Sea gypsies fight for ancestors and culture
The Urak Lawoi people struggle to preserve their way of life as development forces them out of their traditional homes
- Published: 12 Aug 2012 at 00.00
- Newspaper section: News
For the Urak Lawoi sea gypies, a cement platform under a tree on Koh Hey in Phuket province is more than a place to seek shade from the sun.
The platform was built to mark the graves of some of the Urak Lawoi. Recently a group of their descendents visited the site to clean the area and pay their respects.
The trip also represented something of a homecoming for older tribe members. About 100 families were forced to flee the Andaman Sea island as a result of an outbreak of illness in 1965.
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