Dear Hillary,
I have divorced my wife. We have been living in Pattaya for more than ten years. Before the divorce when my wife had a problem with me she would she would take our son out of school and take him to her village (800 kilometers from Pattaya) with complete disregard for our son’s education. I have just paid B.50,000 (1st semester) plus clothes and school books. Once again she has taken him out of his English-Thai school and taken him to the village on a permanent basis. He has been going to the same school from the age of five. He wants to stay in school but reluctantly goes with his mother. Before boarding the bus to Ubon he told me he wants to stay in school in Pattaya. The boy loves his mother and if the mother loves the boy she should consider what is good for the boy. She is doing this to hurt me. In Europe or the USA she could not make a move like this and put the boy 800 hundred kilometers from his father. What can I do?
Depressed Henri
Dear Depressed Henri,
You have every reason to be depressed, but the situation does not mean that you have lost your son, or that he has lost his education. This is a problem for a Thai lawyer, one who understands the predicament. Don’t imagine that because you are a foreigner that you cannot have shared custody, or even total custody. The courts will look at what is best for your son. Best of luck.
