Thai Youth issues in Thailand

Most of the following newspaper clippings came from Bangkok Post and The Nation. They are all about Thai Youth issues here in Thailand. You might also be interested to read "Confessions of a Teenage Drug Addict" which is a harrowing story of how easily a Gade A student became addicted to drugs.

'Troubled teens can't turn to teachers' - Experts yesterday blamed the distant relationships between teachers and students as a cause in the surge of aggressive behaviour among youths.
Bring them up RIGHT - The teenage students who went on separate shooting rampages last week may well have had their own particular reasons for doing so, but from a larger societal perspective, their violent actions were a reflection of the failure of the family unit, says family experts. (June 2003)
Fighting: the first solution - Young people are physically fighting their way through life and say it's not their fault (June 2003)
Spending for the wrong reasons - Teen spending habits are often the subject of major contention in families. Unfortunately, it’s often too late to solve this laying out of cash (or use of credit cards) when the children are nearing adulthood. (May 2003)
Police on holiday youth patrol - The number of youth gang offenders held in 10 police stations in western Bangkok has more than doubled during the two-month school holidays, police said yesterday. (May 2003)
Police on holiday youth patrol - In a bid to ensure that youths are on the right track, police patrol teams will inspect Internet cafes, game centres and karaoke booths across Bangkok and its adjacent provinces during the three-month school holidays. (March 2003)
Sex before marriage 'not wrong' - Young people believe that sex before marriage is acceptable and allows couples to get to know each other before they live together, according to a survey by Suan Dusit Poll. (January 2003)
Road safety to be taught in schools - The government wants to teach traffic regulations at school to reduce the road death toll, particularly among young people. (January 2003)
Youth keen on cash, not so hot on school - Many children are unhappy at having to go to school and feel that wealth is the surest way to happiness, according to a survey. (January 2003)
VOICE OF THE CHILDREN: 'Give us totally free education' - An "absolutely'' free education for 12 years, native English teachers and computers top a students' wish list, a seminar involving 300 children from around the country has revealed.
Boys have 'nothing to lose' by selling their bodies - The booming male flesh market here is sucking in more and more students and street boys, child and youth activists said. (November 2002)
Free-sex seminar decries teen habits - Loy Krathong night is a good night for sex, according to teenagers polled by Abac. A poll conducted among 1,330 high-school and vocational students in Bangkok on Oct 18-Nov 8 says 7.5% of respondents plan to have sex on Tuesday night, while 10.4% said they planned to stay in with their lovers. (November 2002)
Thai teens get serious - The youth market in Asia is even more diverse as that of the West, as one would expect given the range of ethnic groups, exposure to media, level of economic development, and educational opportunities and focus. (November 2002)
Save our youth from sin - There are some Thai adages that teach people how the environment can shape men, such as ``Befriend a thief and be brought to ill, befriend a guru and be brought to good''. (November 2002)
Alarm over computer game use - Turning their backs on just about everything else, many high-school students spend almost half the day glued to computer screens playing their beloved games, a recent survey has shown. (October 2002)
SURVEY: Youth well versed in Internet porn - Almost three-quarters of Thai youths have visited pornographic websites, and 45 per cent of them have become the sites' regulars, according to an Internet survey conducted by an international non-governmental organisation for children. (October 2002)
The daily horrors of modern parenting - Parents around Bangkok yesterday met to exchange ideas on how to improve a child's environment to limit the multitude of risks thrown up by the city. (September 2002)
Serious side to your average Thai teen - Thai teens are not only spending more time chatting on the phone, watching soap opera and game shows, craving brand-name goods and worshipping Britney Spears and Julia Roberts. (September 2002)
Mobile love - teenagers get intimate with their handsets - Teenagers' obsession for mobile phones may a lot worse than parents think, judging by the results of a survey that found kids treated their handsets with the same affection as "friends" and "lovers". (September 2002)
A tangled Web we weave - The Internet offers both opportunities and dangers to young users. Now, parents have an ally to guide their children online.
THE ESSENTIAL DEVICE: Life in the phone lane - Many teens today are utterly devoted to their mobiles, even to the extent that they regard them as an extra limb (May 2002)
Student gamblers will face crackdown - The Education Ministry and police will mount a joint campaign to combat football gambling among students during World Cup 2002. (May 2002)
Unhappy kids turn to sex, drugs - Sex and drugs are being used by youngsters as tools to escape from distress and troubles which have battered their lives, a child psychiatrist said yesterday. (May 2002)
More students joining the flesh trade - More secondary school and university students have joined the flesh trade during the long summer school holidays, a university lecturer has found in a survey.
World Cup Gambling - Any students wanting to get a bet on this year's World Cup soccer tournament will have to be careful as the Education Ministry is planning to set up an intensive surveillance net made up of parents and teachers to prevent gambling among young fans.
Sex education text 'too explicit' - Opposition intensified yesterday to a book distributed to schools that advises teenage students on how to have safe sex using what critics say is "dirty" and explicit language.
A future in peril - The government is focusing its efforts on economic recovery while ignoring a whole host of problems affecting young people. A risky strategy, say participants at a recent seminar on children's issues held to find out why no action is being taken. (January 2002)
Children's Day Feature - a quick peek at last year's developments as well as a few of the social problems that will need special attention from the grownups of the future. We also give our own assessment of what's in and what's not. (January 2002)
Youngsters want love in the family - Children want their parents to stop fighting and love each other more, according to the results of a survey marking today's Children's Day. (January 2002)
Mandatory urine tests for schools - Urine tests will be made mandatory for students in all schools, including universities, as the social order campaign moves into its next phase.
More children turn to selling drugs - Many school students used drugs and had to find money to afford the drugs they used. Children were also introduced to the business by adults who saw a loophole in the law because of the light punishment for children. (January 2002)
CHILDREN IQ tests reflect regional divide - A national survey of school children's intelligence shows a wide regional gap, with children in the North scoring an average of nearly nine points less than their Bangkok peers on intelligence quotient (IQ) tests. (January 2002)
Mandatory urine tests for schools - Urine tests will be made mandatory for students in all schools, including universities, as the social order campaign moves into its next phase. (January 2002)
Boy, 14, admits to gambling addiction - Gambling on football matches is being taken up by more and more people from all walks of life, often to their regret. It has even started among schoolchildren. (December 2001)
Addict's net diary makes teen famous - A Thai teenager is being hailed as "legendary" after chronicling his battle with drug addiction in an internet diary. The 16-year-old's diary tells how he confessed his addiction to his parents, how he ran away from police, his stays in hospital and how he finally kicked the habit. (December 2001)
Framed student tells of 'nightmare' month in jail - Life in jail was a living nightmare for a 24-year-old Chulalongkorn University (CU) student who claims he was wrongfully accused of possessing methamphetamine. (December 2001)
Drink makers `out to woo teen customers' - The producers of alcoholic beverages are trying every trick in the book to attract young customers, a seminar on teenagers and drinking was told.
Clean teens fear curfew will cost jobs - Young people with no choice but to work at night are worried they will become the innocent victims of the interior minister's planned 10pm curfew for under-18s. (November 2001)
Thailand's 'ya baa' crisis claiming younger victims - When Supabun Kosum took her first methamphetamine tablet she was a curious 18-year-old schoolgirl wanting only "to test" if the little orange pill delivered the euphoria and invincibility her friends raved about. But her schoolyard experimentation with the drug in Thailand's northern Nakhon Sawan province touched off a seven-year addiction that would consume her life and her income and eventually land her in hospital.
Addiction rate among students cut in half - A state-sponsored survey showed a 50% drop in the number of students using drugs, especially speed, as a result of successful suppression efforts, enforcement of the anti-money laundering law, and mandatory capital punishment for major drug offenders. (October 2001)
Fears over rise in juvenile delinquency - A senior legal expert called on the government yesterday to review the juvenile-justice system, saying the current structure served only to push children further into a life of crime. About 15 per cent of juveniles released from detention centres are later rearrested. (October 2001)
Teens mostly have sex early evening - Teenagers are most likely to get up to mischief in the afternoon and early evening, a study has found. They were most at risk of having sex between 3pm-7pm.
Teen speaks out on HIV/Aids - Her mother has been separated from her father since she was young; her stepfather died of Aids four years ago; and now her HIV-infected mother is sick and has no regular job - to many, Nik Sricome's life must look doomed. (October 2001)
Wayward teens worry Youth Bureau - The findings of several surveys and studies - including one by Sri Pathum university dean Seri Wongmonta - that young people are becoming increasingly interested in drugs and sex, has prompted the Youth Bureau to explore new measures to "regulate society". (September 2001)
Look at our kids, and see ourselves - Protecting our children from bad influences when Thailand is a den of vice is an uphill task. That's why parents cannot thank Interior Minister Purachai Piumsombun enough for his strict enforcement of the laws governing night spots. But we would be foolish to believe that tough laws alone are enough to safeguard our children. (September 2001)
Parents blamed for rise in number of young criminals - Juvenile crime has spread unnoticed in Thai society with parents failing to act as role models. Orasom Suthisakhon, a writer on teenage criminals, said the child crime rate was rising. Most young criminals came from broken families or from families which failed to inculcate morals in their children.
New Service Looking out for Young - The Institute of Child and Adolescent Mental Health, a new service, will pass on to families how to take proper care of the younger generation. The service, which opened yesterday, was developed from the Child Mental Health Centre set up 32 years ago to solve child behavioural and mental health problems. (August 2001)
Students rail against corruption at forum - The demand for bribes and use of classroom hours by teachers to sell cosmetics and other products were common in many schools, a seminar was told yesterday. (August 2001)
Parents warned about traps for naive and vulnerable - Computers and the Internet are like a two-sided coin which can be harmful to children if parents are not smart enough, parents were warned. (August 2001)
Student abortions increasing - The number of young female students who are terminating their pregnancies in abortion clinics in Chiang Mai has risen at an alarming rate, a health official said yesterday. (August 2001)
Youths warned to play hard-to-get - The best way to curb the spread of HIV/Aids is to convince young people to delay their first sexual experience for as long as possible, said the director of the Aids Division. (July 2001)
Study finds drug users have much in common - Teenage methamphetamine users in the Northeast have many things in common with their Bangkok peers, said Assc Prof Somphong Jitradab of Chulalongkorn University's Faculty of Education. (July 2001)
Pistol packing pupils - Checking vocational students for weapons before and after school would reduce the number of bloody brawls between rival institutions, Student Patrol Division director Assoc Prof Dr Nikhom Jarumanee said yesterday. (July 2001)
Homeless kids find a family on the streets - For many, living under a bridge is better than staying with abusive parents. They live on the streets, without any real hope for the future. Many are addicted to drugs and frequently engage in reckless sexual activity. But Bangkok's homeless youths say they're happy enough just watching the days go by. (June 2001)
Ban youths in latenight bars - Most members of the public and the police think people under 20 should be barred from nighttime entertainment venues, according to results of an Abac poll released yesterday. (June 2001)
'Why I became a student sex worker' - Lacking the Bt3,000 she needed to pay her university tuition completely changed Fon's life two months ago, prompting her decision to become a prostitute during her school years. (June 2001)
Homeless young children roam streets - Waifs as young as a year and a half have been found roaming the streets of Bangkok, a Bangkok Metropolitan Administration official said yesterday. (June 2001)
More students selling sex for extra cash - Graduate students of Rajabhat Institute Suan Dusit organised a seminar over the weekend and invited student prostitutes, customers and sex service operators. They suggested the setting up of education loan funds with fewer loan conditions, a reduction in tuition fees, employment services for students and measures to strengthen families. Most of the students turned to prostitution because they needed the money, but they didn't all need the money for the same reasons. (June 2001)
Many students say they have unsafe sex - More than a third of the country’s sexually active students in the 6th to 12th grades choose not use any form of protection against falling pregnant or contracting diseases. (June 2001)
Too many books in those bags - Young kids might find their packed schoolbags a daily hassle without much significance, but many adults have voiced concern that the heavy bags point to basic flaws in the country’s education system. (June 2001)
Giving up school to earn money - Instead of enjoying back-to-school festivities yesterday, 12yearold Namwan had to say goodbye to formal education and devote herself to working in scrapyards because of her family’s lack of money. (May 2001)
Private school costs Bt25,000 a family - Families in Bangkok sending children to private schools and universities need at least Bt25,000 each to cope with expenses for the new school term, according to a recent survey by the Thai Farmers Research Centre. (May 2001)
It's a Junkie's Life - "Lek" dreamed of being a soldier like his father. His dream has been crushed because of his addiction to drugs. "When my dad arrived home, I used to run to him and put on his shoes. I wanted to be just like him. But today I'm just a junkie," Lek, the 15-year-old drug addict told NJ Magazine.
More teenagers helping families by taking summer jobs - If you thought all Thai teenagers were vain and extravagant, take a closer look, because more of them are actually helping out their families by taking on a job during the summer. (April 2001)
Youths claim harassment - Youths trying to make a difference claim that they are continually harassed by corrupt adults as they endeavour to fight for what they think is right in their regions. (April 2001)
Railway police extends its popular education project - The railway police is expanding its programme to try to keep children and youngsters off the streets, this time at a community in Bang Sue district. (April 2001)
Happy families are fewer and fewer - Family Day is almost upon us once again. For many kids, this is one of the most disturbing days of the year; it aggravates their pain and alienation as the products of broken homes. (April 2001)
Sex, lies, and Generation Y - As if teen years are not hard enough, each generation suffers the label of worse than the last and misunderstanding reigns supreme-to clear up the confusion, the biggest survey ever undertaken on teenage behaviour in Thailand attempts to paint a realistic picture-but more than results, what are the causes of current teenage angst? And what should we be doing about it? (April 2001)
Survey shows change in parents’ priorities - Thai parents, in a surprising change of opinion, now attach greater importance to the society within a school and the institution’s environment than to its reputation (April 2001)
'Anti-fun' campaign a minor irritation - Teenagers could not care less what action police and education officials may take to stop them going out at night. They insist on having fun. Some are even shouting "Violation of children rights!" over the latest campaign by police and the Education Ministry, which unfolded Friday night at Royal City Avenue, better known as RCA. (April 2001)
Repeat surveys turn up few city school drug takers - Surveys on drug use in city-run schools are revealing few students implicated. In one survey, out of 4,018 students from Prathom 6 to Mathayom 6 who submitted to urine tests, only 25 were found to have traces of methamphetamine. (March 2001)
Campaign to help street kids launched - The Foundation for Child Development launched its "No Child Neglect" campaign to increase social awareness of issues regarding children's welfare.
Places to hangout - RCA tops the list of the 51 most popular night-spots for young people in Bangkok.
Teenage Pregnancies - Charity sees schoolgirl baby boom
Youths crave sincerity and understanding from peers. Dream dates include Kathaleeya and Willy.
Thai Youth Market - A survey of young Thai people's current lifestyle, values, interests, and opinions.
Net changes outlook of City's Youth - Young Thais are becoming more self-reliant, independent of their families and aware of social issues that affect their lives.
Youth Survey - A large number of children in Bangkok are caught up in family problems and said drug abuse is rampant in their schools.
Action on Smoking and Health - Youth and Smoking in Thailand.
A chilling tale of confession - with no regret - The incident, which happened five years ago, was gruesome and shocking: an 11-year-old boy beat a four-year-old boy to death in order to steal his younger playmate's bicycle that his family could not afford. (November 2000)
Chat lines not safe, say girl's parents - The parents of a 15-year-old disabled girl who was murdered by a teenager she met through a telephone chat programme, have appealed to programme monitors to focus more on the safety of phone users. (September 2000)
Addiction victims improving - Twenty methamphetamine-addicted boys who underwent a police drug treatment programme have shown signs of improvement. (August 2000)
A little bit of chit-chat can go a long way - Wave after wave of laughter swept through the forum as teens were ridiculed for their frivolity in a study that was supposed to help adults understand better their interaction with cyberspace. The problem with research conducted in Thailand about the cyberspace generation is that it is too heavily stereotyped and filled with misunderstanding to provide any profound conclusions. (July 2000)
Controls by age-group proposed - Controls over video games were proposed by the Mental Health Department yesterday amid growing concern about their hold on youth. (June 2000)
House panel eyes teens, MPs, monks - A House panel wants strict enforcement of bans on the sale of cigarettes to young teenagers, including controls on the installation of automatic vending machines. (June 2000)
Long delay in endorsement gives rise to grave concern - Concern has been raised over the delay in the endorsement of a child protection bill, the country's most comprehensive legislation ever drafted concerning children. (June 2000)
Youths worship gadgets, claims survey - The sight of teenagers toting mobile phones, sitting in front of a personal computer (PC) and tapping into the cyber world, or clicking away at their play stations, is more and more common these days, whether on television programmes, in the streets or right in your living room.
Police shake down youth hangout - Police yesterday staged a token crackdown on the city's most notorious day-time hangout for teenagers in response to complaints from parents and politicians over the supposedly intolerable lifestyle of youths frequenting the place. (April 2000)
Youth getting high on cough mixture - More young people are abusing cough mixtures which contain codeine, a derivative of morphine, according to the Office of the Narcotics Control Board. (April 2000)
Overcoming condom taboos - The trend towards safe sex is encouraging, but incidences of unprotected sex, especially among teenagers, are still far from disappearing. (January 2000)
Hollywood puts Thai teenagers on tobacco road - A study by an American researcher has revealed that Thai teenagers who are familiar with the Western media and events sponsored by cigarette companies are more likely to have smoked. (May 1999)
Thai teenagers more careful about money - Despite spending budget cuts, Thai and Asian teens are less concerned about belt-tightening but have learned to control their spending, according to a study by McCann-Erickson.
Teenagers fall under drug cloud - Everyday more teenagers become addicted to amphetamines or involved in the increasingly nasty trade of ya ba, a social scourge which is being emboldened by economic woes. (August 1998)
Cartoon Crusaders - An animated video aimed at teaching street children about the dangers of drugs has drawn both fire and praise. A recent police raid on a prostitution ring in Bangkok set free a handful of under-age boys. These are the lucky ones, we are told -- the ones who have been rescued -- but then luck is a somewhat relative term. (Feb 1998)
Abuse spreads its wings - It was a typical summer morning in July 1993. A healthy but nervous-looking teenager was sitting on a blue bench at the far end of the second floor of the Police Hospital. ''What can I do for you?'' Dr Sanchai Vasunthara asked. ''My daughter has taken some drugs. Can you help?'' replied the mother. (Feb 1998)
On the Juvenile Beat - The juvenile crime rate is soaring, says Khunying Smon Bhuminnarong. What happens to young offenders after the law catches up with them? (April 1997)
Confessions of a young yaa baa addict - Nat's innocent curiosity with drugs led to his downfall. He reveals how amphetamine abuse turned him from a carefree student, with everything to live for, into a criminal (March 1997)