Aid group says Thai authorities returned 800 Hmong to Laos
Updated
Aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres says Thai authorities have forced some 800 ethnic minority Hmong seeking refuge in Thailand back to Laos.
The group has urged a stop to repatriations until an independent monitoring group can assess their refugee claims.
A Thai army colonel says the 800 Hmong volunteered to go home.
More than 6,000 Hmong remain in the camp, and Thai authorities say they plan to return them all.
The Thai government says the Hmong are economic migrants using Thailand as a base to seek refugee status and to travel to rich countries.
Thailand does not allow the UN refugee agency UNHCR access to the Hmong in the Phetchabun camp.
