Prachatai English - News

On 19 January, Thai netizens found that the homepage of the Dental Council of Thailand had been attacked by a hacker claiming to be from Myanmar. Protest messages in broken Thai were displayed against discrimination against Myanmar migrant workers and the rape of a Myanmar woman by a Thai policeman.  

The message reads “Stop the oppression and discrimination against Myanmar migrant workers. … The act of a Thai policeman in the rape of a Myanmar woman, who is now a prisoner, shows the inhumanity of Thai people. Burmese hacker WSA will never tolerate this occurrence and will closely follow and respond to your actions at all times.”

Soon after the attack, the protest messages were taken down and the website announced that it was “temporarily closed for maintenance.”

According to Thai PBS, the Commissioner of the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) Pol Lt Gen Kornchai Klaiklueng said that there might have been a loophole in the website which did not update its defence system. However, the attack was clearly a violation of Thailand’s Computer Crime Act.

Pol Lt Gen Kornchai said that the Dental Council of Thailand can request the CCIB to investigate and take legal action on this matter. He has ordered an investigation unit to examine the case. It may take some time to confirm if the hacker was from Myanmar as claimed. If the hacker was a foreigner, the CCIB will coordinate with the foreign country involved to take legal action against the hacker.

On 14 January, Thai media reported the sexual assault against ‘Mo’ (pseudonym). After serving a 2-year sentence for a drug-related crime, the 21-year-old Myanmar woman was released from Koh Samui District Prison and detained at Bo Phut Police Station, pending deportation back to Myanmar.

Video footage in the police station revealed that she was raped by Pol Sen Sgt Maj Watcharin Sinsamosorn late on the night of 13 January. After consulting her relatives who came to visit here, she filed a complaint with police to take a legal action against the perpetrator.

Matichon reported that the Commander of Surat Thani Provincial Police Pol Maj Gen Sathit Polpinit has ordered the suspension of Pol Sen Sgt Maj Watcharin and established a disciplinary committee to investigate into the matter within 7 days, starting from 14 January.

Pol Col Yuthana Sirisombat, Superintendent of Bo Phut Police Station, has also charged Pol Sen Sgt Maj Watcharin with sexual assault, abuse of power, and taking a detainee out of detention. Pol Sen Sgt Maj Watcharin has the right to remain silent and he has posted bail of 400,000 baht with Koh Samui Provincial Court.