Court orders worker to be freed from hospital cell

Chalee Diyoo, 33, had been locked in a room in the hospital for more than two weeks, during which time he has had operations to repair a ruptured intestine and a fractured thigh - injuries he sustained in a work accident.

Chalee's problem was having a Thai employer who absconded and refused to pay his hospital bills after the Burmese was hurt at his worksite. Chalee was unable to pay for three weeks' treatment at Pathum Thani Hospital and ended up being sent to the Police Hospital, where he was chained to the bed, as he was unable to show ID papers or his work permit and was classed an "illegal".

The chains were removed four days later, after the Human Rights and Development Foundation (HRDF) protested to the Royal Thai Police.

The Lawyers' Council then took up his case, arguing in court that Chalee was a legally registered migrant and should not be held in a locked cell.

After two days of hearings at the court, it ruled yesterday the worker should be immediately released from custody - transferred out of the lockup ward - and the Immigration Department ordered to pay Bt3,000 in damages to him.

Immigration and police witnesses reportedly admitted to the court under questioning they had failed to check the Burmese worker's status before or after he was arrested.

Vasant Panich, chair of the Lawyer's Council of Thailand's human rights committee and lead lawyer on the case, said: "Chalee's case highlights how law enforcement officials in Thailand continue to systematically abuse powers of arrest and detention, particularly with migrant workers.

"Personal liberty is sacred, and both police and immigration officials must learn that before they arrest and detain anyone, Thai or nonThai, their duty is to conduct proper investigations alongside all related government departments and officials to ensure the detention is lawful."

Labour officials confirmed in court that Chalee had a work permit valid until February 28 this year, but that had not stopped him from being arrested by Pathum Thani police pending deportation to Burma (Myanmar) on January 31.

With his employer having fled, migrant health insurance and the Workers' Compensation Fund (WCF) failed to protect or help him.

Somchai Homlaor, secretarygeneral of HRDF, said after the court decision: "Chalee's case exposed systemic failures in Thailand's systems of migration management and in particular systems for ensuring protection, treatment and compensation of migrant work accident victims.

"Migrant work accident victims continue to be unprotected, falling outside work accident protection systems created by the government for all workers in Thailand. The government continues to refuse migrants access to the WCF despite protests by the ILO, United Nations Special Rapporteurs on Migrants and Discrimination and the Thai National Human Rights Commission."

The Council of Work and Environment Related Patient's Network of Thailand (WEPT) has started a fund to pay the Bt70,000 medical fees incurred by Chalee following his accident. WEPT president Somboon Srikamdoke said: "The fund is required as the Ministry of Public Health's migrant health insurance, the Ministry of Labour's WCF and Chalee's employer have refused to cover these costs. We, also victims of work accidents, must therefore respond ourselves to assist Chalee in his time of need."

A spokesperson for the Immigration Department was unable to be contacted yesterday, but it is understood they are considering an appeal against the ruling.

Somchai said yesterday's ruling was rare: "Chalee's case is the first time ever that a judge has relied on the Thai Constitution to order government officials to compensate a victim of unlawful detention."