การดำรงชีพและชุมชนจินตนาการของผู้ลี้ภัยชาวกะเหรี่ยงที่กลับคืนสู่ถิ่นฐานโดยสมัครใจอย่างไม่สมบูรณ์: กรณีศึกษาหมู่บ้านวะหมี่เอ ประเทศเมียนมา

Abstract

This thesis aims to study the “Imagining Community” of Karen refugees who chose to return to settle in the Thai-Myanmar border area under the supervision of the Karen National Union (KNU). This area is where some of the refugees used to live, but with the unrest situation It became an agricultural area in the later period. This is an ethnographic study that uses interviews and participatory observation as the main methods. For the safety of the informant and the location of the study, pseudonyms were used. The research questions are as follows: 1) What are the conditions or contexts that make Karen refugees choose to return to settle in the area of the National Union of Karen Army in Wa Hmee Aye Village? 2) What is the process of creating an envisioned community of refugees who chose to return to settle in the area of the Karen National Union; and 3) What is the process of changing the Karen refugees from waiting for help to being members of a new community that enables sustainable livelihoods, and what are the tactics utilised in order to achieve this? Data collection for this study was conducted between October 2020 and June 2023. The study area is under KNU control, which is 15 kilometres from the Thai border. The repatriated refugees were living in the refugee camps until they made up their minds to move back, considering the volatile situation in the camps, which propelled them to look for alternatives to resettlement collaboratively. Differences in life experience, relationships, and acquired skills while struggling to survive in camps, etc., have affected their choices of areas to return to. For the focus group of this research who have chosen to return to their country of origin, it is critical that they all find ways to build relationships and find ways to navigate their living situation, especially at the beginning stage of their return and amidst the ongoing clashes between the KNU and the Myanmar army. This study attempts to understand the relationship between the local communities and the refugee repatriation process in the Thai-Myanmar border area. From the preliminary discoveries, the study found that, among these newly resettled refugees, some settled in the villages through social connections based on their beliefs and experience as part of the Karen National Union (KNU), while others made decisions based on financial support and livelihood suitability. After returning to their homeland, refugees tried to establish themselves in the surrounding communities by developing education and vocational training in the area. Notably, the man who started the search for repatriation space has been exerting tremendous efforts in integrating and uniting all the refugees into the community, despite having different experiences and backgrounds. It all contributes to enhanced negotiation power and the creation of a new community in a new area.