Thailand has participated in and endorsed International Conferences and Reservations on the International Conference on Population & Development (ICPD) Programme of Action (PoA). These are: ICPD (1994), Beijing Platform for Action (1995) and Millennium Development Goals (MDG) (2000).^[i] 

Thailand’s MMR increased drastically in 2005, going from 44 deaths per 100 000 live births to almost triple (110 per 100 000 live births),^[ii] although there is a relatively high Contraceptive Prevalence Rate (CPR) of 71.5% (any method). This phenomenon needs to be investigated. In addition to this, there are still key SRHR issues that have been identified by ARROW’s country partner. These are: “significant gaps in implementing sexuality education”^[iii] and also the rampant sexual harrassment that occurs in the country, some of the main contributing factors are “embedded in Thai patriarchal culture”.^[iv] 

Domestic violence and violence against women is a major issue in Thailand. The World Health Organisation showed that 41% of women in Bangkok and 47% of women in rural areas had experienced physical or sexual abuse by an intimate partner as of November 2005.^[v] Violence against women is a criminal offense and penalties depend on the age of the victim, the degree of assault, and the physical and mental condition of the victim after the assault. Rape is illegal, but the law fails to address spousal rape.^[vi]

Trafficking in women and children is also a serious problem in Thailand. Thailand is considered a ‘source country’ from where women and children are trafficked into countries like Japan and Australia; and a ‘transit point’ for trafficked persons from neighbouring SE Asian countries, as well as a ‘destination country’ for trafficked women and children especially from Myanmar, Lao PDR and Cambodia. This despite the fact that Thailand criminally prohibits trafficking for sexual exploitation through its 1997 Prevention and Suppression of Trafficking in Women and Children Act, which prescribes penalties that are sufficiently stringent and that are commensurate with penalties prescribed for rape.^[vii] 

In Thailand, in earlier years, abortion was only allowed if the pregnancy endangers the mother’s health or in cases of rape. A number of abortions are done in remote and rural areas and are often unsafe because of the lack of knowledge about the condition of the foetus or the mother’s health, or even when there is no time to get a doctor to perform a safe abortion. In 2005, the Thai government, in a progressive move, amended the law to make abortion more easily available, and hence ‘safer.’ The revised law provided a standard interpretation of the criminal low provision on abortion, clarifying that abortion is permitted not just in cases of rape or when the mother’s physical health is endangered, but also if following the course of the pregnancy will endanger her mental health as well.^[viii] 

With regards to the issue of violence against women and children, there have also been improvements and revisions in the law as well as collaborative efforts between the government and private sector to reduce and prevent the incidence of violence.^[ix]  

According to the Thai CEDAW shadow report, the Thai government has failed to take any measures or make any policies on health care addressing the health rights of women from the perspective of women’s needs. “The 30-Baht Health Care Policy implemented in Thailand provides access to medical health care for everyone. The programme provides services for maternity until women deliver the second child. Therefore, the programme discriminates against women who choose to have more than two children.” This health care policy also does not include abortion services for women, and for women who do not have citizenship rights and an identity card. It also notes that health centers in rural areas are often not staffed with qualified health workers. Existing legislations are discriminating and cause negative effects on women’s health. There is no law to protect specific rights on women’s health, no training that is focused on learning social and cultural dimensions for public health care practitioners, resulting in their inability to recognise the intricacy of women’s health problems (birth control, abortion, domestic violence). (While the government has drafted a domestic violence law, it does not employ a rights-based approach, ignoring the right of the woman to make her own decisions.  It also leaves no provisions for marital rape, and leaves women out of the decision-making.^[x]

ARROW's Work in Thailand