Thailand 'gets tough' with Hmong

[Coventina]

Source: BBC

For the past four years, thousands of ethnic Hmong, who have fled from their homes in the mountains of northern Laos, have been living a precarious existence in the Thai province of Phetchabun.

After initially trying to survive in the forest, they were moved by the Thai military into a camp, to which access is strictly controlled.

Almost all outside agencies are banned from entry.

Repeated requests by the UN refugee agency to be allowed to screen them and assess their claims that they face persecution or death if sent back to Laos have been refused by the Thai authorities.

Every now and again groups have been forcibly repatriated to Laos; the rest remain trapped, living in constant fear.



Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8062058.stm

[MineralMan]

1. If I can judge, based on my Hmong neighbors,

they'd be welcome here in the Twin Cities. The Hmong community here is all set up to help new arrivals, and they are good citizens of the city.

There is some gang activity among the young male set, but not a lot, and they are culturally very strong in family support. My neighbors are friendly, helpful, and maintain their homes extremely well. I have good relations with all of them, including the teenagers.

I realize that not everyone sees it as I do, but of all the recent immigrant populations I've encountered, they are integrating the best, at least here in Minnesota.

[grantcart]

3. The problem is that the US is willing to accept maybe 5,000 a year but that if the Thais allow

first asylum they will soon have camps of 200,000.

[grantcart]

2. Thailand would be willing to give asylum to all Hmong and Rohingya

and anyone else for that matter if the US and other countries guaranteed to take 100% of the refugees.


The Thais have learned that once they allow screening asylum countries will chose those that have family ties or are good candidates for resettlement and they are left with the problem, a relatively poor country having to absorb refugees when there are not enough jobs for its own population or forceable repatriation.


The real culprits are not the Thais, who the article admits have given asylum to millions but the Government of Laos that continues to persecute High Land Laos, including the Hmong, who continute to resist the government.

[CreekDog]

4. So they consider ethnic cleaning to be "getting tough"

:wtf: :thumbsdown:

[OregonBlue]

5. There are two sides to this story. While the Hmong are still second class citizens in Laos, things

are getting better. There are a number of NGO's working in the hill areas setting up schools and clinics and rice growing cooperatives, etc. Most of the Hmong are no longer fighting the government but some still are. There is still the occasional bomb in the capitol and an occasional clash with government troops bu,t all in all, it is quieting down.

The government is sponsoring lots of development projects in Hmong areas. One of the biggest problems remains swidden (slash and burn) agriculture. The Hmong are a slash and burn farming society. This type of planting causes huge erosion problems, especially in Laos which is a very mountainous country, and they have been unwilling to give it up. Traditionally, they have lived in forest/jungle, clearing fields by fire. They plant their crops and hunt on surrounding land and move on when the soil is played out and the game is gone. the Lao government is trying to change that but it is a hard slog since it is so ingrained in the culture. The Hmong are also big cultivators of Poppy and the government has been cracking down on them for it (with lots of pressure from the U.S. and Europe). They are trying to introduce cash crops like asparagus and apricots and other pricey, sustainable crops.

I haven't personally visited the repatriated villages but have talked with a number of NGO people who are working in them. Seems things are getting better. One of the biggest problems is that the Hmong who are in Thailand don't get much information about what is really going on. They hear horror stories (many I believe manufactured) and are scared. The reality seems not to be as bad. While the Lao government is Communist by name, it is actually closer to a Socialist country and in general they do not seem as brutal as others like the Juntas of Burma.

They are getting a lot of support from ASEAN and are developing quickly and have become much less repressive than in the past.