Living in hell on a paradise island
It’s a sad fact that on the paradise island of Phuket
there are still those live in hell. Among them are hundreds
of children on the streets of Patong, some living rough, others
neglected or abused (or both in turn) by their parents, many
making a living through stealing or prostitution.
Some even start to rather like the life – the money
may come fast and easy, they have no responsibilities, no
need (as they see it) to go to school. They can do what they
want, when they want.
It can’t last, of course, and deep down, many of these
children are in despair. Some use drugs to escape. Some use
aggression and violence as an outlet while others simply withdraw
into themselves.
An escape from the streets
This is where Happy Home helps, by providing a safe
environment where these children can escape from the stress
of the streets or from a horrible home.
Happy Home can house up to 30 street children between the
ages of 11 and 16 in segregated dormitory-style accommodation.
Children don’t have to stay there – some prefer
simply to drop by from time to time to relax and be children.
The home is accessible 24 hours a day.
Apart from the dormitories the home also has accommodation
for staff, a training and recreation space, an education area,
first aid/sick room, a dining area and segregated bathrooms.
The stated objectives of the home
• To ensure children are protected from abuse.
• To ensure the physical health of the children is provided
for.
• To ensure children have opportunities for healthy play
and recreation.
• To provide opportunities for children to learn and
be trained in dignifies occupations.
• To provide children with life skills such as personal
responsibility, their rights as children and individuals,
how to engage with society in such a way as to allow them
to be empowered.
• To assess the risks of family reunification and to
engage in monitored reconciliation in cases where this is
in the best interests of the child.
How the Project Started
Before Happy Home opened, World Vision, a charitable
Christian development organization, had been working with
street children for three years, providing education and assistance
at a “drop-in” centre in Patong. The aim of the
Happy Home was to boost this work by providing a permanent,
safe and nurturing environment around the clock to help children
to rebuild their lives and acquire skills to go on to a more
empowered future.
The project was funded by sponsorship from the Holiday Inn
Patong’s owners, LC Thailand Ltd, and its management
company, IHG Inter-Continental Hotels Group, along
with donations from many Holiday Inn guests after the 2004
Asian Tsunami.
A total of 8.5 million baht was invested in the buildings
and interior, and Happy Home is supported by 35,000 Euros
a year for five years from AIG Private Bank and OVB
Holding AG, Cologne. Happy Home had its “soft opening”
on July 21, 2006, and was officially opened by Her Royal
Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindorn the following
October.
At the soft opening, Holiday Inn General Manager Wolfgang
Meusburger explained, “As a successful hotel operating
in Patong and Phuket, we felt it was our responsibility to
give something back to the community. Happy Home is a project
we believe will make a real difference to the future of the
street children, helping them to escape from daily abuse and
misery, and giving them life skills and the foundation for
a better future.”
The Children
World Vision, which manages Happy Home, found three
classes of children at risk on the streets of Patong:
• About 50 children who were genuinely homeless;
• A much larger number without parents or family, who
lived with their employers (ice carriers, flower sellers,
prostitutes and the like) as virtual indentured laborers paying
off “debts” to their employers;
• Children living with their parents but working on the
streets by day.
• The first two groups were deemed to be most at risk
from abuse, trafficking and HIV or other sexually transmitted
diseases.
• The children typically have no ID cards (so officially
do not exist), have no contact with their families, and often
are unsure of where they are from or are unwilling to reveal
such information.
• Most have endured serious physical and psychological
abuse over a long period. Without immediate and intensive
help their future is very grim.
• Behind this misery, of course, lies poverty.
How You Can Help
To make a donation, you can deposit the funds direct into
the following account:
Ac No, 601-3-03155-9
Account Name: Wolfgang Meusburger, Wanpen Jariyantananon
and Asnee Kankaew
Account Purpose Patong Street Children Fund, Holiday
Inn Resort Phuket
Bank: Siam Commercial Bank, Patong Branch, 200 Year
Road ,83150 Patong , Phuket, Thailand
Swift Code: SICOTHBK
If you are in Patong, you can also make a contribution in
person at the Holiday Inn. Go to the front desk and ask for
a donation envelope. All donations go 100% to supporting Happy
Home.
For more information about Happy Home, please contact the
General Manager of the Holiday Inn, Wolfgang Meusburger, by
email to wm_hirp@phuket.ksc.co.th.
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