Thailand vows to change refugee policy and ‘follow international norms’ after criticism over Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun case
- Thailand’s draconian immigration policies have been under the spotlight over the past week, following the case of Rahaf, who fled Saudi Arabia
- Newly appointed head of immigration said refugees would no longer be returned home ‘involuntarily’
Thailand’s immigration chief has pledged a reversal of the country’s notoriously harsh treatment of refugees following the global furore around a young Saudi woman’s attempt to seek asylum.
Speaking on Wednesday, the newly appointed head of immigration, Surachate Hakparn, said refugees would no longer be returned home “involuntarily”.
This would be a major shift in the long-running policy in Thailand of refusing to recognise and shelter asylum seekers and frequently returning them to countries where they are in danger. Thailand is also not a signatory to the UN convention on refugees.
Surachate pledged that going forward, when it comes to asylum seekers, Thailand “will now follow international norms”.
Thailand’s draconian immigration policies have been under the global spotlight over the past week, following the case of 18-year-old Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun from Saudi Arabia, who fled her abusive family and attempted to seek asylum in Australia. She captured headlines across the world after she was intercepted during a stopover in Bangkok and immediately prepared for deportation back to Saudi Arabia by Thai immigration authorities.
It was only after Qunun barricaded herself in a Bangkok hotel room and began tweeting her plight to the world, drawing international publicity and support, that Thailand made the rare exception to release her into the care of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and be given asylum in Canada, arriving in Toronto on Sunday.