As the twig is bent
Bangkok Post 07.10.03
The Duang Prateep Foundation is celebrating 25 years of helping the poor and looking to the future in its efforts to improve the quality of life for slum dwellers

Stories by ALONGKORN PARIVUDHIPHONGS

`Once a pauper, always a pauper'' is certainly not Prateep Ungsongtham's motto. Born in the Klong Toey slum in 1952, as a teenager, she worked on the docks to pay her way through teacher?training college. When slum dwellers were threatened with eviction, Prateep put their case to the landowner, the government and the news media. It was a formidable task for a slum girl not yet 20, but she rose to it triumphantly.

This was to be the first, unexpected step in a career of public service on behalf of the urban poor. It was to bring Prateep the Magsaysay accolade in 1978 and the Rockefeller award in 1980. With the prize money from both notable organisations, she established the Duang Prateep Foundation (DPF), and the Foundation for Slum Child Care, respectively.

``I learned that if you don't help yourself, no one will lend you a hand. That's why I try to educate slum?dwellers to stand up for themselves,'' said Prateep, who has been pursuing that mission for the last 25 years.

The Klong Toey slum, where the Duang Prateep Foundation is located, is Bangkok's largest slum community with some 80,000 residents at present. Bangkok's rapid rate of economic progress has brought with it a myriad of poverty driven problems, including health issues, malnutrition, orphanages and drug problems - and Klong Toey seems to have its fair share.

``These problems can't be solved by any single person or organisation. It demands strong networking and a sense of community,'' said Prateep, who involves parents and the elderly in the DPF's development programmes for children.

Her primary concern was giving deprived families belief in themselves and hope for the future. ``Hope for a better living means that we slum people are entitled to integrity and respect, like other human beings.''

Being poor does not mean being selfish. The DPF has been organising outreach projects in other areas. Of the 3,000 slums nationwide, about half are in Bangkok, covering approximately 20 percent of the capital's population. Other major urban centres, such as Pattaya and Chiang Mai, also have growing slum populations. The DPF has also extended its educational and social projects to help abused and drug addicted children nationwide.

``Many poor migrants from the countryside have to settle in those slum areas because the government has failed to distribute resources in an equitable manner, which has led to wider economic and social gaps between the haves and the have nots,'' she said. After 25 years, she is still walking the maze of narrow walkways in the slum communities. She said she realised that a holistic approach was key for success. ``All social problems are interrelated, one way or another. If we don't tackle the problems holistically, we will always have to chase after the symptoms, instead of getting at the roots.''

Now that the DPF has been recognised throughout Thailand as a representative of poor people, what else does she plan to do in the future? ``Poverty is still widespread and, with an ever widening income gap, many challenges lie ahead for us.'' Winning a seat in Thailand's first ever Senate election in 2000, Prateep has earned somewhat better cooperation from state sectors and policy makers. But there remains much struggle to overcome negative stereotypes of slum dwellers.

``Many well educated persons from the slums still suffer from social prejudice. Some can't get a job simply because their would be employers know they lived in Klong Toey,'' she said.

As a pioneer in the field of Thai NGOs, she hoped that the new generation of social activists would continue to be patient and versatile as yet more problems begin to surface. She said it was worth it to fight the good fight for underprivileged groups.

``I still have will power to work for better quality slum life. If we didn't start doing something to make things better, no one would continue our ongoing projects.''

The DPF welcomes volunteers with proficiency in English or Japanese to assist with overseas visitors on field trips to the DPF. Also, their New Life for Abused Children Project in Chumphon and Kanchanaburi needs vocational trainers and an artist to help train children.
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The sound of hope

It may take the average person a split second or so to say ``sawasdee'', but Ying (not her real name) required an entire year to learn how to utter this greeting. Ying is among the 20 hearing impaired children aged three to seven under a DPF project that trains these special children to speak before they become completely deaf.

``If these kids start to speak at an early age, they will have a better chance to communicate more naturally with others in society,'' said Aree Kaewkrakang, the project leader, who helped start the programme in 1986.

In general, most parents send hearing impaired kids to a special school to study sign language. But to only study sign language hampers their ability to speak, said Aree. For slum kids born with hearing problems, the chance to communicate in any way at all is far slimmer. ``Many slum dwellers blame it on karma. But the project shows that there is a way out for these kids,'' said Aree.

At the centre, the mute kids are trained in vocalisation, pronunciation and relation with sound and meaning by imitating the teachers' lips and the use of visual books. ``The graphics must look real so that they can understand the meaning. For example, when we teach them about eyes, we have to point to our own eyes, theirs, and pictures, to help them get the right meaning,'' said Pensri Pengkham, another trainer at the project.

Computer technology enables these children to learn how to pronounce vowels and other daily expressions. Pensri said game?like designs for speaking were a good motivation for the students. ``Individual kids have different language learning paces. The computer graphics are an add?in technique for learning. We still need well trained teachers to help with their vocal skills,'' said Pensri, who self taught herself based on her experience with impaired kids.

Another learning programme that enhances hearing development is music performance. They are currently learning the art of Angkhalung (an instrument made of rows of bamboo hung loosely together that are shaken to produce a variety of sounds).

``They will learn how to pay full attention to the teacher conductor, and to develop their concentration skills. They learn how the musical notes are created, which familiarises them with different sounds,'' Pensri added.

Seven of the children have already formed a musical percussion ensemble to perform traditional Thai music - they have been given the honour of performing the Royal Anthem at the upcoming 8th Asian Children's Cultural Festival at the Thailand Cultural Centre on October 18 at 1pm.

``They will have a chance to learn about other kids and cultures. And this will help them to learn more about the society they are living in,'' Pensri said.

With greater support from the public, the project would be able to expand its reach. The Act for the Disabled states that all hearing-impaired individuals are entitled to free hearing aids; however, the centre is still in need of more of these expensive kits.

``Some children are small and don't know how to take proper care of their hearing device. To fix a broken one is quite expensive, and waiting for a new one from the hospital is time consuming,'' said Pensri. Donations of hearing aids from hospitals and charitable organisations would be useful for poor kids. Toys and art kits for child development would also be welcomed, she said.

``With social involvement, these hearing?impaired kids could grow up healthily and naturally like other kids. They could carry on our hope for a better society,'' Aree said.
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Growing a future

How to create a self sustaining project for kids at the New Life for Abused Children Project? The Duang Prateep Foundation opted for planting palm trees.

``Palm trees can generate a stable income over their 15 year lifespans,'' said Prateep.

The palms can also produce fruit, which can be harvested from the forth year onward, for a period of about eight years. During that period of time, new seedlings can also be raised in preparation for planting.

The trees will also increase greenery in the area of the project and help create a pleasant environment for the youngsters at the project, she added.
In 1988, the New Life Project was established on 24 hectares of land in Chumphon Province, 600km south of Bangkok. The objective of the project was to rehabilitate children and teenagers with addiction problems or those with other social problems. There are 70 youngsters aged between 12 and 25 presently enrolled in the three?year programme.

``Many of these are victims of abuse but could not find anyone to care for them,'' she said, adding that children could continue their vocational training and work on the farm as a future career.

A decade later, its second phrase began on a 16 hectare site 200km west of Bangkok in Kanchanaburi province. The participants there have experienced horrible suffering in their young lives. She cited an example of a 10 year old girl who was forced to become a beggar. When she failed to collect 500 baht a day, she would be punished by having lit cigarette butts pressed onto her skin. The girl's nose was broken during one of the frequent beatings she was subjected to.

A 13 year old girl was beaten by her employer when he lost at gambling he took his anger out on the girl. She was assaulted so hard that her front teeth and gums were broken. A 15 year old girl had a hot iron pressed against her body, on her hands, feet, and the back of her neck every time her mother and father had a fight. Marks from this years long abuse remain.

``Although it's hard to erase the traces of the physical scars, we can help them to have hopes and dreams,'' she said.

The project is also a site for treating girls and young women that have fallen prey to drugs. Planting of 4,400 palm trees took place this past rainy season from May to July, 2003.

``Let's call this a planting of donation trees. We will nurture them so that they flourish and produce a rich harvest to help disadvantaged and abused children for the years to come,'' Prateep said.

Info for donations:
Name of organisation: Duang Prateep Foundation
Address: 34 Lock 6, Art Narong Road, Klong Toey, Bangkok 10110
Contact person: Suwannee Watnu, manager
Tel: 02-671-4045-8
Fax: 02-249-9500
Email: dpffound@ksc.th.com
Web site: www.dpf.or.th
Savings Account: Kasikorn Bank (formerly Thai Farmers Bank), Klong Toey branch
Account number: 0172063365

The above articles appeared in a Bangkok Post feature on the 7th of October. The articles are the copyright of the Bangkok Post and may not be reproduced or used in any form without the permission of the Bangkok Post.