Social Action for Women, 1-9-08, Thai-Burma Border Trip

By Carl

We interviewed students and faculty at the middle school funded by Social Action for Women (SAW). Our initial introductions to the students were led by Zao, a former student activist in the 8-8-88 uprisings who had spent 15 years in a Burmese prison. Here at the school he teaches English and biology to kids grade seven through nine. Quite a change.

Zao explained that the children in the school were either orphaned or abandoned, receiving a significant proportion of their students from the Mae Tao clinic's orphan program. He also explained that most orphaned or abandoned in Burma crossed the border because of the lack of real educational opportunities in Burma. (Other groups have discussed the state of the Burmese educational system before – it's either non-existent or a farce in most cases.) Here students learn a variety of subjects including mathematics, science, English, social science, history, geography, and Burmese language. Students study these areas with the hope of continuing their education and taking GED examinations. Opportunities for music, art, and computer skills (they have one computer, no Internet access) are also available to the students on the weekends.

We got a chance to interact with several of the students for a little less than an hour. We each received a hand-drawn card from each of the children with a message of hope. Many of us plan to send letters in response once we return to the States and have a chance to reflect on our experiences. Strikingly, many of the students speak semi-fluently and most were willing to talk to our group members about their studies, hobbies, and experiences in Mae Sot.

Out of the 8,000 migrant worker students in Mae Sot, only 267 attend the SAW school. The school receives most of its funding from the CCP and the BMWEC. Still, the school is functioning illicitly, though it goes ignored by the Thai authorities (like many of the other non-registered organizations we've met). Despite Thai non-interference, the school has to be wary because of their illegal status – they've even removed the kindergarten after neighboring households complained about the noise. Regardless, the programs continue and the school hopes to expand to include a 10th grade next year.