In my previous blog I shared a bit about our ministry this month in Thailand along the Burmese border and I shared a little bit of my heart and first impressions of Burma. The guys have now been in Mae Sot for a week and we continue to learn more about the situation in Burma. The more I learn, the more my heart breaks. My heart breaks and is moved in a way that cannot be experienced just by going on CNN and reading about the latest mass killings or rebellion uprising (not that CNN pays any attention to Burma anyway). There is something unique about walking amongst Karen refugees and hearing their stories or hugging a little Burmese child. This should be obvious – that the story becomes more real when you are living in the middle of it – but today this truly became a reality for me as we visited the largest Karen refugee camp in Thailand.
A view of the refugee camp from the road.
A little history before I dive into our adventure from today. First, why are there so many Burmese refugees in Thailand. This ongoing civil war is not just a political stuggle, its roots are much deeper. The Burmese government has made its primary agenda to eliminate all tribal groups in Burma, in particular the largest and most influential, the Karen. The Karen live in the mountainous regions of eastern Burma. Burma has an abundance of natural resources – underground oil reserves, minerals and gemstones including rubies, diamonds, and other valuable commities. The problem for the Burmese government is that most of these resources are found on Karen land. The solution – kill them all. And not just kill them all, but wipe them out and destroy their villages. The ones who escape have no where to return to or to go – the only direction to go to escape the army is west towards the Thai border. For sixty years this has gone on and the Burmese continue to pour into Thailand at an alarming and uncontrollable pace. One solution that has been offered is to form refugee camps. These camps are located right on the border with only a small mountain range and river as a barrier between the two countries. Conditions are less than ideal in these camps. Crime, disease, poverty, and gangs are all rampant. Bamboo hunts with thatched leaf roofs are clustered close together, offering very little personal space, certainly much less than on the farms they were likely to have lived on in Burma. These refugee camps are funded by the United Nations and governance is given to the Karen rebels. It’s a solution that seemed temporary when implemented in the 1970’s, but that today the camps are continuing to expand and showing kno signs of slowing down. The best they can hope for is to be relocated through a sort of “draft” that will send them to either Europe, Canada, or the United States in designated communities. This might seem like a good escape, but in reality these people just want to be back in Burma working in the land they know and love. As Ray put it when summing up the situation, there is a general feeling in these camps resignating little to no hope for a future.
We had the opportunity to visit one of these camps today. We weren’t actually allowed inside the premises due to lots red tape we would have to get around, but Ray runs a children’s home inside the camp and he brought the kids over to hang out with us at a restaurant accross the street. We were able to see the camp from the street, and when the kids came over we were able to hang out with them. These kids were filled with so much joy and were so respectful, and they showed nothing but smiles. I asked Ray about some of their stories, specifically asking about one of the older kids who had really stuck out to me. Ray’s response:
“He was a child soldier. He has killed people. His dad was killed by the Burmese army when he was 10 years old and he was forced to defend his village from then on.”
Woah. This kid was 17 years old and had lived a lifetime that I couldn’t even begin to comprehend. The stories were all similar, there were other child soldiers, stories of parents ruthlessly murdered, stories of abuse and torture and unthinkable atrocities. And all of this had happend to these sweet kids. They had been rescued out of these terrible situations, often at the end of the road as homeless refugees and taken to this childrens home. You can’t comprehend what this is like reading about it in a magazine or on a news website, and to be honest, you still can’t fully comprehed it even staring into the kids eyes as you can’t do anything plead with God to release this boy from the pain of his past. No words can comfort him or tell him its going to be ok. It’s real in this moment as we can feel and see firsthand this camp and these children, but it will never be as real for us at it was for them.
At the end of our time time today we circled the kids and lifted them up in prayer. I didn’t even know what to pray that seemed like it would make a difference. I had no words. All I could walk in and hope in for these kids was the confidence I have knowing that God has walked before us in every situation and covered us in his protection. We find hope in this. All hope is not lost because regardless of how bad the situation looks, our hope is in the promises that we have in Christ. And His promises are just as valid for these kids as they are for me.
Playing games with the kids after lunch.
Sending the kids off with prayer – these kids need your continued prayers!
You rarely hear about Burma in the news. The big reason for this? – politics. The real reason for this – China. China backs Burma, North Korea trains its military, India is also on board with them. If the US were to in any way try and support the Karen the backlash from these Asian powers would be tremendous. To sum it up, we don’t hear about it in the news because we don’t want to stir the pot, and as a result, the murder of millions and stories like these Karen orphans never get told.
Good things are happening in Burma. The country is in the middle of a 30 day cease-fire. On April 1st (Saturday), the country has its first democratic elections ever. There are people like Ray that are coming in and offering hope through establishing childrens homes. NGO’s and other aid organizations, mostly European, are flocking to this area of the world in attempt to help make a difference. There is a reason I am here, in Thailand and Burma, right now, at this time in history. Please be our prayer warriors, lift up my team and I and be our support back home as we press into our purpose here. Pray for safety and wisdom and energy. God has so much to do in the next two weeks and in the hearts of the people in this part of the world. All hope is definitely not lost, in fact, it is only now beginning to reveal itself!
Do you see former child soldiers or do you see some kids who just want to be loved and appreciated?
