UN refugee agency calls on Thailand not to forcibly return Myanmar nationals
28 December 2010 – The United Nations refugee agency today urged Thailand not to forcibly return a group of some 166 Myanmar nationals who fled their country amid renewed fighting and are currently seeking temporary protection from the Royal Government.
On 25 December, the Thai authorities asked the group from Myanmar to return to their villages from the Wa Lay temporary site, located at the Pob Phra District in Tak Province, according to a news release issued by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
The group, which includes 50 women and over 70 children, told UNHCR that they were not ready to return because of security concerns. Many of them had already fled their villages more than once since early November after fighting erupted.
UNHCR urged the Thai Government to adhere to the internationally accepted principle of non-refoulement, which prohibits returns to a situation of danger.
