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BP: Critics decry 'human zoo' of t



April 6, 1998


                                     



                      TOURISM / EXOTIC ATTRACTION

              Critics decry
              'human zoo' of
              tribeswomen 

              Thai entrepreneur 'holds them prisoner'

              Critics called it a zoo, stocked not by animals but 32
              long-necked "giraffe women" for tourists to gawk at and take
              pictures.

              Before a recent police raid, there had been charges the exotic
              tribespeople on show were being held virtual prisoners by a Thai
              entrepreneur who allegedly abducted them from neighbouring
              Burma.

              Adorning their necks with brass coils, the women of the Padaung
              tribe have proved a major tourist attraction since they began
              fleeing Burma more than a decade ago.

              Custom prescribes that girls before puberty begin to wear coils
              that are augmented until they weigh as much as five kilogrammes.
              The coils force the chin upward while pressing down the collar
              bones and ribs, elongating the neck.

              Various origins of the custom are cited, ranging from protection
              against tiger attacks to symbols of wealth and status. One myth
              tells of a beautiful dragon with a long neck that was impregnated
              by the wind to produce the first Padaung people.

              Most of the Padaung are in three border camps in the
              northwestern province of Mae Hong Son. An estimated 10,000
              Thais and foreigners visit these camps each year, paying an
              entrance fee that allows them to photograph and mingle with the
              smiling, colourfully attired long-necked women and girls.

              Economically it is a virtually perfect arrangement. Everyone gets
              a cut - the once impoverished Padaung, Thai businessmen and
              government tax collectors, even a rebel group that uses the
              money to finance its war with the military regime in Burma.

              While some critics have long decried the "human zoo" aspect,
              long-necked tourism took a darker turn last year when news
              reports said a Thai businessman had lured a Padaung group out
              of Burma's Kayah state with promises of setting them up with
              their kin in Mae Hong Son.

              It was alleged that the businessman, Dhana Nakluang, deceived
              the Padaung by bringing them instead to Tha Ton in Chiang Mai
              province, hiring guards to prevent escape and mistreating those
              who protested.

              With Dhana facing charges, police raided the camp in February
              and took the women to a social welfare centre.

              Dhana denied he had forced them to stay at his Thanabamrungkit
              Farm.

              "I assure you that they have a happy life here. They look
              healthier than when they first arrived, especially the children," he
              said before the raid.

              "Mae Hong Son provincial authorities are upset that I have some
              Padaung here in Chiang Mai. They made up the story to
              condemn me as they want to be the only province where
              Padaung can be found," he charged.

              Indeed, the long-necked women have become Mae Hong Son
              province's unofficial symbol, a come-on for tourists to a region
              where many other tribal groups now wear jeans and ride
              motorcycles.

              In Mae Hong Son, officials, guides and others like to call the
              Padaung "our long-necks," like those living at the village of Nai
              Soi astride the Burma border.

              Ma Nang, a 43-year-old with 24 coils around her neck, says she
              is perfectly happy at Nai Soi, earning a relatively good monthly
              income of 3,000 baht. That involves selling handicrafts and her
              take from entrance fees, 250 baht for each foreigner and a
              cheaper "photographic fee" for Thais.

              She and others interviewed said they aren't bothered by having
              to strike poses when visitors point their cameras and
              video-recorders.

              "We had nothing in Burma. I had to work relentlessly in the rice
              fields." said Ma Nang, who left Burmanine years ago. "We miss
              our homes, but we don't want to go back."

              Technically refugees, the Padaung at Mae Hong Son are better
              off - thanks to their elongated necks - than tens of thousands of
              other people who have fled Burma.

              Nai Soi is under partial control of the Karenni National
              Progressive Party, one of several ethnic minority groups fighting
              Burma's military government from bases along the Thai border.

              Aung Sun Myint, a spokesman for the group, said the party
              needed money for its cause and to help refugees and those
              displaced by brutal military campaigns inside Burma.

              "We didn't want to get involved in this long-necked business. But
              the situation demands it. We have no money," he said.

              While the Padaung focus on day-to-day livelihood, outside
              observers argue about exploitation and distortion of tradition.

              Given their tourist potential, the Padaung in Thailand no longer
              practice agriculture and the men are mostly idle.

              Tourism has, at least for the time being, preserved a custom that
              had begun to disappear as the Padaung came into contact with
              the outside world.

              Traditionally, only Padaung girls born on a Wednesday of a full
              moon were destined to have their necks fitted with the coils, but
              now other youngsters are enlisted to meet the tourist demand.

              Only initial discomfort is reported after the coils are set and as
              the distance from ear lobe to collar bone lengthens to as much as
              25 centimetres (10 inches), more than double the average.

              The only danger posed is if the coils are removed. Suffocation
              could result since the neck muscles are so weak that they cannot
              support the head.




                                     




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Last Modified: Mon, Apr 6, 1998