Groups push for protection of dissident

More than 30 civil society groups have banded together to demand the government refrain from extraditing Vietnamese refugee Y Quynh Bdap who is now imprisoned in Thailand.
They sent a joint letter to Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa, expressing their concern for the fate of Mr Bdap, 32, a political activist with UN refugee status. He was arrested in Bangkok in July by local police and is currently at Bangkok Remand Prison.
The letter was signed by 33 organisations including Amnesty International, Asia Human Rights and Labour Advocates, International Commission of Jurists, Migrant Working Group and Vietnamese Advocates for Change.
“We urge you to comply with Thailand’s international and domestic legal obligations and decline to extradite Y Quynh Bdap to Vietnam, where he faces a real risk of torture, prolonged arbitrary detention and other grave human rights violations,” stated the letter
On Sept 30, the Criminal Court ordered the extradition of the activist. He is in the process of appealing the decision.
Pursuant to Section 22 of the Extradition Act BE 2551 (2008), a court order and approval from the government are needed for extradition.
Thus, the government can decline to extradite Mr Bdap in proceedings parallel to his pending appeal of the Criminal Court’s decision, stated the letter.
“Prime Minister Paetongtarn should recognise that being elected to the UN Human Rights Council comes with serious responsibilities to implement policies and actions to respect human rights,” said Prakaidao Phurksakasemsuk, deputy executive director at the Cross Cultural Foundation (CrCF).
“What happens to Y Quynh Bdap is a test case of that Thai commitment, and the prime minister should do the right thing and order that he be allowed to safely resettle with his family in a third country where he can receive protection,” Ms Prakaidao said.
Mr Bdap is the founder of Montagnards Stand for Justice, an organisation that has advocated for Montagnards’ right to freedom of religion and belief, human rights, and indigenous people’s rights. He fled to Thailand in 2018 and applied for and received refugee status from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). He is currently awaiting resettlement as a refugee to a third country.
“UNHCR refugee status means that Thailand must protect, not prosecute, the person who has it,” said Krittaporn Semsantad, program director at the Peace Rights Foundation (PRF).
“Prime Minister Paetongtarn has the authority to order the relevant government agencies not to extradite Y Quynh Bdap considering his refugee status and the non-refoulement principle, and she should immediately do so.”
Mr Bdap should be given bail on an urgent humanitarian basis, as there is no sufficient reason to hold a refugee in detention, said Phil Robertson, director at Asia Human Rights and Labour Advocates.