Thai Criminal Court has approved the deportation of an ethnic minority human rights defender following Vietnam’s request. His fate is now in the hands of the Thai government, which will decide whether to extradite him or not. If deported, he would face 10 years imprisonment on terrorism charges.

<p>With the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit, to be held in Thailand on 18-19 November, political refugees from Cambodia are extremely worried that tightened security measures may affect their already fragile safety.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.hrw.org/thailand">Thai</a>&nbsp;authorities should allow the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) unhindered access to Rohingya from Myanmar to determine whether they qualify for refugee status, <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/05/21/thailand-let-un-refugee-agency-screen-rohingya">Human Rights Watch</a> said today (21 May). The government&rsquo;s inhumane policy of holding Rohingya arriving in Thailand in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/07/31/thailand-offers-persecuted-rohingya-little-hope">indefinite detention</a>&nbsp;should be immediately repealed.</p>

<p>The UN Refugee Agency has welcomed the progress made by the Governments of Indonesia and the Philippines to confirm the nationality of nearly 3,000 people of Indonesian descent living in the southern Philippines. This is one of a series of positive steps taken by ASEAN States since the launch of a global campaign to end statelessness by 2024.</p> <p>Volker Türk, UNHCR’s Assistant High Commissioner for Protection, made these comments at a Jakarta panel discussion on 14 November 2016 titled “The Right to Nationality and Ending Statelessness in ASEAN”.</p>