The Great Court has ordered the Royal Thai Army to pay compensation plus interest, as a whole about 17 mil baht, to the group of a junior official who drowned during training in 2015.
The judgment was read out there at the Civil Court on Ratchadapisek Street on Tuesday.
It instructed the army to compensate the two plaintiffs, Wan Thongdeenok and Thanyarat Wansathit, the mother and wife of the deceased, to the tune of 11. 8 mil baht plus six million baht in interest accumulated in the last seven years.
The injured parties filed a lawsuit with the Civil Court within 2016 after Sub Lt Sanan Thongdeenok drowned during a going swimming test as part of the instruction curriculum for the Greatest King’s own Bodyguard Team.
Every trainee must participate in the test, supervised by army officials. Sanan was required to swim back and forth within the pool, more than ten laps, before this individual drowned due to fatigue. The trainer apparently failed to provide a prompt rescue.
The Civil Court and the Appeal Courtroom decided in the plaintiffs’ favour in 2020, but the army submitted a final appeal to the particular Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court ruled the fact that trainer had pressured the soldier to keep beyond reasonable limits, as he had obviously shown signs of exhaustion and was not able to keep swimming.
That activity pointed to negligence in breach associated with safety rules for trainees, which could not have to get ignored and those responsible must be held accountable. Hence, the accused was liable under section 5 of the Liability to get Wrongful Acts associated with Officials Act (1996).
The court also decided with the Civil plus Appeal Courts regarding funeral costs, since the plaintiffs had to finance funeral rites two times in response to autopsy demands, as well as paying additional expenses – which includes flowers, food, beverages and the transferral of the body – in spite of them having simply no receipts to confirm the particular funeral costs.
In addition , since Sanan could have resided until 85 according to the average male life expectancy, the two plaintiffs had been deprived of their breadwinner. This was also taken into consideration when assessing the particular damages.
Besides the salary obtained from his army service, the departed also helped his wife run a canine breeding business. Therefore, his death also deprived the household of this income.
The defendant must comply with the court’s decision within 30 days or face further legal action, it said.
Pornpen Khongkachonkiet, movie director of the Cross Social Foundation, reacted to the case by stating the army should review its instruction curriculum as it might lead to physical and psychological damage, as shown by similar problems that had previously made headlines.
The military must also come up with actions to guard against such incidents in future, and proceed along with disciplinary punishment and criminal cases towards any officers who seem to commit such accidents.
Microsoft Pornpen made the purpose that it is still a huge challenge for people to find action in military courts.