Thailand Detains Dozens Of Montagnard Christian Refugees
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
BANGKOK/HANOI (Worthy News) — More than 60 Montagnard Christian refugees from Vietnam — including men, women, children, and pregnant women — were detained in Thailand, adding to concerns among Christian asylum seekers, rights activists said Tuesday.
“Reports emerged that the Montagnard believers were involved in a memorial service that included prayer and worship and allegedly caused a disturbance,” said advocacy group International Christian Concern (ICC).
ICC workers said those detained on February 23 “faced a judge in the last few days.” Yet “most of them chose to stay in jail because they were unable to pay the fines or bail money imposed by Thai officials,” ICC said.
The incident illustrated “the tenuous and risky situation” of Vietnamese Christian refugees in Thailand seeking asylum face daily, according to ICC investigators.
There are more than 4,000 Vietnamese refugees in Thailand, most of them having fled Vietnam because “of persecution and harassment for their Christian or political beliefs,” ICC said.
“Most of these Christian refugees wait several years for refugee status and asylum in a safer country as they flee religious persecution in Vietnam,” the group added.
Thousands of Pakistani Christians are among another group of believers facing difficulties in Thailand, a country with strict immigration laws that do not recognize asylum seekers, according to Christian aid workers.
These families, some of whom have lived in Thailand for over a decade, endure “extreme hardship” while waiting to secure safe futures in welcoming countries, Christians said.
“Many face inadequate financial resources, lack of food, no employment opportunities, and limited medical support,” according to the British Asian Christian Association (BACA). Additionally, thousands of Christians have fled Myanmar, also known as Burma, amid an ongoing military crackdown there, Worthy News witnessed.
Thailand has come under international pressure to improve the plight of (Christian) refugees in the mainly Buddhist nation.
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