Banteay Meanchey provincial authorities confirmed yesterday that they are creating a committee that will seek to help illegal Cambodian migrant workers expelled from Thailand land get back on their feet in Cambodia.

According to a letter dated last week and obtained yesterday, the committee will arrange basic services for the illegal migrant workers deported from the country by Thai authorities.

“The sub-committee will collect the statistics that Thai authorities send and prepare shelter for the workers and temporarily help them improve their living standards and take care of their health and sanitation,” read the letter. “Special attention will be paid to children, pregnant women and sick migrants.”

Provincial governor Kor Sum Saroeut said he recently received information from an organisation in Thailand that authorities will soon be sending illegal migrants back.

“We are creating the committee in advance because we had a bad experience in June last year, where we did not have good preparations and that caused our work to be not so good, ” he said, referring to the more than 220,000 Cambodian migrant workers accused of working illegally in Thailand who were sent back to Cambodia.