About the Karen People in Bendigo
Bendigo is a small regional city in Victoria in south-east Australia.
Bendigo has a population of over 100,000 people.
The first seven Karen Burmese refugees arrived in Bendigo in May 2007.
More Karen refugees have come directly from refugee camps in Thailand,
and many Karen refugees have relocated from other places in Australia to
live in Bendigo.
Most Karen refugees come from small mountain villages. Life in a small,
beautiful city surrounded by forest and farms is more suitable for Karen
people than life in a big city like Melbourne or Sydney. Older Karen
refugees who have problems learning English have been able to get work
on farms, giving them dignity and meaning as well as income.
Karen refugees living in Bendigo have many friends in the wider
community. Karen Buddhists are involved with the Australian and Tibetan
Buddhist communities. Karen Christians worship with their respective
Australian Christian communities. This is different to other places in
Australia where Karen people have few opportunities to make friends in
the wider community.
Karen people are deeply grateful for the support they have received from
Christian and Buddhist faith communities in Bendigo.
There are now more than two hundred Karen people living in Bendigo and
more are coming all the time.
Karen community organisations in Bendigo are the Karen Democracy &
Development Organisation Bendigo (KDDOB) and the Karen Buddhist Dhamma
Dhutta Foundation. |
