United Wa State Army (UWSA) has set 16 Lisu Thai citizens, whom it had detained on May 12 free, according to the Thai-Burmese border local news sources.

Among those released is the village headman of Paeksaem village; Piang Luang Tract, Wiang Haeng District, Chiang Mai Province called Manas (40 year old). Paeksaem is one of the villages under the Royal Project of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit.

On May 12, a group of 16 Lisu led by Manas went hunting around Mae Tang stream. But they accidently trespassed into Myanmar and encountered with the soldiers from UWSA’s 171st Military Region. Because 6 of the Lisu carried six guns, Wa soldiers suspected had kept them under detention.

On April 13, the UWSA set 10 of them who don’t have guns free and told those people to bring Thai authorities to come to guarantee if they want the rest of the people back.
Therefore, on April 14, Thai authorities went there to guarantee them and on April 15 the UWSA set all of them together with their guns free.

Local sources say relations between the UWSA and the Burma Army is tense. The Wa are also planting landmines everywhere. Travelers and merchants who have to pass border should be careful.

Because about two third of the refugees in Tangyan Township, Northern Shan State, are children and they cannot return to their villages yet, the IDP aid workers are planning to build a classroom and teach them.

“About two third of the refugees are children under twelve. We thought that we should give them an education rather than let them waste time like this. Especially, we will teach them Ta’ang, Shan and Burmese. Now we are building a classroom for them,” Sai Khur, an IDP volunteer, told SHAN.

Those children did not have opportunity to learn when they were at their villages because they are located very far from town and there is no government school at their villages. And if the basic course succeeds, they will try to connect with a government school, according to another IDP helper.

The clashes between the Shan State Progress Party/Shan State Army (SSPP/SSA) and the Burma Army have continued for a month and not over yet. Therefore the Loi Zay locals who had come to Tangyan could not return to their villages. Both external and internal donors keep supporting food, clothes and places to stay for them. The only blank which needs to be filled is the children’s education. This is why we have planned to build a classroom to teach them, continued Sai Khur.

“The refugees here are the people who couldn’t return to their village yet, they can’t return at all. In Nam Lao and Mong Kao, the villagers have to report to the army if they just want to go to their farms 10 miles away. If there are many restrictions, it won’t work even they go back. Today, because of the fight last week, some villagers from Pang Mawng came to the town but they just went to stay with their relatives,” said Sai Khur.

“We have already built three 42x110 feet shelters and 4 toilets at the former Mong Kao bus station for the refugees who stayed at Aung Mangala (Mingala in Burmese, but Mangala in Pali) in Tangyan. It is said that the Assistance Committee had asked UNICEF to support them for toilets and has received a reply that we will have support for 40 toilets,” Sai Khur added.

The Assistance Committee says its other responsibility is to see that there are no infections in rainy season at the temporary camp.

(Translated from Shan Herald Agency for News, Wednesday 08 May 2013)

If the report about members of the military beat Shan youths at Mong Piang Township, Kengtung District, Eastern Shan State is the truth, they will be punished effectively, said the spokesman of the president, deputy communications minister, U Ye Htut.

“We don’t know whether this is true or not but abusing the public is strictly forbidden in Armed Forces Act. It also violates the military code of conduct.” he emailed to Myanmar Times on May 01.

The incident took place during Thingyan (Water Splashing Festival), on April 15, at Ta Long, Mong Piang Township, Kengtung District. The troops from Infantry Battalion (IB) 293 had splashed water violently and physically abused Shan women who were splashing water. The nearby Shan youths went to stop it. But the Assistant Battalion Commander Captain Nyi Nyi Naing had ordered his soliders to beat those youths.

Two Shan women and 5 Shan youths were beaten with rocks and injured on the head, face and back. The Deputy Commander of Triangle Regional Command had acted as witness and said that he would help the injured persons 50,000 kyat ($57) each. He had reportedly delivered the money to the Hwe Kha Hospital.

(Translated from Myanmar Times, 2 May 2013, reported by Nang Tin Htwe)

An adopted son of the commander of Border Guard Force (BGF) 1007 Mong Ton Township, Eastern Shan State, recently abused a girl at the streamside bathing place, according to local sources.

“In the past, BGF 1007 was Lahu People’s Militia Force (PMF).The culprit is the commander Ja Pikoi’s adopted son. He just came back from Thailand and can’t speak in Tai or Burmese. He only speaks Thai. He dragged and hugged a nineteen year old girl who was going to take a bath at Namhu. His two bodyguards were also there. When the boys from other side heard the girl’s call for help and went to see what happened, they ran away and only one of his bodyguards was caught.” a Pong Pa Khem local source told to SHAN.

The incident took place in the evening of 8 April at Namhu at Pong Pa Khem Sub-Township, Mong Ton Township. The victim is a 19 year old girl from Ward No (4) and the BGF 1007 commander Ja Pikoi’s son is named Ja Na. The next day the Township General Administrator Office summoned him to come to the office at 9:00 am. But he didn’t come, according to a local.

“The villagers caught his bodyguard Ja Tae and asked about him. Ja Tae is a Ta Lur villager and knows everyone in Pong Pa Khem. He told us everything but he didn’t tell Ja Na is Ja Pikoi’s son. Yesterday morning, we forcefully took Ja Na to the community leader’s house. Even though he was talking to the elders he didn’t take his sunglasses off. We knew he was Ja Pikoi’s son when he threatened us that didn’t we know him and he was the BGF commander’s son. At that time, some officers from BGF came with him, too. The community leaders asked him why he abused her and he said, “Because she is beautiful. I like her and I want to hug her. If you want me to marry her, no problem, I will.”When the General Administrator Office summoned him again that evening he didn’t come. There was no settlement. Therefore, we will sign a petition to the chief minister of Shan State.” a local woman said.

According to local source, the petition letter to the chief minister of Shan State will be written by the Myanmar Women’s Affairs Federation (MWAF), Pong Pa Khem branch.

There is also a rumour among the locals that Ja Na is the son of Ja Pikoi and his Thai wife.
In BGF 1007, most members can speak Thai. They might be the people who also have national IDs in Thailand, said locals.

Translator is Mawn, who is studying in Thailand.

People have suffered from the military dictatorship for a long period. There is a lot of corruption under the junta. The government takes a lot of taxes from the public. Consequently, the citizens have to struggle to support their livelihood. So it’s hard to raise a joyful family.

A young woman is telling about her story how her family have been working hard to survive for their livelihood; include the education under the military dictatorship.

A young woman is sitting on her bed and looks at the fan on the wall. She has long black hair, white skin, a slim and tall body. She is dressing a pink color of T-shirt with blue trousers. She wears two bracelets on her left hand. One is the bracelet amulet mixed with red and white color.

Her name is San San (nickname). She is 23 years old. She was born in Mon State, Burma (Mon State has a short border with Thailand's Kanchanaburi Province at its south-eastern tip). She has one elder brother and one younger sister. The occupation of her father was trishaw driving and her mother job was a shopkeeper in Burma.

San San said that her parents have to work hard to support the whole family. They have a difficult time trying to support the whole family including the education of three of them. At that time, they face a difficult problem with the economy. Her parents could not support their education any more. The tuition fees were very expensive.

At that time, San San was in grade eight. Her brother was in grade ten. Her sister was in grade five. Her brother passed high school and continues to B.A degree. He had to stop his education in the second year of the University because of low income. The economy was crisis. In 2004 her mother left Burma and came to find work to support their family in Thailand. Her mother left Mon State when San San was attending grade ten.

San San said “I saw my mom cry when she left home.”

After that her mother came to Thailand San San continued to study at her hometown. She passed high school in 2007. Afterward, she continued to study B.A degree in Mawlamyine (the capital city of Mon State).

San San laughed and said, “I did not pass the exam on the first year because I didn’t have money to attend tuition (special classes). All students who attended tuition they passed the exam. Those who couldn’t attend failed.”

She mentions that in April 2007, her father and brother left home and to find new jobs that could get a higher pay. Their economic problems were getting bigger and bigger. San San and her sister have to live at their relative’s house after their father left.

During the two years that her father and brother left, her parents could not find good jobs. They have to save money to survive their daily life in Thailand. So they could not send money to them.

At the beginning, when her parents arrived in Thailand, they faced a different kind of problems. They were working in the construction areas. Sometime, the police came to check at the construction side and arrested those people who didn’t have any cards.
“Later, my mother sends the tuition fee for me. And I went to attend special class. Then I passed the course but I didn’t have a chance to continue to study the second year,” San San said.

When she talks about it, she looks down on the floor and her face is upset. In addition, she continues as you know the situation of our country, we have low education systems. At schools and universities, the teachers don’t give lectures to the students to be educated. They open special classes outside. For those people who have money it is so easy for them.  Then teachers let them know what information will be included in the exam. It’s not a good way to be educated.

“It’s a corrupt way,” San San said.

Furthermore, she said that at the end of the year of her university life, she met with one man. He gave an advice to her.

She said, “He said that there was a teaching job. If you were interested to be a teacher, you can get the salary and get experience from your work. There are many migrant children school in the border of Burma and Thailand. If you want to go, I know somebody there so I can contact for you.”

She said, “After that, I make a phone call to my mom, I tell my mom that I will go to teach the children at the border of Thailand. My mom doesn’t allow me so I keep quiet.”

In 2008, she came to Maesot at the border of Thailand and Burma. She came to work as a teacher for one and a half years at the migrant school.

She shared her experiences that she saw the situation of the children who came from Burma was suffering in the difficult life including the morality. They have different background, different life and different kind of children there. Some have good morals but some have not. There were different people come from different parts of Burma.

She said, “I asked one child; what do you want to do when you grow up? You know, he answered that I will go to Bangkok. I will go to do the construction. When I heard his answer I feel so sad.”

She added, the children do not have ambition. It is not their goal. It’s slavery in the other countries. At their age, they need to continue to develop their education. But they have less education.

During the time she worked at migrant children school over one year, she did not contact her parents because she doesn’t want her parents to worry about her.

 “My mother did not know I was at Maesot. My parents could not support me so I had to find work to survive. I didn’t tell them I am in Thailand. I did not contact them for over one a year. After that, I want to know about their life. I also miss them so much. And I called them and let them know I am in Thailand. My parents told me to go back to Burma. I told them I was happy to teach the children so I will go back later,” San San said.


After that, she is usually making phone calls to her parents and keeps in touch with them. In addition, she shares about her experience when she arrived in the border.

“When I arrived in Maesot, there is a new place for me. At the beginning, I didn’t have a work permit card. So I was afraid of the police,” San San said.

She said that after she worked at migrant school one year and a half, in 2010 she became an assistant at Min Ma haw school based in Maesot. She worked there for 3 months.

Then she joined the Continuous Education Program (CEP) to apply for TOEFL to practice her English speaking for one year. Then, she applied for scholarship, and fortunately she received the scholarship. In 2011, she had an opportunity to continue her education at IIS Ramkhamhaeng University. Her major is B.A English.

In December 2011, she went to visit her parents at Mahachai. (Mahachai is a port town about 45 kilometers southwest of Bangkok.) She didn’t see her parents for 8 years.

“I went to wait for my parents at their work. When my mother saw me, she didn’t remember me. I called her mom…mom…mom.. and I held up my hand to say hi,  let her see me, I was waiting. At the first time, she looked at me a few minute, then she called that oh my daughter. I couldn’t remember you. My father looked at me and smile. He didn’t say anything at that time,” she said.

 “When I saw them I feel sad but happy too. For the feeling sad because didn’t see them for a long time,” she added.

She also mentions that she saw her father who got really thin. And he looked older. Her mother still looked fat but she also looks old. She said if possible she don’t want them to do the hard jobs. When she saw them, she feels she really want to work and to support them, want them to live in a better life.

In addition, San San said they went back to her parent’s apartment. She cooked dinner for them and have dinner together with her parents.

She smile and said “my father said, delicious food today. I am very happy to meet them. We didn’t see each other for a long time.”

San San added even though she meets her parent but all of her family members could not live together until now. According to the unstable political situation and the economic crisis, so that they still have to fight for their livelihood. They won’t live a joyful family life until things change for the better.

Jasmine is the pen name of a Shan student in Thailand