CNI News

1 June 2024

40 Thai senators signed and demanded to remove the Thai PM Srettha Thavison from office and if the Thai PM was removed from office, it might impact on migrant workers, those performing affairs of migrant workers, told CNI News.

Appointing the lawyer who had spent 6 months in prison for giving two million Baht as a bribery in 2008 as the Minister of the Prime Minister's Office in April was unethical, said the senators who demanded to remove the Thai PM, which was accepted to hear by the Thai constitutional court.

If a cabinet reshuffle was conducted or something was changed in the government, it could impact on migrant workers more or less, U Min Oo, In charge of Labor Affairs from the Foundation for Education and Development (FED) told CNI News.

While seeing Sretha and the Thai court sign

" If there is a change of government, there will be policy changes. There are departments relating to migrant workers under the Ministry of Labor. It's likely to prepare the laws on migrant worker employment management. Worse or better than the current situation depends on a newly appointed team. The current PM often talk about foreign affairs policy and minimum wages relating to migrant workers. If the Thai PM was removed from office, it would impact on migrant workers more or less." he said.

According to the Thai constitution, ministers of the PM's office need to be honorable people and if they are not honorable, they should not be appointed as the ministers. 

However, the current Thai PM appointed the lawyer without following the points of the constitution, which was decided by the constitutional court that will hear and inspect.

The Thai PM Srettha is carrying out the matters relating to raising minimum wages for migrant workers and social security.

Arresting undocumented migrant workers was very lower under the government led by Srettha than the previous PMs and some illegal people are being only arrested politically.

While seeing some migrant workers in Thailand

Moreover, under the current government, more and more foreign migrant workers have been able to get the jobs which they were not officially allowed to do, Ko Moe Lay, who is staying and working in Mae Sot, told CNI News.

" Arrests are very low in my eyes. Many Myanmar citizens are doing their own businesses in Thailand. For example Myanmar people are opening shops or stores that are not allowed by the Thai law. They are seen a lot in Mahachai,Thailand. There were a lot of arrests in the past. But under the government led by this PM, arrests are very few." he said.

Srettha was elected as PM three months after the general election held in May, 2023 and his tenure is just about one year.

The PM must submit the defense letter to the court within 15 days and if the court decided that he was guilty, he would have to resign, said in the Thai media.