by Jodi, Aneta, Lauren, and Carl
Long Live the King: Happy New Year
Or
Women Are Evil: Don't Steal Our Monks
Section I: Long Live the King: Happy New Year
The cusp of 2007 found us at the Tha Pae gate of Chiang Mae setting the sky on fire surrounded by thousands of Thais and farangs (foreigners).
Once we got to the walls of the old city, we were greeted by an immense King's portrait surrounded by small yellow lanterns. The sky was filled with orange specks--what turned out to be lanterns set afloat like hot air ballons. An Aussie saw us yearning to set off one and gave us the lantern his tour guide had given him. We took a lighter to the wax ring, which was connected by thin wires to a wind sock. Once the fire started, the wind sock filled with air and soon we could let the lantern float upwards with the thousands of others filling the sky. Happy New Year! Long Live the King!
But that was just the finale to the end of another great day.
After a morning of errands and Internet, we split up in two groups for lunch. One went to the local ex-pat grocery store, which has a a little coffee shop connected to the front. It served an odd combination of eastern and western: ham and cheese spring rolls, coconut freeze, chicken salad sandwiches.
The second group headed to what we thought was a more authentic area. After perusing a few menus, the owner of Hell's Kitchen convinced us into giving his food a try. We were in a time crunch and we thought he, being American (from Cleveland no less) would understand our sense of urgency. His Thai wife and her sister were cooking in place of his usual staff, who all seemed to have misfortunate accidents over the holiday weekend. While they hurried to prepare nine meals--ranging from baby back ribs to red curry to home-made corn bread to noodle soup--he sat behind us rambling on about the economics of the food court, which was owned by the billionaire who owns Chang beer; his Burmese waiter who disappeared for several days during the recent uprisings; his knowledge of pizza based on his forays in Italy; and his mother's recipe for barbeque sauce. Finally, 45 minutes later, while our bus waited, the last of our mediocre food arrived.
Section II: Don't Steal Our Monks
For the afternon, we hired a tour guide, who was very excited about Northern Thailand's history. We went to three temples and learned about Buddhism, monarchies, and the struggles between Burma and Thailand. For a reference point, the Buddhist calendar is based on Buddha's death, 543 years before the Common Era began.
Our first stop was Wat Chiang Man, the first temple of King Mengrai in the 13th century. It held ancient crystal and marble Buddhas. The history behind it was very interesting and informative, despite the difficulties of names, dates, geography, and accents. Colorful, gorgeous pictures lining the wat told Buddha's story, from his material life as a prince surrounded by beautiful women; to his attempts to renounce materialism, including starving and cutting himself; to his deeds as an enlightened Buddha.
At Wat Suan Dok, the flower garden temple, we were surprised to find reliquaries of Chiang Mai royalty in place of flowers. Apparently hundreds of years ago a monk claimed to have a relic of Buddha with magical properties. The monk had a vision that it needed to be placed in a special spot. He asked several kings where to place it. The king of Chiang Mai came forward, offering his flower garden as a holy grounds for the magnificent gold pagoda.
This wat is also where we'll be chatting with monks later in the week. Our tour guide reminded the women not to touch the monks. Women provide a source of evil temptation, diverting them from their holy path. "Don't the monks," he warned playfully. "Don't steal our monks." Like most other Buddhist men, he himself had served time as a monk. When he was 21, he spent four months in a monastery, meditating, walking through the streets soliciting their daily meal, and studying Buddhism.
In his explanations of Buddhism, our guide referred to 'God' and 'Soul' - terms that carry Western religious connotations. Buddhism denies the existence of a soul and while there are 'gods' within Buddhism cosmology, there is no single overarching 'God' to worship. The guide's descriptions may have been an attempt to appeal to our Western understandings of religion, but ultimately, it seemed misleading. Take, for example, our guide's description of Mara, the emerald green goddess who tried to tempt the Buddha with material and transitory objects: Rather than explaining that the figure was goddess or her particular role in the story of the Buddha, he referred to her simply as 'god'. We look forward to Monk Chat, when we'll be able to talk to actively practicing monks.
Our last wat stop, the Wat Chedi Luang is the first or second largest pagoda in Thailand. Built in 1441 and partly destroyed by an earthquake, it still stands in its ancient glory. As in other wats, images of the seven Buddhas sat in a row, holding different poses for each day of the week. Bowls in front of the seven statues hold coins from Buddhists' required birthday donations. It's best to be born in the early parts of the month; donations are based on the day of the month you're born. Our tour guide was happy with his lot--the 8th, so he donated 8 baht.
Section III: Materialism
People ran to the markets to buy clothes for the night's festivities. Apparently Buddhism didn't make much of a mark.
We dressed in our finest and set out for the town. We dined outdoors at the Whole Earth, joined by a Korean guest and served by a dour waiter. An elephant stopped by to say hello. We tried to go to a hot highrise 5-star hotel, where a live Thai band sang Bee Gee covers and neon across the top floor proclaimed: Long Live the King: Happy New Year. But for 1,700 bhats per person, we headed across the street to a bar/restaurant, where we could still hear the music and see the band, and the drinks were cheaper. Just after 11, we headed for the festivities at the wall, where we set off our fire balloons and celebrated the New Year Thai style. We couldn't think of a better way to bring in 2008. Sa-wat-di pi mai--or, as Anna says, "swatee be my ka."
Monday, December 31, 2007
Happy New Year from India!
Hello from Shoshanna:
We arrived safely a few days ago and are now settled into St. Patrick's home, the Dalit school where we are staying. We don't have regular access to the Internet, so I just wanted to write a quick hello and tell you that we are all doing very well.
The last 2 days we have been working on a preventive health survey in a rural village nearby. We were welcomed with garlands, bindis, music and dance. Very colorful! The nursing students we are working with are very nice and patient with us, since it is quite challenging to do a survey when we don't speak Tamil. Tonight we are going to another village to celebrate the New Year and the students are up on the roof practising their dance number.
That's all for now. I'll see if we can write more soon.
We arrived safely a few days ago and are now settled into St. Patrick's home, the Dalit school where we are staying. We don't have regular access to the Internet, so I just wanted to write a quick hello and tell you that we are all doing very well.
The last 2 days we have been working on a preventive health survey in a rural village nearby. We were welcomed with garlands, bindis, music and dance. Very colorful! The nursing students we are working with are very nice and patient with us, since it is quite challenging to do a survey when we don't speak Tamil. Tonight we are going to another village to celebrate the New Year and the students are up on the roof practising their dance number.
That's all for now. I'll see if we can write more soon.
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Adventures With Tony, 12-30-07, Thai/Burma Border, Winter 2007-08
by Lauren and Jodi
Day 3: December 30, 2007
Adventures With Tony
Our tour guide for the day, Tony, took us on a long day's excursion to the southwest of Chiang Mai, in the Sanpatong area. For $24, we hiked straight up a mountain to a Hmong/Meo hilltribe village, rode (or didn't ride) elephants through the jungle, ate an authentic Thai meal in an authentic Shan village, visited the Karen people and watched them weave beautiful cloths and made friends with sweet children, slipped and slid and swam under a waterfall, and finally coursed down a swiftly moving Mae Win River on bamboo rafts.
We got more out of this adventure than we ever would have expected. We got culture and physical challenges, learned about animal rights, met friendly Thai people, saw beautiful sites, and had a whole lot of fun.
Starting out, we didn't know what to expect--and many of us weren't prepared. But when Tony told us to take the bamboo walking sticks by the van, those of us wearing flip flops knew we were in for an adventure. For 45 minutes we huffed and puffed and slid, the highlight being the rickety bamboo bridge with missing slats.
At the top of the Mae Wong mountain in the Hmong village, Tony gave us a brief history. The people were originally from Tibet and adopted Christianity from missionaries. They used to get their income from opium and marijuana; now they grow rice and sew handicrafts which they sell to tourists, some of whom climbed the mountain as we did, others who took the road.
Next stop: elephants. As we watched our beasts approach us, we noticed they looked sad and overworked. Many had holes in their ears and one had a bloody cut on his head. Most of the young Thai men driving them carried metal picks. But we decided to hop on anyway, two to elephant.
Most of us told our guides not to use the sticks or hit the elephants as we made our way through the jungle. The elephants seemed fine, and we were glad that the guides honored our requests.
Yoshi's and Jodi's elephant, though, refused to move and we wouldn't let them hurt him to give us our money's worth. After about 15 minutes of our elephant stalling, breaking off huge branches from trees, and cajoling from the guide, we just told him to turn back. Our animal got to rest and eat--that was the most we could do for animal rights today, but at least we did something.
Seeing the elephants in those conditions gave many of us second thoughts about the extent to which tourists are willing to exploit the local environment to have a good time. Some of us plan to return home and do further research into the treatment of elephants in particular.
Lunch was all local vegetables served by the Shan people in an open-air wooden building. The pineapple and watermelon dessert ended one of our best meals so far.
Next: Karen village. There are three sects; this was the white Karen, so called because the single women wore white to represent their availability. These people originated in Burma. The men work in the city, in construction, or cut teak in the forests. With this income and money from tourists, they are able to send their children to a local school where they learn English and Thai.
Next stop: Mae Wok waterfall
We approached the waterfall with caution, thinking it was too cold, the rocks were too slippery, and it was pretty just to look at. But once Lauren got splashed and slipped into the pool under the falls, all previous hesitations went out the window. Soon we were all climbing rocks, standing under the freezing falls, splashing around and screaming like kids. We made such a scene that a Thai onlooker began taking pictures of us. He took us up on our offer to take pictures of him with his wife and adorable daughter in return. We look forward to exchanging pictures by e-mail.
Finally, already wet, we embarked on the final leg of our journey: bamboo rafting. Our guides playfully terrorized us, splashing us with cold water and jolting the rafts to give us an exciting ride. What at first seemed like a lazy float turned to almost white-water rafting. Among the highlights: Poor Yoshi was flung from his float and held on for dear life.
When we got back to the guesthouse, Yoshi immediately collapsed on his bed and was out for hours.
The rest of us went to the night market for dinner. No sharing tonight. Delicious food including (shared) ethnic appetizer: Take a small leaf. Drop in ginger, red onion, baked coconut flakes, dried fish, peanuts, spoon in tamarind sauce.
After dinner, we walked through the overwhelming neon touristic night market. Not quite done for the day, some of us went off to Bubble for dancing.
And we went to sleep anticipating tomorrow: New Year's Eve day Thai style.
Day 3: December 30, 2007
Adventures With Tony
Our tour guide for the day, Tony, took us on a long day's excursion to the southwest of Chiang Mai, in the Sanpatong area. For $24, we hiked straight up a mountain to a Hmong/Meo hilltribe village, rode (or didn't ride) elephants through the jungle, ate an authentic Thai meal in an authentic Shan village, visited the Karen people and watched them weave beautiful cloths and made friends with sweet children, slipped and slid and swam under a waterfall, and finally coursed down a swiftly moving Mae Win River on bamboo rafts.
We got more out of this adventure than we ever would have expected. We got culture and physical challenges, learned about animal rights, met friendly Thai people, saw beautiful sites, and had a whole lot of fun.
Starting out, we didn't know what to expect--and many of us weren't prepared. But when Tony told us to take the bamboo walking sticks by the van, those of us wearing flip flops knew we were in for an adventure. For 45 minutes we huffed and puffed and slid, the highlight being the rickety bamboo bridge with missing slats.
At the top of the Mae Wong mountain in the Hmong village, Tony gave us a brief history. The people were originally from Tibet and adopted Christianity from missionaries. They used to get their income from opium and marijuana; now they grow rice and sew handicrafts which they sell to tourists, some of whom climbed the mountain as we did, others who took the road.
Next stop: elephants. As we watched our beasts approach us, we noticed they looked sad and overworked. Many had holes in their ears and one had a bloody cut on his head. Most of the young Thai men driving them carried metal picks. But we decided to hop on anyway, two to elephant.
Most of us told our guides not to use the sticks or hit the elephants as we made our way through the jungle. The elephants seemed fine, and we were glad that the guides honored our requests.
Yoshi's and Jodi's elephant, though, refused to move and we wouldn't let them hurt him to give us our money's worth. After about 15 minutes of our elephant stalling, breaking off huge branches from trees, and cajoling from the guide, we just told him to turn back. Our animal got to rest and eat--that was the most we could do for animal rights today, but at least we did something.
Seeing the elephants in those conditions gave many of us second thoughts about the extent to which tourists are willing to exploit the local environment to have a good time. Some of us plan to return home and do further research into the treatment of elephants in particular.
Lunch was all local vegetables served by the Shan people in an open-air wooden building. The pineapple and watermelon dessert ended one of our best meals so far.
Next: Karen village. There are three sects; this was the white Karen, so called because the single women wore white to represent their availability. These people originated in Burma. The men work in the city, in construction, or cut teak in the forests. With this income and money from tourists, they are able to send their children to a local school where they learn English and Thai.
Next stop: Mae Wok waterfall
We approached the waterfall with caution, thinking it was too cold, the rocks were too slippery, and it was pretty just to look at. But once Lauren got splashed and slipped into the pool under the falls, all previous hesitations went out the window. Soon we were all climbing rocks, standing under the freezing falls, splashing around and screaming like kids. We made such a scene that a Thai onlooker began taking pictures of us. He took us up on our offer to take pictures of him with his wife and adorable daughter in return. We look forward to exchanging pictures by e-mail.
Finally, already wet, we embarked on the final leg of our journey: bamboo rafting. Our guides playfully terrorized us, splashing us with cold water and jolting the rafts to give us an exciting ride. What at first seemed like a lazy float turned to almost white-water rafting. Among the highlights: Poor Yoshi was flung from his float and held on for dear life.
When we got back to the guesthouse, Yoshi immediately collapsed on his bed and was out for hours.
The rest of us went to the night market for dinner. No sharing tonight. Delicious food including (shared) ethnic appetizer: Take a small leaf. Drop in ginger, red onion, baked coconut flakes, dried fish, peanuts, spoon in tamarind sauce.
After dinner, we walked through the overwhelming neon touristic night market. Not quite done for the day, some of us went off to Bubble for dancing.
And we went to sleep anticipating tomorrow: New Year's Eve day Thai style.
Jodi and Carl, Thai//Burma border, Winter 2007-08
Flight:
28 hours in transit and we all survived. Highlights: several extremely long movies (Hairspray, Live Free or Die Hard, Shoot 'Em Up, Bordertown), interesting documentary on Chinese politics today. Great bibimbop (native Korean dish with vegetables, meat, rice, and chili paste) with seaweed soup. Four-hour layover in Seoul, where we created paper boxes, a traditional Korean craft.
Arrived in Chiang Mai sleepy, went through prolonged immigration screening. Two shuttles picked us up.We woke up guesthouse staff, smelled the honeysuckle in the garden, and were lulled to sleep by the moped traffic on the road outside at 3am.
Day 2: December 29
Woke up still slightly addled by jet lag. Most people went wandering through the streets. A few lucky ones found the local day market, with flowers prepared for temple-goers, stacks of spices and dried fish, sweets in banana leaves, candied water chestnuts which the vendor let us taste, pig faces, and the live birds in tiny cages. (We learned later that releasing these brings good luck.) We wandered into a less developed neighborhood--Chiang Mai waterfront property--and encountered an old woman who was watching a tortoise. She picked him up and encouraged us to pet him. (Note to parents: Yes, we pet. No, we didn't get bit.)
On every other block there was a wat, the name for the Buddhist temples, which are adorned, often with gold leaf, with the donations of patrons. In one wat, we heard a monk chanting so walked in where a group of people sat in chairs. We watched and listened for maybe 15 minutes before we realized we were party to a funeral. The people in back of us, we realized, all wore black. There was a framed photo of an older woman with a flowered garland. In the back: a casket. As we left, we asked a man with a black t-shirt and jeans if this was a funeral and he confirmed, with a broad smile, that yes, his 86-year-old mother had just died. Oops.
The whole group collected for lunch at Antique restaurant, where we ordered pad thai--the real thing of course, fried rice with pineapple served in a pineapple, pad ped (catfish curry) with an unnamed pea-looking spice or vegetable that was basically inedible, soup served in a green coconut, and other assorted dishes.
Then, our first excursion. Our shuttle took us up endless switchbacks to Doi Suthep, a magnificent wat overlooking Chiang Mai, where apparently half of Thailand was visiting that day. The parking line extended maybe for a mile. The wat stood at the top of a high set of stairs, where young Thais with guitars sang songs and asked for contributions to worthy causes. According to legend, an Indian king, as part of a religious rite, placed a relic of the Buddha on a white elephant, which wandered to the top of Doi Suthep and died of exhaustion. And so they built a wat there.
Up the stairs, a zillion tourists carrying white or red roses circumambulated the stupa, which was also lined with seven days' worth of Buddhas in seven different positions. Patrons were also prostrating themselves in front of various Buddha statues and offering incense and flower garlands. Monks sprayed water with short broom and tied white string around wrists as a blessing. Rows of bells inscribed with prayers were rung, reaffirming their prayers. The monks were selling candles, prayer flags, and prayers they wrote on paper that they would burn for you.
Next: more switchbacks to a native Hmong hillside village, which had been converted, somewhat anyway, into a tourist attraction. Fortunately we arrived at the end of the day when most tourists were leaving, so we were able to see the young Hmong boys play ball in the empty parking lot while older boys played basketball in a schoolyard. Overlooking the town stood a white temple structure. We tried to get there, avoiding the chickens that ran through the streets (Carl successfully overcoming his phobia) (the roosters were caged in overturned straw baskets) but ended up in field of old tires. We tried again, and ended up in the opium museum, which we refused to pay for. So we went down to the shops and wandered, finding a Tibetan prayer bowl that magically makes a beautiful sound, and bought an "electrolyte beverage," which tasted like corn syrup. Two others in our group found the right road to the temple and said it had beautiful flowers and a waterfall. A gorgeous pink sunset gave us the perfect ending for our excursion.
For dinner we wandered into a local restaurant. Dan, our trusty professorial leader, ordered a variety of dishes for us to try. (He had lived in Thailand for a year and his Thai is coming back, especially--luckily for us--concerning food.)
Dan went to get a massage, some of the women went to call or e-mail home, a few went off for Karaoke, and the bloggers blogged. Stay tuned. We'll be back.
28 hours in transit and we all survived. Highlights: several extremely long movies (Hairspray, Live Free or Die Hard, Shoot 'Em Up, Bordertown), interesting documentary on Chinese politics today. Great bibimbop (native Korean dish with vegetables, meat, rice, and chili paste) with seaweed soup. Four-hour layover in Seoul, where we created paper boxes, a traditional Korean craft.
Arrived in Chiang Mai sleepy, went through prolonged immigration screening. Two shuttles picked us up.We woke up guesthouse staff, smelled the honeysuckle in the garden, and were lulled to sleep by the moped traffic on the road outside at 3am.
Day 2: December 29
Woke up still slightly addled by jet lag. Most people went wandering through the streets. A few lucky ones found the local day market, with flowers prepared for temple-goers, stacks of spices and dried fish, sweets in banana leaves, candied water chestnuts which the vendor let us taste, pig faces, and the live birds in tiny cages. (We learned later that releasing these brings good luck.) We wandered into a less developed neighborhood--Chiang Mai waterfront property--and encountered an old woman who was watching a tortoise. She picked him up and encouraged us to pet him. (Note to parents: Yes, we pet. No, we didn't get bit.)
On every other block there was a wat, the name for the Buddhist temples, which are adorned, often with gold leaf, with the donations of patrons. In one wat, we heard a monk chanting so walked in where a group of people sat in chairs. We watched and listened for maybe 15 minutes before we realized we were party to a funeral. The people in back of us, we realized, all wore black. There was a framed photo of an older woman with a flowered garland. In the back: a casket. As we left, we asked a man with a black t-shirt and jeans if this was a funeral and he confirmed, with a broad smile, that yes, his 86-year-old mother had just died. Oops.
The whole group collected for lunch at Antique restaurant, where we ordered pad thai--the real thing of course, fried rice with pineapple served in a pineapple, pad ped (catfish curry) with an unnamed pea-looking spice or vegetable that was basically inedible, soup served in a green coconut, and other assorted dishes.
Then, our first excursion. Our shuttle took us up endless switchbacks to Doi Suthep, a magnificent wat overlooking Chiang Mai, where apparently half of Thailand was visiting that day. The parking line extended maybe for a mile. The wat stood at the top of a high set of stairs, where young Thais with guitars sang songs and asked for contributions to worthy causes. According to legend, an Indian king, as part of a religious rite, placed a relic of the Buddha on a white elephant, which wandered to the top of Doi Suthep and died of exhaustion. And so they built a wat there.
Up the stairs, a zillion tourists carrying white or red roses circumambulated the stupa, which was also lined with seven days' worth of Buddhas in seven different positions. Patrons were also prostrating themselves in front of various Buddha statues and offering incense and flower garlands. Monks sprayed water with short broom and tied white string around wrists as a blessing. Rows of bells inscribed with prayers were rung, reaffirming their prayers. The monks were selling candles, prayer flags, and prayers they wrote on paper that they would burn for you.
Next: more switchbacks to a native Hmong hillside village, which had been converted, somewhat anyway, into a tourist attraction. Fortunately we arrived at the end of the day when most tourists were leaving, so we were able to see the young Hmong boys play ball in the empty parking lot while older boys played basketball in a schoolyard. Overlooking the town stood a white temple structure. We tried to get there, avoiding the chickens that ran through the streets (Carl successfully overcoming his phobia) (the roosters were caged in overturned straw baskets) but ended up in field of old tires. We tried again, and ended up in the opium museum, which we refused to pay for. So we went down to the shops and wandered, finding a Tibetan prayer bowl that magically makes a beautiful sound, and bought an "electrolyte beverage," which tasted like corn syrup. Two others in our group found the right road to the temple and said it had beautiful flowers and a waterfall. A gorgeous pink sunset gave us the perfect ending for our excursion.
For dinner we wandered into a local restaurant. Dan, our trusty professorial leader, ordered a variety of dishes for us to try. (He had lived in Thailand for a year and his Thai is coming back, especially--luckily for us--concerning food.)
Dan went to get a massage, some of the women went to call or e-mail home, a few went off for Karaoke, and the bloggers blogged. Stay tuned. We'll be back.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Thailand/Burma Alternative Break: Pre-departure Meetings
Lauren Barr, Thai/Burma Border Winter '08
For all of American University’s Alternative Breaks, participants must attend at least eight pre-departure meetings. These meetings are a time for us to bond even while we delve into the place, people, and issues that our trip incorporates.
Our pre-departure meetings were full of laughs and learning – truly setting the tone for our trip. Every Wednesday at 9 pm, we gathered in a circle of chairs in the basement of the Kay Spiritual Life Center. After a long day of school and work, everyone still made it a priority to show up on time and engage in the discussions. As we arrived, we passed around all of the materials for the day: the half-sheet agenda, outlines and facts on the topics being covered, perhaps a list of essential words in Thai, and other odds and ends.
For the first several meetings, we began with a fun mixer to learn about each other and start to bond as a group. Classic games like “Two Truths and a Lie” and “I’m going on a social action trip” lightened the mood and gave us an extra burst of energy to begin the hour-long meeting. During the last few sessions, we also initiated a new tradition called “Highs and Lows,” which will become part of our routine in Thailand. In this activity, we take turns explaining the best and worst moments of our day. We hope that “Highs and Lows” will help us to process our experiences and check in with each other at the end of each jam-packed day.
Throughout our pre-departure meetings, we also read and discussed several excerpts. Our readings included a controversial speech by Ivan Illich called “To Hell with Good Intentions,” an article called “Thailand: Complications in the Resettlements of Burmese Refugees,” Aung San Suu Kyi’s “Freedom from Fear,” an interview of Aung San Suu Kyi, and part of The Iron Road by James Mawdsley. Each passage gave a different perspective on our trip and through them we probed deeper into the issues of democracy and human rights in Burma and raised questions about how to be effective activists how exactly to define the purpose of our trip. The conversations these readings prompted helped us to clarify what it means to go on an alternative break and how to make the most of it while we are there.
In one of our meetings, Jeremy Woodrum, the founder and director of the US Campaign for Burma, came to speak. He talked about his personal connection to Burma and why our activism is so vital. One of the things he said that really struck me was that we should focus on listening and making connections with individuals. The Burmese people, he commented, often do not openly talk to each other about the hardships they all face. Because they tend to hold their experiences and emotions inside, a foreigner can provide a much-needed outlet for their stories. We need to encourage them to stay strong and continue to fight for their rights.
Integral to each meeting were the presentations on various topics related to our trip. On the first meeting, everyone chose one or more topic, so that we covered the history of Burma, the military junta, Aung San Suu Kyi, the National League for Democracy, political prisoners, the impact of foreign direct investment/trade/sanctions, humanitarian aid, refugees, the environment, ethnic groups, drugs, IDPs, child soldiers, forced labor, sex workers, migrant workers, and Burma’s relationship with ASEAN and other international organizations. Each session, I left feeling overwhelmed by what I learned and renewed in my commitment to helping the people of Burma. I think we all struggled to register that the astounding statistics represent people and the facts written on paper will soon be real to us. The over 500,000 internally displaced persons and hundreds of thousands of refugees in neighboring countries, the 1,300 political prisoners and 360,000 Burmese with HIV/AIDS, the sex workers, migrant workers, monks, and child soldiers will soon become faces to us.
We have prepared as best we can and now it is time for us to take the long plane ride to the Thai/Burma border where we will experience firsthand one of the most brutal and devastating crises in the world today.
Friday, December 14, 2007
Local Organizations at Thai-Burma Border
Jodi Lipson, Thai-Burma Border, Winter 07-08
Here are some of the organizations we will be meeting with.
1. The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma) (www.aappb.org) assists families of political prisoners to visit their loved ones, supports prisoners by providing necessities such as food and medicine, monitors conditions in prisons, publicizes arrests, conditions and life stories of imprisoned political activists and artists, and advocates for change.
2. The Burma Lawyers Council (www.blc-burma.org), established by lawyers, actively oppose the military dictatorship. It
Promotes and assists in the educating, implementation, restoring, and improving basic human rights, democratic rights, and the rule of law in Burma;
Assists in the drafting and implementing a constitution for Burma, and in associated matters of legal education.
3. The Cynthia Maung and Mae Tao Clinic (www.maetaoclinic.org) provides free health care for refugees, migrant workers, and other individuals who cross the border from Burma to Thailand. People of all ethnicities and religions are welcome at the Clinic.
4. The Democratic Party for a New Society (www.dpns.org) was formed in October 1988 to continue Burma's unfinished democratic struggle, which was suppressed by the brutal military regime. The DPNS, with a large support base amongst the youth, including students, has played a vital role in 1990s. countrywide. The DPNS was the second largest party next to the National League for Democracy (NLD) led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, though it allies with the NLD, and is closely working for its political campaigns.
5. The Democratic Voice of Burma (http://www.dvb.no) is a nonprofit Burmese media organization committed to responsible journalism.
6. Earthrights International (http://www.earthrights.org) combines the power of law and the power of people in defense of human rights and the environment. They specialize in fact-finding, legal actions against perpetrators of earth rights abuses, and training for grassroots and community leaders and advocacy campaigns.
7. Empower (www.empowerfoundation.org) is a grassroots organization which offers support, assistance, and access to education for women workers in the entertainment industry.
8. Free Burma Rangers (http://www.freeburmarangers.org) is a multiethnic, multi-faith humanitarian service movement aimed at bringing help, hope and love to people in the war zones of Burma. In addition to relief and reporting, other results of the teams' actions are the development of leadership capacity, civil society and the strengthening of inter-ethnic unity. Over 90 multi-ethnic teams have been trained with 20 full time teams active in the Karen, Karenni, Shan, Lahu and Arakan areas of Burma.
9. Human Rights Education Institute of Burma (www.hreib.com/eindex.html) aims to empower people through human rights education to engage in social transformation and promote a culture of human rights for all.
10. The Irrawaddy Newspaper (www.irrawaddy.org). Its parent, the Irrawaddy Publishing Group, was established in 1992 by Burmese citizens living in exile and is not affiliated with any political party or organization. The Irrawaddy seeks to promote press freedom and access to unbiased information.
11. The Karen Women’s Organization (www.karenwomen.org), formed in 1949 and with a membership of more than 30,000 women, is a community-based organisation of Karen women working in development and relief in the refugee camps on the Thai border and with IDPs (Internally Displaced Persons) and women inside Burma.
12. The Moe Swe and Yaung Chi Oo Workers Union (http://yaungchioo.org) (YCOWA) was founded in 1999 by Burmese student activists and migrant workers, with the goal of improving working and living conditions for the Burmese migrant laborers in the Mae Sot area of Thailand. Since then, it has mainly focused on in the field of protecting worker rights, providing rights education, supporting for health care and facilitating social activities.
13. The Shan Women’s Action Network (SWAN) (www.shanwomen.org) is a founding member of the Women's League of Burma, an umbrella women's organization of 11 women's groups from Burma. It aims to promote women's and children's rights, oppose exploitation of and violence against women and children; and work for peace and freedom.
14. The SHWE Gas Project (www.shwe.org) is concerned with a natural gas pipeline project presently unfolding in Western Burma. In cooperation with Burma's military junta, a consortium of Indian and Korean corporations are currently exploring gas fields off the coast of Arakan State in Western Burma. These Shwe fields are destined to become the Burmese military government's largest single source of foreign income.
Here are some of the organizations we will be meeting with.
1. The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma) (www.aappb.org) assists families of political prisoners to visit their loved ones, supports prisoners by providing necessities such as food and medicine, monitors conditions in prisons, publicizes arrests, conditions and life stories of imprisoned political activists and artists, and advocates for change.
2. The Burma Lawyers Council (www.blc-burma.org), established by lawyers, actively oppose the military dictatorship. It
Promotes and assists in the educating, implementation, restoring, and improving basic human rights, democratic rights, and the rule of law in Burma;
Assists in the drafting and implementing a constitution for Burma, and in associated matters of legal education.
3. The Cynthia Maung and Mae Tao Clinic (www.maetaoclinic.org) provides free health care for refugees, migrant workers, and other individuals who cross the border from Burma to Thailand. People of all ethnicities and religions are welcome at the Clinic.
4. The Democratic Party for a New Society (www.dpns.org) was formed in October 1988 to continue Burma's unfinished democratic struggle, which was suppressed by the brutal military regime. The DPNS, with a large support base amongst the youth, including students, has played a vital role in 1990s. countrywide. The DPNS was the second largest party next to the National League for Democracy (NLD) led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, though it allies with the NLD, and is closely working for its political campaigns.
5. The Democratic Voice of Burma (http://www.dvb.no) is a nonprofit Burmese media organization committed to responsible journalism.
6. Earthrights International (http://www.earthrights.org) combines the power of law and the power of people in defense of human rights and the environment. They specialize in fact-finding, legal actions against perpetrators of earth rights abuses, and training for grassroots and community leaders and advocacy campaigns.
7. Empower (www.empowerfoundation.org) is a grassroots organization which offers support, assistance, and access to education for women workers in the entertainment industry.
8. Free Burma Rangers (http://www.freeburmarangers.org) is a multiethnic, multi-faith humanitarian service movement aimed at bringing help, hope and love to people in the war zones of Burma. In addition to relief and reporting, other results of the teams' actions are the development of leadership capacity, civil society and the strengthening of inter-ethnic unity. Over 90 multi-ethnic teams have been trained with 20 full time teams active in the Karen, Karenni, Shan, Lahu and Arakan areas of Burma.
9. Human Rights Education Institute of Burma (www.hreib.com/eindex.html) aims to empower people through human rights education to engage in social transformation and promote a culture of human rights for all.
10. The Irrawaddy Newspaper (www.irrawaddy.org). Its parent, the Irrawaddy Publishing Group, was established in 1992 by Burmese citizens living in exile and is not affiliated with any political party or organization. The Irrawaddy seeks to promote press freedom and access to unbiased information.
11. The Karen Women’s Organization (www.karenwomen.org), formed in 1949 and with a membership of more than 30,000 women, is a community-based organisation of Karen women working in development and relief in the refugee camps on the Thai border and with IDPs (Internally Displaced Persons) and women inside Burma.
12. The Moe Swe and Yaung Chi Oo Workers Union (http://yaungchioo.org) (YCOWA) was founded in 1999 by Burmese student activists and migrant workers, with the goal of improving working and living conditions for the Burmese migrant laborers in the Mae Sot area of Thailand. Since then, it has mainly focused on in the field of protecting worker rights, providing rights education, supporting for health care and facilitating social activities.
13. The Shan Women’s Action Network (SWAN) (www.shanwomen.org) is a founding member of the Women's League of Burma, an umbrella women's organization of 11 women's groups from Burma. It aims to promote women's and children's rights, oppose exploitation of and violence against women and children; and work for peace and freedom.
14. The SHWE Gas Project (www.shwe.org) is concerned with a natural gas pipeline project presently unfolding in Western Burma. In cooperation with Burma's military junta, a consortium of Indian and Korean corporations are currently exploring gas fields off the coast of Arakan State in Western Burma. These Shwe fields are destined to become the Burmese military government's largest single source of foreign income.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Welcome to American University's alternative breaks blog! This space will be a shared space for participants from all trips to post their thoughts and reactions to their experiences on their alternative break trips.
This winter, AU students will go to:
This winter, AU students will go to:
- Colombia to look at displacement and development issues
- India to look at the Dalit Movement against the Indian Caste System
- Thailand/Burma Border to look at the Burmese Democracy Movement
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