Thai Diaspora: What Happens When They Return 'Home'?

Abstract

The 1868 demarcation of the modern border between British Burma and the Kingdom of Siam resulted in a Thai diaspora of more than 40,000 in the southern states of what is now the modern nation-state of Myanmar. Since the 1980s, the majority of these persons have moved back over the border into Thailand.
Their status has become that of a returning Thai diaspora because they have not been granted Thai citizenship. Consequently, they lack the rights and power to access livelihood assets. This paper examines their status vis-à-vis the Thai state, their political mobilization in Thailand, and their development of livelihood strategies. The people of the returning Thai diaspora use a variety of means to establish themselves as subjects and citizens of the Thai state. Policy makers should be encouraged to be more aware of “power” and “rights” with regard to people in vulnerable contexts, such as the returning Thai diaspora whose members are negotiating their status in Thai society.