By Li Yien

Not many people would have a chance to visit a slum area. Some do not even know that such a place exists in their city, and those who do would not bother. Today, I felt very lucky to be able to journey across Klong Toey Slum in Bangkok, Thailand. This was an eye-opening experience for me.

Klong Toey Slum is one of the oldest and largest slums in Bangkok, having been around for about 50 years. The slum communities are made up of a majority of rural migrants from Northeast Thailand who came to Bangkok for job opportunities. They constantly face threats of eviction from the authorities in Thailand because they have no legal right to the land that they occupy. Thus, they are not able to receive any basic facilities such as water supply, electricity and waste removal from the government. Poverty and health problems are just some of the difficulties faced by the slum community . Today, the Duang Prateep Foundation, established in 1978, helps these urban poor, providing education for the slum children and organising various projects to help the community.

The Klong Toey slum might look like a cluster of old shacks from the outside. However, if you actually take a walk into the slum, you will discover that there is much more to the place. Thirty years ago, it was devoid of basic facilities such as water and electricity. However, the semi-illegal status now attached to it has been accompanied by various improvements in these areas. The wooden shacks are built very close together, with a small lane in between (not more than two meters wide). Basically, the slum feels like a very compact mini town. It has about 100 000 people. It looks like a maze with passages leading to different corners by the small lane. Other than the homes, they have their own small food lots and stalls that sell basic necessities such as canned food, sauce and others.

As I walked deeper into the slum, I was surprised that a few kids in one of the shacks were playing Play Station 2. Besides that, some homes even had their own television, a snooker table and other electric appliances. Of course, these were the oddities. Most other homes fit into your typical expectations of how a slum would look like. There is a damp and fishy smell that permeates the area. Yet, one thing seemed to stand out. I noticed that the Buddha shrines are always kept very clean with fresh flowers such as jasmine, no matter how old or run-down the place was.

As I reached the other end of the slum, we were greeted by a bunch of kids who were behind a grill door. As I peeped inside, it was actually a school for them. They were waving and saying hello to us, their smiles exuding genuine warmth. I believe that the community has improved a lot compared to 50 years ago. However, there is still much help needed to improve the area’s sanitation, poverty and other social problems. All in all, it was an enlightening journey across Klong Toey Slum.

By Fikri

Fikri reflects on his first day in Bangkok…

Not wanting to oversleep, I did not sleep the night before the trip, and went as far as lying to my friend who dropped me off at the airport (for the standard fee of petrol, toll, and a McDonald’s breakfast set), saying that my flight was at 11AM. In truth I reckoned it to be closer to noon.

After arriving at an earlier-than-expected 9.45AM, I eventually confessed the truth over breakfast. Later, I found out that the flight was actually at 1.40PM, leaving me to reflect on the lost sleep and sweet dreams that I might have had.
On the flight, I suddenly felt very hungry, and regretted not eating any burgers while at McD’s (only the breakfast set). It was not helped by the realisation that I would not be seeing halal food for a country mile in Bangkok. With that in mind, I splurged RM21 on a chicken rendang sandwich, a pot noodle, a cereal bar and apple juice.

Once there, we split into groups to take the cab to the hostel. The trip cost some 350 baht, which would be cheaper had the driver known where we were supposed to go. Once there, we compared who got ripped off the most, with Dr Yeoh emerging as the ‘champion’ at 400 baht.

The area that we are staying in is Khao San, a backpackers’ area. Thus, I notice more Caucasians than locals. On first impression, the ‘farangs’ (as they are known) appears to do nothing more than drink and watch pirated DVDs in the hostel lounge. For me, I am to share my room with the guys (Aaron, Yasir, and Meng Yoe). Me and TMY decided to share the bed, seeing that he and I… we are one. After settling in, we met our student guides from Chulalongkorn University. They seem a friendly enough group, whose English (and Malay) are better than my Thai.

We went for dinner at a very nice restaurant, where a lot of Tom Yam Kung were consumed, and a lot of important Thai phrases were learnt (”Pom rak kun” means “I love you.”). Welcome speeches were also given by Kerry Ann, Kaew (one of the guides), and their lecturer, Kanukrat, who said that the trip is a great chance for us to really discover Bangkok.

Later, we walked around the main Khao San area, which is a long street full of vendors selling cheap goods. The arrangement and ambience reminded me of Petaling Street, and the items were pretty much the same (pirated DVDs, clothes, etc.), with the exception of fake Rastafarian dreadlocks. I find it to be very interesting. Talking to Kaew about it, it appears to be something very popular with the foreigners.

We headed back towards the hostel for a late night/early morning drink, during which Sasi got drunk (though she denied this). “Sorry sir, no coke,” when I requested for one. “Why not?” I asked. Apparently they don’t serve non-alcoholic drinks during happy hour. I asked for water instead, but was refused again for the same reason. This ‘happy hour’ is making me quite unhappy, and I sternly refused to order anything else. He eventually relented, but it left a sour taste in my mouth, which my Coke did little to sweeten.
Ah well.

By Sasi

When Dr Yeoh first asked me to write a piece whilst in Bangkok for the study trip, my first objection was that my background is in accounting and not writing! But here I am…

I agreed to write about traditional Thai massage during Dr Yeoh’s pre-departure briefing knowing very well that it would be a fun experience. And it certainly was.

On the day after we arrived, the six of us went looking for a reputable massage centre along Khao San Road. I had persuaded Malina and Wanie to come along with Sze Mun, Li Yien and Suet Ying. The first centre we went to looked a little dodgy so we decided to move on until we found one that looked more presentable - perhaps one minus the smelly drains, surly staff and suspect felines.

This centre turned out to be really comfortable and welcoming with friendly looking masseurs. We were ushered to the second floor after making payment and here our feet were washed with soap and water and gently towel-dried. It was such a luxury to be pampered that way! And that was just the beginning….

Since I was the only one who had opted for the oil massage, instead of the traditional Thai massage, I was asked to go to the highest floor. Once I got there, the masseurs asked me to strip to my birthday suit and lie down on the mattress.

Magic fingers worked their way through my pores, kneading gently with fragrant oil. The next hour was pure bliss and I had to remind myself to stay awake to enjoy the sensation.

That night I fell asleep as soon as I hit the bed and did not even hear the knocks on my doors when the others came to call me for drinks.

Looks like there will definitely be another visit to the massage centre before we say goodbye to the Land of Smiles. And this time around, the traditional Thai massage will be the order for the day! Sawasdee!

By Sze Ning

Klong Toey is perhaps not the most conventional tourist stop in Bangkok.

As we walked down the narrow streets littered with rubbish, we looked through windows that gave us a glimpse of poverty and passed the occasional ghosts of homes, now just rubble. We were at the largest slum in Bangkok.

Scene from Klong Toey

At the Duang Prateep Foundation, we were informed that 80,000 people reside there. Originally in the early fifties, people settled at Klong Toey to help construct the port nearby. Now, with machines taking over the necessity of manual labour, many Klong Toey dwellers survive by becoming roadside food vendors and engaging in other informal economies.

People at Klong Toey face many problems typical of a slum area. Most of them do not have any legal rights to the land. The vicious cycle of poverty also makes it hard to break from engaging in criminal activity as well as drug and alcohol dependence. With such social and financial problems, the children may be prevented from receiving proper
education.

Children at Kindergarten in Klong Toey

Of late, they have been facing the threat of eviction with the Port Authority wanting to clear the area to make way for a commercial area to improve tourism in the city. With support from the Duang Pratreep Foundation, the slum dwellers are fighting against the eviction as they are unable to afford the monthly rent, in the event that they are relocated to high rise flats, as proposed by the Port Authority.

“Home here”, says Daw, a proud slum-dweller who has lived in Klong Toey for over 50 years. She knows over 1000 of the community’s residents. She explains that they are uniting together to fight against the eviction. Just that morning, she had declined an offer to sell her home to a man planning to renovate it into an office. On the other hand, Nir, a van driver and resident of 30 years, says that “[if] a lot of people go, I [will] go [too]”.

The close-knitted social fabric of the community in Klong Toey may pose an answer to resolving the problem. With the Duang Prateep Foundation on the move, there may be hope for these residents to remain in the humble dwellings of the slum area.

Man and Kid from Klong Toey

Special thanks to Can and Orn, our Thai friends from Chulalongkorn University who acted as the translators for the interviews.

More on the Duang Prateep Foundation HERE.

By Meng Yoe

The Klong Toey slums in the metropolitan area of Bangkok is an example of a community of the urban poor. Slums are communities that build homes on land which does not legally belong to them, and face the constant threat of eviction by the local government.

At first glance, Klong Toey is like most other squatter communities. The houses are built with wood and zinc and are highly flammable. Throughout the complicated network of corridors, there is an accompanying odour of damp and stale air. Most of the drains are clogged with rubbish, and the vast amount of dog droppings certainly does not place Klong Toey at the top of any tourist’s must-see list.

The above description of Klong Toey fits into two of the most common reasons that a government calls for an eviction; that is to remove all eye sores from the city and to further develop the city.

Bangkok’s largest slum

However, before passing judgement on the Klong Toey slum, one must consider the human aspect of the place. There is life in the community. Housewives busily prepare lunch in time for their schooling kids; working men pace in and out of the slum, performing their various trades. The elderly stroll around the corridors, chit chatting with old and friends and neighbours.

Klong Toey

Any conception that slums are home to drug addicts, robbers, and brutal criminals are not true, according to Dr Vithasvas Khongkhakul, a sociologist who works for the Duang Prateep foundation – a non-governmental organisation (NGO) that provides social assistance to the Klong Toey area.

“Klong Toey is the safest place with the friendliest people in Thailand. Poor people are not bad people,” explained Dr.Khongkhakul, and judging from the aura in the slum, one can only agree with him.

However, as much as one would like to romanticise any slum into a community worth keeping, experience will show that, ultimately, the government always wins. Why? Because they are in power, and a majority of the citizens, quite bluntly, have little concern towards the urban poor, due to long-standing misconceptions and a general lack of awareness.

How then can slum rights in Klong Toey be fought for? The answer, truthfully, no longer lies with the current generation, and certainly not in the first generation of residents of the community, but rather, in the young ones.

With the help of the Duang Prateep foundation, Klong Toey has a relatively strong educational program for a slum, with a strong emphasis on the academic development of children. Children are sent to schools and given subsidised meals that are nutritious to ensure good growth. They are also made part of many community projects that constantly remind them of their culture and heritage.

At least there is a recognition that children are the future, and education is the way forward. It is, with much hope, that these children will grow up fully equipped to help their community.

Duang Prateep: Kindergarten and Nursery

However, there are problems, of course, that the Klong Toey children face. Most prominently - finances. Nong, a mother of two primary school kids, explained that education is expensive at the latter stages, and if she cannot make enough money, her children will have to “stop going to school and start working.” Another mother, Thong Pew, mentioned that she wants the best education for all her three children, and although it is expensive, she is glad that her youngest son has earned a partial scholarship to study in college.

Some of these financial woes are addressed by the Duang Prateep Foundation, but the NGO certainly does not have the capability to fund every child.

But, hope is still hope, and in time, the few children today who go the distance will pave the way for a brighter future for even more children in the next generation, and the generations beyond. The fate of Klong Toey, and other slums, lie in today’s children, who hopefully will grow up to recognize that “citizenship” is a right to safety, clothing, food, and shelter, and strive to make government an instrument of good; a place where people can come together, and that no one gets left behind.

Klong Toey’s future - educated children

(Benji, this story is for you, my friend. Wish you were here. See you when I get back.)