Thai murder: inquiry petition goes to Downing Street today

Friday 17 October 2014

Almost 100,000 people have signed a petition for an independent inquiry into the murders of a Jerseyman and a woman from the UK in Thailand a month ago, after fears two suspects were beaten into confessing.

The petition is due to be handed to Downing Street today, after the case of the murders of young Jerseyman David Miller (24) and Hannah Witheridge (25) drew international attention.

The pair were found dead on a beach on the Thai diving resort island of Koh Tao just over a month ago.

The petition – online here at change.org – is due to be handed to Downing Street today, after the murders were covered by the world's press. It has been signed by 98,380 people who have joined the call for “a full independent investigation to be conducted by the government of the United Kingdom into the deaths”.

The petition says that there are concerns about the case, from the way the Royal Thai Police seemed eager to pin the blame on foreigners, to the release of conflicting reports, to the way that the crime scene was treated by investigators.

A fortnight ago, it was announced that two Burmese workers – named as Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Htun in media reports – had admitted the murders, and could face the death penalty. They carried out a bizarre re-enactment of the killings in front of the world’s media on the beach where David and Hannah were found.

Police had previously said they believe that more than one person was involved in the attacks.

Thailand’s Human Rights Commissioner has met the suspects, and the senior Thai diplomat in London has been summoned to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office by the Minister of State to discuss the case.