UNHCR protests Thailand's deportation of refugees
THE United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) protested Thailand's deportation of two registered refugees to China yesterday, saying they should not have been sent back to a country "where their lives can be put in danger".
It said the two individuals were in possession of a UN “protection letter”. They were waiting to go to Canada, having been accepted as refugees, at the time of their arrest.
“These people are recognised refugees, meaning they were interviewed and their claim of persecution was found to be legitimate,” Vivian Tan, regional spokeswoman for UNHCR, said. “They should not be sent back to a place where their lives can be put in danger.”
The refugee agency did not name the activists or their nationalities, but an official at an Immigration Detention Centre in Bangkok gave details of their case.
Jiang Yefei and Dong Guangping were arrested on October 28 following a request from China, said the official, who declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said the issue was being handled “in accordance with the law”.
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