Aid Agencies Pessimistic on Outlook for Burmese Refugees

By Ron Corben

Aid workers in Thailand say a change of leadership in Burma has dashed hopes that Burmese refugees would soon be able to go home. There are fears the new government will take a more hard-line approach toward rebel groups and refugees.
 
The ouster of Burmese Prime Minister Khin Nyunt last month has stalled progress on reconciliation 1 talks with several of the country's ethnic 2 minority groups.
 
Refugee experts say that means more than 150,000 thousand Burmese refugees now in Thailand have little chance of going home in the coming months.
 
General Khin Nyunt is under house arrest and has been accused of corruption 3. He played a key role in arranging cease-fires with rebellious 4 ethnic minority groups, including a partial deal with the Karen National Union (KNU). His successor, General Soe Win, is considered to be hard-liner wary 5 of the cease-fire talks.
 
Jean Rigal heads the Thailand office of the aid group Doctors Without Borders. He says the talks had raised the refugees' hopes of going home.
 
"I did participate in a huge number of seminars, conference, meetings about repatriation 6. We really believe that it should be in the next months and it made a lot of hope within the camps," he noted 7.
 
The Thai government has supported Burma's steps to reconcile with its ethnic minority groups. Thailand has provided millions of dollars in aid to Burma, and has called on the Rangoon government to open areas to enable refugees to return.
 
But United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) officials say there now appears little chance of that happening anytime soon.
 
The UNHCR representative in Rangoon, Rajiv Kapur, says solid repatriation agreements are necessary before the agency can help the refugees return.
 
"There has to be agreement between the parties to the conflict, which would then have to be followed by an agreement on the various modalities of repatriation," he said. "So until we fulfill 8 the first one we don't see the situation being conducive 9 to return."
 
Many Burmese exiles and political observers say there are fears that the Rangoon government may not want to pursue cease-fires and that it might seek to quash minority groups with force.
 
Aung Zaw is the editor of the independent Burmese-community newspaper, The Irrawaddy, based in Thailand. He says it is not clear if the talks with the Karen National Union will continue.
 
"The KNU wants to continue the talks, but at the same time there's a lot of confusion on the Burmese side because after the removal of Khin Nyunt.," he said. "I think the KNU is not clear who they are going to deal with."
 
Echoing comments by security analysts 10 in Bangkok and diplomats 11 in Rangoon, Aung Zaw says troop movements near the Thai border indicate Burma is preparing an offensive against the Shan or Wa people in northeastern Burma.
 
"In the Wa region, the troops have been alert and some Wa leaders are worried the Burmese might attack," he added.
 
Doctor Rigal with Doctors Without Borders says much must be done to prepare for repatriation, even if cease-fire agreements are signed.
 
"It will not be this year. Maybe not even next year, even though there is a cease-fire agreement," he explained. "There is still a huge landmines 12 problem and there's also a lack of means on the other side. Nothing is ready."
 
Aid workers say the military government's internal power struggles have left Burma's refugees trapped, with nowhere to go, and little hope.

Ron Corben, for VOA News, Bangkok.

注释：
Burma 缅甸
approach 方法
ouster 免职
stall 延迟
reconciliation 调和
corruption 贪污
rebellious 造反的，反抗的
Karen National Union 克伦族全国联盟
hard-liner 不妥协者
Doctors Without Borders 无国界医生组织
participate 参与
seminar 研究会
repatriation 遣送回国
Rangoon 仰光
United Nations High Commission for Refugees 联合国难民事务高级专员公署
modality 形式
quash 镇压
removal 免职
Bangkok 曼谷
landmines 潜在的冲突