snowball Posted November 6, 2003 Report Share Posted November 6, 2003 Thailand jails Dutchman for life 3 November 2003 AMSTERDAM - Despite his acquittal in March 2002, Dutchman Machiel Kuijt has been sentenced in Thailand by an appeals court to life in prison on drugs charges. Kuijt was taken to the court last Friday, but his lawyer and the Dutch embassy only received news of the ruling on Monday. The Dutchman has been in custody for the past five years, having been ordered to remain in detention after the 2002 acquittal to await the appeal from the Thai public prosecutor, an NOS news report said. The Foreign Affairs Ministry said it was shocked by the latest ruling. A ministry spokesman said it was incomprehensible how a court could make a leap from an acquittal to a life sentence. Foreign Affairs Minister Jaap de Hoop Scheffer- who has previously called for Kuijt's release -immediately demanded answers from the Thai ambassador and the ministry is especially interested to know whether new facts have been uncovered to warrant a life sentence. Kuijt was arrested mid-1997 with an Italian friend en route to the Bangkok airport after a vacation in the southeast Asian country. The Dutchman was accused of co-involvement in the drugs trade after half a kilogram of heroin was found with his former Thai girlfriend and her brother. Only the Dutchman's Italian friend was allowed to return home after the March 2002 acquittal, newspaper De Telegraaf reported. The case saw heavy criticism directed at the Foreign Affairs Ministry for its actions throughout Kuijt's ordeal. The Dutch ambassador, for example, is believed to have only visited the prisoner once during his period of detention. Meanwhile, if the man's life sentence remains in force, it will not be possible for Kuijt to serve out his time in a Dutch jail because the Netherlands and Thailand have not signed a treaty in relation to the transfer of prisoners. Justice Minister Piet Hein Donner recently rejected calls for the nation to entry into such a treaty. The Kuijt's family had previously launched legal action against the Dutch State, claiming it was not doing enough to free him. The court dismissed the case, but ruled that the State must investigate all possibilities of achieving the man's release as soon as possible. Link to news story: http://www.expatica.com/index.asp?pad=2,18,&item_id=35446 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pattaya127 Posted November 7, 2003 Report Share Posted November 7, 2003 Does anyone know the facts on which the guy was found involved. And staying in jail though you've been acquitted because there is an appeal. TIT that sends shivers thru the spine! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 7, 2003 Report Share Posted November 7, 2003 Well.. actually nothing.. is the word here in Holland. But on the other hand.. my TGF, which i spoke yesterday, said that a Thai newspaper told about drugs found in his house/appartment.. Does anyone remember that incident with the son of the President from the European Bank, who had a bar on kho Tao and got arrested about drugs and fled the country..? Maybe this is a reaction from the Thai goverment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elef Posted November 7, 2003 Report Share Posted November 7, 2003 Hi P127, "And staying in jail though you've been acquitted because there is an appeal." That's the normal thing in all judicial systems except the anglo-saxon. But I smelling polictics in this case also. Maybe because not signing the treaty, maybe embassy was involved in helping dutch suspects out of Thailand, maybe some thai in jail in Netherlands... elef Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soongmak Posted November 7, 2003 Report Share Posted November 7, 2003 And staying in jail though you've been acquitted because there is an appeal. TIT that sends shivers thru the spine! I checked out the links as reported by moonfrog yesterday, and the reason that he stayed in jail after the acquittal is that the dutch ministry of foreign affairs refused to guarantee that Kuijt would come back for the appeal. Nice what your countrymen want to do for you eh! Most chilling part to me is staying in jail for six years and you're still not finally convicted or acquitted. Waaay too long a period. And of course an appeal before a higher judge without your lawyer present makes me cringe. Why is there no right for legal representation? It simply doesn't sound like a fair trial to me, whether he is innocent or guilty! Cheers, soongmak Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spirit_of_town_hall Posted November 7, 2003 Report Share Posted November 7, 2003 I dont think the Dutch embassy had any choice, under the Dutch constitution they will not extradite a dutch subject from Holland to a foreign country to either stand trial or complete sentence.... consequently the Dutch Ambassador can give no guarantees STH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 7, 2003 Report Share Posted November 7, 2003 I have absolutly no idea of what will happen with him. If the governments don't sign a treaty, his life will be over i guess..? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spirit_of_town_hall Posted November 7, 2003 Report Share Posted November 7, 2003 If Holland sign the prisoner exchange program then he should after a short period be elligible to serve his sentence in Holland. Dutch gaols are supposed to be like a holiday camp so I imagine thats preferable for him.. STH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soongmak Posted November 7, 2003 Report Share Posted November 7, 2003 Does anyone remember that incident with the son of the President from the European Bank I guess this one only made the dutch newspapers as well. The little shit got away because his mom planned a full scale rescue operation including crossing the thai cambodian border and getting picked up with a private helicopter if my memory serves me right. I am sure this hasn't done dutch-thai relations any good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soongmak Posted November 7, 2003 Report Share Posted November 7, 2003 I dont think the Dutch embassy had any choice, under the Dutch constitution they will not extradite a dutch subject from Holland to a foreign country to either stand trial or complete sentence.... consequently the Dutch Ambassador can give no guarantees Oh, I am sure they dug up some petty excuse not to help him. Law books are so big, there's always a law that allows you to sit back and do nothing. Cheers, soongmak Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.