Chin Facial Tattoos

31 January 2011 [Note: Chin facial tattoo, mostly practiced among women in the southern parts of Chin State, has now become one of the vanishing traditions in Burma. There are a variety of Chin facial tattoos in terms of forms and styles.

In this interview, Chin Christian pastor of Dai Chin ethnicity from southern parts of Chin State, Shwekey Hoipang talks to Van Biak Thang of Chinland Guardian about different kinds of facial tattoos mostly being practised in Dai areas of Chin State, how they are done and the materials used during the tattoo processes.]

Chinland Guardian: Facial tattoos among the Chin women have gained much attention from tourists around the world. Why is it so special and why do you think people should be so interested?

Shwekey Hoipang: The practice of tattoo is a global cultural phenomenon. In the melting pot of history and myth, its origins are impossible to trace with any certainty. The tattoo culture has been discovered in ancient Mesopotamian, Egyptian and Roman times. Today the tattoo culture is still practised in every continent including the Arctic Circle. It is practiced among celebrities, educated people, religious leaders and many tribal peoples.

Many reasons can be given as to why the tattoo culture has become so well established. Religions can create the need for a distinct identity but many cultures are attracted to the simple belief that decorative tattoos create beauty. Many different styles of tattoo exist and every part of the body, including the face, has been adopted by tattoo cultures.

Chin people are descended from the Mongoloid stock and the Tibeto-Burman family which has spread into Indo-China. The oral traditions held by the Chin people believe they originated from China. Interestingly, the evidence of a facial tattoo culture exists in China and some Indian states. For example, the Dulong tribe in Yunan Province in the Republic of China practised facial tattoo until 1975. Likewise in India, the Desia Kondh tribe from Orissa, Srikakulam and Andra Pradesh States also practise the facial tattoo. It may be significant to note that Indian and Chinese tribal facial tattoo styles are similar to the Chins’.

In Burma, it is mainly Shan, Bamar, Naga and Chin people groups which practise the tattoo. Most of the Shan and Bamar tattoos are in connection with their Buddhist religion beliefs. Tattoos on thighs, especially by males, are proof of heroism, manliness and religious belief. Shan men tattoo on their chest, spine, back and arms because they believe the tattoo can protect them from harm and bad karma. They also believe their tattoos can have magical power in their lives. Slight differences in style exist in the facial tattoos between the Chins and Nagas but they differ greatly from that of the Bamar and Shans.

Today the facial tattoo culture of the Chin people attracts international tourists, photographers and anthropologists, and it has become a subject of research by Burmese academics, historians and politicians. In my opinion, there are commercial reasons for this interest but also, there is a recognition that the tattoo culture will one day be extinct and the opportunity for research is disappearing.

Chinland Guardian: Even among the Chin people as a whole, those in the north do not seem to have tattoos on their faces. What could be the reasons why only women in the south have tattoos on their faces?

Shwekey Hoipang: Yes, it is a good question. The Chins in the northern parts of Chin State do not practise tattoo but those in the south and in the plain areas of Burma do. There is still no scientific explanation based on research. And any attempt which relies on myth makes the answer very uncertain. My honest answer is to say that apart from the mythology, I do not know why the Chins in the southern parts of Chin State, and in plain areas (myaypyant) of Burma practise facial tattoos and those in the northern part of Chin State do not.

Chinland Guardian: So, tell us more about the Chin facial tattoos mainly practised among the Dai Chins?

Shwekey Hoipang: The word tattoo is mang in Dai-Chin. The word mang simply means dream. Once upon a time, a Dai-Chin lady dreamed of having a tattooed face. God (Pangsim) gave her instructions on how to perform the tattoo and its styles. There are several names for tattoos on cheek, forehead and so on; each area of the facial tattoos carries its own meaning and blessing. The tattooist is called mangshun or makshun and, as I mentioned, the tattoo itself is called “mang.” The Dai-Chin females practice facial-tattoo (hmai-mang) and calf-tattoo (kho-mang).

According to Chin myth, there are three theories or reasons for facial tattooing: firstly, to prevent Chin beautiful girls from the Burmese King to be his concubines; secondly, to exercise faith in the traditional animistic beliefs of Chin people in the need for a spiritual safeguard; and thirdly, to enhance beauty as a fashion.

The first theory is difficult to prove scientifically without documentary evidence. The oral tradition says Chin girls were always more beautiful than any other neighbouring tribes. One Burmese King saw a beautiful young Chin girl and asked her parents for permission to marry her. However, the Chin leaders did not want the Chin girl to marry the Burmese King. The Chin leaders then decided to introduce facial tattoos to protect the Chin girls and prevent them from marrying outsiders. I am not sure if this is the true origin of the facial tattoos.

The second theory may have a stronger basis in fact for explaining the origin of Chin facial tattoo. According to my mother’s lullaby and Dai-Chin oral history, the Dai-Chin tattoo is directly connected to animism - the traditional primitive Chin religion. It was believed that a woman without a tattoo who passes away and enters the spiritual world realm will have to stand in front of the judge (Monuoi - in Dai Chin dialect) at the entrance gate of Heaven (Mopi).

For human spirits, life after death involves entering one of the two different worlds, Heaven (Mopi) and Hell (Yapi). The Monuoi gives the ones who have facial tattoo permission to enter Heaven. The Monuoi denies those without a tattoo permission to enter heaven. Afterwards, the spirits of all abnormal and bad people will immediately be sent to Hell (Yapi) by the heavenly judge (Monuoi). For the Chin men, the requirements to enter the Heaven depend upon the correct celebration of feasts and practise of arts that will surely get a token to enter Heaven. A facial tattoo is therefore a spiritual safeguard for Chin females.

The third and last theory is also a good reason for the Chin facial tattoo. Most Chin girls are willing to endure a facial tattoo voluntarily because, despite the pain endured to receive it on their faces, it is believed a facial tattoo makes them beautiful. The Chin facial tattoos are identical in colours despite slight differences in styles. A young Chin lady with a beautiful green-blue colour facial tattoo can be the most attractive one in the community, and she would receive attention from most of the young men. To grow up without having a facial tattoo was regarded as being abnormal, as if resulting from a mental or physical disability. This is unfortunate but it would have been the Chin cultural point of view.

Chinland Guardian: In a travel documentary to Chin State by Burmese actor Lwin Moe, a Chin lady with tattoos on her face was seen in the interview saying that she thinks other women without facial tattoos are ‘unattractive’. What is the meaning behind this?

Shwekey Hoipang: Yes, Burmese actor Lwin Moe did a great job in making a series of travel documentaries in Burma. I really appreciated him for it. I do not know if it is a fair comparison to make but I still want to compare him with Michael Palin, an English television presenter best known for his travel documentaries.

Lwin Moe was fascinated with facial tattoo culture and conducted interviews with Chin women from several tribes about their facial tattoos. Before making his travel documentary to Chin State, I believe he had never met with Chin ladies having tattoos on their faces. After watching a few times, I found it is a great documentary film, apart from some errors in the interpretation.

Lwin Moe met with Chin ladies from Mindat area who have facial tattoos and large earrings. He also interviewed Mkang-Chin, Dai-Chin and Mün-Chin (Cho-Chin) ladies but unfortunately, he had no opportunity to meet Umpu-Chin, Ng’Yah-Chin, Chinpung and Plain-Chin ladies because some of them live in the interior parts of southern Chin State where no access is possible due to remoteness and lack of transportation.

Yes, he interviewed the Mün-Chin lady and she was proud of the beauty of her facial tattoo. She believes it represents the beauty of Chin ladies. Like make-up and other facial decorations, she is also pleased with the colour of her facial tattoo. To Chin men, ladies without facial tattoos are unattractive and in the past, Chin men preferred Chin girls with a facial tattoo. It created an attractive chemistry between young Chin men and girls.

Chinland Guardian: Are there still many women with facial tattoos in Chin State and is it still being practised among the Chin women in the new generation?

Shwekey Hoipang: Yes, there are still many Chin ladies with facial tattoos. Mostly, they are in their 40’s (the younger ones). Apart from a few Chin girls in the jungle villages where traditional animism still exists, the younger educated generation of Chin girls do not practise facial tattoos anymore. Nowadays, it is very rare to see a Chin young girl who is willing to have a facial tattoo.

After the popular 8888 nationwide pro-democracy uprising in Burma, the then Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma led by General Ne Win was taken over and thereafter, there was no proper government in Burma for several months. At that time the two Dai-Chin female tattooists wasted no time in re-introducing the practice of facial tattoos among women in the Dai-Chin areas as they knew there was no authority to arrest and punish them.

As a result in the end of 1988, a senior Dai-Chin female tattooist managed to have tattooed six young Dai-Chin girls including her own daughter as she believed there was no government to ban facial-tattooing in Dailand. After two months, the police in Mindat Town heard about her activities and travelled for three days to see her. But they found that she was too old to appear before court and to be put to jail. Therefore, she was forgiven for her crime of tattooing and given further warning not to do it again.

In early 1989, a junior Dai-Chin old female tattooist tattooed another eight Dai-Chin girls within a month and the news got the attention of the authorities in Mindat. She was arrested, prosecuted and then sentenced to six-month imprisonment. Whilst in prison, she composed some songs reflecting the pride and dignity of Dai-Chin tattoos. Some people still sing her songs whenever they think of our culture and way of life.

There are no more tattooists and no more facial tattoo culture in Dailand with the advancing influence of civilisation, religion and government policies. The 21st century civilisation reaches out to Dailand and thus, Dai-Chin girls are now unwilling to have a facial tattoo. In the same way, Christianity has reached the people and almost all the Dai people are Christians. The Dai-Chins no longer see facial tattoos as a beautiful fashion or as a spiritual safeguard. Furthermore, the government does not encourage facial tattooing.

Chinland Guardian: Do you, as a Chin, fear this tradition will disappear in the future?

Shwekey Hoipang: Yes, it worries me that one day the Chin facial tattoo will totally disappear. Chin young ladies do not want to get a facial tattoo anymore because of various reasons including the pain, the primitive tradition, cultural changes, education, western and Burmese civilisation and religion. The Chin facial tattoo colour is permanent and can never be changed until the tattooed person dies. Today, Chin girls like to decorate their faces with thanatkha, make-up and lipstick. Contemporaneously, there are no more Chin facial tattooists.

In the 1960-70s in my region, there was a kind of cultural revolutionary movement happening under the leadership of Pu Za Hoe (Za Hu), Myopaing Pu Thawng Mang and Myopaing Pu Aung Thang. They introduced new regional laws to stop tattooing, animal sacrifices, retaliation and unwanted child disposal. In particular after imposing the new regional laws, almost all the tattooists were arrested and fined if they performed tattoos. Both the tattooist and girls with tattoos were arrested, fined or put to jail.

In addition in late 1960s and early 1970s, Christian missionaries reached the southern parts of Chin State. With hard works and sacrifices by the faithful pioneer missionaries, the Dai-Chin people were converted to Christianity en masse; within a decade, almost all the Dai-Chin became Christian. All the girls, who were born after the 1970s, preferred not to be tattooed and enjoyed life without a tattoo. Today, some Chin ladies with tattoos feel shy to go out to the city because of the ‘uncomfortable’ attention made to them by the public and subsequently, their children feel embarrassed and ashamed of their tattooed mothers.

As for me, I do not see the gradual extinction of Chin facial tattoos necessarily as a bad thing because the world is changing; all cultures are changing and developing every day. Chin facial tattoo can also become a harmful form of decoration which is hazardous to health because of its associated infection. Some Chin girls died during the tattoo process in the past.

Chinland Guardian: Tell us more about what materials are used and how the tattoos are done.

Shwekey Hoipang: Before I can describe what and how materials are used to perform a tattoo, it is important to know the fact that the Chin parents must go to the tattooist and ask politely for her kind help. The tattooist enjoys the respect given to her and can feel proud of herself. If she is not happy with the family or clan, she can easily say “no”. It is a difficult art and there are not many tattooists. Unless the village is too small, there is normally at least one tattooist available. If the parent is refused by the tattooist from the village, or there is no tattooist in the village, they must take their daughter to another village. The fee is always expensive and can also vary depending upon the tattooists. The cost may range from a big male gayal or mithan (shuishe in Dai-Chin and sial in other Chin dialects) to a big male pig, chickens, blanket and necklace.

After getting an agreement from a tattooist, the parents will go to see the shaman (Tayü) in the village to foretell the future, and get advice for guidance on the best way to perform the tattoo and on other issues including health and safety. The shaman will predict the blessed date for tattooing and give advice on the need of performing all the animistic religious rituals for the girl so that she may not be harmed and may become very beautiful when the tattoo is successfully healed. It is believed all these traditional procedures be followed to ensure that she will be blessed and become attractive to boys. Otherwise, she may end up with scars or a bad colour on her face if the tattoo is not successful.

The animistic religious rituals for a tattoo may include sacrificing animals to the guardian spirit of the household. The meat is eaten together by a few family members and the shaman. Afterwards, the girl is brought to a house on the outskirt of the village and stays there with her mother and her aunties for the night. Green leaves are attached to the front gate to prevent strangers from entering the house. If, by accident, someone went into the house, he or she must pay all the costs for the ritual and for the sacrificed animals.

Very early the next day, the tattooing must be started by the tattooist. Her parents and her female relatives must be with her in the tattoo house to make sure that the girl does not run away as she is going to cry in pain. The female relatives and her father (the only male) may need to hold the girl so that the tattooist is free to get on with the tattooing. Some girls willingly endure the pain whilst others find it too much to bear. The process normally takes one day but this can be extended to two days if the girl reacts in resistance a lot.

The recovery process may take at least two weeks. Her mother and her aunties have to stay with the girl during the healing process. At this time, no strangers are allowed to visit or to pass the house. In order to reduce the chance of getting infection, she has got to stay away from large fires which produce clouded smokes in the village – it is not allowed to make such fires in the village. After two weeks, the dead skins can be peeled off and the new skin underneath would turn blue-green, black-green or black in colours. Gently, she can wash her face with warm water for at least a month until the maturity of her new facial skins. At the end, people then praise her for the beauty of her new facial tattooed skin.

The tattoo materials are very simple and locally available, namely:

1. Pong-hnah (very smooth grass leaves from the farm)

2. Mui-ng’hling (cane-thorns from deep forests)

3. Ng’hlo (colour leaves from the farm)

4. Sungküng (soot from the kitchen)

5. Umkoi (gourd, which is used as a water container) and

6. Am (clay pot).

Pong-hnah: It is a leaf of grass that grows up naturally after slashing and burning the bamboo forest to create new fields for cultivation. The young shoots and leaves of the pong are very smooth, soft and clean. The dirt cannot stay on it. It is best known for its cold sensation and gentleness. Locally, it is used as tissue papers or medical cottons for wiping the blood from the face and covering the tattooed area until the dead skins come off and new skins grow.

Mui-ng’hling: It is used for pricking and drawing all over the girl’s face along the blue-printed marks. Meanwhile, the thorns of the cane have been prepared over one or two months by the parents or by the tattooist. Two or three or up to seven thorns are tied together and dried in the heat of the sun so that they become sharper, stronger and free of bacteria. There are several kinds of canes but the tattooists always prefer using the thorns of royal-cane (Mkongmui-hling) because it is stronger and sharper than any other canes.

Ng’hlo: It is a very important material and is used for colouring cloths and for tattoo. The young shoots and leaves of the Ng’hlo are squeezed and the juice is collected into a small clay pot and gently boiled before being allowed to cool down. The colour of Ng’hlo is normally green-blue.

Sungküng: It is used for the purpose of killing bacteria, for healing the injured skins and helping dead skins to dry out quickly. The tattooist collects the soot from the kitchen and then mixes with water. After all the dirt is removed, it is kept inside a piece of gourd. The diluted sungküng liquid makes it more painful as it contains potash. However, it protects the girl from getting infected by killing bacteria.

Umkoi: It is used as a container for keeping the ng’hlo and diluted sungküng. Mixing the two liquids produces either dark-blue or green-blue ink.

Am: It is used for boiling the Ng’hlo juice. After being washed properly, the clay pot is used for keeping all the tattoo materials including cane thorns and smooth leaves. It is washed properly and used as the container throughout the tattooing processes.

Getting all the tattoo materials ready and upon completing all the required rituals for the girl, it is time for the tattooist to start her parts. The girl may lie down upward and is covered with Yih (blanket) from her chest to toe and held by her mother, aunts and women relatives. The tattooist will spread the mixed ink in squares evenly on the girl’s face. The lines around the squares are tattooed first to create a framework or blueprint which is then filled up with spots and dots until all the squares are carefully and evenly filled. The face is then ready to be applied with mixed ink on every spot and dot. Tattooing simply means inserting mixed ink into the skin through using locally prepared cane-thorns after the blood is wiped. The insertion of cane-thorns must not go too deep inside the skin.

The age of the expert tattooists is mostly between 50-60 years. The tattooing season is in winter from October till February of the year.

Chinland Guardian: Is this practised only among women? At what age should a girl get a facial tattoo?

Shwekey Hoipang: The Chin facial tattoo is practised only by Chin females. When a Chin girl, aged between 12 and 14, reaches puberty, she is considered old enough to be tattooed and enter into an adult life. If the process of tattooing is left too long, the facial skin matures and can become too hard for tattooing. It also makes it too painful when tattooed.

Chinland Guardian: How many kinds of tattoos are there and do they have particular meanings?

Shwekey Hoipang: Chin facial tattoos involve various forms and styles. We can take an example from among the Chins from the plain Chin (Asho) of Burma and southern parts of Chin State. The Plain Chin (Asho or Myaypyant Chin) includes: Sumtu (Cumtu), Laitu (Laytu), Siptu (Sittu), Kawngtu, Khamaw and Asho. The Southern Chin includes: Mün (Cho), Mkang (Kang), Dai, Chinpung, Hmoye, Ng’Yah and Umpu (Uppu). The Matu Chin also once practised facial tattoos but only on the forehead and chin with a few straight lines. The Khumi, Mara, Lautu and Zotung have never practised tattoos.

Mainly, there are two kinds of facial tattoo styles. The Mün tattoo style involves straight lines from forehead to neck with circles between the straight lines and small dots on the forehead and chin. The colour is mainly black and lighter. The Dai, Mkang, Ng’Yah, Umpu, Chinpung, and all the Plains Chin, have the same tattoo styles except for slight differences in the density and lightness of the colours. They all tattoo on their faces but not on their necks; several squares are drawn on the face and these are densely filled with dots. Colours can vary slightly but Dai women favour dark-blue and green-blue colours.

German photographer Jens Uwe Parkitny made several visits to Chin villages and took photos of facial tattoos. He also wrote a book on the Chin facial tattoo called “Blood Faces – Through the Lens: Chin Women of Myanmar”. It was published by Flame Of The Forest Publishing Pte Ltd in 2007. He praises Chin facial tattoos as beautiful art and gives them special names to describe their particular appearances such as Lizard Geometry, Leopard Skin, Spider Web, Spinsters, Pumpkin Skin, Tiger Eyes and Whiskers.

To summarise, it is true to say that Chin women practised facial tattoos because of religion, tradition, culture and fashion. There is something ancient, unique and special about the Chin tattoo culture and, in some ways, the fact that it is dying is a source of sadness. The government’s regional laws, Christianity, intellectual modern civilisation, development and fashion have all contributed to the vanishing colour behind the Chin facial tattoos.

Shwekey Hoipang, a pastor and evangelist, is currently studying Master of Arts in Theology Studies at University of Wales Lampeter in UK. He has also been actively involved in Burmese political movements as well as raising awareness of ethnic issues including religious persecution and human rights violations perpetrated by the ruling military authorities in Burma. For further information about the Chin facial tattoos, he can be reached on 0044 (0)7828057040 and at hoipangs@yahoo.co.ukThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Bibliography

Jens Uwe Parkitny, Blood Faces - Through the Lens: Chin Women of Myanmar. Singapore: Flame Of The Forest Publishing Pte Ltd, 2007.

Nicolas Thomas (Edits), Tattoo: Bodies, Art and Exchange in the Pacific and the West. London: Peaktion Books, 2005.

Jane Caplan (Edit), Written on the Body: Tha Tattoo in European and American History. London: Peaktion Books, 2000.

Richard Diran, The Vanishing Tribes of Burma. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson Publishing, 1997.

F. K. Lehman, Structure of Chin Society. Urbana: The University of Illinois Press, 1963.

Captain G. C. Rigby, History of Operations in Northern Arakan and the Yawdwin Chin Hills – 1896-97 with A Description of the Country and Its Resources, Notes on the Tribes, and Diary. Rangoon: Government Printing Press Burma, August 1897.

Newspaper & Helpful Websites

1. Xinhua News Agency August 16, 2002

2. http://www.henan.china.cn/english/2002/Aug/39799.htm#

3. http://www.chinesetattoos4u.com/Tattoos-in-Chinese.php

4. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-12/25/content_7314483.htm

5. http://www.indiasite.com/orissa/orissatribes.html

Interviews

1. Saya Ling Lwin Dattui - Dai-Chin Historian (Headmaster of State Primary School, Thingkong Village, Paletwa Township)

2. Pu Ling Hung Yongca (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) – Dai-Chin Historian (Khengimnu Village, Mindat Township)

3. Pu Ling Kee Dai (Norway) – Dai-Chin Historian (Originally from Shihyüng Village, Mindat Township)

4. Saya Tam Ngai Kee – Cho-Chin academic and historian (Private English Tutor – Yangon)

5. Salai Cho Mana – Kanpetlet-Chin Historian (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)

Interview with Mary Burke on Human Trafficking

UNHCR seeks access to Rohingyas detained in Thailand

This 2009 photo shows Rohingya migrants sitting in the provincial immigration area in southwestern Thailand after being transported from Ranong prison. REUTERS/Sukree Sukplang

BANGKOK (AlertNet) - The United Nation’s refugee agency is trying to get access to 150-odd Rohingyas detained in Thailand in the past few days, amid fears they may be deported back to Myanmar which does not recognise them as citizens.

The Rohingyas are a Muslim minority in predominantly Buddhist Myanmar. Rights groups say they are one of the most discriminated people in the world, suffering abuses and deprived of free movement, education and employment under the country's military junta.

“We’re certainly concerned about the fate of reportedly two groups of 158 Rohingya boat people,” said Andrej Mahecic, UNHCR spokesman.

“We have approached Thai government and we have asked for access to these people in order to do two things -- first to assess the situation and secondly, to determine if any of them are in need of international protection, in other words, if they’re refugees.”

Two groups of Rohingya men landed in Thailand on Saturday and Sunday en route to Malaysia when engine trouble forced them to come ashore.

Local news reports said there may be a total of eight boats that have left the former Burma although the other six boats are currently unaccounted for.

Thai authorities reportedly said both groups would probably be repatriated, sparking concerns from rights groups.

A group of 67 Rohingyas are in custody in Thailand’s southern Satun province while another group of 91 has been transferred to Ranong close to the border with Myanmar, UNHCR said.

The plight of the Rohingyas came to light two years ago when Thailand's military was accused of towing 992 Rohingyas boat people to sea before abandoning them to their fate with little food or water in boats without engines.

“Certainly in the light of events of January 2009 ... and given the commitment of the new Thai government to human rights, we are keen to open the dialogue with the government,” Mahecic said.

“We are also ready to assist the solution of the latest situation in line with the customary international humanitarian standards.”

Malaysia is home to 85,000 refugees and asylum seekers from Myanmar although it is unknown how many are Rohingyas. The Myanmese constitute 92 percent of Malaysia's refugee population.

Rohingyas have also been seeking refuge in neighbouring Bangladesh since the late 1970s. Thailand currently has around 150,000 refugees, mainly from eastern Myanmar, in nine camps along the Thai-Myanmar border.

At the end of a long road to freedom is Australian citizenship

New Australian citizen Nazanin Amirifar after her naturalisation ceremony in Sunshine with sons Matthew, 10, (left) and Robin, 9, and daughter Sepideh, 19. Photo: Jason South

THERE was no sunshine over Sunshine's H.V. McKay Gardens yesterday morning but Nazanin Amirifar's smile almost lit up the place.

For her, Australia Day was much more than a day off. It was the final step in the Iranian refugee's long struggle to live a free life with her family.

While some of the 197 people who became Australian citizens at the gardens yesterday opted for jeans, Ms Amirifar and sons Matthew, 10, and Robin, 9, dressed up to the nines, it meant that much to them.

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A happy witness was Ms Amirifar's daughter, Sepideh, 19, with whom Ms Amirifar was last year reunited after 17 years. Sepideh was two when Ms Amirifar was forced to flee Iran.

Ms Amirifar still has family in Iran and can't be specific but says she suffered domestic and political oppression.

She wanted "to be happy and free" in life but women couldn't work or get an education without a male relative's permission.

She went to Malaysia, where she lived for 10 years, ran a successful restaurant and had two sons with a new partner.

But the Malaysian government wouldn't let her stay, so in 2005 she flew to Sydney with her sons.

They were taken to Baxter detention centre in South Australia where they were released after nine months under former politician Petro Georgiou's policy of freeing detained children. The family settled in Melbourne.

But she never gave up on her daughter. After five years of pestering Australian and Iranian authorities and gaining her ex-husband's permission, Sepideh was able to migrate to Australia seven months ago.

Sepideh is learning English and wants to be a photographer. She snapped away as her mother and half-brothers received their Australian citizen certificates from Maribyrnong MP Bill Shorten and a chrysanthemum each.

Asked how she felt, Ms Amirifar, who is now a nurse, said: "Just excited and wonderful. While I've been [in Australia], always I think I am free but not like today. Today, exactly, I think I am really free. Nobody can do anything to me any more."

One of the oldest new citizens at Sunshine was Helga, a 79-year-old German, who has lived in Australia for 50 years and was so excited she arrived at the gardens at 8am — two hours before the ceremony. "German punctuality," she joked.

The retired nurse, a mother of two and grandmother of six, said in 1960s Melbourne, strangers would call her "nazi" on the bus. Her late husband, Karl, hadn't thought citizenship important, but for her, it's a sign "that I belong here".

She shed a tear yesterday for her parents, who died in World War II, when she was a teenager, but said her home town, Insterburg, was now called Chernyakhovsk, and a part of Russia. Helga said she was happy in Australia.

Burmese refugee Mang Kio Hnin, 31, proudly wore an intricate red blazer woven by his sister, Sui Bawi Hrin, 25, which she said was the traditional costume of the Chin people of western Burma.

Mr Hnin spent a year in jail in Burma for selling a pro-democracy book. He escaped, sailed to Malaysia and, since arriving in Melbourne five years ago, has found factory work and was joined by his sister Sui in 2008. Asked how he felt about becoming an Australian, through Sui, he said: "I feel very grateful. I feel safe."

The Sunshine event was one of 320 ceremonies around Australia yesterday in which 13,000 people became citizens.

Mr Shorten also gave the new Australians an Irish blessing — a translation of a poem from Gaelic — on behalf of his own ancestors.

He also said: "Australia is a place in the world of love and redemption, of refuge and a second chance, of new-found liberty and good heart. And I welcome you to it."

Malaysian Soldiers Charged with Human Trafficking

By Thomas Chong
 
28 January 2011 - KUALA LUMPUR : Two Malaysian soldiers were charged in the local Sessions Court at Perlis, northern part of the country for trafficking in 16 Burmese citizens including four women, aged between 15 and 48.

The soldiers, Mohd Rashidi Abd Halim, 36, and Mohd Johari Abu, 28, who are attached to a military camp in Bukit Kayu Hitam, Kedah, near the Malaysia-Thailand border, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Both are alleged to have committed the offence at around 10.40pm at a sugar cane farm in Chuping, Perlis, in December last year.

If convicted, they are liable to be jailed not more than 15 years or fined or both.

Judge Wan Norzanuar Wan Ahmad set bail at RM 6,000 each in one surety each and 22 February 2011 for the trial.

Malaysia is home to an estimated 85,000 refugees and asylum seekers from Burma (now Myanmar), which constitutes 92 percent of Malaysia's refugee population, according to reports.

Emulate M’sia’s example in refugee protection

KUALA LUMPUR: Human Rights Watch (HRW) has urged Thailand to follow in Malaysia’s footsteps by allowing the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) access to a group of detained Rohingya asylum seekers.

One-hundered and fifty-eight Rohingyas arrived in Thailand from Burma late last month and joined 53 others detained since 2009 in the Thai immigration detention system.

According to HRW, the Thai authorities have repeatedly refused to grant UNHCR access to these 211 detainees to determine if they qualified for refugee status.

Its Asia director, Brad Adams, said that Thailand’s stand contrasts sharply with that of Malaysia’s where the authorities allowed UNHCR to visit and assess the cases of 93 detained Rohingyas last year.

The UNHCR concluded that all were refugees and the Malaysian authorities released them from immigration detention.

“As a new member of the UN Human Rights Council, Thailand should be spearheading regional efforts to protect refugees rather than detaining them,” Adams said.

“If Malaysia can comply with international refugee protection standards, why can’t Thailand?” he asked.

“The persecution of Rohingyas in Burma is atrocious, but the Thai government continues to pretend that they are no different from any other undocumented migrants.”

Genuine asylum seekers

Adams also said that in previous years, boats landing in Thailand have carried both Rohingya and Bangladeshi nationals pretending to be
Rohingyas.

He added that effective UNHCR screening would help the Thai authorities separate genuine refugee claims by Rohingyas from other claims.

“The Thai government should take advantage of the expertise of UNHCR, which has repeatedly told the authorities it is ready to help screen Rohingya asylum seekers,” he said.

“By doing so, Thailand can put itself in a strong position with its international partners to seek a longer term, sustainable solution for the Rohingyas.”

Thailand Ignores Calls for UN Access to Rohingyas

Thailand is turning a deaf ear to calls from rights groups to allow the UN's refugee agency to interview some 200 detained Rohingya boatpeople.

The last group of 68 Rohingya boatpeople was handed over to Thai immigration authorities on Wednesday for questioning. They are currently being detained in Phuket after being arrested by Thai police on Tuesday when they came ashore.

Alan Morison, the editor of the Phuket Wan online website, said that Thai immigration authorities decide after questioning the Rohingyas whether to allow the UNHCR access to the boatpeople or whether to deport them.

Rohingya migrants sit outside a police station in southern Thailand. (Photo: Channel News Asia)

Tuesday's landing was the third such incident in recent weeks after a total of 150 Rohingya refugees went ashore in Ranong and Trang in southern Thailand in January.

Rohingya people frequently leave their homes and families in Bangladesh and Burma where they are discriminated against and whose living conditions are among the worst in the world.

Attempting to find work in neighboring Thailand and Malaysia, and travelling by sea in small boats, they regularly wash ashore or are forced to land because of the conditions in the Andamman Sea.

Two prominent rights groups have also called on the Thai government to give UNHCR staff permission to visit the Rohingya boatpeople to determine if they qualify as refugees or need international protection.

Richard Sollom, the deputy director of Physicians for Human Rights, said, “These stateless Muslims from Burma are fleeing religious and ethnic persecution, and they deserve recognition as refugees. Thailand needs to follow the lead of Malaysia and allow the UN High Commissioner for Refugees access to the asylum seekers to ensure that they receive a fair and honest evaluation.”

Sollom said that the Rohingya people generally endure lives of persecution in Burma, and after their dramatic escape, they deserve a chance at freedom.

On Tuesday, New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Thailand should immediately allow the UNHCR access to the more than 200 detained Rohingya boatpeople who landed in Thailand in January and Feb. 1.

HRW said that the boatpeople are at risk of "atrocious" persecution in Burma, but the Thai authorities continue to pretend that they are no different from any other undocumented migrants.

Thailand has also been criticized for treating Rohingya people inhumanely—the Rohingya issue drew international attention in 2009 when the Thai military was accused of intercepting boatloads of Rohingyas, sabotaging their vessels and abandoning them at sea.

Shortage of maids hits Malaysians hard

Jakarta’s minimum wage demand stalls talks on lifting ban
(KUALA LUMPUR) Tens of thousands of Malaysian households have been thrown into domestic chaos as a shortage of maids hits a country with a long-standing addiction to cheap foreign labour.
Nearly two million foreigners, mostly from Indonesia, are registered to work in Malaysian homes, shops, factories and plantations, and many more are undocumented, making Malaysia one of Asia’s biggest importers of labour.
Maids from Indonesia, who toil for as little as RM400 (S$168) a month, have no laws governing their working conditions and a spate of shocking abuse cases prompted Jakarta to declare a ban on new arrivals in June 2009.
In an attempt to stem the mistreatment of domestic workers who have been raped, scalded with boiling water and branded with hot irons, the two governments opened negotiations for a formal labour agreement.
However, the talks have stumbled over Indonesia’s demand for a minimum wage, prolonging the ban and causing serious inconvenience for families left without a helper – some 35,000 households, according to an industry figure.

A Ticket To Education For Burmese Refugees

Burmese prisoners forced to walk on minefields

Vancouversun

Prison inmates sent to front-line fighting between the Burmese army and a rebel faction have been used by the regime's armed forces as human mine sweepers.

Some of the 600 prisoners sent to the border with Thailand suffered serious injuries after they were forced walk ahead of troops across minefields.

One rights group said it amounted to a "crime against humanity". The human mine sweepers had originally been forced into military service and used as porters carrying ammunition, according to three prisoners who escaped and made it to the Thai border town of Mae Sot.

The abuse of the prisoners led to outrage and shock even though Burma's armed forces regularly torture opponents, raze rebel villages and use rape as a weapon of war. "This shouldn't happen in any situation," Bo Kyi, of the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma, told The Irrawaddy magazine.

"They are, in effect, executing prisoners by other means. It would definitely constitute a crime against humanity."

The three escapers were among 30 inmates from Pakokku Jail sent to a Burmese army camp in the province bordering Mae Sot in December.

Shared experiences at refugee camp create lasting bond

The shared hardship at a refugee camp built ties that transcend all barriers.

By LESLIE A. PHILLIP
Pictures courtesy of UNHCR

THE bell on the hilltop tolled at 2.30pm on May 14, 1979, but it was not prayer time. The chants were already done at noon sharp. Most aid workers ate lunch at their workstations which enabled them to get right back to work when done. Meals here were frugal, prepared in the community kitchen by refugee volunteers.

The Vietnamese refugees at Pulau Bidong Camp who were waiting to be interviewed, congregated at the beach front under the coconut palms and casuarinas until their queue was called over the loudhailer.

Today, their attention was drawn to the continuous ringing of the bell. They sensed impending misfortune. Desperate shouts from the Buddhist monk on the hill turned their gaze towards the south of the island. About 500m out at sea, a boat was sailing perilously towards the wooden jetty.

Temporary home: Vietnamese boat people at the Pulau Bidong refugee camp. They often had to endure a perilous journey by sea to get from their homeland to Malaysia.

It was listing to starboard but surprisingly, there were no frantic cries from the occupants.

Only security personel were allowed to see the boat in, in keeping with camp regulations. What they saw was heartbreaking.

The 126 new arrivals cramped in a 25m boat were almost lifeless from exhaustion. Relief workers from the Malaysian Red Crescent Society rushed in urgent supplies of drinking water and biscuits.

Two small children did not last the ordeal and their limp bodies were carefully separated from their wailing mothers by Red Crescent social workers. All this in full view of those on the beach who watched with hope and anticipation. Some prayed silently. Eventually, all went well after the security clearance and processing. The weak were taken by stretchers to sick bay and the rest were sent to their community hostel where they were examined by volunteer medical staff.

Flashback to May 9, 1979, five years after the fall of Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City) to the Viet Minh. Vietnamese fishing boat VT442 pulled out of Vung Tau fishing port south of Saigon at 3.30am under cover of darkness. The passengers included 38 children, some as young as two. The captain knew the bearings all too well, having been a tugboat master of 26 years with the Vung Tau Port Authority. He had renewed confidence, having in hand nautical settings to the oil platform that lay 120km east of Merang, Terengganu.

Access to clean water was one of their basic needs.

A passenger had handed it to him, having received it from a cousin who had set sail on an earlier boat two months back and had landed safely in Pulau Bidong. The bearings were ingeniously transmitted on the back of a postage stamp to avoid detection when he received a letter posted through the mailing service of the Red Crescent.

On the second day at sea, armed pirates boarded the boat. The occupants were robbed and those who resisted were beaten up. Three young women were forcibly ushered onto the pirates’ vessel and violated. But their quest for freedom did not break their will. They continued even without their supply of food, water and fuel which the pirates had mercilessly thrown overboard.

On the fourth night, they spotted the lights of the oil platform and it sparked new hope. Oil rig workers were accustomed to seeing boat people passing by after Saigon fell. These boats either stopped or were just too anxious to reach their destination.

But VT442 stopped and was generously provided with the necessary supplies. Medical attention was given to those who needed it.

On the morning of the fifth day, the boat left the oil rig for Pulau Bidong. That night, two sick children succumbed to dehydration. Their bodies were wrapped in blankets and placed in the captain’s cabin. The parents were too exhausted to grieve.

At dawn, the captain recognised Pulau Bidong just by its silhouette. Since they left the oil platform, the boat had been taking in water and hence the tilt towards starboard. It did not seem important as Pulau Bidong beckoned.

After six months at Pulau Bidong, the refugees were given registration cards by the UNHCR after a series of interviews.This enabled them to receive medical attention, rations and mail. More importantly, the identification card was required to initiate resettlement procedures in recipient countries.

Tran Van Duc, a professor of sociology at Cholon University, was on boat VT442 together with his wife, two sons and a daughter. Being in civil service meant that he was a probable candidate for the indoctrination camp under the new regime, so he had to get out of Cholon by whatever means.

Driven by a desire to contribute to his community, Tran approached aid workers in the camp and volunteered his services as an interpreter and in administrative matters. Tran, who was in his forties, cut a forlorn figure. He had presented his case to the Australian resettlement delegation and was told time and again, that the case was under scrutiny.

Every day at dusk, I combed the beach at Pulau Bidong, taking stock of the cases that had passed through my hands as I planned the next day’s routine for my team. A 12-hour working day was the norm as we worked against time to reunify displaced families. This task formed the basis for resettlement in host countries like the United States, Canada, Australia, France, Britain, New Zealand, Norway, the Netherlands, Germany and Sweden.

One day, as I was walking towards the end of the jetty, Tran joined me. This soft-spoken and well-mannered man had been our interpreter for five months but had kept matters about his resettlement personal. We had traced his younger brother and family who had landed in Thailand in an earlier boat. I remember the tears of joy when we broke the news to Tran and his family.

That day as he joined me at the jetty, I could sense that he had something on his mind. After a short silence, he looked me in the eyes and said: “Sir, I know you have a lot on your mind and you wish you could do more. I can see this in your eyes. You are doing your best and we refugees here know this and we want to thank you.”

I was lost for words. We talked a little, and later I realised that he had saved the best news for last. His resettlement to Australia had been approved and he would be moving to the transit camp just outside of Kuala Lumpur in a week’s time. Tran and his family were resettled in Adelaide, Australia, on Nov 22, 1979.

During a family holiday in Australia three years ago, I chanced upon a Vietnamese restaurant in the south of Adelaide. My wife suggested that we try the pho since this noodle dish brought fond memories of the time when we were in Hanoi.

We were warmly greeted by the staff and, while we were waiting for our orders, the owner enquired where we were from. On learning that we were Malaysians, there was palpable excitement and, from the chatter that ensued, we realised that we were in for more things to come.

The chef was summoned to our table and we learnt that Nguyen Thi Minh was once a refugee at Pulau Bidong Camp.

I casually mentioned that I was once an aid worker in the camp, and Nguyen burst into tears and recounted her experiences. She was thankful she had landed in Malaysia rather than anywhere else. She told us that the Vietnamese community was doing well after resettling in Adelaide.

She was proud that one of them was a councilman in a north Adelaide district.

The next day, I received a call from the reception that a man and his family were waiting to see me.

A surprise awaited me when I turned up at the lobby. Councilman Tran and his family were overcome by emotion when they saw me. Few words were exchanged, but our hearts spoke volumes.

The man who told me he saw it in my eyes almost 28 years ago, held my shoulders, looked into my eyes, smiled and said it was destiny that brought us together again.

Tran’s eyes sparkled with joy. Suffice to say, my family and I were treated like visiting dignitaries the next two days. Following this, we must have met at least 120 Vietnamese who had gone through Pulau Bidong, each asking if I still remember them.

Today, Tran and I still keep in touch, thanks to modern technology. Our experiences at Pulau Bidong had created a lasting bond between us, one that transcends space and time.

The names mentioned here and the boat registration number have been changed to respect the individuals’ privacy. Malaysia was host to about 250,000 Vietnamese refugees between May 1975 and August 2005, when the last of them was resettled in third countries.

The Chin in India and Malaysia

Photo: Chin Human Rights Organisation

A Chin woman looks for salvageable items in a rubbish dump in Mizoram (Photo gallery)

Northwestern Chin State, which borders India, is Myanmar's poorest state. Forced labour, arbitrary arrest and detention, and torture by the military are among the reasons why Chins flee the country, according to rights groups.

The two main destinations for Chin refugees are India and Malaysia. In India, they are found in Mizoram State, across the border from Chin State, as well as in the capital, Delhi. The Chin have no legal status and little protection in Mizoram, but in Delhi, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is allowed to maintain an office and provide basic services to refugees.
In Malaysia, the Chin live mostly in the capital, Kuala Lumpur. Although rights groups say they are vulnerable to harassment and detention, Chin are able to apply for asylum though UNHCR.

The Chin in India and Malaysia

These pictures follow the journey of the Chin from their home state in western Myanmar to the rural, isolated communities of Mizoram in India, the refugee neighbourhoods of Delhi and the urban flats of Malaysia.

The photos and edited text are courtesy of the Canada-based Chin Human Rights Organization (CHRO) and are part of a travelling exhibition in 2010.
Theme (s): Refugees/IDPs,
[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

Cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment

thestar online

DIPLOMATICALLY SPEAKING
By DENNIS IGNATIUS

Last month, Amnesty International published a report drawing attention to the fact that judicial caning in Malaysia has reached epidemic proportions. Since 2002, when the Immigration Act was amended to include corporal punishment, nearly 48,000 prisoners have been whipped in Malaysia.

It is a shocking reminder of the cruel, inhuman and degrading way we treat prisoners, particularly refugees and illegal migrants.

Caning or whipping is a horrendous form of punishment. Maximum force, with the cane travelling at speeds of up to 160kph, is applied. The whiplash of the cane (usually a piece of rattan about 1.09m long and 1.25cm thick that is soaked in water) literally takes the skin off the buttocks and then pounds the flesh into pulp. Skin disintegrates. Blood flows copiously.

The pain is so severe that victims often lose consciousness. And when they do, they are quickly revived by doctors so that punishment can continue.

How doctors can participate in this kind of abuse is beyond understanding.

Whipping leaves deep scars that take months to heal. It also leaves deep emotional and psychological wounds that mark the victims for the rest of their lives.

In 2007, a six-minute video of a drug trafficker being caned in Malaysia found its way onto the Internet. Those who think that caning is an acceptable form of punishment should take the trouble to view it.

I personally found it too disturbing to watch. It brought back memories of my late father’s treatment at the hands of the Kempeitai – the military police of the Imperial Japanese Army during the war years. My father was whipped so badly that he carried the scars on his back and buttocks to his grave some fifty years later.

That such horrific abuse is still being visited upon people today is mind-boggling.

And all this despite the fact that there is no evidence that caning is an effective deterrence. It simply panders to our baser instincts to inflict pain upon those who transgress.

Furthermore, such forms of corporal punishment are clearly against the 1948 Universal Declara­tion of Human Rights which states that, “No one shall be subject to torture or to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment”.

Malaysia has always been an ardent supporter of the UN and proudly sits on its Human Rights Council, yet we violate one of its most cherished principles. We lose the moral authority to speak on human rights issues when we ourselves don’t cherish and uphold them.

Some years ago, Malaysians joined the global outrage over the treatment of prisoners at Abu Ghraib. America was rightly condemned for behaving in such a cruel and callous manner. What does it now say of us when we are silent about something far worse that is taking place in our prisons on an almost daily basis?

What is even more egregious is that we visit such horrific punishment upon hapless refugees and illegal migrants as well.

Refugees from Myanmar, for example, flee in fear and desperation from well documented abuse, torture and death in their own land only to be further abused in Malaysia.

According to Amnesty International, more than 6,000 refugees are caned, up to 24 times each, every year!

This is morally reprehensible and a great blight upon our nation’s honour.

Of course, we are not the only ones to permit judicial caning. It is widely practised in Singapore and Brunei as well, courtesy of our common British colonial heritage. Caning is now increasingly considered a cheaper alternative to jailing offenders. Illegal migrants are whipped and then deported.

Not surprisingly, many countries seem to ignore this appalling abuse of their own citizens in Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei. If Australian, British or American citizens were similarly treated, there would be an international uproar, which explains why such punishment is rarely inflicted on them.

Our poorer Asian neighbours, on the other hand, remain silent largely because they fear antagonising us and jeopardising an important source of foreign income in the remittances that these migrant workers send home each month. For countries like the Philippines, Bangladesh and Nepal, for example, such remittances make a significant contribution to their economy.

Perhaps it is also because Asian governments tend to place a lower premium on human dignity.

Whatever the reason, shame on them for staying silent while their citizens are so harshly treated abroad.

Of course, Myanmar’s military rulers are not going to lose any sleep over the treatment of Karen, Kachin or Rohingya people abroad, but surely we become complicit in the injustice wreaked upon these people if they end up being abused and punished in Malaysia as well.

When asked about the leaked caning video in 2007, the Deputy Home Minister at the time said it was “no big deal”.

But it is a big deal when our nation inflicts such horrendous suffering upon prisoners, upon migrant workers and upon refugees. It tarnishes our image and invites international scorn.

And it is a big deal because we are better than that.

It’s time we end this barbaric form of punishment. Certainly, we should immediately stop the caning of refugees and illegal migrants.

Datuk Dennis Ignatius is a 36-year veteran of the Malaysian foreign service. He served in London, Beijing and Washington and was ambassador to Chile and Argentina. He retired as High Commissioner to Canada in July 2008.

The Art and Soul of BURMESE Refugees in MALAYSIA provided by Shariqa Habi

A group of students and a lecturer of Taylor’s University College in Malaysia were dying to give Burmese kids the opportunity to develop art skills, have fun and most importantly, share their story with the rest of the world. The point was to wrap up the extraordinary perspectives of these precious Burmese gems into a project called “See the World Through Our Eyes.”, organized with the support of British Council’s Global Changemakers and Amnesty International Malaysia. In other words, these invisible members of Malaysian society were given a voice, or should I say, a camera?

How do you survive as a member of a minority group in Burma (Myanmar) where ethnic conflict has been an ongoing war since the 1940s? May be you’d consider running as fast as your Burmese feet can carry you, all the way to neighboring country Malaysia.  What happens afterward? Unfortunately illegal Burmese immigrants in Malaysia accept a miserable underpaid-abusive work life; deprivation of health-care, social security, food, clean water. Amnesty International Malaysia explains: “Malaysian law, especially the Immigration Act does not distinguish a person as a refugee or as a person in need of temporary protection. The Act also excludes validity of documents granted by the UNHCR that accord such people with International Protection.”

http://www.aimalaysia.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9
A little ray of Hope

Everyday Malaysians needed a serious wake-up call and that’s exactly what the Community Action Project (CAP) of the Global Changemakers aimed at. In comes Shariqa Habib, a Global Changemaker who recently finished her International Canadian Pre-University Program. As an assignment for her World Issues course, she and some other students had to visit a Burmese refugee school in Kuala Lumpur and teach the children for one day. This day turned out to be such an amazing experience that she wanted to work with them again. She spoke with her lecturer, Colin B. Shafer who let her watch the documentary “Born Into Brothels”, a documentary on prostitution in Calcutta, shot by the kids of prostitutes. Mister Shafer wanted to do something similar and his students were willing to run the project. Voilà, project “See the World Through Our Eyes” was born. Every weekend they would go to the school and give photojournalism training to a group of Burmese kids between 13 and 16 years old. Shariqa applied for a grant with the British Council’s Global Changemakers and the group received a grant to support the project. This grant, however, did not cover technical equipment so the group had to get their creative groove on to collect camera’s. Mister Shafer sold some of his photographic prints and people donated their old cameras. That’s wasn’t the only challenge they faced. They had to select the Burmese children who would participate in this project. Mister Shafer says it was very difficult to keep the number of the group under 20, because it was so hard to say no! He was also concerned with what they would think of the process. As refugees they have limited extra curricular activities, but in the end their response was very positive and they turned out to be fantastic photographers! Shariqa says language was another obvious barrier. Their ‘little photographers’ as she calls them didn’t speak proper English so they had to find a way to communicate with translators present. But they never lost hope!

The Butterfly Effect

The whole team of students and Burmese children worked together, like the imaginal cells of a caterpillar who turns into a beautiful butterfly. After a few months of hard work the metamorphosis was complete! A wonderful photo exhibition appeared at the Annexe Gallery in Kuala Lumpur. The exhibition received a great deal of support by the Executive Director of Amnesty International Malaysia, who made a personal appearance on the opening night.

The children were all dressed in traditional clothing and performed for the visitors. Some of their parents even managed to come. “I have never seen kids so proud. It was great to see their smiles as people observed their photographs with intrigue. Lots of people purchased the photographs and we were able to raise a lot of money for the ACR school, which exists month to month.” says Mister Shafer.

The Aftermath…

Mister Shafer and his students hope they can exhibit the photos in more places in Malaysia and internationally and spread their exquisite voice around the world!

Some of the kids received asylum from the U.S. government and moved to the U.S. with their family. Others are probably still in Kuala Lumpur. They were allowed to keep the cameras – score! Hopefully they are still using their new found talents to snap pictures and share their stories. “We are hoping to continue to stay in contact with this original group of youth. It would be great if we can get this exhibit shown in more places around Malaysia and the world. “Mister Shafer continues, “They are really special, and extremely talented. I am worried as they are getting to an age where schooling will not be available for them anymore; I am not sure what they will do. It would be amazing if we could help some of them get into art schools or universities to continue growing in this field, but that would require a scholarship or donations. If anyone out there wants to help please let me know. I have a couple of the students in mind who I know would excel in any art program.” There’s no doubt these kids will be successful in life, and they deserve every chance they can get! So, any takers? I can assure you, you will not be sorry if you give these youngsters a chance!

Take a look at some awesome pictures taken by the Refugee kids-turning-photographers:

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Upcoming rays-of-hope projects…

For the future Mister Shafer will be working with Somalian refugees in Malaysia on a similar project. He thought it would be absolutely fabulous if they could organize an exhibition showing both the work of the Somali children and the photos of the Burmese refugees, and even make a photo book of these projects.

“Hopefully this project inspires others to do similar work, and support the refugees living in their country. If we do not allow these vulnerable young humans to feel loved and respected, they will not end up being confident contributors to whatever society they live in. Therefore it is in everyone’s best interest to help them be successful.”

Word up Mister Shafer, I couldn’t have said it better! So c’mon people, move it, get in gear we have some extra special works of art to spread and stories to tell!!!

Concern over Rohingya boat people

Human rights groups have expressed concern over the plight of 158 Rohingya men being detained by authorities in southern Thailand.

The men, of varying ages, reportedly came ashore over the weekend, after fleeing their native Myanmar and experiencing engine trouble on their way to Malaysia.

"I'm very concerned about their possible deportation and the manner in which that could take place," Chris Lewa, the coordinator of the Arakan Project, an advocacy organization for the Rohingya, told IRIN from Geneva on 25 January.

"It's very difficult to track them should that happen," David Mathieson, a researcher for Human Rights Watch (HRW), said, adding that he hoped the Thai authorities would permit UNHCR (the UN Refugee Agency) access to conduct a proper refugee status determination.

The first boat carrying 91 men arrived in Trang Province on 22 January, followed by a second one on 23 January carrying 67 to Sarai Island in Tarutao National Park, Satun Province.

Police Col. Chayawut Chansomboon, Satun immigration superintendent, reportedly said both groups would probably be repatriated.

Reports suggest that eight boats have left Myanmar and Bangladesh on their way to Malaysia since the end of December although the whereabouts of the other boats remain unknown.

Two years earlier, Thailand was criticized for its handling of another group of Rohingya boat people who washed up on its shores, amid allegations that hundreds were towed out to sea and left to die without adequate humanitarian supplies.

The Rohingya, a persecuted Muslim minority unrecognized as citizens by the Burmese government, have been fleeing their native Myanmar since 1978.

Each year, scores escape from Myanmar's northern Rakhine state by boat, often turning up in Bangladesh, Thailand, Malaysia or as far away as Indonesia.

According to UNHCR, there are some 200,000 Rohingya in Bangladesh, of whom only 28,000 are documented refugees and in two government camps assisted by the agency.

Source : speroforum.com

Policy chaos over migrant workers in Malaysia

Malaysia has a total of 1.9 million registered migrant workers, constituting approximately 21 per cent of the workforce, making Malaysia the largest importer of labour in Asia.

Despite the large presence of migrant workers in the economy, the policies and laws regulating in-migration are chaotic. Policies built on the concept of a short-term remedy for labour shortage problems have exposed the failure on the part of policymakers to recognise the critical contribution of migrant workers over the longer term. The problem is compounded by the absence of a comprehensive policy on in-migration as an integral part of national strategies for economic growth.

The inflows of migrants in the various economic sectors have generally been governed informally, although the government has signed Memorandums of Understanding with several designated countries, including Indonesia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, China, Vietnam, Pakistan and Thailand. Following this, the private sector was permitted to set up employment agencies to officially recruit migrant workers from these countries. However, after failing to combat the increasing inflows of illegal migrants, the government, in 1995, put a stop to private sector recruitment agencies and replaced them with a Task Force on Foreign Labour. The frequent pre-1995 sanctions on the importation of migrant workers persisted into the post-1995 period, suggesting that the special Task Force had also failed to stem the employment of illegal workers. The Task Force was then disbanded in 1997, and in 2002, recruitment procedures were subject through G to G agreements.

Apart from the changes in the recruitment process, frequent bans have been imposed to cut back the intake of migrants. These measures are generally short-lived, lasting not more than a year. Retrenchments and deportations of legal workers following any economic downturn have been reversed soon after employers’ problems with labour shortage.

In the course of regulating the use of migrant workers across the various economic sectors, the government has also sought efforts to deter the recruitment and retention of legal migrants by instituting market-based measures, such as the levy system in 1991 (with subsequent upwards revisions made in 1995, 1998 and 2005), the mandatory contributions to the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) in 1998 and the reduction in the maximum limit of the work permit in 2001. However, these policies backfired as employers switched to hiring illegals and under-reporting migrant wages to reduce their contributions to the EPF. As a result, the levies were lowered in 1999, the mandatory contribution to EPF was revoked in 2001 and the limit of the work permit was revised to five years from three years.

Though the laws of Malaysia do not discriminate against migrant workers, in practice, the rights of migrant workers are not protected: workers suffer from non-payment of wages, wrongful deduction of wages to cover work permits, long working hours, sub-standard living conditions, no insurance coverage, travel documents withheld by employers and unfair dismissal.

There are also provisions in existing labour laws with inherent biases against migrant workers. The Workmen’s Compensation Act (which covers migrant workers) provides benefits that are by far inferior to that as provided by the SOCSO (Social Security Organisation) scheme to local workers. Apart from observed differences in the compensation for migrant vis-à-vis local workers, there is no assurance that the injured migrant worker is compensated for under the Act, as this requires the worker to be adequately insured by the employer.

A recent announcement by the Malaysian government requiring employers to buy health insurance coverage for migrant workers effective this month is positive. Yet, this mandate, though it ostensibly benefits migrant workers, is being implemented mainly because of the high amount of unsettled public hospital bills by employers, totaling RM18 million (US$5.8 million) as at November 2010. To date, the details of the health insurance, apart from the annual premium of RM120, have not been made known to the public.

There are three main policy contexts in which migrant inflows are affected through the ‘price’ (labour cost encompassing wages, non-wages and other intangible benefits) effect.

The provisions outlined in the specified Acts that are applicable to migrants need to be reviewed to ensure equal protection for the former with that of their local counterparts. Of importance are the compensations meted out under the Workmen’s Compensation Act 1952. The compensation packages, offered to foreigners in the event of workplace injuries, need to be revised upwards as the payment is too low in comparison with the SOCSO plan for local workers. Equal treatment of migrants with that of local workers will tax away any undesirable cost saving gains borne by employers.

The government is also studying a proposal to increase the levy for migrant workers, with differing rates across skills and sectors. The current annual levy system suffers from several shortcomings. In the case of manufacturing, an annual levy of RM1200 and RM960 (based on the latest revision in August 2005) is imposed on migrant workers in Peninsular and East Malaysia respectively. A blanket levy for manufacturing is not feasible given that the dependence on migrant workers varies considerably across industries.

The final policy issue also under consideration is minimum wages. The Malaysian Trade Union Congress has been pressuring the government to introduce a minimum wage of RM900, plus cost of living allowance of RM300, to attract local workers and reduce the dependence on migrant workers. The key challenge is to identify the appropriate rate for minimum wages as the proposed rate matches up to a basic wage of a semi-skilled worker in Malaysia, lest displacement of jobs may post a greater problem as higher wages relative to neighbouring countries attract more migrant inflows. The argument that a minimum wage will reduce the dependency on migrant workers is debatable and can somewhat be counterproductive given that: first, migrant workers may increase instead of decrease unless transaction costs (such as work permits and levies) are increased sufficiently to render them unattractive; second, local workers may still not be willing to undertake 3-D (dirty, difficult and dangerous) jobs, and even if they do, workers’ productivity with minimum wages becomes another concern; third, the problem of non-compliance and abuse by the various stakeholders which has plagued in-migration in Malaysia to date may worsen as unscrupulous employers resort to illegal workers to undercut cost of competitors.

The core problem is a lack of a comprehensive migrant worker policy and weak governance structures. The Malaysian case is a classic case of the failure of decentralisation in the recruitment and placement of migrant workers, in addition to lack of enforcement of existing regulations by various stakeholders.

Evelyn Devadason is Visiting Fellow at the Australian National University and Associate Professor at the University of Malaya.