The tribe Pile is located in the mountains of the North Thailand Since the eighth century and has Tibetan and Burmese origin. The most feature of this ethnic group is spiral brass used by the women of this group to their neck, these women are known for their long neck as ‘gira women’.
They wear these ornaments, because they ensure that women look like a dragon that is an important figure in their culture and according to tradition it makes them more beautiful. This tribe has a traditional lifestyle. Adults, Usually men, they are dedicated to food and hunting harvest and.
Are in the provinces northwest of the country Native Pueblo Karen and the The Thai Lanna community depends on nature for existence.
With concern about the final construction of a damThey reject the project because they take care of it Money is quickly acquired and disappears, but nature hears a lifetime.
The inhabitants of the provinces of Mae Hong Son en Takin the northwest of ThailandThey wear hundreds of years of living in balance with natureAnd many of them Depending on rivers and forests for self -supply.
The native people Pile and the community Thai Lanna From Thailand They are worried about the plans to distract and damn the Yuam River And his branches that can cancel for years of careful administration.
Members of the community explain how they protect their way of life, which appreciates land and river roads that goes much further than their economic potential.
Karen -Stam: The river is what we are
“I am mainly dependent on the river for my profession, and I will fish for the river area. You can or not, We will try to protect nature. Protect seafood, crabs, fish, that’s my conscience, “said Singkarn Ruenhom, a local fisherman of the Lanna community.
“When I get into the water, I feel happy. It is the feeling that I have reached my house. I am proud to sleep in a house near the water. I hear the sound of the water that flows and I feel that I am lucky that I have one nature That suits me and feeds me. “
‘The locals appreciate nature more than money. The money is quickly acquired and disappears, but nature will accompany us for the rest of our lives, “Singkarn continued.
“Now the villagers register the fish species of the NGAO River. For what they have discovered, Between 70% and 80% of the NGAO river species are not found anywhere else. For me this has unpredictable value. Our culture is to respect it. It is as if the crabs and fish that used to be our friends, our food and the trees that we were about to disappear, “he concluded.
The ‘costs’ of destroying nature
“We are dependent on the forest and the river to keep our lives. If there was no river, we could not survive. Memories since we were born are linked to the river and the forest“Dao Phrasuk Moepoy, a local woman and activist of the indigenous community of Karen.
“Today we have enough and abundant. We don’t want someone to distract the water or change direction. Our life has always been that way. We live by the river. We want the river to run free. “
‘The forests and rivers with which we live give us abundance. They give us food and life almost all year round, so we have to take care of and nourish the spirits and spirits of the forest and rivers“He added.
“My voice is the voice of the villagers and the voice of nature, because Aldeans and nature live togetherThey are the two parts. If someone wants to do something with nature, they must think carefully and carefully if it is correct to destroy it. If nature is lost, it will be lost forever“Dao was deepened.
‘We do not know how many years or generations it needs to come back to life. We cannot calculate how many years each tree will take“.