Last night I went across town to a youth meeting that Cody,
Amber, and I were helping with. They had asked us to lead the worship and also
share a message with the youth. When I arrived, I soon realized that all of the
youth were Burmese Refugees. After my experience last month learning about the
Free Burma Rangers, you can imagine just how excited I was to finally spend
time with these amazing people that I have become so passionate about.
As the night went on, I was able to talk to all of these
amazing Burmese people and I couldn’t help but love them. They just have the
most amazing spirits. After Cody shared a message and we finished worship, we
split into 3 groups and I was able to sit with 6 Burmese women and do a Q and A
session. Most of them are working here in Malaysia or going to school while
waiting for the UN go send them abroad. Some go to Australia, Denmark, the US,
etc. Most of them have hopes of coming to the US, so they had many questions
about things such as an inexpensive education, job availability, and cultural
differences. Through the course of our conversation I learned a few
heartbreaking things about these women’s situation.
First of all, many of the youth (teens to late 20s) are here
alone or with maybe one sibling. Their families are still stuck in Myanmar
amidst the civil war going on. They hope to stay with their siblings or whoever
they can when/if they are moved abroad, but there is no guarantee that they
will. I asked some of the girls that are here by themselves what I could pray
for and they said loneliness. I can’t imagine what it must be like for them
here without their families. With what I know about Burma, I doubt that they
have much, if any communication with their families either.
The second thing I learned is how the refugees even get to
Malaysia. It was hard to get full details with the language barrier, but one
girl described to me how they would cram onto ships or something and travel in
congested, hot, and smelly conditions. She said there was constant fear that they
would be caught. They would see Thai soldiers and be sick with fear. When they
finally crossed through most of Thailand to Malaysia, they would see the Malay
soldiers and once again dread being found out.
Once here, the refugees can find jobs, but the hours are
long and exhausting. I was told that the Human Rights laws don’t apply to them
as much here because they are not nationals. I don’t know how all that works,
but I believe when they say that they work for hours on end and make very
little money.
The last thing they told me is that though it takes years
and many interviews with the UN to be placed in the States, if you have a
sponsor from America, you can go easily. I don’t know all the facts, but all I
can think about is finding a way of getting some of my new friends to the US.
They have gone through so much and are just looking to piece their lives back
together.
Pray for Burma and pray for my new friends that they will
find favor in their interviews with the UN. Pray for American sponsors and that
families can remain intact in the transition. And pray for those who are still
stuck in Burma trying to reach their daughters and sons whom have already
arrived safely in Malaysia.
