26,000 Deported from Thailand / 6 months

[geovalin]

Nearly 26,000 undocumented Cambodian workers were deported by Thai authorities through border checkpoints, primarily Poipet and other secondary border crossings in Banteay Meanchey province, in the first six months of this year, an official said. Suon Bovor, the governor of Banteay Meanchey province, told Khmer Times the figures showed that 25,925 undocumented Cambodian migrant workers had been deported from Thailand in the first six months of this year and 358 of them had been imprisoned in Thailand for more than a month.

An average of about 140 undocumented Cambodian workers are deported from Thailand every day due to a lack of proper documents and visas or, in some cases, passports. Cheam Lamatin, the counselor in charge of migrant labor at the Cambodian embassy in Bangkok, told Khmer Times that this year, the embassy came to the aid of its citizens after Thai authorities caught two Thai fishing boats over the last month carrying 15 Cambodian laborers believed to be trafficking victims. Another five fishermen died on their vessels.

He said the rescued Cambodian fishermen have been staying in a rehabilitation center in Ranong province in southern Thailand until they are called to testify in court over charges laid by the Thai government against the company that owned the fishing boats. The Thai government accused the company of being involved in human trafficking. “Recently, their former company’s owners denied claims that they were involved in human trafficking as accused by the Thai government,” said Mr. Lamatin.

read more http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/27819/thousands-deported-from-thailand/

[xineohp]

If anything, this article says more about the Immigration service than it does about those who may use it. Borders that are porous, staff that are far from motivated or diligent together with a general lack of enthusiasm for the work.

[Merylhighground]

^ Spot on!

We have a neighbour who is an IO in Samut Prakan Immi office.

We saw her once out on a raid at Bang Phli market (more on the building site for the condo they were building at the time) where they seemed to have made quite a haul once they had them all lined up along the kerb on their haunches.

When she came to chat to the wife at our table, she bemoaned the fact that while they would all be taken back to Cambodia the following day, most would be back on the job by the following Monday and indeed so it seemed....She always said afterwards, such raids were nothing more than 'public shows of power'.