Watch Committee Raises Concerns on Fate of Hmong, Laotian Refugees in Thailand, Laos; Wat Tham Krabok Refugee Program Questioned

3/5/2004

From: Ms. Xoua Kue or Ms. Anna Jones, 202-543-1444, both of the Center for Public Policy Analysis and Wat Tham Krabok Watch Committee

WASHINGTON, March 5 -- In response to the recent return to the United States by a delegation headed by St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly, who visited Hmong refugees in Wat Tham Krabok, Thailand, the Wat Tham Krabok Watch Committee (WTKWC), the Center for Public Policy Analysis (CPPA) and the Lao Veterans of America (LVA) have raised serious concerns regarding potential problems, inadequacies, short-comings and failures of the Wat Tham Krabok refugee program and concerns about Mayor Kelly's trip and findings.

"The fate of the Hmong in Wat Tham Krabok is of grave concern. These Hmong refugees escaped the UNHCR camps in Northern Thailand in justified fear of forced reparation to the Lao People's Democratic Republic and its ethnic cleansing campaigns against them since this brutal communist regime came to power in 1975," stated Dr. Jane Hamilton-Merritt, consulting scholar to The Wat Tham Kra Bok Watch Committee (WTKWC), and author of Tragic Mountains: The Hmong, The Americans and the Secret Wars for Laos.

Dr. Hamilton-Merritt continued: "Inadequate screening procedures and personnel, corruption, and political and commercial 'deals' created the initial problems which left the Hmong no choice but to flee the UNHCR camps and to seek protection from the Thai temple. It is imperative that these same forces not be allowed to reemerge to participate in determining the fates of those who have suffered so long in Wat Tham Kra Bok."

Philip Smith, who serves as the Washington, D.C., coordinator for the Wat Tham Krabok Watch Committee (WTKWC) as well as the executive director for the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Public Policy Analysis (CPPA) raised the following concerns about Mayor Kelly's visit and findings and the current status of the refugee and asylum seeker program at Wat Tham Krabok -- and elsewhere in Thailand and Laos:

According to Smith:

"First, the devil, indeed, appears to once again be in the details of this refugee screening program at Wat Tham Krabok. We are very concerned that thousands of Hmong and other Laotians -- especially former veterans and their families who are at very high risk -- involuntarily fled the temple of Wat Tham Krabok during the various efforts over the years to close the temple by military force and repatriate the Hmong back to Laos. Many of these Hmong and Laotians who are outside the temple should also be included into the refugee program.

Second, significant opposition exists to any plan to re- establish a repatriation program to send Hmong and Laotians from Wat Tham Krabok, or those who escaped the temple who live in Thailand, back to the Pathet Lao regime. Congress should oppose any such effort.

Third, non-addict, Hmong and Laotian veterans and family members who have occasionally utilized herbal narcotics (opium as traditional medicine) for pain relief and serious illness should be given treatment and rehabilitation and not screened out. The percentage of elderly Hmong and Laotians -- and in some cases younger Hmong -- who may have this problem is roughly as high as 5 percent. After a successful and vigorous treatment program, they should be allowed to come to the United States.

Fourth, effort should be made to intervene in Laos, in the closed military zones, as recommended by Amnesty International, the United Nations Commission on Racial Discrimination and the U.S. Congress (H.Res. 402) to stop the killing of Hmong civilians and rebels and provided immediate access for them to the International Red Cross, United Nations and NGO humanitarian aid groups. They should also be included into the Wat Tham Krabok program -- including the hundreds recently captured and who surrendered to Pathet Lao authorities in recent weeks. It is estimated that 8,000-9,000 Hmong and Laotian survivors currently reside in the closed military zones and opposition pockets in Laos.

Finally, we have several other key suggestions and concerns regarding the screening process and the refugee and asylum seeker situation facing Hmong and Laotians at Wat Tham Krabok, the Kingdom of Thailand and Laos that we believe are critical to address."

As a former U.S. Congressional legislative assistant Smith helped to organize and lead several U.S. Congressional Fact Finding Missions to Wat Tham Krabok over the course of more than a decade. In 1994-1995, he helped to facilitate a major U.S. Congressional research mission to Wat Tham Krabok and co-authored an extensive report to the U.S. Congress and the International Relations Committee with former Rep. Steve Gunderson (R-Wis.), the Center for Public Policy Analysis and the Lao Veterans of America (LVA) regarding the crisis at the temple and the Hmong refugee camps in Thailand. He has repeatedly visited Wat Tham Krabok on research missions, in cooperation with Members of Congress, especially during various efforts to close the camp by military force. Smith also currently serves as the Washington, D.C., Director for the Lao Veterans of America, Inc. (LVA), the nation's largest Hmong and Laotian veterans organization.

This press release is jointly issued by the Center for Public Policy Analysis and the Wat Tham Krabok Watch Committee