SEA Junction, in collaboration with the IPSR In-House Seminar and the Mahidol Migration Centre (MMC), continues its bi-monthly series “Wednesday SEA Mobilities,” which began in February 2022. Held on the last Wednesday of every two months, the series brings together experts, practitioners, NGO workers, academics, and migrants to discuss a wide range of mobility issues across Southeast Asia.

The fourth event in the series, scheduled for 31 August 2022, features a presentation by Chawaratt Chawarangkul on “Immigration Detention and Alternatives in Thailand.” The session will take place online via Zoom and be livestreamed on the Facebook pages of SEA Junction and IPSR.

The presentation examines the situation of refugees and migrants in Thailand with a focus on immigration detention and the urgent need for alternatives to detention (ATD). While Thailand has introduced some ATD measures, significant policy and implementation gaps remain. The International Detention Coalition notes that although an ATD-MOU exists for releasing children from detention, children continue to be arrested and detained. ATD is applied only after detention has occurred, and families face additional barriers such as high bail requirements for mothers and limited release options for fathers, leading to family separation.

The speaker, Chawaratt Chawarangkul, is the Southeast Asia Program Manager at the International Detention Coalition. With extensive experience across Asia and Africa in humanitarian, human rights, and development work, he has contributed to Thailand’s policy efforts to end child immigration detention and supported the development of the national refugee screening mechanism. He holds advanced degrees in human rights and human resource management, as well as a bachelor’s degree in political science, and is currently based in Bangkok.

More information from SEA Junction, click here.