The operation to send the 4,000 Lao Hmong back across the border into Laos began early Monday under tight security after more than two days of preparations by Thai authorities including a wide security perimeter to prevent outside access to the camp.

Over 5,000 Thai personnel and security had been sent to the camp in Phetchabun province 370 kilometres north of Bangkok, to process and deport the Lao Hmong who have lived in the camp over recent years.

Government defends deportation

Thai Government spokesman, Panitan Wattanayagorn, said the government’s decision had a sound legal basis. "Based on the immigration law of 1979, we consider these people illegal immigrants", Panitan said. "That’s why they have to be deported back. We do this in good faith, in compliance with human rights standards and we have to make sure these people will be repatriated back in a safe and sound condition."

During the Vietnam War the Lao Hmong fought alongside the US and allied forces against the Communist Pathet Lao. After the Communists took power in Laos in 1975, thousands fled largely to camps inside Thailand. Many from the camps were resettled in countries such as the United States, Canada, and Australia.

"No force"

International organizations such as the United Nations and the United States have protested the move by the Thai government. The US State Department accused Thai authorities of forcibly returning the Lao Hmong. The US urged the Thai authorities to suspend the operation, calling it a "serious violation of international humanitarian principles".

But Panitan denied deportation was being forced on the Lao Hmong: "They volunteered to go back, at least on Monday morning. They have told the officers in-charge that they volunteer to go back."

Panitan said the Lao authorities had promised those sent back would be granted an amnesty in Laos. He also said many of a group of 150 Lao Hmong refugees currently held at Nong Khai, the Thai border town with Laos, have been screened and would be eligible for asylum in a third country, largely expected to be the United States.

Human rights groups concerned

But US-based Human Rights Watch said the Thai government’s deportation of the Lao Hmong was in breach of international standards. Sunai Pasuk, the group’s representative in Thailand, said, "the deportation is carried out without proper screening. So there is no guarantee at all that Thailand is not sending people that deserve to be protected under international law back to Laos. In this regard this is a serious violation of international law and of human rights principles."

The UN refugee agency UNHCR blames human traffickers for the Lao Hmong’s plight, also adding that many would qualify for asylum or refugee status if properly screened.

Author: Ron Corben
Editor: Thomas Bärthlein