The Samut Prakan Provincial Court has refused a request filed by the mother of missing activist-in-exile Siam Theerawut to have him declared a missing person on the grounds that he has an outstanding arrest warrant and is likely to still be in hiding.

The Cross-Cultural Foundation (CrCF) reported that Siam’s mother, Kanya Theerawut, filed the request on 20 September since the family has not heard from Siam for over 5 years. Last Friday (20 December), the Court dismissed her request on the grounds that there is not enough evidence proving he was missing.

The ruling noted that Siam’s family did not supply evidence of his residence in Laos, and that the Thai police denied arresting Siam, while the Vietnamese Embassy refused to provide the family with information. It questioned the credibility of the report of Siam’s arrest, noting that he should have been arrested by the Lao police if that is where he lives. The Court therefore believed that Siam may not have been living permanently in Laos.

Kanya asked in an interview with CrCF after the ruling was issued why the request was dismissed and if it was because Siam was charged with royal defamation or because of his dissent. She demanded that the Thai authorities return her son to her if they know his whereabouts.

Siam was reportedly arrested in Vietnam and extradited to Bangkok on 8 May 2019, along with 2 other Thai activists in exile, Chucheep “Uncle Sanam Luang” Chiwasut and Kritsana Tubthai. They have not been heard from since.

Siam fled the country after the 2014 military coup when all royal defamation cases were revived. He was a member of the Prakai Fai theatre group and was involved in the period comedy play “The Wolf Bride,” for which many of those involved in the production were charged with royal defamation. In 2018, he was accused of being a leading member of the Thai Federation and charged with royal defamation.