Anuchit Jittrathanakul, SPAFA alumni and resource person on several SPAFA programmes, recently presented a copy of his book ‘What a Wonderful World’ to SPAFA’s Director, Dr. Pisit Charoenwongsa. The book was launched in Antwerp, Belgium, on 24 January 2008 accompanying the opening of the photography exhibition Sisters by Hans Roels. The concept of the book was developed after the Belgian photographer Hans met with Anuchit in Bangkok and Pattaya, Thailand. Anuchit is a human rights worker and his project work in Pattaya focuses on the transgender group, hoping to instill in them a greater sense of self-worth and to protect them from HIV/AIDS. What a Wonderful World is intended as a means to tell the stories of the transgenders, using their words, thereby showing respect for them as individuals and collectively, demonstrating solidarity with their situation.
The book and exhibition also represent an on-going fruitful collaboration between Belgium and Thailand , the importance of which was attested to by the visit of H.E. Mr. Pisan Manapawat, Ambassador of Thailand to Belgium , Luxembourg , and the European Communities. His Excellency visited the Geukens and De Vil Gallery in Antwerp on 02 February 2008 .
The Belgian-Thai Connection: Next Steps…
Prof-It Share in Brugge , Belgium , chose this project for sponsorship and made the book possible. Prof-It Share is a sister organization of B & G, a management group working in various sectors and countries. The basic principle of B & G is ethical enterprise. B & G also believes in ‘tithing': the sharing of profit to stimulate a positive money flow. B & G donates 9% of its profit for good causes. Yolana Gommers of Prof-It Share endorses the idea of further support concerning legal, social, health, and economic issues for the transgender community in Pattaya. On the transgenders, referred to as ‘Sisters', and photographed by Hans Roels with their stories as related by Anuchit Jittrathanakul, she commented that: “We have learnt much from the Sisters, who challenge the values and ethics of our everyday life”.
As such, Prof-It Share plans to continue support to the work of Anuchit, assuring that a successful and sustainable project can be launched.
For, its part SPAFA offers support to Anuchit in the form of the provision of office space so that he has a Bangkok base from which to operate and move forward with his work with the transgender community under the newly formed NGO, named Transgender Alliance (TGA). |
H.E. Mr. Pisan Manapawat (centre) with Yasmine Geukens, to his right, and Marie-Paule De Vil, to his left, art historians and founders of the Geukens-DeVil Gallery. |
Anuchit presents a copy of What a Wonderful World to Orapin Limskul, Director of the National Library of Thailand and Kevin C. Ketttle from SPAFA. |
Information on TGA and/or to order a copy of What a Wonderful World , please contact Anuchit by email at fabulousfun@hotmail.com ; transgenderthai@gmail.com
More information on Prof-It Share can be found here:
Prof-It Share VZW, Predikherenstraat 29 bus 3, 8000 Brugge , Belgium
http://profitshare.skynetblogs.be
More information on the Sisters exhibition by Hans Roels and to view some of the photographs, please visit his Website at www.hansroels.com
or the Geukens and De Vil Gallery Website at www.geukensdevil.com
Hans Roels can be contacted by email at memo@hansroels.com
The Gallery can be reached at geukensdevil@skynet.be |
