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Tag: Thailand

When Human Lives are Sold Online

Written by: Ness Ma (Communications Officer) ‘I used to live with my grandparents, my father and my three younger sisters.’ At an interview with CEDAR, Banya (pseudonym) sat on a wooden chair. With a microphone in his hand, he told us about his family members with shyness and purity in his eyes. He did not look any different to other children of his age. However, this ordinary child recounted his extraordinary experience a few moments later. ‘A year after I came to Chiang Mai, I was betrayed by a friend and fell into the hands of human traffickers. I was locked in a room, forced to prostitute, and beaten.’ Every year, children in different corners of the world

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‘Share’ 245 – When Human Lives are Sold Online

Editor’s Note: Human trafficking is a deep-rooted crime around the world. It involves pecuniary advantage and exploitation of other people’s lives. It is not easy to rescue the victims of human trafficking, and the road to recovery for the survivors is even more difficult. In this issue of SHARE, we will explain the anti-human trafficking efforts of CEDAR’s partners in different parts of the world. The section ‘Focus’ introduces CEDAR’s new anti-trafficking partner in Thailand. The ‘Learn a Little More’ section talks about the methods used by our partners in India in their fight against human trafficking. In ‘Join Hands Join Hearts’, several child survivors of human trafficking expressed their aspirations using pictures and words. The ‘Back to

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Advocacy for Thailand Karen Minority Rights

Project Name Advocacy for Thailand Karen Minority Rights Project Location Thailand Project Natures Church and Community Mobilisation Creation Care Project Objectives Protect the rights of local people and communities by developing and strengthening the Karen Network for Human Rights (KNHR). Beneficiaries 36 leaders from the Thailand Karen Baptist Convention (TKBC) 900 KNHR members 11,123 community leaders No. of Beneficiaries 12,059 Key Activities Environmental awareness training: field visits and training related to environmental protection. Forums: organise small group discussions on Karen community rights. Leadership training on building peace and the role of churches. Collecting data on land management and usage. Project Period July 2023 to Jun 2026 Expenses Approx. HK$622,520 Donate Now PARTNER INFORMATION Partner Name Karen Development and

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Cyber Trafficking and Forced Crime Victims Assistance Project in the Mekong Region

Project Name Cyber Trafficking and Forced Crime Victims Assistance Project in the Mekong Region Project Location Thailand Project Natures Anti-human Trafficking Children and Youth Development Project Objectives Combat cyber trafficking by rescuing at least 100 human trafficking cases with law enforcement in Thailand and the Mekong Region. Provide holistic care to survivors in education, shelter, counselling, and family support. Advocate forced criminality as a kind of human trafficking and to promote legal recognition, victim-centred policies, and victim protection. Beneficiaries Victims of human trafficking, frontline government authorities, community members No. of Beneficiaries Approx. 920 Key Activities Combat cyber trafficking and victim assistance: Rescue at least 100 victims who were trafficked through various digital platforms. Provide free accommodation for the

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Witness the Struggles in Mountain Areas

Written by Ness Ma (Communications Officer) Many tribes live at the country’s border in Northern Thailand, mostly farmers. Because of poverty, many of them have never received a good education or learned any effective farming method. They live in mountain basins and receive no services or support from the government. In addition to the worsening extreme weather events because of climate change, river floods in rainy seasons cause soil erosion, and droughts lead to a lack of water sources. Both circumstances affect the harvest. To continue farming, farmers have to purchase more chemical fertilisers, increasing their financial burden and damaging the lands. CEDAR Fund has been supporting Upland Holistic Development Foundation (previously Upland Holistic Development Project) since 2013

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My Plastic Reduction Action – after the CEDAR’s Exposure Trip 2018

Banner Image: Sarah Hong (far right) Written by: Sarah Hong (Participant of CEDAR’s Exposure Trip 2018) The world God first-created was in a stable and balanced peaceful condition, which illustrated Shalom. He gave us the responsibility to manage the land. Yet, we failed our task, destroyed the land and its eco-system and caused a lot of problems, such as climate change. I joined the CEDAR’s exposure trip to Thai-Burmese border and rural northern Thailand in December last year. During the trip, my companions and I visited UHDP [1], CEDAR’s partner. UHDP understood God’s heart for reconciling relationships between human and other aspects, including the nature. Therefore, they adopted an agricultural principle that can sustain development, protect the nature and reconcile

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‘Hill Tribes’ Blood is in My Veins.’ – An Advocate Walking Alongside Marginalised Hill Tribes

Written by: Lai Ka Chun In mid-2018, a junior football team and their assistant coach were rescued after 18 days in Tham Luang Nang Non cave in Chiang Rai Province, Thailand. Their 25-year-old coach’s care in the cave was indispensable. This incident made the coach a hero in Thais’ hearts. However, this coach was originally stateless, as well as the other 3 boys, who had no Thai citizenships. According to UNHCR, there are about 480,000 stateless people in Thailand, and most of them were living in remote mountainous area near the border. As they belonged to no country, they could not enjoy the rights of education, healthcare, employment, and social security as other citizens. Even though they lived

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2018 CEDAR’s Exposure Trip Sharing: All Things Bright and Beautiful

Written by: Janice Cheng (Participant of CEDAR’s 2018 Exposure Trip to Thai-Burmese border and northern Thailand, church pastor) All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small. All things wise and wonderful, The Lord God made them all. These are lyrics from a classic children hymn called All things bright and beautiful. I looked it up on the internet, you will discover the songwriter’s intention was to explain the first sentence of the Apostles’ Creed, “I believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth.” Participants of this trip to Thai-Myanmar border came from all walks of life, including rookies in the workplace, retired people, pastors, Christian organisation’s staff, and seminary teacher. This combination enriched our

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When Poverty Becomes a Sin

Banner image: The author (far right) and other trippers visited ethnic minorities in northern Thailand Written by: Janice Cheng (participant of CEDAR’s exposure trip in 2018; church pastor) In December last year, I went to the Thai-Myanmar border with CEDAR to learn about their poverty alleviation projects in the area. The 8-day trip enabled me to understand more about the region. We visited some villages with CEDAR’s local partners and spoke to various individuals during our time there. The residents are mostly ethnic minority groups from the mountainous areas, and they all have their own predicaments to overcome. There are abandoned single mothers and minority groups who have been relocated to the border area in northern Thailand due

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The Letter from CEDAR | September 2018

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Hope you had a blessed summer. My wife and I were invited to share on the handling of conflict in parenting at a fellowship group in our church few days ago. We shared about the struggle parents are facing. In Hong Kong, we do all we can to prepare our children for a successful life. This often means completion of higher education, successful career, better living environment, etc. However, less attention is paid to prepare the little ones for transforming the world. In June and July, other than the World Cup, the world’s attention was captured by the Tham Luang cave rescue. We were thankful that all 12 boys and their coach

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