New verification system for refugees in Thailand

Thailand was chosen as the first site of the global roll-out, complementing plans to verify the bio-data of the camp population, according to a statement.
It said that each refugee's fingerprints and iris scan were collected and securely stored in UNHCR's online database, retrievable from anywhere in the world.
“Biometrics will help refugees in the future as it ensures that once they've been through the system and enrolled with their fingerprints and irises, we'll always know who they are,” said Sam Jefferies, UNHCR's Associate Biometrics Deployment Officer in Geneva. “If they lose their documentation, they can always come back to us.”
Between January and May this year, UNHCR and the Thai government verified and updated the records of nearly 110,000 registered and unregistered refugees from Myanmar with the help of UNHCR’s new biometrics identity management system (BIMS). Regular registration in the camps had been suspended 10 years ago, and the need to have updated information on family composition, births, deaths and marriages was growing increasingly urgent.
 “The situation in Myanmar is changing and refugees are finding their own solutions outside the camps," said Mireille Girard, UNHCR's Representative in Thailand, noting that small numbers have started to return home on their own. “By understanding their family and individual situation in the camps – including those of the most vulnerable refugees – we can further improve our assessment of their situation before and after any movements. This will also enable us to target assistance and monitor more accurately.”
The verification exercise along the Thailand-Myanmar border took 13 weeks. Over 75 UNHCR had to cross rivers and hundreds of kilometres of winding mountain roads.
At the end, the refugees received a smart card with their family's bio-data and photographs – securely encrypted and retrievable with UNHCR card readers even in remote places with no internet access.
John Smith, a refugee who works for the Karen Refugee Committee in Tham Hin camp in Ratchaburi, said, "This verification is very important for me and for others who are refugees. The card can be decisive for our life in the future. If we have a chance to go back [to Myanmar], it will be good evidence for us to show to UNHCR or the Thai government. I tell the others to keep their smart card in a safe place, with their most precious things.”