Tribal Exploitation

Throughout history, many different civilizations have lived a nomadic lifestyle. Moving around from one location to another based off where the resources were that they needed to survive. Over time, societies have moved away from this tradition and have established borders and boundaries thus creating a permanent residence. We’ve drawn lines to keep people in one area, or out of another. We have citizenship, documents, and papers stating where we “belong”. The most well-known nomadic group are the Roma, a subgroup of the Romani people, sometimes pejoratively called Gypsies, who live primarily in Eastern Europe.

This is Heidi a volunteer in Szurte, Ukraine with her Romani friends.
However there are many more nomadic tribes living in obscurity. In April of 2012 I was traveling through Southeast Asia, and during my time in Laos and Thailand I began to take notice of their nomadic tribes. One in particular that struck me was the Kayan people, who are a subgroup of the Red Karen tribe. This name might mean nothing to you, but if I showed you a picture, you’d know exactly who I was talking about.

All familiarized now? Many of us have probably seen someone from this tribe on a National Geographic magazine cover, or on some exotic travel show. Treating these individuals more like animals in a zoo, than a culture.

The Kayan live predominately in Northern Thailand in a small village called Mae Hong Son and few in northern Myanmar; although many have fled from Myanmar due to political turmoil and have chosen to live in refugee camps along the Thai border. Due to their nomadic life style, many of these people do not have citizenship. Let me explain what that means. It means that Kayan people do not “belong” anywhere, thus preventing them from receiving a formalized education, health care, or being able to find a job that would allow them to provide for their families. As is the norm in many Asian countries, people tend to live in small villages and provide for themselves and are generally left alone. Unless there is money to be had by someone in power, which is exactly what is happening to local tribes in Thailand.

During my visit to Chiang Mai, I had the chance to talk with some Western individuals who were living and working in the area. They were bringing Christ to these nomadic tribes, and trying to provide some sense of security to them. Although I will not discuss or argue in this post my feelings on how they were doing this…let me just say I do not think they were focusing on the most important issues that should have been addressed. (If you would really like to know, write me a comment and I’ll shed some more light onto this issue).

The tourism industry of Thailand has basically decided to “pimp out” these local villages, by making them a human zoo. They have relocated certain members of the tribe to a more tourist-friendly location and require them to live in this make-shift village. For a price, you can walk through the village, take some pictures, and buy some of the hand-crafted items made by the local artisans. This is all well and good, HOWEVER, the Kayan people must agree to live in that area, keep their rings around their necks and stay as “tribal” as possible in order to make sure the tourists pump money into the economy, and in return the Thai authorities will not arrest these individuals for being undocumented in their land.

With times changing and even small villages becoming more progressive by the influx of tourism to Asia, and the increase of NGO’s working in the area, even the smallest villages are becoming aware of modern technology and the benefits they could receive by becoming a bit more modernized. If people in any village, town or country wish (on their own accord) to become more modernized and join the technological revolution, that is great; but if you are being prevented from doing so by being forced to remain in your former ways in order for a government to financially gain by exploiting your tribal rituals…. I think we need to take a look at what our tourism patterns are doing to the countries and villages we chose to visit.

For further reading on this issue check out this article by BBC: Thai Human Zoo In my next entry I'll tell you all about my village-exploitation trip to a Hmong Village in Luang Prabang, Laos.

My Passion for all things Asian

I'm a citizen of the United States of America by birth, and a citizen of the world by choice. When I was 15 years old I took my first international trip to Europe with a group of friends from school. Ever since then I've been hopelessly addicted to traveling and learning about other cultures. My first and main interest: Asia.

I've always had a passion for Asia. Several examples of what I mean; when I was about 6 or 7 years old I met my best friend, Mariko Mizumura. Her family had moved from Tokyo to Milwaukee so her father could continue his medical research. After becoming friends I was invited over to her house many times where her mother gave me my first pair of chopsticks. In case you were wondering, they were pink and had Snoopy on them. I was then given two bowls. One filled with some type of hard beans, and the other one empty; I was charged with the task of moving all the beans from one bowl to the other. So bean by bean I learned how to use chopsticks.

The friends I have surrounded myself with have also made an impact on my cultural understandings. In Jr. High School my best friend happened to be Laotian. I spent every weekend at her house for probably a year. Learning the proper way to make noodles, eating sticky rice, and understanding that a good bowl of noodles required a box of kleenex while being eaten.

Then I went to college and became best friends with a Cambodian. He and I celebrated Cambodian New Years together with his family. In addition to that wonderful celebration we also often ate many home made Cambodian meals, his mom even taught me how to make egg rolls from scratch! Then my sophomore year of college, I decided to study abroad. No surprise to anyone, I chose Asia...more specifically China. I fell in love with Asian culture up close and personal. So when I announced I'd be moving to Japan after my college graduation, there were few people who were surprised. However not many people knew what sparked my interest in Asian cultures. It began long before China or College or even Jr. High, and has nothing to do with boys.


As most of you know, I grew up in Milwaukee. Milwaukee has a large population of Hmong refugees. The Hmong people are an ethnic group in several countries,mainly China, Laos, Thailand and Southeast Asia, believed have come from the Yangtze River basin area around Hunan, China. During the Vietnam war, the CIA secretly used Hmong soilders to fight the North Vietnamese that were invading Laos. The Hmong soilders were very dedicated to helping the US, but suffered large casualties. After the US pulled out, Hmong people were being forced out of their home countries. The US, probably feeling guilty, helped to relocate them and many were placed in Milwaukee. Why, you ask? I have no idea, good question.

The point to that long explanation is that Milwaukee has a high concentration of Asian individuals from all over Southeast Asia. My elementary school happened to be an Asian Immersion school. In a sense, I grew up with Asian culture. Our talent shows consisted of traditional ethnic dances in full costume, and listening to traditional music. I remember eating rice treats steamed in a banana leaf, and playing a cool jump rope game with long cords made from rubber bands. I never knew that my experience was an exceptional one, and thought all schools were that diverse. I was only 5 and didn't know any differently. All of these experiences and opportunities have led to my love of Asia and all things Asian, and it is with this passion I want to share my experiences with you!

(So that's not me, but that is a real outfit of what the girls wore at my school on special occassions)

Join me back here to read all about my adventures traveling throughout Asia these past 6 years and to learn more about a culture you might not know so much about. Feel free to ask questions and I will do my best to answer them, or get opinions from my educated friends throughout the world I have come to know and love.