07 February 2019•Update: 08 February 2019
By Riyaz ul Khaliq
ANKARA
Australia shot a second letter on Thursday to Bangkok stressing that the plight of a jailed footballer has "disturbed Australians", according to local news reports in Thailand.
Bangkok remains under intense pressure for the release of Bahraini footballer Hakeem al-Araibi.
"I’ve written to him [Thai premier] again, because I was very disturbed at the appearance of Hakeem at the hearing the other day," Thai daily The Nation quoted Australian premier, Scott Morrison.
Hakeem al-Araibi, 25, remains detained in Thailand since last November after landing in the country’s capital with trial proceedings expected to resume in April.
He faces extradition to his native country, Bahrain, where he is wanted in conjunction with the 2011 Arab Spring. Araibi has denied all charges terming them “political”.
"I’m respectfully reminding the Thai prime minister that Australians feel very strongly about this, very, very strongly," said Morrison.
Morrison sent an initial letter on Jan. 30 urging Thailand to send Araibi back to Australia.
In protest against treatment meted out to Araibi, an Australian football club cancelled a training session for Thai sportsmen.
Araibi has lived in Australia for about five years with refugee status and Australian residency after fleeing Bahrain in 2014.
Last Monday, a court in Bangkok told him and his attorney to submit their official opposition to extradition by April 5 and set a court appointment for both sides on April 22.
Daily Bangkok Post cited an official from the Thai attorney-general saying that the court would require two to three months to declare its ruling after the planned hearing, which would require Araibi to remain in custody until August 2019.
"The [extradition] request of the requesting country [Bahrain] is from a criminal case whose offense is also considered a criminal offense in Thailand, and the penalties for the charges are more than one year in jail. It is neither a political nor military offense so it qualifies according to the Extradition Act 2008,” the newspaper quoted a statement by Trumph Jalichandra.
The actions of the Thai government invited international condemnation with calls for Araibi’s immediate release as well as protests and rallies in favor of Araibi in Australia and elsewhere.
