Renowned scholar and former chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Saneh Chamarik died aged 94 on Saturday. Funeral bathing rites will be held at Wat Thep Sirintharawat on Sunday.
Born on July 11, 1927, he finished high school at Wat Rajabopit School. He graduated from Thammasat University in 1948 before receiving a master's degree in business administration from the University of Manchester in 1957.
He started his career as a lecturer at Thammasat University's faculty of political science in 1960 and continued teaching there until his retirement in 1987.
He was a member of the National Legislative Assembly from 1973 to 1974 and he went on to co-found the Union for Civil Liberty in 1975. He was also appointed as vice-rector of Thammasat University in 1975.
A prominent researcher, Saneh also served as chairman of the Foundation for the Promotion of Social Sciences and Humanities Textbooks Project, and director of the Thai Khadi Research Institute at Thammasat University, among other positions he held. After his retirement, he served as chairman of the NHRC between 2001 and 2009.
Social critic Sulak Sivaraksa offered condolences on Facebook over the passing of Saneh, saying Saneh was a high-calibre scholar who was fully devoted to educating his students.