Myanmar calls on Thailand to stop harassment of migrants
Myanmar police have presented six demands to their Thai counterparts, calling for a crackdown on corrupt and abusive Thai officials who prey on Myanmar workers in Thailand. The Myanmar officials accused Thai officials of demanding money from the Myanmar workers and illegally confiscating their documents. The confrontation came at a December 8 meeting in Tachileik, eastern Shan State, as representatives of both countries met to discuss Border Cooperation on Anti-trafficking in Persons. Deputy Police Captain Htein Win of Tachileik police said Thai officials had harassed document-holding Myanmar migrants along the road between Bangkok and Mae Sai, threatening them and demanding money. “According to the migrants, the threats and demands came from Thai border officials. We did not make a direct accusation, but asked them to investigate. We made a total of six demands, and they said they would respond at our next meeting,” he said.
