SINGAPORE — Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya recently announced that Thailand would facilitate resettlement in third countries for 158 Hmong refugees detained in Nong Khai province.
"They are regarded as political- asylum seekers, so they have the right to request resettlement in the United States and other countries," Kasit told reporters after his meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during his visit to the U.S. on April 23, 2008.
Kasit said Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the U.S. has so far expressed a willingness to absorb eligible political-asylum seekers for resettlement. He hoped that resettlement would help improve Thai-Lao relations, which have long been plagued by lingering suspicions of Thai exploitation.