Single mothers often turn to Baan Unrak in desperation

The influx of refugees, economic poverty and acute medical problems have caused many problems in the Sangkhlaburi area. This has had a particularly detrimental effect on the family unit. Many mothers find themselves abandoned by their husbands or widowed. This situation is worsened for the migrant mothers from Burma who face the stigma of being a single mother along with ethnic discrimination, legal barriers and a general inability to integrate into Thai society. Since there is a severe lack of jobs in the community, single mothers with little or no job skills are rarely chosen for employment. Depression and lack of options often lead single mothers to abandon their children, much like they themselves have been abandoned by their husbands, or go as far as to sell their children into the sex or labor trades.

           

Offering opportunities to desperate mothers
In 1995, Baan Unrak decided to develop a project to help suppress the abandonment of children. In order to do this, our main focus is to offer opportunities to women so they no longer feel the pressure to desert their children. Firstly, we provide for the basic needs for the mothers and their children in the home by providing them a simple accommodation and good. However, in exchange, they must work for the home. Some find employment in our Weaving and Sewing Center, while others work in our kitchen or as care mothers in the home by providing care for both their children and other children living at the home.

Our primary goal is also to help empower the women to become self-sufficient and able to take care of families without a constant dependency on outside aid. We provide them with opportunities and tools to learn new skills, become active participants in the BU community, and to eventually lead self-supported lives with their families. We are proud to report that mothers who come to Baan Unrak with the intention of leaving their children behind often change their minds.