Tuesday, 24 March 2009

Thai Government Wants To Repatriate 78 Rohinyas

Irrawaddy news, 23 March 2009

Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya asked the Burmese government on Sunday to help Thailand screen Rohingya migrants who have entered his country illegally.

In a one-hour meeting in Rangoon with Burmese Foreign Minister Nyan Win, Kasit asked for Bengali-speaking embassy staff to be sent to Thailand to help with the work.

The Thai government says it wants to repatriate 78 Rohingyas, held in detention after arriving by boat in southern Thailand. The Burmese government maintains the boat people came from Bangladesh, not Burma.
According to Chris Lewa, an expert on Rohingya issues, illegal migrants face up to five years imprisonment if sent back to Burma.

Lewa said many Rohingyas had been imprisoned in Arakan State under Burma’s Immigration Law 1947 Section 13(1). On Karen rebels along the border, Thai foreign minister said that Bangkok was ready to help facilitate talks with the Karen rebels to improve the situation along the Thai-Burmese border. Responding to Thai’s mediator role, David Taw, a senior member of the Karen National Union said that KNU will discuss with central executive committee members. He also said that he was not sure whether the Burmese regime would accept Thailand’s offer to facilitate the talks between KNU and the regime.
Piromya said that f there is peace in Burma it will be good for Thailand.

The Thai minister ended his two-day visit to Burma on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Burmese authorities are building a fence along the Bangladesh border and patrolling Burma’s territorial waters to deter Rohingyas from fleeing.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugee (UNHCR), Antonio Guterres, visited northern Arakan State earlier this month on a fact-finding mission.

The Thai government and the UNHCR in Thailand agreed to issue a “handbook” for officials to help them determine if any of the Rohingyas who arrive in the country are actually illegal migrants from Bangladesh.
Burmese Foreign Minister Nyan Win said at last month’s Asean summit in Thailand that the Burmese government maintains that the Rohingyas are “Bengalis” and not Burmese citizens.

Thousands have attempted to flee in open boats to Malaysia and Indonesia. Many are believed to have drowned at sea, while more than 1,000 are being held in Thailand as illegal immigrants.
Attempts to repatriate the Rohingyas are opposed by both Burma and Bangladesh, who can’t agree on their true nationality.

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