• Ananda Vidyadharma is situated in Huay Ma Lai. This is a remote village nearby Sangklaburi in the Kanchanaburi province in western Thailand on the border with Myanmar. The village is a home to a population that consists not only of Thais but also largely of Karen and Mon coming across the border. These Karen and Mon are persecuted by the Burmese military dictatorship and many have been driven from their homes to seek refuge in Thailand.

 

  • These so called hill-tribes are not fully recognized as Thai inhabitants and therefore don't have the same rights as the Thais. They face major obstacles in acquiring adequate health care, education, and employment opportunities. To protect the social, political and economical well-being of Thailand they are not allowed to leave the area without permission of the government.

 

  • Most of the population has a low level of education and is living in impoverished conditions along with those living in the five surrounding communities of Huay Ma Lai: Ban Mai, Lo Kani, Yakadi, Huay Kop and Monsoto. They are presently dependent on bamboo and thatch for construction and often persist in illegal logging to sell or use in building, increasing the serious stress on the local Eco-system.

 

  • The villagers cannot obtain enough funds to increase agricultural production, a practice in which the community is most highly involved, by buying more livestock and implementing modern agricultural methods. As a consequence the community remains stuck in the cycle of poverty.

 

  • In the village there is no internet
    access. The nearest town with internet access is Sangklaburi.
  • Huay Ma Lai - north-west of Kanchanaburi on the Thai-Myanmar border, seven hours drive from Bangkok.
  • Situated in a beautiful natural setting near one of the few remaining rainforests in Thailand
 
 
  • Local villages faced relocation and lost their traditional land and jobs.
 
 
  • Ecological destruction has changed the face of the area following construction of a dam in 1982, which generates power for use in Bangkok
  
 
  • Lack of employment, proper medical care, education and sanitation reduces family life to a struggle for survival in this remote, undeveloped area.