GRSJ224/Rituals: Kayan Brass Coils in Mae Hong Son, Thailand

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Rituals: Kayan Brass Coils in Mae Hong Son, Thailand

A Kayan woman wearing brass rings.

Starting at an age as early as five years old, the women of the Kayan (Padaung) Tribe practice a controversial tradition of wearing brass coils

around their necks. The brass coils create an elongated appearance to the neck as they push the collarbone down and compress the rib cage[1]. This illusion of a longer neck is caused by the deformation of the clavicle as a result of the weight of the coils. Although the exact date of origin is unknown, the ritual most likely started around 200 years ago.[2]

In their native Myanmar, Kayan people often faced persecution over these visible tribal symbols.[3] However, the conflict with the military regime in Myanmar in the late 1980s and early 1990s, was what encouraged many Kayan tribes to flee to the Thai border area. Many Kayan people settled in the Mae Hong Son provinces, living in the refugee village housing set up by the Thai government. Kayan women adapted to living in refugee camps and continued their tradition, memorializing the struggles of the past and maintaining a link to their tribe’s history.[3] Thus brass coils are a symbol of cultural identity and an integral part of the body.

Ritual

Origin of Tribe

The Kayan tribe originated in Myanmar (formerly known as Burma), a Southeast Asian country in the Northeast of Thailand.[4] The Kayan is one of the many sub-groups of Myanmar’s Red Karen people, also known as the Karenni.[5] Many of the Kayan tribe fled to Thailand towards the end of 1984 as refugees due to the lengthy civil war in Myanmar.[5] Others ran due to the ethnic cleansing of the Burmese military, which claimed the lives of many.

Origin of Brass Coils

For generations, Kayan women have adorned their necks with brass coils, but there is no official written historical account of how the neck rings came to be a Kayan tradition. Stories were passed on through oral storytelling over generations.[5] As a result, there are many variations of stories that address why brass coils are important to Kayan culture.

  1. One of the most popular stories within Kayan’s oral tradition is about Kayan’s ancestral mother who was a dragon.[6][7] Legends describe the neck ring was worn in memorial praise of the beauty of the dragon mother.
  2. Another story describes the Kayans believe that their ancestors were a swan and a dragon, so they make their necks long in the memory of their ancestors.[8]
  3. Neck-rings may also be worn to protect Kayan women from tiger attacks sent by evil spirits.[6][7][8][9]
  4. Neck rings help to identify the Kayan tribe.[6]
  5. Another similar story claims that wearing brass coils can discourage other groups from taking Kayan women as the rings intentionally make them look unattractive.[7]
  6. Many mention how the neck-ring was designed to make it difficult for girls to run away from home. The weight of brass rings on the body thus served to constrain mobility as Kayan tradition requires females to restrict themselves to their village and marry only men from the same tribe.[5]
  7. Some oral accounts also emphasize the beauty of a long neck and brass coils serve to enhance this feature.[5]

Mae Hong Son Resort

Mae Hong Son province is located directly beside Burma. As a result, they have accepted many refugees from Burma. Mae Hong Son holds many Kayan refugee camps and is also the most popular Kayan tourism business in Thailand.[10] Mae Hong Son is commonly known for its Mae Hong Son Resort for Kayan ethnic tourism which attracts tens of thousands of tourists per year.[10]

Practice

Process

In order to gain the long giraffe look, a Kayan woman must start wearing the brass coils at a young age as early as five years old.[3] These brass rings are imported directly from the country of Burma, which can cost from $33.33 - $266.66 USD depending on the weight and finish.[5] As Kayan women age, they will periodically replace their existing neck coils for heavier ones that consist of more loops. An average Kayan woman replaces their neck coils nine times during their lifetime. The last coil change can weigh up to 13-15 kilograms and is usually done at the age of 45.[5]

Health Complications

A neck X-ray comparison between a regular woman (left) and a Kayan woman (right).

There has been criticism from health experts around the world. Unlike common perceptions, the brass coils worn by the Kayan women do not act to stimulate the growth of the neck.[3] Conversely, the rings are used to prevent the upward development of their shoulders by applying downward pressure on their collar bones. As a result, the lowered shoulders generate an illusion of a longer neck.[3]

A recent study led by Lapo and other researchers examined multiple Kayan women and found many concerning health complications such as the following:[11]

  1. Low and compressed levels of the clavicles (collarbones).[11]
  2. Lower macrovascular and microvascular functions; most likely due to the reduced blood flow caused by the restraint around the neck.[11]
  3. Significantly reduced pulmonary function; this test comprises lung volume test, capacity, rates of flow, and gas exchange.[11][12]
  4. Greater plasma cortisol and CRP concentrations (liver and kidney tests that can indicate a higher risk of heart disease, cancer, and other significant diseases).[11][13]

Exploitation allegations

Ethnic Tourism

Among the refugee camps set up, there was a Long Neck section, which quickly became a tourist site, self-sufficient in tourist revenue, and not needing financial assistance. Currently, around 500 Kayan living in Thailand are unable to move out of their refugee villages due to Thai laws’ inability to grant them citizenship status.[14] Over 40,000 visitors visit Thailand to see the Kayan villages.[10] Each visitor pays around $20 USD as an entry fee, and there is often a mix of both local and foreign visitors.[10] As of 2017, these Kayan women make around $60USD per month on average, depending on the revenue that came from its tourism.[10] Some Kayan women have reported making as little as no money during the slow seasons of tourism.[10] Many Kayan women living in Thailand continue their tradition unwillingly in order to survive under this ethnic human zoo.

Human Zoos

There were many allegations surrounding the ethical treatment of these Kayan women. Many teenage Kayan girls in Mae Hong Son villages were allegedly auctioned off to the police and government officials at carnivals as personal mistresses.[10] Moreover, many human rights associations have criticized the Thai government officials for refusing to provide proper medical care, education, rightful wages, and technology for the Kayan women in order to keep the tourism camps as “primitive” as possible.[10] This behavior can be related to the tourism market for Western communities. Extreme reports state that many Kayan women might have been in fact kidnapped by Thailand operatives from Burma and placed in these refugee camps in towns like Mae Hong Son in order to fund the Thai’s unethical profits.[10]

Refugee Relocation Rights

The United Nations have made several attempts to relocate these Kayan refugees since 2005.[10] While many refugees were willing to take on this opportunity, the Thai government restricted their resettlement rights which prevented them from exiting Thailand.[10] This created public outrage in Western countries especially in New Zealand which expected to receive many Kayan refugees. Thai government claimed that these Kayan women were staying voluntarily as they are “happy and comfortable with their lives”.[10] Furthermore, to settle the public outrage, the Thai government promised the Kayan people facilities such as schools and road infrastructures.[10] However, these promises were not lived up to by the Thai government. On the one hand, some media like National Geographic portrays the Kayan women as proud voluntary rituals that had “endured much to preserve their culture and customs”.[10] On the other hand, some Kayan women have voluntarily removed their rings.[5] These women stated that wearing these neck rings is only to satisfy tourists in exchange for their rights and freedom.[5]

References

  1. “Kayan People (Myanmar).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 24 June 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kayan_people_(Myanmar)
  2. Moore, Matthew. “Long-necked Tribe ‘Held Captive in Human Zoo’.” The Telegraph, 30 Jan 2008, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1577059/Long-necked-tribe-held-captive-in-human-zoo.html
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 “Why Do These Women Stretch Their Necks? | National Geographic” YouTube, uploaded by National Geographic, 29 May 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FME1At3vmI&fbclid=IwAR2XLryJ_mKjtv0eDn5_p866Dy699h1B584VumTDI7d8gD2hTzsb6EXmPFo.
  4. “Kayan People (Myanmar).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 24 June 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kayan_people_(Myanmar)
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 Ismail, Jinranai. “Ethnic Tourism and the Kayan Long-Neck Tribe in Mae Hong Son, Thailand.” Victoria University, 2008, pp. 1-98
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 Thwe, Pascal Khoo. From the Land of Green Ghosts: a Burmese Odyssey. Harper Perennial, 2004.
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 Perve, Emmanuel. The Hill Tribes Living in Thailand. Alligator Service, 2006.
  8. 8.0 8.1 Schliesinger, Joachim. Ethnic Groups of Thailand: Non-Tai Speaking Peoples. White Lotus, 2000.
  9. Chawanaputorn, Donjai, et al. “Facial and Dental Characteristics of Padaung Women (Long-Neck Karen) Wearing Brass Neck Coils in Mae Hong Son Province, Thailand.” American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics, vol. 131, no. 5, 2007, pp. 639–645., doi:10.1016/j.ajodo.2006.01.029.
  10. 10.00 10.01 10.02 10.03 10.04 10.05 10.06 10.07 10.08 10.09 10.10 10.11 10.12 10.13 Theurer, Jessica. "Trapped in Their Own Rings: Padaung Women and Their Fight for Traditional Freedom." International Journal of Gender & Women's Studies. Vol. 2, No. 4, 2014, pp. 51-67.
  11. 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 Lapo, Pattawan, Nakarin Inmutto, Hirofumi Tanaka, and Daroonwan Suksom. "Cardiorespiratory Burden of Brass Neck Coils Placed on Kayan Karen Long-Neck Women of Thailand." Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism. Vol. 44, no. 8, 2019, pp. 894-901.
  12. “Pulmonary Function Tests.” John Hopkins Medicine: Treatments, Tests and Therapies, https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/treatment-tests-and-therapies/pulmonary-function-tests.
  13. Donovan, Robin, Watson, Kathryn. “C-Reactive Protein Test.” Healthline, 7 Mar. 2019, https://www.healthline.com/health/c-reactive-protein.
  14. Stainton, Hayley. “Why You Should Not Visit the Famous Long Neck Tribe in Thailand.” Tourism Teacher, 4 Feb. 2020, https://tourismteacher.com/do-not-visit-long-neck-tribe/.