Thailand: OMCT concludes visit to Thailand and calls for strengthened implementation of safeguards against torture and other ill-treatment

The World Organisation Against Torture conducted a country visit to Bangkok, Thailand, from 4 to 8 May 2026 to assess the implementation of the recommendations addressed to the State by the United Nations Committee against Torture in its concluding observations issued in November 2024 (CAT/C/THA/CO/2 ).

During the visit, the delegation met with representatives of State institutions, including the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand and the Rights and Liberties Protection Department of the Ministry of Justice (RLPD-MoJ), as well as with civil society organisations, lawyers, victims, and international actors working on issues related to torture and other ill-treatment, accountability, civic space, and the protection of human rights defenders. Requests for meetings with the Royal Thai Police, the Royal Thai Army, the Office of the Attorney General, and the Departments of Corrections and Immigration remained unanswered.

The OMCT welcomes a number of positive developments indicating efforts to align domestic law and practice with Thailand's obligations under the United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. These include the adoption of the Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance Act (2022), the ratification of the Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (2024), the adoption of a national action plan to implement the Committee against Torture's recommendations, and the issuance of implementing regulations covering victim assistance, compensation, and rehabilitation.

While these measures represent important progress in strengthening prevention, accountability, and access to redress, implementation gaps remain significant. The delegation observed limited operationalisation of the new framework, uneven coordination among institutions, and insufficient inclusion of civil society and victims in policy design and monitoring.

Civil society organisations, survivors, families reported that the implementation of Thailand's Anti-Torture Act remains weak in practice, with complaints frequently delayed, or dismissed at an early stage, leaving complainants uninformed of case progress or reasons for non-proceeding decisions. Since the Anti-Torture Act entered into force, only two cases have reportedly resulted in convictions.

Investigative authorities often lack sufficient training, independence, or forensic expertise. The burden of proof is frequently shifted onto victims and their families, while complaints are frequently dismissed on overly restrictive evidentiary standards, or alleging that the facts occurred before the anti-torture law took effect. Particular concern was expressed regarding the limited understanding and recognition of psychological torture, and enforced disappearance.

Concerns have also been raised regarding military conscription, which continues to be associated with grave human rights violations, including torture, ill-treatment, and deaths in custody. Between 2009 and 2026, at least 26 conscript deaths were reported in connection with abuse in military barracks, in a context marked by underreporting and limited independent investigation.

OMCT therefore reiterates the importance of the systematic training and institutionalisation of the Istanbul Protocol and Minnesota Protocol across all relevant investigative, prosecutorial, forensic, and judicial authorities to ensure prompt, impartial, independent, and effective investigations into allegations of torture, custodial death and enforced disappearance, including in cases with cross-border dimensions.

The organisation also underscores the need for full accountability and reparation for victims of torture and other ill-treatment in the context of protests and other non-custodial settings, including survivors of ocular injuries. Law enforcement practices should be strengthened through the adoption of clear and accessible regulation of the use of force and continued training on international standards, including the Model Protocol for Law Enforcement Officials to Promote and Protect Human Rights in the Context of Peaceful Protests.

OMCT remains concerned about legal and de facto practices that may circumvent or erode safeguards against torture, including the application of national security legislation, emergency measures, and martial law provisions in the Southern Border Provinces. It reiterates that the prohibition of torture is absolute and non-derogable under international law, and that no exceptional circumstances may be invoked to justify acts of torture or ill-treatment.

In this regard, OMCT stresses the importance of ensuring that domestic legislation fully reflects international standards, including through the removal of statutes of limitations for torture, enforced disappearances, and other serious human rights violations. OMCT therefore encourages the swift amendment of the Anti-Torture Act to bring it fully into line with the Convention Against Torture, as well as the prompt adoption of the People's Party bill proposing an amendment to Section 95 of the Criminal Code to introduce a mechanism for suspending the statute of limitations in cases of serious human rights violations.

The delegation notes as well the absence of a comprehensive and transparent national system for data collection on torture and ill-treatment. Information relating to arrests, detention, custodial deaths, complaints, investigations, and prosecutions remains fragmented, inconsistently recorded, and unevely shared across institutions. In some cases, data is reportedly classified or not systematically recorded, including in relation to arrests under special legal regimes or in military and administrative custody contexts. The OMCT calls for a unified, transparent and accessible national system requiring all relevant authorities - including police oversight bodies, prosecutors, and other relevant institutions - to systematically collect and share disaggregated data on complaints, investigations, prosecutions, and outcomes.

In this context, OMCT highlights that Thailand will be included in the 2026 edition of the OMCT Global Torture Index, to be launched on 26 June. OMCT looks forward to continued collaboration with civil society partners, as well as to engaging with Thai authorities, including the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand and the Rights and Liberties Protection Department, to ensure that comprehensive and up-to-date national data are reflected in the Index.

OMCT remains concerned about persistent restrictions on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and expression, including through the use of lèse-majesté provisions, defamation, and other legal frameworks that continue to be applied in ways that may deter the legitimate exercise of fundamental freedoms. Civil society actors reported a chilling effect on civic space, reflected in a decline in the scale and frequency of protests, as well as growing concerns regarding strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs), including transnational litigation targeting journalists and human rights defenders.

Interlocutors also underlined the continued detention of individuals prosecuted in connection with the exercise of their rights, as well as the limited prospects for bail or release in lèse-majesté-related cases. According to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR), at least 291 people have been charged with lèse-majesté between 19 November 2020 and 31 March 2026.

In the framework of the country visit, the delegation observed a witness hearing in the case of Arnon Nampa, during which Mr. Nampa and other defendants were brought before the court in shackles and prison uniforms, despite international human rights standards allowing restraints only when strictly necessary and prohibiting their use in ways that undermine the presumption of innocence or amount to degrading treatment.

OMCT calls on the authorities to ensure that no one is prosecuted or detained solely for exercising their fundamental rights, and to release all arbitrarily detained human rights defenders. Pending release, authorities should prioritise alternatives to detention and, where detention is still imposed, ensure regular and meaningful contact between detainees and their families, including physical contact, as well as access to telephone and online communication. In-person visits are crucial for the well-being of families of persons deprived of liberty and for safeguarding the right to family life. They are especially important for children, for whom physical contact is a basic need and an important source of emotional comfort.

The delegation also expresses concern regarding patterns of transnational repression affecting human rights defenders and political activists, including surveillance, intimidation, and enforced disappearance across borders. In this context, interlocutors highlighted the lack of effective investigations and accountability in cases of Thai activists who were reportedly disappeared in neighbouring countries, as well as the absence of transparent follow-up and cross-border investigative cooperation, underscoring the need for strengthened regional and bilateral mechanisms to ensure prompt, independent, and effective investigations, as well as guarantees of truth, justice, and reparation for affected families.

Significant protection gaps were also identified in the application of the principle of non-refoulement. Interlocutors highlighted risks faced by asylum seekers and migrants, including human rights defenders from Vietnam, Cambodia, Lao PDR and China. Concerns include arrest, detention and removal without an individualised assessment of risk, including returns to countries where individuals may face torture, persecution, enforced disappearance, or other serious harm. The OMCT reiterates that Thailand's procedures should fully comply with its obligations under the Convention against Torture and other relevant international standards, and that the country should take steps toward ratifying the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol.

Finally, the OMCT notes the ongoing efforts by the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand to strengthen monitoring of places of detention, including visits to police stations, prisons, military facilities, and drug rehabilitation centres. These efforts would be significantly reinforced through the ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and the establishment of an independent and effective National Preventive Mechanism. In this regard, the OMCT further underscores that effective prevention requires meaningful participation of independent civil society organisations in detention monitoring, including through unhindered access to places of detention, systematic information-sharing, and the possibility to contribute to findings and recommendations.

The OMCT thanks all interlocutors who contributed to the visit and reiterates its readiness to continue engaging constructively with the Thai authorities, civil society, victims, and international partners in support of the eradication of torture and other ill-treatment in Thailand.