Saw Simon, principal of the Kawthoolei Karen Baptist Bible School and College, has appealed for prayer on the behalf of Myanmar (Burma) refugees.
"Please pray for us. The fighting between the DKBA/SPDC (Democratic Karen Buddhist Army/State Peace and Development Council) troops and the KNLA, the Karen National Liberation Army, continues along the border, making people living in the camp to live in fear of possible attack," Simon pleaded in a letter sent to the Baptist World Alliance (BWA) headquarters in the Washington metro area in April.
Simon, recipient of the 2000 BWA Human Rights Award for his work in the refugee camps in northern Thailand and along the border with Myanmar, said, "Please pray that God will intervene and enable us to live in peace and dignity as human beings created in His own image."
Myanmar, a country of more than 50 million, has been ruled by a military junta since 1962, during which time minority ethnic and religious groups have suffered persecution.
Myanmar contains 132 ethnic groups, the Burman being the largest group with 68 percent of the population.
The country is 87 percent Buddhist with a 6 percent Christian population.
Among the more serious conflicts is that between government forces and the KNLA. Based in Karen state, KNLA has been fighting for an independent homeland, with an escalation in the fighting in recent times.
Myanmar forces captured and occupied several KNLA bases April 10.
The fighting has affected refugees in Mae La camp, the base for Simon, the Kawthoolei school and his ministry among the refugees.
"Refugees in the Mae La camp in Tak Province (in Thailand) fear that junta and splinter group soldiers will attack the camp. Some have already begun packing their belongings," ReliefWeb said on its Web site.
Myanmar army shellfire is reported to have hit Thailand, close to some of the refugee camps.
The school and college offer general education to refugees and training to church leaders.
Originally located in Rangoon, the country’s former capital, until 1988 when the school was destroyed, Simon and his family fled across the Thai border.
Once on the other side, they restarted the school again at the Mae La camp, one of the largest refugee camps housing displaced persons who fled the conflicts in Myanmar.
It restarted with 32 students and has since grown in enrollment to more than 300.
BWA General Secretary Denton Lotz has appealed to Baptists worldwide to pray for those living in the refugee camps.
"They are under constant threat and many of our brothers and sisters are living in fear every night of being attacked. We call upon the government of Burma to halt these attacks and request the Thai government to assure the safety of these refugees," he said.
"There are more than 100,000 refugees living on the border area of Thailand. A significant number of them are Baptists. They need our prayers and support."
In the last 10 years, more than 240 Baptist churches have been established in the refugee camps, the majority of which are among the Karen. (BWA)
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