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Published on January 20, 2008

Police suspect that the seven bodies found floating in the reservoir of Srinakarin Dam in Kanchanaburi late Friday night might be Burmese who drowned while trying to slip into the country.

Provincial police commander Maj-General Rawat Klingaysorn said yesterday the migrants might have tried to avoid inspection by police who are not actively checking all roads from Burma to Thailand.

Police had received reports about a capsized boat on Tuesday, but never found the boat or any bodies, he said.

None of the five women, one man and a young boy shows signs of assault, he said. All seven corpses were sent to the Forensic Institute in Bangkok for autopsies.

Rawat said he had assigned Daan Mae Chalab police station to investigate the accident and possible human trafficking.

The boat driver might not have been familiar with the reservoir, which normally has strong winds, he added.

Lt-Colonel Pronpot Suwansri, chief of Daan Mae Chalab police, said he believed more bodies would be found. He said police would search for more victims and the boat, which might have sunk to the bottom of the lake.

Humanitarian organisations estimate that up to 2 million Burmese are working illegally in Thailand, with many vulnerable to exploitation and denied basic rights such as medical care.

Rawat said the number of people crossing the border had surged in recent weeks, as Burmese head over to try to take advantage of an annual registration of migrant workers that begins on February 1.

Last month, Marine Police in southwestern Thailand said 22 Burmese migrant workers had died in a boat accident when they tried to sneak in.

The two countries share a 2,400-kilometre border.

The Nation,

Agence France-Presse