Mother's plea - my son is not a spy

Simarak na Nakhon Phanom, 57, shows a photo of her son Siwarak Chutiphong, the engineer arrested by Cambodian authorities on spying charges, and herself. She said he is sick and needs to return home. PRASIT TANGPRASERT

NAKHON RATCHASIMA : The mother of a Thai engineer arrested by Cambodian authorities on spying charges has appealed to the Thai government to help free her son who she said was suffering from asthma.

Simarak na Nakhon Phanom, 57, head of the commerce department at the Nakhon Ratchasima Technical College, yesterday appealed to the government to help her son Siwarak Chutiphong return home safely.

Mr Siwarak, 37, an engineer working for the Cambodia Air Traffic Service, was arrested in Phnom Penh for allegedly obtaining confidential flight information and passing it on to Thai officials.

Cambodia claimed police found the restricted flight information about ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's travel plans in the possession of Mr Siwarak when he was arrested.

Mr Siwarak was accused of passing on Thaksin's flight schedule to the Thai embassy's first secretary, Kamrob Palawatwichai, who was expelled by Cambodia on Thursday. Mrs Simarak defended her son, saying he was a good person and was not the type to commit such an offence.

"My son is not politically prejudiced and not the kind of person to get involved in diplomatic conflicts," she said.

"I'm begging the government to help him."

She expressed deep concern over his health as he suffers from chronic asthma and allergies.

"I was shocked after learning about his arrest in Cambodia and very worried about his health," she said.

"He is often gripped by respiratory problems and breathing difficulties."

Mrs Simarak has been urging him to undergo surgery to treat his illness. Mr Siwarak's father died of a respiratory disorder in 1995.

Mr Siwarak visited his mother in the northeastern province on Aug 31 before returning to his job on Nov 9. That was the last time she saw him before his arrest.

She denied any knowledge about reports that Siwarak was close to Mr Kamrob.

* Published: 17/11/2009 at 12:00 AM
* Newspaper section: News
* The Nation