Broken childhoods: Thailand’s welfare centres under fire

For many children in Thailand, the United Nations convention protecting their rights exists on paper but not in real life.

Adopted in 1989, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child requires the 196 signatories including Thailand to protect their rights to life, healthcare, nutrition, freedom from violence and exploitation, education, and participation in matters affecting their lives.

However, this month, as countries across the globe marked World Children’s Day on November 20, news broke that kids at a privately run welfare centre in Thailand had allegedly endured years of abuse.

Abuse of children

A former nanny at the unnamed welfare centre in Chiang Mai province told Thai PBS earlier this month that children under its care had been subjected to harsh or unusual punishments for years.

“Some kids were forced to smell pungent ginger or limes, or to eat hot chillies,” she said. “Some were hit and punched, leaving visible bruises on their bodies.”

The nanny claimed children at the centre were also forced to sit under the scorching sun for hours or had bedpans hung around their necks as punishment for wetting the bed.

“The abused kids suffered development problems. Some became too quiet, while others were increasingly aggressive.”

A doctor from the Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital blew the whistle last year in January after noticing wounds on the bodies of children from the centre.

Six months later, the same hospital reported that one child from the centre had developed a tongue infection after apparently being made to eat food that was too spicy.

Fearing the children were being maltreated, medical staff alerted the authorities. The Chiang Mai Social Development and Human Security Office contacted the foundation overseeing the welfare centre in question to demand explanations.

A subsequent probe found nine staff members – 40% of the centre’s team – guilty of abusing children. As a result of the findings, eight staff members were fired and the other, a social worker, was placed on probation. However, the centre subsequently rehired four of the dismissed staff.

The cycle of abuse then continued, with complaints finally reaching authorities again.

This time, all the children under the care of the welfare centre were transferred to other facilities. Police are also investigating alleged violations of the children’s rights, considered crimes under Thailand’s penal code.

Sanctuaries not all they seem

Wiwat Thanapanya, who chairs the One Sky Foundation caring for children on the Myanmar border in Kanchanaburi’s Sangkhlaburi district, complained that too many child welfare centres in Thailand are privately run.

“In Chiang Mai alone, there are at least 175 such centres. In reality, children should be growing up in family settings,” he said.

Wiwat said that no more than 3% of children in Thai welfare centres are orphans, citing research findings.

“Placing children in welfare centres may not really help them. Kids need more than just clothes and shelter – they need love and care too.”

People’s Party MP Paramee Waichongcharoen has called on Social Development and Human Security Minister Varawut Silpa-archa to launch systematic reforms to solve problems at privately run welfare centres and ensure children are protected.

Wiwat has a more direct solution: authorities should do more to find foster families for children.

Promoting children’s rights

The Protection of Children's Rights Foundation conducts activities at schools around the country to raise children's awareness of their rights, notes the centre’s director, Wassana Kaonoparat. UNICEF-Thailand, meanwhile, is waging the “Better Tomorrow Today” campaign to push for better protection of children and ensure they grow up in safe and nurturing surroundings.

The campaign of online and offline activities will run till National Children’s Day, January 11, next year.

Kyungsun Kim, representative at UNICEF Thailand, emphasises the need to address new challenges and threats to children, including problems related to fast-evolving technology like the internet.

Online sexual exploitation of children

Srida Tantaatipanit of the Internet Foundation for the Development of Thailand says her agency and its network are pushing for legislation to make sexting, grooming and sextortion of minors a crime in Thailand.

“Four to five other ASEAN countries already have such a law,” she said.

She warned that without it, those who send sexual messages to children, like “I want to hug you” or “I want to kiss you”, cannot be prosecuted.

“We need to improve protections for children,” Srida emphasised.

According to a 2022 survey, 36% of children aged between nine and 18 have been subject to sexual advances online, including requests for nude or partially nude photos and requests to meet, which sometimes led to sexual abuse.

Srida also expressed concern about the use of artificial intelligence to generate child pornography, which can increase police workload and hinder their efforts to rescue at-risk children,

Statistics from the Thai Hotline for Child Protection suggest that the problem in Thailand is worsening, with more than 10,000 URLs now connected to child pornography. More than 80% of victims of child pornography are between three and 13 years old.

“We are also worried about a trend of children posting sexualised photos on the internet, as predators may use this content to blackmail them,” said Srida, adding that some victims of child pornographers have even committed suicide.

Migrant kids waiting for protection

Siraporn Kaewsombat, director of the Help Without Frontiers Foundation Thailand, has called on the Thai government to pay more attention to child migrants, especially in the wake of massive migration from civil war-hit Myanmar.

“Conduct a survey, so we can find out how best to support and protect them,” she urged.

Migrant children require not just education but also access to healthcare, she added. And they must not be extradited to their home country, where their lives could be at risk.

Siraporn said the government already had strong policies for the protection and empowerment of children, including migrant kids.

“But we need to do better on implementation,” she emphasised.

She said that even though many child migrants may not be in Thailand for the long term, the support given today would offer them opportunities to grow into quality adults.