Stories From Refugees: Mae Sot School Children
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Planet Care
801 Cedar Street
Suite 200
Berkeley, CA 94710
510-594-4027
info@planetcare.org
These biographies were written by students of the Mae Sot School and Orphanage. They have been translated into English from the original Burmese.
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Our father died of a terminal illness and mother remarried. Mother as a daily wage-earner couldn't afford to send us to school. In 2003, one elderly villager brought us to this IDP school. We have never seen our mother since then. The teachers from IDP couldn't locate her either.
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My father died when I was young. A year after my mother also died. We 4 siblings were brought up by our grandparents. The village became a battleground. Due to age, our grandparents couldn't work as laborers anymore. So we had to find our own means of living. I was brought to this IDP orphanage in 2001 and have passed my grade 3. |
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My father died of some disease. My mother couldn't walk well after the boiling water accident. My young sister helped with household chores. We grew up with the help of good neighbors. The village was attacked often by the junta soldiers. We couldn't attend school. In 2001, one village elder brought me to IDP school. Now I'm in grade 2. |
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My parents separated, leaving the 4 of us with our grandparents. Mother left us for another man and stayed far away from us. Grandma is 70, and cannot support us. I was brought to this IDP boarding school in 2002 and am now in grade 2. |
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My father is Indian and mother Karen. Both got separated and had remarried. My maternal grandmother looked after the 5 of us. Grandma works in the fields and has a small orchard. But the taxes were so heavy that the sales from the yields couldn't fully meet the taxes. The Burmese government officials have no pity on we farmers. Now she is jobless and the family is split. I am lucky to have been brought to IDP in 2002. |
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Father died when I was very young. Mother re-married and could not support us well. The government imposed heavy taxes on we farmers. SPDC soldiers frequently entered the village to drag away able-bodied men and women to serve as porters. We young boys and girls had to hide in the deep forests very often. In 2000, I came to IDP and this year I passed my grade 5 with flying colors. |
I, Saw Wah, am a 12 year old boy from Noh Poe village, Kawkareik Province/District. I had six siblings, and my mother died when I was 6 years old. My father became insane. The internal fighting between the Burmese troops and the KNU was so frequent that there was no school for the children. The 6 of us were raised by our old grandparents, who could barely afford to feed us our daily bread, let alone send us to school. In the year 2000, one of the village elders brought me to this IDP Boarding school.
We, Saw Snow and Saw Dah Bu, aged 13 and 11 respectively, hailed from Karen State. Our village is close to Pah Ann. Father, as a single parent, brought us up after our mother's death. The cost of living in the village was so high that father couldn't send us to school. We arrived at this IDP Boarding school in 1999. And now we passed our Final Examinations; I passed my grade V and my younger brother passed his grade IV to continue with grade IV.
Ma Thida, 7, and Ma Thuzar, 10, are sisters from Pah-an District.
Naw Lah Set, 12, is from Noe Poh village.
Saw Yo Shu, 11, came from Noe Poh village.
Dan Doo Ma, 8, is from Pa-an, Karen State.
Maung Htet Htet, 12, is from Karen State.
Maung Min Min Soe, 14, was born in Karen State.Copyright Planet Care
