Thais to Reject Indochinese Immigrants

Thailand announced today it will send back all immigrants from Indochina because they are illegal immigrants, not refugees deserving special treatment.

The interior minister, Gen. Prachuab Suntrangkun, said the government’s new refugee policy is an internal matter and it will accept no foreign interference.

“The interior ministry is putting into action a ‘prevent and deter’ policy against all illegal immigrants, not only Vietnamese but from all countries,” Prachuab said.

The announcement indicated the expansion of a policy begun in mid-January in which navy and marine police patrol boats intercept Vietnamese refugee boats and force or tow them out of Thai waters.

Protests From U.S., U.N.

The policy has drawn protests from the United States and the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.

Last week, diplomatic sources said, the deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy, Joseph Winder, met with senior Thai officials to express concern about the Thai policy toward refugees.

Prachuab said, “I would like to emphasize that Thailand is carrying out measures to prevent illegal immigrants from entering this country, the same as the United States uses methods to prevent people from illegally entering that country.”

He said if the United States wants to resettle more refugees “we are ready to help send them the tens of thousands of refugees stuck in Thailand.”

Thailand has given refuge to more than 900,000 Indochinese refugees in the past 13 years, more than any other country in the region.