• Burmese
Thursday, July 10, 2025
No Result
View All Result
NEWSLETTER
The Irrawaddy
27 °c
Yangon
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Junta Watch
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Books
  • Donation
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Junta Watch
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Books
  • Donation
No Result
View All Result
The Irrawaddy
No Result
View All Result
Home In Person Interview

We Trust Neither the Govt Nor the Tatmadaw: Shan IDPs

Kyaw Kha by Kyaw Kha
July 22, 2019
in Interview
Reading Time: 4 mins read
0 0
A A
Sai Leng, chairman of the Koung Jor IDP camp committee. / Kyaw Kha / The Irrawaddy

Sai Leng, chairman of the Koung Jor IDP camp committee. / Kyaw Kha / The Irrawaddy

7.1k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

There are currently six camps for internally displaced persons (IDP) along the Thailand-Myanmar border where villagers who fled civil war in Shan State now live: Loi Kaw Wan, Koung Jor, Loi Sam Sip, Loi Lam, Loi Tai Laeng and Kong Moong Murng camps.

Among them, the Koung Jor IDP camp is the only one located in Thailand.

The IDPs in that camp fled fighting between the Tatmadaw and the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS) around 2002.

RelatedPosts

Russian Choppers on Myanmar Junta’s Shopping List: Min Aung Hlaing

Russian Choppers on Myanmar Junta’s Shopping List: Min Aung Hlaing

June 30, 2025
2.2k
Malaysia Calls for Myanmar Truce Extension, Pushes for Peace Deal

Malaysia Calls for Myanmar Truce Extension, Pushes for Peace Deal

May 26, 2025
616
Shan Party Says It’s Ready to Take Part in Junta’s Election

Shan Party Says It’s Ready to Take Part in Junta’s Election

May 19, 2025
1.3k

Irrawaddy (Burmese edition) Chief Reporter Kyaw Kha discussed conditions in the camps and IDP expectations of repatriation and peace with Sai Leng, Chairman of the camp committee.

How many households and people are in the camp?

There are 87 households and over 300 IDPs in the camp. It has been 17 years since the camp was built and the number of refugees in the camp is decreasing. Some IDPs left the camp by themselves. There were some IDPs who left the camp because they were afraid of being repatriated to Shan State.

Why have they taken refuge here? Where are they from?

They are from various townships including Le Char and Mong Kung.  They fled from the fighting between government troops and Shan troops. Some moved here because they were forced to relocate.

It is the nearby villages that were caught in the crossfire whenever fighting broke out in Shan State. Similar to what is happening now in Rakhine State, villagers were interrogated by government troops because the latter assumed that the villagers had links to armed groups. Sometimes, villagers’ cattle was seized by government troops. In some cases, village heads were killed by government troops. So, they moved to the camp from Mong Hsu. The majority of them are from Le Char and Mong Kung.

Where do the IDPs get their rations now?

They do not have regular rations at the moment. Previously, the TBC (Thailand Border Consortium) gave us food. The TBC stopped assistance for IDPs in October 2017. As a result, Eh Tu Hta Camp in Karen State no longer receives assistance. All the people in our camp, which is not officially recognized, are IDPs. It is just a temporary camp.  Ours is not a refugee camp, it is an IDP camp.

What do they do for their living?

It is a question I really want to answer. Conditions in our camp are much better than others in Shan State. Thai authorities know that assistance for our camp has been cut off, so they pretend not to know what we are doing. So we work as day laborers in nearby Thai villages. Thai farmers in the villages grow garlic and chilly. If there are surprise checks, Thai employers call us ahead of time. They come to us and take us in their cars when they have work for us. Compared with other camps, ours is much better. However, growing garlic and chilly is not a job that is available all year round. In the off season, we do not have jobs. Construction jobs are more regular.

Those who work at construction sites earn 250 Thai Baht (THB) (over 10,000 kyats) per day. They have regular jobs. Wages in garlic and chilly farms depend on prices and work availability. They earn from THB 240 to THB 300 depending on their skills, but it is not a regular job and wages drop when chilly prices fall.

Other IDP camps are in Shan State and it is difficult for them to cross the border. They are distant from Thai villages too. Thus, IDPs there rarely have jobs. It is very difficult for them to make a living.

When do they expect to go back home? Do they intend to go back home?

In fact, there is no one who returns. They are afraid to go back. This is because we trust neither the government nor the current Army. We do not believe that the government has a proper plan to repatriate IDPs. In 2012-13, the Norwegian Refugee Committee implemented pilot projects. They said they would relocate about 90 people to Mong Htar. They told us just that and erected buildings there. We neither knew who funded the project nor who arranged it. Actually, they should have consulted with us. They should have consulted with the organizations that were regularly providing assistance to us. They said we could go and live there because they had spoken to the government.

How about the education of children here?

There is a school set up by CSOs here. It is like an affiliate of the Thai schools. The curriculum is a Thai curriculum, and it is much better than in Myanmar because Shan language is taught. When children finish school here, they can be admitted to Thai schools. They are granted 10-year resident permits to study in Thailand.

Currently, the government, the Tatmadaw and the RCSS are engaged in peace negotiations. Do you expect IDPs will be able to go back home?

We do not know much about the negotiations. However, we do not expect much from them. Whatever the Tatmadaw is doing, they eventually will tell ethnic armed organizations (EAO) to surrender their arms if EAOs want to go into politics. The Tatmadaw has done nothing to build trust.

As for the government, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s guys are naïve. They do not seem to have tangible polices. They are worse than the Tatmadaw. However, the Tatmadaw seems to have a tangible policy, but it always wants to take the upper hand.

Thousands of refugees and IDPs have been stranded along the Thai-Myanmar border and the China-Myanmar Border due to the civil war. Do you think current peace efforts will realize the hopes of IDPs to go back home?

There is a saying in Myanmar that the more you long for the paradise, the further away it recedes. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has adopted a policy of coaxing the Tatmadaw. [Senior General] Min Aung Hlaing knows that. The harder she tries to coax him, the tenser his attitude is. I think the situation is just getting worse and worse.

Your Thoughts …
Tags: civil warIDPsPeaceShan
Kyaw Kha

Kyaw Kha

The Irrawaddy

Similar Picks:

Exodus: Tens of Thousands Flee as Myanmar Junta Troops Face Last Stand in Kokang
Burma

Exodus: Tens of Thousands Flee as Myanmar Junta Troops Face Last Stand in Kokang

by Hein Htoo Zan
November 28, 2023
98.5k

Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army troops are opening roads and pathways through forests for people to flee Kokang’s capital as...

Read moreDetails
China’s Calculated Brutality and Destruction of Myanmar’s Ethnic Trust
Guest Column

China’s Calculated Brutality and Destruction of Myanmar’s Ethnic Trust

by Vaishali Basu Sharma
December 16, 2024
19.5k

Myanmar’s ethnic armies are defying Beijing’s neocolonial mission in the country: a state of controlled chaos that allows resource extraction...

Read moreDetails
‘Midnight Massacre’ at IDP Camp in Myanmar a War Crime: KIA
Burma

‘Midnight Massacre’ at IDP Camp in Myanmar a War Crime: KIA

by The Irrawaddy
October 10, 2023
18.8k

Death toll expected to rise after bombs obliterated village for internally displaced persons in Kachin State shortly before midnight on...

Read moreDetails
Myanmar Junta Boss Attends Opening of Replica of Shan Palace Demolished by Previous Regime
Burma

Myanmar Junta Boss Attends Opening of Replica of Shan Palace Demolished by Previous Regime

by The Irrawaddy
May 13, 2024
13.3k

The old Kengtung Haw was a symbol of Shan identity until it was razed by the previous junta in 1991—a...

Read moreDetails
Yangon, Mandalay Deserted After Dark as Myanmar Junta Hunts for Conscripts
Burma

Yangon, Mandalay Deserted After Dark as Myanmar Junta Hunts for Conscripts

by Hein Htoo Zan
December 16, 2024
12.5k

Desperate regime ramps up forcible conscription as military defeat looms in Rakhine and Kachin states.

Read moreDetails
Why Shan State’s Formidable Armies Have Shunned the Fight Against Myanmar’s Junta     
Guest Column

Why Shan State’s Formidable Armies Have Shunned the Fight Against Myanmar’s Junta     

by Bertil Lintner
March 14, 2024
11.6k

After six decades of political wrangling, assassinations and opium trading, Shan forces remain bitterly divided, lacking a common vision for...

Read moreDetails
Load More
Next Post
The body of a Pauk Taw Pyin villager is taken from Sittwe Hospital to his home in June 2019. / Min Aung Khine / The Irrawaddy

Military Investigating Itself Over Civilian Deaths

Thai Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan arrives at the Army Club to attend a meeting with Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha in Bangkok in December 2018. Prayuth took over as defense minister from Prawit earlier this month. / REUTERS

Pompeo Visit Important for Region, Not Just Thailand

No Result
View All Result

Recommended

37 Years and Counting: Why Has Myanmar’s Democracy Struggle Taken So Long?

37 Years and Counting: Why Has Myanmar’s Democracy Struggle Taken So Long?

7 days ago
1.3k
China’s Surveillance State Watches Everyone, Everywhere

China’s Surveillance State Watches Everyone, Everywhere

2 days ago
698

Most Read

  • Chin Resistance Tensions Boil Over as CNA Seizes Rival’s Myanmar HQ

    Chin Resistance Tensions Boil Over as CNA Seizes Rival’s Myanmar HQ

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Myanmar Junta Starves Last Rakhine Strongholds as AA Closes In

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Trump’s Tariffs to Hit Myanmar’s Garment Manufacturers Hard

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • ‘Reforms Are Not Optional’: Prominent Activist Urges NUG to Act Before It’s Too Late

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Myanmar Junta’s Top Russian Arms Supplier Tosses in Quake ‘Donation’

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

Newsletter

Get The Irrawaddy’s latest news, analyses and opinion pieces on Myanmar in your inbox.

Subscribe here for daily updates.

Contents

  • News
  • Politics
  • War Against the Junta
  • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
  • Conflicts In Numbers
  • Junta Crony
  • Ethnic Issues
  • Asia
  • World
  • Business
  • Economy
  • Election 2020
  • Elections in History
  • Cartoons
  • Features
  • Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Commentary
  • Guest Column
  • Analysis
  • Letters
  • In Person
  • Interview
  • Profile
  • Dateline
  • Specials
  • Myanmar Diary
  • Women & Gender
  • Places in History
  • On This Day
  • From the Archive
  • Myanmar & COVID-19
  • Intelligence
  • Myanmar-China Watch
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Food
  • Fashion & Design
  • Videos
  • Photos
  • Photo Essay
  • Donation

About The Irrawaddy

Founded in 1993 by a group of Myanmar journalists living in exile in Thailand, The Irrawaddy is a leading source of reliable news, information, and analysis on Burma/Myanmar and the Southeast Asian region. From its inception, The Irrawaddy has been an independent news media group, unaffiliated with any political party, organization or government. We believe that media must be free and independent and we strive to preserve press freedom.

  • Copyright
  • Code of Ethics
  • Privacy Policy
  • Team
  • About Us
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Burmese

© 2023 Irrawaddy Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Business
    • Economy
    • Business Roundup
  • Books
  • Donation

© 2023 Irrawaddy Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.