The recent closure of migrant learning centres in the South of Thailand has sparked concerns that around 400,000 children from migrant families could lose access to education and face the risk of exploitation while their parents are busy working.
“We can’t ignore these children,” said Paramee Waichongcharoen, an opposition People’s Party MP and member of the House committee on education.
Last month, nearly 400 children were affected when a learning centre run by the Good Shepherd Home Foundation in Phuket was closed suddenly. Local authorities explained that the shutdown was necessary because the centre was operating without a licence.
Six months earlier, some 2,000 children were deprived of classes when the Myinttar Yeink Bang Kung Learning Centre in the southern province of Surat Thani was shut down in September.
Nearly 400,000 children from neighbouring countries live in Thailand, according to estimates based on the 4 million migrant workers here.
These children are typically schooled at learning centres across Thailand. However, most of these centres operate in a legal grey area due to difficulties in obtaining a licence under the National Education Act’s Article 12.
Under the Article, a person, family, community organisation or religious institute is allowed to provide basic education if they can comply with relevant ministerial regulations. Article 12 does not apply to government agencies, the private sector or local administrative bodies.
“To obtain a learning centre licence, the entity or individual submitting the request should be a Thai national, as must the teachers,” said Adisorn Kerdmongkol, coordinator of the Migrant Working Group.
Under Thai law, every child residing in the country is entitled to an education. This theoretically means that children affected by the closed centres have the right to enrol in state-run schools. However, in practice, few migrant children can navigate the complicated enrolment process.
Unnecessary red tape
Siraporn Kaewsombat, director of the Help Without Frontiers Foundation Thailand, said registering migrant learning centres under Article 12 is difficult because the regulations were written to suit Thai citizens, not migrants.
“Similarly, it is difficult for migrant children to enrol in Thai schools because of their lack of proper documentation,” she said. “Some schools want a birth certificate, ID cards, dependent’s cards and even certification from parents’ employers before enrolling a child.”
However, many migrant children were born in Myanmar and brought to Thailand by their parents, which makes it hard to obtain any kind of official documentation for them, Siraporn said.
“So, in reality, the Thai government cannot honour its policy of ensuring that every child has equal access to quality education.”
Government response
Education Ministry spokesman Siripong Angkasakulkiat said the ministry is not ignoring the problems faced by migrant children and is determined to ensure they have access to education in line with Thailand’s commitment to the United Nations Convention on Child Rights.
He added that the Education Council is working on improving ministerial regulations to ensure education gaps are filled and migrant children have better access to quality education.
“We are not leaving anyone behind,” he said.
However, MP Paramee said she had seen no sign of changes to improve education access for migrant kids.
Migrant learning centres
Based in Tak province on the Myanmar border, Help Without Frontiers Foundation Thailand runs 10 learning centres for over 2,000 migrant children.
“We even collaborate with the Department of Learning Encouragement [previously the Office of Non-Formal and Informal Education],” Siraporn said.
She explained that teachers at the foundation’s learning centres oversee classes four days a week, while the department puts its own teachers in charge one day a week.
“These centres began operating thanks to the efforts of local people who wanted to ensure their children got an education,” Siraporn said.
Previously, migrant learning centres could only be found in border provinces like Tak, Chiang Rai, Mae Hong Son and Kanchanaburi, she said.
“Now, however, they have spread to big cities where migrants are also working.”
Siraporn admitted that most of the centres operate without a licence, though local authorities tend to turn a blind eye unless a complaint is filed.
The Surat Thani centre came under the spotlight when a video of migrant children singing the Myanmar national anthem went viral on social media. Complaints reached the ears of authorities, who ordered its shutdown.
Seeking solutions
Paramee voiced concern that migrant learning centres could trigger Thai nationalist sentiment, with other government agencies, such as the Interior and Defence ministries, hindering the Education Ministry’s efforts to simplify the licensing process.
“Though the issue is sensitive, the government needs to strike a balance between human rights and national security,” she said.
The MP said that the public should also understand that migrant learning centres like Myinttar Yeink Bang Kung do not use Thai resources or grant seats reserved for Thai children to migrants.
“We should be allowing these centres to register with the Department of Learning Encouragement and have local communities manage them on their own or in partnership with the department,” she said. “Migrant workers can then pay for their children’s schooling.”
Alternatively, the government could amend existing regulations to make it easier for migrant children to enrol in state schools, she said.
Paramee pointed out that every child has a fundamental right to education in Thailand regardless of their legal status, hence, every migrant child should be educated.
What lies ahead
Paramee said it was time the government realised that educating migrant children would contribute to the country’s economic, social and security development in the long run.
“With a good education, they will become skilled workers who can help drive the country’s development,” she said, also pointing to Thailand’s plummeting birth rate and fast-ageing society.
In an article by the Foundation for Human Rights and Development, 17-year-old migrant Wiri Ya Tun shared that his family had been forced to relocate to Thailand due to the ongoing civil war in Myanmar.
He had completed his primary schooling in Myanmar and is now a student at a migrant learning centre in Samut Sakhon.
“I’m so happy to be living in Thailand and want to pay something back,” he said, adding that his dream is to be a doctor.
In the same article, Aye Mar Cho, a Myanmar worker, said that most migrant parents currently had no choice but to leave their children alone at home while they work, leaving them prey to various threats.
“They [the children] may be exploited or even fall victim to human trafficking,” he said.
