The death of a 48-year-old female disciple of Wat Phra Dhammakaya who succumbed to an asthma attack inside an apartment at the sealed-off temple complex must be subject to a thorough and factual investigation to establish the facts.
As the government's search for the elusive former abbot of the temple, Phra Dhammajayo, is ongoing, authorities and the temple's senior monks and followers have come up with their own version of whether the security officers' blockade of the compound restricted medical aid and contributed to the death of Pattana Chiangrang, an assistant pharmacist from Phayao.
In light of the conflicting claims, it is important that all sides avoid sensationalising or politicising the incident and await autopsy results and other findings. With 4,000 personnel operational on the grounds of the temple, the Department of Special Investigation (DSI), the police and the military also owe the public factual and proven explanations over how they handle requests for medical aid access to the controlled compound.
Phra Sanitwong Wutthiwangso, the temple's communications head, claimed that the woman died because an ambulance could not reach her in time, saying on-site security officers could not approve entry for the ambulance and thus had to seek the go-ahead from the DSI. This clearance process meant it took about an hour for help to arrive.
DSI chief Paisit Wongmuang, meanwhile, said his agency was alerted to the ambulance request when it was too late. Citing a preliminary examination of a doctor, he said the woman died five hours before officials arrived at the scene. But his information still conflicts with that given by his deputy who said the woman died an hour or two before the alert given to the agency. He also did not clarify whether permission from the DSI was required prior to granting medical aid access.
The DSI, the police and the military must clarify what their standard directives are for security officers to handle on-site entry requests for medical emergencies. More importantly, witnesses and the officers must be asked to give their accounts over whether there was a delay in granting access for the ambulance as claimed.
Autopsy results and findings from this investigation will help establish facts accepted by all sides who must stop spreading their unproven claims further. But they must also not be used to instigate hatred and resentment that could either prolong the siege or deepen the resistance of the temple's followers.
The incident acts as a reminder to the government that the use of sweeping powers granted by Section 44 of the interim charter to make the temple a restricted and controlled area is unnecessary for its search for the former abbot wanted on arrest warrants in connection with embezzlement and other charges.
If the search operation is found to have restricted or delayed access of the ambulance as alleged, authorities have to take responsibility for the death and then review and revise the rule. The delivery of food has also been allegedly restricted with a ban on raw foods and a limit on the number of cooked food boxes. No matter how the government justifies the blockade of the temple, it must ensure that access for medical needs and food supplies is unconditionally allowed.
Authorities also need to review the disconnection of mobile phone and internet signals in and around the temple. This measure deprives the rights of those remaining inside the temple to contact others in case of emergency or to keep their families and friends informed of their whereabouts.
After almost two weeks, the search for the monk has not been successful. It is time for the government to opt for the use of normal laws to avoid intensifying the confrontation and deepening social conflicts.