On April 17, eight years ago, indigenous rights activist Porlajee "Billy" Rakchongcharoen disappeared after being arrested by Kaeng Krachan National Park officials. Justice has yet to be served.
Billy was last seen with former national park chief Chaiwat Limlikhit-aksorn who had arrested the outspoken activist for possessing wild honey.
Billy was preparing a lawsuit against Mr Chaiwat for burning down the homes of Karen peasants during a state-mandated mass eviction from their forest homes.
Mr Chaiwat, however, claims that Billy, a father of five, and a member of the local government, went missing after being released from custody.
Five years after his disappearance, thanks to his family's persistence in pursuit of justice, fragments of Billy's bones were found in a reservoir near the Kaeng Krachan National Forest office.
In 2019, the Department of Special Investigation charged Mr Chaiwat and four of his officers with abduction and murder.
Three years have passed, but the case remains in limbo with the prosecution still pending approval from the Office of the Attorney General.
With raging land rights conflicts in national forests across the country, Billy would not have been the first, nor last, grassroots activist to endure enforced disappearance and state violence.
Den Khamlah, another vocal land rights campaigner on behalf of the Khok Yao community forest in Chaiyaphum province, disappeared from his forest home on April 16, 2016.
The surrounding area was searched at the time but no remains were found. However, a year later, his skull and some of his belongings were mysteriously uncovered. Six years on, those responsible remain at large.
Last year, video footage of a police team torturing a drug suspect, reportedly to extort money, shocked the public. The leaked clip highlighted widespread abuse of power by the police and security personnel.
While extortion is routine, human rights defenders are also targeted as they are perceived to be "threats to national security". The torture clip brought to mind the alleged police involvement in the abduction and murder of human rights lawyer Somchai Neelaphaijit in 2004.
His body was never found and the officers involved were never punished for the crime. Legally, he remains only "missing".
A culture that allows state officials and officers to act like gangsters in uniform needs to stop. But outdated laws often make it hard to bring cases to trial with the onus on hard evidence such as physical injury prompting canny perpetrators to use methods that leave no marks such as waterboarding or suffocation.
In cases of abduction and murder, the law considers victims only "missing" until a body can be found. Witnesses frequently refuse to testify out of fear for their life, and CCTV cameras are almost always "out of order" at the crime scene.
Fixing such a weak and outdated legal framework is an uphill task. Ten years ago, the Rights and Liberties Protection Department of the Ministry of Justice sponsored a bill to define and outlaw torture and enforced disappearance. It was withdrawn from House deliberation at the last minute.
Two years ago, a similar push saw the government dust off the Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance bill, and it was finally approved by the House of Representatives on Feb 23.
Under the bill, there is no statute of limitations and police must investigate disappearances until they find credible evidence of death. Bodies are no longer needed as evidence, and torture is prohibited.
The government often violates the international principle of non-refoulment by returning individuals to places where they will be at risk of harm including torture. Under the new law, the government can no longer do so.
At present, the Senate is vetting the bill and the hope is that the committee responsible will refrain from diluting the measures and quickly forward the bill for final deliberation when the Senate reconvenes in May.
The quest for justice must continue. Police and security forces blame the few incidents for which they are actually held to account on "a few bad apples". They are not. Impunity makes torture and enforced disappearance systemic; this must stop.
Although Thailand has ratified the United Nations Convention against Torture (CAT), the country has yet to ratify International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (CED) as it should.
Meanwhile, the Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance Act must be passed as it would be a vital legal tool for those seeking protection from these hideous state-sponsored practices, and also honour activist Billy's memory.
