Tanong Po-arn ( th, ทนง โพธิ์อ่าน; ) was a Thai labour union leader who disappeared following the

1991 Thai coup d'état The 1991 Thai coup d'état was a military coup against the democratic Chatichai Choonhavan government, carried out by Thai military leaders on 23 February. Although the figure head was Sunthorn Kongsompong, there was a military influence from mi ...

National Peace Keeping Council The National Peace Keeping Council (NPKC) ( th, คณะรักษาความสงบเรียบร้อยแห่งชาติ) was the name assumed by a Thai military junta that overthrew the elected civilian government of Cha ...

against the elected government.

Thai labour leader

Tanong Po-arn was President of the

Labour Congress of Thailand The Labour Congress of Thailand (LCT, th, สภาองค์การลูกจ้างสภาแรงงานแห่งประเทศไทย) is a trade union federation in Thailand which emerged following the fall of the mil ...

. He played an important role in negotiating with the government of Prime Minister

Chatichai Choonhavan Chatichai Choonhavan ( th, ชาติชาย ชุณหะวัณ, , ; 5 April 1920 – 6 May 1998) was a Thai army officer, diplomat and politician. From 1986 to 1991, he was the chairman of the Thai Nation Party and served as the Prim ...

to secure the creation of a comprehensive national

social security Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...

system.Amnesty International
Thailand: The "disappearance" of labour leader Tanong Pho-arn, 19 June 1991
, AI Index: ASA 39/007/2001, released 18 June 2001 He was also a Thai senator and the vice-president of the

International Confederation of Free Trade Unions The International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) was an international trade union. It came into being on 7 December 1949 following a split within the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU), and was dissolved on 31 October 2006 when ...

- Asia Pacific Regional Organization (ICFTU-APRO).

The 1991 coup

On 23 February 1991, the military

(NPKC) staged the

against the government, declared

martial law Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory. Use Marti ...

, and abrogated the

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...

. Soon after the coup, the NPKC abolished labour unions in state enterprises, leaving over 270,000 union members without trade union rights. Tanong was publicly critical of the NPKC.

Disappearance

Tanong was scheduled to appear at the

International Labour Organization The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and o ...

(ILO) annual meeting in Switzerland in June 1991 to speak about the restrictions placed on Thai trade union activity. The NPKC denied Tanong permission to attend the conference. Tanong reported that he was followed everywhere and received numerous anonymous death threats. He told his family: "If for three days I don't contact you, that means I have been arrested; if it's more than seven days, that means I have already died". On 19 June 1991 Tanong's empty car was found near his office in Rat Burana District, Bangkok. After his disappearance his family feared for his health, as Tanong, age 55, was an

insulin Insulin (, from Latin ''insula'', 'island') is a peptide hormone produced by beta cells of the pancreatic islets encoded in humans by the ''INS'' gene. It is considered to be the main anabolic hormone of the body. It regulates the metabolism o ...

-dependent

diabetic Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level (hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased app ...

who did not have his medication with him when he was last seen. His wife said; "I sent letters to every government organization to ask for information on his disappearance, but received only silence from them."

Investigations and protests

Two committees were established to investigate Tanong Pho-arn's whereabouts, one in the Ministry of the Interior in 1992 and the other in parliament. Reports of these investigations have never been made public.

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...

, the

(ICFTU), and other

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

s have called on the Thai government to make these reports public and to initiate proper investigations. In January 2003, Prime Minister

Thaksin Shinawatra Thaksin Shinawatra ( th, ทักษิณ ชินวัตร; ; ; Chinese: 丘達新; cnr, Taksin Šinavatra; born 26 July 1949), is a Thai businessman, politician and visiting professor. He served in the Thai Police from 1973 to 1987, a ...

allowed the Tanong Po-arn case to be included with the cases of the missing protesters of Black May, the bloody 1992 uprising that led to the downfall of the NPKC.International Confederation of Free Trade Unions - Asia Pacific Regional Organizatio
ICFTU-APRO Labor Flash Issue No. 1084, 31 January 2003
It was hoped that Thaksin's decision would open up the possibility that more information could be found regarding Tanong's fate. His whereabouts remain unknown and he is feared dead. During

May Day May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on 1 May, around halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice. Festivities may also be held the night before, known as May Eve. T ...

celebrations, rallying workers can sometimes be seen wearing shirts with Tanong's image.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Po-arn, Tanong 1990s missing person cases Tanong Po-arn Missing people Tanong Po-arn Tanong Po-arn Tanong Po-arn Tanong Po-arn 1935 births

Thai labour leader

The 1991 coup

Disappearance

Investigations and protests

See also

References