Farewell to the “Liberated Area”

Burmese exiles who marry and raise a family face many difficulties in

Thailand

—their children, for instance, are officially stateless and are denied formal education.

“Where’s their future?” he asks. “The way out for them is to resettle in western countries, where their children can get citizenship and build their own lives.”

Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s Burma-friendly policies are also held responsible for the insecurity behind most decisions to leave Thailand and resettle elsewhere. Thaksin takes a strong line in banning activities aimed at destabilizing a foreign government, and Burmese exiles fear this policy could be tightened still further during his second term in office.

A senior member of the prisoners’ rights group AAPP, Zarny, resettled in the US six months ago and says he left Thailand because “I would live in a secure place.”

Zarny said: “Living in Thailand always made me worried of possible arrest and intimidation by Thai authorities. Now I feel secure.”

Nevertheless, Zarny concedes that it’s “totally impossible” for Burmese exiles to be politically active so far from their country. “How can we continue our activities in a place far away from our organization?”

Besides, Burmese exiles in the West have other, personal concerns—“We have to work here for our survival,” says Zarny, who makes a living as a waiter.

Zarny believes, anyway, that the exodus of exiles from the “Liberated Area” won’t affect the pro-democracy struggle too much.

“The epicenter of our movement is inside Burma,” he says. “Our opposition members should not stick to Mae Sot as their base and should look for other borders, like India or China.”

Some leaders of exile movements also make light of the exodus. The AAPP’s Ko Tate believes pro-democracy activists can work more effectively with fewer people.

“We don’t need many people to work here,” he says. “More people invite more problems, more burdens.”

Nyo Ohn Myint, a member of the NLD-LA foreign affairs committee, anticipates that a more compact movement will give it increased strength and cohesion. He expects 90 percent of the NLD-LA’s 100 or so members to join the exodus soon.

Kyaw Thura, however, remains worried. “It’s impossible to run an organization with just a small group of leaders. Human resources are necessary to keep the movement alive. We can’t survive with just a head.”

His concern is perhaps unfounded, for as long as the junta rules Burma dissidents will continue to leave.