Six decades after he became the infamous murderer who ate children, Si Quey Sae-Ung is no longer a cannibal, at least to those visiting his grisly remains at a Bangkok forensics museum.
The Siriraj Medical Museum, aka the Museum of Death for its macabre displays but known to many Thais as just “The Si Quey Museum,” has removed the “cannibal” label from the glass display housing his body in response to evidence that he never did the worst things ascribed to him.
Cannibal Conspiracy: Thai netizens petition to remove serial killer’s corpse from museum display
His body will remain on display, however.
The decision came in response to a popular an online petition calling for the museum to remove the formaldehyde-preserved corpse of Si Quey, known among Thais as See Uey, because evidence shows he never consumed any child parts and was likely framed for the very murders he was executed for.
A university official this week declared they would take action in response.
“Siriraj has already removed the ‘cannibal’ label as well as Si Quey’s name. Like the other six murderers on display in the same room, the only label left says he was excuted due to a murder case,” Prasit Watthanapha, dean of the Siriraj medical school, told reporters Tuesday. He added a transcript of Si Quey’s court cases remains on display.
“I think it’s a good thing that people started paying attention to Si Quey again. … But I don’t want people to view the hospital in a negative light because there is so much to learn from every corpse,” he said, adding that Si Quey’s body was never a selling point but aims to be a source of learning forensic science.
“We treat the bodies like teachers, with respect.”
Prasit explained that the hospital holds a merit-making ceremony for all the corpses every year.
Though the Si Quey-was-framed theory has been around a long time, attention to it skyrocketed last month after a lone voice on Twitter called for the removal of his body from the museum.
“In this day and age, we all know that Si Quey did not kill and eat human’s innards but was framed by someone powerful. Yet Siriraj Museum still displays his corpse along with the label “cannibal,” @ChangeSiam tweeted last month.
“Even the dead don’t get justice,” he added.
ปัจจุบัน เค้ารู้กันหมดแล้วว่า ‘ซีอุย’ ไม่ได้ฆ่าและกินเครื่องในมนุษย์ ซึ่งเกิดจากการถูกใส่ร้าย
แต่พิพิธภัณฑ์ที่ศิริราชก็ยังเอาศพของเขามาโชว์และยังตราหน้าว่าเป็น ‘มนุษย์กินคน’
แม้คนตาย ศพก็ยังไม่ได้รับความยุติธรรม pic.twitter.com/n2tDB9MbXL
— กล้าเปลี่ยน \7 (@ChangeSiam) May 12, 2019
The tweet quickly went viral, bringing forth keyboard detectives from all corners of the interwebs to roll out evidence they said proved the convicted killer’s innocence. It also breathed new life into a year-old Change.org petition seeking to “restore the dignity” of Si Quey by getting him out of that awful glass box.
Given the newfound attention to the case, the number of backers for the petition has leaped in recent weeks to more than 17,000.
Learn more about the Si Quey story and the skeptic’s take on it in our recent story.
So what do you think Cocofolks, do you think Si Quey should remain slumped and dripping in a museum, even if he might have been a scapegoat?
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