Challenge
Pin is a Thaiyai girl, an ethnic minority in Thailand descended from immigrants who came to northern Thailand from Yunan province in southern
China . Although Pin is third-generation Thai, she has not been granted official Thai citizenship.
When Pin was 14 years old, her parents were approached by a sex trade agent who falsely said he would like to marry Pin. While it is not usual for Thai parents to sell their daughters into marriage, Pin's Thaiyai parents had also never been given official Thai citizenship making their lot a difficult one; they were desperate for money. The agent gave Pin’s parents an agreed to sum of money and took her to Bangkok where she was forced to work as a prostitute. She managed to send a letter to friends explaining what was happening to her. Her friends contacted the Thai Child Protection Network which rescued Pin from a Bangkok brothel and alerted COSA.
Solution:
Pin was brought to live at COSA’s shelter for a short duration, in the safety of COSA’s protection and the comforting surroundings of her native northern Thailand environment.
Through the counseling and intervention of COSA staff with Pin's parents, Pin was reunited with her family and, with the on-going financial support of COSA is continuing her eighth grade studies. COSA staff also continues with follow-up visits to help Pin and her family deal with the aftermath of these events. COSA, along with the Child Protection Network and Pin's friends helped save Pin from the continuing degradation and dangers of forced prostitution.
Challenge:
Fah's father left the family home and works outside of Thailand, only occasionally sending money to the family. Her mother works from home, earning what income she can but she has Fah and two younger children to care for.
When Fah finished sixth grade her mother was unable to afford the extra-curricular fees (such as uniforms, books and materials) required to send a Thai student to seventh grade. The danger in Fah's situation, given where she was living and the family's financial need, was that if she was not in school, it was very possible she would have ended up in the sex trade.
Solution:
One of Fah's teachers informed COSA about Fah's plight. It was at this point that Fah came to COSA’s shelter, one of our first resident children. While living at COSA’s shelter, Fah went on to complete high school with grades that warranted admission to
Challenge
Jib is the eldest of three children in her family. Her father abandoned his wife and children and her mother recently died of HIV. Jib is currently
Solution
As an initial step, COSA, in partnership with the International Justice Mission, has interceded with a 1000 Baht per month scholarship for Jib to help her continue her schooling, and is currently working on finding a suitable placement for her brother and sister. In addition, a COSA case worker visits the children as regularly as possible to help them.
