A 14-year old refugee girl was raped by a man in Umpiem Mai refugee camp near the Thai-Burma border town of Mae Sot on September 9. The man was later arrested by a camp security guard, a source told Kaowao.

The Mon refugee girl who lives with her parents in quarter-11, Zone-B of Umpiem Mai Refugee Camp, was raped by a 20-year old man on September 9 at around 9 pm.  He later confessed to camp authorities, according to a source at the scene.

In keeping with Umpiem Mai camp law, a convicted rapist faces a six month stint in jail to be served inside the camp, as well as pay a THB 2,000 fine.  A source present at the court told Kaowao that in this case however, and with the knowledge and acquiescence of the victim's parents, the convicted rapist will pay THB 20,000 and not serve a jail sentence.

She added, "In here (Umpiem camp), a large number of refugees are Karen.  It is not good for a case like this to be heard in public, so
that's why the parents of the victim agreed with the decision of the camp authorities.  The rapist will be imprisoned until he pays the fine."

The same source told Kaowao that on the night of the incident, the young girl left her home to use the outdoor toilet, but was gone for
over an hour.  At that time her parents, with the help of neighbours, began searching for her before enlisting the help of the camp security
guard. The victim was found near the house of the rapist, who was soon after was arrested.

The victim and her parents hail from southern Ye of Mon State and arrived at the refugee camp in mid-2007.