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Rescue workers arrange bags containing dead foetuses found at the morgue of a Buddhist temple in Bangkok. Sakchai Lalit/AP/Press Association Images
Thailand
Thai police find 2,000 foetuses in Bangkok temple
The ghastly discovery is believed to be the result of the country’s underground abortion trade.
POLICE IN THAILAND have uncovered the remains of more than 2,000 foetuses in a Buddhist temple in Bangkok, thought to be from illegal abortions carried out in the country.
The remains were found after temple workers reported a foul smell shortly after the temple’s furnace broke down. When police investigated, they came across the grim discovery.
Two temple workers and a woman who is suspected of collecting and disposing of foetuses from illegal abortion clinics have been arrested, the BBC reports.
About 4,000 suspected illegal abortion clinics in Bangkok have also been raided by police.
Colonel Sombat Milintajinda, the area commander of Bangkok Metropolitan Police, told the AFP news agency that some of the bodies had been hidden at the temple for over a year.
Speaking at the scene, Jurin Laksanavisit, the public health minister said “This reflects a problem in society”.
In Thailand, abortion is illegal unless a pregnancy is the result of rape, incest or puts a mother’s health at risk.
Foetuses found in Bangkok temple
Foetuses found in Bangkok temple
Foetuses found in Bangkok temple
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