Please visit ericarthurblair.com

George Orwell is the penname of Eric Arthur Blair. Known for writing "1984" and "Animal Farm", his first novel was "Burmese Days". It was based on his experience as an officer of the British Empire in Burma when his was 19 to 24 years old. Reading "Burmese Days", one can see how he acquired his distaste of governments that control their people.

I believe that if he were alive today, he would have many negative things to say about the current state of affairs in Burma. The military dictatorship sets a standard for evil that few can surpass. Millions of its citizens have been displaced, either by government decree or by fleeing for their lives. The government enslaves the population for public projects and in some cases has used villagers to walk through, and thereby clear, minefields at the cost of many lives. Burma, once the breadbasket of Asia and rich in natural resources, is today one of the poorest countries on Earth, unable even to feed itself.

Most of the citizens who have fled the country have gone to Thailand. Burma does not issue exit visas, to leave Burma you must do it illegally. Estimates of the number of exiles in Thailand today (2008) range from 200,000 to over a million. This website contains some pictures of a school for the children of refugees. No mention will be made of the location, as the school exists to benefit this future generation but in violation of Thai law. The children are taught history/culture, Burmese, English, math and science. A local health clinic provides ‘train the trainer’ classes for the teachers in public health issues such as food safety and hand washing, and this information is also provided to the children.

As the schools (and there are dozens in the Thai-Burma border areas) are illegal, they are grossly under-funded. The school cannot provide paper or pencils to the students. The teachers can’t make copies of anything. The books were written for Burma schools decades ago, and only the teachers have a copy. Everything is written on whiteboards for the students to use. The particular school pictured here serves lunch to 101 children each day, a bowl of rice with a spoonful of cooked vegetables on top. There’s no money for meat or milk. And yet, for many of the children, this meal alone makes attending school a great day. They have far less to look forward to at home.

Cyclone Nargis has just made a bad situation unbearable. The refugee flow into Thailand has begun to increase, as the Burmese population realizes no help will be coming from anyone. Large sections of Burma are uninhabitable, contaminated with salt water and completely without food or water. The government has declared the disaster ‘over’ and closed the shelters, leaving thousands without food, water or a roof over their heads during the monsoon season.

I have worked directly with some of these refugees and have learned one lesson above all: they are just like you and me. They want a better world for their children, they love their family, and they want to be healthy. Any differences are minor. I have learned from other work following disasters that the best help for survivors comes from neighbor helping neighbor. I ask that you consider these people your neighbor, on this planet we call Earth, and that you open your heart to help those less fortunate. I vow that any money collected here will go straight to Burmese people, either in the Irrawaddy Delta, recovering from the Cyclone, or to refugees in Thailand, preparing for the day when they may return to their homeland, no longer in fear for their lives. All money will reach a Burmese person. Thank you for your generosity.