We went to the border of Thailand and Burma to see the border market and also to see the border in general. Right on the other side of the Thai border fence (razor wire) starts the "no man’s land" area which is the land between the two country's formal border crossings.
Currently and since the 1940s, Burma has been at civil war so the country is extremely war-torn and unstable. The civil war has been the longest in the world's history. Due to the civil war, many people have fled the country and some legally can enter Thailand and others cannot (it depends on their paperwork). The people that fled Burma and cannot enter Thailand are literally stuck and living in no man's land.
The Burmese people living in no man's land depend on people to bring them food and clean water for drinking. They also sell items at the border of Thailand (photos below) at the "border market". Somehow they receive inventory of the typical duty-free items like alcohol and cigarettes. I don't know how they get the items whether it is from Thailand or Burma...We didn’t want to buy any cigarettes and alcohol, but they did have some playing cards so we got some new playing cards from one of the Burmese booths.
Seeing the Burmese people stuck in no man's land was heart wrenching. I can imagine every single individual has a tragic story that led them to where they are today. I wish I could have heard some of their stories. The people looked tired, sad, and nearly hopeless. I can imagine growing up and only knowing civil war and then "escaping the civil war" just to be stuck between countries would be excruciatingly difficult. It was sobering and so heart breaking to see these people and think about the life that they’re living that’s so uncertain.
The Burmese people that are able to get into Thailand legally have legal documents and papers, but are not allowed to leave the city of Mae Sot (this is Thailand's policy). Thailand seems open to helping these refugees but does not want them to overrun the entire country. The city of Mae Sot is about 80% Burmese, which we did not realize before going there. You can typically tell the difference between a Thai person and a Burmese person the Burmese people apply "thanaka" (a light brown paste made from ground bark) to their face to protect their skin from the sun.
We were talking with an American missionary that lives in Mae Sot and he shared within the past few months, the aggression has increased in Burma and occasionally you can hear towns in Burma getting bombed. He first thought that the sounds were fireworks but then realized that they were bombings. The country is very divided and every story we hear about the country is full of corruption, struggle, strife, and survival.
Border market:
No Man's Land:
