unique way.

In addition, guests were able to try on traditional Saudi attire, while live performances of regional music created a unique Arabian atmosphere.

One attendee described the event as “an unexpected but delightful experience,” adding that the culture felt “warm and welcoming.”

Similar cultural showcases are scheduled for several cities across Japan in the coming weeks. With the Osaka-Kansai Expo approaching, Saudi Arabia is building anticipation for its pavilion, where a similar diverse program of performances, exhibits and cultural showcases will be on display.


Over 40 people killed in Mali gold mine collapse

Over 40 people killed in Mali gold mine collapse
Updated 16 February 2025
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Over 40 people killed in Mali gold mine collapse

Over 40 people killed in Mali gold mine collapse
  • The deceased, mostly women, had climbed down into open-pit areas left by industrial miners to look for scraps of gold when the earth collapsed
  • Artisanal mining is a common activity across much of West Africa and has become more lucrative in recent years due to rising prices of metals

BAMAKO: Forty-three people, mostly women, were killed after an artisanal gold mine collapsed in western Mali on Saturday, the head of an industry union said.
The accident took place near the town of Kenieba in Mali’s gold-rich Kayes region, Taoule Camara, secretary general of the national union of gold counters and refineries (UCROM), told Reuters.
The women had climbed down into open-pit areas left by industrial miners to look for scraps of gold when the earth collapsed around them, he said.
A mines ministry spokesperson confirmed the accident had taken place between the towns of Kenieba and Dabia, but declined to give further details as ministry teams at the scene had not yet shared their report.
Artisanal mining is a common activity across much of West Africa and has become more lucrative in recent years due to growing demand for metals and rising prices.
Deadly accidents are frequent as the artisanal miners often use unregulated methods.
Thirteen artisanal miners, including women and three children, were killed in southwest Mali in late January, after a tunnel in which they were digging for gold flooded.