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Thai Research
Project Description
Raise awareness among Thai people about the democratic struggle in Burma by distributing infromation and participating in local campaigns.
Why is Thai Research important?
The conflict in Burma is not only an internal one, but also one that spills over Burma's borders, affecting its neighbouring countries and the world. Thai society, government and military quickly become key players in much of the lives of the rassroots, especially the refugees who have escaped the free fire zones and come to Thailand. Many Thai companies now do business across the border, sometimes at great cost to the ethnic people living there, as well as the environment. The Thai people and government have a strong role to play in the pursuit of peace in Burma, and therefore, it is essential that the Thai people and their leaders understand the true situation for the grassroots in Burma so that they can work to create a truly uplifting relationship and not a destructive one.
Aim
Support a Thai-based movement which can effectively support the democratic movement in Burma.
Objectives
- Raise awareness among Thai people about the realities in Burma and how they can effectively become involved in helping promote peace in BUrma and thus for the region
- Create and update a Thai-language documentation centre for information related to Burma
- Write Sai Yai Tai Burma a monthly newsletter
- Write a weekly summary of Thai news, Newsline
- Organise fact-finding trips in Thailand to get inside stories and interviews to make Thail policy or its effects more clear
- Help organise and coordinate local campaigns which support democratization in Burma
- Draw up a list of all the Thai companies investing in Burma and decide which are the most important to focus on and which ones can be most easily mobilised to action
- Prepare information about these companies for distribution amongy the Thai community
- Contact university groups and try to build up their involvement in the campaign to encourage a grassroots movement in Burma and throught them expand to other university groups. Prepare materials which can be used by university groups to help them focus on political campaigns
- Organise seminars with other Burma activists groups to try to identify the Thai government's weak points on which a campaign can be focused to bring about policy change, such as migrant labour, sex workers, drugs, etc.
Target Audiences
Sai Yai Thai Burma is the equivalent of the English language newsletter but in Thai language. The newsletter also has its people's stories and offers indepth analysis in their articles, but the newsletter focuses more on Thai policy towards Burma than the English language newsletter, as it is distributed only to a Thai audience.
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