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within the camp was an ever present
danger.
"We went on to inspect the latrine
area. We found a long open ditch
filled with stagnant water and sew–
age.
lf
a refugee was too weak
through illness to make it to this
area, any open space between the
huts was utili zed.
" Bathing was accomplished if a nd
when there was enough water, but
most of the people we talked with
were covercd with the dry dust that
seemed to cling to everything in the
camp, including ourselves.
"Vinai a nd
1
walked over to a
middle-aged man who was sitting in
the shadc with his children. We
crouched down on the ground with
him and began to talk. Previous to
the Poi Pot period (pre-1975) he was
a business man who traveled fre–
quently across the Thai border on
trading missions. When Poi Pot
assumcd power, he was driven along
with the rest of the Cambodian popu–
lation out into the fields to become a
farmer. During the Poi Pot govern–
ment , hi s younger brother was beaten
to dea th by Khmer Rouge soldiers.
His daughter of four years died of
starvation.
" La ter, wc interviewed a young
Cambodian farmer watching his
unclothcd little daughter playing in
the dirr beside thei r thatch and pole
dwelling. He spcnt five days escapi ng
May 1980
into Thailand with his wife a nd two
children. He told us that if one was
10
plant rice, it would be confiscated by
either Poi Pot forces who a re them–
selves starving, or by the Vietnamese
who want to keep it out of the hands
of the Poi Pol troops.
"Our visit had been a shocking
exper ience. Many questions contin–
ued to plague me as we returned to
my temporary home at Wat Pho in
Ba ngkok.
"What circumstances have led to
the starvation and death of so many
people? Why did more than 3
1/2
million people have to die and the
remnants of an entire race leave their
home to live in overcrowded camps
totally supported by other people?
Cambodia has traditiona lly grown
enough rice for its own use as well as
for cxport.
"Whal broughl aboul such .lrau–
matic changes to this backwaler,
formerly peaceful counl ry once
known for its lack of change?
"On our next trip to the refugee
camps, we visited a much larger
camp closer to the Cambodian bor–
der. T his camp is one of the largest
camps in Tba ila nd, with approxi–
mately 75,000 refugees, a ll from
Cambodia.
" This time, with the help of
ChaoKhun PhraThepsopon, Vinai
lnsa-ard and
1
were provided with a
car a nd driver lo take us on lhe long
Royal Thsi
~rmy
Pho/o
CAMBODIAN REFUGEES:
Left to right:
Children in Ban Kaeng refugee camp
greet PhraThepsopon, the Abbot of
Wat Thai of Los Angeles; refugees
gathering inside Thpi border, aided by
Royal Thaí Army; one·legged Cambod·
ian carries al/ his personal posses·
sions; fines of refugees await transfer
to permanent camps; Thai soldier aids
starving woman.
trip to the Khao-1-Dang refugee
camp only 1
O
kilometers from the
frontier. This time Pravena Lepi–
boon, a professional photographer,
went along with us to take photo–
grapbs.
"We traveled through the provin–
cial capital of Prachinburi, on to
Sa-Kheo, a nd fin a ll y arrived at
Aranyabrathet, a town where the
United
ations, the l nternational
Red Cross, and medical teams from
many foreign nations were staying.
"We turned north toward Khao-
1-Dang. The T hai military was ever
present. We had to visit two a rmy
field headqua rters as well as four
separate checkpoints before we final–
ly reached our dest ination.
" 1
was quite surprised at the dif–
ference between this refugee camp
and the one at Ban Kaeng. As we
checked in at the front gate, we
walked pasta large building with the
Hag of the United Nations overhead.
T here a re many more volunteers and
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