Refugees International: Reports: Thailand Visual Mission: Hmong Refugees at Wat Tham Krabok

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Thailand Visual Mission: Hmong Refugees at Wat Tham Krabok

Refugees International has been advocating for the United States to resettle Hmong refugees in Thailand, many of whom have been living in Wat Tham Krabok in central Thailand. Late last year the U.S. announced a willingness to review this caseload, and processing of the refugees, in collaboration with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) began in February.

An RI team visited the Wat last week to assess progress with the resettlement program. The following is the account of their visit:

Hmong Refugees at Wat Tham Krabok

05/25/2004
Kids watching television:
IOM has provided television for children and families awaiting status determination examinations by U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials. DHS has completed the review of over 900 cases of the 3,334 awaiting processing, with a very high approval rate. DHS is completing 300 interviews per week. The waiting children’s favorite program is "Finding Nemo." The middle school age girls told RI staff that they looked forward to life in the US. Their life in Thailand had been very hard and they hoped for better lives for themselves and their families.