Five years after the violent suppression of pro-democracy campaigners in Bangkok, the human rights situation in Thailand remains a cause for concern. Despite improvements in some important areas, there is still concern at the level of extrajudicial killings committed by the security forces with impunity, the ill-treatment and failure to protect refugees, and the continuing imposition of the death penalty for a wide variety of offences. This report which covers the period from January 1996 to April 1997 describes some of the cases of extrajudicial killing, noting the marked increase in police shootings of criminal suspects, and the forcible return to Myanmar of some 4000 refugees since early 1997. The report concludes with a call to establish an effective national human rights commission and detailed recommendations regarding the new constitution, the death penalty, extrajudicial executions and refugees.
