http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?

story=20120825150255758

Issue 00236

26 August 2012

Register to receive our free newsletter by email each week

SEARCH

Advanced Search

Global Edition / News / World Round-up / Features / Commentary / World Blogs / Student View / Academic Freedom Special Reports Special Editions Africa Edition / Letters / Archives / HE Events Diary / About Us / Contact Us

THAILAND

Plagiarism scandal continues after forgery verdict

Yojana Sharma and Suluck Lamubol 26 August 2012 Issue No:236
Like 0 0 0

Join us on

Follow us on

Thailands National Innovation Agency Director Supachai Lorlowhakarn was found guilty of criminal forgery on 8 August, just weeks after the council of Chulalongkorn University revoked his PhD in science because of plagiarism. The South Bangkok District Court, whose written verdict was only made available last week, ruled that Supachai fabricated and made use of a falsified employment contract of his litigant Wyn Ellis, a Thailand-based British agriculture researcher and a former consultant to NIA. The court accepted beyond any doubt that the defendant [Supachai] was the principal party in committing document forgery, and added that Supachai cannot avoid responsibility by claiming this was an action of his subordinate and he did not know about it. The court levied a 6,000 baht (US$190) fine and imposed a sixmonth suspended prison sentence on Supachai. The verdict has significance in an ongoing plagiarism case involving Supachai and Ellis that has shocked academics and the public. Ellis claims he is the main author and was project manager of the research, Strengthening the Export Capacity of Thailands Organic Agriculture, commissioned by the Geneva-based UN International Trade Centre in 2007. Supachai insists that he possesses the rights to the same research, which he used in his PhD thesis. On 21 June this year, Chulalongkorn University declared that Supachai was guilty of plagiarising 80% of his thesis, and revoked the PhD. Employment contract tampered with According to the courts full verdict on the forgery case, the attempt to falsely reduce Ellis employment contract term was aimed at using it as supporting evidence for Supachais own claim that Ellis did not have a main role in producing the disputed research, but was merely a translator and copyrighter of the work. Ellis filed complaints against Supachai for alleged document forgery in 2008, stating that Supachai illegally amended his employment contract as consultant for the NIA from six months (originally from January to June 2007) to three months (January to March 2007). According to the court, the reason for altering the employment contract to show only three months was because the plaintiffs [Ellis] position according to the contract was an important one; the defendant needed to minimise the plaintiffs role; reducing the duration to only three months made the appointment seem temporary, showing that the plaintiff had no role in writing the disputed article. The court accepted that Supachai was the principal party in committing document forgery and found him guilty according to Budd Hall and the UNESCO chair in community-based research
COMMENTARY

News Feeds Global Edition Africa Edition

This Week
PEOPLE

Universities churn out more graduates for fewer jobs

8/26/2012

14:26:06 PM

http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20120825150255758
Articles 264 (criminal forgery) and 268(1) (making use of or citing from a forged document), because the defendant was the person who forged the documents, and used the forged documents. Forged document used to undermine claim The possibility of the document forgery came to light when in August 2008 Ellis filed petitions to Chulalongkorn Universitys rector and the Ministry of Science and Technology against Supachais alleged plagiarism. This prompted Supachai to lodge counter claims against Ellis and subsequently against Bangkok Post journalist Erika Fry, who had investigated the case for the newspaper, for defamation. Although the case was later dismissed, Ellis noticed that his employment contract, used as supporting evidence, was forged, leading to a further lawsuit. Ellis told University World News: The court has ruled that my contract was altered to undermine my claim to lead authorship of a technical article, found to have been plagiarised in the defendants PhD thesis. Also, most of the articles entire introduction is reproduced in a paper published in the Thai Journal of Agricultural Science. I hope that this verdict will now persuade the TJAS to retract the paper without further delay, he said. Its also significant that the court also held the defendant responsible for an official NIA memo submitted in evidence by the defendant, which the court ruled was dated retrospectively and was not true to the facts. The courts verdict, though subject to appeal, shows the extent to which some will go to hide their tracks. Ellis has several times called on the TJAS to retract Supachais article. Retraction debate continues TJAS Editor-in-chief Irb Kheoruenromne said he was ready and willing to retract the article but had to wait for a court ruling on Supachais complaint against Chulalongkorn University. In response to the decision to revoke his PhD, Supachai declared he would file a complaint against the university for "misuse of power". During a 25 June press conference, Supachai said the investigation led by the universitys committee was unusually rapid and against good governance and rule of law. This has been a complicated matterwe are willing to retract the paper if the court decides that Supachai is really guilty [of plagiarism], but we cant retract just like that because there was agreement in our publishing [his article] in which he said that he owned the rights of the work, Irb told University World News. As Supachai is also likely to appeal the forgery ruling, Irb said: I am not so sure what is going to happen now, I have to say. But the chances are high that this paper will be withdrawn from the journal. Lieke Boersma of Wageningen Academic Publishers in The Netherlands, which holds the copyright to the Wyn Ellis material, said the disputed paper is still there in the Thai journal this week. We also heard about the 8 August verdict and thought they will withdraw it now. She said Wageningen was disappointed that the paper had not been withdrawn earlier. Wageningen asked the TJAS to retract the paper over a year ago, but the journal would only do so with a court ruling which would have been complicated from The Netherlands, so we did not go further with this, Boersma said. We will contact them now. Supachais NIA role Science and Technology Minister Plodprasob Surasawadi, who oversees the NIA, has said the withdrawal of Supachais PhD would not affect his position or work at the NIA, since Supachai used his masters degree to apply for the job, the online agency Thaipublica reported on 8 July. The chair of the NIA board, Pornchai Rujiprapa, who is also permanent secretary at the Ministry of Science and Technology, was reported by the Bangkok Post on 26 June as saying that the withdrawal of the PhD was a personal matter for Supachai. How Kenyatta University leader Olive Mugenda broke the glass ceiling
WORLD BLOG

Top stories from last weeks edition

CANADA

Call to double foreign students is a policy shift More outreachbased research needed in Africa
SPECIAL REPORT NEW ZEALAND GLOBAL

China gains ground in 2012 ARWU ranking Universities propose shorter masters degrees
CHINA

Ambitious foreign student targets part of soft power

GERMANY

Higher education heads criticise Bologna impact

GERMANY

Institute launches global educational web platform

THAILAND

Plagiarism controversy raises questions over quality

POLAND

Universities in drive to recruit foreign students

AUSTRALIA

Universities must help close the gender data gap

FEATURES

Attracting the indigenous, rural and poor to university

UNITED STATES

Inclusion faces new threats in more unequal world

Academics on the closure of Mexican-American studies in Arizona schools

Kuwait's new strategy for widening access to higher education

8/26/2012

14:26:06 PM

http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20120825150255758
Ellis told University World News: It is incumbent upon the ministry and NIA board to exercise their powers immediately to limit the continuing damage to the global reputation and good standing of both agencies.
Related Links
THAILAND

Plagiarism controversy raises questions over academic integrity

Disclaimer All reader responses posted on this site are those of the reader ONLY and NOT those of University World News or Higher Education Web Publishing, their associated trademarks, websites and services. University World News or Higher Education Web Publishing does not necessarily endorse, support, sanction, encourage, verify or agree with any comments, opinions or statements or other content provided by readers.

Higher education and the world's 10 million prisoners

Username: Password: Login Lost your password?

Advertising / Sponsorship / Terms and Conditions / Contact our advertising team Copyright University World News 2007-2012

ISSN 1756-297X

8/26/2012

14:26:06 PM