Thursday, February 21, 2008

Thailand deports more than 100,000 Cambodian illegal workers through Poipet in 2007

Thai immigration officers deporting Cambodian workers from Thailand (Photo: Sovannara, Loh Santepheap)

Thursday, February 21, 2008
Koh Santepheap newspaper
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

Banteay Meanchey – Illegal Cambodian migrant workers including men, women, young and old, were deported back to Cambodia by the Poipet border gate on a daily basis, and there is not a single day that goes by without a single deportation. Each day, 300 to 500 of them are deported back. According to these illegal workers who were deported back, they all came from various provinces of Cambodia, and they entered Thailand by paying middlemen who led them in.

The workers said that the middlemen charged them between 2,000 to 3,000 Baths ($62 to $92) to take them to Thailand to look for work, and sometimes, after working in Thailand for a long period of time, when they want to return back to Cambodia, they have to pay middlemen to take them back across the border. These workers indicated that among the workers deported back, some of them were not arrested by the Thai authority, they surrender themselves to be arrested so they can return back home safely. Without using this tactics, their belongings and monies will all be confiscated from them.

Cambodian officials asked Cambodians who want to cross the border illegally to look for work to earn a living, to be careful not to fall into the traps of the middlemen when they arrive in Thailand. Furthermore, some workers who arrived back in Cambodia do not even have money to travel back home, even if they were promised a job by the middlemen who take them to Thailand.

Regarding these illegal migrant workers, The Cambodia Daily reported on 18 February that, Bun Hor, the cabinet chief of the Banteay Meanchey provincial office, reported last week that 105,709 Cambodians, including women and children, were deported back across the Poipet border gate, last year. Bun Hor was quoted as saying through the phone that: “These people went to work in Thailand illegally.” He added that among this group of deportees, 43,647 were women, and 8,676 were children. He believed that more than 15,000 Cambodians are still working illegally in Thailand in farming, as security guards, fishermen, cooks, market peddlers, construction workers and factory workers.

Bun Hor said that farm owners in Cambodia have a tough time providing jobs to these workers, therefore the workers went to work in farms in Thailand instead. Cambodian farms can provide only 1-2 months of work only per year, whereas in Thailand, there is work for them all yearlong.

Chatorun Chayakam, the first secretary of the Thai embassy in Cambodia, was quoted by The Cambodia Daily as saying that: “Even without any encouragement (from the Thai government), several Cambodians and Burmese cross to Thailand to look for work also. He said: “The Thai authority is doing all it can to prevent these people from entering Thailand illegally, and it arrested all these illegal workers and deported them back to Cambodia. We will not put them in jail, they will be deported back to Cambodia. They are only deported back, this is not a too serious issue, and this (daily deportation) work now becomes a routine.”

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

What about the job creation that this mother fucking-dictatorial regime proudly bragged about in the past and present day?

All of you high-ranking officials oughta go and fuck with your Yuon masters.

You fuckers!

Anonymous said...

It is sad to know Cambodians leaving their hometown and family going to work in either Thailand or Vietnam along the border or inside those countries. It is believed that the working condition is not good too. Most of them are male. It is even worse to see them being deported back, without earning wage and wasting money on the journey. One would say it should be the responsibility of the newly create Labour Ministry under current government. Another would stress that the Rural Development Ministry should improve the work relating to farming and feeding livestock.

Anonymous said...

YOUN VIETNAME WILL COME TO CREAT JOB FOR CAMBODIAN, YOU WILL WORK AS YOUN COOLIE ONN YOUR OWN LAND THAT GIVE FRE TO YOUN FROM CONFISCATED FROM YOU!

MAY AH HUN XEN CHILDREN AND GRAND CHILDREN WILL FACE WHAT HE IS DOING TO PEOPLE SOMEDAY !

Anonymous said...

human abuse by thailand! people just want to make money only.

Anonymous said...

Sad, sad and sad indeed. My sympathy go with people who cross the birder illegally in search of work in neighboring countries.

There are many NGO in Cambodia who are providing extension services in agricultures and other trade.

Please stop wandering around and risk being caught and deported back.

Please stop trust the middlemen as they only worry about their money and not your safety without having to work and sweat.

Anonymous said...

From now on the benchmark on AH HUN SEN Vietcong slave government economic progress will be measured how many dirt poor Cambodian people being deported from Thailame!

"If 105,709 Cambodians, including women and children, were deported back across the Poipet border gate, last year" That mean 105,709 dirt poor Cambodian people were out of job became homeless and hungry and so in this case AH HUN SEN Vietcong slave government has failed Cambodian population big time for not creating or subsidizing jobs and creating or subsidizing affordable housing!

AH HUN SEN Vietcong slave government fails Cambodia population now and this same fucken stupid government will fail Cambodian population again and again in the future!

These dirt poor Cambodian workers are too poor and too uneducated to understand the whole political tug of war practiced by the Thaicong government in deporting them like animal!

Shame on AH HUN SEN Vietcong slave government!

Anonymous said...

What a miserable life for Cambodian people nowasday!

You see, this is one token showing about the bullshit management of the rulling party of Cambodia. The CPP leaders keep boasting that they have made huge progress in every fields in Cambodia and so do all the medias. Almost all medias in Cambodia are politically biased to CPP. They are such as TVK, CNT, APSARA TV, BAYON TV, TV5,TV3,RAKSMEI KAMPUCHEA NEWSPAPER, KOH SANTEPHEAP NEWSPAPER....

Now, shame on you, CPP. Thailand sends ten thousands of Cambodia poeple back to Cambodia every year. This means that most Cambodian people are very poor and jobless.
The rich are the CPP'group only. They are rich from corruption and land grabbing.

I insist you, Cambodian people. Please vote this gang out of power in the July election and choose a good one for your beloved country. He is Mr. Sam Rainsy, who is capable to lead our country to prosperity and democracy.