Refugees uneasy about returning home

Refugees uneasy about returning home

More than 400 people that have been at the reception centers in Chiangmai since 20 May when Burmese outposts in Pang Maisoong were overrun by Shan raiders are now worried about going home, following the Shan State Army's abrupt departure yesterday, according to relief workers. 

Out of 600 people who fled from Pang Kamkaw and Hwe Yao, opposite Wianghaeng District of Chiangmai, 127 households (417 persons) that held no Thai identifications voiced their concern about a new life under Burmese rule that they believed would not be the same as it was before the SSA's attack. 

"They didn't trust us much before," said Sai Parng (not his real name), 50, from Pang Kammaw. "But we had surrendered along with Khun Sa in 1996. It had been sort of a period of grace. But now everything has changed and we are not sure at all whether the Burmese or their Wa allies will continue to treat us in the same way." 

Sai Mong, a former resistance officer, 45, also thought alike. "I remember Sai Nyein from Nakawngmu (a village near Mongton and about 30 miles from the Thai border) whose father was even a Burman. Before the Parkhee Battle (April-May 2001), he enjoyed every kind of privilege the local Burmese authorities could give him," he said. "But afterwards, he was arrested accused of collaborating with the SSA and had disappeared since without a trace." 

Burma Army's shooting this morning at three Thai villagers who went near the border to examine their water-pipes that often clogged up during the rains only helped to increase their fears. "One is shot in the leg and is now being treated at the Wianghaeng hospital," said a local relief worker. "As for the other two, nobody has found them yet." 

The two are Orn and Thorn, surnames unknown, from Ban Laktaeng. 

A Chiangmai-based NGO has recently conducted a 3-day survey among the refugees. The full report is expected soon. "Suffice to say for now that the majority are afraid to return," noted Nang Mo Hawm, the organizer of the survey.