Between tradition and modernity, the Church’s mission among Thailand’s Paganyaw
Bangkok (AsiaNews) – The Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary work closely with the Paganyaw, an ethnic Karen minority centred in northern Thailand and Myanmar, locally rooted, with its own distinctive history, language, culture and traditions.
The missionaries’ focus is on helping young people, especially students, cope with the demands of living far from their families, going to school, managing relationships and preparing for the future, but always within a welcoming and protective setting.
The Paganyaw (or S'gaw Karen) number 1,584,700: 1,284,700 in Myanmar (Burma) and some 300,000 thousand in Thailand, in the provinces of Maehongson, Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai.
About 8,870 live in Chiang Mai, mostly students (5,500: 44 per cent females and 56 per cent males). Most of the others work in the private sector or the government.
The city is considered a sort of port of call for young ethnic Paganyaw who want to continue their studies. For many, the goal is to complete their education, before going home to their villages and families.
However, for many this can mean hardships and obstacles, the first being city life itself (in a major metropolitan area like the capital Bangkok), an often dark and alienating experience that is very different from that of their homes, villages of origin, and well-established social relations. Inevitably, a sense of estrangement and remoteness develops.
Fr Weerasak Yongsripanithan, professor of philosophy at the Lux Mundi Major Seminary in Samphran (Nakhon Pathom), is responsible for pastoral care of young Paganyaw. In view of their particular situation, he stressed the importance of targeted programmes for them.
At first, young ethnic Paganyaw choose Bangkok as a destination to earn money to help their families, he said. However, they rarely find a future or opportunities in their new environment. For many, "the only choice is to go home."
Against this background, young people need someone who can lend an ear to listen to their problems and help them overcome the stress of coping with such a large and promiscuous place, so different from their own roots and traditions. It is in such a context that the Thai Church works.
In Chiang Mai, two centres have been set up to meet the needs of young Paganyaw, especially students. One is the Chiang Mai Marina Home, run by the Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, and directed by Sister Maria Raeija, 70.
The home has lived up to expectations, at least according to people who spoke to AsiaNews, including 23-year-old Nitaya Kurwor, who, thanks to the sisters, was able, like other young people, to learn a trade during the day and pursue further studies in the evening.
Linjong Ratanayom-ngamdee, 20, is also pleased with the home’s rules, which ensure discipline and security.
Everyone, whatever their ethnic group, can also come together at Chang Mai’s Cathedral of the Sacred Heart of Jesus for Sunday Mass.
Still, a sense of alienation persists for many. "City life is strange; people do not talk," said Wipa Fairungroj, 24, who, after her studies, has become involved in outreach activities to help fellow Paganyaw youth integrate.
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