Police and immigration officials have tightened up border crossings, in the Su-ngai Kolok district of Thailand’s southern border province of Narathiwat, after more than 300 Thai migrant workers in Malaysia slipped back into Thailand illegally.
344 migrant workers, most of whom worked in oil palm and rubber plantations or on fishing vessels in Malaysia, returned to the district yesterday when the border with Malaysia was reopened, but only 91 had registered in advance and, of these, only 48 had proper documents.
Informed police sources said that over 300 returnees did not have any formal documentation and slipped through the immigration checkpoint and health screening, adding that they were later detained temporarily and fined 800 baht each.
The sources said that these illegal arrivals might be blacklisted, which would make it impossible for them to return to work in Malaysia legally.
Maj-Gen Kriangkrai Srirak, deputy commander of the Fourth Army Region, today inspected the unmarked natural border crossings, after several illegal entries yesterday.
Authorities have now limited the daily entries to just 100.
