Film director's mum seeks son's release

A photograph showing famed fight choreographer Ramai 'Danny' Moriphan being held at gunpoint by an officer of the United Wa State Army (UWSA). Facebook: JB Family Channel
A photograph showing famed fight choreographer Ramai 'Danny' Moriphan being held at gunpoint by an officer of the United Wa State Army (UWSA). Facebook: JB Family Channel

The mother of famous action film director Ramai "Danny" Moriphan asked police to investigate his alleged abduction in Myanmar.

Along with a letter, Kham Moriphan also presented videos, pictures and a note by Ramai, in which he revealed that he has been physically and mentally abused by the United Wa State Army (UWSA) since the beginning of 2022.

Ms Kham said the ethnic army had demanded a ransom worth 24 million baht for the release of her son. The documents were also filed with Foreign Affairs Minister Don Pramudwinai.

Police are investigating the alleged crime and working on getting Ramai home.

However, they have to first look into the motives behind Ramai's trip to Wa State and the business he was involved in that led to his abduction.

Ramai, 40, a well-known Thai fight choreographer, was said to have been taken to Mong Tong Township, Shan State in Myanmar, about 150 kilometres from the Thai border.

Ms Kham revealed that her son had received death threats warning against attempts to contact Thai officials for help.

In a note posted online, Ramai said that he had been abducted on Jan 4 and been physically and mentally abused ever since. He claimed that UWSA soldiers chained him up and subjected him to forced labour from early morning until evening. There was also another Thai man in custody at the prison, he claimed, but the UWSA threatened to shoot them if they escaped.

It was reported that Ramai was invited to the border town of Tachileik in Myanmar for a directing opportunity that failed to happen. Other crew members had decided to return to Thailand but Ramai was approached by Chai, an influential businessman in Wa State, and offered a different job.

However, he was instead thrown in jail and forced to work until his 24-million-baht ransom was paid.

It is speculated that Ramai's friends are involved in drug dealing with businessmen in Myanmar and believed Ramai could be forced into paying off their 24-million-baht debt.

However, Ms Kham insisted her son travelled to Myanmar purely to seek a production budget from local businessmen.

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Vocabulary

  • abduct: to take somebody away illegally, especially using force - ลักพาตัว
  • abduction: taking somebody away illegally, especially using force - การลักพาตัว
  • abuse: to use or treat someone or something wrongly or badly, especially in a way that is to your own advantage - ใช้ในทางที่ผิด
  • alleged: claimed to be true although not yet proven; claimed to have done something wrong but not yet proven - ที่ถูกกล่าวหา
  • choreographer (noun): a person whose job involves designing and arranging the steps and movements in dances, especially in ballet -
  • debt (noun): an amount of money that you owe - หนี้, นี้สิน
  • ethnic: of a group of people with the same culture or traditions - กลุ่มชาติพันธุ์
  • influential: of a person or group who has the power to affect a situation - มีอิทธิพล
  • labour: work, especially hard physical work - งานที่ใช้พละกำลัง
  • motive: a reason for doing something - แรงจูงใจ
  • ransom: the amount of money that someone wants to be paid before they will let a person go or give back a valuable object - เงินค่าไถ่
  • speculate: to consider or discuss what might happen or might have happened - คาดการณ์ อนุมาน
  • threat (noun): an occasion when someone says or does something that indicates they will cause you harm or problems, especially if you do not do what they want you to do - การคุกคาม,การขู่เข็ญ
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