King donates B128m for jails

King donates B128m for jails

Written with love: His Majesty the King, accompanied by Her Majesty the Queen, writes a message for a well-wisher at Wing 23 in Udon Thani before presiding over the opening of an office building at Udon Thani Juvenile and Family Court in Muang district.
Written with love: His Majesty the King, accompanied by Her Majesty the Queen, writes a message for a well-wisher at Wing 23 in Udon Thani before presiding over the opening of an office building at Udon Thani Juvenile and Family Court in Muang district.

His Majesty the King has donated 128 million baht for the purchase of medical equipment and supplies for 19 prisons and hospitals serving them, according to the Corrections Department.

The royal donation will go a long way to helping improve medical care for inmates, the department said in a statement on Tuesday.

The latest donation is earmarked for the second phase of the Ratchathan Pansuk (Corrections Department Sharing Happiness) project.

The first phase, which began on Dec 28 last year, saw His Majesty the King donate 217 million baht.

That donation was spent on buying 756 items of medical equipment and supplies for medical facilities at 25 prisons, five of them high-security ones.

A woman shows the King’s handwritten message which reads: ‘Loving each other is loving the nation. Love for the public good. Do good deeds for each other.’ (Photos by the Royal Household Bureau)

According to the department's statement, the Ratchathan Pansuk project was a result of the goodwill and vision of Their Majesties the King and Queen.

Their Majesties believe a sound mind and healthy body are a requisite for maintaining a good quality of life for people, including prison inmates.

They also feel that inmates have the right to access treatment and be educated about medical services and basic healthcare.

This is a basic human right and any obstacle to receiving treatment and basic healthcare must be removed, the Corrections Department statement said.

In the second phase of the project, which is due to kick off soon, 19 prisons and their service hospitals across the country will receive medical equipment and supplies.

They include Phon prison in Khon Kaen province; Thanyaburi prison in Pathum Thani; Thung Song prison in Nakhon Si Thammarat; and Thong Phaphum prison in Kanchanaburi province.

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