‘Diagnosing’ Statelessness original group of Hmong fighters, explained to us that they moved up north because they had been evicted from Kanjanaburi, where they were placed by the government after the Cold War ended. Like the first group of villagers, they also had a folder full of various documentary evidences ready to show the committee members. These items included several letters issued by the Thai military circa 1972 confirming their contribution toward ‘saving the country’; a well-organised photo album of their home in another province before and during their eviction; pictures of them with one of the most well-known military men in recent Thai history, who later became a Thai Prime Minister in 1996; a type of identification card issued by the Thai Army with a vague message on the back stating ‘please facilitate this person’, and several more types of identification cards (see figure 3). Despite possessing the letters bearing the Thai government emblem and issued by representatives of the Thai state at various times, the family was told these documents hold no significance. The Sub-Committee members gathered around the table to examine multiple types of identification cards, touching and feeling them. One of the members remarked how unfortunate that none of these cards can be considered valid by the Thai state because they were not issued by the Ministry of Interior. Yet, every single one of them has been kept carefully and safely by the family in hope that one might turn into a valid proof of their ‘official’ existence. Before our departure, the Hmong man reiterated the urgency of the situation. He told us, ‘even animals have a home, but we don’t’. Figure 3: A stateless Hmong’s family display of several types of evidence of their identity. 229