Zoya Phan was 8-years-old when she came across a badly abused and decomposing body floating down the river. Until then she had been oblivious to turmoil that lay just outside of her “tranquil paradise.”

Her small village was nestled in the eastern jungle of Burma, and hidden away from the devastating, long-time battle between ethnic minorities and the Burmese army.  It wasn’t long, however, before she and her family were faced with the same tragedy as countless others.

Just up the stream the Burmese Army used villagers for slave labor until they were too weak to go on, then they would torture them, kill them and throw their bodies in the river.

In her book, “Little Daughter,” Phan tells the story of a bitter struggle to survive and then fight for the rights of her people.

She was born into a Karen family, which is an ethnic group that make up about 10 percent of Burma’s population. Her parents were both involved with the Karen National Union, a resistance organization that fights for the rights of oppressed ethnic groups in Burma. Phan’s mother was an information officer. Her father was the General Secretary until he was assassinated in 2008.

The turbulent situation has been the norm since the nation became divided during World War II.  During that time the majority ethnic group sided with Japan, while the Karen and other minorities sided with Britain. After the war, Burma gained its independence from Britain and the nation exploded in internal conflicts.

The ongoing battle is said to be the longest known conflict in the world. Unfortunately, the election held in Burma in November did little more than raise international awareness.

“They continue their policy of Burmanization to make everyone the same race, same language, same culture and same religion and that is not working in Burma because in Burma we have different ethnic groups and we enjoy our own diversity,” Phan said in an interview.

Phan was 14-years-old in 1995 when her home was destroyed after bombs were dropped on her village. She fled with her family into the jungle with only the few things they could carry on their back. It was there that they hid until it was evident they would not be able to return home. Instead, they made their way through the dangerous jungle until they reached a refugee camp in Thailand.

Still, the camp provided little refuge. Enemy troops continued to attack them, burning houses and kidnapping refugees to use them as human shields. The people in the camp were not allowed to leave and had to rely on humanitarian aid and supplies. There never seemed to be enough to go around.

“It was more like a prison camp,” Phan said. “We became stateless people.”

Phan and her elder sister were eventually able to leave the refugee camp after they received a scholarship to study in Bangkok.

“I was one of the lucky persons,” Phan said.

Ironically, they had to be smuggled out of the camp and in Bangkok they lived in fear of being caught without papers and sent back. On top of the stress of living illegally in a country, Phan had to adjust from life in the jungle to life in the big city.  She struggled from cars to computers, but she managed.

After she graduated she felt it was time to return home to Burma. The trip would be one that would shape the rest of her life.

Phan and a group of students trekked through the jungle and climbed mountains for days. During that time they came across many who had fled their homes and were hiding from enemy troops.

One family they came across was a mother, a father and their two children. The entire family was ill and exhausted and begged for medicine that would make them strong enough to make their way to the Thailand refugee camp. They couldn’t return to their home because the Burmese Army planted land minds.

“That young woman, she was carrying one of her children and her child was dying,” Phan said. “It was very heart breaking to me to see a young woman with very young children suffering with hardship, and they are walking though the jungle with hope that they would find the refugee camp.”

The total disregard for human life exists even today, according to Phan. She now resides in London and works as the campaign manager for Burma Campaigns, an organization that strives to raise international awareness on the situation in Burma.

“It has been more than 15 years since the attack on my village, but the situation hasn’t changed. The attacks against the Karen and other ethnic minorities continue every day,” Phan said.

Phan has been disappointed by the lack of international involvement, but remains hopeful that the United Nations and others will step in and help improve the situation. There have been three assassination attempts on her life since she began advocating for her people, but she still refuses to give up.

“I think one of the main things that keeps me going is hope, because I have hope for the future of Burma. And I have a dream for Burma as well, where everyone can live in peace regardless of our race, our ethnicity, our gender, our religion, everyone is equal and everyone is treated equally.”