CNI News
15 Oct 2022
Authorities in Thailand have stepped up arrests of undocumented migrant workers recently and most of the arrestees were from Myanmar, labour activists told the CNI.
Authorities have rounded up undocumented migrant workers in the entire kingdom as an operation and the number of arrestees is likely to increase over time, labour activists told the CNI.
Ko Thar Gyi, a labour activist for Myanmar workers in Thailand, told the CNI, “Authorities have stepped up arrests of migrant workers for four or five days. They rounded up a large number of undocumented migrant workers in Tak Province. Some Myanmar workers have required documents but the documents have expired. They were also arrested. Those who have been detained will be repatriated to their countries. Political situation is Thailand is complicated and more arrests are likely in the future. They usually arrest undocumented migrant workers at the end of a year.”
Pink cards issued by Thailand.
At the same time, Thai authorities are also issuing pink cards (temporary work permits) to illegal workers.
Myanmar migrant workers who have not received pink cards should take heed of the situation, labour activist U Min OO of the Foundation for Education and Development told the CNI.
He said, “There are laws and rules issued by the Ministry of Labour of Thailand. First, an illegal migrant can be detained and sentenced to prison terms under the immigration law. After serving prison terms, they will be repatriated to their countries. Another factor is that they may be detained at home or at work. If they are detained at work, they may face another charge for illegally working. Such workers will be banned from entering Thailand for two years after serving the prison terms. Again, there are jobs which migrant workers are not allowed to take up. If they take up such jobs, there will be another charge. So, such workers may face three charges of illegally entering Thailand, working without permission and taking up jobs which migrant workers are not permitted.”
U Min Oo pointed out that it is beneficial for Myanmar migrant workers to understand the labour laws of Thailand.
Undocumented Myanmar migrant workers detained in Thailand.
As authorities have stepped up arrests of undocumented migrant workers, those who want to work in Thailand should not come to Thailand at the moment, labour activist U Ba Yee of the Migrant Workers Rights Network told the CNI.
He said, “It is dangerous for migrant workers to come to work in Thailand at the moment. If authorities stop issuing pink cards, they will face problems and won’t get jobs. They cannot apply for pink cards. Those who apply for pink cards through agents before entering Thailand may be able to work in Thailand. So, I would like to urge them not to come to Thailand at the moment.”
There are millions of Myanmar migrant workers in Thailand including undocumented workers. About 400,000 have received pink cards.
