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HUMAN RIGHTS FOR EACH PERSON REGARDLESS OF AGE, RACE, RELIGION OR POLITICS
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SOEPAING TINSOE [MYANMAR]
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'I haven't seen the light of freedom yet, but I always keep telling myself I will be a free man one day'.
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CASE INFORMATION
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NAME:
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Soe Paing Tinsoe
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AGE:
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21 November 1970
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ORIGIN:
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Myanmar [Burma]
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ARRESTED:
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04 March 1997
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PRISON LOCATION :
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Bangkwang Central Prison
117 Nonthanburi Road
Nonthanburi 11000, Thailand
More on Bangkwang: Click Here
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CHARGE:
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Drug Trafficking |
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SENTENCE:
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Death penalty, commuted to life imprisonment. As at 2008 I have 29 years and 2 months left to serve. I have been here for over 11 eleven years already.
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CONTACT ME:
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Soe Paing Tinsoe
Bangkwang Central Prison
Building # 6
117 Nonthanburi Road
Nonthanburi 11000, Thailand
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ABOUT MY CASE:
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My name is Soe Paing Tinsoe. I was born on the 21st of November 1970. I am from Myanmar [Burma]. Most of you have already known the situations in Burma. Hundreds of thousands of Burmese people have left the country since 1988 and entered into neighboring countries, mostly illegally, to find a better life or to find a job. Work hard, save money and sent it to families back home.
I left my hometown, Mandalay, and came to the Thai-Burmese border in 1995, with the hope of finding a job. I left my old father and my elder sister behind. It was my responsibility to look after my family since I was the only son. I just wanted to make our life easier.
Life at the border wasn't as easy as I thought. More than half of the population there was from different parts of Burma. Sometimes there would be battles between the Burmese army and revolutionaries around, and then all the businesses and shops around the border would be forced to shut down. The border would be closed until everything was back to normal. I wasn't able to send any money back to my family, even though I stayed there for more than 2 years. I felt shame to go home without money. So I became desperate.
There was a bunch of people at the border who were enjoying their lives and spending money like they owned swiss banks, while there was a lot of unemployment. They were smugglers and most of them were involved in drug trafficking. Seeing their easy lives made me wonder if I could make money in the same way.
I used to work different jobs after I left the monastery. I also used to work in gold mines and jade mines around 1988-90. Unfortunately I got only malaria sickness instead of gold and precious stones. In my life I have never been successful at anything. So it was the same when I got involved in selling drugs. I was arrested at my first attempt.
I was arrested at the Northern Thai Border on March, 4, 1997 for smuggling drugs [38,000 amphetamines]. One of my mates was shot dead by Thai police while he tried to escape. I still don't know what happened to the other one. He was probably shot dead too.
On December 12, 1997, I was given the death penalty. Nine months following my arrest. Fortunately the court reduced my sentence from death to life imprisonment because I showed remorse for my crime and accepted what I did. If I didn't accept the case against me then they would have executed me a few years ago.
I have been punished dearly for just one mistake. Deep in my heart I know that I don't deserve to be here and serving such a heavy sentence. It is just too much!
Sometimes life is desperate and we do things without thinking properly. Some people understand that human beings can make a mistake.
We learn a lot of things from our mistakes. Nobody is perfect in the world.
I have now served more than eleven years. During this time I have received 3 amnesties. One in 2004, in 2006 and 2007, which reduced my sentence from life imprisonment to 40 years, then 40 years to 33 years and 4 months; and then from that to now 29 years and 2 months.
I haven't seen the light of freedom yet but I always keep telling myself I will be free one day.
My mother passed away for breast cancer a couple of years ago after I was born. My father passed away in 2006. He died at the age of 83. My sister who is married with children lives in Mandalay and I don't have any contact with her. It is very difficult to communicate with loved ones back home because most of our letters are lost somewhere along the way.
In all these terrible years that I have spent in a Thai prison, I have experienced, learnt and seen a lot of things.
We Burmese prisoners have not been treated equally to other foreign prisoners. The same for those prisoners from Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. We are forced to work prison labors while other foreign prisoners are treated more leniently and do not work. Most of us do not get paid. If we refuse to work or are lazy at work, we will be moved to other prisons where the conditions are worse. We wrote letters of complaint to our Embassy in Bangkok. So our Embassy wrote letters to the Ministry of Justice and to the Department of Corrections in 2005; and requested them to treat Burmese prisoners equally to other foreign inmates. I don't know if they consider that the Burmese Government doesn't exist. Our Embassy request was ignored.
I still have memories about the conditions in Bombat Prison, where I was held for more than 6 months after my arrest. When I was brought to the building where I had to stay, one of the Thai inmates came to me and said 'Hey you Burmese don't speak Thai. If you speak Thai you have to work!' So when the authorities tried to talk to me I used gestures and body language to let them know that I didn't speak Thai. I was the only one Burmese in the building who didn't have to work prison labour. Of course I spoke Thai well and all Thai inmates knew it. I felt sorry for the others who had to work. If they could not finish their shares of work, they would be in trouble. I still remember one Burmese inmate got beaten by a prison guard because he did not finish his work on time.
A couple of months after that, the same guy got beaten again in front of other inmates by three guards because he fell asleep at his night duty. Thai prisoners and the prisoners from Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam were forced to do sentry duty in the cells at night. Actually it was not the prisoner's job to do this. It was the Thai prison guard's job.
After serving more than 6 months in Bombat, I was transferred to Lard Yao prison which was next to Bombat. In Lard Yao the prison provided white rice and soup to all foreign inmates except those from Laos, Burma, Vietnam and Cambodia. We had to eat brown rice with lousy soup and had to work while others were left alone. The difference between Bombat Prison and Lard Yao Prison is that Bombat doesn't have a hospital and Lard Yao does.
I was transferred again to Bangkwang Maximum Security Prison after I was sentenced and they put heavy leg irons on my legs for months. I was forced to work since the day after my arrival. I was paid 50 Thai Baht a month for about two years. Then the payment stopped and I have never received any more wages since.
The prison guards in Bangkwang Prison are friendlier than those in Bombat and Lard Yao. The prison work in Bangkwang is not as difficult as in the other two prisons. In here, if we don't make problems they leave us alone.
A lot of pressures from organizations and from third countries forced the Thai Government to improve the conditions of Thai Prisons. So we have been provided white rice and a little better soup since 2007. There are about 200 prisons in Thailand and Bangkwang is the only place where prisoners are allowed to cook their own food. But we must have money in our prison accounts. The prison provides spice food which I can't eat because I have gastritis. Prisoners from Burma, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia are the poorest among the foreign prisoners in Thai Prisons. Most of them don't have any support from their families and friends.
If we are to survive we have to work for other prisoners who have money; washing clothes, cooking food, carrying water and massage etc.. to get some money to buy food and toiletries. The reason you don't see many prisoners from Burma, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam on the FPSS website is that many of them do not read and write English.
For me, I am lucky that I speak English which I learned from other foreign prisoners in here. I also do my best to work for other foreigners so I can make a small wage. I manage to live on 500 baht per month [AUD$20] as payment for doing all the work for foreigners. I used to wash for several people but I gave some of my work away to even poorer Burmese inmates who have nothing. I have been in building #6 now for 10 years, so I know most of all the foreigners in this building.
Dear readers, thank you so much for spending your precious time reading my story. I hope it will benefit others somehow. As I have found, one mistake can change your life forever.
I am in genuine need of people to help me a little in whatever way they can.
Thank you
Soe Paing Tinsoe
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VISITING DAYS:
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Anybody wishing to visit me please do. I would very much like to have visitors because I never get them. I sit and watch all everyone else going to meet people and wish that would happen to me.
Visiting days are only on Tuesday and Thursday between 9:30am and 11:30am and in the afternoon between 1:30pm and 2:30pm.
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CARE PACKAGES. :
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IMPORTANT NOTICE
REGARDING CARE PACKAGES
Drug trade in Thailand prisons leads to ban on prison gifts
Read More Here
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Soe Paing would be grateful for anything that people send to him. Care packages, food and clothes can be sent to the prison by mail. One good idea is to check with the prisoner first before sending any items, just to make sure that things
haven't changed at the prison.
Shirts M Shorts 32 Socks M Magazines [educational/sports] Tined foods
Tined cheese, jam Boxed cereal Powdered milk products Toiletries e.g
Soap, toothpaste Newspapers, books Cigarettes Writing material Drawing material Pencils
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LETTER WRITING :
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I really would love to get letters from people even though it might be a struggle for me to reply because I have little money. The cost of stamps is a luxury to people like me but sometimes I am able to get help from the other foreigners if I work hard. So please if you have time, please write to me.
You can talk about any subject because I am interested to know everything about what is going on in the world. I have spent time trying to improve my English and I am lucky because my friends here help me.
I am genuine and sincere when I tell you that I am sorry for my mistakes and I have done the wrong thing in life but I am making everyone day count to turn my life around.
Please write to me if you have free time.
Soe Paing Tinsoe
Bangkwang Central Prison
Building # 6
117 Nonthanburi Road
Nonthanburi 11000, Thailand
You can email me: bangkwang_bkprison@hotmail.com
The Thai prison guards will print out and deliver to me. Only write 15 lines at a time because this is the rule. Make sure you include my exact details so they know who to deliver the email message to.
Please let Soe Paing know that you were made aware of his plight through this campaign page.
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FINANCIAL SUPPORT: :
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Never send money or cash in the mail. All mail must first be checked by the guards and THEN given to the prisoner. It is against the law to send money through the mail and if found, it will be confiscated by police and/or prison authorities.
You can send money to Soe Paing via Father Olivier Morin. The 69-year-old French missionary, Jesuit Father Olivier Morin, heads a six-member team that regularly visits more than 1,600 foreign prisoners in eight prisons in and outside Bangkok, including a women's prison.
Make sure when you send funds via Father Olivier that you state that your funds are for Soe Paing Tinsoe, Bangkwang Bldg #6. Father Olivier has his own reference number for each prisoner he visits. Soe Paing's reference number is '512'. You need to include this in your letter otherwise he won't know who the funds are for.
Father Olivier
Xavier Hall
Victory Monument
43 Phaholyothin Road
10400 Bangkok - Thailand
Money paid by Visitors:
- Visitors may make direct deposits at the prison's main office. Upon arrival to the prison, tell the guards you want to deposit money.
You will be directed to the Bank. You can make your deposit(s) while waiting to visit your friend.
We often have long term members visiting the prison on a regular basis. These are contacts we have established over the years and are highly trustworthy.
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EMBASSY CONTACT: :
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Myanmar Embassy [Burma]
132 Sathorn Nua Rd.
Silom Bangrak
Bangkok 10500 Thailand
Tel: 0 - 2233-7250
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FREEDOM IS A RIGHT OF ALL HUMAN BEINGS IN A WORLD WHERE LIFE IS VALUED AND PEACE MAY FINALLY BE A POSSABILITY
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Just in case you forgot - read the Universal declaration of Human Rights
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