ปิดศูนย์อพยพ..ฉลองประชาธิปไตยพม่า? 12/4/2011

Despite being an important refugee-receiving and transit country in the region, Thailand has no domestic legal framework that handles refugee issues according to international human rights conventions. The Thai state considers all asylum seekers and refugees as illegal according to its domestic law. These people could, therefore, be subject to arrest and long-term detention for illegally entering the country. It is TCR’s stance to advocate for the development of domestic legislation and mechanism on refugees, based on international refugee and human rights conventions.

Currently, TCR is in collaboration with Thailand’s National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and the National Law Reform Commission (NLRC) in drafting and proposing the country’s first Refugee Bill. This will also codify a mechanism for Thailand to set up an effective Refugee Status Determination (RSD) process to screen refugees. The new law would then offer protections and put an end to arbitrary arrest and detention of asylum seekers and refugees.

In order for the Bill to be tabled in the Parliament, we need to gather 10,000 from Thai nationals. Your support is vital. To be part of this historic effort, please visit our “Get Involved” page and select “Sign Petitions”.

Currently, TCR is collaborating with the NHRC and NLRC to revise the current Immigration Act, as well as to propose the country’s first Refugee Bill. Such efforts will provide Thailand with a domestic legal framework to handle cases of refugees and asylum seekers according to international standards.