During the season of giving, former hotelier and Pattaya resident, Laurent Betourne together with his wife Cristina and children Arno, Nicola and Charlotte paid a visit to the Anti Human Trafficking and Child Abuse Center (ATCC) where they distributed delicious donuts to the children to celebrate Christmas.
They were met by Nocha Palisorn the center‘s director and Rolf Ruegg, a swiss volunteer who has put the home and the children under his personal care.
Noja said, “The centre cares for about 40 children and three staff. Our minimum costs to look after the children and the home are 150,000 baht per month. During the COVID-19 pandemic, support has dwindled and we are struggling to look after our children.
“Our center provides a safe environment, opportunities to attend school, and assistance from counsellors and social workers. Charity organizations provide ongoing scholarships for children taking refuge at the center.
“Besides that, the ATCC program has been fundamental in the tracking and arrest of dozens of child traffickers and paedophiles.”
Khru Ja said that most people charged in Thailand with child sexual abuse are foreign sex tourists who use agents active in human trafficking. Many appear outwardly to have good jobs and are wealthy, which helps to conceal their paedophilia.
He said many of the young victims are orphans or products of broken homes or were sold into the trade by poor families.
The shelter cares for about 30 children, usually victims of physical or mental abuse or those found rescued from the streets. But amid Thailand’s new Covid-19 outbreak and the continuing economic downturn, the number of children under the ATTC’s care has swelled to 60.
Palisorn urged people to bring rice, dried food, fresh vegetables and fruit, consumer products, shoes and clothing – new or second-hand – to the center kitty-corner from Saen Suk Town Village in the Mabyailia area of Nongprue subdistrict.
Or people can donate cash to the ATCC’s account at Kasikorn Bank, account number 006-1-23489-6.
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