My Asian conical hat

Wearing my Asian conical hat in a Bangkok street.

Walking a tropical country under a sun can be tiresome for any kind of persons, even those coming from other tropical countries. It can make you to reduce attention to a very interesting tour in a great site as the Angkorian temples in Siem Reap. Prepare, thus yourself to protect from the sun. I bought an inexpensive Asian conical hat in Bangkok last week – it is called in Cambodia ដួន do’un. As I came back to the hotel, the lady laughed very much as soon as she noticed my hat. She said I was resembling a Vietnamese farmer. ‘Actually I don’t mind to resemblance a Vietnamese farmer,’ I replied, ‘I find it very practical to walk under the sun and even if it is raining is like having a small umbrella attached to your head.’

Google translate supports Khmer now

This is definitely a good news for the reduction of the digital gap in Cambodia: the Google Translate, has released the Khmer translation option that would make the Cambodian language accessible to  65 other global language. It is good to congratulate all persons and organizations working to make computers and Internet accessible to Cambodians in their own language, as well as Khmer language, the main modern branch of the Mon-Khmer linguistic family and a relative to Sanskrit and Pali accessible to the international community. It will be a benefit to students, teachers, journalists, economist, officials and everybody involved in the digital development of Cambodia. 

Let’s preserve historical remnants in Kep and everywhere

An old edification in Bokorville, another former French village at the top of the Bokor Mountain, today a place of reconstruction with big development plants. Photo Al Rodas 04.16.2010.

The upcoming Kep Expo Project is speaking very good about preservation of historical remnants in Kep Province and Cambodia. In this short documentary by Radio Australia we can see that there are people who worry about the protection of the national historical heritage. For me it would not be exaggerated to request the inclusion of Kep Town and Bokorville, as well as many other French colonial places around the country, as Unesco World Heritage Sites and there are many reasons why.   But in order to do so, it is needed an urgent plan of protection before some other groups of people without any historical conscience and the hurry for dollars, will end with the demolition of most colonial old villas of Kep. One thing we have to understand is that the Cambodian past does not end in the Angkorean period. Contrary to it, there are several remnants before and after the Angkor period that fit the complete historical picture of Cambodia.

Cham Kep community blesses new Vocational Center

The Kep Imman and other members of the Cham Village mosque of Kep, lead an act of blessing to the new Don Bosco technical school where some Cham young people will learn a skill for a best future.

Kep City. Although Don Bosco was an Italian Catholic priest of the 19th century, it is also true that several of his schools around the planet are located in the cultural environment of other faiths and thus many of the Don Bosco students. In Cambodian, a Buddhist country that follows Theravada doctrines, Shunni Muslims made the main minority in a proportion of 1.25 percent of the national population. The Islam is followed in Cambodia by the Cham ethnic group, the descendants of the ancient Malay kingdom of Champa, located at the center of modern Vietnam. During the Khhmer Rouge regime there was a particular persecution against the Cham minority. Today there are Cham communities in most of Cambodian provinces. Along the sea, from Sihanoukville to Kep, Cham towns can be distinguished by their traditional mosques. Yesterday the Cham religious authorities of Kep Province visited the new Don Bosco Vocational Center to lead a blessing according to their traditions. The reason is that some students of the Center belong to the Cham communities of Kep.

Please wait more updates for this article…

An agricultural technical center to fight child labor in Battambang

Battambang. It is common to see several constructions sites in modern Cambodia. It is as the former war destruction is already over and everyone is building something to recover the lost time. Unfortunately, the building of schools, hospitals and community areas is much less than the fever for hotels, restaurants, casinos and resorts. Unemployed young people find easily jobs in construction this time, but in many occasions many of those workers are as young as 7 and 10 years old. In Battambang it can be also a norm to see children in construction sites and the brick factories.

Shocking accident in Phnom Penh kills children

The country is now following the development of a horrific accident in the streets of Phnom Penh that kills at least two children and let ten other persons with serious injures this weekend. It is not yet satisfactory the explanations of the family of Miss Bised Marita, 22, who was driving her Camery car number ‘Phnom Penh 2R:5008′  at about 2PM of Friday. Marita is a student of medicine and it seems that she was bringing two young brothers with her. The mother said this morning to the press that her daughter has mental problems. Nine motorbikes, 4 bicycles, 3 children killed and ten persons in the hospital is the result of what first published as a woman that lost control of her car in the busy streets of the capital. A Camery coming from the Independence Monument hit first two motorbikes in front to the Thai Embassy, along the Preah Norodom Boulevard in the Chamkamom District. Other four motorbikes followed by the uncontrolled car. When she seemed to realized what was happening at the corner of the 466′s street, in front to he Ministry of Interior, witnesses say she tried to escape, then she hit other six motorbikes and then 6 child students in bicycles, two of them dying at the spot.

Event under development, wait for updates…

Acleda Point Break

The Cambodian hot news this week was the 30 hours Hostage crisis in an Acleda Bank branch in Kampong Cham, 124 kilometers east of Phnom Penh. The event attracted all the national attention and it showed once more that cell phone companies are living a golden age since news on the spot in Cambodia are reaching a national public by SMS and we could say SMS is the Khmer Twitter so far. The news that two bank robbers took the Acleda branch office at the Stung Treng district in Kampong Cham last Tuesday (22nd January) was followed with interest and attracted security forces that surrounded the bank at the best way of a Hollywood movie. 

Cambodia, emergent market for investment, says Le Figaro

Cambodia is among the emergent world economics with positive perspectives for investment, says French newspaper Le Figaro today in its article ‘New emerging countries offer great opportunities.’ The paper follows the recommendations of US Mark Mobius, the chairman of Franklin Templeton Investments and guru of financial markets.

Buddhism and Ecology

Image of Buddha at the main on top of the Sosir Hill shrine in Kep Province. Photo Al Rodas 2012.

The report of an European Union Delegation to Cambodia, says that ‘environmental and natural resources in Cambodia are threatened by short-sighted over-exploitation on an increasing and threatening scale. This reduces the Country’s overall natural capital, yet whilst great benefits flow to the few; equally great burdens fall on the many.’

Actually, there are thousands of pages on issues like this about Cambodia, mostly produced in English and French with some Khmer translations that few read or analyses. Most of those reports are true, of course, but they remain in archives and, in many occasions, are overlooked or despised by Cambodian leaders as arrogant meddling of Westerns.

What this young man will become

 

I want to share this story I got by email about the big value to support the dreams of the young people. Support children and youth is always a great hope, not only for them, not only for a nation like Cambodia, but also a hope for yourself.

 

This is a true story that had happened in 1892 at Stanford University.
An 18-year-old student was struggling to pay his fees. He was an orphan, and not knowing where to turn for money, he came up with a bright idea.

A Modern Historical Novel

Is a Cambodia a novel inspiration country? Evidently yes, with its troublesome past as a victim of the domino theory during the Cold War. Devastation, nightmares, terror and… Pol Pot. After the fall of the Khmer Rouge regime, Cambodia did not see an end to an even more complicated conflict, once more touched by internal and external interests, elements that molded what is Cambodia now. This political novel of William MacDonalds mixes many elements of that legacy of conflicts in a modern context. An imaginary story that touches reality in several points.

‘Guilt swarms over Cambodia. It is in the billions of dollars of aid that flow into Cambodia’s struggling economy, in the thousands of foreign aid workers that labor in its tiny capital, in the countless charity offices in its provincial towns, in the endless efforts to improve its medieval politics. Emily has come as part of the guilt,’ – After Pol Pot, a Modern Historical Novel.

Cambodians smile a lot

For Cambodians, smile means harmony, welcome to others and peace. It comes probably from Buddhism, where smile is considered a spiritual virtue. Photo Al Rodas.

I asked Lim Socheat to explain to me why Cambodians smile too much. When he listened my question, he smiled and tried to explain me. The topic came because an European friend asked me the meaning of the Cambodian smile. We smile very much in most Latin American countries, though I can say that in some regions there are more smiling behavior than others. The African smile is also attractive plus their persons involved with music and dance in their daily life. In Asia, not every country is smiling, for example, Chinese people do not smile to strangers. 

An apostle of the refugee camps to honor forever

Fr Pierre Ceyrac at the Khmer Refugee Camp Site II in Thailand by 1985. Photo courtesy websitesrcg.com. 

Too many organizations must receive recognition for their commitment to the people during the most troublesome moments of the Cambodian history like the time of civil war and conflict. The Cambodians of the unforgettable refugee camps in Thailand keep by sure a good memory of those institutions and their members spending their times and resources to support the most needed.

Through the Expatriate World

Julien Faliu, the creator of Expat blog. In seven year, his network has gathered more than 420 thousand expatriates from around the world, which 2 thousand are in Cambodia. Photo courtesy.

Since ever, there have been expatriates in all countries and cultures. However, it is in our century, the time of globalization and the Digital Era where we can see an increase of the Expatriate Experience. Different to migrants – though the limit among both concepts might be thin – expatriates refer to skillful persons doing a job or service in foreign nations. It applies to persons contracted by a company to do a specif work, volunteers in humanitarian organizations, personnel in consulates and embassies, travelers willing to settle in a country or region and many others.

Good wishes during the Khmer New Year 2556

It is the first week of the Cambodian year 2556. Unlike Thailand that uses the Theravada Buddhist calendar every where, from the press to official documents, Cambodia seems more attach to the Gregorian Christian calendar. During the new year eve – last April 13 – I got several messages wishing a new Khmer year 2012! 

From building Cambodia to build ASEAN Economic Community, AEC

NagaWorld, Phnom Penh, Cambodia (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Everybody involved in the development and reconstruction of Cambodia, should be reading and studying by now the Statement of the 20th ASEAN Summit hold in Phnom Penh on April 3 and 4. Here you can retrieve the full document. By sure, it will be the inspiration of many policy makers in the country as it is clearly declared : ‘We also agreed to work together based on the priorities to accelerate the building of the ASEAN Community by 2015 and to ensure the achievements of the ASEAN Community beyond 2015‘ (No. 2) It is, therefore, not only the concern of officials and the financial sector, but in a very special way, it must concern all Cambodian sectors, especially education, organizations working for human rights, environment protection, labor and many others. The coming three years must be followed with interest of how a country with so high levels of poverty and other problems, would contribute to the creation of a body such as AEC and how our people will join it.

Digital volunteers?

This week we were reflecting about volunteer work that, most of the time, means to move from your own country or region and spend time far from home in another culture. This morning of Saturday I had with my students of communication a video conference offered by a Colombian photojournalist from Medellín, Diego Andrés Sánchez-Alzate. He made a valuable introduction to photography and photojournalism for those who love it, by showing his own works on Flicker. Photography is a composition and a story told by images, colors, lights and textures, he mentioned, while photojournalism is a careful attention to events. Thanks to the Skype, 18 Khmer students of communication could enjoy the exposition of a young Colombian journalist, far from them more than 18 thousand kilometers (11 thousand miles.) Diego offered his conference, then it is also a great way to be a volunteer online. Just you need a computer, Internet connection, someone ready to translate and the will to share with other communities in any corner of the planet.

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