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| Image © Jack Kurtz || 16 JUNE 2014 - POIPET, CAMBODIA: A Cambodian woman hands her son to waiting Cambodian soldiers after she returned to Cambodia from Thailand. More than 150,000 Cambodian migrant workers and their families have left Thailand since June 12. The exodus started when rumors circulated in the Cambodian migrant community that the Thai junta was going to crack down on undocumented workers. About 40,000 Cambodians were expected to return to Cambodia today. The mass exodus has stressed resources on both sides of the Thai/Cambodian border. The Cambodian town of Poipet has been over run with returning migrants. On the Thai side, in Aranyaprathet, the bus and train station has been flooded with Cambodians taking all of their possessions back to Cambodia. PHOTO BY JACK KURTZ |
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| || General Information: |
|| Portfolio: |
Jack Kurtz: Photographer
| Address: |
Bangkok, Bangkok 10100, Thailand |
| Phone: |
+66-08-8017-7172 (Thailand)
602-633-5215 (US for Voice Mail and Messages only) |
| Fax: |
712-781-7928 |
| Jack Kurtz's Message: |
There's a mass migration going on in southeastern Thailand. More than 150,000 Cambodian migrant workers, many working in Thailand without legal work permits, are returning to Cambodia, fearing a crackdown by the Thai junta in the wake of the coup that deposed the civilian government in May.
There is a frenetic scene at the border. Buses and trucks full of Cambodian migrants come into central Poipet (on the Cambodian side of the border) unload their human cargo. The people are directed to waiting Cambodian army trucks and then taken to their home villages.
In Aranyaprathet, on the Thai side of the border, incoming trains are filled to bursting with Cambodians carrying all of their worldly possessions. The trains are met by Thai police and soldiers who give the returning migrants a hot meal and then put them into trucks and haul them back to Cambodia.
The real mystery in the exodus is why? Who started the rumors that authorities were going to crack down on migrants? And what do they have to gain?
I talked to Cambodians in both Poipet and Aranyaprathet. None of them told me they had directly been threatened by Thai authorities. Their stories were consistent: they left because their friends, neighbors or family members had left. One said he left because his boss told him to leave, that the army might be coming.
I've relocated to Bangkok, Thailand. I'm working on stories and freelancing. If you need a photographer in Thailand, give me a shout.
Thanks for looking,
Jack
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| Last Update: |
41 days ago |
| Member Since: |
2.26.2005 (Senior Member) |
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The images below are from the
portfolio of Jack Kurtz. They are presented here for your viewing pleasure. These images may not be used elsewhere and are protected by copyright. To see these images, click on the icon and you will see a much larger image.
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"CambodianExodus"
16 JUNE 2014 - POIPET, CAMBODIA: A Cambodian woman hands her son to waiting Cambodian soldiers afte... |
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"CambodianExodus"
16 JUNE 2014 - POIPET, CAMBODIA: Cambodian migrants sit in the back of a Cambodian Army truck in Poi... |
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| 3 |
"CambodianExodus"
16 JUNE 2014 - POIPET, CAMBODIA: Cambodian migrants in a Cambodian army truck waiting to go home af... |
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"CambodianExodus"
16 JUNE 2014 - POIPET, CAMBODIA: Cambodian migrants get off a bus in Poipet, Cambodia. More than 15... |
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"CambodianExodus"
16 JUNE 2014 - ARANYAPRATHET, THAILAND: A Cambodian woman carries her son after they got off a train... |
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"CambodianExodus"
16 JUNE 2014 - ARANYAPRATHET, THAILAND: A Cambodian girl, a migrant in Thailand, sits in the window... |
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"CambodianExodus"
16 JUNE 2014 - ARANYAPRATHET, THAILAND: Cambodian migrants crowd the platform of the train station ... |
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"CambodianExodus"
16 JUNE 2014 - ARANYAPRATHET, THAILAND: A Cambodian migrant woman and her child climb into a Thai po... |
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"CambodianExodus"
16 JUNE 2014 - ARANYAPRATHET, THAILAND: Cambodian migrant workers fleeing Thailand walk through Aran... |
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"CambodianExodus"
16 JUNE 2014 - ARANYAPRATHET, THAILAND: A Cambodian child locked in a Thai immigration police truck ... |
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