EXHIBITS

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ENGL 6750, Summer 2015: Voices: Burmese Muslims in Cache Valley, Utah: Leaving Burma: Individual Stories

Array ( [0] => ENGL 6750 Summer 2015 [1] => nested [2] => student exhibit )
CVRP_CD_2015_Ka_Sin_Pan_Phue_Zat_No_Har_Be_Bar_Deana_Allred_David_Giles_P_002.jpg

Ka Sin and his family being interviewed

by the "Voices" research team. [1]

Sa Jan remembers Burmese soldiers took her father from their home and forced him to work. Fortunately, they released her father, but Sa Jan's whole village was in danger. Sometimes the soldiers would release the workers, but other times the soldiers would kill them. There was not enough money for food and Sa Jan’s family feared for their lives, so they fled from Burma to Thailand. [2]

Ya He Ma saw Burmese soldiers shoot people and burning homes was a regular exercise. She said the journey to the refugee camp was difficult—she had to travel through the jungle by foot. [3]

The civil wars in Burma also made it unsafe for Ka Sin to remain. This was difficult because he had to give up access to an education. He relocated to a city in Thailand for three years, but eventually had to move to a refugee camp.

Some Burmese Muslims were directly abused and threatened by the Burmese military, others simply fled to Thailand fearing possible harm. Often refugees had family or friends living in the refugee camp. New arrivals would rely on these contacts to help them get established and build a bamboo shelter.

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[1] Ka Sin. Personal interview. 17 May 2015.

[2] Sa Jan. Personal interview. 16 May 2015.

[3] Ya He Ma. Personal interview. 18 May 2015.