Economic Interlude

Throughout my study at university in International Development Studies, I was often faced with the challenge to buy less. This based on the idea that resources are scarce and consumerism is one evil among many. However, thinking on my previous post, it seems that the more that is purchased, the more livelihoods are sustained. So then, what should I do? Buy more or buy less?

But perhaps that is not the right question to ask. Rather I should ask: What products should I invest in? and, at what price? Or, am I willing to have less, but pay more? It is not so much a matter of feeling guilty over ones first world spending power, but directing that power towards worthwhile products. Perhaps, I can still appreciate the beauty in life and purchase items that exist beyond my subsistence. I need to buy from the little guy, or the big guys that care about the little guys.

There is a website I was once directed to that aids in directing the worlds purchasing power towards ethical products. Its worth a check out!

http://www.ethicalocean.com/about-us

Faces of Chiang Mai: Part II

One day I went to visit *P'Wanda to get my nails done. I met her at my guesthouse where she had come to help her boyfriend find a room. Wanda is a Thai woman, 35 years old, incredibly friendly and sweet, amazing person, with a youthful heart. I liked her right aways. We chatted while she did my nails and I found out a bit about her life. She talked about when she was younger, she loved to drink and party, she misses those days, it was fun. But she said she had many broken hearts. One man from Hawaii, one from Australia, and in those days she saved so much money. Perhaps I am wrong to assume why, its not the politest question to ask. This situation however seems to be another face of the prostitution in Thailand, and in fact, it is not really prostitution at all or is it? Is it all a matter of perspective? Some women here would not see it as such, but rather they might see themselves as opportunists. They are seeking love, and a way to support themselves and their families. Foreigners might supply this need. Wanda explained that her foreign boyfriends never understood her need to take care of her family, they would want to provide just for her. It seems there is the fear from these men of being used. And perhaps the fear is warrented based on the circumstances. In these situations, love, fear, lust, money and cultures collide providing an adequate incubator for insecurity and a lack of trust from both sides.

Faces of Burma: Part I

Sally also explained a bit of her perspective on the Burmese situation. Every few weeks Sally and her husband take a trip to the Thai-Burmese border to check in on the program there. It is not possible for them to stay there full-time and they are restricted to a half-day crossover. It is also quite dangerous. She relays estimates of upwards of 80 percent of women in this border town are involved in prostitution. The difference between prositution here and in Chiang Mai is that in this town it is a forced employment-- based on the extreme poverty of the people. This area is very near to the golden triangle. Drug-lords will pay a family upwards of $3000 for their daughters. This amount is unimaginable to most and makes the choice to sell regretfully tempting, furthermore as families may be under the impression that they will get their daughters back after a certain period of time. Some families do receive their daughters back though Sally tells one story of a girl returning home so badly beaten and disfigured that she needed reconstructive surgery. The hospital bill made the families choice to sell their daughter an even more regretful one. It pained me so much to hear these stories and statistics. Burma is really in need.

The program there involves a safe house for burmese women formerly involved in prostitution. Sally describes the women staying there as fiery evangelists and advocates to their cause and changed lives. I hope to visit there and meet these women. Perhaps I will have more to relay.

I asked Sally what her vision is to help these women; what she thinks they might benefit from. She replied, "mass-marketing". She explained that World Vision had a program whereby they would create large orders of jewelry to be made by these women, 1000 of this kind, 1000 of that kind etc. This is what they would benefit from, but more frequently. She is waiting for the right person, or team of people to come in with a passion and vision and make it happen. It also seems to involve macro-economic issues, and opportunities with-held by the Burmese government.

Faces of Chiang Mai: Part 1

One day I sat down and to have a chat with *Ba Sally. Sally is a beautiful, kind-hearted Canadian lady who is working with her husband alongside some equally kindhearted and beautiful Thai and foreign staff to run a kids program for families who are less fortunate. Sally explained that they used to run a womens equipping program where they would teach women involved in prostitution how to bake and other skills, however they had to make the decision to shut it down. She explained that perhaps some reasons for this were based in a general characteristic of the Chiang Mai prositution sector. The womens program just wasn't producing any results because attendance was low. Perhaps only one or two women left prostitution through this program in 7 or so years of operating. Sally explains that for many here prostitution is more of a choice (I highlight more as I wonder if there were other options availabe that met the same finacial needs, if these women would still choose prostitution). Women just weren't desperate enough to leave.

Sally admitted she didn't see the womens equipping program in Chiang Mai as successful, but her eyes lit up when she described what sucesses she had seen, successes that involved a change in peoples hearts when they discover the love and fogiveness and acceptance of their creator. Or successes such as hearing that one of their children from the program (because of what she learned there) ran away from being given sexually to her mothers boyfriend and called the help-line. One day as Sally and I were standing in the hub-bub of kids playing around our feet one girl came up smiling and gave her a hug. Sally turned to me and said, "You know, when this girl first came here, you wouldn't see her smile." This is a success.

*names have been changed