Thailand confident Myanmar will release Thais before its president's visit
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Deputy Prime Minister Gen Yutthasak Sasiprapha expressed confidence Monday that the 49 Thais rounded up by the Myanmar authorities on encroachment charges would be released before the official visit of Myanmar's President Gen Thein Sein to Bangkok on July
Yutthasak said the 41 Thai men and 8 Thai women were arrested for allegedly encroaching on the forest inside Myanmar opposite Ranong. They were detained inside eight houses.
Yutthasak said the commander of the 25th Infantry Regiment Taskforce, who is the Thai chairman of the Thai-Myanmar Joint Border Committee on the Ranong side, is coordinating with Myanmar for the release of the Thais.
The Thai JBC chairman was assured that the Thais, who were deceived into buying cheap land on the Myanmar side, would be released.
Yutthasak said about 200 Thais were conned by some influential people into working on palm and rubber plantations.
He added that some influential groups had convinced people from Chumphon, Surat Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Krabi and Ranong to work in Myanmar or to buy land and settle in Myanmar seven years ago.
Yutthasak said some Thais also planted marijuana to sell on the Myanmar side and this group of Thais would be charged in court and would have face the legal action against them before the Foreign Ministry could seek their repatriation.
