Tue 27 August 2019:
Thailand’s opposition Future Forward Party calls for autopsy on Abdulloh Esormusor’s body after torture allegations.
Abdulloh Esormusor died on Sunday after 35 days in a coma following reports of torture while he was in custody. His death comes as warnings of violence in the restive southern province increase.
On Tuesday, Thailand’s opposition Future Forward Party (FFP) called on the government to conduct an autopsy on Abdulloh’s body.
In a statement on its official Facebook page, FFP said it is the “duty of all those involved” to answer questions about the circumstances leading to Abdulloh’s detention and death.
The death of Abdulloh “puts the credibility of General Prayut and Thai military leaders on the line,” Sunai Phasuk, senior researcher on Thailand at Human Rights Watch (HRW), said, referring to Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha by his military title.
At his funeral on Sunday, relatives and friends carefully carried Abdulloh’s body from his home to the local mosque in the Sai Buri district of Pattani province.
Images posted online showed a crowd of people bidding their final farewells to the man, who was taken by the military from his residence on July 20.
Conflict
Conflict has been simmering for decades in Thailand’s deep south, which is predominantly populated by Muslims of Malay background.
Tensions escalated in 2004 after a series of well-planned attacks on police and government facilities. Since then, there have been over 7,000 deaths resulting directly from the conflict. Most of the deaths have been civilians.
For the past 15 years, not a single military personnel has been prosecuted for alleged torture and rights abuses, according to rights groups.
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