Children bear brunt of Myanmar conflict

Children and the elderly left to fend for themselves in refugee camps as war in Kachin state grinds on.

In northern Myanmar’s refugee camps, children are often left alone to fend for themselves.

Some parents have to leave to find work, leaving their children behind. Other parents have been killed in a long-running civil war which continues to take a heavy toll on Kachin state.

There are many problems facing the most vulnerable in the camps, including children and the elderly.

In a site on the Chinese border, the water supply is becoming toxic because it runs through a large sugar-cane plantation where pesticides are regularly used. Children have been developing rashes and diarrhoea.

Al Jazeera’s Wayne Hay reports from neighbouring Bangkok, Thailand.

Source: Al Jazeera