Thai immigration police have not received any instructions to repatriate to China 48 Uyghurs, who have been held in Thai detention centres for a decade, according to spokesman Pol Colonel Katatorn Kamthiang.
The group remains in immigration detention for allegedly entering Thailand without proper documentation, the spokesman said.
“We have treated them according to the immigration police’s rules and regulations. As of now, no order has been issued to repatriate them,” he stated.
The plight of the Uyghur detainees has drawn widespread attention once again, as international human rights organisations and activists call on Thai authorities to halt any planned transfer, warning that the group could face persecution if returned.
Police Commissioner Pol Gen Kitrat Phanphet stated last week that no repatriation orders have been issued. The National Security Council will ultimately decide on the matter, he added.
The Uyghurs fled China, which has been accused of severe human rights abuses against the ethnic group in the Xinjiang region for more than a decade. They live in constant fear of being sent back.
Meanwhile, the House Committee on Legal Affairs, Justice and Human Rights is set to discuss the matter on January 29.
Kamolsak Leewamoh, a Prachachat Party MP for Narathiwat and chairman of the committee, said the issue has attracted significant public attention, prompting his panel to investigate possible human rights violations.
He plans to invite relevant authorities, including the Immigration Police Bureau, the Foreign Ministry and the National Security Council, to provide explanations to the committee.
His deputy, Kannavee Suebsang of the Fair Party, expressed his confidence that Thailand and China are, in fact, in discussions about the possible transfer of the detainees to mark the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
In 2015, Thailand forcibly repatriated more than 100 Uyghurs to China, and their fate remains unknown, he said.
