Father swears his son is innocent
The Nation October 17, 2014 1:00 am
British Ambassador to Thailand Mark Kent meets yesterday with National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission member Supinya Klangnarong at NBTC headquarters.
The father of a Myanmar national accused of killing two Britons on Koh Tao has insisted that this son, Win Zaw Htun, is innocent. “My son isn’t an aggressive person and has good morals,” he said.
Ko Tun Tun Htike and his wife, parents of the second suspect Zaw Lin Oo, arrived in Thailand on Sunday, the paper reported. The Myanmar embassy in Thailand will look after the families, Htoo Chit, chairman of the Foundation for Education and Development, said.
Tun Tun Htike and May Thein, parents of 21-year-old Win Zaw, and Phyu Shwe Nu and Thein Shwe Aung, the mother and uncle of Zaw Lin, 21, would remain in Thailand for about a month.
Htoo Chit said NGOs wanted to help the men because they believed in their innocence.
“After visiting Thailand to look into the case, we can tell you clearly that the two young men are not the killers. We can say that they are not guilty as accused,” Htoo Chit said.
Separately, British Ambassador to Thailand Mark Kent yesterday met with National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission member Supinya Klangnarong.
After the meeting, Kent said media freedom came with responsibilities, adding that it was important for the media to observe professional ethics. However, he said, he did not mean to tell the Thai media how to do their job. “Press freedom is necessary but it must respect a persons’ rights,” he said.
Cooperation is being sought with the NBTC for future coverage of the case that is balanced and free from the violation of personal rights and does not affect the feelings of the victim’s relatives, he said. “I have come as a representative of British people to tell of an issue new [to the Thai media] regarding the violation of personal rights. I have met NBTC to seek cooperation. This should be the best [solution] and, hopefully, the Thai media would agree,” he added.