The Bangkok Criminal Court, located on Ratchadaphisek Road, held an extradition inquiry for Mr. Y Quynh Bdap, a Vietnamese religious freedom activist and refugee. Two witnesses presented by the prosecution, an officer from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand and an officer from the Ministry of Public Security of Vietnam, testified from 9:00 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. and from 4:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. The next hearings are scheduled for August 19, 2024, at 1:30 p.m. and August 30, 2024, at 1:00 p.m. to hear additional witnesses from both sides.
The hearing was initially scheduled for August 1, 2024, but was postponed after Mr. Bdap’s lawyers objected to him joining the hearing by video conference from prison rather than in-person at the court. The court agreed to postpone the hearing to August 2, 2024, allowing Mr. Bdap to attend in person.
On August 2, 2024, the witness testimony and cross-examination began in the morning and continued until the evening of the same day, with a break in the afternoon. The hearing was held in Courtroom 807, with a Vietnamese interpreter provided by the court. Only the involved parties were allowed into the court room while trial observers were arranged to observe the case via live video conference feed in Courtroom 701.
In addition, it was observed that Mr. Bdap was transported from Bangkok Remand Prison in a prisoner’s uniform with handcuffs and foot shackles on both legs. On August 1, 2024, the Cross Cultural Foundation, acting in the interest of the affected person as per Paragraph 6, Section 26 of the Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance Act B.E. 2565, filed a petition with the Criminal Court to request immediate cessation of cruel, inhumane, or degrading treatment or punishment. Later, it was learned that the court dismissed the petition, citing that it was in accordance with the ministerial regulation on the use of shackles under the Corrections Act B.E. 2560, and the court did not conduct a prompt ex parte under Section 26 of the anti-torture law.
Human rights organizations, law students, and other interested parties attended the observation, along with approximately 15 Vietnamese officials. In the morning, a Vietnamese individual was seen taking pictures in the courtroom before the trial commenced. Mr. Bdap’s lawyer notified the court clerk, who assured the lawyer that they would warn the person to not take pictures or otherwise record the hearing.
Later in the evening, during the hearing, Mr. Bdap informed the court that as he was being brought to the courtroom, he noticed someone taking pictures of him in the area where a Vietnamese group of people were gathered on the 8th floor. Since Mr. Bdap could not identify the person, the court was unable to summon the individual. However, the court promised to instruct the prison officers to enforce stricter measures.
Mr. Y Quynh Bdap, a Vietnamese refugee and prominent advocate for religious freedom among minority ethnic groups, founded Montagnards Stand for Justice (MSFJ) to train Montagnards in Vietnam on Vietnamese and international law, civil society, and how to collect and report information on religious persecution to the United Nations and international community. Mr. Bdap has helped to prepare many reports for the United Nations on religious persecution in Vietnam and these reports have formed the basis of “allegation letters” issued by the United Nations. After fleeing to Thailand in 2018, he was granted refugee status by the UNHCR. On June 11, 2024, Mr. Bdap was arrested by Thai immigration police following a terrorism conviction in absentia by a Vietnamese court related to an attack in Dak Lak province in June 2023. Mr. Bdap has vigorously denied that he was in any way involved in the attack, maintaining his human rights advocacy is peaceful and non-violent. Concerns have been raised over his potential extradition to Vietnam, where he may face torture, inhumane treatment, and enforced disappearance
Domestic and international human rights organizations have voiced concerns that extraditing Mr. Bdap would result in transnational repression involving Thailand and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Extradition between the two countries is still possible through diplomatic channels, in accordance with legal proceedings outlined in Thailand’s Extradition Act B.E. 2551.
Vietnam has been a party to the Convention against Torture since 2015, yet credible reports indicate widespread allegations of torture in the country. Mr. Bdap, an ethnic and religious minority, has been persistently targeted by the Vietnamese government for holding religious views that are not accepted by the state. If the Thai government extradites Mr. Bdap, he could face severe risks, including torture, cruel and inhuman or degrading treatment, or enforced disappearance. Such actions would violate domestic laws, like the anti-torture law, as well as numerous international laws to which Thailand is a state party and is obligated, including the ICCPR, CAT, ICPPED, and the principle of non-refoulement. This would also have serious repercussions for Thailand’s international relations. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs must urgently consider these serious impacts and avoid extraditing Mr. Bdap to Vietnam.
The Cross Cultural Foundation and the Network of Human Rights Organizations invite the press, public, and civil society organizations to closely monitor the upcoming inquiry process which will take place on August 19, 2024, at 1.30 p.m., at Bangkok Criminal Court, located on Ratchada Road (Courtroom 807). Your attendance will help to support a free and fair trial for Mr. Bdap and will lend him much-needed support. Mr. Bdap is currently incarcerated in prison where his family cannot visit him. Furthermore, international cooperation in criminal cases must be conducted transparently and with full accountability to prevent transnational repression, a grave and systematic human rights violation facilitated through inter-state cooperation.
