"I Will Not be Forced From My Own Land" - internal displacement in Burma

In a nation of 50 million people there are estimates that up to 1 million are Internally Displaced Persons (IDP). Despite the relatively recent use of the phrase internally displaced people in the context of Burma, there is evidence that the practices that lead to this displacement have been in place for a long period of time. While discussion of IDP’s tends to revolve around immediate assistance to concerns of health, housing and food, the sustained existence of this problem needs future efforts to take into account the root cause and structural patterns that often instigate the displacement as well as resolutions on how to offer and implement humanitarian assistance. This article will discuss further some of the root causes of displacement caused by Burmese military operations and look at the outcomes of displacement. The second part of this article will look at future resolutions and how long-term structural assistance needs to compliment immediate humanitarian assistance...