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Koh Tao Murders


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While it seems to have disappeared from the media recently it appears the British are determined to see justice.

Good luck with that. A website has been set up dedicated to calling out for justice and a fair trial process that ensures a closure for the friends and families of the victims and also ensures that any suspects or perpetrators are investigated, caught, brought to trial and given a fair and transparent hearing. Unfortunately due to the disturbingly unprofessional Royal Thai Police investigation in this case right from the start and given the history of their previous arrests of Burmese that have turned out to be scapegoats, we along with the international community are watching and observing.

 

http://thailandjustice.com/

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Koh Tao murders trial resumes Thursday

 

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/crime/545631/koh-tao-murders-trial-resumes-thursday?utm_content=buffer470f0&utm_medium=social&utm_source=plus.google.com&utm_campaign=buffer

 

Thai police nevertheless remain confident that DNA evidence will prove the Myanmar pair are guilty. Results of an investigation by British police from Scotland Yard were never made public, but the families of the two murdered Britons have reportedly been in contact with British authorities and say they are convinced Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Htun are guilty.

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"The trial of two Myanmar migrants accused of murdering two British tourists last year is set to resume Thursday on Koh Samui in Surat Thani province.

 

Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Htun are charged with murdering David Miller, 24, and Hannah Witheridge, 23, on Sai Ree beach on the neighbouring island of Koh Tao on Sept 15. They also are charged with raping Witheridge.

 

The case has drawn much international attention, and various observers have accused the Thai authorities of framing the Myanmar men, both 21, and organising a cover-up after members of a local organised-crime gang were implicated.

 

Defence and prosecution lawyers at Thursday's hearing are expected to update the court as to the progress of preparing witnesses, the Democratic Voice of Burma reported.

 

The court is also expected to consider the recent requests by the defence team that physical evidence be re-examined by the Ministry of Justice's Central Institute of Forensic Science, and for more information provided regarding the process of DNA analysis.

 

Thai police nevertheless remain confident that DNA evidence will prove the Myanmar pair are guilty. Results of an investigation by British police from Scotland Yard were never made public, but the families of the two murdered Britons have reportedly been in contact with British authorities and say they are convinced Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Htun are guilty.

 

A lawyer representing the migrants told DVB in October that the pair told their legal team and members of the Myanmar embassy that they were tortured into giving confessions.

 

Meanwhile, some 100 Myanmar migrant workers joined a workshop on Koh Tao on Monday and Tuesday to discuss migrant rights.

 

Participants in the workshop, organised by the Migrant Worker Rights Network (MWRN) and the Human Rights and Development Foundation, on Tuesday set out an eight-point list of demands to Thai authorities, including: regular pay for migrant workers; the opening of a Myanmar migrant passport centre; preventing police and officials from acting above the law; and conformity to labour regulations.

 

A letter with the demands was handed over to the Koh Tao municipal chief on Tuesday.

 

"I believe that organising networks here will be very helpful in promoting the rights of migrants," said a Myanmar organiser of the event. "Many migrants on the island live in fear. They do not know their rights and are afraid of the authorities."

 

Some 4,000 Myanmar nationals work on Koh Tao. Organisers said most did not attend the workshop because they feared repercussions from the local police.

 

One attendee told DVB: "Previously, I would have been afraid to come to a workshop like this. But if both migrant workers and officials are aware of and respect labour rights, this island will be a safer and better place for us."

 

Andy Hall, a British activist working on migrants' issues for the MWRN, said, "I have been to this island many times in assisting (Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Htun) during the hearings in the murder case. During that time, I have learned more and more about the plight of migrant workers on this island which is so popular among foreign tourists.""

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"The trial of two Myanmar migrants accused of murdering two British tourists last year is set to resume Thursday on Koh Samui in Surat Thani province.

 

A lawyer representing the migrants told DVB in October that the pair told their legal team and members of the Myanmar embassy that they were tortured into giving confessions.

 

Sounds about right

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Amazing how many Burmese are now working in Thailand - 4000 on Ko Tao alone if the article can be believed.Was on a bus from CM to BKK recently and there were loads of foreign ( Asian ) speakers on board ( can`t speak a word of Burmese myself but fairly sure they were from there ).All the hotel cleaning staff seem to be from there now.

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During the protests, the Chaeng Wattana office was closed. I had to go to the red shirt mall (whatever the name is) for both my 90-day report and visa renewal. It's normally the office where Cambodians and Burmese go for their visas, and there were always long lines of them waiting to get permission. It tells you how bad things must be in their own countries for them to come here to work for peanuts.

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The interesting thing is while the Thai economy is in a state of decline the Cambodian and Burmese economies are in a state of growth.

 

Perhaps one day we will see long queues of Thai migrant workers in Phnom Penh and Rangoon :)

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