The YWCA Responds to Thailand’s Flood Crisis
Thailand is facing a severe and protracted flood covering the northern and central regions of Thailand. 28 provinces are affected, with 4 million acres of land currently underwater. So far the floods have claimed the lives of 356 people and an estimated 800,000 homes have been destroyed. 640,547 people are temporarily out of work and 820,000 have been treated for water-borne diseases and stress thus far.
The YWCA of Thailand in collaboration with the YMCA, the Thai Christian Women’s Group and COERR have provided emergency survival bags to flood victims and migrant workers affected by the floods. The YWCA of Thailand has also been offering information sessions on household water treatment and solid waste management in flood communities, and is providing recreation programmes. Food is being delivered to the people in shelters and individual houses. The YWCA of Thailand has recruited volunteers that have a range of activities, including the production of Effective Micro-Organism balls to help disinfect contaminated flood water, prepare food boxes, packing survival bags, etc.
In many economic and industrial zones, both Thai and migrant workers and their families have not received adequate and immediate support in order to meet their basic survival needs. The government has tried to help protect the rights of affected migrants. However, with such large-scale floods, many migrants have neither access to government support, nor fair legal protection, especially in terms of employment. Some employers refuse to pay them their wages and their entitled compensation. A number of migrants have left the flooded areas for safety outside their legally designated areas and they are thus made vulnerable to further exploitation. The choice they face is to return to their countries of origin or to join the irregular labour force.
The YWCA of Thailand, in collaboration with the migrant working group and its network, are asking the Thai government and the international community to initiate urgent and long-term rehabilitation strategies to facilitate the access of migrant workers to disaster management support. They are asking for:
- The government to implement policies which ensure that migrants have access to support without discrimination due to nationality, race and legal status. The government should be urged to develop consistent and realistic policies, including implementation guidelines to support migrants’ basic needs and labour compensation rights.
- Encourage and support the government in launching a short-term and long-term migrant relief plan with the collaboration of the government, NGOs, employers, labour organisations and migrant workers to ensure that migrants can widely access support in the form of information sharing, humanitarian response by local organisations and access to shelters for migrant workers.
- Encourage the government to develop a transparent system for monitoring and supporting the human rights of all flood–affected people, including migrant workers. The system should take into account the safety of migrants during the migratory process and should not deport these migrants back to their countries of origin without consideration of their safety. The government should be encouraged to transform migrant policies into a system that extends protection to migrant workers under Thai law.
- Encourage the UN and international relief agencies to collaborate with migrants’ country of origin to initiate a relief plan for the affected migrants deciding to return to their homeland during the flooding.
The YWCA of Thailand has expressed its thanks to all of its sisters and brothers from YWCAs across the world, including individuals and organisations that have offered their support in this difficult time.
