Migrant workers facing deportation

Burmese migrant workers leaving their factory in Mae Sot

Almost 60,000 Burmese migrant workers in Thailand face deportation this week when their migrant registration cards expire on January 20.
The Irrawaddy reports worker’s rights groups are calling on the Thai Government to extend the worker’s registration cards for one more year. It quotes Andy Hall from the Migrant Justice Programme in Bangkok as saying, “Even if the government deports them, they will come back illegally because they need the money. The government should find a solution for them. It is quite dangerous if they are forced to work underground.”
59,228 migrant worker’s cards expire on January 20and many have not applied for nationality verification, which requires them to return to Burma, since the Burmese government has refused to send officials to Thailand to verify their people’s nationalities.
Nationality verification requires migrant workers to submit detailed biographical information to the Burmese military. And many fear for their safety as well as their families if they visit military government offices to apply for verification.
Both Cambodian and Lao have sent officials to Thailand in the past.
The Thai government has set a deadline of February 28 for migrants to complete the nationality verification process or be deported.

Source : http://www.shaneabrahams.com/2010/01/migrant-workers-facing-deportation/