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Tsunami missing soon 'dead'
24/05/2005 10:49 - (SA)
Bangkok - Thailand proposed on Tuesday to declare legally dead the nearly 2 000 Thais still missing five months after the tsunami, which would clear the way for victims' families to claim inheritances and other benefits.
Under Thai law, a person must be missing for two years before families can ask a court to issue a death certificate, which is needed to receive inheritances, pensions and other benefits for the heirs of the deceased.
The Thai government on Tuesday proposed a new law to parliament that would immediately declare as dead the 1 924 Thais still missing from the December 26 tsunami so their families could skip the two-year wait and court process.
"It's become a huge problem for relatives of the missing, because they cannot get assistance, inheritances or retirement benefits," said government spokesperson Sansanee Nakpong.
In cases where a missing person unexpectedly shows up later, the family could file with the courts to revoke the death certificate, she said.
The bill must be vetted by the Council of State before going to the House of Representatives and the Senate, which each must read the bill three times.
If the law is approved, the Justice Ministry would declare all the missing as dead within no more than 15 days of the law taking effect, she said.
The law would only apply to Thai nationals, not the 898 foreigners listed as missing since the tsunami hit six southern provinces.
Thailand's official death toll stands at 5 395 people. Remains of more victims were found last week, but authorities have yet to definitively link them to the tsunami.
The list of dead include 2 245 foreigners and 1 975 Thais, but 1 175 bodies of unknown nationality are still undergoing DNA tests to determine their identity.
- AFP
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