Population
Migration
Illegal migrant workers rounded up – employers fined
The government’s Department of Employment has started rounding up illegal foreign workers following last year’s amnesty. Checks on nearly 50,000 foreign workers at establishments in the past month had led to the arrest of 1,162 illegal workers and the prosecution of 204 law-breaking employers. Keep reading ...
Migrant social security discussed
Southeast Asian migrant workers are no longer just emigrating to developed countries, increasingly they’re moving within the region. With cross-border labour migration increasing, the question for governments has been how to ensure their citizens enjoy social security benefits abroad. []In light of this, labour authorities from ...
Authorities redoubling efforts to legalise Lao workers in Thailand
All Lao workers who return home to register with the authorities will need to get work permits and passports from labour officials so they can legally work in Thailand. The Ministry of Labour and Social welfare recently ordered all its provincial departments to provide free ...
HRW to EU: End migrant abuse
Human Rights Watch (HRW) urged the European Union (EU) to renew efforts to eliminate forced labour and other abusive treatment within the Thai fishing industry, noting that a large number of workers were from Cambodia and Myanmar. Keep reading ...
Is ASEAN defence diplomacy key to resolving the humanitarian situation in Myanmar?
ASEAN has been criticised for its response to the Rohingya refugee crisis. The grouping’s institutional design and existing conventions restrict opportunities for robust action. Myanmar’s military (known as the ‘Tatmadaw’) is the key element to finding a durable solution to the crisis, yet most Western ...
More than 800 illegal migrants arrested
More than 800 illegal migrant workers, who failed to apply for a work permit by June 30, have been arrested. []Out of 1,600 workplaces, 150 of them were found to be employing illegal alien workers. There are currently 1.1 million legal migrant workers who make up ...
ASEAN nations must talk so that their labourers can walk
Migration within Southeast Asia is expected to increase as the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) continues to promote freer movement of skilled workers across the region. Better labour mobility will help create a highly integrated and cohesive ASEAN economy. But there are barriers to migration within ...
U.S. Imposes Visa Sanctions on Myanmar and Laos Over Their Refusal to Accept Deportees
The U.S. imposed visa sanctions on Myanmar and Laos Tuesday after the nations refused to take back immigrants Washington wants to deport. The two Southeast Asian nations join the running list of countries which have delayed or declined to accept nationals slated for expulsion from ...
Persuade Myanmar to take back Rohingyas
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday urged UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy Christine Schraner Burgener to persuade Myanmar to take back Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh. She made the request when the special envoy on Myanmar met her at her office. Keep reading ...
Thousands of illegal migrant workers deported from Thailand
Poipet city, Banteay Meanchey province – The sound of vehicles and crowds were deafening across this bustling border town near the Poipet International Border Checkpoint yesterday. As a truck loaded with 40 people came to a stop at a migrant worker holding centre in the city, ...