"...There are an estimated 200,000 Burmese children living in Thailand, many of whom are working, with 20% of the migrant workforce thought to consist of children aged 15 to 17 years of age. It was seen to be a standard practice for parents to send children out to work, especially once they have reached the age of 13 years and seen to be physically capable of bringing in extra income for the family. Children may voluntarily leave or be taken out of school to work alongside their parents in the factory or fields, as domestics or as service workers in shops and restaurants. Researchers have found that children working in Mae Sot factories and the agricultural area are subject to the worst forms of child labour, working long hours and being exposed to hazardous chemicals and conditions that are in direct violation of Thai labour law. The difficulty of obtaining registration and the work permit makes for a tenuous existence. Consequently, young people can be coerced or forced into bad employment situations... As parent?s lives are consumed by the need to work and make money, children can be denied the love, care and guidance essential to their healthy growth and development and may be separated from or even abandoned by parents. Some parents abuse and exploit their children by telling them not to come back home if they cannot earn a fixed amount per day. Consequently these children go out on the streets looking for daily work to survive; this can include begging, collecting recyclable rubbish and carrying heavy loads. This pressure is seen to change the moral character of children with some turning to stealing. Children who are unemployed, neglected, abandoned, or orphaned can end up permanently on the streets. Being out of school and on the streets increases the risk of being trafficked and recruitment by gangs, who physically threaten and may even kill children who try to escape... Statelessness is a real risk for children who are unable to receive identity registration in Burma and for those born in Thailand of migrants, especially unregistered parents. Despite the ratification of conventions, such as the United Nation?s Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989 (CRC), and the International Convention of Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) that stipulate birth registration of all children born in Thailand, in reality only registered migrants who hold a work permit can register their child?s birth. A change in the Civil Registration Act, effective from the 23rd August 2008, will allow all children born on Thai soil, regardless of their status, to register their births and obtain a birth certificate; however it remains to be seen how this will be implemented. In the meantime the Committee for Promotion and Protection of Child Rights (Burma) (CPPCR), a Burmese CBO established in 2002, provides a registration service for children from Burma that in some cases, has been recognized by some Thai schools and the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR)..."