VZCZCXYZ0008
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBK #0247/01 0120443
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 120443Z JAN 07
FM AMEMBASSY BANGKOK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4000
INFO RUEHDS/AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA PRIORITY 0488
RUEHAE/AMEMBASSY ASMARA PRIORITY 0004
RUEHDJ/AMEMBASSY DJIBOUTI PRIORITY 0014
RUEHNR/AMEMBASSY NAIROBI PRIORITY 0267

UNCLAS BANGKOK 000247 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL KCRM TH SO
SUBJECT: THAI MFA REQUESTS HELP WITH ABDUCTION IN SOMALIA 
 
¶1. (U) THIS IS AN ACTION REQUEST.  Please see para 3. 
 
¶2. (SBU) The Thai MFA has requested USG assistance in 
pressing Somali authorities to work with the Thai Government 
to secure the release of a Thai citizen held hostage in 
Somalia.  On January 12, we spoke with Panyarak Poolthup, MFA 
Deputy Director General of the Department of South Asia, 
Middle East and African Affairs.  Panyarak provided us with a 
non-paper describing the apparent linkage by Somali 
authorities of the hostage's fate with that of three Somalis 
held by Thai authorities after the Somalis hijacked a fishing 
vessel in April 2005.  After reading the non-paper, we 
explained that the USG did not approve of hostage-taking. 
Nevertheless, this appeared to be a bilateral issue between 
Thailand and Somalia.  We promised to forward the MFA's 
request to Washington, and to relay promptly to the MFA any 
reply we might receive. 
 
¶3. (U) ACTION REQUESTED: Embassy requests that the Department 
provide a reply for the MFA, explaining what discussions, if 
any, we might have with Somali authorities to address Thai 
concerns about the seeming linkage of their hostage's fate 
with that of Somali fishing vessel hijackers. 
 
¶4. (SBU) The text of the MFA non-paper follows. 
 
BEGIN TEXT 
 
Abduction of a Thai national in Somalia 
 
On 21 October 2006, Mr. Sumanas Maneenin, a Thai national 
working as the coordinator for "Sirichai Fisheries," a Thai 
fishing company in Somalia, was abducted from his office in 
the Humuse Hotel in Bosaso, Puntland State of Somalia.  Mr. 
Sumanas was later allowed to communicate by telephone to his 
office, saying that he had been abducted by a group of 
militia of the Mudug clan who are demanding the release of 3 
Somalis serving jail terms in Thailand in exchange for his 
release.  Mr. Sumanas reported that he had been transported 
to and was being held at an undisclosed location near the 
city of Galkoyo. 
 
The 3 Somali offenders referred to by Mr. Sumanas were 
captured on the high seas with the help of the US Navy in 
April 2005 after they hijacked a Thai fishing vessel on which 
they were serving as security guards and took the Thai crew 
as hostages for ransom.  The 3 Somalis were subsequently 
sentenced by the Thai criminal court to 10 years jail 
sentences.  The case is still pending in the Thai court of 
appeals. 
 
In response to the abduction of Mr. Sumanas, the Thai Embassy 
in Nairobi has contacted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of 
the Transitional Federal Republic of Somalia to request 
assistance in solving the hostage situation.  The 
Transitional Federal Government of Somalia's position is that 
the two countries need to conclude and sign the "Agreement on 
the Transferring of Offenders and on Cooperation in the 
Enforcement of Penal Sentences," and use the framework of 
this Agreement to immediately remand the 3 Somali prisoners 
into Somali custody.  This is implicitly a "precondition" 
before proceeding with securing the release of Mr. Sumanas 
from the militia. 
 
The Royal Thai Government cannot accept linkage of the 
illegal kidnapping of a Thai citizen to the case of the 3 
Somali citizens who have been convicted of a serious crime 
and are currently subjected to the judicial process in 
Thailand.  The two issues are unequivocably separate matters. 
 
The Royal Thai Government has previously expressed 
willingness to cooperate with the Transitional Federal 
Government of Somalia on the process to conclude the draft 
Agreement on the Transferring of Offenders and on Cooperation 
in the Enforcement of Penal Sentences, and is currently 
waiting for a response from the Somali side to the Thai 
proposed draft of the said Agreement.  The process of 
transferring of offenders requires the jurisdiction process 
to be completed and the offenders to serve a minimum of 
one-third of their jail terms in Thailand before a transfer 
can be requested.  This is the process that would apply in 
order to repatriate the 3 Somalis back to serve their prison 
sentences in their homeland. 
 
The Thai Government, therefore, wishes to seek support in 
encouraging the Government of the Transitional Federal 
Republic of Somalia to work with the Royal Thai Government in 
accordance with international norms and practices to secure 
the immediate and unconditional release of the abducted Thai 
citizen. 
 
END TEXT 
BOYCE