The National Human Rights Commission is investigating the alleged repatriation of 29 Hmong refugees from Phetchabun to Laos, following a complaint of human rights abuse. A group of 31 Hmong, who were living with a community of 6,500 Hmong from Laos in Ban Huay Nam Khao in Phetchabun's Khao Kho district, were arrested on November 29 for illegally entering the country. Authorities deported 29 of the group to Laos on December 5, while the other two individuals are being detained at a district police station pending trial.
Most of the deported Hmong were teenagers and 22 of them were women. Their relatives and parents have sought assistance from the national human rights body to help investigate their fate and whereabouts, said Pronoon Suwanpakdi, deputy secretary general of the human rights commission. The commission will question local authorities in Phetchabun to seek an explanation for why the Hmong were deported and on what legal grounds.
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