UN: Situation concerning the exhumation of Hmong graves at Wat Tham Krabok

"The Special Rapporteur again urges the Government of Thailand to engage the Hmong community to resolve this situation and he expresses his willingness to aid in the resolution process to ensure compliance with international legal norms. He reiterates his call to the Government to take appropriate steps to remedy the situation, including: 1) acknowledging the harm the Hmong community has suffered, and expressing a commitment to not allow similar exhumations of Hmong graves in the future; 2) urging the abbot of Wat Tham Krabok to issue an apology for past desecrations; and 3) ensuring the re-burial at Wat Tham Krabok of the 211 bodies of Hmong people still located at Hulin cemetery."

 

                                                                           Excerpts from:

 

A/HRC/12/34/Add.1

18 September 2009

 

HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL

Twelfth session, Agenda item 3

 

PROMOTION AND PROTECTION OF ALL HUMAN RIGHTS:

ECONOMIC, SOCIAL, CIVIL AND POLITICAL, INCLUDING

THE RIGHT TO DEVELOPMENT:

Report by the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people, James Anaya*

 

Addendum

Summary of communications transmitted and replies received**

 

 

Thailand

 

Situation concerning the exhumation of Hmong graves at Wat Tham Krabok

 

404. The Special Rapporteur exchanged a series of communications and gathered information in relation to the situation concerning the exhumation of Hmong graves at Wat Tham Krabok. This matter was originally raised in a letter of 2 June 2006 from the former Special Rapporteur on the situation of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people, and the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief. In addition, the Special Rapporteur attended a consultation on this situation at the University of Minnesota, on 10 December 2008. A summary of all the communications sent and responses received in relation to this situation are reproduced here for ease of reference.

 

Communication of the former Special Rapporteur of 2 June 2006

 

405. The 2 June 2006 letter by the Special Rapporteur and the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief that was sent to the Government of Thailand concerning the desecration of Hmong graves in Wat Tham Krabok was originally summarized in the 2007 communications report of the Special Rapporteur (A/HRC/4/32/Add.1, 19 March 2007). According to the allegations communicated in the 2 June 2006 letter, monastery officials from the Wat Tham Krabok Buddhist monastery, which was formerly used as a Hmong refugee camp, had exhumed Hmong graves. There were said to be about 2000 Hmong graves in the Monastery. According to monastery officials the reason for digging up the graves is that they were contaminating the Monastery’s water supply. Relatives of the Hmong people buried at Wat Tham Krabok were not given notice of the exhumations. The Hmong consider graveyards to be sacred sites. Allegedly, the exhumations sometimes included dismemberment, separation of parts of the corpses and cremation, which violates Hmong religious and cultural tradition.

 

Response of the Government of 9 July 2008

 

406. The 9 July 2009 response of the Government of Thailand was originally summarized in the 2008 communications report of the Special Rapporteur (A/HRC/9/9/Add.1, 15 August 2008). In its letter of 9 July 2008, the Government noted that no complaints had been lodged about the situation. Wat Tham Krabok, a Buddhist monastery in Saraburi, has long been a refuge for Hmongs in Thailand. For years, tens of thousands of Hmongs have lived in the area and thus many have also died in the area. Further, Hmongs buried their deceased in the grounds of the monastery, mostly on hillsides and high ground. According to the Government, this practice posed an environmental risk to local populations, including the Hmongs themselves.

 

407. In October 2005, the Tham Krabok Foundation initiated a project to convert the area into a destination for religious activities, a public park, and a museum. The Hmong community was informed that that the graves would need to be located. The Abbot of Tham Krabok or the Chair of the Tham Krabok foundation, which apparently owns the monastery, had previously prohibited any burial. As part of this process, some Hmongs reclaimed their relatives’ bodies for relocation. For the graves left unclaimed, the monastery arranged a public cremation ceremony, a service that many monasteries generally provide as charity for the deceased with no known relatives and whose bodies were unclaimed. Ashes of those cremated were placed at the Pothipowanasongkrau graveyard in Saraburi Province. The Government notes that all of these processes were carried out with respect for the deceased and consideration for their families.

 

Notification by the Special Rapporteur of a consultation at the University of Minnesota of 5 December 2008

 

408. In a letter of 5 December 2008, the Special Rapporteur informed the Government of

Thailand that he would participate in a consultation with Hmong relatives of the deceased whose graves were exhumed at Wat Tham Krabok, on 10 December 2008, at the University of Minnesota in St. Paul, United States of America.

 

Response of the Government of 17 December 2008

 

409. In a letter of 17 December 2008, Government of Thailand responded to the notification stating, in summary, that its position on the issue was outlined in the 9 July 2009 response. It further stated that the Laotian Hmongs in Thailand had migrated from the Lao PDR to Thailand since 2003 and have been considered as ‘illegal immigrants’, subject to the judicial process in accordance with the Thai Immigration Acct of 1979 (B.E. 2522). The Government asserted that these Laotian Hmongs are not related to the indigenous people and/or any groups of hilltribes.

 

Consultation at the University of Minnesota on 10 December 2008

 

410. On 10 December 2008, the Special Rapporteur attended a consultation at the University of Minnesota, United States of America on the situation of the exhumation of Hmong graves at Wat Tham Krabok. The consultation was organized by the Human Rights Program at the University of Minnesota. At the consultation, the Special Rapporteur received information on the matter, including background information on the process of exhumation of the Hmong graves and subsequent investigation, information on the 211 bodies remaining at Hulin cemetery, the cultural background of Hmong beliefs and rituals, and testimony of relatives of the bodies exhumed at Wat Tham Krabok. The Special Rapporteur also received written information from the Congress of World Hmong People, the Hmong Heritage Foundation, the Hmong Cultural Center, and the Human Rights program at the University of Minnesota.

 

Communication of the Special Rapporteur of 10 March 2009

 

411. In a letter of 10 March 2009, the Special Rapporteur once again drew the attention of the Thai Government to concerns raised regarding the exhumation in 2005 of Hmong graves at the monastery, Wat Tham Krabok, based on the exchange of information with the Government and information communicated to the Special Rapporteur during the 10 December 2008 consultation.

 

412. The Special Rapporteur noted that, at the consultation, he heard from families affected by the exhumations, who now live in the state of Minnesota. The Special Rapporteur noted that the 9 July 2008 letter of the Government confirms that the exhumation of Hmong graves did in fact take place, while providing information regarding the circumstances of the exhumation. The Special Rapporteur noted that, in light of the information received at the consultation in Minnesota and the Government’s response of 9 July 2008, there remain questions about the circumstances of the exhumation of Hmong graves at Wat Tham Krabok, a Buddhist monastery, and the measures that might still need to be taken to remedy the alleged harm caused by  the exhumations.

 

413. Regarding the circumstances of the exhumation, the Special Rapporteur stated that it

would appear that further explanation is needed about the reason for the exhumations in the first place. According to the information received, the graves of ethnic Chinese that were in close proximity to the exhumed Hmong graves have been left untouched. And, in many cases, allegedly, the workers exhuming the Hmong graves removed the flesh from the bodies and placed it back in the graves with the burial clothing and belongings that relatives had left with A/HRC/12/34/Add.1 Page 86 the deceased. The Special Rapporteur noted that this information is not fully consistent with the stated reasons for the exhumations, which as indicated in the Government’s response of 9 July 2008, were to address environmental concerns and to make way for the creation of a public park

and museum.

 

414. According to the Special Rapporteur, questions also remain about the nature and level of the Government’s involvement in the planning for and execution of the exhumations. According to the information received, there was a heavy Thai military presence at the monastery, including approximately 170 soldiers and 42 Thai Government officials, initially due to concerns regarding the significant number of Hmong refugees living at the monastery and alleged activities of some refugees, and later to assist with the resettlement process. The information also states that the Hmong refugees were fenced off with barbed wire and the soldiers closely monitored them.

Allegedly these government security agents were seen assisting in the exhumations.

Additionally, the information received states that a Thai Government official signed an

informational notice regarding the exhumations, which was posted after the diggings began, and two high-level Thai officials, Bangkok Governor Apirak Kosayodhin and the late Air Chief Marshal Harin Hongsakul, were scheduled to attend the opening ritual for the exhumations, although by all accounts the exhumations were carried out by individuals working under the direction of private parties or religious authorities associated with Wat Tham Krabok.

 

415. Most important are the allegations of ongoing harm caused by the exhumations and of the absence of any measures to date to remedy that harm. The Special Rapporteur noted that, in its response of 9 July 2008, the Government stated that the “allegations have already been overtaken by events.” According to the Special Rapporteur, this would seem to indicate that the Thai Government views this issue as having come to a close. It does appear that the exhumations ceased in December 2005; however, according to the information received, the exhumations were a serious affront to Hmong sensitivities, the relatives of the deceased Hmong whose graves were exhumed continue to suffer harm as consequence of those exhumations, and that harm has not been remedied.

 

416. The Special Rapporteur noted that, contrary to what has been suggested, Hmong relatives testified that Abbot Luangphaw Chamroon Parnchard, the now deceased abbot who welcomed the Hmong refuges to the monastery, and the monks present at Wat Tham Krabok at the time, gave permission to the Hmong refugees to bury their dead in a designated part of the monastery grounds. In fall 2005, while several hundred Hmong refugees were still living at Wat Tham Krabok, including relatives of those buried at the monastery, Abbot Pha Charoen, who was in charge at the time, arranged for two Buddhist foundations to clear Hmong graves. According to information received, the Thai Government’s security officers who were present at Wat Tham Krabok facilitated the foundations’ entry onto the areas of the graves. From 26 October 2005 until 6 December 2005, persons contracted by these foundations dug up and removed the flesh of at least 691 bodies from Hmong graves. With the exception of 211 bodies that are still being stored at the Hulin cemetery at Amphoe Kaeng Khoi in Saraburi, the bodies were cremated contrary to Hmong religious beliefs and practices.

 

417. According to information received and testimony of Hmong relatives, these exhumations took place over the protests of both Hmong relatives still living at Wat Tham Krabok at the time, as well as the Hmong community already resettled to the United States, and caused the Hmong people significant anguish. This information alleges that when some Hmong family members tried to stop the exhumations, Thai soldiers intervened, often forcing the family members at gunpoint to allow the digging to continue.

 

418. Other relatives present at the monastery expressed their concerns to International Organization for Migration (IOM) health workers assisting with the resettlement process. Allegedly some employees of the IOM and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) were present when Hmong refugees met with the abbot on 28 October 2005, two days after the exhumations began, to inform him that the diggings were against their traditions and to ask him not to proceed. According to the information received, the Abbot responded that there was no way for the Hmong to stop the exhumations completely, but that they could post signs at graves they did not want dug up and find other locations for these bodies. However, allegedly video footage shows that signs, which were subsequently placed at many graves, were ignored.

 

419. The information also alleges that the 700 Hmong refugees remaining at the monastery in late 2005 were primarily there due to medical conditions, which may have prevented some of them from protesting the exhumations. Additionally, it is alleged that others did not protest for fear that they would not be permitted to resettle to the United States of America. This fear resulted from their belief that the Thai Government supported the exhumations, as illustrated by the signature of a Thai Government official on the informational announcement posted after the diggings began.

 

420. The Special Rapporteur communicated to the Government that many of the Hmong

relatives who had already been resettled to the United States watched video footage of the

exhumations sent by family members still in Thailand that showed bodies being removed from graves and de-fleshed. These relatives immediately protested the exhumations by urging the Department of State of the United States of America to examine the situation through diplomatic channels. The Department of State conveyed these concerns to Thai officials through the United States Embassy in Bangkok some time before mid-December 2005. Additionally, the information received states that Hmong-Americans lodged a formal complaint with the Thai Embassy in the United States prior to 1 December 2005 and another complaint with the Thai National Human Rights Commission, which the Commission acknowledged as having received on 16 January 2006.

 

421. The Special Rapporteur noted that, in its response, the Government has stated that the human remains were handled and treated respectfully and ceremoniously. However, according to the information received, in a number of cases bodies were mishandled and even desecrated. Allegedly, the heads were chopped off and thrown in boiling water, and internal organs were removed from the bodies and tossed on the ground, where dogs would sometimes pick them up and take them back to the camp.

 

422. Additionally, the information states that the ceremonies performed were Buddhist and not in keeping with the Hmong religious tradition. In fact, cremation itself is contrary to Hmong religious beliefs. According to Hmong beliefs, the spirits of the deceased must be guided to the final resting place by a special song performed during the funeral, which may last a week. Family members of the deceased perform a number of rituals, including the slaughtering of animals, like water buffalo, cows and pigs, and wrapping the body in layers of burial clothes to prepare the spirits of the deceased for the journey ahead. These Hmong traditions must be followed to ensure that the spirits are at peace. Any disturbance of a grave after the funeral results in a number of serious consequences for the surviving relatives.

 

423. For the Hmong people, a person has three spirits, according to information provided by Hmong elders and religious authorities. As briefly mentioned above, at death, one spirit will be guided to the land of the ancestors; the second seeks to be reborn again; and the last one tends to the grave or burial site. When Hmong human remains are disturbed or cremated, the spirit at the grave no longer has a place to live and therefore goes in search of care and will continue to cause physical problems for the living. The Special Rapporteur noted that he has received written and oral statements from relatives of the deceased, whose graves were exhumed, and they have told him of persistent and ongoing psychological pain and physical suffering that they attribute to the exhumations. For this reason, the Hmong continue to request action by the Thai government.

 

424. The Special Rapporteur called the Government’s attention to the obligation States have under relevant human rights instruments to guard against acts, including acts by private parties, that infringe on human rights, and to ensure adequate remedies when such infringements occur. He noted that the human rights at stake include the rights to religious freedom, culture, privacy, family, and to equal protection under the law, rights that are protected, inter alia, by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Thailand is a party.

 

425. In particular, the Covenant provides in its Article 27: “In those States in which ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities exist, persons belonging to such minorities shall not be denied the right, in community with the other members of their group, to enjoy their own culture, to profess and practise their own religion, or to use their own language.” A State Party’s obligation to protect the rights conferred under Article 27 extends to all individuals within a State’s jurisdiction, not merely to citizens.

 

426. The Special Rapporteur also called the Government’s attention to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, adopted by the General Assembly on 13 September 2007. In this regard, the Special Rapporteur acknowledged the Government’s position that, like other Hmong people in Thailand, the Hmong people who were living in the vicinity of Wat Tham Krabok and their deceased who were buried there were refugees from Laos. Nonetheless, the Special Rapporteur noted that Hmong people are undoubtedly indigenous to parts of Southeast Asia and have found themselves in conditions similar to those of others around the world who are identified, and self-identify, as indigenous. The Special Rapporteur also noted that he was sure that the Government would agree that, in any event, the Hmong’s refugee status does not alter their entitlement to the enjoyment of fundamental human rights. These fundamental rights are incorporated in the Declaration, which in its Article 11 states:

 

1. Indigenous peoples have the right to practice and revitalize their cultural traditions and customs. This includes the right to maintain, protect and develop the past, present and future manifestations of their cultures, such as archaeological and historical sites, artifacts, designs, ceremonies, technologies and visual and performing arts and literature.

 

2. States shall provide redress through effective mechanisms, which may include restitution, developed in conjunction with indigenous peoples, with respect to their cultural, intellectual, religious and spiritual property taken without their free, prior and informed consent or in violation of their laws, traditions and customs.

 

427. The Special Rapporteur communicated to the Government that, in accordance with its affirmative duties to secure the enjoyment of the human rights of the Hmong people who have lived under its jurisdiction and to provide remedies for any violation of those human rights, he urged the Government to take as appropriate the steps necessary to provide redress for the Hmong families who may have suffered or continue to suffer harm from the exhumation of their relatives’ graves.

 

428. The Special Rapporteur noted that it has been impressed upon him that Hmong people believe that the desecration of their relatives’ graves is so serious that it will be very difficult if not impossible to repair the damage. However, the families who attended the Minnesota consultation overwhelmingly agreed that an appropriate remedy, which would provide them satisfaction and allow for them to begin to overcome the harm they allegedly have suffered, would be constituted of the following elements: 1) Acknowledgement by the Thai government of the harm, and a commitment to not allow similar exhumations of Hmong graves in the future; 2) an apology from the abbot at Wat Tham Krabok for the past desecrations; and 3) re-burial at Wat Tham Krabok of the 211 bodies of Hmong people that are now at Hulin cemetery.

 

Observations

 

429. The Special Rapporteur regrets that there is no record of any response from the Government of Thailand to the letter of 10 March 2009 at the time of the finalization of this report. He remains concerned that the Government has not taken measures to remedy the situation involving the exhumation of Hmong graves and the potential cultural and religious rights affected. The Special Rapporteur again urges the Government of Thailand to engage the Hmong community to resolve this situation and he expresses his willingness to aid in the resolution process to ensure compliance with international legal norms. He reiterates his call to the Government to take appropriate steps to remedy the situation, including: 1) acknowledging the harm the Hmong community has suffered, and expressing a commitment to not allow similar exhumations of Hmong graves in the future; 2) urging the abbot of Wat Tham Krabok to issue an apology for past desecrations; and 3) ensuring the re-burial at Wat Tham Krabok of the 211 bodies of Hmong people still located at Hulin cemetery.

 

Add to: del.icio.us | Digg