Access to water: A matter of health for Burmese refugees in northern Thailand

Background: Since Burma's civil war and coup d' etat, as many as one million Burmese have fled to Thailand. Many are refugees escaping human rights violations. Many of these refugees have few rights and little access to basic resources such as clean water. Paul Farmer's concept of structural violence – defined as the harm caused by withholding basic resources to specific populations through intentional social arrangements – is helpful in exploring the circumstances of these refugees. The study aim was to identify the social arrangements that affect their access to clean water.

Methods: The researcher conducted a qualitative study outside Chiang Rai, Thailand involving participant observation while working with Burmese refugees to construct water supply systems. While constructing water supplies in various villages, fifteen in-depth interviews with a scripted survey on child health, factors affecting child diarrheal diseases, water access, and sanitation were conducted with refugee mothers to help identify and analyze common themes that shape water access.

Results: Three major factors impact these refugees' access to clean water: 1) Their status as unrecognized refugees which denies them the basic rights of Thai citizens; 2) the location where they have been forced to settle; and 3) the resources that these refugees have access to.

Conclusion: These elements prevent refugees from earning adequate wages, owning land, and other necessary resources. This forces them to live in rural areas where access to clean water is scarce and activities to find sustainable sources of water are difficult.