Dear Friends
Many of you are wondering about the progress - or lack of progress - with the defendants' appeal to the Supreme Court of Thailand. On 4 April 2019, a brief article appeared in Network Media Group News of Burma. The Myanmar lawyer U Aung Myo Thant was quoted. He essentially said there is not much news but he did elaborate a little.
The story was then picked up by Burma News International (BNI) and the Samui Times. There seems to have been little coverage elsewhere apart from on social media and chat forums.
Below is the story as it appeared in the Samui Times followed by links to all three articles. At the very bottom of this update are links to two of my YouTube videos: "Honest Koh Tao Tourism Video" and "Death Island of the Setting Sun." I invite readers to watch both those videos if they have not already done so. I would also ask people to share the videos on social media (although people within Thailand must think very carefully before doing so given severe restrictions upon their freedom of speech!). Finally I ask readers to click the "like" button for those videos and post some positive comments to support the victims, their families and the scapegoats who are still languishing on death row.
Thank you all once again for all your support and interest in this case. Your participation can and does make a difference.
Sincerely
Ian Yarwood
SAMUI TIMES STORY: No Decision on Death Sentence Appeal in Koh Tao Murder Case
According to a report in the NMG news there is still no decision on the death sentence appeal in the Koh Tao murder case.
The Thai Supreme Court has yet to make a decision regarding an appeal submitted one year ago regarding the death sentence handed down to two Burmese migrant workers convicted of murder on the island of Koh Tao.
Ko Win Zaw Htun and Ko Zaw Lin were arrested in 2014 for the murder of British tourists Hannah Witheridge and David Miller and sentenced to death more than a year later, despite allegations from the defense that evidence was not handled correctly and the men’s confessions were coerced.
U Aung Myo Thant, a defense lawyer for the pair, filed a final appeal in Thailand’s Supreme Court on March 23, 2018.
“There is no update. According to Thai law, the Thai court normally makes a decision within the six months after the plaintiffs and defense lawyers testify in court,” U Aung Myo Thant, who is also a legal representative with the Burmese embassy in Bangkok, told NMG, noting that it has been more than one year. “According to Thai law, the Thai court informs the plaintiff and defendant before a decision is made, and the sentence is decided upon 14 days after this notification. Currently, we haven’t received any notification.”
The Thai government’s legal team ordered the defendants to file their final appeal by October 22, 2017, but the their lawyer requested a six-month extension, later submitting the appeal in March. They have been awaiting the notification of a decision since that time.
“This case should not be delayed. Thailand is busy with general elections. I think that is why,” U Aung Myo Thant said.
The defense team sent a 319-page document arguing Ko Win Zaw Htun and Ko Zaw Lin’s innocence to the Thai Supreme Court through the court in Koh Samui on August 21, 2017.
“We had 56 sessions at the court within one-and-a-half years. These children didn’t commit any crime. We denied it in the hearings at the court. There was no DNA from them found on pickaxe, which was submitted as evidence as the weapon used in the murders,” U Aung Myo Thant explained. “Finally, I believe our children will be released,” he added.
If the Supreme Court rejects the final appeal, the defense team is reportedly planning to ask for a royal pardon from H.M. the King of Thailand.
Ian Yarwood, a solicitor in Perth said in response
The focus of the defence lawyers including the Myanmar lawyer quoted in this article is not optimal.
Yes, it is worth noting that the defendants’ DNA was not found on a hoe that appeared to be one of the murder weapons.
The feature of the case that is far more important was that there was absolutely no reliable evidence that the defendants’ DNA was on either victim. The “evidence” that the police and prosecution put forward was bogus.
It was a scrap of paper prepared by a police laboratory that lacked the correct accreditation at the material time. Internationally accepted procedures for the collection and preservation of original samples were completely ignored. There was no chain of custody. The defence had no access to original materials. There was no statistical analysis of the samples. The report submitted was an unendorsed report, which should never have been tendered as evidence and which (with the utmost respect) the court erred in accepting.
Ian Yarwood
Barrister & Solicitor
PERTH
WESTERN AUSTRALIA
SAMUI TIMES LINK:
http://www.samuitimes.com/no-decision-on-death-sentence-appeal-in-koh-tao-murder-case/
LINK TO ORIGINAL NMG NEWS STORY:
http://www.nmg-news.com/koh-tao-murder/
LINK TO BURMA NEWS INTERNATIONAL STORY:
https://www.bnionline.net/en/news/no-decision-death-sentence-appeal-koh-tao-murder-case
LINK TO "HONEST KOH TAO TOURISM VIDEO" PRESENTED BY SYDNEY ACTRESS, NATASHA DAI:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfcAcScqkfo&t=1s
LINK TO "DEATH ISLAND OF THE SETTING SUN" VIDEO: