Thailand to Deport Rohingya Boat People
The latest group of Rohingya refugees who fled Burma by boat and illegally entered Thailand are to be deported. A Thai immigration official said the group will be repatriated “just as soon as we have found a way to do this humanely.” In recent weeks Thailand has been heavily criticized over the treatment of the Rohingya boat people. The Thai army and navy have been accused of human rights violations over their handling of the refugees who have fled Burma in smuggler’s boats en route to Malaysia. There have been allegations that some of the boat people were bound together and thrown into the sea whilst others were towed out of Thai territorial waters and cast adrift with no sail and little food, effectively being sent back out to sea to die. Thailand denies the accusations.
The Rohingya are an ethnic group of Muslims numbering around 1 million with the majority living in camps near the Burma-Bangladesh border. The Burmese junta doesn’t recognize the Rohingya who have no rights to citizenship in Burma although they historically occupied their own land before the Burmese invaded. Some Rohingyas see the perilous journey to Malaysia as a risk worth taking. The Rohingyas pay smugglers to take them by boat to Thailand and then overland to Malaysia in search of work and a better future. Many are intercepted in Thailand; almost 5,000 Rohingyas were detained in Thailand during 2007-08. Although the issue isn’t a new one, the recent hard-line stance by Thai authorities has made unwanted headlines. Thailand insists the boat people are being treated humanely and states that they are detaining illegal migrants before repatriating them. The Thai authorities have expressed fears that groups of Muslim Rohingyas could join the separatist Islamic insurgents who have been waging a campaign of terror in Thailand’s deep south.
It has been an uncomfortable time for new Thai prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva who insists no mistreatment of the boat people has taken place and he is helping the inquiry being held by the United Nations High Court of Refugees. However, at the moment it appears that Abhisit is not enjoying the full co-operation of the Thai army and navy and the issue is the first serious test of Abhisit’s leadership. Although Abhisit says he is willing to help the United Nations inquiry, he has been keen to point out that the root of the problem is Burma for forcing the Rohingyas out. For their part, the Burmese junta refuses to recognize the Rohingyas as an ethnic group living in Burma and says the boat people arriving in Thailand came from Bangladesh.
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