Injured protesters and families of those killed in the 2004 Tak Bai tragedy have filed a lawsuit against nine former top officials, accusing them of murder and other charges.
The filing took place at the provincial court of Narathiwat on Thursday, with several human rights lawyers representing 48 plaintiffs - a rare instance of affected ordinary people taking legal action against authorities.
The nine former officials face accusations of murder, unlawful detention and malfeasance.
The court has set June 24 for the inquiry process before judges will decide whether to accept the case. The nine former officials, who held top positions in southern Thailand at the time, will not be defendants until they are indicted.
Their names have not been disclosed to the public, but they reportedly held key positions in the army, police forces, and Interior Ministry.
Adilan Ali-Ishoh, a lawyer with the Muslim Attorney Centre Foundation, said on Tuesday they were named in a fact-finding report by then-ombudsman Pichet Sunthornpipit. One of them is former Fourth Army Region Commander Lt Gen Pisan Wattanawongkiri, now a party-list MP of the ruling Pheu Thai Party.
The decision to pursue legal action by the injured demonstrators and families precedes the 20-year statute of limitations, expiring in October this year.
The carnage took place on Oct 25, 2004, when security forces resorted to force to disperse a rally in front of Tak Bai police station in Narathiwat's Tak Bai district. Seven demonstrators died at the site, and 78 other detainees had died from suffocation or organ collapse as they were transported to the Ingkhayutthaborihan Military Camp in Pattani province's Nong Chik district, 140 kilometres away.
Pornpen Khongkachonkiet, director and lawyer of the Cross Cultural Foundation, said on Thursday that the victims and their families decided to handle the case on their own after police and prosecutors failed to act against the authorities involved in the dispersal.
"We cannot let the case expire without taking action (against the authorities) for the historic violence resulting in deaths," she said.
The Cross Cultural Foundation is among the four organisations providing lawyers to represent the plaintiffs in court for this case.
They are suing only nine former authorities who were directly responsible for using force to disperse the rally that day, when about 1,500 protesters gathered in front of the police station calling for the release of six detainees.
"Supervisors who committed wrongdoing should have face civil, criminal and disciplinary punishment, but we have not seen any accountability," Ms Pornpen said.
Abdulqahhar Arwaeputeh of the Muslim Attorney Centre expressed confidence in the case proceeding in court, citing the convincing evidence presented by the legal team, including fact-finding reports, media coverage and survivors' testimony.
"One of the most important pieces of evidence comes from those who were involved in the incident and are still alive. Their accounts can shed light on what really happened," the lawyer added.
Ms Pornpen said the lawsuit could have an implication on the future of Narathiwat. "This (lawsuit) could be a historic event leading to peace in the southern border," she said.
Members of the Muslim Students Federation of Thailand gather on a Skywalk in Bangkok’s Pathumwan district to mark the 15th anniversary of the Tak Bai massacre on Oct 25, 2004. (File photo: Patipat Janthong)