Resources for working with Burmese refugees -A New Source!

As stated, sometime ago I began volunteering with Burmese refugees as an English teacher and was then hired to run the local center's furniture program. As also stated the local center often seemed to be poorly managed. This perhaps was, in part, because internal communication and cooperation may have been lacking. Meanwhile, some people perhaps seemd to not know how to do their jobs. These people seemed to not know where to ask for help or have the courage to do so, instead preferring, perhaps, to see other employees and refugees suffer. And the national organization sometimes had odd policies that made things unnecessarily difficult. This resulted in an awkward sort of negative synergy where nothing was able to be done on schedule and everyone worked unpaid overtime. Meanwhile the office and the lives of the refugees were often in chaos.

One aspect of this atmosphere was that no one seemed to value or share outside resources. Even experienced employees often knew next to nothing about the cultures of the refugees. (i.e. they often assumed the Karen were Buddhists as they were Asian.) I did not know of anyone, for instance, (aside from me) who had even thought of bringing in a copy of the Lonely Planet Burmese Language Phrasebook.

Nevertheless, should you choose to voluntarily enter the field of housing, caring and helping newly arrived refugees, there are many resources out there that will help if only you have the awareness to look for them. If you use them, and use them wisely, your life will be easier as will the lives of the people who you have chosen voluntarily to offer assistance to.

Here's a long list of some resources that appear good.

This comes from http://www.brycs.org/, a website run by an organization called Bridging Refugee Youth and Children's Services. Although I am not familiar with the organization, nor with the resources below, they sure look good and I intend to spend time looking them and their site over. Quite frankly, I expect to learn a lot from it and by following the links. And, as people who know me know, I like to learn new things.

For a complete PDF download with working links click here:
http://www.brycs.org/documents/ResourcesBurmeseRefugees.pdf



BURMESE REFUGEES – HIGHLIGHTED RESOURCES
For Resettlement Staff and Other Service Providers

Ager, Simon. Myanmar/Burmese Script.
http://www.omniglot.com/writing/burmese.htm

Burmese phrases.
http://www.salika.co.jp/buruseword.html

Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (2006). Refugee Admissions Program for
East Asia. Fact Sheet. Washington, DC: Author.
http://www.state.gov/g/prm/rls/fs/2006/66016.htm

Center for Applied Linguistics (2004). Welcome to the United States: A Guidebook for
Refugees. Available in Karen.
Each resettlement agency receives a certain number of booklets/videos for free;
others can be purchased online at
http://calstore.cal.org/store/detail.aspx?ID=302
Center for Applied Linguistics. (2007). Refugees from Burma: Their Backgrounds and
Refugee Experiences.
http://www.cal.org/co/pdffiles/refugeesfromburma.pdf

Cetana Educational Foundation Dictionary.
Available in English/Myanmar/Karen (2005). and Kachin (2006). Shan will be
printed in 2008.
http://www.cetana.org/Dictionary.html

Commonwealth of Australia. (2006). Burmese Community Profile.
This resource is available free in PDF format at:
http://www.immi.gov.au/living-in-
australia/delivering-assistance/government-programs/settlement-
planning/_pdf/community-profile-burma.pdf

Cultural Orientation Resource Center (2007). Refugees from Burma in Thailand and
Malaysia.
This resource is available free in PDF format at:
http://www.cal.org/co/overseas/prog_high_archive.html

Drum Publications. This is a small independent community based organization
dedicated to promoting education and preserving the cultures of the peoples of Burma.
They have many materials in Karen and other languages.
http://www.drumpublications.org/

Ethnologue. Languages of Myanmar.
http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=MM
BRYCS – Bridging Refugee Youth & Children’s Services
April 2007; Updated October 2008
Burmese Refugees, Page 1.
International Rescue Committee. (2006). Refugee Children and Youth Backgrounders.
This resources is designed for teachers and is available in PDF format at :
http://www.boiseschools.org/ell/irc.pdf

Orapin, Banjong; Menefee, Andrea; Sranacharoenpong, Kitti; Chittchang, Uraiporn; Eg-
kantrong, Pasamai; Boonpraderm, Atitada; &Tamachotipong, Sopa. (2003). Dietary
assessment of refugees living in camps: A case study of Mae La Camp, Thailand. Food
and Nutrition Bulletin, 24(4), 360-388.
This resource is available free in PDF format at :
http://www.unu.edu/Unupress/food/fnb24-4-3.pdf

Kemp, Charles. (Retrieved May, 2006). Refugee Health. Immigrant Health Website:
Burmese Health Beliefs & Practices: Kemp.
This resource is available free in HTML format on the Web at:
http://bearspace.baylor.edu/Charles_Kemp/www/refugees.htm

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. (2006). UNHCR Quick Fact Sheet:
Burmese Resettlement from Thailand.
This resource is available free in PDF format at :
www.unrefugees.org/usaforunhcr/uploadedfiles/ThailandBurmeseFeb07.pdf

University of London, School of Oriental and African Affairs. Burmese Language Study
Materials.
http://www.soas.ac.uk/sea/burmese/studymaterials/
Children & Youth
BRYCS. (2006). BRYCS Parenting Conversations: Klee Thoo, a Burmese Karen
Father.
This resource is available at:
http://www.brycs.org/Karen_interview.htm

Human Rights Education Institute of Burma. (2006). Despite Promises: Child Soldiers
in Burma’s SPDC Armed Forces.
This resource is available free in PDF format at:
http://uscampaignforburma.org/aboutburma/childsoldier.pdf

Human Rights Watch. (2002). My Gun Was as Tall as Me.
This resource is available free in PDF format at:
http://www.hrw.org/reports/2002/burma/Burma0902.pdf

International Confederation of Free Trade Unions. (2003). Growing Up Under the
Burmese Dictatorship.
This resource is available free in PDF format at:
http://www.icftu.org/www/PDF/report_burmachildren_2003.pdf

Myanmar Government (1998). Myanmar Family: Traditional Child-rearing and
Socialization. Myanmar Perspectives: Myanmar: Author.
This resource is available in HTML format on the Web at:
http://www.myanmar.gov.mm/Perspective/persp1998/7-98/fam.htm
BRYCS – Bridging Refugee Youth & Children’s Services
April 2007; Updated October 2008
Burmese Refugees, Page 2.

Refugees International (2004). Stolen Futures: The Stateless Children of Burmese
Asylum Seekers.
This resource is available free in HTML format on the Web at:
http://www.refintl.org/content/article/detail/3014

State Law and Order Restoration Council (1995). Child Report to the Committee on the
Rights of the Child. State Law and Order Restoration Council: Myanmar: Author. This
includes sections on child rearing practices, parental responsibilities, and more.
This resource is available in HTML format on the Web at:
http://www.burmalibrary.org/reg.burma/archives/199701/msg00201.html

Education
Lwin, Thein. (2006). Education in Burma: Hope for the Future.
This resource is available free in PDF format at:
http://www.educationburma.net/Papers/2006%20IDAC%20Conference%20Paper
%20-%20Final%20draft%20PDF.pdf
Lwin, Thein. (2001). Children’s Opportunity to Learn in the Ethnic Nationality Areas in
Burma.
These resources in available free in PDF format at:
http://www.internal-displacement.org/8025708F004CE90B/(httpDocuments)/
52F15F30ADE292B6802570B70059997A/$file/Children's+Opportunity+to+Learn
+_Eng_.pdf

Teacher Training Center for Burmese Teachers and Migrant Learning Center.
This Web site can provide you with an overview of the quality of education in
refugee camps in Thailand and remote areas of Burma.
http://www.educationburma.net/

UNESCO Bangkok (Retrieved June, 2006). Myanmar. UNESCO Website: Bangkok:
Author.
This resource is available in HTML format on the Web at:
http://www.unescobkk.org/index.php?id=179

Trafficking

Delaney, Stephanie (2006). Protecting Children from Sexual Exploitation & Sexual
Violence in Disaster & Emergency Situations. ECPAT International: Bangkok, Thailand:
Delaney.
This resource is available in PDF format on the Web at:
http://www.crin.org/docs/ecpat_emergencies.pdf

U.S. Department of State (2005). Trafficking in Persons Report. U.S. Department of
State Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons: Washington, DC: Author.
This resource is available in HTML format on the Web at:
http://www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2005/46613.htm
BRYCS – Bridging Refugee Youth & Children’s Services
April 2007; Updated October 2008
Burmese Refugees, Page 3.
United Nations Children's Fund (2004). A Child-Rights Approach on International
Migration and Child Trafficking: A UNICEF Perspective. Third Coordination Meeting on
International Migration, Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs:
New York: Author.
This resource is available in PDF format on the Web at:
http://www.un.org/esa/population/meetings/thirdcoord2004/P06_UNICEF.pdf

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2006). Trafficking in Persons: Global
Patterns. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime: Vienna, Austria: Author.
This resource is available in PDF format on the Web at:
http://www.unodc.org/pdf/traffickinginpersons_report_2006ver2.pdf
University of Rhode Island (Retrieved June, 2006). Fact Book on Global Sexual
Exploitation: Burma/Myanmar. University of Rhode Island Website, Kingston, Rhode
Island: Author.
This resource is available in HTML format on the Web at:
http://www.uri.edu/artsci/wms/hughes/burma.htm
Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children (2006). Abuse without End:
Burmese Refugee Women and Children at Risk of Trafficking. Women’s Commission for
Refugee Women and Children: New York, New York: Author.
This resource is available in PDF format on the Web at:
http://www.womenscommission.org/pdf/mm_traff.pdf

General Information on the Conflict & Migration to Thailand

Bacon, Ken; Vaghedi, Ghazal (2004). Tham Hin: Resettlement as a Durable Solution for
Burmese Refugees. RI Bulletin.
This resource is available free in PDF format on the Web at:
http://www.refugeesinternational.org/files/4562_file_Tham_Hin_Resettlement.pdf

Bamforth, Vicky; Lanjouw, Steven and Mortimer, Graham (2000). Conflict and
Displacement in Karenni: The Need for Considered Responses. Burma Ethnic Research
Group (BERG), Chang Mai: Thailand: Authors.
This resource is available free in HTML format on the Web at:
http://www.ibiblio.org/obl/docs/responses.htm

Burma Ethnic Research Group; Friedrich Naumann Foundation (1998). Forgotten
Victims of a Hidden War: Internally Displaced Karen in Burma. Burma Ethnic Research
Group: Bangkok, Thailand: Author.
This resource is available in PDF format on the Web at:
http://www.internal-
displacement.org/8025708F004CE90B/(httpDocuments)/0787CA1BCAB9599980
2570B700599932/$file/Berg+Karen+IDP+report.pdf

Caouette, Therese M.; Pack, Mary E. (2002). Pushing Past the Definitions: Migration
from Burma to Thailand. Refugees International. Washington DC: Authors.
This resource is available free in PDF format on the Web at:
http://www.refugeesinternational.org/content/publication/detail/3074/
and in HTML format at:
http://www.ibiblio.org/obl/docs/Caouette&Pack.htm
BRYCS – Bridging Refugee Youth & Children’s Services
April 2007; Updated October 2008
Burmese Refugees, Page 4.
da Costa, Rosa (2006). Administration of Justice in Refugee Camps: A Study of
Practice. Geneva, Switzerland: Department of International Protection, United Nations
High Commissioner for Refugees.
This resource is available free in PDF format on the Web at:
http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-
bin/texis/vtx/protect/opendoc.pdf?tbl=PROTECTION&id=44183b7e2

Demusz, Kerry (1998). From Relief to Development: Negotiating the Continuum on the
Thai-Burmese Border. Journal of Refugee Studies Volume 11, Issue 3: Oxford, UK:
Demusz.
This resource is available free in PDF format on the Web at:
http://fmo.qeh.ox.ac.uk/Repository/getPdf.asp?Path=JRS/1998/09/03&PageNo=
21

Dudley, Sandra (1999). ‘Traditional’ Culture and Refugee Welfare in North-West
Thailand. Refugee Studies Centre with the Norwegian Refugee Council/Global IDP
Project: Oxford, UK: Dudley.
This resource is available free in PDF format on the Web at:
http://www.fmreview.org/FMRpdfs/FMR06/fmr602.pdf

Human Rights Watch. Current reports on the situation in Burma.
http://hrw.org/doc/?t=asia&c=burma

Human Rights Watch, Asia Division (1998). Unwanted and Unprotected: Burmese
Refugees in Thailand
.
This resource is available free in HTML format on the Web at:
http://www.hrw.org/reports98/thai/
.

International Commission of Jurists (1992). Refugees From Myanmar. International
Commission of Jurists: Geneva, Switzerland: Author.
This resource is available in PDF format on the Web at:
http://fmo.qeh.ox.ac.uk/Repository/getPdf.asp?Path=Oxford4/1601/08/16&PageN
o=1

Ibiblio (a collaboration of the Center for the Public Domain and the University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill). Online Burma/Myanmar Library.
This is a searchable database of over 11,000 full text documents on Burma.
http://www.ibiblio.org/obl/index.php

Lang, Hazel (2001). The Repatriation Predicament of Burmese Refugees in Thailand: A
Preliminary Analysis. Australian National University: Canberra, Australia: Lang.
This resource is available free in PDF format on the Web at:
http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-
bin/texis/vtx/research/opendoc.pdf?tbl=RESEARCH&id=3b7d24214

Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) and United States Conference of
Catholic Bishops/Migration and Refugee Services (USCCB) (2005). A Shady Tree: Hope
for Vulnerable Refugees in Malaysia and Thailand. Baltimore, MD and Washington, DC:
Authors.
This resource is available free in PDF format on the Web at:
http://www.lirs.org/InfoRes/PDFs/AShadyTree.pdf
BRYCS – Bridging Refugee Youth & Children’s Services
April 2007; Updated October 2008
Burmese Refugees, Page 5.

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