For more than half a century thousands of human beings have been forced to abandon their homes and villages to save their lives and escape the oppression and ethnic cleansing that is being carried out by the military dictatorship in Myanmar (previously Burma). The majority of these people seek refuge in the neighboring country of Thailand, a country that is open to tourism from the Western World and which projects an idyllic image of paradise. However it is also a country where extreme racism has lurked for centuries, including labour exploitation, human trafficking and unpunished murderers. The passive attitude of the Thai authorities with regard to extortion turns these refugees into citizens without rights, even more vulnerable due to their status as “illegal aliens” who are refused residence papers or a passport.
The refugees coming from Myanmar, turned into second-class citizens, have suffered xenophobic treatment and a lack of sensitivity on the part of the Thais for more than four decades of cruel exile.
The victory obtained in the recent democratic elections by the government of Aung San Suu Kyi, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and maximum authority of the National League for Democracy (NLD), together with the cease-fire between the Burmese government and the guerrilla has opened a window to hope. But it has also caused a reduction in the international financing going to the NGOs working on Thailand’s border, which directly affects the already difficult situation that the vast majority of refugees are suffering, and the return of exiles to their country of origin has not occurred due to the fact that lasting stability is still so uncertain.
