Coronavirus helps the Chao Lay - 25 November 2020

This is Sanan Changnam. He is part of a group of people called 'Chao Lay'. The Chao Lay live in Phuket, Thailand. Chao Lay means 'people of the sea'. The Chao Lay spend a lot of time at sea. They do a lot of fishing. The beach is very important to them.

Lots of people visit Phuket. Its beaches are very popular with tourists. Businesses build lots of hotels for the tourists. This situation is a problem for the Chao Lay. But coronavirus changed things. Now, there aren't many tourists in Phuket. The building work stopped. For the Chao Lay, life is now OK again.

The beach is a big part of life for the Chao Lay. The Chao Lay keep their boats here. They bury their dead family under the sand. They pray here.

Tourism businesses want the Chao Lay to leave the beach. The Chao Lay don't own the beach. They didn't know it was possible. They don't read or write. They didn't know the rules.

Now, the Thai government is helping. It knows the land is important for the Chao Lay. It wants the Chao Lay to get the land. The government has an idea. It can buy the land for the Chao Lay.