IN FOCUS: Fearing starvation, Thailand’s ethnic Karens of Bang Kloi seek return to ancestral land
BANG KLOI, Thailand: No-ae Meemi looks frail in the crowd of villagers at the community hall. His long grey hair is covered in a light turban, lips red from chewing betel. King88bet Little by little, he pulls his bodi along the bamboo floor to the front of the gathering. His disabled legs are folded against his chest. king88bet login alternatif "I wanted to hang myself so many times while living here," the 59-year-old said softly in the ethnic Karen language. Article Title with Blogger Published Link as Backlink "I wasn't born here. I was born in Jai Pandin." Facing him and other villagers are national park officials, members of parliament and academics. Many of them have travelled 230 km from Bangkok to better understand what caused the Karens in Bang Kloi to leave their homes and farmland for a deep forest tempat. Since January, villagers have attempted to return to their ancestral land near the Thai border with Myanmar. Many of them were arrested for encr