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Highlighted Resources
Highlighted Resources: Refugees from Burma
A Shady Tree : Hope for Vulnerable Refugees in Malaysia and Thailand. Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS),United States Conference of Catholic Bishops/Migration and Refugee Services (USCCB/MRS). 20 pages. 2005. English http:/ / www.brycs.org/ documents/ upload/ AShadyTree.pdf.
Between February 9 and 20, 2005, a delegation from Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) and Migration and Refugee Services of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (MRS/USCCB) visited Malaysia and Thailand. The trip aimed to look at the situation of the refugees in each country, most of whom are Burmese, with a particular focus on the unaccompanied refugee minors (URMs) among them.
Burmese Language Resources. University of London, School of Oriental and African Affairs. English http:/ / www.soas.ac.uk/ sea/ burmese/ .
This Web site offers a variety of multilingual resources on Burma including country and cultural profiles, phrase books, dictionaries, and additional study aids and links to more Web sites to help with learning Burmese.
Cetana's Publications Project. Cetana Educational Foundation Dictionary. Burmese Chin English Kachin Karen Shan http:/ / www.cetana.org/ Cetana/ Dictionary.html.
Cetana's Publications Project was created to produce multilingual dictionaries and books. In addition to the dominant Myarmar language, the country's approximately 135 ethnic groups speak many other languages. Many have since been printed and circulated to the refugee camps on the Thailand border and to refugee settled in the United States. Trilingual dictionaries are available in the following languages: Karen (2005), Kachin (2006), Shan and Chin (2008) .
Child Report to the Committee on the Rights of the Child. State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC). 47 pages. 1995. English http:/ / www.burmalibrary.org/ reg.burma/ archives/ 199701/ msg00201.html.
This resource is Burma's State Law and Restoration Council's (SLORC) initial report to the Committee on the Rights of the Child. This report includes sections on Myanmar's child rearing practices, parental responsibilities, and more.
Children's Opportunity to Learn in the Ethnic Nationality Areas in Burma. Lwin, Thein. April 2001. English http:/ / www.internal-displacement.org/ 8025708F004CE90B/ (httpDocuments)/ 52F15F30ADE292B6802570B70059997A/ $file/ Children's+Opportunity+to+Learn+_Eng_.pdf.
This paper is based on the findings of the local education workshops on the topics of a child's opportunity to learn, curriculum, the teaching of mother tongue at school, teaching methodology and teacher education.
Community Profiles. Commonwealth of Australia. 28 pages. August 2006. English http:/ / www.immi.gov.au/ living-in-australia/ delivering-assistance/ government-programs/ settlement-planning/ _pdf/ community-profile-burma.pdf.
Community Profiles were developed to assist service providers to better understand the backgrounds and needs of immgrant and refugee arrivals. The Profiles contain information on settlement locations, demographic characteristics, settlement needs and cultural and country backgrounds including pre-arrival experiences and camp conditions.
Refugee and Immigrant Populations include: Bhutanese, Burmese, Congolese, Eritrean, Ethiopian, Liberian, Sierra Leonean, Sudanese, Togolese, and Uzbek.Considerations for Individuals and Agencies Working with the Karen People of Burma in the United States. Karen American Communities Foundation. 4 pages. December 2009. English http:/ / www.karensusa.org/ documents/ Resources_for_Working_with_Karen_final_Nov._09.pdf.
This article discusses the importance of appropriate translators, the difference between Karen and Burmese people, and tips on how to work effectively with these newcomers.
Despite Promises: Child Soldiers in Burma's SPDC Armed Forces. Human Rights Education Institute of Burma (HREIB). 44 pages. September 2008. English http:/ / www.hreib.com/ images/ pb/ csreport.pdf.
A Research Study Reviewing Current Trends and Developments Regarding the Use and Recruitment of Child Soldiers in Burma.
Dietary Assessment of Refugees Living in Camps: A Case Study of Mae La Camp, Thailand. Banjong, Orapin, Menefee, Andrea, Sranacharoenpong, Kitti, Chittchang, Uraiporn, Eg-kantrong, Pasamai, Boonpraderm, Atitada, Tamachotipong, Sopa. 360-388 pages. 2003. http:/ / www.unu.edu/ Unupress/ food/ fnb24-4-3.pdf.
This study presents data on consumption patterns, methods of food procurement, and adequacy of dietary intake among Burmese refugee camp households living along Thailands border with Burma.
Drum Publishing Group. Drum Publishing Group. various pagings. 1998. Burmese English Karen http:/ / www.drumpublications.org/ .
This is a small independent community based organization dedicated to promoting education and rpeserving the cultures of the peoples of Burma. They have many materials in Karen and other languages.
Education in Burma: Hope for the Future. Lwin, Thein. 2006. English http:/ / www.educationburma.net/ TheinLwinCV%20with%20Photo%207Mar08.pdf.
Elevated Blood Lead Levels among Children in Refugee Camps. Mitchell, Tarissa, Jentes, Emily, Ortega, Luis, Bajcevic, Predrag, Jones, Warren, Par, Valentina, Brown, Mary Jean, Jefferies, Taran, Scalia Sucosky, Marissa, Rommaneeyapet, Sutisa, Painter, John. 47 pages. June 2009. English http:/ / www.brycs.org/ documents/ upload/ CDC-Report-Burmese-Lead-Levels.pdf.
This report states that in Spring 2008, the Immigrant, Refugee, and Migrant Health Branch (IRMHB) began receiving reports from state health departments of elevated blood lead levels in refugee children under 6 years of age, specifically Burmese. Given this high prevalence, agencies planned an investigation of EBLLs among refugee children still living in Thailand. Objectives included estimating the prevalence of EBLLs in Burmese refugee children living in refugee camps; identifying potential sources of lead exposure; and working with camp agencies and other partners to address this problem camp-wide.
First Steps: An Introduction to Life in America. Chicago Welcomes You. 94 pages. 2009. English Karen http:/ / www.chicagowelcomesyou.org/ project.html.
This book and accompanying ring cards are apart of a project that strives to lend a warm welcome to newly-arrived Burmese Karen refugees in the Chicago area by producing cultural orientation materials in Sgaw Karen, such as these ring cards and books full of illustrations that describe small but important details of American life like sorting bills, school permission slips, and overpriced groceries.
Growing Up Under the Burmese Dictatorship. Grumiau, Samuel. 30 pages. 2003. English http:/ / www.icftu.org/ www/ PDF/ report_burmachildren_2003.pdf.
This report describes the situation facing children after 41 years of military rule in Burma. Topics include historical background, education, child labor, and health of children in Burma, Thailand, and Bangledesh.
Karenni Profile. The International Organization for Migration (IOM). March 2009. English http:/ / karennirefugees.multiply.com/ journal.
This profile includes information on the Karenni refugees from Burma. Their Web site also includes photos and videos of this refugee group.
Karenni Refugees in Mae Hong Son, Thailand. Morrissey, Daryl,, IOM South-East Asia Cultural Orientation team. 5 pages. 2009. English http:/ / www.cal.org/ co/ overseas/ Burmese/ Karenni/ Karenni_Refugees.pdf.
This overview provides insight into the cultural orientation that most Karenni refugees receive before traveling to the U.S. This group of refugees started coming to the U.S. in early 2009, and CAL estimates that 7,000 additional Karenni will be resettled in this country by the end of September.
Klee Thoo, a Burmese Karen Father. Bridging Refugee Youth and Children's Services (BRYCS). 5 pages. January 2007. English http:/ / www.brycs.org/ documents/ upload/ Karen_interview.pdf.
On January 16, 2007, Klee Thoo met with BRYCS staff to talk about his life and experiences as a Karen refugee from Burma, now raising a family with his wife in the United States.
My Gun Was as Tall as Me. Human Rights Watch. 226 pages. October 2002. English http:/ / www.hrw.org/ reports/ 2002/ burma/ Burma0902.pdf.
This book covers in depth the issue of child soldiers in Burma. Topics include conditions leading to recruitment, training, deployment and active duty, psychological affects, life after the army, detailed profiles of opposition forces, legal standards, and recommendations.
Myanmar Family: Traditional Child Rearing and Socialization. Tu, Sein. July 1998. http:/ / www.myanmar.gov.mm/ Perspective/ persp1998/ 7-98/ fam.htm.
This brief article describes the basic ways that are taught and values that are instilled in a Burmese child.
Online Burma/Myanmar Library. Arnott, David (Librarian). May 2003. English http:/ / burmalibrary.org/ index.php.
A searchable database of over 11,000 full-text documents on Burma.
Persecution of Chin Christians in Burma. Mang, Salai Bawi Lian. 16 pages. 2009. English http:/ / www.chro.ca/ media/ powerpoint-presentations/ 97-persecution-of-chin-christians-in-burma.html.
This PowerPoint presentation highlights the struggles of the Chin, one of the refugee groups from Burma being resettled by the U.S. Unlike some of the other groups fleeing Burma, religious persecution is a major concern for the Chin Christians, who have seen their crosses destroyed, Bibles confiscated, and reverends murdered. Service providers working with the Chin in the U.S. may find the background information in this Power Point useful.
Refugee Health: Immigrant Health (Web site). Kemp, Charles, Rasbridge, Lance. 1999. English http:/ / bearspace.baylor.edu/ Charles_Kemp/ www/ refugee_health.htm.
This Web site provides background information and details the medical problems and health care needs of refugees and immigrants. A database of infectious diseases, searchable alphabetically, by country, or by major presenting symptoms, provides information about distribution, transmission, and treatment. Other topics covered include mental health problems; religious influences on the notions of health, illness, and death; the unique health care needs of women from different cultures; sex trafficking and child exploitation; successful models of providing health care to refugees; and background on the history, religion, social structure, and health care risks of Bosnian, Burmese, Cambodian/Khmer, Chinese, Cuban, Ethiopian/Eritrean, Gypsy/Roma, Haitian, Indian/Asian, Iraqi, Korean, Kosovar, Kurdish, Laotian, Liberian, Mexican/Hispanic, Nigerian, Somali, Sudanese, and Vietnamese refugee and immigrant populations.
Refugees from Burma in Thailand and Malaysia. Cultural Orientation Resource Center (COR), Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL). 3 pages. 2007. English http:/ / www.cal.org/ co/ overseas/ program_highlight.html.
This article includes a description of the 'family day' part of the curriculum, when parents and children are brought together to discuss the changes they will experience in family roles, methods of child discipline, and maintaining the valuable aspects of their own culture. The article also includes information on their new parenting program for parents of young children in their daycare center. Be sure to check out the slideshow, which has pictures of the Burmese in their Cultural Orientation classes, including children singing 'Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes.'
Refugees from Burma: Their Backgrounds and Refugee Experiences. Barron, Sandy, Okell, John, Yin, Saw Myat, VanBik, Kenneth, Swain, Arthur, Larkin, Emma, Allott, Anna J., Ewers, Kirsten. 88 pages. June 2007. English http:/ / www.cal.org/ co/ pdffiles/ refugeesfromburma.pdf.
"This resources is a cultural profile from the Cultural Orientation Resource Center (COR) and provides information about the diverse histories, cultures, and refugee experiences of the Burmese, Karen, and the Chin. Designed as a resource for refugee service providers and others who interact with the Burmese, the profile also addresses the early experiences of the Burmese already resettled in the U.S." - Publisher's description reprinted with permission
Stolen Futures: The Stateless Children of Burmese Asylum Seekers. Refugees International. June 25, 2004. English http:/ / www.thebestfriend.org/ 2010/ 04/ 02/ stolen-futures-the-stateless-children-of-burmese-asylum-seekers/ .
"Refugees International therefore recommends that: - The Royal Thai Government grant citizenship to children born in Thailand and the Government of Burma grant citizenship to Burmese children who return without having obtained Thai citizenship. - The Royal Thai Government grant refugee status to all the legitimate asylum seekers. - The Royal Thai Government allow international organizations, especially the UNHCR and UNICEF, to provide full assistance to all refugees, asylum seekers, and stateless persons, especially children. - UNHCR and UNICEF continue to press the Royal Thai Government on the importance of providing stateless children access to education, health care, and adequate nutrition." - Publisher's description
Teacher Training Center for Burmese Teachers and Migrant Learning Center. English http:/ / www.educationburma.net/ .
This Web site can provide you with an overview of the quality of education in refugee camps in Thailand and remote areas of Burma.
UNHCR Quick Fact Sheet: Burmese Resettlement from Tham Hin Camp in Thailand. UNHCR. 4 pages. February 2007. English This resource may be free from your local library or purchased from the publisher.
Welcome to the United States: A Guidebook for Refugees. Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL), Cultural Orientation Resource Center. 102 pages. 2004. Albanian Amharic Arabic Bosnian - Serbian - Croatian English Farsi French Karen Kirundi Nepali Russian Somali Spanish Swahili Tigrigna Vietnamese http:/ / www.cal.org/ co/ publications/ welcome.html.
Provides refugees being resettled in the United States general information about services available to them during their first few months in the country. Newcomers to the U.S. get information about: (1) pre-arrival requirements, (2) services and accommodations provided by the resettlement agency; (3) temporary assistance offered by community service organizations, government assistance, and public services; (4) housing options as well as leasing and housing laws; (5) transportation; (6) employment; (7) public education; (8) health care; (9) money management; (10) refugees' rights and responsibilities; (11) basic American values, attitudes, and behavior; and (12) how to cope with culture shock and the stress of changing roles within families. With this information, refugees can develop realistic expectations of life in the U.S.