Amnesty Blasts Thai Drug Death Squads

Human Rights organisation Amnesty International challenged Thailand's autocratic leader Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, over his Government's failure to charge anyone over the deaths of 2,245 people killed during a ferocious onslaught against the drug trade.

"The government has failed to initiate independent, impartial, effective and prompt investigations into these killings," said Amnesty (The Vanguard [Nigeria]).

"The Thai government appeared to condone killing of drug suspects by unknown assailants as one method of fighting the drugs war."

Mr Shinawatra launched his campaign this February promising to match 'cruelty with cruelty' (Straits Times (Singapore) and has been dismissive of civil rights concerns ever since.

"Human rights groups and non-government organizations are doing their own jobs and we're doing our job," government spokesman Sita Divari said in May (Reuters).

"I think the Thai public believes in a drug-free Thailand and the government has been well supported."
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