| By JOHN S. MONCRIEF/RANONG, THAILAND AND KAWTHAUNG, BURMA | FEBRUARY, 2001 - VOLUME 9 NO.2 |
Ranong is the second largest Burmese community in Thailand, where many migrants work in the fishing and its related industries. For most towns on the Thai-Burmese border, bilateral trade resumed after a short closure by the Burmese government in the wake of Burmese activists storming their embassy in Bangkok in October of 1999. While the Burmese opened the border crossing between Ranong-Kawthaung, it announced a temporary cancellation of fishing concessions. Sixteen months later, Ranong and its fishing industry is still waiting. The city of Ranong is home to one of the largest migrant Burmese populations in Thailand, estimated at 80,000 by local officials. The migration has been fueled by both the push of continuing economic hardship in Burma and the pull of better wages in Ranong, where fishing and its related industries are the largest sectors of employment. However, many Burmese live in Ranong illegally and suffer from lack of legal status in Thailand, which has been compounded by the slowdown in the fishing industry. The suspension of concessions has stifled the Ranong economy. This has affected both the Thai and Burmese community. With Thai-owned fishing boats sitting idly by, many Burmese laborers who work directly as fishermen or indirectly in fishing industries are unemployed. This loss of income is passed over to the Burmese community. Many migrants have gone elsewhere. Fishing Concessions In October 6, 1999, a Burmese government spokesman announced that fishing concessions to Thailand were "suspended for the time being for security reasons." This decision came days after the seizure of the Burmese embassy in Bangkok by the Vigorous Burmese Student Warriors, a group of militant anti-Rangoon activists. Fishing concessions have long been a source of contention between the two governments. The problems stem in part from the illegal encroachment into Burmese waters by Thai owned fishing boats, who are notorious for overfishing Burmese areas. Currently, the Burmese government maintains that they are conducting a study of the level of fish in Burmese waters, which have been over fished by Thais. "After the embassy crisis, the border was opened. But the fishing concessions weren’t," says Manat Sukwannitwichai, President of the Ranong Chamber of Commerce. "We don’t see this as fair as we don’t clearly know the reason why fishing concessions are suspended. The Burmese say they are performing surveys, but really they should just deal with the issue." However, one Thai academic who focuses on Thai Burmese relations says, "Fishing concessions have always been used as a tool by the Burmese government particularly when there are issues of sovereignty." Relations between Rangoon and Bangkok have been cool over the past few years, as the influx of amphetamines to Thailand has complicated ties. In the past, Thais fishing companies paid a monthly licensing fee—between 240,000 to 300,000 baht per boat—to catch a limit of one hundred thousand kilograms in Burmese waters. This is an important source of official income for the local government. After the ban, Thai Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai said, "We have to admit that the central government and the local authorities in Burma implement double-standard policies." One analyst suggests that the local Burmese are holding out for a better deal independent of Rangoon. And while some local fishing firms have cast their nets in Indonesian, Vietnamese and Malaysian waters to keep their businesses afloat, they have met little success. Reports indicate the yields of fish in Indonesian waters are low. Furthermore, Indonesia’s strict enforcement of its waters has led to the impoundment of many Thai trawlers. Instead of Ranong, many of these ships are using ports in Pattani and Songkla to unload their catch. Other Thai trawlers have turned to local waters near Ranong, Pang Nga, and Phuket, however the trips cost money for petrol and there are few fish present, making the journey financially unfeasible. Many have returned to wait in Ranong. The drop in amount of fish coming into Ranong has cost its economy dearly. In the last two years, the economy has dropped by fifty percent according to the Ranong Chamber of Commerce. The decrease in supply of fish has not only stifled the Ranong fishing industry affecting the over 700 boats that used to fish Burmese waters but other fishing related business such as fish markets, animal feed, fish sauce, canned fish, sea transportation, cold storage and ice factories. The entire town is feeling the crunch, especially Burmese migrants of which thirty four percent work as fishermen, while seventeen percent work in related industries. This loss of revenue has prompted many in the Burmese community to tighten their belt while others have left town for work elsewhere. Saphan Bla: Little Burma The Burmese community, settled in the saphan bla area located along the banks of a fishing wharf, is segregated from the rest of Ranong. The influence of Burmese culture on the community is quite apparent with many of the staples of Burmese life: noodle shops, beetle nut stands as well as newer dimensions such as karaoke machines. Unlike other Burmese border communities in Thailand, around one-third of the migrants in Ranong hold work permits. However, others migrants are vulnerable to shake downs, especially commercial sex workers (CSWs). By and large migrants come to Thailand because of the socio-economic problems at home, caused in part by political difficulties. In Burma, farmers must sell rice to the government at artificially low prices. If they don’t meet the government’s limit, they must buy rice at market prices and go into debt. This is one of the economic woes, combined with the allure of Thailand’s higher wages that bring Burmese migrants to Thailand. However, once here they are vulnerable to exploitation because of lack of legal rights. "The illegal status of migrants is a major source of concern. Because of this they become a constant target of police crackdowns an arbitrary treatment by their employers, improper workers’ benefits and difficulty in accessing health services," according to a survey of migrants in Ranong performed by Chulalongkorn University’s Asian Research Center for Migration, which found that seventy percent were unaware of the working conditions and legal status of migrants in Thailand. The precarious nature of their stay in Thailand makes it difficult to access health services. Many lack the means to access medical care such as transport and language capability. The migrants provide cheap labor for the economy. Compared to the average Ranong daily minimum wage of 130 baht, migrants receive 60-70 baht per day. However, authorities are reluctant to improve the status of migrants out of concern that it may bring more Burmese to Thailand. In the mid-1990s, the police began a national crackdown on the sex industry in an effort to clean up Thailand’s image and break the "mafia like" control of the industry. This pushed the industry underground. Instead of brothels, the industry has shifted to restaurants, massage and karaoke venues. In Ranong, this has led to an improvement in working conditions compared to the almost "prison like conditions" of the past. However, it has made it more difficult for health and social workers to reach women to provide HIV/AIDS education. The Ranong community has a higher than average rate of HIV/AIDS prevalence than the rest of the nation, which is leveling off. According to a report by the Asian Research Center for Migration, "Due to a complex network of regular partners, casual and commercial sex among migrants, a large number of people [in Ranong] are vulnerable to widespread transmission of HIV/AIDS not only in the particular risk groups but the general population as well." And while local health experts maintain that the low rate of condom use during casual sex is a main conduit for the spread of HIV/AIDS. However, CSWs and their clients are a high risks group. Local health organizations have succeeded in raising the awareness of groups at high risk for HIV/AIDS; however, it is difficult to channel knowledge into behavior. The loss of fishing revenue has affected the Burmese community, including the commercial sex industry. In the boom days of the fishing, industry, approximately five hundred CSWs worked in Ranong. But now that economy has tumbled, business is down. Many CSWs have left, leaving an estimated 150 CSWs in Ranong. "After the close of the fishing, wages have declined sharply," as one local Burmese health worker notes. "Before women (CSW) refused sex without condom, but now they have no choice." The health worker attributes this to a decrease in customers and the lack of protection by employers. He added that employers complain that they lack protection from extortion and need money to pay to stay open. "Unlike other Mae Sot where owners refund money to customers who insist on not using a condom, in Ranong there are few customers and owners must take the money,"he added. Ranong serves as a gateway for Burmese migrants to central and southern Thailand. Some workers often live and work in Ranong and then move on to other parts of Thailand. Some migrants travel as far as Malaysia and Singapore. Since the economic slowdown, many migrants have moved back to Burma or into Thailand. For others they remain in Ranong patiently waiting for access to Burmese waters.