Arrest of undocumented Burmese citizens on Thai – Burma border reaches record levels

March 26, 2025

HURFOM: Since February 1, 2001 the date marking the military junta’s attempted coup, Burma has faced political and armed conflicts, economic crisis and unemployment hardships. On February 10^th, 2023, the military council enacted an unlawful and forced “public conscription law”, which has made a bad situation much worse.

In order to avoid the socio-economic problems and the conscription law, hundreds of thousands of young Burmese men have been fleeing abroad to Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan and Korea.

At the end of 2024, the junta blocked young men from going abroad and many young migrant workers are using irregular routes to go abroad, especially to Thailand.

The Thai authorities have tightened their security along the border to crack down the “call scam gangs” and hundreds of undocumented Burmese citizens who have tried to enter Thailand using irregular routes are being arrested on a daily basis.

According to data collected by HURFOM, in January, 2025, more than 300 undocumented Burmese citizens who made an irregular crossing at the border via Three Pagoda Pass – Kanchanaburi route were arrested by the Thai authority and in February, 346 undocumented Burmese citizens were arrested by the Thai Border Guard Force.

On March 11^th, 23 undocumented Burmese citizens including children were arrested by the Thai Police Force and on March 19^th, other 19 undocumented Burmese citizens were arrested.

“The Thai authorities are conducting more arrests these days. The junta is very strict on conscription and has blocked young men from going abroad. So going abroad via an irregular route is the last option. The brokers are making lots of money. They’re demanding more service fees but don’t take any responsibility if their clients are arrested,” said a source who knows the matter.

Most undocumented Burmese citizens used a land route from a hillside road nearby Three Pagoda Pass to enter Kanchanaburi, Thailand while some entered Thailand by boats from Sangkhlaburi (locally called Mon old village) on the Thai – Burma border.

“They believed what the brokers said and entered Thailand. More than 100 undocumented Burmese citizens enter Thailand every day via irregular routes,” said a driver from Mawlamyine – Three Pagoda Pass route.

The Thai government has been conducting a six-month special operation with three foci – i) to crack down on “call scam gangs”, ii) to stop human trafficking and iii) to end illegal border crossing.

The Thai authorities have already arrested more than 5,000 undocumented Burmese citizens within a week from February 18 to 24, 2025.

“Now, the Thai authorities are checking day and night. They’ve tightened security at the boat port in Sangkhalburi. I’m pregnant and I dare not go to hospital due to tightened security. If I can’t go to the Thai hospital, I have to return to Burma to give birth,” said an undocumented pregnant woman.

The brokers demand 15,000 to 25,000 Thai Baht as a service fee for an irregular entry into Thailand per client. Migrant workers activists are urging Burmese young men not to trust their work easily.

Thailand has around five million Burmese migrant workers and more than 400,000 of them are young men who fled from Burma during the era of the military junta, according to the activists working on this issue.

Written by Modinator · Filed Under Feature, News