As I land in the Thai border town of Mae Sot after a 24-hour grueling journey from the U.S., the sight, smell and tropical feel of the place remind me of my childhood. I meet up with my colleague, Aye Aye Mon, and as we head to our hotel, we talk about where we first met.
We once lived near here as unrecognized refugees in a camp on the outskirts of Mae Sot. I was ten years old, and back then Aye Aye Mon was the age I am now. As a child, I was not allowed to leave the camp because of fear of being captured by Thai police. That trauma still exists. Now, when we see Thai police, we are still a little scared, but now we can laugh.
Twenty-plus years later, we are back, and a lot has changed in Mae Sot. What we want to know is about the land across the border, that of Myanmar. Are we heading back to the dark days of the past or is there a bright future? In order for us to explore this question, we must journey into the heartland of Kayin State, where armed struggle has persisted for generations.
Trip to the jungle. (Chan Aung/RFA)
Crossing the border
The trip across the river border to Myanmar is quick. Not so much the walk up the hill in the mud, carrying 50 plus pounds of gear, which is exhausting as we step into the Golden Land. I smile, thinking that’s a welcome from our motherland. A man with an old SUV picks us up.
As I listen to the conversations in the car about the many responsibilities he has, I come to understand it is because there are so few people left in villages so close to the front lines. It is up to those who remain to pick up all the pieces. We arrive at the village chief’s house and anxiously wait for him to arrive. When he does, he comes with several soldiers who will take us into the jungle.
We climb into the back of a pickup truck along with four soldiers and start our journey. It only takes about 15 minutes to make us feel we are really in the country we have reported on from afar for so long. There are checkpoints, pagodas, and empty towns. The contrast between Thailand and war-torn Myanmar is quick to reveal itself.
The second half of the ride becomes more difficult as the roads turn into off-road tracks due to the onset of the rainy season. It isn’t just the roads that have everyone on alert. We all know we are passing through an area where other armed groups aligned with the junta are present. After a series of turns and dodging tree branches, we finally arrive safely at a hidden camp in the jungle.
Young fighters
We are greeted by Cobra Column commander Bo Saw Kaw. He is in casual clothes, just chilling. We knew nothing of the young fighters who we were told we could interview when they were presented to us. Two of them had been with us from the moment we crossed the border. They were part of the detail who had picked us up. One of them stands out from the others, She is young and beautiful. A girl in full combat uniform. If we were ambushed, we would be relying on her and the other young fighters to protect us.
After our interviews, we headed to an abandoned house. It was only then that I realized we would be staying with KNU 6 leader Nedah Htoo. Our three nights and four days passed quickly. By day four, we were exhausted. We did not have enough time to become comfortable sleeping in our hammocks. During our days, we were taken to see military outposts they had captured and to a small camp near the front line. We had timed our wet season visit well. There were no airstrikes, but the sound of resupply planes flying overhead kept us all on edge.
A successful trip
As we wrapped up the jungle trip and headed back to Thailand to do more interviews, Aye Aye Mon got sick, so I had to do some of the interviews myself. On our way to Mae Hong Son our car broke down in the middle of the road at night. I thought for sure we would have to sleep on the roadside but luckily, someone came to help us out. We were taken to a small town by a mechanic’s girlfriend to spend the night at the only motel there. When we arrived, a friendly woman greeted us and cooked us some food. After leaving that town, I was very grateful for the hospitality those people showed us.
In all, our trip was a success. There were times when we felt close to failing. But no complaints. We got the job done.
An intense yet rewarding journey. (Chan Aung/RFA)