Volunteer to help Burmese Refugees and Migrants in Thailand

Along the border between Burma and Thailand in the area around Mae Sot over 200,000 refugees and over 200,000 migrant workers from Burma have settled in poor living conditions.  Most have been forced by the fighting between the Burmese government and the army of the Karen National Liberation Army (representing Karen ethnic groups) to abandon their houses, fields and schools. The Karen villagers in Burma faced a choice between forced resettlement by the Burmese government (usually resulting in forced labor), moving into the jungle where they faced disease and hunger or fleeing across the border into Thailand.

In Thailand they face uncertain conditions. Some refugee camps in Thailand have been attacked by Burmese government troops or their allies.  Many Karen are "stateless" having no citizenship in Thailand or Burma. The 200,000 Karen in refugee camps are forbidden to work outside the camps.  Another 200,000 Burmese people live as migrant workers working under poor conditions on Thai farms and in Thai factories.

Many schools in Burma have been forced to move across the border to Thailand to avoid the fighting. Because many Karen hope to return to their homes in Burma some day some schools use the Burmese curriculum rather than the official Thai curriculum. This makes it difficult to get government support if they don't integrate into the Thai education system.

Openmind Projects helps these schools in several ways. We attract volunteers from all over the world to train and to volunteer teach in the schools. We receive donations of computers from volunteers and other organizations which we then donate to the schools.  Local motivated Burmese young people from the border areas are invited to our Training Center in Nong Khai to improve their English and learn to work in IT programs and maintenance, and then to learn to train others in both of these areas when they return to their homes.

Here are some of the projects we support.

Paya Daung Primary and Middle School is near a small village outside Mae Sot town. It is one of the migrant learning centers originally established in Burma and later moved to Thailand because of the fighting.

Heavenly Home Orphange in Mae Sot has 43 infants and children who are cared for by only 2 full time staff members. Children over age 6 attend schools while the younger children stay at the home during the day.

Umphang Witthayakam Secondary School is located in Umphang town, 5 hours south of Mae Sot.  The majority of the students are from ethnic minorities, mostly Karen refugees from Burma. Students number 1200 including 400 who stay in dormitories at the school because their villages are too far away to return to each day.

Ray Kaw Htoo Primary School provides kindergarten through grade 4 classes for children of families of migrants from the Karen ethnic group in Burma. It has around 90 students many of whom stay in very simple dormitories at the school since their families live too far away to commute daily. The school has only 2 classrooms.

Volunteer to help Burmese Refugees and Migrants in Thailand