Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra on Wednesday declined to comment on calls for the government to issue an executive decree to extend the statute of limitations on the 2004 Tak Bai massacre case, which is due to expire on Friday.
"Excuse me, I have to go," the prime minister said when asked for her thoughts on growing calls for the executive decree.
The suggestion was first made at a public forum by Assoc Prof Prinya Thaewanarumitkul, a law lecturer at Thammasat University.
Speaking on Sunday, Assoc Prof Prinya suggested the government consider issuing the executive decree under Section 29 of the constitution, which would also retrospectively apply to the Tak Bai case. It is unclear how long an extension would be granted if the government decided to go ahead with the move.
Over 80 people are believed to have died following the crackdown on protesters in front of a police station in Tak Bai district of Narathiwat on Oct 25, 2004, and their subsequent transport to a military facility in the neighbouring province of Pattani.
Before the dispersal, the protesters had been calling for the release of six detainees. The Tak Bai tragedy occurred during the tenure of then-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Justice Minister Tawee Sodsong said no conclusion had been reached regarding the proposed executive decree, adding the deputy prime minister overseeing security affairs would be better positioned to answer questions about the matter.
Normally, when a law concerns only specific groups and not the general public, a study is required to ensure the proposed law is constitutional, said Pol Col Tawee. In this case, if an executive decree is issued to extend the statute of limitations in the Tak Bai case, which involves eight to 14 suspects, the question that follows is whether the extension should also apply to around 4,000 other security cases, he added.
More than 7,000 arrest warrants have been issued for suspects in security cases, with only around 4,000 suspects having been arrested, he said.
Pol Col Tawee acknowledged the responsibility of the government to support security authorities in bringing suspects to justice but admitted that tracking down these individuals is difficult as most prefer to flee and remain hidden until the statute of limitations in their cases expires.
He said his Prachachat Party had first raised public concerns last year over the Tak Bai case's impending statute of limitations expiry, pointing out the lack of progress in the case over the years. On Dec 12 last year, Kamolsak Leewamo, a Prachachat MP for Narathiwat, pushed for a House committee to conduct an inquiry into why legal proceedings in the Tak Bai case had been stalled for so long, said Pol Col Tawee. Asked whether he was concerned that the Tak Bai incident, which occurred during the Thai Rak Thai Party administration -- the precursor to the Pheu Thai Party -- could damage the current Pheu Thai-led coalition if the statute of limitations expires without any suspects standing trial, he said simply: "When the truth emerges, evil will disappear."
Meanwhile, the National Human Rights Commission on Wednesday urged swift pursuit of all defendants in the Tak Bai case and advocated a legal amendment that would remove the statute of limitations for cases involving serious human rights violations committed by state officials.
In the South, cyclists organised a symbolic event on Wednesday called "Pedalling for Oxygen" along the same route where arrested protesters were taken from Tak Bai district in Narathiwat and suffocated in military trucks in 2004. The cyclists, including some from Malaysia, prayed for the spirits of the dead in front of Tak Bai police station before setting off on a 145-kilometre route to Ingkhayutthaborihan military camp in Nong Chik district, Pattani.
Cyclist Muhammadaladi Dengni said they were riding "in search of oxygen" to honour the demonstrators who suffocated en route to Pattani.