The recent suspicious deaths of two Thai women in Bahrain have led to growing concern over human trafficking, resulting in the Middle Eastern country introducing stricter immigration measures for Thais.
According to Employment Department director-general Waranon Pitiwan, a total of 126 Thais are currently detained in Bahrain.
Most have been charged with overstaying their tourist visas and illegally working in the country by travelling back and forth between Bahrain and neighbouring countries to obtain visas.
Thai people are allowed to enter Bahrain by visa on arrival and can stay for 14 days.
Others are also women who were duped into working as prostitutes in Bahrain.
Busadee Santipitaks, a spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry, admitted that Thais often overstayed in Bahrain and the authorities had become stricter recently.
Bahrain has tightened its immigration regulations after two Thai women were found dead late last month.
The two were identified as Katnipa Boontien, 21, and Wichuda Sakaew, 24.
Katnipa was pronounced dead at a local hospital on April 22 after she fell from a building in Bahrain's capital, Manama, on the night of April 21.
A week after Katnipa's death, the body of Wichuda, a mother of three from Surin, was found discovered in a hotel pool on April 30.
The families of both women believe foul play was involved in their deaths.
Thanapol Sakaew, 44, Wichuda's father, said his daughter left Thailand to work as a masseuse in Bahrain to earn money for the family after separating from her husband and giving a birth to her latest child.
Mr Thanapol wants Bahrain authorities to thoroughly investigate the death of his daughter and not rush to conclude that she died as the result of an accident.
Ms Busadee said the ministry had received a report on Wichuda's death. Bahrain police had CCTV footage and concluded that she drowned while swimming in the pool.
She reportedly went to an event before going to the hotel swimming pool. Her friends knew that she went swimming and wondered why she was taking so long.
They came to check and found Wichuda dead, Ms Busadee said.
The Thai embassy in Manama on Friday consulted Wichuda's family about what to do with her body.
Boonwat Ngamroop, Katnipa's mother, said she had talked to a consular officer in Thailand and learned that she had to wait for the investigation results from authorities in Bahrain.
Ms Boonwat insisted that she did not believe her daughter committed suicide or died in an accident as she went to Bahrain to work and earn money for her one-year old child, and she had only left for Bahrain on April 5, 13 days before her death.
According to Ms Boonwat, her daughter was persuaded by a Thai woman to work as a bar receptionist in Bahrain, promising an income of 400,000 to 500,000 baht within the first three months.
The woman claimed to advance about 190,000 baht in expenses for Katnipa, saying her daughter could pay the debt later.
However, after she arrived in Bahrain, Katnipa told her mother that her passport had been seized by a group of people who also detained her for three days before forcing her to work.
She said her daughter did not mention what kind of work she did.
Katnipa also told her she was contacting a Thai woman to help her escape, Ms Boonwat said.
The Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Bahrain authorities have not concluded the investigation into Katnipa's death.
Meanwhile, a staff member of Alliance Anti Traffic, a non-profit group working on human trafficking, said many Thai women have been lured to work as prostitutes in Bahrain.
"Many of them were promised a decent job such as professional masseuses," said the source, who wished to remain anonymous.
But when they arrived, the agent forced them into the sex trade and took their passports and money, saying they had to pay for the debts incurred from transport costs.
The source cited the case of a victim who sought help from the authorities. The victim said the trafficking ring put the women in an apartment and moved them around to avoid the police.
"The victim said she was detained. When she sought our help, she said she wanted to go back to her mother," said the source.
Asked why many Thai women were lured to Bahrain, the source said the trafficking ring shifted to Bahrain after Oman introduced stricter immigration rules for Thais. This is because Thais can enter the country without a visa.
"I think there are hundreds of Thai women in this situation," the source said.