Maggi Quadrini
When COVID-19 lockdown measures in Thailand went into effect in March 2020, radio DJ Kaung Tip wasn’t able to go and broadcast her program at the recording station in the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai.
Before the pandemic started spreading across the globe, Kaung Tip hosted a radio program on women and children’s health called “Heng Jai Ying” (Girl's Power), with the goal of informing her audience of Shan migrants about good health practices and the importance of maintaining good hygiene.
The Shan are an ethnic minority in east-central Burma. Although they share similar language and traditions to populations in northern Thailand, they’re a particularly marginalized group that have long suffered from systematic oppression from the Burma army, known as the Tatmadaw. In 1994, the military led a widespread offensive against the Shan in a scorched earth campaign that pushed over 300,000 people to flee their homes. Thousands of Shan people have been living and working in northern Thailand as migrants since then.
Before the pandemic, “Heng Jai Ying” was broadcasting four days a week. After it became clear that COVID-19 measures would keep her from speaking on air, Kaung Tip had to get creative fast, as thousands of listeners, Shan women in particular, relied on her voice. Seizing an opportunity to change the way Shan migrant listeners engage with the radio program, she began creating short videos that could be easily shared on social media.
In collaboration with Shan Radio Online and MAP Foundation, a grassroots non-governmental organization that seeks to empower migrant communities from Burma in Thailand, she started sharing health-related information through videos which have an added focus on the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since April 2020, Kaung Tip’s produced twenty-three videos, mostly between two and seven minutes in length. She has researched, recorded and produced these videos all by herself. She covers topics on preventive and protective measures to take amid the pandemic such as mask wearing and washing hands regularly, catering to her audience of mostly young, working Shan women. The finalized versions are put online in Shan language and have been widely embraced by the community who say they are invaluable in staying safe during the outbreak.
“The first video we did on how to stay safe during COVID-19 had over 200, 000 views,” says Kaung Tip. “It was really well received and motivated me to keep making videos.”
Since she started working at the radio station in 2018, she has been offering health guidance that could have immediate life-enhancing impacts on young women and children in Shan migrant communities. When the pandemic happened, she focused on promoting measures to stay healthy, both physically and mentally.
Challenges accessing healthcare
Accessing even the most basic of rights in Thailand is difficult for migrant workers, many of whom are illiterate in their own language and may not have the confidence to speak Thai in government run services.
Most of Kaung Tip’s audience are Shan migrant women who work in the informal labor sector and earn their income through jobs considered dirty, dangerous and demeaning. This includes farming, construction and domestic work.
Their concerns over reduced access to maternal care and sexual reproductive health care services, such as abortion, childbirth and contraceptives has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. This motivated Kaung Tip, a Shan migrant herself, to work even harder to ensure her female listeners are able to have access to information in a dignified manner.
“During the pandemic, women have struggled to reach services they need to maintain their health, especially for those who do not have insurance or money,” she says.
Another challenge she identified was the association of shame to reproductive and sexual health matters, especially for women.
“If we have a problem with our body – women feel that it is not appropriate to talk about,” she says. “When we are quiet about our hygiene, it shows the lack of understanding and steps we need to take.”
Economic fallout
The economic impacts of COVID-19 have been felt all over the world, across various sectors. Migrants, including Shan migrant women, have been hit particularly hard. Kaung Tip says many have recently been left without a job, and their children cannot go to school. She knew this could push more women to adopt negative coping mechanisms due to the added stress. Listeners have left comments on the videos posted on Facebook asking for information on how to keep a positive attitude and maintain mental wellbeing. Having access to information and resources has been crucial for those at risk of harming themselves or loved ones in the midst of the pandemic, where they are financially compromised as prospects for work have become increasingly uncertain.
During a field visit organized by the Shan Women’s Action Network (SWAN) Foundation to distribute food such as rice and noodles to students and families it supports, Kaung Tip spoke to mothers of the students who were listeners of the program. She said their main concern related to COVID-19 was the lack of job opportunities, which has consequently resulted in a lack of food, bad hygiene and more household anxiety.
“Some families have 5 to 10 people living at home. This is not a good situation for keeping good hygiene. If they cannot access health care, this only worsens their overall well-being,” she added about her visit to the Shan-Thai border.
Without a job, savings or adequate access to health care, migrants are left in a precarious situation, Kaung Tip says. The effects on men and women laborers trickles down to their families where children are at a heightened risk of neglect or of resorting to drug and alcohol abuse.
At school, children are taught to wash their hands and look after themselves. Under the Thai Education for All policy, migrant children are able to go to school and have better opportunities in life. However, the COVID-19 lockdown has meant students at home no longer have the same channels to access learning. Worse, they too are trying to find work, heightening their risk of being exploited in child labor.
Combating misinformation
Kaung Tip’s visit with the SWAN Foundation motivated her to make even more videos. It was clear to her that the stakes were even higher. Radio was an important medium even before the pandemic. It was a useful platform where migrants could listen in their native language, without being held back by their skill in reading or processing written information.
Now, her video series has continued to fill information gaps with even more efficiency, as it also has animations, voice over and texts that can bring her listeners closer to the content.
But there are still challenges.
“News that is not correct has been a big problem during COVID-19. There are some myths about treating the virus such as drinking only hot liquids, or drinking alcohol and avoiding food that gets cold,” she adds.
Kaung Tip says the Shan migrant community trusts news that comes from MAP Foundation and Shan Radio Online. The current videos are an attempt to combat these myths and were done through a ‘myth or fact’ series that she had been doing before the pandemic happened.
In a time where information is key to the protection of individuals and communities, it is imperative that information channels remain accessible. Kaung Tip says this is especially relevant for the most vulnerable in society, and those deemed essential workers. Many of whom include the informal labour sector, those who are granted the least amount of protections and whose legal status could undermine the type of support they receive.
Kaung Tip hopes that her videos will have a long-term contribution to Shan society. She hopes her small films will contribute to improving how information is shared and received, especially in communities where there is a lack of literacy or formal education. Although her work may have changed mediums, her message remains the same. Her audience has followed her, not only listening intently, they’re also watching closely -- ready to see her next video.