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UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS LOWELL
CENTER FOR LOWELL HISTORY
CHIGAS, GEORGE. PHOTOGRAPHS FROM REFUGEE CAMPS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA, CIRCA 1980-1989
UML 10
EXTENT: 3 GB
ABSTRACT:
This photograph collection covers George Chigas’ time working at the Philippine Refugee Processing Center and his visits to Thailand-Cambodia border refugee camps in 1989. The collection is organized into four series: Philippine Refugee Processing Center, Khao I Dang refugee camp (also known as Khao I Dang Holding Center), Site II (Site Two) refugee camp, and a set of photographs taken by Dr. Jaimie Robertson in the early 1980s.
Part of the collection is available for viewing: https://umlseada.omeka.net/collections/show/12.
George Chigas was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Greek parents and grew up in Lowell and Chelmsford. His initial involvement with the Cambodian community came through Lowell's Cambodian Mutual Assistance Association (CMAA) in 1985 as a volunteer and then as a staff member. He married Thida Loeung, a woman from the local Cambodian community, in the same year. His account of their relationship and marriage ceremony is described in his oral history located at the Center for Lowell History as well as in his chapbook of poems, Chanthy’s Garden, published in 1987 by Loom Press.
In the late 1980s, Chigas worked at Lowell’s International Institute helping with refugee resettlement and then in the Philippines at the Philippine Refugee Processing Center. He also spent time visiting the Thailand refugee camps Khao I Dang (also known as Khao I Dang Holding Center) and Site II (Site Two).
Chigas has advanced degrees from Cornell University and the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) at the University of London. He was previously a manager at the Angkor Dance Troupe and an associate director of the Cambodian Genocide Program at Yale University. Chigas is currently an associate teaching professor in Asian Studies at the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, where he teaches courses on Cambodian language and culture.
Chigas’ publications include an English translation of the Cambodian verse novel, The Story of Tum Teav; a book, Cambodia’s Lament: A Selection of Cambodian Writing; and numerous articles, including “Cambodia's lost literary life,” published in 2016 and “Bearing Witness to Cambodia’s Horror, 20 Years After Pol Pot’s Death,” published in 2018.
Information gathered from the University of Massachusetts Lowell website, the Chigas oral history, LFP TR-R022, at the Center for Lowell History, and from conversations with George Chigas.
This collection consists of digital scans from select parts of George Chigas’ personal photograph collection and is completely digital. The bulk of this photograph collection covers George Chigas’ time working at the Philippine Refugee Processing Center and his visits to the Thailand-Cambodia border refugee camps, Khao I Dang (also known as Khao I Dang Holding Center) and Site II (Site Two) in 1989. Also included are a set of photographs taken by Dr. Jamie Robertson during his time working in the Thailand refugee camps and Cambodian border settlements in the early 1980s. A small number of Robertson’s photographs are of Cambodia in general. The collection is organized into four series.
Series 1. Philippine Refugee Processing Center, 1989
The first series is a set of photographs taken during George Chigas’ time working at the Philippine Refugee Processing Center in Morong, Batann, Philippines. The photographs are mainly of the Khmer New Year celebration. Activities include stage performances of singing, instrument playing, and dancing; traditional games; a parade; and the traditional New Year rituals. Several photographs feature Thida Chigas participating in New Year activities. Original photographs were taken in 1989 as slides.
Series 2. Khao I Dang Refugee Camp (Khao I Dang Holding Center), 1989
The second series is a set of photographs from George and Thida Chigas’ visit to Khao I Dang refugee camp in Thailand. The range of the photographs in this series include the food distribution center, dance troupe performances, music performances, and individuals participating in skill trainings sessions such as learning to use sewing machines. Several photographs feature Thida and George Chigas. Original photographs were taken in 1989 as slides.
Series 3. Site II (Site Two) Refugee Camp, 1989
The third series is a small set of photographs from George Chigas’ visit to Site II (Site Two) refugee camp in Thailand. The photographs include people buying and selling food and views from the main roadway. Original photographs were taken in 1989 as slides.
Series 4. Dr. Jaimie Robertson photographs, circa 1980-1989
This series is a set of photographs taken by Dr. Jaimie Robertson during his time working at the Thailand refugee camps and Cambodian border settlements, and his visits to Cambodia in the early 1980s. The photographs include Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, unidentified Thailand refugee camps, Site II (Site Two) refugee camp, and Cambodian settlements along the Thailand border.
Content warning: Some photographs show weapons, individuals that are ill and/or recovering from illness.
(Biographical information provided by George Chigas.)
Dr. Jaimie Robertson was an oral surgeon originally from Scotland who worked in the Thailand refugee camps and Cambodian border settlements as part of the early humanitarian efforts in the 1980s. He performed countless operations, particularly on children suffering oral disease, cleft lips, and other ailments. He was also a devout Buddhist. In his later years, Robertson renounced all worldly possessions and lived for a while in the Cambodian Buddhist temples in the Lowell, Massachusetts, area, where he also provided free medical services for the monks and laity.
For a listing of related collections at the University of Massachusetts Lowell and elsewhere, please visit: https://www.uml.edu/Research/SEA-digital-archive/related-collections.aspx.
For more information about the SEADA, please visit our home page at www.uml.edu/seada, or email us at seada@uml.edu.
