More than 60 self-exiled members of a Chinese Christian church who were detained in Thailand after receiving UN refugee status will be deported by next week, probably to a third country, officials said.
Deputy national police chief Surachate Hakparn said representatives of Thailand’s Foreign Ministry and Immigration Bureau were holding talks with the UN Refugee Agency and the US Embassy to discuss the fate of the 63 members of the Shenzhen Holy Reformed Church who were taken to court in the coastal city of Pattaya last Friday.
“Within the next week, they will definitely be deported. What we don’t know is which country they will be deported to,” Surachate said.
The members of the church, also known as the Mayflower Church, were granted refugee status by the UN agency after their arrival in Thailand last year.
They say they faced unbearable harassment in China and are seeking asylum in the United States.
An Immigration Bureau official with knowledge of yesterday’s multi-agency discussions said the Thai authorities would “find a way” for the church members to be sent to a third country.
“The Immigration Bureau will continue to take care of them on humanitarian grounds in the meantime,” said the official. — AP
