Shan Refugee Camp Burnt Down By Thai Army

Shan Refugee Camp Burnt Down By Thai Army

A refugee camp under the protection of Shan resistance was put to the torch by the Thai army yesterday, reported Shan army sources.

A make shift camp made by refuge-seeking Shans, 2 kilometers deep inside Thailand near Pangbawng Village, Mailarn Tract, Pang Mapha District, Maehongson Province, was set fire by the raiding Thai army (Company 751, Battalion 5, Regiment 7) at noon yesterday, as the 300 exiles, who had arrived there last month with the assistance of Yawdserk's Shan State Army, helplessly watched.

The Shans, among whom were small children and newly-borns, were then driven back across the border, said the source from Maehongson.

"Shans are not considered refugees by Thailand", said Kham Harnfah. "And as such, they are not entitled to relief aid like Karens and Karennis".

More than 100,000 non-Burman refugees, designated as "persons of concern", are living in camps along the Thai border and looked after by foreign humanitarian organizations.

"Nobody understands why Thais, who are historic kindred of Shans, are exercising a policy of discrimination towards them", said an aid worker.