Protester to sue police over crackdown on river pollution protest

Pollution in rivers in northern Thailand has been attributed to Chinese mining operations within Myanmar, which are accused of mining mercury, lead, cadmium, and manganese. Wisarut Srichan, an activist from Chiang Mai, who was injured during a protest demanding action against these mining operations, is preparing to sue the police, according to his lawyer. A clash between police and protesters occurred on July 6 during a march to the Chinese Consulate General in Chiang Mai, resulting in injuries to two protesters, including Wisarut. Wisarut suffered a broken arm, underwent surgery, and is expected to remain under observation for about a week and require at least two months to recover. His legal team is considering filing a civil lawsuit against the police to claim compensation and a criminal case against the responsible police officers for abuse of power, the lawyer said. Furthermore, the lawyer stated that they are also considering the possibility of filing a class-action lawsuit in administrative court for abuse of power regarding the police's obstruction of the protesters' march to the Chinese Consulate General. While only the two injured individuals can be plaintiffs in civil and criminal cases, all protesters can participate in an administrative lawsuit. Wisarut said the original plan for the protesters was to deliver a statement to the Consulate General demanding that the Chinese government control and take action against Chinese companies operating mines in Myanmar. The protesters believe these mining operations are the cause of river pollution. After delivering the statement, the protesters planned to march back to Suan Buak Hat Park, where they initially gathered. Only about 20 to 30 people participated in the protest, and they had notified the police in advance in accordance with the Public Assembly Act, so they did not expect violence, Wisarut said. He stated that the protesters followed the rules and that with 100 to 200 police officers present, they could have easily surrounded and controlled the protesters if necessary. They only intended to negotiate with the police and had agreed to stay in a location designated by the police if they were not allowed to proceed to the consulate, he added. Wisarut, who was part of the negotiation team representing the protesters, recounted that as he was walking ahead of the group, a police officer told him to stop in front of the SiamTV appliance store. Then, police officers ran towards another activist following him and attempted to seize the protest banner. While a tug-of-war over the banner ensued, police officers continued to push the protesters, Wisarut said. He stated that he fell after being forcefully pushed from behind by the police, breaking his arm when he landed on it. Wisarut criticized that in a situation with only a few unarmed protesters, trained police officers could have used methods such as giving warnings, forming a cordon, or linking arms to block the way, but the Chiang Mai police did not choose these methods. Wisarut also pointed out that this was not the first time the police in Chiang Mai had used force against protesters. He recalled that in 2022, police blocked and obstructed indigenous rights activists who were marching to deliver a petition to the APEC leaders' meeting, and 10 people were injured during the ensuing scuffle. Wisarut criticized that every time the public notifies the police about a protest in advance, the police act antagonistically instead of facilitating the assembly. He said that this time, the police guarded the Chinese Consulate General, which was closed during the protest. Wisarut said he wants to sue the police to hold them accountable for their actions and hopes that through this lawsuit, the police's powers under the Public Assembly Act can be reviewed and revised. Source: Prachatai English