UNITED Nations help for dealing with the issue of Burmese boat people has been urged by Royal Thai Navy officials.

They are concerned by a startling rise in the number of Rohingya men arrested in Thai waters, especially so far this month.

The latest large group of men apprehended on Saturday were ''like sardines in a can,'' a spokesman told Phuketwan.

So far this year, nearly 5000 Rohingya have been caught. Concerns are held for Thaiand's security because they have all been men.

The Navy has supplied Phuketwan with photographs of its December 13 interception and capture of a single boatload of 210 Burmese Muslim men.

After being apprehended, they were taken to Surin Island for processing.

The men suffered dehydration and food shortages on the dangerous journey on crowded wooden boats, probably from Bangladesh, where they mostly live in makeshift refugee camps.

Those captured on Saturday are now being held in Ranong province by the army's Internal Security Operations Command 4.

Navy patrols have been stepped up in response to the problem.

The Surin Islands are a popular diving destination for tourists, reached within a day's travel west by boat off the coast of Ranong province, about 190 kilometres north of Phuket.

'Starving' Boatloads: Phuket Call for UN Action
Hundreds of hungry boat people are being apprehended in boats north of Phuket, prompting a call for United Nations intervention. Phuketwan exposes the Andaman's serious human rights issue, the Rohingya.
'Starving' Boatloads: Phuket Call for UN Action



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