Sex Offenders To Be Chemically Castrated In Thailand

In the country of Thailand, sex offenders will be offered chemical castration after the controversial procedure was approved by lawmakers.

Thailand Approves Chemical Castration For Sex Offenders

Daily Mail reported that offenders who are deemed more likely to commit more sex crimes upon their release will be offered the chance to be given an injection that will lower their testosterone levels in exchange for less prison time. Two doctors must approve the procedure in order for it to be done, and the offenders will still be monitored for a decade and forced to wear electronic bracelets. 

After passing the lower house back in March, the bill was approved by 145 senators on Monday, with two abstentions. The bill will now require another house vote, and it must then get a royal endorsement.

Corrections department stats state that of the 16,413 convicted sex offenders that were released from Thai prisons between 2013 and 2020, 4,848 reoffended. Other countries that use chemical castration include Poland, South Korea, Russia, and Estonia, as well as some US states.

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‘I Want This Law To Pass Quickly’

“I want this law to pass quickly,” said Justice Minister Somsak Thepsuthin. “I don’t want to see news about bad things happening to women again.”

Jaded Chouwilai, director of the Women and Men Progressive Movement Foundation, a non-governmental organization that addresses sexual violence, spoke out against chemical castration by saying that it will not lower the number of sex crimes. 

“Convicts should be rehabilitated by changing their mindset while in prison,” he said. “To use punishment like execution or injected castration reinforces the idea that offender can no longer be rehabilitated.”

Pakistan Passes Chemical Castration For Rapists 

This comes one year after Pakistan announced that rapists convicted of repeat sex offenses would face castration. Rimmel Mohydin, Amnesty International’s South Asia Campaigner, spoke out against this practice.

“This cruel and inhuman legislation not only violates Pakistan’s international and constitutional legal obligations,” Mohydin said. “It will also do nothing to address the scourge of sexual violence. Rather than ratcheting up punishments, the authorities should address the deep-seated problems in the criminal justice system that invariably deny justice to victims. Chemical castrations will not solve a deficient police force or inadequately trained investigators.”

“Earlier this year, Pakistan’s parliament passed a bill criminalizing the cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment of prisoners and those held in custody,” the campaigner added. “They cannot possibly reconcile that with this legislation, and we urge the authorities to reverse this retrograde step.”

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Indonesia Passes Chemical Castration

Indonesia also passed a law last year mandating child sex offenders to undergo chemical castration for a maximum period of two years.

“I want to give a warning about sexual violence against children,” Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo said as he signed this bill into law, according to Vice. 

“I want this to be considered an extraordinary crime, so the handling of it would also be in an extraordinary way,” he added. 

This law was well received by many in Indonesia. 

“I think this is a very extraordinary moment,” said Arist Merdeka Sirait, chairman of the National Commission for Child Protection. “I think this is a gift for Indonesian children entering 2021.”

It remains to be seen how this will be received in Thailand.