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Politics 
Thailand to host seminar on migration

THAILAND will host an international symposium on migration to heighten
international awareness and to find comprehensive strategies to deal with
complex problems. 

The three-day symposium, from April 21 to 23, has been organised in close
cooperation with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and will
also explore ways to counter illegal migration in the region. 

The forum will involve countries in Southeast Asia and neighbouring states in
South and East Asia, with panellists coming from Africa, North America, South
America and Europe. 

Representatives from various international organisations, including the World
Health Organisation, the UN Population Fund and the International Labour
Organisation, will also take part in the gathering. 

All interested parties as well as countries outside the region, governmental
and non-governmental sectors and experts are welcome to participate in the
conference. 

Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai will give an opening statement on the second day
of the symposium. The first and last days are closed sessions. 

Thailand believes uncontrolled migration in the next century will pose a
greater problem to countries in the Asia-Pacific region. 
''If not properly dealt with, migration-related problems will become
destabilising factors for the economic and social development in the region,''
said a statement issued by the Foreign Ministry, which is the key organiser of
the symposium. 

Thailand hopes the conference, titled ''Towards Regional Cooperation on
Irregular/Undocumented Migration'', will provide an overview of the current
situation of migration. 
The symposium would also serve as a forum to mobilise new ideas among
countries
within and outside the region, as well as international organisations. 

The Nation