<p>Pvt Somchai Si-ueangdoi&nbsp;is from the Karen ethnic group and from Chiang Mai. He decided to serve in the military to earn money to support his mom and sister after his dad passed away. &nbsp;About two years of conscription, Pvt Somchai was allegedly beaten to death. Like many other cases related to torture in the barracks, the court dismissed the case.&nbsp;</p> <p></p>

<div>“The NCPO’s motto is ‘Returning Happiness to the People’, but I receive only bitterness. I don’t know where my happiness is,” said a community leader arbitrarily detained because he allegedly is an 'influential person' which must be suppressed under NCPO Head Order No. 13/2016.</div> <div> </div>

<p>After the names of the candidates for the National Human Rights Commissions of Thailand (NHRC) were revealed, many eyebrows were raised over the nomination of an ultra-royalist with a record of human rights abuse. For many human rights defenders, however, it is only the symptom of a malady that has long rendered the rights commission impotent.</p> <p></p>