Families of migrant workers employed in Thailand report to IMNA that they fear that Thailand’s commencement of the proposed mass deportations of unregistered migrant workers back to Burma, set to begin at the close of February 2010, will result in widespread unemployment and financial hardship within the country.
“If they will be deported back [ to Burma], it will take time to find work at the kinds of jobs that they are used to working at [in Thailand]. Here, they will not get the same amount of money that they got there [ in Thailand] even if they work hard like they do in Thailand”, a mother of an unregistered migrant worker explained to IMNA’s reporter.
This woman went on to explain that many Burmese migrant workers lack the agricultural skills needed to farm with their family members at home; instead, many possess technical skills that are virtually useless, as such jobs are scarce in Burma. Many migrant workers sent back to Burma will be forced to pay migrant brokers a second time, and seek work in countries like Malaysia, Singapore, and Taiwan, where these skills are more profitable.
She added that many families, including her own, are in debt to migrant worker brokers, who typically charge at least 10,000 baht to transport a single individual into Thailand. Without the income earned from a job outside of Burma, many families have little chance of freeing themselves from such debts. Ironically, many migrant workers in Mudon and Thanphyuzayart Townships refused to register for the temporary passports precisely because they wanted to shield their families from financial difficulties; according to this woman, reports surfaced in these two township of Burmese authorities using the personal information provided in temporary passport applications, filled out by workers in Thailand, to extort money from family members back in Burma.
A 40 year-old migrant broker from Chaungzone Township explained to IMNA, “Most of the migrant workers who refused to apply for temporary passports are the new migrant workers who have only recently traveled to Thailand. Many of these workers could not pay the 10,000 baht [for the temporary passports] because they had not even made the capital to pay back their migrant brokers.”
This man also explained that job scarcity inside Burma is complicated by the fact that many of the agricultural jobs that are available are seasonal, meaning that many recently deported migrant workers will be forced to wait out Burma’s dry summer season to find work, as farmers in many areas of the country do not cultivate summer season crops.
“Families who regularly received money every month from Thailand will face economic crises, and many accompanying problems [hunger, debt] if they do not get money every month,” he added.
