Paetongtarn says govt has no plan to send back Cambodian workers

PM Paetongtarn says Thailand has no plan to deport Cambodian workers, stressing national interest and respect for human rights amid border tensions.

Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra on Sunday confirmed that her government has no policy to deport Cambodian workers amid ongoing tensions and a border dispute between the two neighbouring countries.

Paetongtarn was responding to a statement by the Cambodian government, which announced it was ready to repatriate Cambodian workers currently employed in Thailand.

In a message posted on her Facebook and X (Twitter) pages, the Thai prime minister stated:

“Thailand is open to diversity. We welcome foreign workers and provide proper welfare for those who come to work lawfully. We always uphold the principles of human rights.”She added that her government had no intention of expelling foreign workers from any country.

“But if a country announces measures to recall its citizens and offers them jobs back home, it is the right of those workers to make their own decisions within the legal framework of that country,” she said.

Paetongtarn has recently faced criticism from some quarters for allegedly being too soft on Cambodia, following escalating tensions that led to a skirmish in Ubon Ratchathani on May 28. Critics linked her stance to the close ties between her father, former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, and former Cambodian leader Hun Sen.

However, on Sunday, Paetongtarn insisted that she prioritises the national interest.

“I reaffirm that I will not politicise bilateral relations. I also wish to state that any measures between the two countries must be based on national and public interest, which take precedence over my political interests,” she said.

(2025/06/15-00:00)