Today, exactly 10 years ago, Thai police arrested 350 Uyghurs in a forest along the Thai-Malaysian border in Songkhla on suspicion of passing illegally through the country en route to Malaysia to seek asylum. After the arrests, which grabbed global headlines, the Uyghurs were separated to face different destinies. The Prayut government sent 109 back to China, as requested by Beijing.
Nevertheless, 172 -- mainly women and children were spared from enforced repatriation by the Thai government, and more than 100 were sent to Malaysia or Turkey to begin new lives, while 48 remained detained in Thai immigration cells.
During the decade that followed, some of the 48 have suffered health conditions and passed away in custody. In April 2018, Aziz Abdullah, 49, died in the overcrowded Suan Phlu immigration facility in central Bangkok. Two months later, Mattohti Mattursun, a 40-year-old, passed away in a Bangkok hospital.
Following a decade behind bars with no apparent release in sight, a few managed to escape their immigration cells and run away to Malaysia.
That is understandable, too, especially considering that former Malaysian PM Mahathir Mohamad in 2018 released 11 of them and sent them to Turkey, disregarding China's request to hand them to Beijing.
For those left behind bars, making an escape to Malaysia became the only option for them to win freedom and get away from the violence in their old homeland and the claustrophobic interiors of their dank immigration cells.
The big questions are how much longer will they have to stay in detention, and what is the Thai government going to do next?
Over the past decade, there have been accusations that international humanitarian groups have tried to help them and were always denied access. Meanwhile, the mouths of the Thai government and police officials have seemed zipped shut when asked about the case.
It is no surprise to hear rumours that Chinese authorities have regularly sent officials to check up on the detained Uyghurs during these 10 long years.
In making discussions about their present circumstances off limits, the Thai government has started tongues wagging among many about the influence China has here.
The truth of the matter is it is simply immoral to detain illegal migrants for 10 years.
So instead of kicking the can down the road and whistling while he walks, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, who proudly painted himself and his team of MPs as champions of democracy, must now show they have the backbone to resolve this conundrum.
The government must allow the National Human Rights Commission to visit, and it is about time the Uyghurs were granted access to opportunities to seek asylum in other countries.
Lest we forget, local law -- The Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance Act, 2022 -- prevents the Thai government from returning refugees and illegal entrants back to their country of origin if there are grounds that their lives will be endangered.
The government better act sooner rather than later. Do not forget that this year, the Thai government is vying for a seat on the United Nations Human Rights Commission later this year. Apart from doing the right thing, letting these Uyghurs seek asylum would also be prudent.