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(March 13,
2008/ Bangkok, Thailand) Democrat Party (DP) leader Hon. Abhisit
Vejjajiva, MP graced the CALD-SEACA-MFA Conference on Migration,
expressing his views on the issue, despite his busy schedule
chairing DP’s shadow cabinet meetings.
According to
Mr. Vejjajiva, the need to raise the awareness of the issue as
well as the implications of a number of policies on migration is
something that parliamentarians have to continue to focus on.
With the advance of globalization, the breakdown of various
barriers, the relative ease of people to move about and the
problems created by inequities and diversity, parliamentarians
often tend to take a local or narrow perspective on the issue.
Migration is seen as a problem and would then be addressed on an
ad hoc basis. “This problem will become more and more acute
unless we really address the issue and its cause. There’s
nothing better than all of us encouraging each other, our
neighbors in particular, to provide the kind of opportunities
that would meet the aspirations of people in their respective
countries and also move ahead on the inevitable integration of
economies including, the labor market and the freedom of workers
to move about,” Khun Abhisit said.
DP Thailand
is one of the founding members of CALD and has chaired the
organization in 1993 and in 2002. Khun Abhisit also addressed
the CALD delegation during an Executive Committee luncheon
reception in Bangkok in 2005 and joined the CALD contingent in
the International Democrats’ Meeting during the La Margherita
Congress in Rome in 2007. |
