Pratchaya Kerdthong
Pattaya and Chonburi officials have enlisted 100 area
teachers to help them prevent students from becoming victims of human
trafficking.
At a May 12 workshop at Pattaya City Hall, Deputy Mayor
Wutisak Rermkitkarn, Kuiburi Police Station Superintendent Col. Chalit
Ketsrimet, Janjira Thaibandit, head of Chonburi’s Social Welfare Department
and Pattaya Social Development chief, Somchai Sirorat, gave city Education
Department chief, Jintana Maensurin, and teachers background on the
trafficking industry and advice to give kids to keep them safe.
Officials said Pattaya, with its lucrative tourist base,
is a popular destination for trafficked immigrants, with 346 illegal aliens
arrested in just two months last year.
However, Pattaya is also dangerous for young Thais, as
traffickers view it as fertile ground for recruiting new prostitutes and
child beggars. Chalit said children and teens are lured in by the promise of
money they see pass so frequently in Pattaya, not realizing they’re actually
asking the broker to enslave them.
The police chief also urged teachers to educate their
pupils not to support trafficking by, for example, giving money to beggars.
He said that while they might look pitiful, funding them only encourages
their handlers.
Chalit said that isn’t easy to do, but reminded teachers
that beggars with young children, for example, actually drug their little
ones to make them skinnier and sleepier, which helps them collect more
coins.
Officials pointed out that anyone can anonymously call authorities by
dialing 1300 if they spot a case of suspected human trafficking.
