The government has said it stands ready to compensate the family of an insurgent suspect who collapsed during military detention and later died after a month in a coma -- once it gets proof he wasn't an insurgent.
Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon said on Wednesday the government will pay compensation to the spouse of Abdulloh Esormusor if the evidence shows he was innocent.
Abdulloh died at Songkhanagarind Hospital in Songkhla province on Sunday after suffering from severe brain swelling. He was apprehended at his house in Sai Buri district of Pattani on July 20 and interrogated at the Ingkayutthaborihan camp in Nong Chik district in Pattani. The 34-year-old alleged militant was found lying unconscious on the floor in a toilet in the detention centre in the early hours of July 21 and remained in a coma until he died.
Southern security authorities and Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha have denied the man was beaten up while he was in custody.
The opposition plans to press the government for an explanation of Abdulloh's death in Parliament, and Gen Prawit on Wednesday did not make clear who will be assigned to answer the motion.
The government and military are under pressure to allow an independent investigation into the circumstances of the death.
The Human Rights Commission based in the southernmost provinces on Tuesday said it was unclear what led to the lack of oxygen in the victim's body. The human rights advocates said the security camera installed inside the centre were not functioning, as the building was opened for use in May this year and the contractor that installed the CCTV system has yet to hand over its controls to the army.
The human rights panel asked the Southern Border Provinces Administration Centre to help Abdulloh's family.
Human Rights Watch on Tuesday also urged an independent investigation into the death.
"The death of Abdulloh Esormusor is an important test cse for the Thai government on whether it is willing to address rights violations in military detention," Brad Adams, its Asia director, said in a statement.
Abdulloh's body was buried at a cemetery in Sai Buri. His family members refused an autopsy, saying they no longer trusted the authorities.