BANGKOK, 30 May 2011 – Social Development and Human Security Minister Issara Somchai is travelling to Vietnam in order to discuss solutions to human trafficking with related agencies after a number of Vietnamese surrogate mothers were rounded up in Thailand.
Speaking at a press briefing prior to his departure on Monday, the minister announced that his ministry on 13 May 2011 repatriated 10 Vietnamese women involved in surrogacy service to Hanoi, and they were accompanied home by officials from the Department of Social Development and Welfare and the Foundation for the Protection of Women.
Mr Issara said the ministry today also repatriated ten other Vietnamese citizens back to Hanoi. One of them is pregnant while four have already given birth to their children. He said five children are included in the deportation.
The minister stated that he would also join the trip to Hanoi with other senior officials of the ministry to meet with Vietnamese Public Security Minister Lê Hồng Anh and related units in a bid to seek directions to address the human trafficking issue.
In addition, the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security and Suvarnabhumi International Airport are cooperating in setting up a one-stop-service centre at the airport to help both Thai and foreign victims of human trafficking. The centre is expected to be officially launched in June 2011, and it will work around the clock once in operation.
