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Exchanging one prison existence for another
Irrawaddy - February 19, 2010
Ko Htwe, Umpiem Mai refugee camp, Thailand – After surviving repression and imprisonment in Burma and then seeking refuge in Thailand, many former Burmese political prisoners feel they have exchanged one prison for another.
Aung Pan, a former political prisoner who now lives in Umpiem Mai refugee camp near the Thai-Burmese border, said: "We're jailed here. We have no freedom of movement."
Aung Pan is one of 53 former political prisoners and family members in Umpiem Mai, which houses about 30,000 refugees. Umpiem Mai is one of nine camps along the Thai-Burmese border, where about 140,000 Burmese refugees eke out a confined life, many of them hoping for resettlement in the West.
Hla Than, another Umpiem Mai resident, came to Thailand after serving 14 years in a Burmese prison for his political activities. "In Burma it was difficult to engage yourself in politics, so I came here hoping to be able to do that," he said.
Hla Than said he had originally had no intention of applying for resettlement in the West after coming to Thailand. Now he's hoping to move to the US, Canada or Norway. "We face a lot of problems in the refugee camp here," he said. "Security, accommodation, food..."
Many of the former political prisoners in Thailand's refugee camps were imprisoned because of their involved in major events such as the 1988 uprising or the 2007 monk-led demonstrations. The threat of further imprisonment led them to flee to Thailand after their release.
Thein Zaw is one of about 80 former political prisoners in Nu Po camp, which houses nearly 17,000 refugees. "Life in a refugee camp is rigid, it's hard to describe" he said.
Fellow refugee Kyi Win, another former political prisoner, said: "Living in prison, I knew the day I would be freed. But I don't know when I shall be released from this camp."
Arriving refugees are screened by the Thai authorities and then registered by the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Not all are granted registration and some choose to live illegally in Thailand.
"Without legal status, we have no security," said Hla Than. "We are stateless and hopelesss."
Refugees without legal status are also denied the daily rations distributed to the camps by the Thailand Burma Border Consortium, and at least 14 former political prisoners have to work illegally in order to provide for themselevs and their families.
One 60-year-old former political prisoner crossed to Thailand with eight family members, including a 7-month-old infant and an HIV-infected son.
His son and a daughter work as day laborers outside the camp, scratching together the 100 baht (US $3) the family needs to survive.
Kyi Win, another former political prisoner, left Burma accompanied by five family members and now supports them by selling snacks near the camp school.
Although the resettlement program introduced in 2005 has given many refugees the chance of a new life in the West, it has also led to the breakup of some families.
Htay Htay Win, a former political prisoner, said one of her sons had been resettled in the United States and another in Australia. "I just don't understand it," she said.
Another former political prisoner, Ye Htun, complained he had been rudely treated by the UNHCR after withdrawing his application to resettle in the West with his wife.
The couple had wanted the wife's mother to accompany them, but her application was rejected.
"I inquired at the UNHCR office about our case, explaining our culture to the officer there," said Ye Htun. "But he told me to leave and said the UNHCR was not a travel agency!"
Kitty McKinsey, the regional UNHCR, denied the UN agency was being unhelpful or rude to refugees.
"We are not the one who gives recognition to the people who come to the camps. It is the Thai goverment that gives recognition. We do other things in the camp. We protect people in the camps to make sure their human rights are respected."
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