SA KAEO, June 13 — Many Cambodian workers in Thailand have already left for home while more than 10,000 others are preparing to return for fear of being arrested by the Thai authorities following persisting rumours that the Thai military is preparing to launch a massive crackdown on illegal migrants.
Thai border officials said many Cambodian workers had returned home by train and bus during the past few days out of concern that the Thai military is preparing to suppress illegal migrant workers in Thailand.
The Cambodian government has provided more than 20 military trucks and over 10 buses to pick up more than 10,000 Cambodian workers now stranded at the border checkpoint in the Cambodian border town of Poi Pet, opposite Aranyaprathet district.
Pol Lt Col Benjapol Rodsawat, deputy chief of Sa Kaeo immigration police, said local Thai officials had tried to explain to Cambodian workers that they should not be afraid if they work in Thailand legally, saying that the key border checkpoint in Aranyaprathet would never be closed.
Pravit Khiengpol, director-general of Thai Labour Ministry’s Employment Department, said that a number of Thai enterprises would suffer a shortage of workers following the returning home of the Cambodian workers.
Official statistics show that a total of 441,569 Cambodian workers have registered with the Employment Department.
Many of them have already left for home in response to the rumours.
