BORDER CONTROVERSY: UN agency probes flight of Muslims Published on September 06, 2005 Interviews of Thai refugees standard practice, official says, as Thai and Malaysian diplomats enter the fray The office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees says its officers will interview 131 Thai Muslims currently being sheltered in northern Malaysia. The move comes amid efforts by the Thai government to prevent last weeks cross-border dash by the group from being politicised and internationalised. We are coordinating to make sure the incident will not become a political issue, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said yesterday. Volker Turk, the Malaysia-based representative of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, said in a statement that the agencys officers would be sent to Kelantan this week to meet with the Thais in cooperation with local authorities. It is standard practice for the UNHCR to have access to, and to interview, any group of people who claim refuge in a particular country, he said. The incident has set the stage for a possible row between the two countries, although diplomatic contact has been intense. Foreign Minister Kantathi Suphamongkhon said he had been in direct contact with his Malaysian counterpart Syed Hamid Albar, and officials from the Thai consulate in Kota Baru had been dispatched to assess the situation. Thaksin has dismissed the flight of the Muslims to Malaysia as a dirty tactic by the insurgents, whom he accuses of trying to internationalise the southern violence. Syed Hamid Albar has urged the Thai government to ensure the safety of its Muslim population so that Malaysia is not burdened by a refugee problem. The Thai Muslims, including 43 children, were taken into custody on Wednesday by Malaysian police in the border state of Kelantan. They said they feared persecution by Thai security forces, who have been accused of targeting Muslims in their efforts to quell the insurgency in the deep South. We are working closely to find the facts about why the Thais fled to Malaysia, Kantathi said yesterday. Our initial information found that someone started a rumour which sparked fear among them and they fled. We dont know yet if it was because someone lured them or because of the [emergency] decree, but it is possible that someone lured them, he said. The emergency decree came into force in the three southernmost provinces in July. It allows authorities to detain suspects for up to 30 days without charge and to search and make arrests without warrants. It also gives authorities immunity from prosecution for actions in the course of their duty. A UN human rights committee and local and international rights groups have condemned the decree for its sweeping powers, while lawyers argue its powers are vaguely defined and allow for possible power abuses. Nik Aziz Nik Mat, spiritual leader of the Pan-Malaysia Islamic Party and Kelantans chief minister, warned last week that more unrest would follow unless Thailand addressed the grievances of its southern Muslims. Muslims have long complained of discrimination and of being made to feel they are not equal to other Thai citizens. Surin Pitsuwan, a member of the National Reconciliation Commission (NRC) and a former foreign minister, said the government must determine the reason why local Muslims felt unsafe in their homes. He suggested that the government invite religious leaders to help find the root cause of the people being forced to leave their homes. This is a test for Thai foreign policy and diplomacy, Surin said. The government should not prolong the problem by accusing third parties of manipulating the refugees. Nearly 900 people have been killed in the past 20 months in the southernmost provinces, in attacks that analysts and authorities say are planned by Islamic separatists, organised criminals and drug dealers. Associated Press, The Nation KUALA LUMPUR Post your comment to this story here
Mit der Flucht von 131 thailändischen Moslems aus den Unruhegebieten im Süden Thailands ins benachbarte Malaysia, die am Dienstag stattgefunden hatte, beschäftigt sich jetzt das UN-Hochkommissariat für Flüchtlingsfragen (UNHCR).

Damit ist genau das eingetreten, was die thailändische Regierung unter Ministerpräsident Thaksin Shinawatra vermeiden wollte: die Internationalisierung des Separatismusproblems im Süden des thailändischen Königreiches. Noch gestern hatte der Ministerpräsident gesagt: „Wir koordinieren (unsere Anstrengungen) um sicherzustellen, dass der Vorfall kein politisches Thema wird.“

Volker Turk, der Repräsentant des Hochkommissariats für Flüchtlingsfragen in Malaysia, erklärte, Mitarbeiter des Kommissariats würden in die Provinz Kelantan im Norden Malaysias entsandt, um die betroffenen Flüchtlinge aus Thailand zu interviewen.

Der Vorfall hatte bereits zu einem Austausch kontroverser Standpunkte zwischen den Regierungen der beiden beteiligten Länder geführt. Von malaysischer Seite war die Regierung Thailands aufgefordert worden, die Moslems im Süden so zu behandeln, dass die Bevölkerung Malaysias nicht durch Flüchtlingsprobleme belastet werde.

Thaksin Shinawatra hat die Flucht der 131 Thais muslimischen Glaubens nach Malaysia als „schmutzige Taktik“ verurteilt, die nur darauf abziele, die internationale Aufmerksamkeit auf das Problem zu ziehen. Die Thai-Moslems, unter ihnen 43 Kinder, befinden sich in Malaysia in einer Art Sicherungsverwahrung in der Nordprovinz Kelantan. Es werde befürchtet, thailändische Sicherheitskräfte könnten sie weiter verfolgen, um die Unruheherde im Süden Thailands zu ersticken.