The Trickle Down Effect of the Government

A banner at Baw Kaew village draws out the history of the community in cartoons

Just last week I was in Baw Kaew, a protest village in Northeastern Thailand. There, villagers are continuing their 30-year struggle against the Thai government for taking over their land to develop a eucalyptus tree plantation. The protest village is illegally set up in the midst of eucalyptus trees. Back in the 1970’s as part of the national development plan, the government believed they were aiding reforestation by planting eucalyptus as a cash crop, which expanded industry. In reality, the plantation took over local villagers’ farmland.

This past unit looked at the impact of government policies on land. In addition to visiting Baw Kaew, we had a home stay in a forest village community named Toong Lui Lai. Near the forest village, the government established area asthe National Forest Reserve and then later the Wildlife Sanctuary, which designated land for preservation by arbitrarily drawing borders that overlapped with local villagers land. Subsequently, villagers have been arrested and charged for trespassing while farming for what villagers believe is their land. To give voice to their struggles, both Toong Lui Lai and Baw Kaew communities have united with the Isaan Land Reform Network of Thailand to go protest in Bangkok and ultimately to help them attain legal community land titles.

Today, I find myself back in the city considering the greater implications of these villagers’ long-term struggle against the government’s policies and actions. Considering the issues from the villagers’ perspective, it is easy to vilify the government and its policies. The government policies have created challenges to attain adequate living conditions and retain their means of livelihood and subsistence. Development and globalization often times jeopardizes the human rights of people as well as the sustainability of communities. The community visits show thetrickling down affect of policy on the community members. The networks, NGOs and community organizers give voice and legitimacy to the people’s problems. . As I think about the bigger picture, I am questioning the roles and responsibilities of the government to its people in causing and curing these larger issues.

When I begin to understand the concerns of the communities I visit, the roles and responsibility of government is becoming clearer. A mentor here explained that when thinking about change, it is important to first understand the root of the problem and how it functions. I also think it is important to understand the system by which policies are shaped and formed, because in fact they do affect the people. Both understandings are needed to address inadequacies from the top-down policy level.

The eucalyptus trees in Baw Kaew village.

A Slum Is Not A Slum

(My host mom is on the far left. Meh Joy in the middle, the most fun bad ass women ever!)

Last week I went to Nong Wang slum located just 10 minutes away from my home base apartment here in Khon Kaen, Thailand.

A little interesting background: This slum formed over 30 years ago. It is located next to the train tracks of the State Railway. It is illegal to dwell within the first 20 meters of the train tracks so these residents of Nong Wang are trespassing on the land. Because they are illegal, access to water and electricity is double to triple the price. Many people work as scavengers or in construction.They have been fighting against the government for land rights and recently obtained an area of land to move to legally.

In Thai class, we learned the words for slum--(chum-chon-eh-ad). I also learned how to say trespassing, railroad, evict, income, scavenging to converse. (Unfortunately I don't know how to say room, fork or phone in Thai). Later in the afternoon my friend and I were talking casually with the neighbor to find out more about the slum. My friend used the word chum-chon-eh-ad and the neighbor responded saying "not chum-chon-eh-ad, just chum-chon." They said this repeatedly. Ah Ha! My friend explained that 'chum-chon' meant community. They were saying that Nong Wang was a community, not a slum!

This realization brought up so many questions and ideas.Why was I told that I was coming to stay in a slum? Who officially gives it the title, a slum? We, in the US don't have much to compare a slum to except maybe a 'ghetto.' And who calls it a ghetto anyway?

When I first arrived at my homestay, I was shocked at the set up of the house. It looked nice! They had a TV, refrigerator, a spacious kitchen area, stereo system and a raised bed (not on the floor) all of which seem like luxuries to me here.

Why was this a community and not a slum? In Nong Wang, everyone knew their neighbor. My host mom had been living there for over 30 years right next to the train tracks. There was a sense of camaraderie. One conclusions is that proximity of space creates community where people live close to one another. Another conclusion is because Nong Wang has organized with the slum reform network (an NGO) in order to obtain land rights. This organization of the people may give them more of a united community feel.

Finally, it brings up the question of what does poverty really look like. Every village or community I go to I find myself asking this same question. With the luxuries mentioned before, does that mean the people are really poor? They have their basic needs from what I can see of food, shelter, clothes and medicine. Just because the physical condition of a house looks dilapidated does not mean they are impoverished. I did not sense they were seeking to change their socioeconomic situation. But just because they have a TV, does not mean they are not poor either.

As a westerner, I knowingly enter these communities with preconceived notions and understandings. I must take into account my own cultural relativism. I think having the chance to see villages and slums and what may or may not be called "poverty" will change the way I talk about these people in the future.

(The water fountain where people came to fill up their barrels with water. The background is the side of my host family's house. )

Winds of Change

Please take a look. Def Jam poetry on passing a beggar on the street. He puts into words the guilt we feel every time we pass a beggar asking for change. We lie to the beggar and ourselves when we avoid eye contact, shake our head and walk past in neglect. Check it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arohd-PMtaU&feature=player_embedded

"I know to find inner peace I can't just give him a piece of change. But I gotta piece together his stories so that I can understand"

What the heck am I doing here??

My favorite village picture

Overall, I have been here almost 6 weeks but only last week did I finally start my first academic unit about food and agriculture. We have 5 units total. Every unit we have a trip to the village or community where we stay in home stays. The trip is 5-7 days long. Then we return to the city for reflection days on what we learned and further activities on where we are at. We then have 2-3 days off and then start a new unit all over again.

This past unit we stayed with farmers. They mostly farm organic now because they had health problems and experienced environmental problems from chemical use. We met with an herbal medicine doctor and NGO representative from the Alternative Agriculture Network.

Below are some pictures of my host family. I stayed in what we'd consider to be a shack (but for them is a house). There were chickens, dogs, ducks, cows running all over the place. They have a huge vegetable garden so I got to eat fresh delicious food!

(My dad, and mom and little sister named Fanta. They have an older son named Pepsi. Their puppy is named Soda! Thai names can't get any better. See the house in the background)

It was incredible to have the opportunity to stay with this family and see how they live. We can only begin to acknowledge our privilege when we understand how others live. Being there made me consider whether I was seeing/experiencing poverty. No, they do not live in the luxury I come from. Their shack was dilapidated on stilts. But when it comes down to it, this family had home grown food, shelter, clothes and the basic essentials to live (even a TV and refrigerator). And they are happy too... So was this rural poverty?? I'm not so sure anymore.

(Monk boys playing games at a carnival I went to. Couldn't help but sneak a picture. Yes, that's a toy gun in hand.)