On 29 January 2009, at the Foreign Ministry, Mr. Kasit Piromya, Minister of Foreign Affairs met with Mr. Raymond Hall, Regional representative in Thailand and Regional Coordinator for South East Asia, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), to discuss issues relating to illegal migrants in the Andaman Sea and means of cooperation to address the problem. After the meeting, the Foreign Minister gave an interview to the press, gist as follows:
- The Foreign Minister said that discussion was held on the three levels of cooperation to resolve the Rohingya illegal migrants issue, i.e. between Thailand and the UNHCR; among the countries of origin, transit and destination in the region and the UNHCR; and among concerned countries in the region, the UNHCR and donor countries. Such co-operation would seek to find short and long term solutions to this issue which also relates to the problem of human trafficking.
- The Foreign Minister reiterated that Thailand, as a member of the United Nations, has extensive experiences in working with the UNHCR and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). One example which demonstrates successful outcome from such cooperation is the case of the Vietnamese boatpeople decades ago, for which the Comprehensive Plan of Action (CPA) had been drafted to resolve the problem.
- As for the case of Rohingya illegal migrants, the Thai side has been coordinating with the UNHCR and representatives from the concerned countries and the donor countries, both in Bangkok and Geneva. However, it must be admitted that funding is required in order to provide systematic assistance to the Rohingyas, in order to address the problem at source.
- On regional cooperation, the Foreign Minister informed Mr. Hall that Thailand has been coordinating with Myanmar, Bangladesh, India, Malaysia and Indonesia. Upon his instruction, Mr. Virasakdi Futrakul, Permanent Secretary for Foreign Affairs, last week held a meeting with Ambassadors from those countries to jointly find long term solutions to the problem. Moreover, Thailand is considering the possibility of raising this issue in regional fora such as ARF, ASEAN, BIMSTEC and Indian Ocean Regional Cooperation.
- The Foreign Minister reassured Mr. Hall that the Thai Government is conducting a transparent process to ascertain the facts around the media's allegations. As for the UNHCR’s request to have access to the group of Rohingyas now under custody in Thailand, the Foreign Minister said in principle the Thai side has no objections, but Thai authorities concerned, which would meet in the afternoon of the same day (January 29th), must first discuss practical details of the mode of operation.
In a separate interview given by Mr. Hall after the meeting, Mr. Hall said that the UNHCR can work with Thailand to resolve the Rohingya issue both in the context of Thailand and in the broader regional dimension, as well as in the area of origin. Mr. Hall said he considers the Thai Government’s response as positive after meeting today and he is aware that the Thai Government needs space on this issue. Furthermore, he is confident of the forthcoming cooperation from the Thai authorities.
Prime Minister at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Press Division, Department of Information Tel.(02) 643-5170
Fax. (02) 643-5169 E-mail : div0704@mfa.go.th End.