pattaya127 Posted January 6, 2005 Report Share Posted January 6, 2005 Devoted doctor takes on her toughest challenge She's trying to ID thousands of victims Lynne O'Donnell, San FranciscoChronicle Foreign Service Wednesday, January 5, 2005 Printable Version Email This Article Phang-Nga, Thailand -- Porntip Rojanasunan, Thailand's punky Doctor Death, strides around the courtyard of the Yan Yao Temple, a forensic superstar with spiked purple hair and glittering gold eye shadow now facing her sternest challenge. Her fury and frustration pierce the throat-searing atmosphere of death that has encased this Buddhist temple since the Dec. 26 tsunami turned it into a morgue for 1,800 rotting corpses, many still unidentified. "We have nothing here. What do we need? Everything," she says as clouds of eerie white vapor swirl up from blocks of dry ice thrown between black plastic body bags to slow the tropical rot. "We are not prepared for such a big disaster as this." Dr. Porntip, as she is known in Thailand, has taken charge of the grim task of identifying, tagging and bagging the thousands of victims of the tsunami that engulfed the tourist mecca of southern Thailand. So far, around 5, 000 bodies have been found, and most of those yet to be buried or cremated are stored at three temples in Phang-Nga province, north of Phuket island, where the vast majority of victims died. Yan Yao Temple has been transformed by necessity into Thailand's biggest morgue. Every minute, more bodies are brought through the arched temple gates, some in hastily knocked-together coffins stacked in trucks or on the back of tricycle rickshaws, some in plastic bags dragged in by volunteers wearing face masks against the stench. The remains of the dead are laboriously unloaded onto the concrete courtyard, patrolled by young Thai volunteers wearing yellow rubber overalls and carrying backpacks of disinfectant that they constantly spray on the ground and on the unending flow of people who come to help or inquire about lost loved ones. Refrigerated containers line the driveway, and former market stalls now distribute rubber gloves, rubber boots, face masks, bottles of mineral water and cups of instant noodles. The open-air prayer hall also offers free telephone and Internet services for the bereaved. Dr. Porntip, 48, marches to and fro, calmly giving advice and support to the phalanx of foreign doctors and forensic experts -- Britons, Australians, New Zealanders, Belgians, Dutch, French, Israelis -- who have descended on Thailand to help identify the dead. The multilingual Babel in the courtyard is evidence, Dr. Porntip says, that the recent tragedy has vindicated her criticism of the Thai government for not taking her profession seriously. "We have only 50 forensic scientists in Thailand, no pathologists, no forensic anthropologists. We have no government official based here, and no manager to manage things. I am doing it all myself. And because we have never developed the quality of forensics, we cannot deal with the bodies in a thorough way," she said. "The color of the skin and hair tells us if bodies are Thai or foreigners. We have tried to identify them completely, but because we lack staff, equipment and knowledge, we are just doing rough identification, by the face and clothes, and finally by DNA, which we have to send to China for analysis. '' As if to add emphasis to her complaints, 300 bodies, all Asian, had to be exhumed early last week after being wrongly identified before burial. Over the past decade, the diminutive doctor, a devout Buddhist, has acquired superstar status in Thailand as a warrior for justice who stands up to police corruption and gangster intimidation. Unafraid of confronting a notoriously corrupt judicial system, she has risked personal danger by openly accusing police of torture and murder. She relentlessly badgered the government to set up an independent forensic laboratory until it established a Central Institute for Forensic Science a few years ago and appointed her deputy director. "I think that goodness should protect me from danger from other people," she said. "So I believe that the spirits of the dead will protect me. It's the Buddhist way." To stretch her meager state salary, she has become a best-selling author of books about the cases she has worked on, popularizing the image of modern detective work. Honored by the king with the title Khunying, equivalent to the British honorific Dame, Dr. Porntip says she hopes the tsunami will bring with it the lessons she has been trying to teach the Thai establishment. "For seven years, I've been telling the government that Thailand needs a missing persons bureau because we have a thousand people every year who go unidentified. The police just throw the bodies in the river or burn them," she said. "I've been telling the ministers that when the police find an unidentified skull or other body parts, they must not destroy them, they must call me to come and get the body and do a DNA analysis. Now that we have this disaster on an international scale, and we cannot cope with it ourselves, I think finally the message will get through.'' While she is recognized wherever she goes and often mobbed by autograph hunters, Dr. Porntip has also earned enemies. Recently, she was sued by a regional police department after announcing that a young man accused of rape had been beaten to death during interrogation rather than by fellow prisoners, as police claimed. Many of her detractors deride her wild hairstyle and casual dress, which contrast sharply with the accepted norms in conservative Thailand, and accuse her of being an attention-seeker. She brushes off criticism, saying her individual style aims "to make me happy, to compensate for the work, not to be an actress." After Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's wife, Potjaman, visited the temple early last week to offer her help in identifying the dead, and was politely turned down, Dr. Porntip said: "Our prime minister is aware of economics but he does not understand justice. No one understands that I want to do this type of work to help people. I am very tired, but I feel happy and satisfied when I can identify someone for their families." 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jasmine Posted January 6, 2005 Report Share Posted January 6, 2005 [color:"red"]After Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's wife, Potjaman, visited the temple early last week to offer her help in identifying the dead, and was politely turned down, Dr. Porntip said: "Our prime minister is aware of economics but he does not understand justice. No one understands that I want to do this type of work to help people. I am very tired, but I feel happy and satisfied when I can identify someone for their families." -------------------- [/color] I have always liked the way she is direct, does not mince words because of the "kreng jai concept". It is a very horrendous job to do what she does, only wish her well and that she could hold on and could continue to do the great and difficult job. Some people know that I was supposed to go to medical school, this type of disaster makes me wish that I had, the only regret I have in my life. Jasmine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 7, 2005 Report Share Posted January 7, 2005 I agree with you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sayjann Posted January 7, 2005 Report Share Posted January 7, 2005 since this tragedy i have heard so much about this remarkable Woman. she may have been honoured by the King of Thailand,but surely she deserves some sort of International award?. not just for her work the last few Days but for her overall work in the face of adversity in Thailand..... something like Woman of the Year....... it is terrible that something like this brings the Worlds attention to a person trying her hardest to improve things in her own Country..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Khun_Kong Posted January 7, 2005 Report Share Posted January 7, 2005 RE: Dr. Porntip... ... "For seven years, I've been telling the government that Thailand needs a missing persons bureau because we have a thousand people every year who go unidentified. The police just throw the bodies in the river or burn them," she said. "I've been telling the ministers that when the police find an unidentified skull or other body parts, they must not destroy them, they must call me to come and get the body and do a DNA analysis. Now that we have this disaster on an international scale, and we cannot cope with it ourselves, I think finally the message will get through.'' ... Dr. Porntip has also earned enemies. Recently, she was sued by a regional police department after announcing that a young man accused of rape had been beaten to death during interrogation rather than by fellow prisoners, as police claimed. ... After Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's wife, Potjaman, visited the temple early last week to offer her help in identifying the dead, and was politely turned down, Dr. Porntip said: "Our prime minister is aware of economics but he does not understand justice. ... I hope self-autopsy is in her bag of medical skills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted January 7, 2005 Report Share Posted January 7, 2005 Photo of her collapsing in tears of anguish into the PM's arms showed her with RED head, hardly purple. I would translate Khunying as Lady. Thanphuying would probably be dame. Amazing lady though ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
limbo Posted January 8, 2005 Report Share Posted January 8, 2005 How did she arrive so quickly on the scene? Did she happen to be around? Hats off to her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yehtmae Posted January 8, 2005 Report Share Posted January 8, 2005 Her team have been down south dealing with the 'insurgency issue' for quite some time so will have had some infrastructure (although hopelessly inadequate for this) set up down there. However I do recall in November/December reports about them pulling out because the situation was too dangerous (they were being targeted) and going back to Bangkok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasmine Posted January 10, 2005 Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 [color:"red"] Photo of her collapsing in tears of anguish into the PM's arms showed her with RED head, hardly purple. I would translate Khunying as Lady. Thanphuying would probably be dame. Amazing lady though ... -------------------- [/color] "Kuhn Ying is the same title as "Dame" in England. She was given the title for her performance on investigating crime and her brave goins to get justice for victims. [color:"red"] Thanphuying [/color] is in Thailand can be the title from a royal blood or another level of the "Dame". This lady has been criticized by other doctors for her findings got some doctors in trouble, however, Thailand needs such persons who is not afraid of repercussion from doing things straight. This woman has chances to get into the medicine that can make her lots of money but she chose forensic for the reason of getting "justice" and she and her family must have bodyguards now for a few big heads are being scrutinized. I find the woman very brave, I couldn't have done what she does (not talking about forensic medicine) for in Thailand a life can be bought by just a the cost of a bullet. Jasmine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zaad Posted January 10, 2005 Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 "This woman has chances to get into the medicine that can make her lots of money but she chose forensic for the reason of getting "justice" For the kind of work this woman does, dealing with corpses on a daily basis, I'm certain one needs a great amount of interest and love for this job much more than her will to get "justice" done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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