APRIL 29, 2014
SECONDARY STUDENT MAGAZINE
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Suffering, Support and Survival
Amnesty International Article
by Jade Harrison
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A young innocent boy stands shocked at
all that has happened, he is isolated even
though people surround him from all
angles. He speaks, but all that is heard is
silence: he is voiceless. He is engulfed by
grief, death and loss. Pain pierces his
heart as he sees a woman grieve,
cradling her stillborn baby in her arms.
He yearns to help, but he is merely a
young boy: he is powerless. His body
trembles with fear and sadness, grieving
for his lost mother. He sees flash backs
of her running towards him, frantically
screaming his name and as she trips
over gravel, a huge ball of fire erupts
around her; she is gone. Forever.
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This is only one example of the horrors refugees have to face every single day; the 45.2 million
displaced people in this traitorous world. But…this is the reality of refugees’ lives. In the present
world the number of refugees is growing; 23,000 people leave their country as asylum seekers
every year. The majority of these refugees go to developing countries such as India, Thailand, Iraq
and Ethiopia.
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Just beyond the Thai border there are seven refugee camps with around 130,000 occupants, the
largest of the seven is called Mae La; it has been running for around 33 years. This camp alone
holds over 50,000 Burmese refugees, who have now formed a small community sharing supplies
and supporting each other. Many have been born and raised in the town of Mae La and now call it
their home. Even though they have no power and the smouldering heat can be over whelming, life
is peaceful. They had to flee their home country because the overruling military attempted to stop
the vigorous protests against the house arrest of the rightful president, Aung San Suu Kyi. They
tortured, killed, raped and forced people into labour before they fled to neighbouring Thailand.
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WWW.STANDREWSGREENVALLEY.COM
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