Thai government to provide education to refugee children

by Usa Pichai
Thursday, 10 September 2009 14:30

Chiang Mai (Mizzima) - Thailand’s Ministry of Education is drawing up a proposal for the cabinet to initiate an education system for migrant, refugee and stateless children, according to the United States Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI).

Weerawit Tienchainan, Director of the USCRI told Mizzima that currently the group is holding discussions with the Thai Minister of Education. The ministry will propose to the cabinet to start an education system for migrants, stateless children and refugee students from neighbouring countries.

“We discussed that the Thai government should take the responsibility for the education of the children in refugee camps along the Thailand-Burma border. The minister agreed to involve refugee children in the new education system, to be provided for every child in the country,” Tienchainan said.

Currently, education for refugee students in the camps is being provided by non-governmental organizations. The Thai government has been trying to organize short Thai-language courses but has failed to include children.

Chaiwut Bannawat, Thailand’s Deputy Education Minister insisted that “the new education policy of Thailand will provide every child in the kingdom with child and human rights principles.”

Chaiwut said the group includes stateless children, who are mostly tribal children living in the countryside, particularly in northern Thailand. These are children whose parents are migrant workers.

Chaiwut also thanked both national and international non-governmental organizations for taking care of these children. However, he urged the organizations to include local children around the camps and in the countryside, who need support to improve their quality of life.

He added that currently, the Ministry of Education is drafting a regulation for cabinet approval, which will provide equal education opportunity for every child in the country so that they can access public schooling without exception.

According to Weerawit currently there are about 70,000 refugees under the age of 18, who should be in schools.

“The Thai government’s initiative marks a significant progress,” he added.

However, Chumpon Srisang, Director of the Education Department in Tak province said there are several learning centres for migrant children in five districts of the province near the border, which are operating illegally.

While these centres take care of more than 10,000 students in the area, the government will decide to set up a system for these centres, and monitor the new regulations to bring these students to study in Thai public schools.

A report in a Thai news website, quoting the Education Department of Tak Province, said in Mae Sot district, opposite Burma’s Myawaddy, alone, there are more than a hundred learning centres.