Karen village Hua Hin district Karen village Hua Hin district

Visit to Karen village at Tambol Huay-sat-yai

We have visited recently the Karen village at Tambol Huay-sat-yai, Hua Hin district. In the village live Karen refuges from Burma. They have been displacement since 1996 when mass forced relocation program inside Burma took place. Human rights abuses are systematically carried out by the Burma army against the Karen population and other ethnic groups.

The trip was organized by Khun Akasnit “Oh” Soonthorn-vest. To get to the Karen village we have traveled from Hua Hin market on the Hua Hin - Nong-plub road for about 65 kms towards to Huay-sat-yai. We have turned right and drove straight to Pah-Deng. In order to get to the Karen village we had to cross four streams. During our trip we drove through a jungle. We have seen many birds and have heard sounds of gibbons.

There are about 20 families living in the village. 38 children are orphans; their parents were killed by Burmese soldiers. They are looked after by neighbors. The Karens in the village are Christians. Most of Karens speak only their own language. They speak very little Thai despite that they have been living in Thailand for quite a long time. Because they have problem to communicate with the locals it is difficult for them to compete for the few local jobs available. The language barrier, location high in the mountains makes them isolated from the rest of the world. They are only visited by handful of foreign tourists.

We have arrived at midday and on our arrival we were welcomed by villagers with children. They sang for us Karen songs. Our staff brought cooked food, rice and dry food for the villagers. We have invited villagers for lunch. After lunch we gave them clothes and more canned food to help them survive next few weeks. There are times when they eat only once a day. They will wait for the next visitors to the village who will donate food and cloths to them.

Reported by Khun Tuck Dechapanya

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