prison

One of the worst things about being stuck in a prison in another country is the lack on contact from friends and family. Unless they are extremely lucky, many prisoners have to make do with annual visits from their loved ones. However, some of Thailand’s main prisons such as [Chiang Mai] [1] and Bangkok are introducing a new way of communicating that should make life a bit more bearable for inmates. A new online video-conference link is allowing families and friends to contact inmates from the comfort of their homes. The new system is the brain child of Correction Department director general Nathee Chitsawang, who was proud to talk about it with [The Nation] [2] recently. "We believe that e-visiting will create benefits for families, relatives and prisoners because they will be able to maintain contact by visiting online without spending time to travel to prisons or the Correction Department. It will also help relatives to save the costs of making prison visits," Nathee said. Although the system is currently only available to Thai prisoners and their families, the overwhelming demand for it means that western prisoners should soon be able to use it to contact their loved ones. [1]: http://1stopchiangmai.com [2]: http://nationmultimedia.com 2009-05-07T10:14:00+07:00 1267 2009-05-07T09:15:34+07:00 5 true 1267-chiang-mai-inmates-pose-for-the-camera Andrew

Two young men visiting [Chiang Mai] [1] from Australia, Paul Johnson and Jacob McGrath, were staying at a guest house in the city, and returned to their room reportedly to find a number of expensive items missing – including a digital camera, an iPod, a laptop computer and a pair of sunglasses. After allegedly searching through the guest house property, the pair called Chiang Mai police. All of the missing items were found shortly after the police arrived. The two men were arrested, and charged with supplying false information to the police. Although the men were scheduled to fly home to Australia the following day, they were required to remain in custody, pending a court appearance. Just four days after they were arrested, Johnson and McGrath were convicted of the charges and sentences to four months in jail. The sentence was reduced quickly reduced to two months, due to the two pleading guilty to the charges. Since their incarceration the two men have been living in a cell with 25 other prisoners, sleeping on thin mattresses and allowed two exercise periods per day of one hour each. It seems that Australian consular authorities were not able to visit the men until after their convictions. Their parents were not aware of the situation until a New Zealand missionary, who visited the jail, subsequently informed them. [1]: http://1stopthailand.com/chiangmai/ 2009-04-29T14:51:00+07:00 1242 2009-04-29T14:51:57+07:00 5 true 1242-reappearance-of-stolen-goods-sends-two-australian-tourists-to-jail- Andrew

Thailand’s former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was given a prison term of two years for his involvement in a corruption scandal involving a dubious land sale in Bangkok. Prosecutors have asked for his extradition from Britain, where he and his wife are hiding out in exile, though it seems unlikely the UK will comply. Thaksin was found guilty by Thailand’s supreme court for violating the constitution and conflict of interest laws by helping his wife buy a prime piece of real estate from a state agency at a price below two other bids. The court ruled against him by a slim majority on this charge, but acquitted him of the more serious charges of abusing his power to secure the land purchase. His wife Pojaman, who was brought up on similar charges related to the 5.3 hectare plot of vacant land, was acquitted on all charges but she still has her first conviction for tax evasion in a separate case. That ruling gave her a 3-year jail sentence. Thaksin continues to allege the court cases are politically motivated, but the facts suggest otherwise. “I'm a politician and after I was toppled by the coup it's normal that they will try every means to justify it,” he said. “They don't use the rule of the law as evidence, they follow the politics.” 2008-10-26T05:05:00+07:00 942 2008-10-26T05:17:17+07:00 5 true 942-ex-thai-pm-thaksin-convicted Andrew