The Lao Foreign Ministry reiterated its position that the thousands of ethnic Hmong refugees in Phetchabun province in Thailand are not from Laos and should not be repatriated. The ministry claimed that the situation of the Hmong in Huay Nam Khao village in Phetchabun is an internal problem of Thailand. Nevertheless, the Thai government is determined to repatriate some 6,000 Hmong to Laos and has already forced back several small groups across the border over the past year.
Source: Rungrawee Pinyorat, AP, “Report: Laotian government says homeless Hmong not from Laos," 22 July 2006