Arial view of Huay Nam Khao Hmong shelters

Thai authorities have set up a special task force to relocate the Hmong refugees living in a makeshift camp along the road to Ban Huay Nam Khao in Thailand's Phetchaboun province within the next two months.

Authorities said after that they will invite Lao officials to come to the new camp to screen the refugees and verify their nationality to determine who are Hmongs from Laos and should be repatriated.

VOA-Lao stringer in Bangkok reports there are now an estimated

Hmong marketplace at Ban Huay Nam Khao

12,000 Hmong refugees in Ban Huay Nam Khao, twice the number in July of this year. The new refugees have not registered with Thai authorities and live in hiding for fear of being arrested. They said they fled Laos because of persecution, and came to Phetchaboun to join their relatives hoping they will be accepted for resettlement in the United States.

Listen to our Laos Today for more details.