Bangkok bombing trial begins with Chinese translator

Defendants claim China-appointed translator can't be trusted after military court solves translator problem delaying trial.

BANGKOK BOMBING TRIAL 

Bangkok bombing trial begins with Chinese govt translator  

15/11/2016

Kyodo News agency

The trial of two men accused of involvement in a bomb attack which killed 20 people in Bangkok last year began on Tuesday.

The two men Yusufu Mieraili, 27, and Bilal Mohammed, 31, also known as Adem Karadag, are both ethnic Uyghur Chinese (Chinese nationals from the Uyghur ethnic group who speak the Uyghur language),

The two men are accused of involvement in the bombing of Bangkok's Erawan shrine on Aug 17, 2015.

As well as killing 20 people, mostly Chinese tourists, the blast injured more than 120 others, and sparked a national manhunt for the perpetrators.

The two men are collectively facing 10 charges including weapons offences, intention to kill and illegal immigration.

In the first day of the trial, Pol Lt Col Somkieat Ploytumtim outlined the charges against them, and explained that, in the wake of the explosion, police had found three locations where explosives were being hidden.

LONG SEARCH FOR A LANGUAGE INTERPRETER & TRANSLATOR 

The start to the trial followed months of delays as the court searched for an interpreter for the defendants to translate from Thai to Uyghur for them so that they could understand court proceedings. 

The two men were appointed a translator by the Bangkok Military Court, despite the pair's protestations that they did not trust the court's choice.

At first, the defendants said they could not understand their court appointed interpreter, a woman who spoke Uzbek, not their native language Uyghur. 

Then plans to use an interpreter from the World Uyghur Congress who spoke their language were scrapped. 

CHINESE GOVT WILL PROVIDE TRANSLATOR BECAUSE THEIR PASSPORTS ARE CHINESE 

On Oct 25, the court finally ordered that the Chinese Embassy in Bangkok be approached to provide a translator.

A suitable translator, they finally decided, would provide either Uyghur to English, or Mandarin to Thai translation -- as the defendants both held Chinese passports.

DEFENDANTS SAY THEIR CHINESE INTERPRETER COULD NOT BE TRUSTED

At the hearing on Tuesday, the defendants complained that the newly appointed interpreter could not be trusted, as they had been selected by the Chinese Embassy and would not attach any importance to them due to their ethnicity.

In China there are longstanding political tensions between the Chinese government and Uyghurs in the areas of China where the Uyghurs live. 

The court's three judges rejected the defendant's claim.

They stated that it was enough that the translator held the same nationality as the defendants, and the trial would now proceed as planned.

They said the men were free to object, but they saw no reason to prolong the start of the trial any further.

TRIAL EXPECTED TO LAST UNTIL LATE 2017 OR EARLY 2018

Following Tuesday's court hearing, the office of the attorney general said the trial was now expected to last until late 2017 or early 2018.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/1135916/trial-of-erawan-suspects-begins-as-translator-appointed

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