Three local experts in the fields of education, human rights and journalism took part in an August 28 webinar addressing human rights for vulnerable children for the development of Thailand. The event was held by an international peace organization, Heavenly Culture World Peace Restoration of Light (HWPL), to discuss the need to improve awareness and guarantee human rights for fragile children in need of emergency relief.
According to UNESCO, one year into the Covid-19 pandemic, close to half the world’s students are still affected by partial or full school closures, and over 100 million additional children will fall below the minimum proficiency level in reading. In Thailand, schools have been closed for more than four months due to the According to a Bangkok Post report, without the government’s support, the dropout rate will increase by 10 to 15 percent. In addition, EEF (Equitable Education Fund) said only 5 percent of poor Thai students receive higher education because of educational inequality, with about 670,000 children not attending school due to the government’s lack of support for school infrastructure, teachers, and curricula.
Human rights lawyer Natalie Bergman proposed active government support as a way to deal with the reality facing Thai children. “More teenagers have dropped out of school since the pandemic and are going to work to support their families. The government should support computers, smartphones, and the internet free of charge for students’ online studies and guarantee the legal rights and vaccination of immigrant workers’ children.”
She added, “The Thai government should not use violence against children in an anti-government protest.”
Kowit Phothisan, an editor of Way Magazine, voiced the reality of child labor around the world. “There are 160 million children who are not in school, but work, with 79 million children aged 5 to 17 working in environments that are harmful to children. This is the reality of children around the world, and to address this, we urge the government to invest in social protection programs for vulnerable children and families first.”
Bow Nuttaa Mahattna, a human rights advocate, added the role of NGO. “NGOs can raise awareness about the reality that children’s human rights are violated and seek solutions through their communication channel.”
Heavenly Culture World Peace Restoration of Light (HWPL) is calling for social and nationwide efforts to protect children’s human rights and the right to education during the coronavirus outbreak. HWPL is working to find practical solutions to raise human rights awareness, including the invention of a legal framework for peace, religious harmony, human rights webinars, peace education for students and citizens, and voluntary work. The 7th Anniversary of the September 18th HWPL World Peace Summit for peace and the cessation of war is scheduled for this month.
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