As Thailand prepares to launch a new protection program for foreign asylum seekers (click here), rights groups and refugees are voicing concerns that many deserving individuals may be overlooked or too fearful of arrest and deportation to apply.
Starting Friday, undocumented foreigners who fear persecution in their home countries can apply to the Thai government for “protected persons” status. If approved, they will be granted temporary legal residence. However, Thailand has not signed the United Nations’ refugee convention and has historically treated asylum seekers as illegal immigrants, leaving them in constant fear of arrest and deportation.
The United Nations estimates there are around 5,000 asylum seekers living in Thailand, but rights groups believe the actual number is higher. While most avoid arrest, some are occasionally caught and forcibly returned to countries where they face persecution.
The new National Screening Mechanism (NSM), overseen by a committee led by the national police chief, will evaluate applicants who are “unable or unwilling” to return home due to a credible fear of persecution. The criteria include threats to life or freedom and risks of torture, forced disappearance, or severe human rights violations based on race, religion, nationality, social group membership, or political beliefs.
Rights groups appreciate the broad definition of persecution but criticize the narrow application criteria and vague grounds for claim rejection, which they argue could lead to abuse and put many refugees at risk.
A major concern is that the program automatically disqualifies legally recognized migrant workers from neighboring countries such as Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam. Asylum seekers often become migrant workers to earn a living or gain legal status since Thailand does not recognize refugees. However, migrant workers may need to return home to renew contracts or visas, posing a problem for those who fled persecution.
Additionally, the program’s rules allow the committee to reject applicants who pose a potential risk to “national security,” without clear elaboration. This ambiguous language raises fears that rejections could be used to appease other countries seeking to repatriate dissidents.
Past incidents have fueled mistrust among asylum seekers, deterring them from applying for protection. In 2015, Thailand deported over 100 Uyghurs to China, where they faced severe repression. More recently, political dissidents have been sent back to Cambodia and Vietnam, where they were arrested or disappeared.
Rights groups also worry about the treatment of those who do apply. There is a fear that applicants will be detained in immigration centers during the vetting process, which lacks a fixed timeline. While authorities claim applicants will be placed in “shelters” rather than detention centers, there is skepticism about these assurances.
Rejected applicants will face repatriation, which may be impossible for stateless individuals. The new government, which took office recently, has pledged to address past abuses of national security powers used to deport asylum seekers.
As Thailand implements this new program, the international community and human rights organizations will be closely monitoring its execution to ensure it provides genuine protection for those fleeing persecution.
Juliet Chowdhry, Trustee for the British Asian Christian Association, expressed serious concerns about the new National Screening Mechanism:
“Thousands of Pakistani Christians fear that registering with the National Screening Mechanism will make them traceable to Pakistani authorities.
“Previously, Thailand deported a Pakistani Christian working with the Pakistani government, who was then arrested and imprisoned in Pakistan.
“There is also a widespread fear that the process is a ploy to locate asylum seekers and detain them in Thailand’s brutal Immigration Detention Centres.
“We will be closely monitoring how the community is treated under this new system.”
