No other news, not even the recent coup, has sent bigger shockwaves across the country than the rape and murder of a 13-year-old girl, allegedly by an intoxicated State Railway of Thailand (SRT) employee on an overnight train bound for Bangkok.
A female passenger sits in a carriage on a South-bound train at Hua Lamphong Station amid public fury about the rape and murder of a teenage girl, allegedly committed by a rail worker. PATIPAT JANTHONG
Although allegedly committed by a lone offender, the setting and violent nature of the crime have sparked public anger in a fashion similar to the infamous Indian gang rape and assault of a woman on a bus in a South Delhi neighbourhood in 2012. Following that unfortunate incident, public protests began in New Delhi and spread all over the country against the state and central governments for failing to provide adequate security for women.
Here, under coup-ruled conditions which did not make it feasible to stage a public gathering of more than five, some people, led by celebrities like former Miss Thailand Panadda Wongphudee, defied the junta’s order by organising a protest, while others resorted to cyberspace to demand the resignation of the SRT governor, and to launch a campaign calling for capital punishment against convicted rapists, without any possibility of bail, a reduced sentence, or a royal pardon.
Another rally is being organised online to take place at Siam Paragon today to advocate for a change in the rape law to demand the death sentence unconditionally.
Now that the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has ordered the removal of the SRT governor and put in place a new board to revamp the ailing state enterprise, it appears that the public's demand is being met gradually. In this case, the NCPO may not have to intervene to ensure the death penalty since according to the Thai penal code, the punishment for premeditated rape and murder of an underage girl is already death by execution.
But will the replacement of the SRT administration and the (likely) execution of this alleged sex offender, or even an unconditional death sentence for all convicted rapists, really pave the way for a more secure environment for women and children?
Let’s start first with a public transport service like the SRT which should guarantee a safe environment for commuters. As revealed by the recent rape case, many discrepancies have surfaced that directly compromised commuters’ safety on the train. The first alarming fact is the irregularity in the employment of the alleged rapist who, despite his criminal record of drug trafficking, managed to secure a job with the state enterprise.
According to SRT’s regulations, a prospective employee must have his or her records checked prior to employment. The usual screening process would involve the person having his fingerprints taken at the police precinct at his or her district of residence, with a notification paper issued from the organisation that requested the record check submitted alongside.
Then, those sets of fingerprints would be sent directly to the criminal records division at the National Police Office. Here, the records would be run against those stored in the database of the Automated Fingerprints Identification System before the results would be sent directly to the organisation that made the request. This is so that the person undergoing the screening will not be able to tamper with the results. Interestingly, according to news reports, the alleged offender reportedly carried his own criminal record clearance paper to submit to the SRT upon being employed just five days before the day of the rape. News sources also indicated the man has good connections, suspected to be kinship, with an SRT official at Hua Lamphong station.
According to a highly placed source at the Transport Ministry which oversees the SRT, the kinship/patronage system has plagued the state enterprise for over a century. Employees are often found to have the same last names and are usually recruited under this familial, cronyistic culture.
Meanwhile, the railway police which is the unit directly charged with ensuring security for train commuters, is known to be the least desirable placement for police personnel, even more so than the much shunned provincial police. It is even common knowledge among police that a transfer to work with the rail police is a punishment.
The job of the railway police is to patrol trains, commuters and freight, for unusual signs or misbehaviour. According to the alleged offender in the recent rape case, he and three other friends had been drinking until inebriated. If there was any patrolling at all on the unfortunate train by the rail police, such misdeeds could have been prevented or at least detected. Being intoxicated while on duty is against SRT regulations.
Apparently, the rules and regulations, as well as the enforcement mechanisms are there but they failed to be adequately and responsibly enforced because of corrupt officials and practices.
This is not to mention the lip-service policy to create a safe environment for women on trains by the SRT. Thirteen years ago, another controversial rape case occurred on a commuter train which led the SRT to announce that a “lady’s car” would be added exclusively for female commuters, with female workers. But so far, that policy has not materialised.
As the NCPO now has absolute power to run the country and is adamant on the reform of all sectors, perhaps it is a good idea for the junta to start contemplating about returning security (upon which happiness is contingent) to women and children, starting first with public transportation.
Assistant Professor Pirongrong Ramasoota teaches and researches on media, communication, and society at the Faculty of Communication Arts, Chulalongkorn University.