BKK Post, March 15, 1998. LABOUR

[burma@xxxxxxxxxx]

March 15, 1998. LABOUR

Ouster of Burmese 'impossible'
Sukhumbhand says measure won't work
Saritdet Marukatat, Onnucha Hutasingh

Deputy Foreign Minister Sukhumbhand Paribatra said that it was 
impossible to expel all Burmese workers as part of moves to safeguard 
jobs for Thai citizens.

M.R. Sukhumbhand told a meeting of labour experts that the short-term 
solution was to limit the Burmese to service jobs ignored by Thai 
labourers such as working on trawlers.

About one million foreign workers sell their labour in the country, 
including over 750,000-800,000 from Burma, most of whom have illegal 
status, according to Mahidol University's Institute of Population and 
Research, the seminar organiser.

The Labour and Social Welfare Ministry is launching a campaign to evict 
foreign migrant workers in order to make room for some two million Thais 
expected to lose jobs as a result of businesses collapsing from 
financial crisis.

The ministry has warned that it will not renew work permits for the 
migrant workers, which means their continued stay in the country 
thereafter would be illegal.

M.R. Sukhumbhand said the government needed better collaboration with 
Burma in repatriating them and would work closely with international 
agencies and non-governmental organisations to ensure their safety and 
transparency of the plan. But the permanent solution was to improve 
conditions in Burma so that the people stay in the country rather than 
come to Thailand to find better-paid jobs, he added.

The government would work harder on a constructive engagement policy 
with Burma to bring about better social and economic conditions, the 
deputy minister added.

M.R. Sukhumbhand said Thailand would renew efforts to push for the 
creation of a body in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to 
tackle labour migration which would be a major problem after the 
grouping launches a free trade area in 2003.

The fate of workers from Burma has become a concern for human rights 
advocates. Many are from ethnic groups fleeing human rights violations 
by Rangoon authorities.

Meanwhile, a Thammasat University lecturer called on the government to 
have a clearer and more transparent policy on the handling of the 
Burmese refugees problem.

Government policies which affect bilateral relations are often 
manipulated by self-interested leaders, putting Rangoon at an advantage 
when it comes to discussing problems, said Chulaporn Ueraksakul.

The academic felt the state agencies lacked unity in designing the 
national policies and failed to preserve the interest of the nation.

Wanchai Ruchanawong, an Attorney-General Office official, said 
complications in the refugee problem would continue to go unabated if 
the alien labour racket involving influential figures was not 
suppressed.

He said many witnesses in the alien labour cases had died at the hands 
of influential people before justice was served.

Rangoon must assist in a safe repatriation of Burmese alien workers, a 
vast number of whom had fled into Thailand as refugees, he said, adding 
that the issue has become a regional problem.

Somchai Homla-or, the Forum Asia secretary-general, criticised the 
government for trying to drive out the Burmese refugees whose 
contribution he said has strengthened the country's workforce. The 
planned expulsion ignored the humanitarian principle.

He also took to task the constructive engagement policy toward Burma, 
saying it has paved the way for Thai businessmen to exploit Burma's 
resources.

Khao Sod editor-in-chief Kiatchai Pongchanich said the government's 
international policy on Burma was under too much influence from 
neighbouring countries some of which follow authoritarian rules. 
Meanwhile, Thailand and its Asean member states will block attempts by 
western nations to impose trade barriers against countries dependent on 
illegal alien workers.

Trairong Suwannakhiri, the Labour and Social Welfare minister, said 
Asean will declare at the June meeting of International Labour 
Organisation in Switzerland that the use of cheap illegal alien labour 
is still necessary for economic development in Third World countries.

Mr Trairong said Asean, however, will ensure that the illegal workers 
are not taken advantage of and their basic rights not violated.

Mr Trairong was entrusted by Asean, which groups Brunei, Indonesia, 
Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Burma, 
to represent member states at the ILO meeting.

The minister, who attended a seminar on the repatriation of foreign 
workers at Chulalongkorn University yesterday, said foreign media 
reports that Thailand would be abusing human rights by driving 300,000 
Burmese refugees out of the country in six months' time was not true.

He said Thailand considers them illegal immigrants and not war refugees.

Sending illegal aliens home was a common practice by governments all 
over the world, he said.

Chidchai Wannasathit, the Immigration Police Bureau commissioner, said 
between 60,000-70,000 illegal alien workers had voluntarily returned 
home between January 1 and March 11.

The number should reach 100,000 by the Songkran festival in mid-April, 
Pol Lt Gen Chidchai said.

Prasobchai Yuwawet, the Employment Department deputy chief, quoted 
reports as saying that until March 6, 57,422 illegal workers were 
dismissed by their employers which helped create 16,404 new jobs for 
Thais.

The government plans to send home 300,000 illegal immigrants, most of 
them Burmese, by July.

The forced repatriation is meant to reduce the growing jobless rate at 
home. Academics and non-governmental organisations, however, criticise 
the policy as violating human rights as far as the safety of illegal 
Burmese immigrants in Burma was concerned.

Boonsak Kamhaengrittirong, the National Security Council 
secretary-general, said the policy would be implemented with flexibility 
and priority would be given to the safety of the workers. "We still want 
to join the global community with dignity and do not want to be 
denounced as inhumane," he said.

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