TNAG-0587-FCO40-720-Aid-from-UK-for-Vietnamese-refugees-in-Hong-Kong-1976 — Page 155

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PROJECT VIETNAM ORPHANS

WORK IN THAILAND.

Copy of letter to Miss Rice-Jones dated 19 August from Rev. P. Ashe

Thank you for your letter of August 5 asking how our work amongst refugees includes Thai nationals. The PVO Team working in the refugee camp at Aranya Prathet found it almost impossible to confine their help to the refugees without causing ill-feeling amongst the Thais. They therefore wrote back and asked whether it would be possible to include some of the Thais. The Committee first felt that to do so would open the way to a limitless ocean of need amongst the Thais whose standard of living is very low, but they agreed to the inclusion of Thais as long as there were clear limitations.

1. The PVO nurse found it difficult to care for the children of refugees, especially when they were taken to the hospital, and ignore Thai children with similar needs. During the last few weeks, International Rescue have sent up a Philipino doctor and an American nurse who both work in the camp, and also help the two Thai doctors at the hospital. Those doctors had to care for sick in the town of Aranya Prathet, and a radius of 50 kms, and also all the sick in the refugee camp numbering 3,800.

It is now possible for the PVO nurse to help the doctor which has widened the scope of her work.

2. The distribution of milk and clothes to the children in the camp is done with a number of Thai workers looking on. The PVO Team felt it right to include the families of Thai guards, whose income is very low. In this way there was a clear limit to those Thais who were being helped, and it greatly improved relations between the Team and the Thai workers.

3. The PVO Team Leader who is a qualified Agriculturalist, is hoping to encourage the refugees to grow vegetables when they move to the new camp and there is more room. If one or two Khmer refugee families were allowed to settle in a Thai village, this could be extended to include the villagers.

4. Home Industries. A number of refugees have skills that can be used in the camps, such as basket making, the weaving of hammocks and bags, carving and embroidery. Given tools and materials there are probably other crafts that could develop. Such families settling in a village could become self-supporting and once an outlet had been found for the goods, then the Thai villagers could be included.

area.

PVO would like to see some Khmer refugee families settle in a Thai

Medical work could be started in the form of a dispensary or mobile dispensary which could cover the whole village. PVO might take on one particular aspect of the work, i.e. children.

This could be applied to agriculture and home industries. PVO has not the experience nor the facilities to initiate such a scheme except on a very small scale, but would be glad to co-operate. It might be possible to enlist the help of Christian Aid or Tear Fund.