This photo taken on July 1, 2026 shows a Karen refugee from the Mae La refugee camp along the Thai-Myanmar border, who recently acquired a Thai ID card granting them permission to work, resting inside the living quarters of a construction site in Prachinburi province. After decades of being barred from leaving the camps and working legally, Myanmar refugees and their children began receiving non-citizen Thai ID cards in June, a step away from statelessness and towards gainful, legal employment. About 4,600 people from Myanmar living in camps have sought permission to work legally from October 2025 to July this year, the Thai interior ministry said. (Photo by Lillian SUWANRUMPHA / AFP via Getty Images) / TO GO WITH Thailand-Myanmar-labour-refugee, FOCUS by Thanaporn PROMYAMYAI and Sally JENSEN