162 Thai Workers Repatriated from Cambodia via Chanthaburi Border Crossing

A convoy of six Cambodian buses rolled up to the footbridge at Ban Laem just after dawn, ending an anxious wait for 162 Thais who had spent weeks behind barbed-wire fences in Siem Reap. Their unexpected homecoming, overseen by uniformed officers on both sides of the frontier, offers a rare glimpse into the fragile ceasefire, the shadow economy along the border and the diplomatic footwork required to bring citizens home when tensions flare.

First Glance: Why This Matters

• 162 returnees signal the first large movement of Thais since checkpoints tightened last year

• 6 of them face outstanding warrants, underscoring cross-border crime concerns

• The hand-over showcases the military attaché’s discreet role in shuttle diplomacy

• Thailand still expects 600–700 nationals to remain stuck in Cambodia

From Temple Town to Holding Cells: How Thais Became Stranded

The latest flare-up started when firefights near Ta Muen Thom temple in mid-2025 prompted Bangkok to shorten opening hours at multiple crossings and warn citizens against working in Poipet’s casinos. Cambodian officers retaliated by blocking Thai departures at the Poipet gate and tightening overstaying rules from 60 days to 7 days. Hundreds of seasonal workers and casino staff who ignored the warning were caught in the middle, herded first into makeshift dorms and later transferred north to Siem Reap for “processing”. Rights monitors say many paid brokers just to avoid physical abuse.

A Choreographed Crossing Under Heavy Guard

At 06:40 on 3 January, six white buses pulled up on the Cambodian side of Ban Laem. Soldiers carrying M16s formed a corridor while provincial officials counted heads and checked exit manifests. Across the small bridge, Deputy National Police Chief Pol Gen Thatchai Pitaneelabutr waited with immigration agents, marine rangers and the Chanthaburi-Trat Border Defence Unit. The convoy eased forward one bus at a time, engines idling while megaphones blared instructions in Thai and Khmer. Within 25 minutes, every returnee had cleared the bridge.

Screening Room Reality: Health, Warrants and Victim Identification

Inside a hastily erected white tent, public-health nurses administered rapid-flu tests and checked vaccination cards; a quarantine wing stood ready but unused. Immigration officers then compared fingerprints against the Royal Thai Police databank. Six men triggered red flags relating to narcotics, cyber-fraud and firearms; they were led away in separate vans. The remainder sat for interviews under Thailand’s MRN protocol, designed to separate human-trafficking victims from possible offenders. Officials say early notes show several recruits lured by bogus IT jobs in Poipet’s “scam compounds”.

Quiet Diplomacy: The Attaché Factor

Though the Foreign Ministry takes the public credit, insiders point to the Thai defence attaché in Phnom Penh as the linchpin. Using military-to-military channels, the attaché secured safe-passage guarantees, negotiated the bus route that avoids disputed road segments, and reassured Cambodian commanders that no provocative troop build-ups would appear on hand-over day. Security analyst Assoc. Prof. Kriangsak Longkij argues such back-channel talks “lower the temperature” faster than formal note-verbales.

Border Policy Under Review

Bangkok’s National Security Council is now weighing whether to move from its current Phase-2 controls—selective closures and curfews—toward Phase-3, which would shut smaller trade points entirely while permitting limited humanitarian corridors. Officials maintain any shift will balance sovereignty, local traders’ livelihoods and the need to curb transnational scam rings that funnel billions of baht offshore. Meanwhile, Cambodian leaders have hinted at another batch of ≈75 Thais set for release this month, but only if Thailand relaxes produce-import restrictions.

What Families Should Do Next

Relatives seeking updates can:

Call the Thai embassy hotline at +855 (0) 23 726 306 (24 hrs)

Register missing persons on the Consular Affairs Department website

Prepare proof of Thai citizenship so border officers can expedite entry once clearance is granted

The Road Ahead

For the 162 now back on home soil, the journey is far from over. Some will face court, others trauma counselling, and all will wait to see whether fragile diplomacy can reopen the Poipet gate. Their return, however, signals that even in a period of high-stakes brinkmanship, pragmatic cooperation can still win a day at the border.