(March 15): The US announced visa restrictions on current and former Thai officials involved in the return of 40 Uyghurs to China last month, a setback for the Southeast Asian nation striving to strike a balance between its two largest trade partners. 

The visa curbs are part of a new policy aimed at combating China’s efforts to pressure governments to forcibly return Uyghurs and others to China, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement. Members of the Chinese minority group are subject to torture and enforced disappearances, and the new policy will apply to any government officials who deport them back to China, he said.

“In light of China’s long-standing acts of genocide and crimes against humanity committed against Uyghurs, we call on governments around the world not to forcibly return Uyghurs and other groups to China,” Rubio said.

The US didn’t identify the Thai officials who will face visa restrictions. It said certain family members of the targeted individuals may also be subject to the measures. 

The Thai government has received assurances from China concerning the safety of the Uyghurs, and will continue to follow up on the well-being of this group, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in response to the US action. Thailand has upheld a long tradition of humanitarianism, particularly in providing assistance to displaced persons from various countries for more than half a century and will continue to do so, it said. 

Thai officials earlier this month defended the Feb 27 deportation, saying it was the “best solution” to avoid a backlash from Beijing. Thailand — a long-standing treaty ally of the US — has sought to deepen ties with China, a key source of foreign investment and its largest trade partner.

“Thailand has always and will continue to value the long-standing and close treaty alliance with the US, based on mutual respect and shared strategic interests both at the bilateral and regional levels,” the Foreign Ministry said.

The US travel restrictions came a day after the European Parliament passed a resolution condemning the deportation and calling on Thailand to halt any further forced returns of refugees to countries where their lives are at risk. The lawmakers also urged Thailand to reform its controversial lese majeste law — which protects the royal family from criticism — and grant amnesty to parliamentarians and activists charged “under repressive laws”. 

The tough US and European Union (EU) stance poses a headache for Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, whose administration has been seeking ways to minimise the effects on its economy of an intensifying trade war. Bangkok is exploring imports of more US goods to cut a US$35 billion (RM155.58 billion) trade deficit with Washington and avoid potential reciprocal tariffs, while trying to wrap up a free-trade pact with the EU.

China has repeatedly been accused by the US and other nations of abuses against the Uyghurs, a Muslim group that lives in the northwestern Xinjiang region. Beijing has come under international pressure for subjecting them to forced labour in detention centres and transfer programmes that remove them from their homes in rural areas to work in factories in the cities. China has denied the accusations.

The group sent back to Xinjiang last month was the last of hundreds of Uyghurs who fled China in 2014 and were detained by Thailand’s then-military government. The administration returned 109 Uyghurs to China the following year and resettled some in Türkiye.

The latest deportation came after Paetongtarn’s trip to China last month where she met Chinese President Xi Jinping and pledged to deepen bilateral relations, including a joint crackdown on online scam operations impacting cross-border tourism. 

Uploaded by Tham Yek Lee