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Abstract
Using a Human Security approach, this study examines Rohyinga refugees in Thailand. The Myanmar government’s refusal to offer the Rohingya citizenship has rendered them effectively stateless, denied basic rights and protections. Myanmar’s 1982 Citizenship Law was created in the name of indigenous ethnicity to deny nationality to the Rohingya. Myanmar’s military has repressed and massacred Rohingya on several occasions, most notably in 2012 and 2017. Consequently, more than a million Rohingya have fled abroad, with a relatively small number going to Thailand. The purpose of this study is to examine how the Thai government treats the displaced Rohingya and to what extent that the Rohingya pose a security risk for Southern Thailand. After intensive field work and meeting with different stakeholders, this paper argues that Thailand is not a popular destination for Rohingyas but they have generally been brought to or through Thailand by human traffickers. Due to a lack of documents, Thai authorities have often sent Rohingya to detention centers or deported them. This study did not find any link between displaced Rohingya and Malay Muslim insurgents. However, there is no consistent policy from the Thai government to deal with the displaced Rohingya.
Keywords:
Notes
1 Md. Mahbubul Haque, “Rohingya Ethnic Muslim Minority and the 1982 Citizenship Law in Burma,” Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs, 37, no. 4 (2017): 454, https://doi.org/10.1080/13602004.2017.1399600
2 Audrey Gaughran, “Rohingya Fleeing Myanmar Face Difficulties in Thailand.” The Diplomat, September 29, 2017, https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2017/09/rohingya-fleeing-myanmar-face-difficulties-in-thailand/> (accessed November 23, 2019).
3 UNHCR, “Analysis of Gaps in Refugee Protection Capacity Thailand” (Bangkok, 2006), https://www.unhcr.org/en-my/protection/convention/457ed0412/analysis-gaps-refugee-protection-capacity-thailand.html (accessed July 29, 2019).
4 Equal Rights Trust and Institute of Human Rights and Peace Studies, Mahidol University, “Equal Only in Name: The Human Rights of the Stateless Rohingya in Thailand” (London, 2014), 7, https://www.equalrightstrust.org/ertdocumentbank/The%20Human%20Rights%20of%20Stateless%20Rohingya%20in%20Thailand%28small%29.pdf> (accessed June 5, 2019).
5 UNHCR, “Myanmar refugees return home from Thailand with UNHCR support” (Bangkok, 2018), :<https://www.unhcr.or.th/en> (accessed September 19, 2019).
6 The Myanmar Armed Forces, officially known as Tatmadaw, is the military organization of Myanmar. The Tatmadaw has dominated Burma's politics since the Japanese and British occupation of Burma until today. The armed forces are administered by the Ministry of Defense and are composed of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force. Auxiliary services include Myanmar Police Force, People Militia Units and Frontier Forces, locally known as Na Sa Kha.
7 Amnesty International, “Who are the Rohingya and why are they fleeing Myanmar?” (Amnesty International, London, 2017), https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2017/09/who-are-the-rohingya-and-why-are-they-fleeing-myanmar/> (accessed September 24,2019).
ALTEAN-Burma, Rohingya, asylum seekers and migrants from Burma: A human Security priority for ASEAN. (Bangkok: ALTSEAN-Burma, 2009).
8 UNHCR, “Myanmar refugees return home from Thailand with UNHCR support” (Bangkok, 2018), https://www.unhcr.or.th/en (accessed September 19, 2019).
9 Interviews with Haji Muhammad Ismail, President Rohingya Peace Network in Thailand, Rangsit, March 17, 2019 and Rohingya community leader Salim Ullah based in Mae Sot, Thailand, March 20, 2019.
10 Austin Bodett, “Will Southern Thailand Turn to Jihad?” The Diplomat, November 20, 2017, https://thediplomat.com/2017/11/will-southern-thailand-turn-to-jihad (accessed September 23, 2019).
11 Thomas M. Sanderson and Maxwell B. Markusen, “Myanmar and its Rohingya Muslim Insurgency” (Center for Strategic and International Studies, Washington, D.C., 2017), https://www.csis.org/analysis/myanmar-and-its-rohingya-muslim-insurgency (accessed March 21, 2020).
12 Bertil Lintner, “Mishandling the Rohingya Crisis May Open New Frontier for Terrorism” (Yale Global and the MacMillan Center, New Haven, 2017),< https://yaleglobal.yale.edu/content/mishandling-rohingya-crisis-may-open-new-frontier-terrorism> (accessed November 12, 2019).
13 Md Mahbubul Haque, “Rights of Non-citizens and Concern for Security: The Case of Rohingya in Burma and Bangladesh”(PhD dissertation, Mahidol University, 2014),316.
14 Interview with Shukkur Mahmud, Faruq Hossain, Rohingya refugee camps, Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, November 7, 2018 and Rohingya activist Mabud Miah, Bangkok, March 25, 2019.
15 Veronika Fajth, Özge Bilgili, Craig Loschmann and Melissa Siegel, “How do refugees affect social life in host communities? The case of Congolese refugees in Rwanda.” Comparative Migration Studies, CMS 7, no 33 (2019): 2, https://doi.org/10.1186/s40878-019-0139-1 (accessed November27, 2019).
16 Karen Jacobsen, “Factors Influencing the Policy Responses of Host Governments to Mass Refugee Influxes.” The International Migration Review, Vol. 30, No. 3(1996): 663, https://doi.org/10.1177/019791839603000301 (accessed October 2019).
17 Interview and informal discussions with anonymous refugee leaders, Rohingya refugee camps, Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, November 9, 2018.
18 Niklas Swanström, “Traditional and Non-Traditional Security Threats in Central Asia: Connecting the New and the Old.” China and Eurasia Forum Quarterly, 8, no. 2 (2010):35–36, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/262420563_Traditional_and_Non-Traditional_Security_Threats_in_Central_Asia_Connecting_the_New_and_the_Old/citation/download> (accessed September 17, 2019).
19 Md Mahbubul Haque, “Rights of Non-citizens and Concern for Security: The Case of Rohingya in Burma and Bangladesh”(PhD dissertation, Mahidol University, 2014), 316.
20 ibid.
21 Ken Booth, Theory of World Security, (Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2007), 157.
22 Barry Buzan and Lene Hansen, The Evolution of International Security Studies, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008), 13.
23 United Nations Development Programme, Human Development Report 1994, (New York: Oxford University Press, 1994), 23-24.
24 Ibid
25 Ibid
26 Shahrbanou Tadjbakhsh and Anuradha M. Chenoy, Human Security: Concepts and implications, (London: Routledge, 2006), 237.
27 Kunnawut Boonreak, “Newly-Arriving Rohingya: Integrating into Cross-Border Trade Networks in the Thai-Burma Borderland” in Border Twists and Burma Trajectories: Perceptions, Reforms and Adoptions, ed. Samak Kosem (Chiang Mai: Center for ASEAN Studies, Chiang Mai University, 2016), 261.
28 Interview with displaced Rohingya from Myanmar, Bangkok, March 18, 2019 and Mae Sot, March 22, 2019.
29 Scott Neuman, “Why No One Wants The Rohingyas.” NPR News, May 15, 2015, https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/05/15/407048785/why-no-one-wants-the-rohingyas(accessed June 12, 2019).
30 Md. Mahbubul Haque, “The Rohingya: From Stateless Persons to Victims of Genocide” (paper presented at International Conference on Rohingya Crisis in Bangladesh: Challenges and Sustainable Solutions, North South University, Dhaka, Bangladesh, July 27–28, 2019).
31 Supalak Ganjanakhundee, “Thailand’s refusal to recognise Rohingya as refugees leaves them in illegal limbo.” The Nation, March 04. 2018, https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1027635-thailand%e2%80%99s-refusal-to-recognise-rohingya-as-refugees-leaves-them-in-illegal-limbo/> (accessed November 27, 2019).
32 Interview with Rohingya community leaders, Mae Sot, March 22, 2019 and Nonthaburi province, March 24, 2019.
33 International Labor Rights Forum, “Comments Concerning the Ranking of Thailand by the United States Department of State in the 2019 Trafficking in Persons Report”(International Labor Right Forum
on behalf of the Thai Seafood Working Group, Washington, DC, 2019),1, https://laborrights.org/publications/comments-concerning-ranking-thailand-united-states-department-state-2019-trafficking> (accessed December 29, 2019).
34 Aria Bendix, “Dozens Found Guilty in Thailand's Largest Human Trafficking Trial.” The Atlantic, July 20, 2017, https://www.theatlantic.com/news/archive/2017/07/dozens-found-guilty-in-thailands-largest-human-trafficking-trial/534279/> (accessed October 26, 2019).
35 Kraisak Choonhavan and Steve Galster, “A solution to the Rohingya crisis,” The Nation, October 04, 2017. https://www.nationthailand.com/opinion/30328487 (accessed 21 September, 2019).
36 MOAS, “The Human Trafficking of Rohingya.” Human Trafficking, August 1, 2019. https://www.moas.eu/blog-human-trafficking-of-rohingya/ (accessed October 29, 2019).
37 Human Rights Watch, “Thailand: Investigate Departure of Rohingya Boat People” (Human Rights Watch, New York, 2011), https://www.hrw.org/news/2011/02/21/thailand-investigate-departure-rohingya-boat-people< (accessed November 8, 2019).
38 Jon Fernquest, “Rohingya boat people: Navy shot them Thai villagers say.” Bangkok Post, March 13,2013, https://www.bangkokpost.com/learning/advanced/340295/rohingya-boat-people-navy-shot-them-thai-villagers-say> (accessed November 10, 2019).
39 Ibid
40 Khaosod, “Prayuth: Rohingya Aid Groups Under Security.” Khaosod English, May 26, 2015, https://www.khaosodenglish.com/politics/2015/05/26/1432644757/ (accessed September 6, 2019).
41 Ibid
42 Arshad Mohammed, “U.S. urges Thai investigation into alleged trafficking.” Reuters, December 7, 2013, https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-thailand-rohinga-reaction-usa/u-s-urges-thai-investigation-into-alleged-trafficking-idUKBRE9B50OC20131206 (accessed August 23, 2019).
43 Interview with Rohingya community leaders, Mae Sot, March 21-22, 2019 and Nonthaburi province, March 24, 2019.
44 Assawin Pinitwong, “Thailand, Myanmar launch joint border patrol.” Bangkok Post, January 21, 2018, https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/1399590/thailand-myanmar-launch-joint-border-patrol> (accessed November 27, 2019).
45 Interview with Rohingya trafficked boy at Bengali mosque compound, officially called Darul Nurul Huda mosque, Mae Sot, March 22, 2019.
46 Interview with Rohingya community in Bangkok, March 19, 2019 and Mae Sot, March 22, 2019.
47 Supalak Ganjanakhundee, “Thailand’s Refusal to Recognise Rohingya as Refugees Leaves them in Illegal Limbo.” The Nation, March 04. 2018, https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1027635-thailand%e2%80%99s-refusal-to-recognise-rohingya-as-refugees-leaves-them-in-illegal-limbo/> (accessed November 27, 2019).
48 Benjamin Harkins, ed, “Thailand Migration Report 2019” (United Nations Thematic Working Group on Migration in Thailand, Bangkok), https://thailand.iom.int/thailand-migration-report-2019 (accessed October 30,2019).
49 Supalak Ganjanakhundee, “Thailand’s Refusal to Recognise Rohingya as Refugees Leaves Them in Illegal Limbo.” The Nation, March 04. 2018, https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1027635-thailand%e2%80%99s-refusal-to-recognise-rohingya-as-refugees-leaves-them-in-illegal-limbo/> (accessed November 27, 2019).
50 Thai Law Online.com, “Alien Working Act, B.E. 2551, Section 9.” February13,2008, https://thailawonline.com/en/thai-laws/laws-of-thailand/371-working-of-alien-actbe-2551-2008.html (accessed June 11,2019).
51 Amnesty International, “Thailand: Hard line on Refugees Leaves Thousands Vulnerable and at Risk” (Amnesty International, London, 2017), https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2017/09/thailand-hard-line-on-refugees-leaves-thousands-vulnerable-and-at-risk/(accessed November 21,2019).
52 Haji Ismail, President, Rohingya Peace Network in Thailand, e-mail to authors, July 21, 2019.
53 Interview with Rohingya community leaders in Bangkok , March 19, 2019 and Mae Sot, March 22, 2019
54 Supalak Ganjanakhundee, “Thailand’s Refusal to Recognize Rohingya as Refugees Leaves Them in Illegal Limbo.” The Nation, March 04. 2018. https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1027635-thailand%e2%80%99s-refusal-to-recognise-rohingya-as-refugees-leaves-them-in-illegal-limbo/> (accessed November 27, 2019).
55 Sunai Phasuk, “Thailand Offers Persecuted Rohingya Little Hope”(Human Rights Watch, New York, 2019), https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/07/31/thailand-offers-persecuted-rohingya-little-hope> (accessed November 21,2019).
56 Interviews and informal discussions with academics; Mike Hayes from Mahidol University, Jaran Maluleem
from Thammasat University, Bangkok, March 24, 2019, Kamrul Hasan, human rights activist in Bangkok, March 25, 2019, anonymous official from the INGO’s based in Bangkok, March 25, 2019, Romadon Panjor, Editor of the Deep South Watch, Pattani, July 11, 2019. There were altogether five interviewees.
57 Thailand is party to the following principal international human rights instruments: the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR); the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR); the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD); the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW); the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT); the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC); and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with disabilities (CRPD). Thailand is also a signatory of the non-binding United Nations Declaration of Human Rights and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ non-binding Declaration of Human Rights.
58 Md Mahbubu Haque, “The principle of non-refoulement and the failure to practice it in the ASEAN region” (paper presented at International Seminar on Human Rights in ASEAN; Challenges and Opportunities, Prince of Songkla University, Pattani, Thailand, August 15, 2017).
59 Pravit Rojanaphruk, “Navy to Push Rohingya Boat People out of Thai Waters as Response Debated.”Khaosod English, September 18, 2017, http://www.khaosodenglish.com/politics/2017/09/18/navy-push-rohingya-boat-people-thai-waters-response-debated/ (accessed October 11,2019).
60 Equal Rights Trust and Institute of Human Rights and Peace Studies, Mahidol University, “Equal Only in Name: The Human Rights of the Stateless Rohingya in Thailand” (London, 2014), 7, https://www.equalrightstrust.org/ertdocumentbank/The%20Human%20Rights%20of%20Stateless%20Rohingya%20in%20Thailand%28small%29.pdf> (accessed June 5, 2019).
61 Seth Mydans, “Thailand Begins Repatriation of Hmong to Laos.” The New York Time, December 27, 2009, https://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/28/world/asia/28hmong.html (accessed March 29,2020) .
62 Amy Sawitta Lefevre, and Yesim Dikmen, “Thai PM defends decision to send Uighurs back to China.” Reuters. July 9, 2015, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-thailand-uighurs-turkey/thai-pm-defends-decision-to-send-uighurs-back-to-china-idUSKCN0PJ18620150709> (accessed March 31, 2020).
63 Equal Rights Trust and Institute of Human Rights and Peace Studies, Mahidol University, “Equal Only in Name: The Human Rights of the Stateless Rohingya in Thailand” (London, 2014) 7, https://www.equalrightstrust.org/ertdocumentbank/The%20Human%20Rights%20of%20Stateless%20Rohingya%20in%20Thailand%28small%29.pdf> (accessed June 5, 2019).
64 Interview with Nakhon Ibrahim, Islamic school in Pattani, March 26 and July 11, 2019.
65 Interview with Srisompob Jitpiromsri, Former Director, CSCD in Prince of Songkla University, Pattani campus, March 27 and July 10, 2019.
66 Ibid
67 Adam Burke, Pauline Tweedie and Ora-orn Poocharoen, “The Contested Corners of Asia: Subnational Conflict and International Development Assistance: The Case of Southern Thailand” (Asia Foundation, San Fransisco, CA 2013),2, https://asiafoundation.org/resources/pdfs/SouthernThailandCaseStudyFullReport.pdf> (accessed August 11, 2019).
68 Interview with Adam Ramsey, working as a communication specialist in INGO and based in Pattani, March 27, 2019.
69 Adam Burke, Pauline Tweedie and Ora-orn Poocharoen, “The Contested Corners of Asia: Subnational Conflict and International Development Assistance: The Case of Southern Thailand” (Asia Foundation, San Fransisco, CA 2013),2, https://asiafoundation.org/resources/pdfs/SouthernThailandCaseStudyFullReport.pdf> (accessed August 11, 2019).
70 Interview with Roflee Weahama, Director of the College of Islam Studies in Prince of Songkla University, Pattani campus, Thailand, March 26, 2019.
71 Interview with Eakpant Pindavanija, Director of the Institute of Human Rights and Peace Studies, Mahidol University, Thailand, March 24, 2019.
72 Interview with Secretary General of the International Federation for Human Rights and Coordinator ALTSEAN-Burma, rights organization and based in Bangkok, March 16, 2019.
73 Interview with Eakpant Pindavanija, Director of the Institute of Human Rights and Peace Studies, Mahidol University, Thailand, March 24, 2019.
74 Interview with Rukchart Suwan, Chairman of Buddhists for Peace, a local southern Thailand NGO, Pattani, April 17, 2019.
75 Interview with Lamai Manakarn, Buddhist Women Network in Border Provinces, Pattani, April 18, 2019.
76 Interview with anonymous Rohingya human traffickers, Mae Sot, March 23, 2019 and Bangkok, March 25, 2019.
77 Interview with Secretary General of the International Federation for Human Rights and Coordinator ALTSEAN-Burma, rights organization and based in Bangkok, March 16, 2019.