Carnival mood at Thai evacuation centre cannot mask villagers' anxiety

There's a palpable sense of anger aimed at the perceived foe across the border

- Philip Wen Regional Correspondent

Villagers at the inflatable bouncing castle at the evacuation centre at the Chang International Circuit in Buriram, Thailand. The resumption of hostilities between Thailand and Cambodia on Dec 8 has forced thousands of families to flee and move into massive open-air marquees at various evacuation centres.

(ST PHOTO: PHILIP WEN)

As night falls, there is an incongruous carnival-like atmosphere brewing under the bright floodlights of what is usually Buriram’s international-grade motorsport racetrack.

A live band in military fatigues starts playing to a small but enthused crowd, its uptempo music blaring through the public announcement system. Swarms of young children are wreaking havoc on an inflatable bouncing castle and two giant trampolines. Older teenagers form a long line for free pizza from a food truck.

It does not take long to work out, however, that the buffet of entertainment is but a well-meaning attempt to provide comfort in a frankly miserable situation.

The resumption of hostilities between Thailand and Cambodia on Dec 8 has forced more than half a million people to flee their homes in villages caught up in conflict red zones on both sides of the border. Fighting entered its fourth day on Dec 11, even as US President Donald Trump is expected to call both sides to try to end the conflict.

The Straits Times visited the large, centralised evacuation centre at the Chang International Circuit in Buriram on Dec 10, where thousands of families – some 15,000 people, according to the local authorities – are crammed under massive open-air marquees, with plastic warehouse pallets arranged to fashion makeshift sleeping platforms raised off the ground.