<p>Thailand's Ministry of Labor warned Thai employers not to bring any migrant workers to join ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra's supporters, who are scheduled to launch a major anti-government protest in Bangkok this weekend.</p>

<p>Three persons were killed and five were wounded after being shot by Thailand's security forces in the southern part of the country. All the victims were identified as Burmese who were trying to enter Thailand illegally. Two of the dead were children aged two and four, according to Burmese workers living in the area.</p>

<p>On 18 Jan, human rights organizations and activists send a letter to Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva for concerns over the issue of migrant workers in Thailand, the Burmese in particular, as their permits will expire in January and February, while the nationality verification process has proved to be ineffective and risky for the migrants.</p>

<p>20th Jan 2010 marks the renewal deadline for the first batch of 70, 000 Burmese, Cambodian and Laotian migrants working in Thailand whose work permits will expire on that day. The next date for the expiry of all the other work permits of migrants from Burma, Cambodia and Laos (approximately 930, 000 officially registered persons) is 28th Feb 2010.</p>

<p>Since December 2008, the Royal Thai Government (RTG) has increasingly stressed its policy that migrant workers from Burma currently in Thailand must enter a nationality verification process (NV). NV is apparently required to change migrant&rsquo;s status from persons who illegally entered Thailand to persons who are legally resident here, as well as to allow migrants to legally work and receive legal protection equal to Thai persons.</p>

<p>In a landmark rights victory in Thailand, the Department of Transport (DoT) has announced that migrants from Burma, Laos and Cambodia, as well as a number of other minority groups, can now register ownership of vehicles and will soon be able to apply for driving licenses. The decision overturns a 15-year old discriminatory National Security Council (NSC) policy denying these rights on vague national security grounds. The positive impact will be felt by well over 1 million registered migrants and other minority persons in the country.</p>

<p>The Thai Government recently reiterated its policy to formalise the status of around 2 million migrants from Burma working here - <em>nationality verification (NV)</em>.&nbsp;</p>

<p>On 20 October 2009, Nang Noom Mae Seng, a disabled migrant work accident victim, and two other Shan migrants petitioned the Supreme Court of Thailand to overturn a Social Security Office&rsquo;s (SSO) circular (RS 0711/W751, issued on 25th October 2001) they claim discriminates against over 2 million migrant workers in Thailand.&nbsp;</p>

<p>On 3 September 2009, it was reported that a Burmese detainee at KLIA Immigration Detention Centre died on 29 August 2009 due to an unknown illness and six other detainees with similar symptoms were hospitalised at Putrajaya General Hospital[1]. On 25 September 2009, it was reported that six Burmese detainees have died at an undisclosed detention centre allegedly due to Leptospirosis[2]. Leptospirosis is an infectious disease that occurs due to water or food contaminated by animal urine.</p>

<p>On 16 Sept. 2009, the State Enterprise Workers Relations Confederation (SERC), the Human Rights and Development Foundation (HRDF) and the Thai Labour Solidarity Committee (TLSC) will petition the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants calling for an urgent inquiry into the commencement of a nationality verification process for Burmese migrants in Thailand. Subsequently, a set of recommendations will be submitted to the Royal Thai Government.</p>