Thailand upset with Angelina Jolie's refugee comments
Posted: 11 February 2009 1550 hrs

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BANGKOK : The Thai government on Wednesday chastised US actress Angelina Jolie and the United Nations refugee agency for commenting on boat people from Myanmar, whom the Thai army stands accused of abusing.

Jolie and her partner Brad Pitt visited a refugee camp on the Thai-Myanmar border last week, and the Hollywood actress urged the Thai government to respect the rights of the Rohingya, a Muslim ethnic group from Myanmar.

Thailand's military has recently been accused of detaining and beating hundreds of Rohingya who fled abuse and poverty in Myanmar, before towing them back out to sea in ill-equipped boats with little food and water.

"Angelina was not focused on the Rohingya, but was visiting Myanmar refugee camps," said Virasakdi Futrakul, permanent secretary of the Thai foreign ministry.

"It was a coincidence that the Rohingya was a hot news issue at the time, therefore we must warn (UN refugee agency) UNHCR that they should not comment on this issue because they have no mandate on this issue."

Virasakdi also said that the UNHCR should not have brought Jolie, its goodwill ambassador, to one of the nine refugee camps stringing the Thai-Myanmar border which are run by Thailand's interior ministry.

"The Thai government will issue a reprimand letter to UNHCR asking why it allowed Angelina Jolie to visit the refugee camps," Virasakdi told reporters.

Kitty McKinsey, UNHCR spokeswoman in Bangkok, told AFP that both Jolie and Pitt had camp passes issued by the Ministry of Interior, and said the visit was arranged with the cooperation of the foreign ministry.

While touring the northern Ban Mai Nai Soi camp home to 18,000 refugees from Myanmar, Jolie said she hoped Thailand would be "just as generous to the Rohingya refugees who are now arriving on their shores."

Hundreds of Rohingya have been found adrift at sea off the coasts of India and Indonesia in the last few months, with many of the migrants giving similar accounts of mistreatment and abandonment at the hands of the Thais.

Thailand has denied the claims of cruelty, but has taken a harsh stance toward the boat people. They insist the Rohingya are economic migrants and say they will not be offered any refuge in the kingdom.

"We have the right to arrest them ... we will not set up holding centres for the Rohingya but will put them in prisons," said Virasakdi.

- AFP /ls