TWIN FALLS • It was a dream came true for the family of Burmese immigrants, who moved to Twin Falls three years ago.
Aye Mi Aung started to tear up even before she was handed the keys to the family's new home, provided by Habitat for Humanity.
"Well, I think there's only one thing left to do," said Linda Fleming, executive director of Habitat for Humanity of the Magic Valley. She pulled out two sets of keys from her pockets Monday and handed them to Htay and Aye Mi Aung.
They now had a home to call their own. It was the fifth and final home of 2013 dedicated by the nonprofit. The home also signifies the end of the family's long journey to safety and shelter.
Htay fled Burma — now called Myanmar — in 1996, and Aye Mi left in 2005, they said through translator and family friend Kyi Kyi Whiting.
Htay was among Burmese students who In 1988 protested then-ruler Gen. Ne Win after years of mounting economic turmoil. So Htay may be on the Burmese government's list of people to jail. When the protests started, Htay was 17 and still in high school.
One student was killed when the protesters outside the Rangoon Institute of Technology clashed with the military on March 13, 1988, BBC News reported. That spurred further protests by citizens and monks.
The government closed all schools from 1988 to 1991, Htay said.
On Aug. 8, 1988, known as 8-8-88, hundreds of thousands of people protested in calls for democracy, BBC reported. That Sept 18, soldiers sprayed automatic rifle fire into crowds of protesters. Other demonstrators were taken away in trucks and never seen again.
At least 3,000 people were killed during the protests, human rights groups report.
With human rights violations in Myanmar continuing, U.S. Sens. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., and Marco Rubio, R-Fla., introduced a bill Dec. 20 to prohibit U.S. military aid to Burma, except for basic training on human rights and civilian control of the military. The bill would lift the prohibition only if Burma measurably improves human rights conditions, establishes civilian oversight of the armed forces, addresses human rights violations by its military and terminates military relations with North Korea.
Htay said he escaped through the jungles and made his way to a refugee camp in Thailand. He eventually went to Malaysia, where he found his high school sweetheart, Aye Mi. They married in Malaysia in 2007.
After registering with the United Nations Commission for Refugees Program in Malaysia, they were placed in Idaho in 2011.
With Burmese schools closed, Htay never finished his education. He worked as a waiter in Malaysia and now does general labor at Solo Cup in Twin Falls.
Aye Mi works as a professional seamstress out of her home. She makes clothing, and her work in known in the Burmese community, Kyi Kyi said.
Twin Falls is home to about 100 Burmese families. Htay and Aye Mi's families still live in Burma. They haven't seen them since they left. Eventually they want to visit, but they are waiting until they become U.S. citizens.
On Monday, about 30 people gathered in the three-bedroom home being dedicated to Htay, Aye Mi and daughters Nono, 5, and Tutu, 2.
"As a housewife, this is my dream come true," Aye Mi said as Whiting translated.
Habitat built the Aungs' home in 2009 for another family. When that family didn't want to own it anymore, Habitat bought it back.
The Aungs put in 300 working hours to remodel the house. Monday morning, they signed a 30-year, zero percent interest mortgage.
"It's going to be a beautiful home for the Aung family," Fleming said.
The house was not only remodeled and furnished with appliances, but also stocked with food from Grocery Outlet and books from the Chamber Ambassadors' program "Building with Books."
The Aungs had been living in a cramped apartment they said was a hazard for their little girls.
Whiting read a letter from the family, thanking employees at the College of Southern Idaho's Refugee Center, Habitat for Humanity of the Magic Valley and several others in the community.
"Are we happy today? Today is the day that for us we will never forget for the rest of our lives," the letter read. "Our family is very excited. From now on, our daughters can run around and play safely at our new home."
Aye Mi said Nono was so excited that she couldn't sleep for two nights.
"She talked about what she was going to put in her room and how she was going to clean the bathroom and mop the floors," Aye Mi said.
The Aung family planned to sleep in their new home Monday night, saying they didn't care that the furniture and beds weren't there yet.
http://www.information.myanmaronlinecentre.com/habitat-for-humanity-makes-dream-come-true-for-burmese-immigrants-twin-falls-times/
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