Romdon Panjor proposes cuts to Royal Thai Police budget over surveillance concerns

During a parliamentary debate regarding the 2027 fiscal year budget, Romdon Panjor, a list MP from the People's Party, proposed cuts to the Royal Thai Police budget, specifically targeting 229 million baht in allocations.

Panjor raised concerns over a 57.42 million baht project to purchase mobile and computer data investigation technology from an Israeli firm. This technology is capable of bypassing passwords to access mobile devices. While acknowledging its utility in investigating cybercriminals, Panjor warned that its use against civilians in Southern Thailand—where special laws like martial law and emergency decrees are active—poses significant risks to privacy and constitutional rights.

He cited statistics from 2004 to 2026 showing that 74% of security cases in the southern region failed to identify perpetrators, and court dismissal rates were higher than conviction rates. Panjor noted that while technology can reduce the risk of torture during interrogations, it introduces new risks of human rights violations, referencing international concerns regarding similar technologies used in military operations in Gaza and Palestine.