Activist for ethnic Karen villagers missing since Thursday

The well-known Karen activist Por Cha Lee Rakcharoen (Billy) has been missing since Thursday. Human Rights Watch is demanding an immediate response from the government. "The Thai authorities must explain what happened to him," said Asia director Brad Adams.

According to the Cross Cultural Foundation, the head of Kaeng Krachan (Phetchaburi) National Park has admitted that Billy was detained on Friday for carrying wild honeycombs and six bottles of wild honey. Chaiwat Limlikitaksorn allegedly confirmed this and said that he had been released after a warning.

Por Chor Lee is committed to the fate of the Karen who live in the national park. In 2011, residents of Bangkloybon village sued authorities for setting fire to the huts of XNUMX Karen residents. Chaiwat led that operation. According to him, the cabins were in a protected forest area. Por Cha Lee collected evidence and sought witnesses.

The case will be heard in the Administrative Court next month. Por Cha Lee is both a witness and an interpreter, as he speaks Thai well. "His absence will affect the case," said Surapong Kongchantuk, chair of a subcommittee of the Lawyers Council of Thailand that assists residents. "I see no reason for his absence other than his activism."

Concerns about Por Cha Lee are not exaggerated, as in 2011 a human rights defender for Por Cha Lee's network [?] was shot dead while driving his pickup truck in the city of Phetchaburi. Chaiwat is suspected of this, but that case has not yet been done.

Por Cha Lee was last seen in the park which is the only access point to Bangkloybon. He was on his motorcycle on his way to ethnic Karen villagers to prepare the trial against the authorities involved in the arson attack. When he was apprehended by a national park official, he had files on the case with him.

(Source: Bangkok Post, Apr 22, 2014)