Toddlers from Boonyatorn Nursery Home visit their mothers in prison every Tuesday.

Toddlers get to live relatively close to their jailed mothers and to go for visits once a week, thanks to the work of one foundation

Story by HEAMAKARN SRICHARATCHANYA - Pictures by SOMKID CHAIJITVANIT

For most toddlers, Tuesday is little different from any other day of the week. But for the children at Boonyatorn Nursery Home, every Tuesday is a special occasion.

It is the day they go to jail _ to visit their convict mothers.

``They become hyperactive in the mornings,'' said babysitter Jiranut Supmakmee, whom the kids call mae (mother). ``After they've put on their best outfits they crowd around the door, waiting for the van to come pick them up.''

When they reach the Central Women's Correctional Institution, the children race joyfully to the gate, where they grab the bars, eager-eyed, waiting to be let in. Their mothers are waiting for them in a room provided for the purpose.

Every week, for between one and two hours, the women get the chance to spend some time in private with their kids; time to build up love and understanding, for hugs and kisses, for the toddlers to sit on their mums' laps and eat lunch together.

``I'm thankful to the Boonyatorn Nursery Home for providing us with these valuable moments,'' said an imprisoned mother of a three-year-old.

The Boonyatorn Nursery Home for babies of female prisoners was founded in 2000 to provide a suitable place for the mental and physical development of young children, as suggested by Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn.

The nursery was built near the women's quarters in Klong Prem Prison. There was no Thai government funding available so it was financed initially by seed money from the Japanese government.

Taking care of prisoners' children is not the direct responsibility of the Department of Corrections, but it helped set up the Phibulsongkroh Foundation to undertake the work. The day-to-day activities of the foundation are managed by officials from the department .

The nursery gets some assistance from the Department of Public Welfare and the Foundation for Slum Child Care but it also relies on public donations.

The one-storey building can accommodate no more than 30 children at a time, aged between one and six years. After the age of six, children whose mothers are still in prison and who have no other relatives to take care of them are sent to government institutions or foundations run by NGOs.

At present, there are 21 children in the nursery _ 10 girls and 11 boys _ aged between one and three. Most of their mothers were pregnant when they entered jail. The toddlers were sent to the nursery after being weaned.

Mothers and children can spend between one and two hours together every week.

According to Urai Khongkhun, vice-president of the board of Boonyatorn Nursery Home, the children's mothers are inmates at three prisons _ Klong Prem, Thon Buri and Thanyaburi _ and most of them are serving time for drug-related crimes.

There was a great need for a nursery because of the high percentage of women who are pregnant when sentenced to prison, said Urai.

At Klong Prem, for example, there are currently over 70 women with young babies. The nationwide total exceeds 300.

In addition to the Boonyatorn Nursery Home in Bangkok, the Phibulsongkroh Foundation has set up a day-care centre under the same name in Udon Thani province. It can only take five children. They spend their days at the nursery and return to the prison at night to stay with their mothers.

At the Klong Prem nursery, expenses for milk and other provisions for the babies are paid by the Department of Public Welfare and the Foundation for Slum Child Care. Salaries are paid out of public donations.

There are eight staff working with the children _ a housekeeper, a teacher and six babysitters. Foreign volunteers also offer occasional assistance.

A British volunteer recently returned to her country after a few months with the centre. A volunteer from India has just joined.

While the teacher deals with child development and pre-school education, the babysitters act as surrogate mothers, taking care of everything from giving the babies baths and medication to singing them lullabies. The babysitters also accompany the children to see their mothers every Tuesday.

At the Boonyatorn nursery, two children need special care _ a girl with heart disease and a Nigerian boy suffering from mental illness.

``We look after them as if they were our own kids,'' said babysitter Jiranut, 30, herself the mother of a three-year-old.

When the nursery first started, the youngsters were quite aggressive, she recalled. It was common to see them hitting, biting or cursing each other.

Urai Khongkhun, vice-president of the Boonyatorn Nursery Home board.

Apart from giving them love and care, staff members try to instil in the children an understanding of the difference between right and wrong and teach them good manners. Sometimes punishment is necessary, however. ``They won't get any sweets if they're very difficult,'' said Jiranut.

Her worst task used to be taking the children to see their mothers. ``They never wanted to leave. I often had to separate them from their mums when visiting hour was over,'' she said. This rarely happens now that the children realise that they will get to see their mothers every week, she said.

The children are not the only ones who wait eagerly for Tuesdays. Their mothers feel the same way. On Tuesday mornings, they withdraw money to buy sweets or milk for their young ones. The week-long wait always brings something worthwhile at the end, said one mother.

``I always see new developments in my daughter,'' said one 43-year-old inmate, beaming with pride. Her child was moved to the nursery over a year ago at the age of 18 months.

``Back then, she could speak only one word _ mae. Now, she speaks fluently and politely,'' said the mother, adding that she was unable to sleep at night when her child was first separated from her.

``I feel proud as a mother to see my daughter greeting me with a wai; to hear her singing and to listen to her reading for me.''

She thinks that the nursery is the best place for her daughter at the moment. ``The living conditions in the jail are not suitable for her development and letting her stay with my three other grown-up kids isn't a good option because they're all addicted to drugs.''

After almost two years in operation, the nursery has already said farewell to about 15 children whose mothers served their time and were released from jail.

Budgetary constraints mean there is still no follow-up system to keep track of how well the children are doing in the, often cruel, world outside but some of the children do come back occasionally to see their friends and their surrogate mothers.

``We just try our best to give them a good foundation during their time here,'' said Urai. ``After all, the first few years in a child's life are very important in forming his or her values and personality.

``We hope that with a good start, they'll grow up to be happy, well-adjusted adults.''



Info for donations:

- Name of organisation: Phibulsongkroh Foundation, Children's Fund.

- Address: Phibulsongkroh Foundation, 33/1231 Ngamwongwan Road, Chatuchak, Bangkok 10900.

The Boonyatorn Nursery Home is at the same address.

- Contact person: Basaba Sakrangkul, director of Social Work and Social Welfare, Prison Division, Department of Corrections.

- Telephone: 02-967-3556-7.

- Fax: 02-967-3556.

- Bank information: Krung Thai Bank, Rattanatibeth branch, savings account number 137-1-21663-0.