Phuket imposes curfew on foreign labourers

[dirtydog]

PHUKET
Warm welcome for tourists doesn't extend to workers


Province imposes curfew on foreign labourers, tracks their cell phones, bans them from driving cars or motorbikes

Phuket may have acquired a global reputation for warmth and hospitality, but since late last year authorities there have imposed controls on migrant workers that are so stringent they may violate fundamental human rights.


Phuket provincial authorities now prohibit migrant workers from leaving their residence after 8pm, unless they are under the supervision of their employer.

They also keep tabs on their mobile phones and prohibit them from getting behind the wheel or driving a motorbike.

Deputy governor Worapot Ratthasima said yesterday the province had issued 10 such administrative regulations since last December 19.

They are meant to control the 32,070 migrant workers from Burma, Laos and Cambodia who have registered to work on the island since last year.

A labour shortage in Phuket has brought a flood of workers from neighbouring countries.

Another regulation prohibits employers from hiring migrant labourers who lack work permits.

Mobile-phone use is regulated to adhere to the province's security policies.

Employers were required to submit a list of their migrant workers who have mobiles, the registration numbers of the phones and the names of those who own the phones and SIM cards to the provincial authorities, Worapot said.

Phuket will soon hold a meeting for business operators, to ensure that they accurately understand the new rules controlling migrant workers, he said.

Employers will be informed that they are required to provide clean and hygienic accommodation for migrant workers, and the ratio of toilets to workers must meet Public Health Ministry rules.

Worapot warned that those who violated the new regulations would be punished under the Immigration Act of 1979.

Penalties range from a Bt500 fine to three years in jail.

Worapot said Phuket pioneered these regulations, which followed complaints from Thai residents who wanted controls on migrant workers using mobile phones, riding motorcycles and going out at night.

Eight upper-South provinces with a high number of migrant workers have followed Phuket's lead, including Chumphon, Ranong, Surat Thani and Prachuap Khiri Khan.

Migrant workers in Ranong are prohibited from leaving their residence between 10pm and 6am unless their employer gives permission or they face a health emergency, said Governor Kanchanapa Khiman.

Seven regulations for migrant workers have been in effect in the province since February, she said.

In Ranong, migrant workers are prohibited from gathering in groups of five or more - unless they are working - in order to prevent illegal activities, the governor said.

They also face controls on mobile-phone use, she said. The mobile-phone controls are meant to control human trafficking, she added, explaining that investigations found many members of trafficking gangs used mobiles to communicate with each other, and numerous arrests were made from phone records.

The regulations were imposed on migrant workers following discussions on security issues between upper-South provinces and the commander of Army Region 4.

They are also a response to complaints from employers, Kanchanapa said. Some had complained they could not understand when they were listening to their migrant workers speaking Burmese over the phone, she explained.

Most employers are satisfied now that the regulations are in effect, she said.

Despite the controls, migrant workers can still use mobile phones but only under certain conditions, she said, adding that the regulation was not a violation of their human rights, but rather a move to protect national security.

National Human Rights Commissioner Surasee Kosolnavin disagrees.

It is a basic human right to allow people to speak with each other, he said.

The commission will investigate any complaint filed, because the rational behind such regulations must be examined, he said.

Using national security as a justification is unconvincing, because Thailand is not at war, he said. Migrant workers are human.

Wasan Sathorn, director of the Labour Ministry's Alien Workers Registration Office, said Phuket's regulations controlling migrant workers had nothing to do with national labour regulations.

Provincial governors have the authority to issue regulations to solve problems dealing with migrant workers, Wasan said.
Many provinces prohibit migrant workers from using mobile phones, in order to protect national security and prevent them from engaging in criminal activity, he said.

The Nation

[Spin]

Some had complained they could not understand when they were listening to their migrant workers speaking Burmese over the phone

hot tip: Hire a Thai and you can listen to him ask his familt if they have eaten yet with no problem.

ratio of toilets to workers must meet Public Health Ministry rules.

which is what? one hole in the ground per arsehole?

[The_Dude]

What no local unions?

[dirtydog]

It does show how Thais feel about foreign nations though dont it, it weren't that long ago that white people here weren't allowed mobile phones unless they had a work permit.