Human rights in Thailand are described in the 2016 Constitution of Thailand. The current constitution of Thailand was adopted at a popular constitutional referendum on August 7, 2016 [1] .
The fourth section of the constitution provides: "the rights to human dignity, freedom and equality of people must be protected" [2] . The provisions regarding human rights remained the same as in the 2007 Constitution [3] . Sections 26–63 of the constitution set forth a wide range of specific rights in such areas as criminal justice, education, religion, freedom of expression, and non-discrimination.
The 2007 Constitution restored many of the human rights that were recorded in the 1997 People’s Constitution . This applies to the rights to freedom of speech , freedom of the press , peaceful assembly, association , religion , movement within the country and abroad.
The 1997 Constitution was repealed in September 2006 after the coup . The military regime introduced an interim Constitution, which was in force until 2007 and adopted through a referendum. In 2007, the interim constitution was replaced by the 2007 Constitution . In May 2014, the National Council for Peace and Order - the Thai military government, which came to power as a result of the military coup on May 22, 2014, repealed the 2007 Constitution. The 2007 Constitution was replaced by the interim Constitution on July 22, 2014 [4] .
Content
- 1 Constitutional guarantees
- 2 Violation of human rights
- 3 See also
- 4 notes
- 5 Links
Constitutional guarantees
The 1997 Constitution introduced many new rights. These included the right to free education , the rights of traditional communities and the right to peaceful protest, the rights of children, the elderly, the rights of persons with disabilities and gender equality. Freedom of information, the right to healthcare and education, and consumer law were also provided. In total, the number of rights in the 1997 Constitution reached 40, and in the 1932 Constitution, only nine rights were recognized [5] .
Human Rights Violation
The Thai government, as enshrined in the Constitution, respects the rights of its citizens. However, the US Department of State , which monitors the observance of human rights in the countries of interest to it, has registered problems with respect for human rights in Thailand [6] .
The problem in Thailand was the deception of people and their illegal employment. Entrepreneurs recruited people interested in finding employment and illegally employed them as fishermen for fishing trawlers fishing in the Gulf of Thailand and the South China Sea . These people were promised well-paid jobs, but instead they were forced to work for several years at sea in violation of labor agreements and labor safety [7] . This issue has been widely covered by the American media, including The Guardian , The Associated Press , and The New York Times and others. The Associated Press has even awarded the George Polk Journalism Award to media outlets dedicated to these issues.
Another problem with the observance of human rights, especially in rural areas of the country, was the abduction of children and their use for their own purposes (forced labor, begging) in large cities such as Bangkok and Phuket [8] [9] .
After the coup in 2006, a ban on political speech and criticism of the government was introduced in the country. In the Thai provinces, about three hundred radio stations were closed.
Since October 2, 2007, Thailand has been a party to the United Nations Convention against Torture . Section 28 of the 2016 Thai Constitution states that torture is cruel and should be prohibited. However, the Thai legal system does not define torture and torture itself is not recognized as a crime [10] [11] .
Foreign refugees, including Burmese (about 140,000 people), are considered illegal by the Thai government and are subject to arrest [12] [13] . Thai police and paramilitary groups regularly detain refugees and send them to one of the Thai immigration centers, after which they are deported to Burma ( Myanmar ) [12] [13] .
Since September 9, 2015 , Thai law has prohibited discrimination against people on the basis of their sexual orientation [14] [15] However, despite the law, Thai transgender people sometimes face discrimination, especially at work.
See also
- Thai Constitution
- LGBT Rights in Thailand
- Internet censorship in Thailand
Notes
- ↑ Zheltov M.V. Thailand: an urgent need for a new constitution or the modest charm of a military dictatorship . InterIzbirkom (August 31, 2016). Date of treatment September 1, 2016.
- ↑ Draft Constitution of the Kingdom of Thailand 2016 Unofficial English Translation (unavailable link) . Office of the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Thailand ( . United Nations (June 2016). Date accessed September 29, 2016. Archived August 16, 2016.
- ↑ Archived copy . Date of treatment January 23, 2013. Archived May 15, 2012. 2007 Constitution (unofficial translation)
- ↑ King has endorsed interim charter, says Prayuth . Bangkok Post (July 22, 2014). Date of treatment July 22, 2014.
- ↑ Thanet Aphornsuvan, The Search for Order: Constitutions and Human Rights in Thai Political History Archived February 26, 2008. 2001 Symposium: Constitutions and Human Rights in a Global Age: An Asia Pacific perspective
- ↑ Archived copy . Date of treatment December 5, 2012. Archived October 2, 2016.
- ↑ "Forced to Fish: Cambodia's sea slaves" Archived November 18, 2007. . The Guardian Weekly , Jan. 30, 2009.
- ↑ "New York Review", June 25, 2008
- ↑ Thailand, 2013 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor Archived on April 5, 2016.
- ↑ Concluding observations on the initial report of Thailand . - United Nations Committee Against Torture. - P. 2.
- ↑ Thailand leaves legal loophole for torture, disappearances - UN , Asian Correspondent (1 March 2017). Date of appeal March 25, 2017.
- ↑ 1 2 Thailand refugees . Human Rights Watch . Date of treatment December 23, 2012.
- ↑ 1 2 Thailand . American Refugee Committee . Date of treatment December 28, 2012. Archived on August 14, 2012.
- ↑ Thai junta expected to pass Gender Equality bill, strongly opposed by women rights groups
- ↑ Royal Gazette: Gender Equality Act BE 2558 (in Thai)
Links
- Freedom of Expression in Thailand - International Freedom of Speech Association
- Asian Human Rights Commission
- Rule of the Lords , weekly column "On the protection of human rights and the rule of law in Thailand and Burma"