I've spent the last couple of days searching for NGOs in the border town of MaeSot. It is the most diverse town I've ever visited. Because it is right next to Burma, the town consists of a variety of its ethnic groups, the Karen, Shan, Chin, Rhohingas, and a scoopful of the 136 ethnic tribes in Burma. Because of this diversity, every city block has a temple dedicated to each of the major religions. In one corner, you can find a golden Thai Theravada Buddhist temple and on the other you can find a mosque. There is also a Chinese temple dedicated to Confucianism and a Burmese Buddhist temple. Surprisingly I have not seen a Christian church seeing that over 50% of Karen are Christian. Leaving Noh Bo has proven difficult to adjust back to Thai society. Just as I was acquainting myself quite well with Karen, the tonal language of Thai has left me discombobulated and confused.
The Green Guesthouse where we are staying is located right next door to the police detention center for the undocumented migrant workers. If these migrant workers are caught in the streets of Thailand without papers, they are sent to this detention center where they can either bribe the policeman for bail or be sent back to Burma. The cells are empty in the mornings and by the evenings the cell is full of families: children, mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters. This is the flaw in the Thai bureaucracy which parallels the treatment of our own migrant workers in the United States. Because of the prevalence of the mistreatment of migrant workers and refugees, there are many NGOs in the area that work to help the community.
Erika and I have spent the last couple of days working to find and interview some people who work at Compasio and the famous Mae Tao Clinic. To our surprise, a graciously elderly British man volunteering at Compasio (an NGO dedicated to saving undocumented migrant children from homelessness, abuse, and trafficking) treated us to a Burmese dinner while answering any questions we had. It seems as though NGOs here are much more accepting of help and questions than in the States. You don't need to have too much experience, just the will and desire to help. The Mae Tao Clinic is an amazing place. Just over 20 years ago, Dr. Cynthia, a Burmese, opened up a clinic to help the suffering refugees who were refused help from Thai government. It is a conclave of small concrete buildings just outside of town. You would never believe how many people are being treated there. It is an extremely popular place seeing that these people have nowhere else to go.
Salinee who is the CEO and founder of the NGO we worked with setting up the solar panels in Noh Bo has given me some contacts in which I can maybe enter Mae La, the largest refugee camp in Thailand housing 41,000 people. It is an incredible place. You can see thatched roofs as far as the eye can see when driving past it. No one is allowed to leave or enter. Offenders will be sent back to Burma. Food is rationed out because there is no agriculture in the camp: there is simply no space. Wouldn't it be an eye-opening experience to live as a Karen in Mae La for a day?
I worry for Salinee, Jobson, M, and Tutu (employees of the solar panel NGO we worked with in Noh Bo). They left yesterday to illegally cross the river into Burma in order to install more solar panels in the remote Burmese mountains. It is such an fascinating thing in history to partake in and yet they are incredibly nonchalant about it all.
The small town of MaeSot has proven to be full of hidden gems and treasures of knowledge. If you come here as a tourist, you won't be impressed. But if you come here as a seeker of knowledge, you will be captivated.
J.
The Green Guesthouse where we are staying is located right next door to the police detention center for the undocumented migrant workers. If these migrant workers are caught in the streets of Thailand without papers, they are sent to this detention center where they can either bribe the policeman for bail or be sent back to Burma. The cells are empty in the mornings and by the evenings the cell is full of families: children, mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters. This is the flaw in the Thai bureaucracy which parallels the treatment of our own migrant workers in the United States. Because of the prevalence of the mistreatment of migrant workers and refugees, there are many NGOs in the area that work to help the community.
Erika and I have spent the last couple of days working to find and interview some people who work at Compasio and the famous Mae Tao Clinic. To our surprise, a graciously elderly British man volunteering at Compasio (an NGO dedicated to saving undocumented migrant children from homelessness, abuse, and trafficking) treated us to a Burmese dinner while answering any questions we had. It seems as though NGOs here are much more accepting of help and questions than in the States. You don't need to have too much experience, just the will and desire to help. The Mae Tao Clinic is an amazing place. Just over 20 years ago, Dr. Cynthia, a Burmese, opened up a clinic to help the suffering refugees who were refused help from Thai government. It is a conclave of small concrete buildings just outside of town. You would never believe how many people are being treated there. It is an extremely popular place seeing that these people have nowhere else to go.
Salinee who is the CEO and founder of the NGO we worked with setting up the solar panels in Noh Bo has given me some contacts in which I can maybe enter Mae La, the largest refugee camp in Thailand housing 41,000 people. It is an incredible place. You can see thatched roofs as far as the eye can see when driving past it. No one is allowed to leave or enter. Offenders will be sent back to Burma. Food is rationed out because there is no agriculture in the camp: there is simply no space. Wouldn't it be an eye-opening experience to live as a Karen in Mae La for a day?
I worry for Salinee, Jobson, M, and Tutu (employees of the solar panel NGO we worked with in Noh Bo). They left yesterday to illegally cross the river into Burma in order to install more solar panels in the remote Burmese mountains. It is such an fascinating thing in history to partake in and yet they are incredibly nonchalant about it all.
The small town of MaeSot has proven to be full of hidden gems and treasures of knowledge. If you come here as a tourist, you won't be impressed. But if you come here as a seeker of knowledge, you will be captivated.
J.
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