PATTANI - Families of four men suspected involvement in a bomb blast that killed four rangers and injured five others and a civilian claim their relatives were tortured by authorities into making confessions.
The families sought help from a local national human rights network on Friday.
The wife of Sukree Awaekaji and the mother of Kohha Waji, two of the four suspects held in custody, lodged a petition with the national human rights centre at Prince of Songkla University, Pattani campus, asking for help.
Mr Sukree's wife Mareeyanee Makae claimed authorities tortured her husband to extract a false confession relating to the lethal attack in tambon Ban Tabing of Sai Buri district on Sept 22.
She decided to seek help from the centre after she visited Mr Sukree at the camp during the week and he told her he had to confess as he did not want to be tortured.
She said during the visit, she noticed her husband's unusual gait, adding he also had a fever.
Ms Mareeyanee said she and other villagers believed Mr Sukree was innocent. They had seen him playing sport in the village throughout the whole week before Sept 22, the day of the attack.
He had been resting at their house that morning as he was exhausted from so much sport. The house was about one kilometre away from the bomb scene.
Ms Mareeyanee said her husband was arrested in the morning, shortly after the explosion on Sept 22. Authorities also impounded their mobile phones and a laptop computer. He was released in the afternoon, but the phones and computer were not returned.
Authorities told him not to try and flee the country. He was rearrested by soldiers in black outfits that evening and taken to a military camp in tambon Bo Thong. On Sept 23, DNA samples were collected from Mr Sukree and from his house.
Ms Mareeyanee said she was allowed to speak with him for about five minutes during each visit.
She said her husband had a physical checkup on Friday. Authorities were extending his detention period, as he had been been held for seven days, as allowed under martial law.
Mr Kohha’s mother, Chaemudoh Sohlae, said her son was apprehended and taken to the military camp by authorities on Monday.
She had visited him at the camp on Friday. She was allowed to talk to him for only about two minutes.
She was also, for the first time, informed of the charge against her son. They also told her they did not know when he would be released.
Jatuporn Klumpasut, chief of the Pattani Special Task Force, denied torture was used to extract confessions from the suspects. He also said it could not be correct that only two to five minutes were allowed for the visits. Regulations set down 15-30 minutes as the normal period.
Maj Gen Jatuporn said five suspects, all construction workers, had so far been arrested in connection with the deadly attack. One was set free.
Of the remaining four suspects, some allegedly confessed to the crime. Authorities were now compiling more evidence so arrest warrants could be issued for other suspects linked to the case, he said.
Those construction workers were initially suspected because the bomb was buried beneath the road where they were working, laying pipelines, in tambon Tabing.
Searches of several target locations were being made by a joint force of more than 500 soldiers and local authorities to track down others involved in the bombing, he said.
