Journalists from the Democratic Voice of Burma have made a lovely wee video clip of the exhibition opening. It's in Burmese so is great for our Burmese readers. Scottish readers can guess what it says. People to spot are Dar Dar Kyaw, Tominai, Si Si Win, Phyu Phyu Win and little Bobo from Hle Bee, Murray Forgie, Kyaw Win, Louise Laing and there are others.... If you can play an MP4, enjoy......
Sunday, 30 August 2009
Sunday, 23 August 2009
OUR BURMA BOOK opens in Chiang Mai
OUR BURMA BOOK exhibition opened in Chiang Mai on Saturday 22 August 2009. The exhibition is in Lur Cafe, Soi 9, Nimanhemin, Chiang Mai.
Louise Laing spoke at the opening on behalf of the Scottish schools
and then Burmese and Shan children took part in an etching workshop
as you can see here.
More photos at www.ilovemaesot.blogspot.com
Our artist friends who are putting on the exhibition
support the children through the etching process.
We are very grateful to them for their hard work and creative input to this project.
Saturday, 22 August 2009
www.ilovemaesot.blogspot.com
Sheila Laing's daughter, Louise, has gone to Hle Bee School in Mae Sot for a few months to teach English and Emotional Literacy and to cuddle Burmese babies! You can read about her journey on
http://www.ilovemaesot.blogspot.com/
Today Louise spoke at the opening of OUR BURMA BOOK exhibition in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Shan school children were taught how to etch by an artist at the opening and the Democratic Voice of Burma were videoing the whole event. More to come on this.
Isn't it amazing how this wee Forthview link that started way back in 2005 just keeps growing and growing....
http://www.ilovemaesot.blogspot.com/
Today Louise spoke at the opening of OUR BURMA BOOK exhibition in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Shan school children were taught how to etch by an artist at the opening and the Democratic Voice of Burma were videoing the whole event. More to come on this.
Isn't it amazing how this wee Forthview link that started way back in 2005 just keeps growing and growing....
Sunday, 2 August 2009
Uniform target for March 2010
Hle Bee School now has 14 students in Grade 6. In March next year, these 14 children will leave Hle Bee School. We hope that they will all attend a Burmese high school/learning centre in Mae Sot starting in June 2010. The education in the learning centres is free but it costs around £20 to kit a child out with a full set of uniform/shoes/bag etc.
We have said to Thazin that we will pay for each child to be kitted out for high school in the hope that it will help those families who are willing to allow their child to attend high school. So the target we need to raise by March 2010 is £280. Shouldn't be hard.....
Ideas welcome....
We have said to Thazin that we will pay for each child to be kitted out for high school in the hope that it will help those families who are willing to allow their child to attend high school. So the target we need to raise by March 2010 is £280. Shouldn't be hard.....
Ideas welcome....
Wednesday, 29 July 2009
Safely home and news re Migrant Learning Centres
Just home - well actually just finished cleaning up house after arriving home! Great flights. Dreadful 6 hr wait in Amsterdam when we were so so tired but that's not surprising considering the total journey took 27 hours. Thanks for all your good wishes.
Our good friend, Philip Campbell, who has been a VSO worker in Mae Sot and hopes to return there in 2010, has emailed to tell us that he was involved in the writing of the Thai legislation on Migrant Learning Centres and that he sees the legislation as being positive.
We will phone him once we have slept and keep you all posted on this site.
Night night.............. Sheila
Our good friend, Philip Campbell, who has been a VSO worker in Mae Sot and hopes to return there in 2010, has emailed to tell us that he was involved in the writing of the Thai legislation on Migrant Learning Centres and that he sees the legislation as being positive.
We will phone him once we have slept and keep you all posted on this site.
Night night.............. Sheila
Tuesday, 28 July 2009
Bad news for Burmese Migrant Learning Centres
(see previous post before you read this one....)
As we understand this, it seems to spell the end for most of Mae Sot’s 50 migrant learning centres and the end of education for most of the 10,000 children learning in these migrant learning centres. Only the wealthy and well connected will survive. What will become of the rest?
The Thai Government issued a policy in 2005, ‘Education for All’ which gives all children regardless of status a right to education (in a Thai school). However in practice it is too difficult for Burmese children to attend Thai schools because of costs of uniform, extra classes, language and also because of the prejudice and discrimination that exists towards the Burmese in Thailand.
Will most migrant centres have to revert to being covert, hidden and underground?
Last week the Thai Ministry of Education held a meeting with the Burmese Learning Centres/schools in Mae Sot to inform them of a new legal regulation that is about to proceed through Thai parliamentary processes and is expected to become law by the end of 2009.
The regulation is called
Regulation of the Office of the Prime Minister
On Education Provision for Individuals with no Civil Registration
Or Thai Nationality
By Non-Governmental Organisations in Migrant Learning Centres
We have an unofficial translation of this document. Here is a summary of its content. If you want to see the main document, email sheila@lovehart.demon.co.uk
1. A National Committee comprising the Prime Minister’s Secretary and senior members of the depts of Education, Police, Royal Thai Army, Immigration Bureau, Special Branch, National Security Council, Dept of Employment, Bureau of the Budget etc will assume responsibility for the registration, standards, content of education and direction of the migrant learning centres in Thailand.
2. Local Area Committees will be established throughout Thailand to carry out the policies of the National Committee to ‘control the establishment, dissolution, merger and termination of migrant learning centres’
3. Migrant learning centres will only be allowed to exist if:
- they are administered by a Thai person with a university degree with enough assets/funding to provide for the migrant learning centre
- 20% of instructors have a university degree
- they teach Thai as main communication, Thai History, Thai culture and customs and the democratic government under the Thai constitutional monarchy.
4. Several clauses state how to dissolve a migrant learning centre and a wide range of reasons for doing this exist.
What does this mean for Burmese children in Thailand?
The regulation is called
Regulation of the Office of the Prime Minister
On Education Provision for Individuals with no Civil Registration
Or Thai Nationality
By Non-Governmental Organisations in Migrant Learning Centres
We have an unofficial translation of this document. Here is a summary of its content. If you want to see the main document, email sheila@lovehart.demon.co.uk
1. A National Committee comprising the Prime Minister’s Secretary and senior members of the depts of Education, Police, Royal Thai Army, Immigration Bureau, Special Branch, National Security Council, Dept of Employment, Bureau of the Budget etc will assume responsibility for the registration, standards, content of education and direction of the migrant learning centres in Thailand.
2. Local Area Committees will be established throughout Thailand to carry out the policies of the National Committee to ‘control the establishment, dissolution, merger and termination of migrant learning centres’
3. Migrant learning centres will only be allowed to exist if:
- they are administered by a Thai person with a university degree with enough assets/funding to provide for the migrant learning centre
- 20% of instructors have a university degree
- they teach Thai as main communication, Thai History, Thai culture and customs and the democratic government under the Thai constitutional monarchy.
4. Several clauses state how to dissolve a migrant learning centre and a wide range of reasons for doing this exist.
What does this mean for Burmese children in Thailand?
As we understand this, it seems to spell the end for most of Mae Sot’s 50 migrant learning centres and the end of education for most of the 10,000 children learning in these migrant learning centres. Only the wealthy and well connected will survive. What will become of the rest?
The Thai Government issued a policy in 2005, ‘Education for All’ which gives all children regardless of status a right to education (in a Thai school). However in practice it is too difficult for Burmese children to attend Thai schools because of costs of uniform, extra classes, language and also because of the prejudice and discrimination that exists towards the Burmese in Thailand.
Will most migrant centres have to revert to being covert, hidden and underground?
When is a school not a school? When it's a MIGRANT LEARNING CENTRE...
I need to blog this to explain the next blog post!
In Thailand, migrant learning centres are not allowed to call them schools by the Thai government because they do not meet the criteria to register as Thai schools. To do this, they would need to meet Thai standards of building and education, which are way out their reach.
So although we call Hle Bee and Say Ta Nar schools, they are not schools, they are MIGRANT LEARNING CENTRES.
In Thailand, migrant learning centres are not allowed to call them schools by the Thai government because they do not meet the criteria to register as Thai schools. To do this, they would need to meet Thai standards of building and education, which are way out their reach.
So although we call Hle Bee and Say Ta Nar schools, they are not schools, they are MIGRANT LEARNING CENTRES.
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