Dislike Of Burmese Nationals

[November Rain]

We have one salaried worker in our dog center. He's a young Burmese national with a permit to work for us. Before I start the story, I'd like to make one thing clear - I have tried to employ Thais, but with no success. They either think clearing up after dogs is too dirty, too scary or they steal from us & don't bother to come to work. I certainly don't mean to tar all Thais with that brush, but that has been the sort of people who answer our "want" ads. So, this guy has proved himself reliable and doesn't steal & actually seems to care for the dogs. Great.

Today, not for the first time, he was assaulted (minor this time, but it has been worse) by Thai workers in a neighbouring compound. I was working in the center at the time & decided that I had had enough of this, so I took him (with his complete agreement) to the police station to report it.

I'm ashamed to say that neither my Thai, or the worker's, is good. His is slightly better than mine, but even between us we can't hold a fluent conversation in Thai. So, explaining to the police was rather difficult. A woman came in to talk to us & her English was quite good, so I thought we'd got our story over to them. She kept looking at my attire (I wear very old, often ripped clothes to the center and was covered in mud from the dogs jumping up to greet me) & I kept apologising for looking so bad.

I didn't actually expect much from the police. My intention was just to lodge a complaint in case anything worse happened, so I was amazed (& very grateful) when 2 officers came back with us to find the culprit. When we got there, they spoke to another worker & I gleaned from what they said that they thought I was the one who had been assaulted. I denied this vigorously & they were completely nonplussed at how I got to look so bad. I explained that it was the dogs that had me looking like that.

Up till now, the police had been completely decent & any problem was my fault for not speaking more Thai. But what happened next disgusted me. They had no interest in the fact that the worker had been assaulted. They got angry with him for wasting their time & actually cuffed him up the back of the head (I mean a slap on the back of the head). Then got in their car & left. All of this in front of some of the Thai workers who had assaulted him in the first place.

I know that the Thais have some bad history with the Burmese, but how can this be justified? Police officers slapping him for a mistake that was mine as much as his? Protection & help for me, but not for him? Can anyone explain this, please?

[MrSnrang]

I think a lot of it is the fact that no one wants to hire Thais and they're spiteful of the fact that there are decent workers from Burma that do work and take away a significant part of the job market here.

Really, it's the Thais' own fault that their work quality is often so piss-poor.

[Mid]

sad story NR ,

perhaps an eye opener for you , life is not fair ,

but,

that doesn't mean we can't try our best to make the world a better place .

[meme]

NR,

No I can not explain it. I have asked my bf many times to explain it to me and just goes on about how Burma invaded Thailand so many moons ago and then explains how the anti Burmese sentimint is promoted today though movies and songs and really gets Thais worked up. There is a specific folk song that I have heard played a million times at our local bars and I have to say everytime it is played it gets this really emotional reaction if everyone is drunk enough!

I first came to Thailand as a volunteer working with Internally Displaced Burmese who were living on the border in Thailand. The treatment was appalling. Regadless if they were legally allowed to be in Thailand or not...just appalling.

[tijnebijn]

They are looked at as second hand trash,indeed.They also have nicknames for them like 'KEK',indians and muslims also fall under this name saying.They look at them as easy cheap workers who come to the holy land named Thailand and we Thai can do whatever we want them to do.I think they go even that far that the thai even believe that the burmese should be thankful to them that he can come here to work,they know how hard they have it back home...And ofcourse they hate them,because of the past,that is the main reason.Like Khmer have with thais,dutch and english with the germans,chinese with the japanese.I mean this is everywhere,but ofcourse to going along with them like that goes to far,poverty comes to mind.Thai love and respect only evrything what have power and money,stature,and this again is cultural.So I think they are not even to blame that much,personally yes,but it is to complicated to sort it out just like that.Thais probably do not think too much,as normally and you,for sure'are the farang who talks and thinks too much.

But you have a point though,but in Thailand it is a waiste of their time.Sad thing ,really is.

[carnival1200]

[q She kept looking at my attire (I wear very old, often ripped clothes to the center and was covered in mud from the dogs jumping up to greet me) & I kept apologising for looking so bad.

they were completely nonplussed at how I got to look so bad. I explained that it was the dogs that had me looking like that.

Maybe you would have got their attention better if you had of took the time to dress appropiatley

[November Rain]

[q She kept looking at my attire (I wear very old, often ripped clothes to the center and was covered in mud from the dogs jumping up to greet me) & I kept apologising for looking so bad.

they were completely nonplussed at how I got to look so bad. I explained that it was the dogs that had me looking like that.

Maybe you would have got their attention better if you had of took the time to dress appropiatley

Yep. I hope there isn't a next time, but if there is, no matter how badly he's hurt, I shall take the 45 mins to go home, shower, change, perhaps apply a little light make-up, before I go to report the incident. I'll ask him to meet me at the station, shall I? Bleeding, or not.

[bkkjam]

Maybe its fear. My wife was not happy when we hired a Burmese national as a maid. I understand that Thais think that Burmese are a violent people.

Also, Thai people generally seem to look down on poorer countries like Laos & Burma.

[MTW]

Not exactly on topic, but I used to stay at a Thai-family-owned hotel here for long periods before I got a house. I used to play with their dogs which often lead me in back to the Thai kitchen and the rooms where the workers lived. I saw one day, that the Thai workers all had reasonable rooms with regular furniture and that the few Burmese workers slept just anywhere on the floor, on those 2 mm thin straw mats, even though there were free beds available.

I was rather shocked because the owner is rather well off, he has very nice German luxury cars, his children are going to Universities in the US or UK, even one of his kids who is only 14 already has her own car to drive, so this has nothing to do with a lack of money, as well because I just said beds for workers were going empty. This is simply a status thing.

And, in my opinion, other than this thing, the owner, is a very nice guy, probably the nicest person I have ever met in Thailand. He is a seriously religious man, doesn't drink, is a great family man, and I just can't believe that. And his workers were not illegals, not that that should make a difference re their bedding.

I employ a hilltribe woman as my live in maid. But she has whatever papers she is supposed to have. I sort of inherited her from the owner of a house I rented. I found out later, that the owner of my house, had her work for her, only for free room. Then she had a couple of other jobs she went to to make money. I have taken her with me to a different house I now live in, and she still has one of her other jobs, as she only works for me about 4 hours a day, and gets free room and board and about 3000 a month, plus tips/bonuses, or extra pay for times I have extra work, like guests staying, a month's New Years bonus, things like that.

But she also has a regular bedroom in my house that has aircon, nice furniture, TV, her own bathroom, and for the first time I think in her life, hot water. She can bring her mother or other family to stay with her for a few days each month, she has her own nice kitchen to cook when she wants. And she is one of the nicest people I have met here in Thailand. If I give her some clothes or something, she will buy me some kind of gift in return. If I cook her some farang food, she cooks something for me.

I travel a lot, and only expect her to take good care of my pets at those times, ask her to spend time with the parrots, as they cannot just be ignored. So I tell her she can come in, watch UBC, watch DVDs whatever, just spend some time playing with the birds each day, and she always does some extra cleaning even though I don't expect it, so I tip her extra money.

Anyway, she is wonderful and never takes advantage and also I have never found anything missing and I usually leave my money sitting out where she could take something if she wanted. I have had friends take money out of my bag when I ask them to hold my bag when I go to the bathroom for example, and in two years, not one thing has ever been missing with my housekeeper. I have had friends steal shotglasses from my bar and all kinds of things here.

It makes me really sad when I see people making these class differences between Burmese, hilltribe, and whatever and I don't understand it.

[paulsmithson]

burmese --well near our place there is a wonderful young girl aged 7---her mother and father are here illegaly -her father pays the police off he works selling rotti.

We fell in love with the girl and as we have no children of our own thought to adopt her.

The father first asked for money to send her to school---we arranged schooling for her and bought al the uniform etc.

The father then disaapeared for 7 days---we found out from a tearful mother that he had gone to the burmese border to collect his son from his mia noy as she now had a new lover.

The girl herself ( aged 7 ) is afraid that her father will sell her( god only knows her fate if her does)

From what I have senn Burmese here are scum.

We have taken the girl for our own and will adopt her soon and make her thai)

the wife is a total slave to this filthy man who gives her twenty baht per day for food ( only if her has it to spare- yet has mia noys al over the place.

[meemiathai]

NR, please take good care of the Burmese man. Advise him on how to avoid getting involved with those bastards again, please.

Shame on those racist bastards!

[chuchok]

Thai Paulie related s story,where a young Burmese lad(19yo) was beaten to death in Chiang Mai.He died on the street and was cremated the same morning that he died.No police enquiry..nothing.Many are treated as scum.

[manuchaomk]

There is a difference between Burmese that escapes and lives in thailand an Burmese that lives in Burma !

I ve been in Burma two times and I can saythat it's more "wild" than Thailand.

Burmese in burma live following the fate and the regime ! They haven't any opportunity to make their life more comfortable than the present.

Burmese that try the gold-way of Thailand become more shocked and afraid than before....because of future's instability... .

Thai people should pity most of them.. . Of course there are (like everywhere) bad people too....

...but it is more easy to sentence all Burmese as dirty and bad people...than give some good words to them.

don't you ?

Manu

[MTW]

PaulSmithson,

Can you really adopt the girl and what about making her Thai? Do you have a Thai wife or something? Is her mother willing to let you do this? I think it is true that many of these girls get sold into the sex trade so anything you can do to protect her would be great.

However if you are a western person, getting her a western citizenship would probably protect her much more because of the discrimination that goes on in Thailand. And the basic lack of opportunities for women in Thailand. Please try to help her mother too. I can't believe really that a man with nothing can have other woman like you talk about. I guess this just shows how much less even the women have, to be willing to be with a man with nothing to offer.

I think prostitution, to an ADULT, not a child and not to a person who is a slave to a brothel, must look okay considering their options, but that doesn't mean that it is okay, or that rich western men should be taking advantage of this fact. Maybe they should be taking advantage of the fact that they have an opportunity to save these women, in one way or another.

But I appreciate there are some nice men out there like you. If I can be of help in some way, please let me know. I have room to keep people who need a home and can feel them of course.

[MTW]

Oops, I meant feed them, not feel them.

[leisurely]

We have a Burmese woman to do our housework etc. Sheis a total delight, speaks 5 languages and is diligent and honest. I would trust her with our lives. I have had friends who have told me in the past not to leave our daughters with her as 'it is a well known fact that Burmese steal white children and sell them'! This is amongst some of the other 'well known facts' about Burmese people that I have never been privvy to but do exist (allegedly). I have never understood racism in any shape or form and it is ignorance that drives it IMHO,

I understand that the childrens film (thai) about a couple of cartoon elephants has a baddy from Burma in it - start them young it would appear

[eek]

I admire that you are trying to sort something out about it NR, and i wish you the best success. Please keep us posted.

MTW, you also sound like a very decent person.

Good to know there are still people around who are humanitarian (which i saw lacking a lot in London thats for sure.)

[kmart]

You'll find that people with massive insecurities take great relish in putting down anyone they can deem as "inferior"... Just another example of old historical enmities really.

The Burmese unfortunately find themselves in this predicament due to their backwards military junta bankrupting the country and shutting down their universities. Hence sending lots of well-educated Burmese people into the surrounding countries to be exploited, mocked, and mistreated by largely less well-educated people...

[Ijustwannateach]

This irrational prejudice against Burmese was one of my early culture shocks here- otherwise perfectly sweet, sensible people could start spouting the worst kind of bigoted garbage about Burmese.

I have a Burmese friend living in Thailand; it is amusing to talk with him about Thais because his viewpoint of them in many cases is the same as that of many European TV members who are sometimes accused of being "Thai-bashers..." He is aware of the prejudice and has experienced it, but knows there's not much to be done and is resigned to it.

"Steven"

[sbk]

I've encountered a similar attitude from my staff. We had a young Burmese guy come looking for part-time work. We didn't need any extra staff so I told him no, sorry. He was polite and friendly.

After he left my staff told me it was good I hadn't hired him because he was Burmese (I couldn't tell, he spoke Thai quite well). And that they couldnt' be trusted as they all looked shifty.

Blew me away since, frankly, the Southern Burmese we get here look exactly the same as the Southern Thais.

[Mid]

Blew me away since, frankly, the Southern Burmese we get here look exactly the same as the Southern Thais.

'tis only a line on some paper that seperates ...........................................

[PhilHarries]

Blew me away since, frankly, the Southern Burmese we get here look exactly the same as the Southern Thais.

'tis only a line on some paper that seperates ...........................................

Yes, and a line often drawn by foriegn colonists without a thought for the local peoples. Same the world over.

[uptou]

one burmese freind told me that they get conditioned in the schools to dislike burmese.ive also heard that thais find burmese people more outwardly aggressive,which i think generally may be true,or rather they are quite direct.when sitting having a meal in one a border town i was in,there was a scuffle with a couple of burmese,didnt see what happened to cause the commotion ,but the police arrived & tied up the 2 men & hit them a few times heavily in the face with torches,then bundled them in the pick up,& took them away.obviously racism exists in every country so i try to look at things from all angles.i was surprised your freind agreed to go to the police,being burmese though.i think quite a few bib on the border towns do ok from a little cash in hand from the burmese.

[November Rain]

i was surprised your freind agreed to go to the police,being burmese though.i think quite a few bib on the border towns do ok from a little cash in hand from the burmese.

He's here & working for us legally, so I guess he thought that he had nothing to lose by going to the police with me. Unfortunately, it turned out he lost even more face.

Quite honestly, they have been victimising him, en masse, to a greater or lesser degree since we moved up to the new compound & I think he's rather fed up (& a little scared) himself. Maybe he hoped the police would help him, if I went too - I'm not sure. I just find it indescribably sad. He's a nice, well-meaning lad, who works hard. He's not always great on common sense & initiative, but if he's given instructions & shown how to do something, he'll do it. It's sad that because of his race, he's put down & treated like sh!T, when IMO, he's worth 10 of the guys who victimise him. I wouldn't employ them (I've seen their idea of work) if they paid me!

[ajarnmark]

They are looked at as second hand trash,indeed.They also have nicknames for them like 'KEK',indians and muslims also fall under this name saying.They look at them as easy cheap workers who come to the holy land named Thailand and we Thai can do whatever we want them to do.I think they go even that far that the thai even believe that the burmese should be thankful to them that he can come here to work,they know how hard they have it back home...And ofcourse they hate them,because of the past,that is the main reason.Like Khmer have with thais,dutch and english with the germans,chinese with the japanese.I mean this is everywhere,but ofcourse to going along with them like that goes to far,poverty comes to mind.Thai love and respect only evrything what have power and money,stature,and this again is cultural.So I think they are not even to blame that much,personally yes,but it is to complicated to sort it out just like that.Thais probably do not think too much,as normally and you,for sure'are the farang who talks and thinks too much.

But you have a point though,but in Thailand it is a waiste of their time.Sad thing ,really is.

I have never seen any Thai using the word "Khak" for Burmese. This word is used only for Indians or brown skinned guys like from Middle East, Pakistan etc.

I totally agree that Thais love anyone who has power, this shows mainly the Hindu mentality, to worship the powerful and kill the weak.

[PeaceBlondie]

I noticed that if you want to get a laugh in a matayom classroom in a northern Thai province, you can just make a statement about Burma or the Burmese, and you get a big laugh. The Burmese are at the bottom of the pile. Remember that movie "The Legend of Sukkothai," where the Burmese general was portrayed as a weak ladyboy?

I wish I knew what we could do about it.

[farangsay]

I wonder who the Burmese despise.

I remember narrowly avoiding a handbag swipe from a female Swedish colleague when she explained to me that there was a Swedish speaking minority in Finland who thought they were superior to their fellow citizens and I replied "well there has to be somewhere in the world it is chic to be Swedish".

Just in case there's any Swedes in the vicinity I'll get me (kevlar) coat.

[tijnebijn]

They are looked at as second hand trash,indeed.They also have nicknames for them like 'KEK',indians and muslims also fall under this name saying.They look at them as easy cheap workers who come to the holy land named Thailand and we Thai can do whatever we want them to do.I think they go even that far that the thai even believe that the burmese should be thankful to them that he can come here to work,they know how hard they have it back home...And ofcourse they hate them,because of the past,that is the main reason.Like Khmer have with thais,dutch and english with the germans,chinese with the japanese.I mean this is everywhere,but ofcourse to going along with them like that goes to far,poverty comes to mind.Thai love and respect only evrything what have power and money,stature,and this again is cultural.So I think they are not even to blame that much,personally yes,but it is to complicated to sort it out just like that.Thais probably do not think too much,as normally and you,for sure'are the farang who talks and thinks too much.

But you have a point though,but in Thailand it is a waiste of their time.Sad thing ,really is.

I have never seen any Thai using the word "Khak" for Burmese. This word is used only for Indians or brown skinned guys like from Middle East, Pakistan etc.

I totally agree that Thais love anyone who has power, this shows mainly the Hindu mentality, to worship the powerful and kill the weak.

Yeah you are right,partly.I told that cause in the neigbourhood of my wifes shop ,is a muslim area.All the Burmese staff around there are all muslims and they refer to them as 'KEK' also.they are dark skinned though.The other Burmese,lets say the buddhist ones I here them say'ghon Myanma"So you are right.I brought the written wrongly.

[paulsmithson]

The Thai people are proud and nationalist. I love them for that amongst many other reasons. The burmese have nothing to fear from the Thai if they stay in Burma where they belong.

[tijnebijn]

The Thai people are proud and nationalist. I love them for that amongst many other reasons. The burmese have nothing to fear from the Thai if they stay in Burma where they belong.

So'better you take your bag also .