The Special Branch Bureau or SBB () is a

Law enforcement agency A law enforcement agency (LEA) is any government agency responsible for the enforcement of the laws. Jurisdiction LEAs which have their ability to apply their powers restricted in some way are said to operate within a jurisdiction. LEAs ...

under the

Royal Thai Police Headquarters The Royal Thai Police (RTP) ( th, สำนักงานตำรวจแห่งชาติ; ) is the national police force of Thailand. The RTP employs between 210,700 and 230,000 officers, roughly 17 percent of all civil servants (excludi ...

Special Branch Special Branch is a label customarily used to identify units responsible for matters of national security and Intelligence (information gathering), intelligence in Policing in the United Kingdom, British, Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, ...

Bureau has major security functions to the king, queen and all the royal family along with the action on the intelligence of the person or group that acts as a threat to national security. The agency was established on 17 November 1932 (

Thai solar calendar The Thai solar calendar ( th, ปฏิทินสุริยคติ, , "solar calendar") was adopted by King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) in 1888 CE as the Siamese version of the Gregorian calendar, replacing the Thai lunar calendar as the lega ...

year 2475) by Royal Decree of His Majesty King Prajadhipok's by the advise of The House of Representatives. As a result, the department is divided into four divisions. Sometimes referred to by critics as the "political police", it is responsible for controlling subversive activities and serves as the Thai Police's major

intelligence Intelligence has been defined in many ways: the capacity for abstraction, logic, understanding, self-awareness, learning, emotional knowledge, reasoning, planning, creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving. More generally, it can b ...

organization, as well as the unit responsible for VIP protection.

History

A Special Branch Bureau (SBB) division exists in the Royal Thai Police as part of its Crime Prevention and Suppression Support Group. Aside from intelligence gathering, they provide protection to VIPs alongside the Bangkok Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) and Armed Forces Security Centre. They handle matters that have to do with citizenship, such as the renunciation of Thai nationality. Foreign nationals living in Thailand go to the Special Branch office to secure a Thai police clearance certificate. Other cases such as lèse majesté, terrorism, and anything that endangers Thai national security are also handled by the Thai SBB. The SBB worked with the

Malaysian Special Branch The Special Branch or SB ( Malay: ''Cawangan Khas'') is an intelligence agency attached to the Royal Malaysia Police. The SB is empowered to acquire and develop intelligence on internal and external threats to the nation, subversive activiti ...

during the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

. During that time, SBB officers were involved in the Red Drum killings, in which 3,008 accused of being pro-communist were burned to death from red drums alive or semi-conscious and incinerated during the administration of Prime Minister

Thanom Kittikachorn Field Marshal Thanom Kittikachorn ( th, ถนอม กิตติขจร, ; 11 August 1911 – 16 June 2004) was the leader of Thailand from 1963 to 1973, during which he staged a self-coup, until public protests which exploded into viole ...

. The SBB was accused of human rights violations toward Falun Gong practitioners. They have been promoted as a means of routing political opposition to the government. The division stirred controversy in the run-up to the 2007 general election when media revealed that the SBB had conducted its own opinion poll to assess the probable electoral outcome. In response to similar stories before the 2011 general election, the SB characterised its gathering of data as a study rather than a poll. A special police unit called the "Black Tiger" is under the control of the Special Branch. It handles VIP protection operations.http://www.student-weekly.com/180411/educate1.html

Mission

* Offering safety for

Thai Royal Family The Chakri dynasty ( th, ราชวงศ์ จักรี, , , ) is the current reigning dynasty of the Kingdom of Thailand, the head of the house is the king, who is head of state. The family has ruled Thailand since the founding of the ...

* Operations intelligence about individuals or groups of individuals whose behavior is a threat to national security * Action on job creators intelligence to the police and centered on the integration of the implementation of the Strategy of National Security * Action on the job security of important people and places related to national security * Implementation of the Law on Nationality and other laws related to national security authority * Training for human resource development

Organization

Royal Thai Police Special Branch Bureau Headquarters

* General Staff Division Special Branch Bureau * Special Branch Division 1 * Special Branch Division 2 * Special Branch Division 3 * Special Branch Division 4 * Intelligence Development Center

References

{{National intelligence agencies Thai intelligence agencies Sub-departmental government bodies of Thailand Law enforcement agencies in Asia Royal Thai Police

History

Mission

Organization

Royal Thai Police Special Branch Bureau Headquarters

See also

References