Samenvatting

Since the end of the democracy in 1962, a military regime has ruled in Burma. The regime is suppressing the people of Burma and its ethnic minorities. As a result, thousands of people, mostly of ethnic minorities, flee to the border of Thailand or live in the jungle. But, once arrived in Thailand, life does not become easier.
This paper is about the rights of the Burmese refugees living in camps along the border of Thailand, what is Thailand's policy and what is the role of the United Nations in this issue. The refugee camps exist for over forty years; people live there for a very long time and are even born there. The Thai authorities do not give asylum to the refugees, they are not allowed to work or to leave the camps. The refugees are bound to the camps and the living conditions are far from optimal.
Nowadays, in a world of international collaboration there is a Convention relating to the status of Refugees. Thailand did not sign this Convention, which gives refugees in the first place no rights at all. The refugee camps are management by Thailand Burma Border Consortium (TBBC), which provides the refugees the basic needs.
UNHCR plays a role in the asylum procedures of the refugees and advocates with the Thai government to make sure that the Thai police are not sending back refugees.
Thailand has no legislation on the status of people fleeing Burma and entering Thailand. The word 'refugee' does not exist in Thai laws. They speak of 'people of concern'. However Thailand is obliged to the treaties it did signed and should at least honour some human rights of the Declaration of Human Rights.