Reducing Inequality in Thailand’s Justice System

Abstract

                The temporary release process in Thailand’s justice system causes a vital issue of social inequality among the inmates. In order to reduce inequality in this process, the Office of Court of Justice launched out the risk assessment and control in the temporary release process program which has been implemented as a pilot project almost two years since February 1^st, 2017. Despite its importance, the progress of this program has not been evaluated whether or not and how it helps reduce inequality in the temporary release process. To evaluate the program, this research was conducted in the Provincial Court of Justice of Nong Bua Lam Phu province where the program was implemented. The researchers conducted the interviews with key informants who involved in the temporary release process in the Provincial Court of Justice of Nong Bua Lam Phu province and then the data were analyzed by using the thematic analysis technique.
The results show that the temporary release policy visibly reduced inequality among the inmates who applied for this program. The analysis of socio-economic status through four variables consisting of income, occupation, education, and distance to urban area found that these four variables are not the impediments for inmates to apply for the temporary release process. In addition, the study indicates that the Office of Court of Justice should support and continue implementing this policy because its impact helps lessen social inequality among the prisoners. The study also suggests that the court administrators and staffs should have to clearly understand the policy goals and implement them in an effective direction in order to build an equality in the justice system in Thailand.