King’s Granddaughter visits DPF
Ploypailin Jensen, the granddaughter of the Thai king, visited the Duang Prateep Foundation last month. Ms. Ploypailin was welcomed to the DPF by the chairman, Dr. Sumet Jumsai na Ayudhya, and the secretary general, Ms. Prateep Ungsongtham Hata.
Ms. Ploypailin watched dance and music performances by children from the Duang Prateep Kindergarten and the Special Education Project for Hearing Impaired Children, before donating school stationary, sports equipment and baby food. Ms. Ploypailin also walked through the community close to the foundation before departing after a visit which lasted a bit over an hour.
Ploypailin Jensen is the oldest child of Princess Ubolratana Rajakanya, who is the oldest child of King Bhumibhol, Rama IX. Ms. Ploypailin has lived most of her life in the USA, but is presently studying music in the United Kingdom.
The photo <ploypailin.jpg> shows Ploypailin Jensen being welcomed to the Duang Prateep Foundation by Dr. Sumet Jumsai na Ayudhya, Prateep Ungsongtham Hata, Prakong Ungsongtham and community leaders.
Wife of Japanese ambassador visits Petchburi projects
Mrs. Haruni Akeo, the wife of Mr. Nobutoshi Akeo, the Japanese ambassador to Thailand, was accompanied by ten other partners of Japanese diplomats on a visit to Duang Prateep Foundation projects in Petchburi province last month. It was the second time that Mrs. Akeo has visited the projects. The Japanese visitors were welcomed to the villages where the DPF is involved by Secretary General Prateep Ungsongtham Hata, other foundation staff, community leaders, teachers and children from the local school.
Mrs. Akeo donated money to purchase medicines for the goats, which are cared for by children at two local schools, she also planted a tree. There are presently 68 goats at the project and they are providing much needed milk to one of the schools. After visiting the goat raising project, Mrs. Akeo visited the weaving project, which was started by the DPF to ensure that weaving skills, which were in danger of being lost as the older residents died out, were passed to a younger generation. Items made at the weaving centre are sold at the shop at the Duang Prateep Foundation. The party from Japan also visited Baan Yang Nam Kat Tai school, which has been a centre for women's and youth development activities supported by the Duang Prateep Foundation for eight years.
The photo <petchburi.jpg> shows Mrs. Akeo (right) and Prateep Ungsongtham Hata watching a local weaver.
Foundation pillar set for new school
Last month the foundation pillar was set for a new children's centre in the Nong Mai community of Klong Toey slum. The previous school was destroyed by fire in May 2000. The ceremony was presided over by DPF Secretary General Prateep Ungsongtham Hata and the Reverend Michio Nishimura from the Konkokyo Peace Activity Center of Japan. The Konkokyo organisation has donated money for the new school and also financed the construction of the previous school.
Since last year’s fire the 60 pupils at the kindergarten school have been using temporary facilities for their schooling. They expect to be moving into their new school building before the end of the year.
Best teeth competition for kindergarten pupils
Children at the Duang Prateep Kindergarten took part in a series of oral hygiene activities last month. Games, shows and instruction on the topic of oral hygiene culminated in a beautiful mouth competition.
The kindergarten celebrated the Buddhist festival of Khao Pansa with a parade through the community. Khao Pansaa is the start of Buddhist 'Lent' the traditional time for young men to enter the monkhood and for monks to confine themselves to a single temple for three months. It is a Thai tradition for large carved candles to be paraded through the streets at Khao Pansaa time, a tradition that the Duang Prateep Kindergarten keeps going in Klong Toey slum.
Also last month, students from Assumption University visited the kindergarten and hosted a lunch for the pupils.
The photo <teeth.jpg> shows the winners of the best teeth comeptition with staff and guardians.
The photo <khaopansa.jpg> shows the float for the Khao Pansa parade.
Hotel hosts lunch for sponsored children
Forty-eight children sponsored through the Duang Prateep Foundation were invited to a lunch to celebrate the eighth anniversary of the Rembrandt Hotel. The lunch was hosted by Mrs. Chander Sivasriamphai, a long-time benefactor of the Duang Prateep Foundation, and her family, along with hotel general manager Mr. Heinrich Stocker. During the party, sponsorships were presented to 10 kindergarten children, there was also plenty of food and there was entertainment provided by a magician.
Aids training for housewife volunteers
Last month Aids Control Project staff joined with the Port Police in a three-day training programme for Aids volunteers. The training took place in Samut Prakarn province near to Bangkok and was attended by thirty participants. The objective of the training was to help the housewives strengthen their activities against Aids and substance abuse in their communities.
Aids Control Project staff are concerned at the continuing extremely high price of the medicines which can be used to fight the symptoms of Aids. The government is able to provide cheap medicines for only a limited number of people suffering from Aids. However, for the vast majority of people with Aids, the medicines which could improve health and prolong life are available only at a price which is way beyond the means of most Thais.
20th Anniversary of Foundation for Slum Child Care
Last month the Foundation for Slum Child Care celebrated its twentieth anniversary with two days of special events at the Siam Society. The foundation was started by Ms Prateep, with the prize money she received when she became the first Asian to win the Rockefeller Youth Award. The Foundation for Slum Child Care provides all day care for pre-kindergarten aged children and also provides pre and post natal health assistance to mothers. The Duang Prateep Foundation and the Foundation for Slum Child Care were both started by Prateep and are located next to each other in Klong Toey slum, but they are two separate organisations. Prateep is on the committee of the Foundation for Slum Child care but has no involvement in daily administration.
Japanese art volunteer leaves
Jun Nakajima, a Japanese volunteer who has been assisting with the art project at the DPF and with the foundation shop left last month after a stay of one year. As a departing gift, members of the art project all painted Jun's portrait. Jun gave a presentation about his work before leaving and prepared a book in English and Thai about his experiences during his year at the Duang Prateep Foundation.
Special feature
There is a special feature by a former Swiss volunteer at the end of this newsletter.
**********
News from Thailand
Disability award given to Thailand
Last month Thailand was honoured with the fifth annual Franklin Delano Roosevelt International Disability Award. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, in presenting the prize, said that Thailand has made remarkable progress in supporting persons with disabilities and in giving this issue a prominent place on the national agenda. HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn accepted the award on behalf of Thailand and said that the country's aim was to promote full participation of people with disabilities in the process of national development towards peace and prosperity.
Parents to face punishment if children skip school
Parents who fail to send their children aged between seven and sixteen to school will be punished under a mandatory education bill which was endorsed by the cabinet last month. Parents must ensure their children attend school or they will be liable for fines or community service. Employers found to obstruct children from attending school will be liable for a fine or imprisonment.
Thai Children face increasing health risks
Last month the Health Promotion Office raised concerns about the state of Thai children's health. A study on the health status of Thai children showed that as many as 15% of primary school-aged children were under-weight. At the other extreme, many city kids were overweight. Almost 32% of children in Bangkok were found to be overweight. It was reported that 63.7% of children are suffering from tooth decay. Road accidents, which in 1998 killed 6,048 children aged between five and fourteen, are also a cause of great concern.
Thailand to endorse Kyoto pact
Thailand is ready to ratify the Kyoto Protocol on preventing climate change and is planning major development of renewable energy, to prepare the country for future energy needs and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. As an agricultural country, Thailand has a strong potential for renewable energy sources, mostly biomass such as rice husks and wood chips.
Boot camps help addicts kick habit
The army has claimed that its 15-day programme to help volunteer addicts escape from addiction is proving successful. So far, about 600 young addicts have participated in the courses, with provincial officials following-up on the addicts once they have completed the programme. The courses consist of two parts: A military training course to strengthen the body and mind and an anti-drugs course to raise awareness against health-related threats from drug abuse.
Monks are also being recruited into the fight against drugs. Last month the Religious Affairs Department held its first training session to turn Buddhist monks into anti-drug ambassadors. The 194 monks at the training were told how Buddhist principles could be applied in the drugs fight. The monks will pass on their knowledge to schools and communities.
Village fund scheme launched
Last month the government launched the village fund scheme by transferring one million baht each to 7,125 villages. The fund will be administered by village committees, which have been set up to manage the money. The aim of the fund is to stimulate local enterprise and if used properly the fund will help reduce poverty and assist economic recovery. Other villages will be in line to receive the fund once they have complied with the criteria of the government.
Revamp planned for Aids strategy
At the National Aids Seminar last month there was talk of the need for a revamp of Thailand's HIV/Aids framework. The Deputy Public Health Minister said that focus had been on treatment and research for a cure for Aids, while prevention programmes have not been as innovative and progressive as they should be.
Thailand's largest phase III trial of a possible HIV vaccine, involving 16,000 non-infected volunteer subjects will commence next year. If successful, the trial could lead to the creation of the first preventive Aids vaccine.
Hazardous waste treatment in crisis
The head of the Pollution Control department reported last month that hazardous waste management in Thailand is in crisis with only 20% being properly treated and much of the rest dumped illegally. The country’s only major waste management company can handle only 20% of the industrial waste. Many small and medium-sized enterprises avoid the high costs of proper waste disposal by dumping their waste in all sorts of places. About 900 state hospitals are equipped with incinerators to burn their waste, but only 40% of them are in working condition. The import of hazardous materials has increased every year for the past decade, unaffected by the economic crisis. Three million tonnes of hazardous materials were imported last year.
Social Investment Fund praised
The outgoing World Bank country officer for Thailand, Jayasankar Shivakumar described the Social Investment Fund, which was set up to relieve the effects of the recession on poor people, as probably the best fund in the world. Mr. Shivakumar described the fund as being the first time when civil society has truly been the master. The Social Investment Fund (SIF) is a World Bank funded project which aims to mitigate the effects of the economic recession. The SIF attempts to alleviate social and economic problems of vulnerable groups in society in the aftermath of the economic crisis. More than 7,000 community schemes throughout the country have benefited from the fund. Several community organisations in Klong Toey and other Bangkok slum communities have been among the beneficiaries of the fund.
Thailand rated below average
Last month Thailand was rated unfavourably in a survey by the Hong Kong based Political and Economic Risk Consultancy. In the survey of Asian countries, Thailand was placed near the bottom of the table with Vietnam, Indonesia, India and the Philippines. Lack of vision, inconsistency of policies and failure to implement reforms were cited as being behind Thailand’s low ratings.
**********
The following was written by Claudia Deplazes who was a volunteer at the Duang Prateep Foundation from December 2000 to July 2001.
Packing luggage with memories
Before leaving the Duang Prateep Foundation, I need to think about what to put in my luggage for my return back home. If I could, I would take with me the whole little world that has been surrounding me so cheerfully during seven months here, beginning with all my friends who have become so important to me, the children's smiling faces, over one or two noodle shops near the Foundation (I could not take Mali’s restaurant, the Foundation’s staff would miss it too much), one or two hectares of a rice field, to the happy life-enjoying attitude most Thais have, even when living in as difficult conditions as they have in the Klong Toey Slum. I think I might even put two or three of the big cockroaches of our house in my bag, just to remember how much I was afraid of them a few months ago.
But as my luggage is limited, I cannot take with me all of this. I will need to choose and to select what is the most important for me. Besides my personal souvenirs and the presents for my family and friends back home, my luggage will be filled with thousands of stories of my life in Thailand. An enormous smile might take a lot of space, but absolutely must find a place in my backpack. I also want to take a few samples of the odours of Kanchanaburi’s flowers, of the delicious Thai food and the salty smell of the seaside with me (I will leave the smell of Bangkok’s pollution here). The green of the rice-fields, the saffron of the monk’s robes, the turquoise of the sea, the red of the Thai curries, the purple of the children’s school dresses, the shimmering gold of the stupas, and the intense colours of the traditional cloths will shape the range of colours I will take with me. The last little space left in my hand luggage will be filled by the warmth and friendship of all the people I met in Thailand. When I now look at my luggage, I know that the most important of what I will take with me from Thailand is in my heart. The unforgettable experience I could live here during my short stay has undoubtedly left its footprints in my heart and however small or big my luggage is when my plane is taking off, every second of my stay and the memory of all my friends here are indelibly written in my deepest inside and will find their way to be expressed in my movements and smiles.
I express my deepest thanks and gratitude to the staff of the Duang Prateep Foundation and especially to Khru Prateep herself for having accepted me so cheerfully and having let me to live this unforgettable experience.
Claudia Deplazes, 24 years, Switzerland, volunteer at DPF from December 2000 to July 2001.