Thailand to ratify enforced disappearance convention by June 13

Thailand is set to ratify the International Convention for the Protection of Persons from Enforced Disappearance (ICPPED) by June 13, as announced by the Foreign Affairs Ministry. The ratification marks a significant step in the country’s commitment to human rights.

Thailand deposited an Instrument of Ratification for the ICPPED on May 14. The convention will come into effect thirty days after the deposit date, according to the ministry’s statement on May 17.

The documents were submitted to the United Nations headquarters in New York by Vathayudh Vichankaiyakij, Thailand’s Chargé d’affaires to the UN.

Thailand is already a party to seven major international human rights treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. With the ICPPED, Thailand will have ratified eight out of nine core human rights treaties, the ministry stated.

“The ratification reaffirms Thailand’s commitment to protecting people from enforced disappearances.”

The ratification document was signed by former foreign minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara on April 26, two days before his resignation.

The ICPPED, adopted under a UN General Assembly Resolution in December 2006, came into force on December 23, 2010, according to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) noted that from 1980 to August last year, the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances recorded 93 cases of alleged enforced disappearance in Thailand, with 77 still unresolved.

Melissa Upreti, ICJ’s Asia-Pacific Regional Director said the convention is an essential instrument which obligates states to take important measures to prevent the heinous crime of enforced disappearance, hold perpetrators accountable, and provide redress to victims and their families.”

Thailand has yet to ratify the Convention on the Protection of the Rights of Migrant Workers and Members of their Families, which is the ninth core human rights treaty. However, the country’s engagement with the ICPPED is a crucial step towards ensuring greater protection for its citizens and residents, reported Bangkok Post.