Ben
Svasti is the programme coordinator for Trafcord, an
anti-trafficking operation, and the managing director of Viang
Kaew Performing Arts, an events management company. These two
seemingly very disparate careers suit a man with two very
separate sides to his personality. He is also a man who can
understand the problems produced by a lack of identity. He had
that problem!
Ben was born in S t. John’s Wood in London,
not with a silver spoon in his mouth, but probably a Thai gold
one. His father was very British, ending up as the head of
conservation at the National Gallery in London, complete with an
MBE from the Queen of England. His mother, however, was even
more royally aligned, being MR Saisvasdi Svasti attached to the
Royal Court of King Rama VII in the UK. Despite much opposition,
“from both sides”, said Ben, they were married, so Ben and
his three brothers are ‘Luuk Krueng’.
It is generally considered in Thailand, that
a child of mixed parentage is very lucky. Ben might not agree
with that, having had to endure school life in the UK where he
was known as “The Chink”. Particularly galling for a child
with direct lines to Thai Royalty. And perhaps also galling for
his mother, that the young Ben could not speak Thai, although he
could just understand what the maids were saying.
Perhaps because of such personal turmoil, Ben
went to university to study social anthropology. In
understanding the basic make-up of mankind, perhaps he would
gain a better understanding of ‘Ben-kind’!
That understanding was to take some time. Ben
rebelled against his privileged background and would take menial
labouring jobs, which he later says were part of his social
anthropology studies. He was an anti-Vietnam war protestor. He
would take six months off and travel the world. “It was a very
enlightening time for me spiritually,” said Ben. He then went
on to elaborate on being beaten up by the Egyptian military and
made to stand in front of a firing squad. That is part of
enlightenment that most of us would be happy to miss! He also
slept in the snow and in the deserts of the Sahara, and cured
himself of asthma by “running through it.”
In spite of (or perhaps because of) all this,
he did graduate with a B.Sc. in Social Anthropology and an M.A.
in Rural Social Development. He was 24 years old and by then had
also run through his rebellious years, returning to the family
home in the UK as the veritable prodigal son.
He described himself as tending more towards
his Thai heritage. “My Thai side of me is stronger than that
of my brothers. I have always felt closer to my Thai blood,”
said Ben. As part of that closeness he then came to Thailand to
experience the life over here, but with his surname (Svasti
being a royal name) fell immediately into a year of Hi-So
living. However, even for a burned out rebel, this was a
lifestyle far removed from all of his qualifications and
leanings. He still did not know what he wanted to do, but the
Hi-So life was not it. He left the cafe lattes and volunteered
for work at the Cambodian border. “If I can’t make up my
mind what I want to do with my life, I may as well work for
people who need it,” said Ben, explaining in a small way the
rationale that took him to the refugee camps on the border.
It was 1979 and Ben was to spend the next 11
years working there. However, it was here that he found that
being a Luuk Krueng was not an advantage either. He was working
for relief organizations with the Cambodian refugees, and was
using his English surname, Thompson. There he found he was known
as “the farang”! After four years he reverted to using
Svasti to be then berated by the Thai police who said that with
his royal connections they would have been held responsible if
anything had happened to him. Sometimes it seems you cannot win!
Ben described that period of his life as
dangerous work. “Your mind becomes very calm under fire. You
can make very good decisions,” said Ben. Perhaps having
already stood in front of a firing squad helped in this
instance.
However, after 11 years, he resigned. There
was a political stalemate in the camps and he felt he could do
nothing further, especially with the fact that many of the
refugees were now long-stay, and had known nothing other than a
displaced person camp.
He returned to the UK to do a Master’s
degree in practical skills that he could use in development
work, to then return to Thailand to work with Thammasat
University in a three year women’s rights programme.
After this he stayed on, and set up his own
Mother and Child charity organization that was again involved in
women’s issues, the socio-economic development of women and
eventually into the HIV/AIDS arena and then the rights of
children. He describes his years of work in this troubled
battlefield as being a catalyst. “If you do your job well, you
work yourself out of a job.” Part of doing that job was to
motivate government, and here was one situation where his name
was important. “The surname Svasti definitely helps,” said
Ben with a grin.
So to the performing arts. Ben said that he
had dabbled in that artistic side when he was a student, looking
at fashion design and even running his own mobile discotheque,
so when the opportunity arose, he has allowed this side of
himself to come forward. “I am a catalyst,” said Ben again,
“working to put Chiang Mai on the fashion map, using its
strong regional identity.”
Ben Svasti is one of the more interesting people you will
ever meet. 1000 words could never do him justice, so I hope he
will forgive me.
