Wieng Haeng refugee camp (1000 inhabitants) is the smallest of the ten refugee camps along the border. It is not officially recognized by the Royal Thai Government or the UNHCR because of the ethnicity. The inhabitants crossed the border from Shan state (to the north of Thailand) and lived here since 2002. Their villages suffered heavy fighting and many of the inhabitants lost relatives and all their belongings.
The camp was laid out by the community itself. Because of its small population, the structures of the four villages that they came from was copied and condensed into the new site. The refugees receive aid from the Thai Burmese Border Consortium in the form of food and non food items (bamboo for their shelters). They have several 'permanent' structures such as water wells, a temple, a weaving industry and a school.
The small settlement is very tightly knit, and yearly reparations of bamboo houses are done communally. Due to the steady population, in which the old want to stay, whilst young would like to be more mobile, the village had very little security or sanitation issues, insofar that men and women shared all sanitation.
The main public space and heart of the camp was again its sports field, giving the youth something to do. The adult population of the camp has to take a daily risk of leaving the camp in search of day labor. Materials received by NGOs do not permit a basic standard of living and hence extra income is needed. During my journey from the main northern Thai city of Chiang Mai to the camp we encountered about ten border check points where my fellow bus travelers were thoroughly searched and ID was requested. It's not easy for the stateless to find a means of making a simple living let alone is there a space to live on.
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