"Monsoon season is descending upon the Thai-Burmese border town of Mae Sot, but storm clouds are not the only the signs of portent for local residents. At the end of a week in which the military junta has been promoting ?love and harmony? among Thais by offering free tickets to see a film about a 16th century Ayutthaya king fighting to rid Siam of the Burmese, a concerted and prioritised effort to ?solve? the ?problem? of migrant workers from neighbouring Myanmar and Cambodia has been launched. Following several months of delays for migrants wishing to extend their permission to stay in the country under the national verification program and more than a week of raids on migrant communities across the country, the NCPO established a Committee on Solving Migrant Problems on the 10th June.Thai army spokesman Sirichan Ngathong stated during the week that any undocumented migrant workers in Thailand ?will be arrested and deported? and Thai government television channels declared this to be part of an ?environmental cleansing? operation carried out to build a ?pleasant? society. Rumours about the purge and possible mistreatment spread quickly among migrants stoking fears leading to a mass exodus. Over 100,000 Cambodians alone have now left the country. Such purges are regular occurrences in Thailand, where a relatively laissez-faire approach is taken towards undocumented workers when the economy is booming, followed by crackdowns during downturns. But there are reasons to believe that this time may be different; especially as regards migrants from Myanmar. This is due to NCPO attempts to securitise the issue and fast tracking plans for the establishment of special border economic zones. The military claims that migrants are a source of social problems, that they undermine social ?stability? and are associated with narcotics, crime, and communicable diseases.While tolerated in border provinces, authorities want to keep them away from metropolitan areas such as Bangkok. In a post-coup environment, it is interesting to note that Prayuth Chan-Ocha?s dissertation research while studying at Thailand?s National Defence College in 2007-2008 was on the role of the army in responding to non-traditional security threats, identifying migrant workers and undocumented persons as one of four urgent and immediate threats to Thai society..."