Asia Times: Booted out, Burmese workers likely to be back



	November 20, 1999	atimes.com

Southeast Asia

Booted out, Burmese workers likely to be back
By Prangtip Daorueng

BANGKOK - Thailand's crackdown on illegal migrant workers from Burma may be well under way, but those expelled will simply end up waiting in the border areas between the two neighboring countries until the fuss dies down, and then return.

Early this week, the Karen National Union (KNU), the largest ethnic rebel army fighting Rangoon, announced that it would offer accommodation in its territory for all Burmese nationals being deported by Thai officials. According to KNU leader Gen Bo Mya, who led a group of journalists to an area opposite Tak province in northern Thailand which the group has set up for workers, KNU's concern over the safety of expelled workers is high. He said Rangoon troops might punish them as many of them were Karens, and some had relatives fighting in KNU forces.

NGOs and human rights activists disagree with Thai authorities who say Burmese migrant workers are illegal workers. According to them, most are actually more refugees than migrants. The majority of them come from ethnic minority groups along the border, such as Karen, Shan and Lisu, who fled from repressive conditions in Burma.

On November 4, Thai authorities launched a major crackdown of illegal Burmese workers in northern provinces of the country. The government also claimed last year that it managed to deport about 300,000 illegal workers to provide places for unemployed Thais.

After the 1997 economic crisis, Thailand, like many Asian countries, started deporting foreign workers in order to cope with their domestic unemployment problems. South Korea, for example, hopes to push out over 230,000 by the end of 1999. Malaysia also expelled many Bangladeshis and Indians.

The deportation trend however belies the fact that the high number of migrant workers in Thailand was partly created by a previous policy of the government itself. In 1994, Thailand allowed Burmese workers to work legally in order to fill labor shortages in sectors like construction and fishery, jobs frequently considered dangerous and dirty by Thai workers.

Most of these Burmese are paid less than the officially mandated minimum wages. Most of them do not have health benefits or education facilities for their children.

According to the previous rules, Burmese workers were even allowed to use Thai names in applying for a job. This however has enabled Burmese authorities to refuse to take them back, claiming that their Thai names prove that they are not Burmese.

Statistics compiled by the Thai Labor and Social Welfare Ministry show that there were 90,911 foreign workers registered as of January 31 this year. These included 79,057 from Burma, 10,593 from Cambodia, and 1,261 from Laos. Unofficial estimates are much higher and the number of Burmese alone is believed to be one million.

The Thai government's previous measures to eject Burmese labor were denounced by many, as they failed to prevent the Burmese from returning. The long border proved difficult to patrol, and Thai employers sought ways to lower wage costs.

''The problem is that there are several companies that try to to break Thai labor law on minimum wages by using illegal migrant workers,'' says Somyot Pruksakasemsuk from the Center for Labor Information Service and Training.

''If the government doesn't solve this problem first, cracking down on the Burmese wouldn't help the unemployed Thais,'' Somyot stresses.

More than just filling demand for cheap labor, migrant workers have become an vital economic resource for Thai border communities. In Ranong province, where there are as many as 50,000 Burmese, of whom 40,000 are illegal, businessmen say they have come to depend on them economically.

According to them, the Burmese are not only employed cheaply for their manual labor but also act as salesman serving Burmese customers. The province also spent 1.6 million baht ($41,600) on migrant workers' health care last year.

''If there were no Burmese workers, the business in many provinces, especially Ranong, would be worse,'' says a businessman in a seminar on migrant workers here.

Critics add that Bangkok's deportation of Burmese workers is not purely for economic reasons but political ones as well, given bilateral tensions after the October 1 seizure by five armed Burmese dissidents of the Burmese embassy in the Thai capital.

''Is that what the Thai government tries to do to respond to the Burmese government' s recent measures on Thailand?'' Somyot asks. ''The government had ignored the fact that there have been a huge number of Burmese workers in Thailand for a long time, and suddenly it starts this policy. The question is 'Why now?' ''

Rangoon accused Bangkok of using inappropriate measures in solving the incident, which ended with Thai officials escorting the Burmese student hostage-takers to the border. Burma closed the border, canceled concessions to Thai fishermen, and refused to cooperate with Thai authorities in the deportation of Burmese migrant workers to Burma, threatening to shoot those being pushed back into Burmese territory.

In a recent seminar on Burmese refugees, senator and ex-military Charan Kullavanijaya called the current repatriation of Burmese workers ''a joke'', as many of them would be able to return to Thailand later.

He also warned against Thailand being condemned by the international community if Burmese troops indeed shoot those who are sent back. ''They will accuse us of pushing these people to their deaths,'' he said.

The only way to solve the problem and make it benefit Thai workers is to legalize migrant workers, says Somyot.

He points out that if foreign workers in Thailand have the same rights and pay as Thai workers, companies would hire Thai workers instead of trying to cut costs by hiring cheaper foreign workers. ''Foreign workers in Thailand should have the right to organize a union and negotiate too,'' he says. ''This would help in solving human rights problems for migrant workers as well as unemployment problems for the Thais. We can take a look at Hong Kong's law, which allows a union for migrant workers. Now, there are many Thai domestic helpers there joining a union.''

''Thinking about Thailand as an export country for labor, we wouldn't be pleased if a country like Saudi Arabia didn't treat us well, or if Singapore decided to deport our workers. We can imagine the same feelings among the Burmese workers here,'' he says.

Thailand has not ratifed the United Nations' 1990 Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families. Only nine countries have ratified it, while 20 are needed for it to enter into force.

(Inter Press Service)

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