Падаунги

Падаунги

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The «long necks» are female ethnic Padaung (or Kayan), a sub-group of the Karen ethnic from Burma, who wear brass rings around their neck and lower legs.
In Thailand, «long neck» women, sometimes also nicknamed «giraffe women», are refugees from Burma. They live in three special villages accommodated for tourists along the Thai-Burma border. There are around 600 Padaung refugees in Thailand including a hundred «long neck» women and female children.
Visits of these villages represent the bulk of the tourism industry in the Mae Hong Son province. But the «longneck» women get only a small portion of the tourism income.