A Research on Social Relationship of Stateless-Yunnan Chinese in Chiang Mai, Thailand

• Main Authors: Dueanphen Saeher, 何庭仙
• Other Authors: Tsung-Rong Yang
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2014
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/03772495690257948206

碩士 === 國立臺灣師範大學 === 應用華語文學系 === 102 === In this study, the stateless Yunnan Chinese in Chiang Mai, Thailand were adopted as participants. Through the living experiences of these stateless individuals, the plights they faced in Thai society were explored. In addition, the social relationship between these stateless individuals and Thailand was expounded. Statelessness is an issue of academic concern, and the reasons causing statelessness vary from country to country. The Yunnan Chinese that live in Chiang Mai, Thailand used to be Kuomintang soldiers, dependents, and commoners that moved to Thailand because of the civil war. As time went by, they became descendants of KMT soldiers. They lived in constant dread of poverty in mountain villages that lacked educational resources. Their statelessness impeded them from seeking education that only a handful managed to graduate from high school, let alone getting a job. Many people worked part time without graduating, the result of the statelessness of Yunnan Chinese living in refugee villages who felt anxious about their future. Through the author's personal experience, the social phenomena as well as the relationship between they and the society caused by the statelessness of Yunnan Chinese living in refugee villages in Chiang Mai were explored from the perspectives, prospects, sentiments, and feelings of the statelessness Yunnan Chinese. It was found that according to the Thai government's nationality policy (attitude towards statelessness) and the Nationality Act implemented in Thailand over the years, naturalization to Thai citizenship within the territorial jurisdiction is the basic criterion. However, when the growing immigrant population posed a threat to national security, modifications were made to the National Act. For example, in response to the problem of immigration arising from the people that fled to Thailand after the outbreak of the Indochina War, in 1972, the Declaration of the Revolutionary Council No. 337 was promulgated. The provisions stipulate that parents of children without Thai citizenship may be deprived of their Thai citizenship status even if their children were born in Thailand. Although the policy has been officially cancelled, the governments' attitude towards immigrants that continue to enter the country remains the same as before. This resulted in denied granting of citizenship to immigrants and children born in Thailand. Additionally, the policy mess and the undertakers' operational inefficiency have contributed to the phenomenon of statelessness that continues to exist in Thai society to this day. As Thailand's National Act has gradually lifted the restrictions on naturalization, to some extent, it may be the solution for statelessness within a short time span. As for reasons contributing delays and the pending issues, based on the author's investigation findings, there are four reasons: 1. The undertaker lacks related legal knowledge, overlooks matters, and is inefficient in handling; 2. Stateless individuals are unfamiliar with the application procedures, supply incorrect personal data, or fail to receive relevant information. 3. In 1965 due to Thailand new nationality policy, the number of stateless person is increasing. 4. The unstable political situation in Thailand provoked more people to become stateless. Hence, the statelessness Yunnan Chinese suffered setbacks in many aspects, such as work, education, medical treatment, personal liberty, and property rights, all of which make them doubt the value of their existence in Thai society.