Thai Drug Killings

Human rights campaigner Nick Cheesman

101 East investigates the Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s ‘war on drugs’ and the wave of extrajudicial killings that came with it.

Drug users endured beatings, forced confessions, arbitrary arrests and even death.

Human Rights Watch says 2,500 people were killed during one three-month period at the start of 2003.

The Thai government has opened an inquiry into the killings, but is the investigation politically motivated?

101 East met with one family whose innocent son and daughter were killed during the crackdown, and spent time with drug addicts at a Thai monastery where a secret potion is used to beat drug addiction.

Critics, such as 101 East’s guest and human rights campaigner Nick Cheesman, point out that a climate where drug dealers are dehumanized leads inevitably to unlawful killings.

Sa and Kaew Phu-Malas innocent son and daughter were killed during the crackdown

Kudeb Saikrachang, a legal adviser to Thaksin’s disbanded political party, says Thai people did support the anti-drug campaign and that the present enquiry is being used by the country’s present leaders as a political weapon against Thaksin.

Thai journalist Pravit Rojanaphruk says Thai people’s legitimate hatred of drug dealers should not allow police to kill suspected dealers without a trial.

This episode of 101 East airs on Thursday 6th September 2007

Watch Part One here:

Watch Part Two here:

---

To contact us click on ‘Send your feedback’ at the top of the page

Watch Al Jazeera English programmes on YouTube

Join our debates on the Your Views page