Meet Pik
This is LIFT's lawyer, Pik. Since she came to work for us in 2014, Pik has been instrumental in partnering with public prosectors to put traffickers and exploiters in jail and protecting and compensating victims of trafficking.
Pik has worked on cases that resulted in:
93 convictions of traffickers and exploiters
Offenders receiving 1000 years of jail time for their crimes.
US $168,000 in fines to the court from offenders
US $375,000 in compensation paid directly to victims
As a graduate of Thailand's prestigious Thammasat Law School, Pik had many options available to her to practice law. She chose to come to work at LIFT because, she says, "I feel like I'm quite lucky that I grew up in a good family in a good environment. I want that for other people."
In a world where we can all feel powerless to do something to help end trafficking, Pik applied herself where she could. "I only have my knowledge," she explains. "If I can use my knowledge to help people, I feel like I'm using my life to help them."
Pik sees her role as advocating for victims in court but also educating judges and other attorneys. She hopes she can use her experience and knowledge of survivors' lives to "change the judicial perspective on victims. They aren't bad girls. I let them know what kind of trauma the victims have." Pik approaches each case with the idea that she has to learn as much as possible to make the cases watertight. She visits the crime scenes, checks in with survivors at home or in shelters and coordinates with other LIFT teams to make sure that her clients have access to the best services available.
Anti-trafficking case law in Thailand is relatively new. The anti-trafficking law was passed in only 2007. Pik always pushes for sentences of offenders to be commensurate with their crimes and for victim compensations to be fair given the extent of trauma that comes with being trafficked and exploited. On a recent case of several children being trafficked, Pik told the parents, "I will do my best to help your son." In the best possible way, she takes on each case as a personal commitment to serve each individual and LIFT's greater mission of freedom through justice.
We are so grateful for Pik's expertise and commitment to our team and our survivor clients.