Children’s Day ‘01
The second Saturday in January is when Thailand celebrates National Children’s Day. Many special events for children took place throughout the country and Klong Toey slum was no exception. The Duang Prateep Foundation joined with local community groups in organising a special programme for the local children.
In the morning the action was at the Duang Prateep Foundation with dance performances on stage and many activities for the numerous children who attended.
In the afternoon, attention switched to different parts of Klong Toey slum. Many communities organised their own programmes for Children’s Day, with DPF staff joining community leaders in providing entertainment for the children.
Many organisations and individuals gave support to ensure that Children’s Day at the Duang Prateep Foundation was once again a special occasion for slum children.
Dutch artist Josh Welkamp, who hosted an art workshop in December, visited the Duang Prateep Foundation again, to organise an art activity as part of the Children’s Day events. He also joined with local artists and a Japanese volunteer in painting banners for display at the foundation.
Children who attend the DPF’s Special Education Programme for Hearing-Impaired Children went to television Channel 9 on Children’s Day. The children gave a music performance on television and were presented with gifts.
Children at the Duang Prateep Kindergarten had more fun later in the month with the visit of Loony Tunes cartoon characters, who came from television Channel 3 to entertain the children, give out gifts and host a lunch for the children.
The attached file <kidsday.jpg> shows Duang Prateep Foundation Secretary General Prateep Ungsongtham Hata and visiting Dutch artist Josh Welkamp admiring children’s art.
UN Executives visit Chumphon New Life Project
Last month three senior executives from the United Nations visited the Duang Prateep Foundation’s New Life Project for Boys at Chumphon in the South of Thailand. The project is a centre for the treatment and rehabilitation of teenagers and young men who have had problems with drug addiction.
The three UN representatives who visited the New Life Project were Dr. Sandro Calvani, the Director of the United Nations Drugs Control Programme for East Asia; Ms. Kayakao Muzuta, the Deputy Executive Secretary of UN ESCAP; and Ms. Nanda Krairiksh, the Chief of the Human Resources Development Section at UN ESCAP. The group was accompanied on their visit to the project by DPF Secretary General, Ms. Prateep Ungsongtham Hata. Three representatives of the Thai media also joined the trip.
The party toured the project site in the beautiful Chumphon countryside and talked to the youngsters who are living at the project. The visitors were interested to know how the students at the project got involved in drugs consumption, whether they had previously attended other treatment centres and they wanted comparisons between the New Life Project and other rehabilitation centres.
The youngsters gave different reasons for their involvement in drugs. One talked about not being strong enough to endure family problems. Another talked about his enjoyment of night life and how he followed his friends into taking amphetamines, so that he could party as long as his friends instead of being tired at 2.00 in the morning. A third youngster, from a poor family, talked about studying during the day and taking drugs so that he could work long hours at night to finance his education. Another youngster talked about the bad environment he grew up in, with many of his friends taking drugs.
When asked how many of the youngsters had previously attended other rehabilitation centres, a forest of hands shot up. When asked to compare the New Life Project with other centres the youngsters made various comparisons. One youngster talked about the natural environment at Chumphon, the lack of night-life and temptations, in the peaceful environment there is time to think about the future without any distractions. One student talked about how other centres give pills to make their inmates sleepy, the youngsters exercise in the morning and then doze the rest of the day with nothing to do. A third student talked about the activities at the project - the life skills and vocational skills - and about the need to work hard growing vegetables and cooking so that he was able to learn and remain fully occupied. Another student talked about how he could continue his education, which was not possible at other treatment centres. A fifth student talked about the three-year length of stay at the New Life Project which gave the opportunity to cure the mind as well as the body, whereas short stay rehabilitation centres only cure the body.
US Senator visits DPF
Senator Sam Brownback, a Republican from Kansas, visited the Duang Prateep Foundation last month as part of a programme to find out more about the problems of trafficking in women and children. Senator Brownback was welcomed to the Duang Prateep Foundation by Secretary General Prateep Ungsongtham Hata and he took part in a discussion with community leaders, academics and foundation staff.
Senator Brownback is Chairman of the Foreign Relations Sub-Committee on Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs. The senator pushed for a law to protect victims of violence and trafficking in the United States. The law has already been endorsed and will come into effect next year.
During his trip to Thailand, Senator Brownback talked to officials and representatives of non-government organisations. In addition to meeting people in Bangkok, he also went to Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai in the North of Thailand.
Another visitor from the USA last month was Mr. Barton Denechaud, a trustee of the Flame of Hope Foundation, the organisation which raises funds in the USA to support the work of the DPF.
The photo <senator.jpg> shows Senator Sam Brownback and Senator Prateep Ungsongtham Hata walking past an area of Klong Toey slum which was destroyed in a fire at the end of last year.
Outward Bound programme for slum youths
Last month a group of nineteen youngsters went on a five-day training programme at the Outward Bound Thailand centre at the mouth of the Pranburi river near Hua Hin. Outward Bound Thailand opened last year and is committed to providing programmes for disadvantaged children, in addition to the fee paying courses they offer.
The youngsters in the Duang Prateep Foundation party came from Klong Toey slum and the New Life Project. The group were able to use the wonderful countryside of Sam Roi Yod national park. Activities included jungle trekking, camping, canoeing and map reading. Afterwards the participants talked about the great experience they had and how much they had learned about themselves and their friends.
The photo <outward.jpg> shows some of the youngsters from Klong Toey enjoying the scenery of Sam Roi Yod national park.
Aids project staff in literacy campaign
Aids control Project staff have joined with policemen from the Port police station to give literacy lessons to 30 housewives in the Suan Oi community. The training is taking place every evening with DPF staff and police jointly leading the sessions. The housewives have been split into three groups depending on whether they have no previous education, four years schooling, or six years of education.
Support for fire victims
Last month foundation Secretary General Prateep Ungsongtham Hata presided over a function at which roofing materials were donated to the families made homeless in the recent fire in Locks 4, 5, 6 (see January newsletter for details). Families are now progressing with construction of homes on the sites where their houses previously stood.
American students help with computer programme
Teachers at the Duang Prateep Kindergarten are presently receiving training in computer use from four students who study at Worcester Polytechnic Institute of Massachusetts. The students are at the Duang Prateep Foundation for six weeks. There will be a fuller report on their activities in the March Newsletter.
Sponsor’s death
The Duang Prateep Foundation was saddened to learn last month of the death of Swedish sponsor Mr. Baltzar Klingspor, who had been a generous benefactor of the Duang Prateep Foundation for many years. Mr. Klingspor began providing educational support for a Thai child through the Swedish organisation Stiftelsen Barnmission I U Land. Mr. Klingspor gradually extended his assistance to other members of his sponsored child’s family and to the Ratchada Bungkum Children’s Centre, the kindergarten in the community where his sponsored children lived. Mr. Klingspor’s death came just a short while before he intended to made his annual visit to the Duang Prateep Foundation and the Ratchada Bungkum community.
News from Thailand
Thai election
The first parliamentary election under the new constitution took place in January and resulted in Thai Rak Thai just failing to win an overall majority, with 248 seats in the 500 seat chamber. Thai Rak Thai will be joined in government by the New Aspiration Party and Chart Thai. Thaksin Shinawatra, the Thai Rak Thai leader, will be Prime Minister.
Chemical victims case nears end
Ten years after the tragic chemical fire at the Bangkok Port, which ruined the lives of so many Klong Toey slum dwellers, a verdict is expected next month in a case against the Port Authority. March the 2nd 1991 was the day the chemical storage facilities at the Bangkok Port exploded, and the Ko Lao community, adjacent to the warehouse, was destroyed. Two of the many victims of the fire brought their cases to court in 1996, after the Port Authority of Thailand rejected their claims for compensation. The victims accuse the Port Authority of Thailand of recklessness. The lawyer representing the victims says he is hopeful of victory.
Sex abuse in families is rising
Experts reported last month that the incidence of rape and sexual molestation of minors within families is on the increase. Teenage girls are the most vulnerable group with step-fathers as the number one culprit in domestic sexual violence. Victims frequently come under pressure from their families to deny the abuse to the police and other authorities. Alcohol is a major catalyst in cases of child rape.
Despite the grim picture, more child rapists are facing justice thanks to the help of new codes of practice governing the interrogation of child victims. Since September last year the law requires that a lawyer, a social worker, the investigating police officer and a person of the child’s choosing must be present during the initial questioning procedure. The law also requires that the interrogation be captured on video. The video evidence can be subsequently used in court. The video evidence will stick in court regardless of what pressure the child is put under to change her statement.
Experts believe that the recession is one of the factors leading to increased sexual abuse of children. Families have been forced to split up to go in search of work. Depression and unemployment have helped create an escalation in the incidence of child rape.
Bid to keep kids off the street
The Royal Thai Police will join with NGOs in assisting street children through a new “Roadside Police teachers” programme. Specially trained police will discard their uniforms for work with the street children. Roadside teachers from various organisations will assist in enabling the police to gain the trust of the children.
The aim of the programme is to return children to their families, but in many cases family problems are what caused the children to leave home in the first place. If the children do not want to return to their families, they will be encouraged to go into the care of NGOs and provided with education. At all stages the wishes of the child will be paramount.
NGOs prepare “people’s” health security law
It was reported last month that the first people’s version of a health security law is expected to go to Parliament in six months. A coalition of eleven non-government organisations is working towards universal health coverage. Half the 50,000 signatures needed to send the law to Parliament have been gathered. The coalition wants the many different health security funds to be scrapped for one national fund administered by the government.
Health reform gathers momentum
The National Health System Reform Office, under the Ministry of Public Health, is beginning the drafting of a National Health Act. The aim of the act is to shift the approach from being defensive to being offensive. The goal is to have an effective health promotion and disease prevention system which will result in healthier people who are more immune to illness. The hope is that the resulting decrease in the numbers of patients will result in big savings which can be used to better care for those who are ill.
HIV worsening with rise in drugs use
The UN stated in a report last month that a worsening HIV/Aids situation is being observed in the Asia-Pacific region due to the widespread use of illegal drugs. The report, on drug abuse and HIV vulnerability, related that law enforcement and political policies are the main barriers impeding implementation of effective prevention measures to control the spread of HIV among intravenous drug users.
The report said that measures implemented to prevent the spread of HIV among drug users are frequently localised, short-term, under-funded and insufficient in scope. The report also identified the low funding priority for drug problems in the region, apart from for law enforcement, and the inadequate dialogue between drug control and HIV prevention agencies.
Green tax on packaging waste next year
The Pollution Control Department has finished drafting a proposal for an excise tax on packaging waste, which should become reality next year. The intention is that manufacturers will be encouraged to reduce production of packaging materials which are difficult to dispose of. Initially five types of packaging will be hit by the tax: Paper, plastic, glass, metal and aluminium. The rate of tax will vary depending on the difficulty of disposing of the different materials. The Federation of Thai Industries opposes the introduction of the tax and claims that the proposed tax rates are too high.
Polluting firms will have to pay
Industrial plants discharging toxic substances into rivers will be fined according to the “polluter pays” principal under a new law that is expected to be passed in the next two years. The Industry Ministry intends to amend the Industrial Works Act to penalise 60,000 factories that pollute the environment during the production process. After tackling river pollution the Industry Ministry will switch the focus to factories that dumped toxic substances or hazardous materials and polluted the air.