French Girls Rescued From Phuket Red Light District

[stevenl]

she does NOT speak french obviously

Since she spoke with a French tourist police volunteer who does not speak Arabic or Berber we can reasonably presume she does speak French.

[sirchai]

don't forget that these kids have apparently been living on the streets for 8 WEEKS - and nobody noticed???????

Excellent field work by Phuket Tourist Police Volunteers has led to the rescue of two preteen French girls thought to have been living on the streets of Phuket for up to eight months.

Guess it's time to buy new glasses, or to read an article BEFORE posting.

Great that they'll come back home, whoever's taking care of them. But indeed a good question how they got there....

[jeanelie]

I can assure you that many people live in France whose ethnic origin and native language are not French, who are nonetheless identified as French citizens.

And I believe you.

It is written literally in the article:"two preteen French girls thought to have been living on the streets of Phuket for up to eight months.

Using photos supplied by the French Embassy, Phuket Tourist Police Foreign Volunteers were asked to keep an eye open for the two sisters, ethnic Moroccans aged 11 and 12".

I wonder the article does not get banned by the moderators. Only writing such a phrase is already enough to get banned from the forum. Some people judge on things they do not even try to understand or may be they are missing ability to. Subjectivity rules.

I feel very sorry for the poor girls and hope they may be secured for a better future. I hope their grandmother has a different educational style then the father. I also hope this gets cleared out soon.

Respect for the French who after all desillusions still take more than good care for their "new French".

[sirchai]

She is a 12 year old girl with French nationality whose mother has apparently died and her father could be in prison and you are advocating sending her to Morocco because of her ethnicity rather than to France where her grandmother is - shame on you!

Also I do not see anywhere that it says she cannot speak french, only that she was spoken to in her native language which, as the title identifies her as french, could well be French.

Thank you very much! The girls are innocent, not their fault how they came into this situation. It's sad that so many here are writing racist comments and other nonsense.

Don't we all live in the same world and under the same sun?

[TantraMantra]

don't forget that these kids have apparently been living on the streets for 8 WEEKS - and nobody noticed???????

Not quite. The 12 yr old said they were living with Thai friends. It all sounds very dodgy though.

[GOLDBUGGY]

don't forget that these kids have apparently been living on the streets for 8 WEEKS - and nobody noticed???????

Oh! Somebody noticed alright! Caught talking to 3 strange men? Waiting for Thai Friends to take them home? What were they doing out on the street anyway? Seems to me that if they were Thai Friends they would have taken them to the police long ago, and not to some shelter they couldn't go to on there own. I am not in this business but desperate 11 and 12 year old girls seem like easy targets to me. I am sure that someone in this business could easily spot that and take advamtage of that. So now you know how they survived 8 months on the streets.

[blackthorn2005]

It is not her fault where she was born or what nationality she have and definitely not her fault been in Bangla road. If she was NOT French then why the French embassy were looking for her and her sister.

I did not blame her on anything. Don't assume things. It is a sad story indeed, I do not deny it.

I do speak six language and Thai very good but still that doesnt make that I have nationality for all. The story here is very unclear about many things, but for me the name Claude de Crissey sounds very French so it seems more than typo error about the native language her from the gazette more than Mr Claude speak Macaroon Arabic(this is as much assumption as your first post!).

Claude Crissey might be French, the French Embassy might be efficient and welcoming, the rescue volunteers are certainly very helpful, however, the little girl is lost, dead mother and father probably in jail, she does NOT speak french obviously and they are going to be send back to their grandmother (so, I guess, retired). Those are facts, not my opinion.

Now my opinion is simple (and I don't ask anyone to share it), these little girls will be better off in Morocco where they seem to be from(even though yes I never spoke to those girls to confirm that).

How can you say these are 'facts' not your opinion? you use the words 'might' , 'sounds' 'probably' and 'obviously' when it is not obvious. Let me give you a fact, I know Claude, he Speaks French, English and Spanish. You get one thing right, you never spoke to the girls, probably just as well, they have been through enough trauma.

[blackthorn2005]

don't forget that these kids have apparently been living on the streets for 8 WEEKS - and nobody noticed???????

Excellent field work by Phuket Tourist Police Volunteers has led to the rescue of two preteen French girls thought to have been living on the streets of Phuket for up to eight months.

Guess it's time to buy new glasses, or to read an article BEFORE posting.

Great that they'll come back home, whoever's taking care of them. But indeed a good question how they got there....

It is disturbing the amount of children walking Bangla Road every night, some selling flowers, they are selected because they look 'cute and are more likely to get money out of foreigners, some are Thai, some are not. What they have in common is that are wide open to all sorts of abuse and are being deprived of an education in order to fill someone else's purse. It is sad but it is so common that children walking late at night is taken as the 'norm'.

[endure]

If they were brought up in France they undoubtedly speak French. If they were brought up in Morocco it's highly likely that they speak French as it widely spoken there - Morocco was part of the French colonial empire.

[LivinginKata]

Even more nonsense and inflammatory posts removed. Warning will soon be issued.

[GOLDBUGGY]

It is not her fault where she was born or what nationality she have and definitely not her fault been in Bangla road. If she was NOT French then why the French embassy were looking for her and her sister.

I did not blame her on anything. Don't assume things. It is a sad story indeed, I do not deny it.

I do speak six language and Thai very good but still that doesnt make that I have nationality for all. The story here is very unclear about many things, but for me the name Claude de Crissey sounds very French so it seems more than typo error about the native language her from the gazette more than Mr Claude speak Macaroon Arabic(this is as much assumption as your first post!).

Claude Crissey might be French, the French Embassy might be efficient and welcoming, the rescue volunteers are certainly very helpful, however, the little girl is lost, dead mother and father probably in jail, she does NOT speak french obviously and they are going to be send back to their grandmother (so, I guess, retired). Those are facts, not my opinion.

Now my opinion is simple (and I don't ask anyone to share it), these little girls will be better off in Morocco where they seem to be from(even though yes I never spoke to those girls to confirm that).

The girls are ethnic Moroccans, and as this post says, which yes they probably share a Moroccan Culture and can speak Arabic. But that doesn't mean they were born in Morocco, or can't speak French. In fact many North African Countries do in fact speak French better than English, because of French Colonozation, which include Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, and even Egypt. That is not to mention more southern African Countries like Congo, Angola, and who knows what else. Libya was colonized by the Italy, and thus speak Italian as a second language insread of French.

I had a girlfriend once who was from France but her ancestory was from Morocco. What a Beautiful Girl! I am glad to still count her as my close friend after many years. But she does have a darker complexion than mine, and this is perhaps why these girls went more unnoticed. That part is specualtion. But what isn't specualtion is that many Moroccians cab speak French, as most of there school books are still in French. My Moroccain Girlfriend could speak 5 languages. .

[moskito]

11 & 12 year old girls unsupervised for 8 months. That's almost unbelievable. Congrats to the VPs.

8 month without the attention of any adult farang or thai on the STREET ??

Police never saw them? a lot of question here - TiT

good work Phuket VPs

[Beetlejuice]

I don't understand how the girls got to Phuket in the first place...

mee too.

how they entered thailand? who got parental power? clear this first

or will be useless to rempatiate them... within a month they'll be here again

And also how were they surviving for 8 months.

More questions than answers and can suppose that we will never know the true facts about this case.

[ManInSurat]

The story here is very unclear about many things, but for me the name Claude de Crissey sounds very French so it seems more than typo error about the native language her from the gazette more than Mr Claude speak Macaroon Arabic(this is as much assumption as your first post!).

Macaroon Arabic!?

A macaroon's a cake isn't it? I wish I could speak cake.

Surely it was Berber that was spoken as an ethnic Moroccan language. Even if France was a major colonial force there, it isn't now and even the Wikipedia entry states that Moroccans speak one of two languages as their mother tongue; Moroccan Arabic or Berber. The original Gazette article which the original post was taken from did say native tongue.

Hats off to VPs for doing something (and getting paid nothing for it) the actual authorities should do anyway. I would assume TP & BiB would have had numerous reports of these two, definitely over an 8 month period. I know, had I seen them, I would have reported it.

I am 100% sure in any major western city red-light district equivalents, 11 and 12 year olds walking around at midnight would be detained and helped very quickly.

Sadly this leads me to believe (I am only speculating) there's a much more sinister aspect to this story, given she was engaging 3 males late at night. I find it hard to believe a 12 year old would do this naturally.

I really hope to be proven wrong about this and hope more details come to light that explain this shocking story in greater and more cheerful clarity.

Apathy is killing this planet and our race. It's very sad to watch.

[chooka]

don't forget that these kids have apparently been living on the streets for 8 WEEKS - and nobody noticed???????

Not quite. The 12 yr old said they were living with Thai friends. It all sounds very dodgy though.

Yes and it appears that they dropped them off in the area (reasons one can only assume) and were going to collect them again at 1 a.m. I think the Thai friends have something to explain.

"The girl told the volunteers she had been staying with two Thai friends in Kathu Municipality and they planned to come and pick her up to bring her home at 1am".

From this it would also appear that they weren't living on the streets so to speak but with thais. Where is Kathu Municipality in relation to where this child was found???

What I don't understand is that there were the sisters and the younger one was located a couple of days earlier, when the thai friends noticed the younger one was gone why didn't they go to the police? If they had of the police would have located the older one sooner presumably at the Thai's home.

The heading makes me think also. French girls rescued from red light district, rescued from what? Why not the heading missing french girls located?

[ManInSurat]

Whilst I am delighted the girls are in safe hands now and being repatriated to a, no doubt, very safe home with their grandmother, another thought struck me.

Would such a fuss be made if it was a Thai, Laotian, Burmese or Cambodian 11 or 12 year old, doing the same thing?

The really sad answer is, No.

[gbswales]

A lot of assumptions being made here - not surprisingly in the absence of fact

No one seems to have considered the possibility that the family lived in Thailand (or a nearby country) prior to the mother's death and the fathers imprisonment, or that one of the parents may have been Thai there are so many possibilities.

I also don't understand why anyone should be surprised that they lived on the streets for 8 months - either you have not lived in the world very long or you walk around with your eyes closed! (it doesn't of course mean they slept on the street, merely that they didn't have an official address)

There is no mention of what language they speak - it could well be that they are fluent in Thai and less so in French

Of course they could have been trafficked from any country that their father took them to - there are just too many possibilities to be certain.

Some European 12 year old's look much older just as many Thai 18 year old's look a lot younger - they may, with Moroccan blood have looked like "local" and not even have looked like children and so drawn less attention to themselves. Sadly if people thought they were Thai then I doubt anyone would have even "seen" them - except those that saw them for the wrong reasons.

Whatever I hope that they are going to a better life and that they will be able to adapt without bearing too many scars of their experience - if they have lived in Thailand most of their lives then I imagine they will be very scared right now being taken thousands of miles away to their grandmother (do they know her even?)

there some more speculation for you! I pray they will both have happy lives eventually

[bob4you]

thank you to the Tourist Police Volunteers both Thai's and Farangs. They are there to help.

[bobbysan124]

Glad that both girls have been taken from these streets. Wish good things for them from here on.

[dude007]

French showman Claude has finally done something good. For the rest he is a showman, typical French nuts...

[sfbandung]

The debate about their ethnicity and language baffles me. They're kids for God's sake, their language and nationality is completely irrelevant.

If my 10 year old daughter is missing for an hour I panic. 8 months!

I just hope they're ok now and someone gives them the care they deserve.

[HerbalEd]

don't forget that these kids have apparently been living on the streets for 8 WEEKS - and nobody noticed???????

Haven't you noticed the many street kids of same age in the streets of Thailand? What are you doing when you "notice" them?

[HerbalEd]

"Mr de Crissey, a Frenchman, was able to converse with the ethnic Arabic girl in her native tongue."

So I suggest they kindly send her back to her native country, matching her native language. Which is not France.

(this is not a racist post, cause I know already some guys here will set me on fire right away)

French girls, French embassy, French social services, Mr de Crissey, a Frenchman. What part of the article is it that is not clear to you?. The children did not pick the nationality of either of their parents, their own nationality is pretty clear.

Can you read? The article specifically says the girls are "ethnic Moroccans." Yes, most Moroccans "speak" French but that does not mean they are French nationals.

Also, given that they may well be black-haired/dark-eyed/dark-skinned Arabs, it's unlikely that the Thais would consider them "farangs" ... and many unworldly tourists might well see them as Thai or Asian.

[HerbalEd]

They are French citizens, that is why the French are looking after them and not Moroccans.

No where in the article does it say the girls are "French citizens" so don't be so confident in your assumption. However, the story does say "Mr de Crissey, a Frenchman, was able to converse with the ethnic Arabic girl in her native tongue."

So, why did the "Frenchman" speak to them in Arabic instead of French? France has many Arabic and African residents from former French colonies (e.g., North & West Africa, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, etc.) who are not French citizens and who speak little or no French .... similar to many Latin Americans in the USA.

[HerbalEd]

It is not her fault where she was born or what nationality she have and definitely not her fault been in Bangla road. If she was NOT French then why the French embassy were looking for her and her sister.

I did not blame her on anything. Don't assume things. It is a sad story indeed, I do not deny it.

I do speak six language and Thai very good but still that doesnt make that I have nationality for all. The story here is very unclear about many things, but for me the name Claude de Crissey sounds very French so it seems more than typo error about the native language her from the gazette more than Mr Claude speak Macaroon Arabic(this is as much assumption as your first post!).

Claude Crissey might be French, the French Embassy might be efficient and welcoming, the rescue volunteers are certainly very helpful, however, the little girl is lost, dead mother and father probably in jail, she does NOT speak french obviously and they are going to be send back to their grandmother (so, I guess, retired). Those are facts, not my opinion.

Now my opinion is simple (and I don't ask anyone to share it), these little girls will be better off in Morocco where they seem to be from(even though yes I never spoke to those girls to confirm that).

Assuming the grandmother is fit, I'd opine the girls are better off being with her (i.e., with family).

[HerbalEd]

she does NOT speak french obviously

Since she spoke with a French tourist police volunteer who does not speak Arabic or Berber we can reasonably presume she does speak French.

Try actually reading the story before making comments like this and embarrassing yourself. Here's a direct quote: "Mr de Crissey, a Frenchman, was able to converse with the ethnic Arabic girl in her native tongue."

[stevenl]

she does NOT speak french obviously

Since she spoke with a French tourist police volunteer who does not speak Arabic or Berber we can reasonably presume she does speak French.

Try actually reading the story before making comments like this and embarrassing yourself. Here's a direct quote: "Mr de Crissey, a Frenchman, was able to converse with the ethnic Arabic girl in her native tongue."

And since Mr. de Crissey speaks French, not Berber or Arabic, that conversation was in French. So her native tongue is obviously French.

You're making a fool of yourself here by talking about things you obviously know nothing about.

[BigJohnnyBKK]

11 & 12 year old girls unsupervised for 8 months. That's almost unbelievable. Congrats to the VPs.

What you think they were allowed to freelance? 8-)

I'm sure they were being very well "supervised", by their **pimps**, most likely under the protection of the local BiB mafia.

If not already in the game, that's where all those cute street kids begging/ selling flowers end up soon enough. And in every location I've enquired about it's the BiB mafia importing and managing them - along with the mothers with babies, cripples etc begging. These people are bought and sold and put to work for their handlers, they don't get to keep the money, so if you're going to try to help them buy food don't give cash.

And for god's sake don't try to "rescue" them, more than you're lives worth (which if you haven't figured it out yet here in Thailand isn't much. . .

[mikebike]

Although it is inconsequential to the actual story - the rescue of two very young girls from the streets - the debate over their background is hilarious. To anyone who has reasonable reading comprehension skills their background is obvious.

They are referred to in the title AND first paragraph as "French girls". "using photos supplied by the French Embassy... the 11-year-old has already been rescued and repatriated to France by French social services to live with her grandmother, who instigated the search for them." Repatriated is the key word, definition: repatriate - verb: send (someone) back to their own country.

Further reinforce by the fact the older girl was able to converse to someone who definitely speaks French and definitely does not speak Berber or Arabic according to blackthorn2005 who knows the gentleman in question.

Is it not clear that these are FRENCH girls of Moroccan ethnicity? :huh:

[moe666]

These types of stories and then the follow up post never cease to amaze me. People actually write as they know details about the story that never appeared. Its the old trick, get 20 people setting in a circle the moderator whispers into the first persons ear and says pass it on by the time it gets back to the first person it has been so convoluted that it shares no resemblace to the original message.