Myanmar Spring Chronicle – January 27 Overview
MoeMaKa, January 28, 2025
The Suffering of Refugees at the Thai-Myanmar Border Due to U.S. Presidential Orders
On the day newly elected President Trump assumed office, he swiftly signed 26 executive orders, captured in photos and videos circulated in the media. Among these orders were policies to deport illegal immigrants, revoke the amnesty granted to over a thousand individuals—including those involved in the January 6, 2020, Capitol attack—and repeal amendments related to birthright citizenship.
During this signing event, White House reporters were present, questioning the president. One of the orders included a 90-day suspension and reassessment of all international aid. Shortly afterward, the new Secretary of State issued further directives, which were leaked to the press, stating that all U.S. aid would be suspended worldwide except for Egypt and Israel. Funding allocations were only permitted until January 24, after which all expenditures would cease.
The immediate consequence of this order was felt at the Thai-Myanmar border, where refugee camps rely on U.S. aid. Hospitals in the camps, funded by the U.S. government, were forced to shut down, resulting in the discharge of patients. NGOs that transported refugees for medical care had to halt operations, cutting off all healthcare services overnight.
These refugee camps are home to people who fled Myanmar in the 1990s due to armed conflicts in Karen State, where villages were burned, forcing residents to cross into Thailand for safety. The Myanmar military, alongside the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), launched offensives against Karen National Union (KNU) bases, causing waves of displacement. Similar conflicts in Karenni State also drove people to seek refuge along the border. Notable camps like Umpiem and Mae La have often appeared in the news, with some housing tens of thousands of refugees. The total refugee population along the border has exceeded 100,000.
International organizations and governments have supported these refugees for decades. While many were resettled in third countries before 2010, those remaining have lived in camps for generations. Despite ceasefire agreements under President Thein Sein’s government in 2011, the issue of repatriation remained unresolved.
Though third-country resettlement programs resumed after the 2021 military coup, recent U.S. aid suspensions have left refugees in dire conditions. The 90-day freeze on aid has cut off essential medical support, leaving hospitals unable to function. Patients were reportedly discharged abruptly due to a lack of funds.
A Myanmar news editor recently commented on social media, stating, “International liberalism based on democracy and human rights has collapsed.” This statement pointed to the contradiction between America’s leadership in human rights advocacy and its harsh immigration policies—such as deporting undocumented immigrants in shackles aboard military planes.
In reality, this collapse of liberal democratic ideals is not new. Rather, it reflects the unmasking of self-interested policies disguised under the facade of democracy and human rights.