ICTs and its Social Meanings: Women in the Margins of Thailand

This work was carried out under the Amy Mahan Research Fellowship Program at the University Pompeu Fabra through the support of Canada's International Development Research Centre (IDRC). It analyses the use of communication tools by Burmese/Myanmar women migrant workers and refugees in Thailand. From the Abstract: "This paper seeks to surface the social implications of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) for marginalized women in Thailand-Burma border as brought about by globalization and technological change. Many of the debates surrounding ICTs have been centered on technologies as drivers of growth and transformation of economies as information economy and knowledge society. While it has helped the economies of most developed countries, the urban-rural divide in sharing the benefits derived from ICTs in most developing countries such as Thailand persist. A notable implication is ICTs’ influence in the lives of marginalized women migrant workers and refugees in Thailand in the context of community empowerment from a repressive military regime of Burma. The enabling environment of ICTs in the border created significant difference in their survival as freedom of information, communication and mobility had been largely repressed inside their own country. This paper argues that opportunities for women to access and use ICTs may be seen along several perspectives ranging from binding family ties, social networking and expanding relations to a broader perspective as learning arena, venue for advocacy and amplifying women’s voices and sites for cultural expression and entertainment...."

This study proposes to measure how female migrant workers and refugees to the Tak Province in Thailand from Myanmar are affected by Thailand’s national ICT policy (IT2010) and the digital divide. "It focuses in answering the question: how do ICTs facilitate social empowerment among women?"

"The use of ICTs was relatively dependent on its accessibility, affordability, and availability apart from the capability and ability. Internet shops are usually located in the urban center of Mae Sot and are relatively distant from women’s workplace and residence.... Migrant women interviewed learned how to use the Internet from co-workers, friends, computer training provided by NGOs [non-governmental organisations] and migrant schools." Mobile phone skills were relatively easier, as was access in rural areas. "The access and use of ICTs particularly internet and to some extent mobile phones have created significant social meanings to women migrant workers in Mae Sot" in several ways: binding family ties; social networking and expanding relations; learning arena - educational information relevant to work and for self-education such as issues on human rights, women’s rights, democracy, educational music, English language, and news updates; venue for advocacy and amplifying women’s voices; and arena of cultural expression and entertainment. Households' subsistence budget cannot include the costs involved in mobile phone purchase and use in some cases. Use of the internet and mobile phones for communication is enhanced by both community based organisations (CBOs) and social networks through which mobile phones may be borrowed for access. "While use of ICTs allow for processes of information and communication that were previously impossible to attain to a group of women, a large number of women is still excluded in the process."

A presentation video is available here. Scroll down to the video titled "Malut Feramil".

The author wishes to note that her paper is available to the public pursuant to the Creative Commons Attribution- Non Commercial- ShareAlike  Licence 3.0.