Life on the Thai-Burma border

Burmese people wanting to get into Thailand are able to do so on rubber inner tubes, but many are then sent back by Thai authorities on semi-official boats (BBC).

(BBC) 2010 looks set to be a crucial year for Burma, with the military government planning to stage the first elections in twenty years. Western nations are pursuing new policies of pragmatic engagement and rethinking their sanctions against the reclusive [totalitarian] state.

However, progress may seem like a distant prospect for ordinary Burmese people, who rely on neighboring Thailand to trade goods or access basic services like healthcare. In the first part of a series looking at life in the region, the BBC's Rachel Harvey reports from the border town of Mae Sot, in the far north of Thailand. She finds out about the different ways people manage to cross from one country into the other. Listen now:

Generation Wave is a group of hip-hop loving, young Burmese people, dedicated to overthrowing the military government. Rachel Harvey visits them at their safe house in Mae Sot. More>>

• BBC Burmese Service