Formerly stateless student gets US visa to compete in science project fair
A formerly stateless student from Chiang Rai has finally been granted a visa and can now travel to the US this week to take part in a science project competition.
The Embassy of the United States in Bangkok on Monday granted a visa for 18-year-old Nampeung Panya, after she had recently received Thai citizenship.
The timely development permits her to represent Thailand in the contest at the “Intel International Science and Engineering Fair” in the Midwestern state of Minnesota this Wednesday.
Nampeung nearly missed out on a chance to compete in the academic fair, as she had twice previously applied for a US visa, but had been turned down by the US authorities on both occasions because of her statelessness.
However, after her story was widely publicised, the Provincial Administration Department in a special case recently granted her Thai citizenship.
She sets off to the US on Tuesday.
