Thailand has the second highest unplanned teen pregnancy rate in Southeast Asia, despite also having some of the cheapest and most plentiful birth control as well.
Yet we rarely, if ever, see pregnant teens or very young mothers in public. Most often, they quit school and go into hiding at their family’s home as soon as they start to show their condition.
What do they do while they wait for the baby and what does their life look like afterwards?
This is what up-and-coming photographer Tanaphon Ongarttrakul, only 23 himself, pulls back the curtain to show us with his first solo photography show, opening tonight at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand.
Tanaphon Ongarttrakul. Photo: Coconuts.
The show, called “Teenage Pregnancy,” documents three teen mothers and their lives. Tanaphon said that the photography project will continue after this show ends. The artist is a senior at Rangsit University and a photography intern at The Bangkok Post.
His photos show the intimate life of very young mothers and fathers who are suddenly faced with overwhelming responsibility.
He chose this topic because he felt connected to it. “I’ve seen friends that accidentally got pregnant. They would have to leave school to take care of their child and everything they had planned for their future, like furthering their education, changes,” Tanaphon explained.
“The photographs I took for the show document three different families. I personally knew one of the families. The young mother is a senior at my school, so it was easy for me to get access to her. But I wanted to show the difference between families. My senior’s family has high-status and standing in society, but I wanted to find diversity. Another family I photographed, whose daughter is pregnant, has different status. I found them by going around asking my underclassmen.”
He went on to explain what he learned about teen moms in Thailand. Due to family honor and not appearing in a shameful condition, most teenage moms will leave school immediately. Once the child is born, they need to stay home and care for the baby “For the young father, it depends on his family. If his family financially supports him, he would stay in school. If not, he would leave to find a job so that he can support his child,” explained Tanaphon.
A young father leaves his daughter at school. Photo: Tanaphon Ongarttrakul
He talked a bit about life for the three young families after their babies arrived. “Of the three families I photographed, there is only one girl who has to fully devote herself to taking care of a child full-time with no one else to depend on. She has to stay at home all day, she can’t go out at all. She feels a bit of pressure because she is still a teenager who is a mom all of the sudden. Originally, she was from Pathum Thani, but her boyfriend had to go work in Rayong, and he stays at an apartment for workers, and she has to live with him.”
The responsibilities of raising a child, such as endless laundry, are often more than a young mother expects. Photo: Tanaphon Ongarttrakul
“For other families, especially those with status, the mom can still leave her child with her parents to go outside,” he explained.
When asked why Thai teens don’t use the inexpensive and plentiful birth control options that can be purchased cheaply at any 7-Eleven or pharmacy, he said, “Being a young person myself, I know there’s a sense of curiosity and of wanting to try out new things.” He admitted that, sometimes before Thai teens get acclimated to the world of sex and responsibility, “accidents can happen.”
The entry to the exhibition is free, with an opening party tonight at 7pm – 10pm. The Foreign Correspondents Club (FCCT) is located in the penthouse of the Maneeya Center, at BTS Chitlom at Exit 2. Find out more about the exhibition here.
Reader Interactions