Young Kayan or Padaung, Thailand

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Young Kayan or Padaung girl, also called Long Neck Woman. They are a sub-group of the Karen, a Tibeto-Burmese  ethnic minority of Burma (Myanmar).

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, due to the conflict with the military regime in Burma, many Kayan tribes fled to the Thai border area. The Thai government has granted them refugee status, but they are allowed to live only in certain areas. Many found a solution by living in villages organized for tourist dollars.

Young Kayan girl, Thailand, Oct 2010

To see other pictures of ethnic minorities (aka hilltribe people) of Northern Thailand, click << here >>.

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