Mrs Bush Visits Mae Lah Refugee Camp

MAE SOT — Burmese residents of a refugee camp near the Thai-Burmese border appealed on Thursday to US first lady Laura Bush to help them resettle in the West.

Mrs Bush promised them to do all she could as she toured the Mae Lah camp near the Thai border town of Mae Sot. Around 40,000 refugees live in Mae Lah, the biggest refugee camp in Thailand.

US first lady Laura Bush, center left, is flanked by her daughter Barbara as she talks with a Karen refugees family at Mae Lah refugee camp near the Thai-Burmese border. (Photo: AP)

The refugee community gave Mrs Bush and her daughter Barbara a warm welcome, performing traditional Karen dances and showing them the camp’s schoolrooms.

In one classroom, a student had written on the blackboard: “My life in refugee camp is better than Burma but I do not have opportunities to go outside of my camp.”

The vice camp leader, Mahn Htun Htun, appealed directly to Mrs Bush to help more Burmese refugees resettle in the US.

“We are refugees and our dream is to go back home,” he said, “We have no peace in Burma now, the possibility for us is to go to third countries.”

Mrs Bush replied that the best option would be to “see a change in the Burmese government,” in which case “people could move home in safety.”

She said: "Most people do not want to have to move to third countries. They would rather move to their home villages in safety and security."

One Burmese refugee who has been selected, along with his family, for resettlement in the US said Washington should increase the pressure on the Burmese regime so that conditions allowing refugees to return could be created.

The refugee, Saw Mardecair, thanked the US, however, for taking in large numbers of Burmese.

Mahn Htun Htun drew attention to the plight of 13,000 newly-arrived refugees who, he said, lacked adequate food and shelter.

Mrs Bush later visited the Mae Tao clinic, the Burmese migrant health care center founded by Dr Cynthia Maung, who said she hoped the first lady would raise in the US the humanitarian problems she had seen in the border area.

“All countries in the world have to come together and work together for change in Burma,” said Dr Maung.

Children welcomed Mrs. Bush to the clinic with a performance of traditional Burmese songs.