CNI News
4 November 2024
As there has been a decrease in the number of Thai young people who can work, the Thai government might begin thinking about the plan that will grant citizenship to migrants, those who carry out the issues of migrant workers in Thailand told CNI News.
The plan that would grant citizenship to 500,000 foreigners was very good, they said.
The cabinet meeting held on 29th October decided to carry out the plan, said spokesperson of the Thai government. The detailed process that will recognize the citizenship reportedly will be stated in a few months.
" The plan hasn't been started now. They have intended it and it was discussed at the cabinet meeting because there has been a decrease in the number of Thai young people in Thailand. There were ten year long baht (permit to stay in Thailand for 10 years) in the past. There is a policy that grants citizenship to stateless people. Children of migrant workers or migrant people who have been staying during the time designated - because they are at the age that can work, they should be granted citizenship, which were proposed at the cabinet meeting." said U Min Oo, in charge of labor affairs from the Foundation for Education and Development to CNI News.
While seeing migrant workers
The people who will be recognized as citizenship contain about 120,000 migrants who have been staying from 1984 to 1999 and 215,000 migrants, from 2000 to 2011 as well as 29,000 ethnic children who were born and brought in Thailand and about 113,000 children who were born in Thailand from those who are undocumented to stay in Thailand.
The Thai government decided to grant citizenship to over 480,000 migrants.
Granting citizenship to nearly 500,000 migrants could have partly resolved the goods selling problem between Myanmar citizens and Thai people, U Aung Kyaw from the Labor Right Foundation (LRF) told CNI News.
While seeing migrant workers
" There is not anything reformed in the management law relating to foreigners. There will be jobs which foreigners have no right to do. But those who are recognized as citizenship will have right to do any jobs." he said.
The nearly 500,000 migrants have lived for a long time and they have firm documents. So, they should be granted citizenship and they have been allowed to move freely within the country. Moreover, as their addresses and information can be recorder correctly and it could be beneficial to Thailand, said spokesperson of the Thai government.
Although the Thai government is thinking about facilitating the implementation of the plan, it could take about 44 years to finish the implementation the process of granting citizenship to the nearly 500,000 migrants.
