The government has transferred an unconfirmed number of ethnic Uighurs to Turkey for resettlement, a source revealed Tuesday.
The Uighurs were detained by Thai immigration authorities for illegally entering the country while fleeing persecution in northwestern China's restive Xinjiang region in March last year.
All of the detained Uighurs claimed to be from Turkey.
However, only those who were able to prove they had Turkish relatives were sent to Turkey.
"They have been sent [to Turkey] in several rounds and most of them were women and children," said the source.
A source said most Uighur migrants have been sent to Istanbul and Kayseri city, which have large Uighur communities.
Meanwhile, most of the male Uighur migrants are still being detained at an Immigration Bureau holding facility, the source said.
Several hundred migrants have been detained in Songkhla province since the first group was found on March 13 last year.
Following their detention, both Turkish and Chinese authorities contacted Thai authorities, asking to take part in the national verification process of the migrants.
However, the Uighur migrants reportedly refused to speak to the Chinese officials who asked to take part in the process.
Although they didn't have any official documents to verify they came from Turkey, most chose to seek asylum in that country, said Surapong Kongjanthuek, chairman of the Lawyers Council of Thailand's sub-committee on human rights.
Radio Free Asia (RFA) earlier reported on its website that a group of 173 ethnic Uighur women and children have arrived in Turkey for resettlement after being detained by authorities for more than a year in southern Thailand.
Seyit Tumturk, vice-president of the Munich-based World Uighur Congress, told RFA's Uighur Service that the group had arrived at the airport in Istanbul last Tuesday.
