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Ad Hoc and Inadequate Thailand’S Treatment of Refugees and Asylum Seekers WATCH

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Ad Hoc and Inadequate Thailand’S Treatment of Refugees and Asylum Seekers WATCH HUMAN RIGHTS Ad Hoc and Inadequate Thailand’s Treatment of Refugees and Asylum Seekers WATCH Ad Hoc and Inadequate Thailand’s Treatment of Refugees and Asylum Seekers Copyright © 2012 Human Rights Watch All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America ISBN: 1-56432-931-3 Cover design by Rafael Jimenez Human Rights Watch is dedicated to protecting the human rights of people around the world. We stand with victims and activists to prevent discrimination, to uphold political freedom, to protect people from inhumane conduct in wartime, and to bring offenders to justice. We investigate and expose human rights violations and hold abusers accountable. We challenge governments and those who hold power to end abusive practices and respect international human rights law. We enlist the public and the international community to support the cause of human rights for all. Human Rights Watch is an international organization with staff in more than 40 countries, and offices in Amsterdam, Beirut, Berlin, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Goma, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Nairobi, New York, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo, Toronto, Tunis, Washington DC, and Zurich. For more information, please visit our website: http://www.hrw.org SEPTEMBER 2012 ISBN: 1-56432-931-3 Ad Hoc and Inadequate Thailand’s Treatment of Refugees and Asylum Seekers Acronyms ......................................................................................................................................... iii Burmese Border Displaced Persons: June 2012 .................................................................................. v Summary ........................................................................................................................................... 1 Key Recommendations..................................................................................................................... 10 To the Royal Thai Government ................................................................................................. 10 Methodology, Scope, and Terminology ............................................................................................ 11 I. Background .................................................................................................................................. 15 II. Refugees in Camps on the Thai-Burma Border .............................................................................. 18 Registration, Refugee Screening, and Headcounts ................................................................. 20 Cuts to Essential Services ...................................................................................................... 28 Health Care ...................................................................................................................... 30 Shelter materials .............................................................................................................. 31 Education ........................................................................................................................ 33 Rations ............................................................................................................................ 35 Arrest, Detention, and Abuse of Refugees outside the Camps .................................................. 37 Abuses by Camp Commanders and Security Officials .............................................................. 42 Camp Commander Abuses ............................................................................................... 43 Or Sor Abuses .................................................................................................................. 45 Forced Labor Imposed by Thai Authorities ....................................................................... 46 Abuses inside Camps ............................................................................................................ 48 Abuses by Refugee Leadership and Camp Security ........................................................... 51 Access to Justice for Refugees ................................................................................................. 53 Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Response Mechanisms .............................................. 57 Prospects for Repatriation ...................................................................................................... 59 III. Burmese Living Outside Camps .................................................................................................. 68 Refugee Claims among Burmese Living outside Camps .......................................................... 68 Refugees Who Have Left the Camps ........................................................................................ 72 Thai Policy toward Rohingya Boat Migrants ............................................................................. 75 Work Permits for Burmese Living outside Camps ..................................................................... 79 Burmese Urban Refugees ........................................................................................................ 83 IV. UN High Commissioner for Refugees ........................................................................................... 87 Refugee Status Determination Interviews for Non-Burmese Urban Asylum Seekers .................. 93 V. Arrests and Extortion of Refugees and Migrants .......................................................................... 99 Street Arrests ........................................................................................................................ 99 Raids by Immigration Officials and Police .............................................................................. 102 Workplace and Work Camp Raids ................................................................................... 102 June 15, 2011 Arrests outside the Bangkok Refugee Center .............................................. 103 Home Raids .................................................................................................................... 106 VI. Immigration Detention Centers ................................................................................................. 108 Mae Sot IDC .......................................................................................................................... 109 Suan Phlu IDC, Bangkok ....................................................................................................... 110 Nong Khai IDC ....................................................................................................................... 115 International Standards on Detention .................................................................................... 117 VII. Deportations ............................................................................................................................ 121 “Soft Deportations” .............................................................................................................. 121 Official Deportations ............................................................................................................ 125 December 2010 Burmese Refugee Influx and Forced Returns ................................................. 128 Mass Deportations ............................................................................................................... 134 Coerced “Voluntary” Self-Deportations of Non-Burmese Nationals ........................................ 135 Recommendations ......................................................................................................................... 137 To the Royal Thai Government ............................................................................................... 137 To Donor and Resettlement Governments .............................................................................. 140 To the UN High Commissioner for Refugees ........................................................................... 140 To the Burmese Government ................................................................................................. 141 Acknowledgements........................................................................................................................ 143 II Acronyms ABSDF All Burma Student Democratic Front BRC Bangkok Refugee Center DKBA Democratic Karen Buddhist Army ECHO European Community Humanitarian Office/ Directorate General for Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection HRW Human Rights Watch ICCPR International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights IDC Immigration Detention Center IDP Internally Displaced Person IRC International Rescue Committee ISOC Internal Security Operations Command KnED Karenni Education Department KNLA Karen National Liberation Army KNPP Karenni National Progressive Party KnRC Karenni Refugee Committee KNU Karen National Union KNWO Karenni National Women Organization KRC Karen Refugee Committee KRCEE Karen Refugee Committee Education Entity KWO Karen Women Organization NGO Nongovernmental Organization NV Nationality Verification Or Sor Territorial Volunteer Defense Corps PU-AMI Premiere Urgence Aide Medicale Internationale RSD Refugee status determination III RTA Royal Thai Army RTG Royal Thai Government SGBV Sexual and gender-based violence TBBC Thai-Burma Border Consortium UNHCR United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees ZOA The three letters, ZOA, are the abbreviation of the Dutch translation
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