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Blogger’s letter from prison

Wed, 20/01/2010 - 14:42 | by prachatai
Reporters Without Borders

Reiterating its appeal to King Bhumibol Adulyadej to pardon nine bloggers (see the 4 December press release: http://www.rsf.org/King-asked-to-pardon-Internet.html), Reporters Without Borders today published a letter written by one of the jailed bloggers, Suwicha Thakor, from prison.

In the meantime, the request for a pardon submitted by Suwicha has mysteriously disappeared from his official file. Suwicha was given a 10-year sentence on 2 April 2009 on a charge of lese majeste although there was no evidence against him and he never posted anything at all about the king.

Reporters Without Borders is very disturbed to learn that Suwicha has been fired by the company he worked for, Brandt, which apparently seems to have raised virtually no questions about the charges brought against him.

Suwicha’s letter of 5 December:

Source: 

http://www.rsf.org/Blogger-s-letter-from-prison.html

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Comments

#7116 - by Hobby (visitor) (127.0.0.1 118.172.63.25) | Wed, 20/01/2010 - 15:35

In the meantime, the request

In the meantime, the request for a pardon submitted by Suwicha has mysteriously disappeared from his official file.

Sent direct to Siriraj Hospital I presume?

#7122 - by John Francis Lee (visitor) (127.0.0.1 118.172.73.20) | Wed, 20/01/2010 - 19:04

Suwicha was given a 10-year

Suwicha was given a 10-year sentence on 2 April 2009 on a charge of lese majeste although there was no evidence against him and he never posted anything at all about the king.

RSF just don't understand. Thai democracy is not like decadent democracies elsewhere. If people in Thailand actually had to commit crimes and the Thai "authorities" had to gather and present evidence of their crimes in open court, then the authorities might not be able to convict and imprison the traitorous people who by their very existence endanger Thai "democracy", as fittingly defined and led by the Thai Democrat Party.

In fact it's a tribute to the beneficence of the Thai "authorities" that Suwicha and the others were not summarily executed.

#7123 - by John Francis Lee (visitor) (127.0.0.1 118.172.73.20) | Wed, 20/01/2010 - 19:59

Certainly our sarcasm is of

Certainly our sarcasm is of no help to Suwicha Takor or his family.

KlongPrem Prison 5, December 2009

Dear All,

I was arrested in Jan 2009, just after I had taken my children to school in Nakhom Phanom Province. I was taken to Bangkok and placed in prison. No bail granted. I was sentenced to 10 years under lèse-majesté law on the internet. Since that time my family and myself have really been upset. We sent an apology letter to the King but I'm not lucky like Harry Nicholai, because I'm Thai, even though we are in the same case.

I'm guilty I admit, but guilty of what? I became a victim, a cause of political offence because of an incident of 19 August 2006. This matter I disagree with. It is not very fair that they are angry with me and give me a 10 year sentence.

1. Where are the people responsible?
2. How will my family live?

Nobody will give these answers but they look at me as a danger to national security. I did a wrong thing, against the national security law, and now I must pay for it.

In fact I'm the father of 3 kids with a legal career. I have no crime history and no political links. I'm just a family man. I would have accepted whatever agreement or warning they gave had they talked to me in the first place, but they never did. They just kidnapped me with no notification then kept us all like the living dead. I haven't seen my kids for a year. I'm always missing them and this makes me sick. My kids are getting worse and worse, being without their father.

The best I can do is to be safe and healthy in prison. I can't imagine how my family is coping. I must let go of everything and forget my family. My wife has no job. I was fired without any benefits by my company. I lost everything and my freedom. Half of my life is gone. I'm helpless as my life is out of my control. I would appreciate if you would help my family as you can. Now I let go, stay in the present, praying and meditating. The future, and freedam, is something I cannot see. Whatever will be let it be.

Sincerely,
Suwicha Thakor

Suwicha has been singled out as the victim of state terror, meant to terrify all Thais. Resistance is futile. Lie down and die. They care not how many Thai families they destroy in delivering their message. Suwicha is right. If he were not Thai he'd have walked by now. The Thai people are the real targets of this terrorist campaign by the Thai state.

#7128 - by Frank G Anderson (visitor) (127.0.0.1 125.26.81.73) | Thu, 21/01/2010 - 04:55

The target is much wider than

The target is much wider than just "Thai people." It's all people, all things (especially the ‘conniving’ internet). The PTB let some off more than others, and it helps if you are near death already, insane, quadriplegic, a foreigner who really engenders international embarrassment or a pro-royalist who can impress us with his or her fealty. In short, act like everyone else, bend over and enjoy it.
Suwicha and his fellow martyrs deserve Thailand-based legal defense that goes on the offense, but Thais don’t seem to have the balls. And that, my friends, if part of the whole problem.