Thailand is currently experiencing a significant third wave which, combined with vaccine uncertainty, has contributed to an already bleak economic forecast. The countries tourist sector, which accounts for 20% of the economy experienced a dramatic downturn and as of June 16th 2021 only 2.4% of Thais have received two doses. Bank of Thailand Governor told a seminar last week “The Thai Economy may have to wait until the first quarter of 2023 to get back to pre-COVID-19 levels”

In 2019, Childline Thailand recorded an average of 614 calls and chat sessions per month. As Covid-19 restrictions took hold, requests for help from children reached a record high of 2235 contacts in April 2020 and has remained above 2000 online contacts until the end of the year.

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Childline Thailand Director Ilya Smirnoff said: “We must prioritize mental health support during this pandemic to avoid a generation of disaffected youths. Children are highly perceptive of their parents moods and actions, and economic hardship can lead to stress, and a breakdown of family relationships. Childline Thailand’s role is vital at this time and we continue to be there for children: to listen, educate and campaign for their rights “

The post Children hit hardest by third wave appeared first on Childline Thailand.

Having run away from home at the age of nine, scrawny and pint-sized Bank*, now 16, is one of many faceless street children who have hit rock bottom since the first wave of Covid-19 began last year.

“Covid-19 has made it impossible for us homeless people to find money to pay for our daily expenses,” said Bank, a native of Phetchaburi province. “My girlfriend is largely dependent on me to provide for her financially. To make sure we don’t end up sleeping on the road I need to generate enough daily income to pay for a room for the night.”

Bank has been self-reliant since coming to Bangkok with a friend in search of adventure as his family life was dysfunctional. To financially support himself, he began mixing with the wrong crowd which then led to a life of crime — two of his most serious charges are drugs and arson. He admits that he took drugs to forget about his troubles, one of which was financial and thus he hadn’t slept in two days.

But with the Covid-19 pandemic continuing, things have only gone from bad to worse.

“Sleeping on the streets today is no longer an option because it is infested with danger. That is the reason I have been pushed to earn a living in whatever manner I can. I have also been put behind bars for this. Society says that being behind bars will mould our behaviour and make us better citizens but I feel that this cannot be generalised. All children are different and respond differently. What I believe youngsters need is nurturing and to feel that someone has your back no matter what.”

It is in hard times such as this that Bank finds refuge at the Hub, an NGO under the Childline Thailand Foundation umbrella, located near the Hua Lamphong train station. It is here that he and others have three meals, do their laundry and are offered counselling among other services tailored towards their well-being.

Bank said the lockdown and curfews implemented earlier became an obstacle to his illegal activities. Now, he tries to earn an honest living by painting window grills and homes when opportunities arise.

“I can make 500 baht a day with my painting jobs but I usually don’t last because I take drugs, which saps my physical and emotional energy to the point that I don’t want to continue. I know the effort that goes into an honest day’s earnings, so I spend more wisely. If I got money illegally, without the blink of an eye I would spend it on drugs. However, I am attempting to give up on it as it is ravaging my body and mind.”

He found himself broke after being released from juvenile detention centre and unable to care for his girlfriend and younger sibling, who are also homeless.

He added that during the pandemic, homeless people don’t dare to venture into public spaces. Of course, they fear contracting the virus like anyone else.

“That is why my crew hangs out at the Hub the entire day and leaves at night. The problem is we are running out of ways to financially support ourselves as businesses have closed. Illegal work is also not as lucrative as it was in the past.

“I would like to know why we [homeless] are not considered for government relief measures during the pandemic? Is it because we are at the bottom of the food chain? I have had sleepless nights thinking about what I should do next to survive. I take out my frustrations on my girlfriend and take drugs as a form of letting off steam.”

Ilya Smirnoff of The Hub said the ongoing pandemic has impacted homeless youngsters at different levels. The street children under their care reside wherever they can and come to them for food, medication and a sympathetic ear.

He said youngsters that work in the sex and drug industry use the money to secure living arrangements in addition to handling daily expenses. They typically live in cheap hotels, paying a couple of hundred baht a day to keep a roof over their heads.

He said they live moment-to-moment. Their daily concern is to find a resting place where they are relatively safe and alone.

Street children, said the social worker, are some of the most vulnerable because they are open to all types of elements out there, mostly the bad and ugly.

“What the third wave has done is exacerbate their already deteriorating financial hardship as most depend on menial work and with small businesses shut they have few options to support themselves.

“When you are homeless, you cannot pick and choose where your income comes from. Menial work here and there is one legal way they generate money. The older ones might get work as security guards in places that require someone to keep away intruders and the more fortunate ones might land a job at a petrol station. They also dabble in sex and drugs to cover daily expenses.”

Smirnoff said that during the third wave, the focus has been on distributing survival bags to homeless youngsters that come to them. The number of street children needing support has doubled while the increase in general services for them has spiked seven to eight fold. This situation has put pressure on their budget as financial support has dwindled.

Smirnoff attributes not having had any Covid-19 cases at the Hub to the fact that the street children isolate themselves from society.

He said the amount of interaction they have with large crowds is relatively low and as long as no one gets it within their circle of friends, they are safe from the virus.

“These kids are very tough. They live on the streets. You don’t survive on the streets if you are not quite strong physically. Their immune system may not be strong but it is robust. Even if they are asymptomatic, they are socially isolated from the outside world as they don’t interact with people from the various Covid-19 clusters we hear about.

“No one comes close to a street kid, so it is like social distancing by default.

“However what the pandemic has done is put them into deeper isolation from society than ever before. They have just become even less significant.”

With the end of the outbreak nowhere in sight, Bank would like government agencies to consider the plight of the homeless during the pandemic.

“Society shuns us because of the way we look and our mannerisms and clothing, so it is not possible to ask for a roof over my head at government-run social service agencies which are already full.”

*Not his realname.

Originally published in the Bangkok Post 17th May 2021 https://www.bangkokpost.com/life/social-and-lifestyle/2116943/helping-the-helpless

Cover photo ‘Homeless people around Victory Monument’ by Wichan Charoenkiatpakul

The post Helping the Helpless appeared first on Childline Thailand.

International Child Helpline Day has been celebrated every year on 17 May since 2005  to recognise the achievement of child helplines around the world. Covid-19 has seen an increase in contacts to many helplines, including childline Thailand. Since countries locked down, children have become more vulnerable to violence at home and increasingly likely to suffer from the effects of school closure, depression and economic downturn.  A report published by Child Helpline International reveals that, globally, child helpline members received 25% more contacts in 2020 compared to 2019.  Childline’s Thailand data from our contact centre was used in the report, available here https://www.childhelplineinternational.org/data-overview/publications/voices-during-the-covid-19-pandemic/

#InternationalChildHelplineDay

#EveryChildHasAVoice

The post International Child Helpline Day 2021 appeared first on Childline Thailand.

These predatory attacks are psychology damaging to children, who may be ‘groomed’ by online offenders for a period of time before committing a sexual offence. Even if no physical crime takes place, emotional abuse is still suffered by child victims who may be humiliated and blackmailed. It is also a disturbing reality that online abuse can happen in the house without the parents being aware.

Director of Childline Thailand, Ilya Smirnoff  is gravely concerned about this trend and the challenges of preventing it “Technology is always one step ahead and the perpetrators learn and adopt the technology much faster than law enforcement”

Since 2004, Interpol reported a 10,000% increase in sexually exploitative material and with a spike caused by the pandemic this is an issue that must be urgently addressed. Childline are advocating for policy change to protect children and legalisation is currently being drafted to criminalise the grooming of children in Thailand.

If you are aware of any child being sexually exploited in Thailand, please act now and email info@childlinethailand.org or call 1387. We rely on donations to offer counselling and support to child victims of online abuse, please help by contributing to our cause  

The post Thailand sees rise in online child sexual exploitation appeared first on Childline Thailand.

Economic hardship can lead to strains on family relationships and children are all too often affected by parents suffering from frustration, desperation and depression. Childline Thailand’s Call Centre recently gave counselling to a teenager via social media; the youths family’s small business was losing money due to COVID-19 restrictions and they were feeling helpless. During the conversation it was revealed that financial pressure was causing suffering to their parents:

“Last night my father said that we should kill ourselves. We have received no support and the bank is calling everyday. We’ve had to sell all the possession in our house, we’re at the bottom of the sea- there’s nothing left”

A recent study by Chiang Mai University’s Humanities Faculty attributed as many as 38 suicides in Thailand to Coronavirus. This week a man in Pattaya climbed onto power lines and threatened to jump (Bangkok Post, 12th May), on 28th April a 59 year old woman drank a bottle of rat poison outside the Ministry of Finance and two university students died after jumping off a Bangkok bridge in a ‘Covid 19 related pact’ (Thethaiger 6th April).

Childline Thailand has seen an increase in calls during the last three months, from an average of 614 calls and chat sessions per month in 2019 to a record high of 2235 in April 2020. Calls and messages related to mental health now count for 26% of all requests for help. In a recent survey by UNICEF it was discovered that “Eight in 10 young people surveyed have said they are deeply worried about their family’s income and financial status.” This is a disturbing trend and one that is likely to continue in the coming months as the aftermath of COVID-19 is felt. We must prioritize the mental health of our children and make vital support services like Childline available for those who are ‘calling for help’.

For further information please contact info@childlinethailand.org

The post Calling for Help: Thailand’s Mental Health Crisis appeared first on Childline Thailand.

Meanwhile in Thailand, the Child Rights Coalition surveyed 28 member charities and found that many were deeply concerned about the social and economic impact of Covid19. Childline Thailand runs a call centre that normally averages approximately 600 calls and messages each month. In the days after the lockdown begun in April the centre has so far counselled 1195 children (1st- 21st April 2020). For a small charity this increase has put additional pressure on staff and funding and the foundation doesn’t receive any government support.

Childline Thailand’s centre for children in street situations (The Hub Saidek) has also seen a rise in demand for its services, with more children visiting the centre for support. In response the charity created an emergency appeal to provide Survival Boxes to homeless children which contain masks, soap and gel. The Hub also provides daily meals, showers and mental health support for 110 youths.

In times of crisis it’s really important to know that “there is someone there that cares” Childline and the Hub that “someone” for children. We care, we are there 24/7, and we are are always ready to help.

CTF Director Ilya Smirnoff

Whilst life has been inconvenienced for most of us, it is the most vulnerable members of society that will suffer the most. Childline helplines around the world provide a free service to millions of children and they require support to remain viable.

Please donate to Childline Thailand’s Covid-19 campaign https://childlinethailand.org/survival-box/

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The post New Challenges for Charities during the Covid-19 Pandemic appeared first on Childline Thailand.