in ten years, still have fish for you?

Quotes about the Urak Lawoi village:

"Before, everyone was close together in the community, but then they started to sell their land. They said, “oh money, money,” and then they went to the Mafia and they said ‘I want to sell’ and then fighting family and family break."

"Twenty years ago, they make people like this [fighting and divided]. They tricked the land the people. The Pu Yai Ban of before, (Pu Yai Ban is a important/powerful person on the isalnd, its a position) he said to the chaow lay “give me your land I’ll go to the mainland and make a chanood (title for each person) for you”. And he took them away and sold them, and then he also gone! 5 years later, and 10 years later, people come and say ‘oh this my land’ the people here said ‘huh? Khay doni? When did I sell it? ...
Like this [Castaway resort and the nearby the village] they built houses here, and then one woman from the mainland came and said “oh you have problem. This is my land” and they said “huh? This my land! When did I sell to you?” nobody knew. They were tricked: because the young brother of my father, he doesn’t know to read Thai he wasn’t educated. They tricked him to sign, and then when he signed arrested him. They are fighting and fighting, how many year? 10 years in court. Now, they win, people chow lay win. Now the [Castaway] resort rents from him. But in court we lose money, because the lawyer got money from [the urak lawoi] and from the woman in the mainland. Not only here many people fighting with lawyer and the mafia man come and says if you sell to me, you don’t have to fight anymore, and you get some money. Then when they sell to him, they still have problem in court. "

"When I went to school here, there never had drugs in school. Now student sell in school. Start maybe 12, 13 years old. One pill - 500 Bhat. Teacher know, but teacher cannot do anything… When the student are drug, when they don’t have money, they steal. Maybe steal money from their parents. The mama here, the parent here, they never say "no no stop!" But they give money, really. Not everybody, but maybe 30% are addicted to drugs, I’m afraid my brother, my son. And my cousin! he is addited, he start when he was 14.

They sell to kid or tourists. Someone who wants to sell here they buy for 150 on mainland, but when they sell here sell for 500, they get 350 more. So they don’t care, here "ok children buy from me, I sell." Its sad. "

"My grandma is a teacher of dance tradition at the school, but the children lazy now. Lazy to learn because tey have game, computer game, and the bar… at the beach is open for children… Normally you have to tell kids "you cannot go out"...Today they go [out]. Maybe tomorrow have to go to school, but today they party. Then tomorrow they not go to school. School is very open, they go to class, no teacher, they come out, they go all over lipe. I start my son my brother going to school in the mainland (my mom go two weeks, then I go two weeks, to take care).

I tell them all the time, if you don’t study now, every resort evey restaurant want have a [diploma]. If you don’t have, you have to work very hard, no? and if you thinking, I will just fishing fishing, in ten years, still have fish for you? Maybe it will be hard… like some place in Africa thye protect fish (I saw in TV) before they make net and turtle, whale, dolphin die in net. And now they let fish only with the line, and it is very hard. What if in 5 years around the world protect fish? Now your free you can go anytime you want to go, maybe in 5 years there will be only one week or one time you can go. Or what if another Tsunami come?"

"When I’m like 5 years, my father he work on a big boat, a fisherman boat… My father, he work very dangerous place: between Thailand and Burma… If you have a passport you can go Burma, but the government is very bad… He have passport. When Burma saw fisherman from Thailand, they don’t care people in the boat have passport. They say ‘if you don’t go away, you die’. He had to swim to a island. Half month, two week, no water. Water like this [in puddles on the ground] he had to drink. No food. He had to find crab, no rice, he have to eat from tree like this with the fruit inside like an almond [cashew tree]. Three of them on the island, and some of his friends in the boat, Burma killed. … Many times [my father] swim to a island. "

I knew my father worked hard, dangerous, I knew I had to help him. When I was 11 years I start work myself. I worked in the restaurant of daya resort. I serving. I am very small, 11 year. I learned english by handfuls. I dunno! The menu have thai word and english word. When people order [they point at what they want] there is thai word and english word so I see the Thai word… I like work. When I work I’m tired, I get money per month.

Did you go to school and work?
Yes… I go like this. Before go to school I clean, wash plates and glasses, water before not have [spigot], have to carry to home. Then I go to school, come back, cooking very quickly, then I go work to 10 pm. But my aunti in there very nice they say OK you have to do homework first, you have to do homework and if busy you can help. If people see too much for small girl.

What did you do with the money you made?
Half I give mom, half for me. For me, like for school or for buy shampoo, buy lotion.

But after me, my sister in school go down, down, down and after sister very bad. Many children lazy. 15 year and lazy to work. Just say ‘Mama money. Mama money. Mama money to buy drug. Mama money to play game. Mama money.”

"But still have nice[things in the community]. like fish: this hosue have fish, this house have no fish. One house say "OK I have a lot of fish I’ll give some to you." Here its still like, "OK I give you, and next time I don’t have maybe you give to me." Still like this. "