IOM has launched a package of educational materials designed to
raise awareness of migrant children's rights in Thai schools and
among youth workers.

The "Child Rights Package," which is part of a UNICEF-funded
project: Promoting the Livelihoods of Migrant Children and Their
Families in Tsunami-Affected Provinces, consists of a comic book, a
DVD animation, a card game, a children's edition of the UN
Convention on the Rights of the Child and a poster.

It aims to raise awareness of children's rights - focusing on
migrant children and their families - to reduce stigma and
discrimination towards them in Thai host communities.

While Thailand is a signatory of the Convention on the Rights of
the Child and the rights of migrant children are in theory
protected under the law, in practice they remain vulnerable,
according to IOM Thailand Chief of Mission, Monique
Filsnoel. 

"Migrant children who do not have Thai nationality, or who are
stateless and live in remote areas, are still often excluded from
the Thai educational system and at least  50% do not receive
the basic education to which they are entitled," she says.

According to the Thai Institute of Language and Culture for
Rural Development, the reasons include language barriers, ignorance
of Thailand's inclusive education policy and discrimination among
host populations. Other factors include the indirect costs of
sending a child to school, stigmatization of migrant families and
the fear of being arrested and deported.

Migrant children born in Thailand can also suffer as a result of
their unclear citizenship status, despite new legislation passed in
2008 to ensure that every child born in the country is issued with
either a Thai or a non-Thai birth certificate.

The Child Rights Package will raise awareness of the fact that
without such documentation, migrant children can become stateless,
entering a legal vacuum which leaves them potentially vulnerable to
abuse, exploitation and a cycle of poverty, according to project
manager Vipunjit Ketunuti.

IOM plans to distribute the Child Rights Package through
provincial government partners including Education Service Area
Offices, Social Development Offices and the Marine Police. It will
also work with NGO partners including the Foundation for Education
Development (FED), World Vision and Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF),
says Ketunuti.

For more information please contact:

Chris Lom

IOM Bangkok

Tel. +66.819275215

E-mail: "mailto:clom@iom.int">clom@iom.int