Forever in Transit

A Language In Crisis

2011-08-20T03:45:00.003-04:00

COMMENTARY

A Language in Crisis

Theary Seng (Photo: Nigel Dickinson)

The Cambodian language is dying: the spoken language is either crude and earthy (to the point of offensiveness) or highly stylized (to the point of incomprehension); the written language is in crisis from carelessness and undevelopment, mummified from antiquity, rattled by modernity. And no one is doing anything about it.

Here, I am not speaking as a linguist, which I am not; nor am I speaking as a lawyer, which I am. (Both professions parse language for clarity.) I am not even speaking as someone who is fluent, but only proficient, in speaking her native tongue. However, I am speaking as someone who has been acutely observing communication in the Khmer language for at least the last 7 years, both spoken and written, and who is aghast at the state of affairs.

Here are some general observations which should cause great concern for Cambodian educators and leaders:

1. 1. SPOKEN: The prevailing use (by both adults and children alike) of crude, offensive language—“aign” for I/me, “haign” for you, “veer” for him/her/them (when its correct use is for “it”), “phoeum” for pregnancy (when the word is reserved for animals), and the myriad cuss words, many of sexual crassness which I cannot even write, etc.—needs to stop. More than impolite, it’s dehumanizing.

The matter careens to the opposite extreme in formal setting where the spoken Khmer is so stylized and antiquated that comprehension is lost on the listeners. The speaker takes more pleasure in using big words than communicating his/her message; sometimes, I wonder if the speaker him/herself understands what s/he is saying.

2. 2. WRITTEN GENERALLY: The current written Khmer language is a nightmare with great limitations for communicating complex ideas and for understanding. The written Khmer lacks clarity.

First, there lacks a modern, comprehensive Khmer dictionary incorporating new words and uniform spelling, e.g. “Sida, “Aids”, “Hiv”, “Untac” are used as words without understanding their background as deriving from foreign acronyms and their full meaning.

Second, there lacks a modern, comprehensive Khmer-English (vice-versa) dictionary to accommodate the barrage of materials being produced from translation, as many new thoughts and documents are first written in English and not originally created in Khmer. Much of the translated works have not been reviewed for accuracy nor for comprehension; thus, much gibberish are entering the public square for consumption, which oftentimes creates more confusion than learning. If I am to guestimate, on average only 50% of the published translated materials are accurate; I have worked with the best translators (meticulous, conscientious, deeply experienced) in the country, and on average their works are only 85% correct.

Fourth, Cambodia has been, until recently, relying on oral traditions. Formal education had been very late in coming. For example, only 144 Cambodians had completed the baccalaureate (high school diploma) by 1954, with no tertiary education in the whole country.

Fifth, all the above difficulties are contextualized by a Cambodia which has been mummified by 90 years of French colonialism and broken by years of Cold War instability: civil war, followed by genocide, occupation, and now autocracy. The current political leadership believes theoretically in education but lacks understanding of what education requires in practical terms; it is a leadership which keeps the population thinking only of survival, leaving little room for any other thoughts, e.g. clear communication, quality education, civility, human flourishing, social and national development. Related, we are currently a society which values form over substance.

3. 3. WRITTEN STRUCTURE: The Khmer written structure makes already for difficulty in communicating, without the added technical issue of typing and layout. Written Khmer (i) has words running into each other; the spacing of words and phrases are at the discretion of the writer/typist, with little standard guidelines; (ii) has no proper nouns; (iii) has very limited punctuations, effectively only the period (khan), question mark (often times used with the khan), the double quotation marks (“s”, but not ‘s’) vacillating between the French and English versions, and the colons (again, vacillating between the French and English versions, sometimes creating confusion as the English colon is exactly like a Khmer vowel). If used at all, the comma is inserted with great reluctance or inconfidence because its function is not widely understood.

4. 4. TYPING KHMER: Currently, two competing systems exist for typing Khmer – the pictorial system (best exemplified by Limon) and the Unicode system. As a way of illustration, the act of typing “A” in the old (but still in prevalent use) pictorial system requires three strokes on a keyboard, as one is effectively drawing a picture of the “A”. Consequently, the pictorial system is not conducive to searches and the internet. The Unicode (universal) system allows for searches and internet usage, but presents more problems in doing layout for publication with all the “hair” and “feet” of the vowels and words jumping all over the page. One almost needs another pair of hands with another set of fingers to type Khmer in any of the two systems.

Additionally, there is little harmonization of the fonts within each system, as well as little harmonization between the systems to each other. And on some computer, saving a word document to transfer from one computer to another can lead to words and phrases mixing into gibberish nonsense, a phenomenon we, at CIVICUS Cambodia, encountered recently in saving, transferring, printing a draft Khmer curriculum we have been working on for a workshop in Siem Reap!).

Why am I listing these language woes, which are really only the top of the iceberg? Because language is the foundation of education, which is the foundation of ideas and deep thoughts and clear thinking.

Because language is the foundation of communication, which is the foundation of relationship, which is the foundation of human flourishing, which is the foundation of societal well-being, which is the foundation of national development.

I see a lot of frustrated Cambodians due to their inability to communicate clearly and precisely. I see a society lacking a vehicle to communicate ideas and to build on ideas for deeper thought and clearer thinking. The key is missing for all the woes we are experiencing in current-day Cambodia – from educational failing to human rights abuses. Or, if not missing, than that key is broken.

And that key is a living language.

________________

Theary C. SENG

Founding President

CIVICUS: Center for Cambodian Civic Education

Cambodian Journal of Natural History

2011-08-20T03:36:00.002-04:00

Cambodian Journal of Natural History
Fauna & Flora International
http://www.fauna-flora.org/publications/cambodian-journal-of-natural-history/

Preah Vihear verdict was a slap in the face for Thai nationalists

2011-07-21T04:49:00.003-04:00

Preah Vihear verdict was a slap in the face for Thai nationalists

July 20, 2011
By Pavin Chachavalpongpun
The Nation

Monday's verdict of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Preah Vihear Temple case is a slap in the face for members of the Bangkok establishment.

They should not have shot themselves in the foot in the first place. They have been politicising the Preah Vihear issue since 2008 in attempts to undermine their political opponents. They successfully created instability along the border. They even "declared war" with Cambodia to justify their confrontational policy. Now they have been told to remove themselves from the disputed area.

There are four main "orders" in the ICJ verdict. First, both parties must immediately withdraw their military personnel currently present in the provisional demilitarised zone and refrain from any military presence within that zone and from any armed activity directed at it. Second, Thailand should not obstruct Cambodia's free access to the temple, and the two countries should continue their cooperation within Asean and allow observers to have access. Third, each country should inform the court of their compliance with the mentioned provisional measures. And fourth, these measures are binding and create international legal obligations with which both countries are required to comply.

Emerging from the ICJ meeting in The Hague, Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya, a former distinguished member of the yellow-shirt People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) and a known anti-Hun Sen figure, continued to unashamedly explain away the Preah Vihear case rather than facing the truth.

He told reporters, "The court decision was in line with the Thai government's demand for the withdrawal of Cambodian military personnel in the conflicting area." Kasit added, "We will urgently request Indonesian observers to observe the withdrawal. Thailand has always supported Asean's role in mediating the conflict."

Meanwhile, departing Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, in yesterday's meeting at the National Security Council, assigned relevant agencies to map out the framework for talks with Cambodia in implementing the ICJ's orders. Yet Abhisit still insisted on managing the problem through existing bilateral frameworks, such as the Thai-Cambodian General Border Committee, rather than regional mechanisms as recommended by the ICJ.

Abhisit also said, "The ICJ's orders have no bearing on the Thai boundary line and sovereignty". So does this mean the disputed area is not a part of Thai territory, as repeatedly claimed by Abhisit, and thus withdrawing from it will not affect Thai sovereignty?

These controversial statements reveal the ugly reality - the politics of the Preah Vihear issue are full, in the words of a Thai historian, of deception. Deception, distortion and blatant lies to the Thai public are keys to this complicated political game. Both Abhisit and Kasit quickly declared that the ICJ verdict was to Thailand's advantage. Was it really?

Cambodia took the case back to the ICJ earlier this year. It requested that the ICJ order Thailand to withdraw its troops from the area. Therefore, in many ways, the ICJ has responded to the Cambodian request. Kasit immediately downplayed Cambodia's victory by glorifying the court decision forced upon Cambodia to withdraw its military personnel.

What Kasit did not tell the Thai public is that the ICJ unanimously rejected Thailand's request for the case introduced by Cambodia to be removed from the General List, and that Thailand must not prevent Cambodia from providing fresh supplies to its non-military personnel in the vicinity of the Preah Vihear Temple.

Perhaps Kasit had some reasons for not telling the whole truth. The ICJ's unanimous rejection of Thailand's request to dismiss the case has immensely embarrassed not only the Abhisit government, but also some of its supporters in the mainstream media and academia. Some irresponsible Thai historians continue to belittle the role of the ICJ and endorse a military option to deal with the problem. They still make absurd arguments, such as, "Cambodia may legally own the temple, but the land beneath the temple belongs to Thailand." It shows that nationalism is a powerful force and can prevail over rational thinking and good judgement.

How long will they be able to lie and distort facts? It is surprising why Natural Resources and Environment Minister Suwit Khunkitti, who represented Thailand in the 35th World Heritage Committee (WHC) Conference in Paris last month and threatened to resign from the WHC, has not come forward to condemn the ICJ's verdict. Suwit tried desperately to exploit the Thai resignation to boost his election campaign. He paid for a full-page advertisement in a newspaper in which he claimed to have saved his motherland from a greedy neighbour. Yet, Suwit failed to win the election. Politicians should not count on lies alone as a survival strategy in the political game.

Who actually gained from the latest Preah Vihear drama? Perhaps, the Yingluck government. The announcement of a demilitarised zone will reduce the influence of the military on foreign affairs. Yingluck has wanted to neutralise the military. This is a good chance for her to do so. Thai foreign policy toward neighbouring countries has been dominated by the military since the Cold War. It has been made a security-centric policy, thus legitimising the role of the army.

Troop withdrawal is a powerful way to strip the military's authority in Thai policy toward Cambodia. Big bosses in the army were in the past keen to create a state of ungovernability along the border to justify their power position. But they pushed it too far. Yingluck will have the last laugh, using the hand of the ICJ to subdue the power-hungry men in green uniforms.

*Pavin Chachavalpongpun is a fellow at Singapore's Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.

Thailand Going Rogue

2011-04-27T04:22:00.004-04:00

Thailand Going Rogue
Bangkok's political turmoil is damaging regional stability.

APRIL 26, 2011
The Wall Street Journal

Fighting over the disputed territory surrounding the Preah Vihear Temple along the Thai-Cambodia border resumed last Friday, with both sides trading artillery fire and accusations of targeting civilian villages throughout the weekend. The Associated Press reports 12 soldiers confirmed dead.

The world may never know which side started the latest clash, since Thailand continues to resist allowing international observers to monitor the area. And both countries deserve some blame for stirring the pot at various times. Nevertheless, it has become increasingly clear that the Thai military is doing nothing to ease the tension.

That much we know from the way that the military, and then Bangkok, vetoed initiatives to get the two sides talking. After the last major bout of fighting in February, Cambodia succeeded in bringing the matter to the United Nations Security Council, which promptly kicked it back to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Indonesia, the chair of Asean this year, has played shuttle diplomacy trying to bring the two sides together, but Bangkok continues to balk. That has allowed Cambodia to play the aggrieved and more reasonable party.

Thailand's unwillingness to even contemplate compromise may be due to the broader impasse in its domestic politics. In 2008, the royalist People's Alliance for Democracy, more commonly known as the yellow shirts, took up the temple issue as a cudgel against the government of Samak Sundaravej. The same group has now turned on Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and is castigating him for not taking more aggressive action to recover the temple.

Meanwhile, the military is positioning itself as the main defender of the monarchy and Thai sovereignty. Tension between the military and the civilian government has been mounting since Mr. Abhisit announced elections would be held within the next few months. Bangkok is rife with rumors that a coup is imminent.

The military, palace and business elite all fear that supporters of deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra will win their fourth straight general election. The last three results were annulled by a coup and court rulings, and the red shirt supporters of Mr. Thaksin have become increasingly restive as a result of their disenfranchisement. Even if their Puea Thai Party wins, there is a strong chance they will not be allowed to form a government. So further unrest later this year seems likely.

In this context, a fight with Cambodia might seem an appealing way out of the deadlock. A limited war with a much smaller neighbor could unify Thais, as the red shirts would feel pressure to get behind the military in a time of national crisis. Mr. Abhisit, who has never won an election and is widely regarded as a figurehead within Thailand, could be dispensed with, and elections pushed off until the glow of victory and massive public spending restore the Bangkok elite's popularity.

Perhaps the Thai military understands how much could go wrong with such a scenario and is only engaging in brinksmanship. But even this runs the risk of accidental escalation. And once a conflict starts, Asean nations would be put in the impossible position of having to choose sides, which might tear the organization apart.

Thailand's friends have a responsibility to dissuade the military from military adventures. It's also time they addressed the root cause of the problem. This conflict is a sign that the nation's internal political crisis is beginning to generate external costs, showing once again that Asean's credo of noninterference in domestic politics needs to be tempered with an awareness that promotion of democracy is part and parcel of regional stability.

As long as the military is allowed to play its pivotal role in national politics, Thailand will fail to play its rightful role as a stabilizing force in Southeast Asia.

Is the Thai-Cambodia standoff a conflict of convenience?

2011-04-27T04:16:00.008-04:00

Is the Thai-Cambodia standoff a conflict of convenience?
Media, experts suspect darker motives behind bloody border clash

Patrick Winn
April 26, 2011 04:47

A Cambodian soldier stands guard near the Cambodia-Thailand border in Oddar Meanchey province on April 26, 2011, amid tension following deadly exchanges of fire across the border. Cambodia accused Thailand on April 25, of damaging ancient jungle temples at the centre of their bloodiest fighting since a bitter border dispute flared up almost three years ago.

A cursory review of the deadly tit-for-tat shelling along the Thai-Cambodia border suggests two nations are killing each other to claim grounds surrounding an ancient Hindu temple.

However, as I recently wrote, "the two nations are ostensibly warring over less than two square miles of scrubby land. But this disputed territory — devoid of gems, oil or any valuable resource — has also become the focal point of a struggle to preserve national honor and save political face."

Are there even darker motives afoot?

Op-eds and reports in the Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine and The Economist are now openly suggesting that the Thai military may be whipping up conflict in a wag-the-dog game to stoke a national crisis and thus create context for calling off coming elections.

The army's favored party, now in power, could possibly lose the election. Victory for the opposition could spell out amnesty for fugitive ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra, the populist mogul minister bounced by the military in a 2006 coup. That scenario is unimaginably horrid to the powerful military figures who booted Thaksin in the first place.

Wagging the dog only works if the dog doesn't know it's being wagged, right? If Western media outlets were to uncover this alleged game, wouldn't this subterfuge fail?

Only if Thai voters read English-language outlets such as the Wall Street Journal. And, for the most part, they don't.

Thai papers, which are less apt to challenge the military, offer a blow-by-blow account of Thai soldiers defending their ground and sustaining attacks from "Khmer troops."

In one prominent Thai daily, Matichon, we have the foreign minister declaring that "patience has run out" and that "we won't accept living under Khmer bullets anymore." Competitor Thai Rath has accounts of Cambodian soldiers "violating territory." Photos show wounded Thai troops wheeled off on stretchers and displaced villagers squatting on shelter floors.

We also have the deputy Thai prime minister sounding downright exasperated at speculation the election might be cancelled.

"I've had to answer this question everyday, whether there will be an election or not," Thailand's deputy PM, Suthep Thaugsuban, told Matichon. "It's positively clear. I've yet to convey anything that would create misunderstanding among our brothers and sisters."

Meanwhile, Thailand's interior minister confirms that, actually, the clashes may prevent the parliament dissolution that would precede new elections. And Thaksin's camp has even had to deny a wild conspiracy that the self-exiled mogul is secretly commanding Cambodian soldiers to attack Thailand.

Is the military fighting to preserve Thailand's territory and honor? Or is it staging conflict to upend a coming election?

The answer depends on where you get your news.

via KI-MEDIA

2011-04-27T04:03:00.003-04:00

Letter denouncing alleged mistreatment and corruption at the Cambodian Embassy in Paris

Dear Readers,

Please find below an anonymous letter from one of our readers in France, protesting the corruption at the Cambodian Embassy in Paris. This irate reader complaints about the rude behavior of Cambodian officials at the embassy, as well as unacceptable demand for fees that exceed the legal limits. The original letter is in French. The English version is our translation.

Thank you,

KI-Media team

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hello,

I am a Cambodian citizen working in France.

I am writing to request information about corruption from your institution.

In fact, there are many Cambodians working in France like me who consider the Cambodian Embassy as the only authority in France that will help and assist us in case of need.

However, you're more like vampires who exploit the blood of innocent workers.

First, you treat us very badly. Each of us who are going to the embassy are just spitted with humiliation with your disdainful gaze and your rude words. You only ask us for money without providing any justification.

For example, the cost to extent a passport is fixed by yourself and this is different to the legal amount.

In fact, you consider us as enemies or slaves to exploit or to terrorize...

Quite frankly, Cambodian immigrants in France do not need you.

People like you should find shelter with the mafia in the nefarious district of St. Denis.

I will copy this letter to all Cambodian newspaper around the world.

YOU MUST STOP NOW! THAT’S ENOUGH!

WE NEED CONFIDENCE IN OUR COUNTRY WITH REPRESENTATIVES WHO ARE NOT CORRUPT!

POOR KHMER WORKER

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bonjour,

Je suis un citoyen cambodgien qui travaille en France.

Je vous écris pour vous demander des informations concernant les corruption dans votre établissement.

En fait, il y a beaucoup de cambodgiens qui travaillent en France comme moi qui considère l'ambassade du Cambodge comme la seule autorité cambodgienne en France qui va les aider et les assister au cas où ils ont besoin d'aides.

Cependant, vous êtes plutôt comme des vampires qui exploitent le sang des travailleurs innocents.

D'abord, vous nous traitez mal. Chacun de nous passe à l'ambassade juste pour êtes craché au dessus avec vos regards d’humiliation, et des paroles impolis. Vous ne demandez que de l'argent sans aucune justification.

Par exemple, le prolongement du passeport est fixé avec un prix par vous même par rapport à la quantité de l'année et qui n'est pas du tout légal ou règlementaire.

En fait, vous nous prenez comme des ennemies ou des esclaves à exploiter, à terroriser....

Je vous dis franchement, les immigrés cambodgiennes en France n'ont pas besoin de vous.

Les gens comme vous devront trouver un toit chez les mafias dans le quartier sensible à St. Denis.

Je voudrais faire une copie à tous les journals cambodgien partout dans le monde.

IL FAUT QUE VOUS VOUS ARRETEZ! CA SUFFIT!

NOUS AVONS BESOIN DES CONFIANCES EN NOTRE PAYS AVEC UN BON REPRESENTANT QUI N'EST PAS CORROMPU!

PAUVRE KHMER TRAVAILLEUR

COMMENTS

Anonymous said...

So thing has not been change since 1997....

I confirm this Cambodian embassy to Paris is full of men and women who are there only to make money and certainly not help Cambodians. They are crooks of the nation. In 1997, I was student in Marseille. I had to go to Geneva for an interview but my passport was almost expired, validity less than 6 months required by Swiss Embassy to get a Swiss visa. I so called the Cambodian Embassy to have my passport's validity extension. The Cambodian man at the Embassy said:

Oh no problem, we are all khmers we need to help each other. Just come here to Paris and you will get your passport validity extension.....

Wouah, great! I have never heard such thing from Cambodian officials. But I wanted to double-check. I asked my French girl friend to call the embassy again. She got the same response as I. So with great hope, I paid a TGV ticket (more than 500 French Francs ~ 85 euros, extremely expensive for my student budget). I arrived at the embassy at around 9h30. A man at the reception desk was playing Tetris on the embassy computer. I said hello and explained my case. He pointed me the lady with who I had to see. I went to see her and explained the situation again. She looked at me and explained me the process bla bla bla.... then she said, you need to take a rendez-vous at least 3 days before coming here.
I insisted with politeness again and again before the passport extension. She finally said: anyway the ambassador is not here, he drives her daughter back to the aiport and no-one has a stamp and can signs the passport.

But the reason behind it is that she wanted me to pay and as student I have no money for her and anyway I don't want to pay. Furthermore the lady was really antipathy. She was just there to suck Khmer bloods.

The result of my day to Cambodian Embassy was tired and 150 euros of expense and no-visa.

We need to write all these stories to French deputies and government to inform them of the corruption of this Cambodian Embassy. Corruption must be punished by law. We need to have witness, next time go to the embassy with hidden Camera and record everything. We call also call for some journalists to this job.

Bon courage a mes compatriotes Khmers.

2:32 PM

Anonymous said...

Not only in France, in Germany is the same. For instance, every normal visa costs 50€ in wich 30 € send to Phnom Penh and 20€ go the boss. That is normal, if they don't do like how can they buy Ville (1-3), 2nd wife and luxus cars without pay tax in Cambodia? That is the sickness of developing countries, but Cambodia is the worst method.

2:45 PM

Anonymous said...

Cambodian Embassy in Washington,DC clerk arbitrarily would fix and increase fees on the documents as well.

I helped a friend's kid to renew her passport(paid regular fee) and a requested additional affadivit of certification that's supposed to be free listed online.But the clerk threatened no extra $50 added no paperwork on a hand writtne note sent to me.

I called and asked to speak to the clerk in charge.To my surprise,the person turned out to be a Cambodian American volunteer who said the extra charge was for his time and service.

How about that?

7:06 PM

Anonymous said...

The French embassy staffs (Cambodians) in Phnom Penh are the most corrupted staffs of all embassy staffs in Cambodia as well.

When some one sponsors their spouse or relatives to French, they have to pay the most outrageous extra fees to those staffs.

10:35 PM

Thai media use spins, half-truths, misinformation to manipulate people's opinions

2010-08-01T13:20:00.000-04:00

It's not even Monday yet since the UNESCO Meeting in Brazil and there are so many articles/reports about Preah Vihear come out of Thailand. Thailand is obsessed with the issue and is working overtime to whip up fear and nationalism. The articles/reports are full of biases, half-truths, missing information, and misinformation. The wordings and/or comments/opinions are aimed to instigate, provoke, even promote suspicion and hatred between Thais and Cambodians and at the same time make Thailand as a victim. Some of the articles by The Nation and Bangkok Post don't even have author and disguised as news reports. Make no mistake about it. These reports by the Thai Media do have impact on public opinion. They work to lobby supports for Thailand and, along with guns and threat of war, put pressure on UNESCO, ASEAN, and the international community. The overall result served to hamper Cambodian development, damage public perception of Cambodia, and make Cambodians lose faith in the international organizations as an unbiased, fair, peaceful, independent, and free of any kind of intimidation or pressure. But worst of all, Thailand’s intimidation of UNESCO into inaction will cause many lost opportunities to protect, preserve, and share Preah Vihear to the world and may cause countless damages to the ancient Khmer Temple due to the delay. At the same time, Thai media biases reports and propagandas are repeated and perpetuated by many media in the region and around the world such Channel News Asia, CNN, etc., and wrong, half-truth, manipulated information, and misinformation are reported as facts.

Thai media spin and propagandize the Prasat Preah Vihear issue.

2010-08-01T12:32:00.003-04:00

The bright yellow washing detergent
1/08/2010 Voranai Vanijaka
Bangkok Post

If it looks like a Hindu, if it was built by a Khmer and if it has all the characteristics of a Cambodian - then it must belong to Thailand. But rest assured, the dispute over the 4.6 square kilometre portion of the Preah Vihear temple isn't really about the 4.6 square kilometres.

It isn't even about Preah Vihear itself. Therefore, this commentary will not dwell on who Preah Vihear really belongs to.

Though this must be said, people seems to neglect the fact that another World Heritage site, Vihear Phra Mongkolpitr in Ayutthaya, may be taken off the World Heritage list by Unesco. The reason is because it's so poorly run that it has become more like a weekend market filled with garbage.

And we, Thailand, still have the gall, the audacity, to make claims with the World Heritage Committee.

But this isn't about Preah Vihear or Vihear Phra Mongkolpitr. This is about the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD). This is about the New Politics Party.

This is about the yellow shirts.

In 2005 when the PAD came out in droves and shook the capital city of Bangkok, they managed to bring the poor and elites together.

Covered head-to-toe in sunscreen, high society khunyings put on their Gucci sunglasses and donned yellow silk blouses and flowery hats. Umbrellas in hand, they took to the streets with their prai counterparts.

How was this possible? The PAD's slogans sang to everyone's heartstrings: down with corruption, taking pride in nationalism and - last but not least, in fact, it's definitely the most - protect the royal institution.

It was simple political ingenuity. It was brilliant.

Suddenly, Thaksin Shinawatra making funny faces during an audience with His Majesty the King became a matter of national controversy.

''He made funny faces. He must be a traitor!''

''He made funny faces. He must want to bring down the monarchy and become president!''

Smack it, wrap it and pack it - the people bought it, hook, line and sinker.

If that wasn't enough, there's Preah Vihear - a place most Thais had never even heard of until the PAD mentioned it.

Sovereignty. Pride. Nationalism.'

'That traitor is trading our heritage, our land, our history, for a casino in Koh Kong!''

''He's in collusion with a foreign country!''

Oh how that whipped the Thai people into a fury - then and now.

I say then and now, because that is the cow that the PAD will milk until it runs dry. But you see, this cow never runs dry, for her name is ''pride'', ''nationalistic pride''.

Never mind the corruption bit - any old political movement can sing that tune. But nationalism, sovereignty and the royal institution? Now that is some strong detergent for a thorough washing of the brain.

Do not be surprised that the yellow movement, which has been relatively quiet over the past year, is now making plenty of headlines.

They have merely been building their political networks.

Do not be shocked that Major General Chamlong Srimuang can led a political gathering of hundreds of people to the Unesco offices in Bangkok - a city under emergency decree where a political gathering of the red shirts means a police round-up and into the prison they go.

But a political gathering of the yellows? Well, here's a newsflash: the emergency decree has been renamed ''the Emergency Red Only, with Special Exception to His Excellency Chamlong Srimuang the Untouchable Decree''.

Do not even raise an eyebrow that the yellow banners of nationalism, sovereignty and the royal institution are flying again.

After all, they are now the New Politics Party and Bangkok district elections are coming up.

As well, the general election - by all accounts - could be coming as soon as early next year. Not to mention, the Democrat Party might be dissolved by the Constitution Court over alleged illegal donations.

Somebody is licking their chops at filling the vacuum.

On the Preah Vihear issue, if we were to look at the Thai press we would see columns and articles decrying: ''Abhisit is acting too late!''

''The government is losing our sovereignty!''

''Ignorance and lethargy are causing us to lose our national integrity!''

Well, the mind of the media is as easily washed as anyone else's. It is all playing into the hands of the yellow shirts.

Naturally, in the past week the prime minister came out swinging hooks and uppercuts about saving the integrity of 4.6 square kilometres that looks like a Hindu, was built by a Khmer and has all the characteristics of a Cambodian - all of which supposedly stands on Thai soil.

Fortunately for the prime minister, victory to Thai pride was hailed and integrity was safe. We managed to get a delay in the decision because we threatened: ''We're gonna quit and won't play with you guys anymore! Boo hoo!''

At the heart of it, the prime minister didn't have much choice. Failing to act, he may have been branded ''a sell-out'' or even ''a traitor''. No politicians, especially ones in government, can afford that.

Shouting the slogans of pride, nationalism, sovereignty and the royal institution worked out wonderfully for the yellow shirts four years ago in helping to bring down Thaksin Shinawatra. Today, the same slogans will help to expand their political power.

Patriotism is the love of one's country. Nationalism is the vanity of one's country. You see, dear readers, it is not about 4.6 square kilometres. It is not about Preah Vihear.

It's about the yellow shirts. It's about the PAD.

It's about the New Politics Party making its move to win the Thai people's hearts and minds, and hence our votes, by appealing to that basest of society's instincts - nationalism.

WTH?

2010-07-27T15:20:00.003-04:00

Hundreds of Thai nationalists led by a leader of the "yellow shirt" movement, Chamlong Srimuang (not pictured), gather outside the UNESCO office in Bangkok July 27, 2010, to voice opposition to Cambodia's plan to administer Preah Vihear Temple, an ancient border temple and a World Heritage Site. Some Thais said the plan would compromise Thailand's claim to land in a disputed border territory with Cambodia. REUTERS/Sukree Sukplang

You gotta be kidding me! This will make UNESCO shit in their pants.

Not enough.

2010-07-27T15:06:00.005-04:00

ECCC
Monday, Jul. 26, 2010By Douglas Gillison / Phnom PenhTime Magazine (USA)
Cambodians hoping for a punishment to match their suffering expected more. In its first verdict, the U.N.-backed tribunal established in 2006 to try the leaders and decision makers of the Pol Pot regime convicted the regime's secret police chief of war crimes and crimes against humanity, sentencing him on Monday to 35 years in prison for the murders of as many of 14,000 people...

Are you f--king kidding me? A moto thief gets longer sentence than that. What a F--king farce! How did they come up with that number? Could it be that that is the highest number they can count?

Wow...

2010-07-27T15:02:00.003-04:00

Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen (front) inspects an honour guard as Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong walks behind him at the Istana in Singapore. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

BarCamp Phnom Penh 2009

2009-08-08T08:00:00.002-04:00

BarCamp Phnom Penh 2009
An open conference of all things Technology, Communication and Innovation. It's a user generated conferences — open, participatory workshop-events, whose technology-related content is provided by participants.
Venue: Paññasastra University of Cambodia (PUC)
Date: October 3 - 4, 2009

BarCamp Phnom Penh '09
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Where Elephants Weep Premeir

2008-11-29T15:23:00.002-05:00

Andy Brouwer has a post about the premier of the Cambodian Rock Opera "Where Elephants Weep." Also has pictures. These pictures below are from his blog.

http://www.andybrouwer.co.uk/blog/

A poem I wrote just now.

2008-05-20T14:58:00.002-04:00

Hugging an old man.

I hug him tight,
bear chest,
half naked.
I want to feel his hard earned wrinkles.
His skin sagging like laundry hanging
draping his sorrows over his skeleton frame.
His pain roll down his face like tear drops
and the sweat on his forehead tells his story.
I want to squeeze him until secrets oozing out
like hot palm sugar.

I hug him tight like long lost friends,
generations apart, oceans apart, world apart.

I hug him tightly to feel myself 30 years from now.
I want to feel what it’s like to have no fear of death.
I want to feel my father and grandfather all at once.

I know the strangeness of my behavior,
But something whispering in my ears:
“Now it’s time, no turning back, now it’s your time.”
And I realized for the first time,
even at my age, I’ve just become a man.

pr 20 May 2008

Funny Caption.

2008-05-20T10:38:00.002-04:00

"The opposition will have no chance. Our party is this HUGE. I get dizzy just thinking about it."

*We get dizzy just looking at his eyes.

I'm happy to be Back!

2008-05-20T10:03:00.003-04:00

Cambodians perform a play based on the Khmer Rouge regime during a Remembrance Day ceremony in Choeung Ek, a "Killing Fields" site located 17km (11 miles) south of Phnom Penh, May 20, 2008. Thousands of Cambodians including 500 monks gathered at the site to remember those who perished during the radical communist group's 1975-79 regime. REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea

Comment:
Sometimes we, Cambodians abroad, perceive Cambodians in Cambodia as too busy trying to make a living that they don't think too much about the Khmer Rouge period. Cambodians in Cambodia may not get a chance to express themselves, get on the news or eloquently write their stories, but the fact is the people who suffered never forget and the pain is the same everywhere. And I think we are now beginning to help each other heal.

Literary Works about Cambodia Make it BIG.

2007-08-26T08:25:00.000-04:00

I meant to make this post long ago but didn’t get a chance to.

Two great short stories about Cambodia or set in Cambodia have appeared in magazine type of publication for massive audience recently. And they are greatly read, talked about, and commented. The two works are:

Pol Pot's Beautiful Daughter (Fantasy)

Geoff Ryman

http://www.orionbooks.co.uk/extras/GeoffRyman_PolPotsBeautifulDaughter.pdf

Swimming

By T. Cooper

(in the New Yorker)

http://www.newyorker.com/fiction/features/2007/08/20/070820fi_fiction_cooper?currentPage=1

Please check them out, read, and comment. They are great read.

Thanks to DAS and Jinja for the links.

Best of Luck to Geoff Ryman who got nominated for the 2007 Hugo Award for Best Novellette for Pol Pot's Beautiful Daughter (Fantasy).

The 2007 Hugo Awards will be held on Aug. 30 to Sept. 3 2007 in Yokohama Japan.

http://www.nippon2007.us/hugo_nominees.php

Cambodian Bloggers Summit

2007-08-26T05:33:00.001-04:00

Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Agenda for the Cambodian Bloggers Summit

Day 1 [August 30, 2007]

Opening Note:
- 8:00 - 8:10 => Introduction to the program – by Clogger Team
- 8:10 - 8:20 => Opening Note – by Dr. Chea San Chanthan (PUC)
- 8:20 - 8:30 => Keynote – by Beth Kanter
- 8:30 - 8:40 => Keynote – by Preetam Rai
Presentations:
- 8:40 - 8:50 => Personal Information Technology Workshop – by Clogger Team
Case Study:
- 8:50 - 9:00 => Young Bloggers case study – by Deedee, Lyda
Panel Discussion:
- 9:00 - 10:00 => Citizen Journalism Vs Main Stream Media – by Mike (Internews), Chheanariddh (Internews), Preetam Rai (Global Voices) , David Saski(Global Voices)
- 10:00 - 10:15 => Q&A
- 10:15 - 10:30 => Tea break
- 10:30 - 11:30 => Cyber Cambodian – by Im Sothy (Open Forum), Chanthan Ken (CCS), Mark Sarath (YCC), Chotana (City Link)
- 11:30 - 12:00 => Q&A

Break Time
- 12:00 - 13:00 => Lunch Break
- 13:00 - 14:00 => Free time for Social Networking, live Blogging (BlogTV time)

Presentations:
- 14:00 - 14:30 => E-community - by Phatry Derek Pan (KhmerConnection), Chanthan Ken (CCS)
- 14:30 - 15:00 => Social Web - Web 2.0 (Five Steps To Khmer 2.0) – by Beth Kanter
- 15:00 - 15:15 => Q&A, Tea Break

Group Discussion: 15:15 - 16:15 =>

Internet for what?
Cyber Safety
Self censorship
Youth and Internet

Debate 16:15 - 17:20 => is it better to blog in Khmer or English? - moderator John Weeks
Participants: (Add your name here!)
(Khmer Team) Javier Sola
(English Team) Preetam Rai

17:20 - 17:30 => Summary and Introduction to tomorrow's programs and break! – by Lyda

Day 2 [August 31, 2007]

Keynotes:
- 8:00 - 8:10 => Blog Day Keynote – by Nir Ofir (Video conference)
Presentations:
- 8:10 - 8:40 => Blogging 102 – by Open Forum
- 8:40 - 9:10 => Content is King – by John Weeks, Andy Brouwer
- 9:10 - 9:40 => Photo Blogging – by Steve Goodman
- 9:40 - 10:00 => Q&A, Tea Break
- 10:00 - 10:30 => Video Blogging – by Beth Kanter
- 10:30 - 11:00 => Podcasting – by Preetam Rai
- 11:00 - 11:30 => Wiki and Collaboration – by Preetam Rai
- 11:30 - 12:00 => Khmer Unicode and Open Source Softwares – by KhmerOS

Break Time
- 12:00 - 13:00 => Lunch Break
- 13:00 - 14:00 => Web2.0 Game

Group Discussion: 14:15 - 15:00 =>

Team Blogging
Who am I? Real name or pen name?
Blogging for whom?
Useful Online resources in Cambodia

Breakout Session: 15:00 - 15:30 =>

Social Networking - by John Weeks
Useful Open Source Softwares - by KhmerOS
Blogs for NGOs - by Geoffrey Cain
Gender & Blogging - by Sopheap Chak
Special Interest blogs - by Phil Lees

Roleplay:
- 15:30 - 16:30 => Preparation
- 16:30 - 17:30 => Performance

Team 1: Imagining Living in Digitalized Cambodia
Team 2: Cyber Safety
Team 3: Youth and Internet

Closing:
- 17:00 - 17:15 => Best Post of the Summit announcement and price
- 17:15 - 17:30 => Cambodia Blogger Award announcement and closing note

Bernard Krisher Reads Blogs

2007-03-23T11:10:00.000-04:00

Bernard Krisher LENA AFRAMOVA PHOTO

the man behind the Cambodia Daily newspaper and AAFC's Rural Schools Project

Yes, no joke. Bernard Krisher reads Cambodia related blogs. He read this one. Yes, he even left a comment here. Check it out below.

Bernard Krisher said...
We send out the Khmer edition of The Cambodia
Daily free by e-mail to anyone who requests it. Just contact: thero[at]cambodiadaily.com
Best regards
Bernard Krisher
Publisher
3/09/2007 3:53 PM
Yes Folks. You can get the Cambodian edition of the Cambodia Daily by email. Just email in your email request with the email above.
Thank you very much Mr. Krisher and Cambodia Daily Newspaper in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Very Interesting Books for FREE.

2007-03-23T10:44:00.000-04:00

Many interesting and beautiful books in PDF format are available on DC-CAM (Document Center of Cambodia) website. Please check them out, including this very interesting book.

Dr. Chigas did an excellent job on this book.

Thank you DC-CAM. I really dig these books.

Books of 2007.

2007-03-22T10:00:00.000-04:00

There are 2 NEW books about Cambodia that just came out in 2007. Check out.

HOW TO BEHAVE: Buddhism and Modernity in Colonial Cambodia, 1860-1930
Author: Anne Ruth Hansen
Publisher: University of Hawaii Press, 2007

Book Description
This ambitious cross-disciplinary study of Buddhist modernism in colonial Cambodia breaks new ground in understanding the history and development of religion and colonialism in Southeast Asia. In How to Behave, Anne Hansen argues for the importance of Theravāda Buddhist ethics for imagining and articulating what it means to be modern in early-twentieth-century Cambodia. The 1920s in Cambodia saw an exuberant burst of new printed writings by self-described Khmer Buddhist modernists on the subject of how to behave (as good Buddhists and moral persons) and how to purify oneself in everyday life in the modern world. Hansen's book, one of the first studies of colonial Buddhism based largely on Khmer language sources, examines the modernists' questioning of Buddhist values that they deemed most important and relevant. She explores their new interpretations of traditional doctrines, how they were produced, and how they represent Southeast Asian ethical and religious responses to the modern circulation of local and translocal events, people, ideas, and anxieties.

Hansen begins her study in the mid-nineteenth century with a Buddhist purification movement that had been set in motion by the Khmer king Ang Duang. She follows Khmer monks to Siam as they sought out Buddhist scriptures and examines how they carried ideas back to Cambodia and shaped their own reformist movement in a colonial society influenced by French discourses of modernization. Drawing on literary and ethical forms of analysis as well as historical, Hansen not only accounts for this historical rise of modernist values but also introduces readers to modernist worldviews through careful translations of sermons, ritual manuals, ethics compendia, and vernacular folktales.

How to Behave will be of interest to a wide, multi-disciplinary audience in the fields of Southeast Asian studies, religious studies, colonial history, and Buddhist ethics. It adds to the examination of the comparative and pan-Asian contours of religious modernism among scholars of Asia and will be essential reading for those working in the fields of comparative colonialism, nationalism, and religious modernity.

From the Back Cover
"It has become increasingly clear that the rational and ethical religion called Buddhism is as much a product of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries as it is of the time of the Buddha, more than two millennia ago. What remain to be determined are the specific ways in which this Buddhism was produced within and among the cultures of Asia. In this fascinating study, Anne Hansen examines the case of Cambodia, combining extensive research with insightful analysis to both contextualize and complicate the category of modern Buddhism." --Donald S. Lopez, Jr., University of Michigan

"A remarkable characteristic of this book is the deftness with which the author moves between the intellectual currents of Buddhist Studies and Southeast Asian history, drawing analyses of textual practice, regionalism, nation-building, and colonial experience into fruitful conversation. The study uses, and significantly develops, new work in Buddhist Studies related to vernacular textuality, education, and the emergence of Buddhist print culture. It is particularly timely in the context of comparative colonial studies, where it will be a welcome addition to a movement now underway to depart from rather narrow colonial stimulus-local response analyses of colonialism and Asian modernity." --Anne M. Blackburn, Cornell University

About the Author
Anne Ruth Hansen is associate professor in the Department of History at the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, and a faculty member in the Comparative Study of Religion Program.

CAMBODGE: The Cultivation of a Nation, 1860-1945
Author: Penny Edwards
Publisher: University of Hawaii Press, 2007

Book Description
This strikingly original study of Cambodian nationalism brings to life eight turbulent decades of cultural change and sheds new light on the colonial ancestry of Pol Pot’s murderous dystopia. Penny Edwards recreates the intellectual milieux and cultural traffic linking Europe and empire, interweaving analysis of key movements and ideas in the French Protectorate of Cambodge with contemporary developments in the Métropole. From the naturalist Henri Mouhot’s expedition to Angkor in 1860 to the nationalist Son Ngoc Thanh’s short-lived premiership in 1945, this history of ideas tracks the talented Cambodian and French men and women who shaped the contours of the modern Khmer nation. Their visions and ambitions played out within a shifting landscape of Angkorean temples, Parisian museums, Khmer printing presses, world’s fairs, Buddhist monasteries, and Cambodian youth hostels. This is cross-cultural history at its best.

With its fresh take on the dynamics of colonialism and nationalism, Cambodge: The Cultivation of a Nation will become essential reading for scholars of history, politics, and society in Southeast Asia. Edwards’ nuanced analysis of Buddhism and her consideration of Angkor’s emergence as a national monument will be of particular interest to students of Asian and European religion, museology, heritage studies, and art history. As a highly readable guide to Cambodia’s recent past, it will also appeal to specialists in modern French history, cultural studies, and colonialism, as well as readers with a general interest in Cambodia.

About the Author
Penny Edwards is research fellow at the Centre for Cross-Cultural Research, Australian National University.

http://www.amazon.com/Cambodge-Cultivation-1860-1945-Southeast-Asia-Politics/dp/0824829239/ref=sr_1_1/002-9656757-8092043?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1174575525&sr=8-1

Forever in Transit has moved!

2007-03-14T02:46:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the new Forever in Transit!

Too much frustration with Blogger website, so now I switch to Wordpress blog.

The NEW Forever in Transit blog: http://khmeroverseas.wordpress.com/

FOREVER IN TRANSIT
(http://khmeroverseas.wordpress.com/)

Another World Record for Motorcycle Use for Cambodia.

2007-03-09T12:32:00.000-05:00

Hoy Mary Mother of Jesus! A Motocycle SUV?

Holy smoke! What the hell? A shack and a whole village on a motocycle? This must be a new world record. :O

Check out the whole story here (The Brown Daily Herald, Brown Univ., USA)

The Charges Against Khmer Judges at the ECCC...False?

2007-03-09T11:32:00.000-05:00

International and Cambodian Judges of the KRT meet in Phnom Penh to iron out details.

A letter to the Phnom Penh Post (PPP) is questioning the reports written by journalists and by the Open Society Justice Initiative (OSJI) about the alleged corruption by the Khmer members of Extraordinary Chambers in the Court of Cambodia (ECCC). The critical letter was written by Allen Myers - Phnom Penh.

Finally, as regards "corruption": I don't know who, if anyone, at the ECCC gives up part of their salary involuntarily to anyone. (I do know that the government would be entitled to collect a percentage as income tax but has decided not to do so, presumably not to further lower the status of Cambodian staff relative to UN staff, who are also tax-free and receive twice the salary of Cambodians, plus various extras.)

You have to read the letter and the reports. They are very interesting and reveal a lot of stuffs about what's going on regarding the allegations. The allegations may turn out to be false and that people maybe influenced by their preconception of Cambodia.
One lesson: can't trust everything written in the press about Cambodia.
With "parachute journalism", the low standard of the Cambodian press, and pre-conception some people have of Cambodia (got mainly from what was written about Cambodia), reporters and writers readily accept and jump the gun on what they hear as fact and failed to check out the reality on the ground or spend sometime getting to feel and know the real story.
The letter is in the "Letters" section and the article (Kickback Claims stain the KRT by Cat Barton) is in the "Free Edition" of Phnom Penh Post.

Another article is here in KI Media (Cambodian genocide tribunal judges demand retraction over corruption allegation by the Associated Press).

Cambodge Soir ONLINE!

2007-03-09T10:58:00.000-05:00

From one of their stories in Cambodge Soir, Le Magazine Edition du Weekend.

The French language newspaper in Cambodia, Cambodge Soir, is now available online. The website is very nice looking and has lots of materials. Its' magazine, Le Magazine, Edition du Weekend, is also online with lots of stories and pictures. Later on the Khmer edition of Cambodge Soir will also be available online. Very impressive. Tres bien et merci beaucoup.
The Cambodia Daily, the English language newspaper in Cambodia, also has the Khmer Edition. However, non of the Daily's material is online. I wish the Cambodia Daily at least put the Khmer Edition online, if they don't put the English version.
The Phnom Penh Post, the other English language newspaper in Cambodia, puts some English articles online.

So, 1 point for Francophonie, 0.5 point for Khmerophonie, and 0.5 point for Anglophonie.
Come on Cambodia Daily put some of your material online, please.

Color Coordination with Days of the Week - Khmer Style

2007-03-09T10:36:00.000-05:00

- Sunday is red- Monday is orange- Tuesday is purple- Wednesday is light green- Thurday is green- Friday is blue- Saturday is plum or blueberry or pring tum

A poster named Simoneek posted this in khmerconnection. I thought it was very interesting. It looks like Monday is the lightest color and the color got darker as the week goes on, Saturday with the darkest color - dark purple or black. Sunday is red. Looks like red or Sunday is the transition between dark and light colors. Color darken as the week nearer end. Darkness sets in on Saturday and by Sunday - bang, a splash of bright red. Then, pales out on Monday and the cycle begins again. I wonder what's the reason behind this color coordination scheme?

youtube.com is blocked in Turkey by the court.

2007-03-07T16:32:00.000-05:00

The video sharing website: http://www.youtube.com/ is blocked in Turkey. The court ordered the site blocked after vidoes trashing the leader started appearing.
The article is here.
Incidently, I can't access youtube from either. The site is blocked worldwide? I don't know why I can't access youtube now? very curious.

DAS is Back.

2007-03-07T16:26:00.000-05:00

The blog DAS, Details are Sketchy, is back with new updates.
Check it out. Always something to read about Cambodia.
Welcome back DAS.

Ladies, Some Upgrades You Should Know.

2007-03-07T12:52:00.000-05:00

I was thinking about upgrading my system to Window Vista, then I got this email from Mongkol. I laughed non-stop. Thanks Mongkol.

The woman asking the Tech Support for help.

>Dear Tech Support,

Last year I upgraded from Boyfriend 5.0 to Husband 1.0 and noticed a distinct slow down in overall system performance -- Particularly in the flower and jewelry applications, which operated flawlessly under Boyfriend 5.0.

In addition, Husband 1.0 uninstalled many other valuable programs, such as Romance 9.5 and Personal Attention 6.5 and then installed undesirable programs such as NFL 5.0, NBA 3.0, and Golf Clubs 4.1.

Conversation 8.0 no longer runs, and Housecleaning 2.6 simply crashes the system. I've tried running Nagging 5.3 to fix these problems, but to no avail.

What can I do?

>Signed, Desperate

Tech Support Answers:

>Dear Desperate:

First keep in mind, Boyfriend 5.0 is an Entertainment Package, While Husband 1.0 is an Operating System.

Please enter the command: "http: I Thought You Loved Me.HTML" and try to download Tears 6.2 and don't forget to install the Guilt 3.0 update. If that application works as designed, Husband 1.0 should then automatically run the applications Jewelry 2.0 and Flowers 3.5.

But remember, overuse of the above application can cause Husband 1.0 to default to Grumpy Silence 2.5, Happy Hour 7.0 or Beer 6.1.

Beer 6.1 is a very bad program that will download the Snoring Loudly Beta.

Whatever you do, DO NOT install Mother-in-law 1.0 (it runs a virus in the background that will eventually seize control of all your system resources). Also, do not attempt to reinstall the Boyfriend 5.0 program. These are unsupported applications and will crash Husband 1.0.

In summary, Husband 1.0 is a great program, but it does have limited memory and cannot learn new applications quickly. You might consider buying additional software to improve memory and performance We recommend Food 3.0 and Hot Lingerie 7.7.

Good Luck,

>Tech Support

Another Awsome Movie in the Making.

2007-02-24T14:20:00.000-05:00

Don't Think I've Forgotten

(Cambodia's Lost Rock and Roll)

It was hypnotic

It was psychedelic

It was unforgettable

The crew poses after interviewing Sieng Vanthy, former lead singer (and go-go girl pictured on the support page) of the 70s super group SKD.

The director and co-producer with Ros Serey Sothea's family after interviewing her sister, niece and granddaughter.

John Pirozzi - Director/Cinematographer

Jonathan Del Gatto - Editor/Producer

Nicholas Simon - Producer

Bradley Bessire - Co-Producer

There is another awsome documentary/movie being made called "Don't Think I've Forgotten." It's about Cambodia's lost rock and roll. It combines history, politics, and Cambodian music all together. On top of that, it uses awsome old footages of Cambodia and the music scene in Cambodia with interviews and artist profile. The trailer looked awsome. I can't wait to see this one.

Check out the trailer here.

Phnom Dos Krawmom

2007-02-24T13:57:00.000-05:00

A winding path snakes up the emerald slopes of Phnom Dosh Kramom, linking a spirit shrine at the summit with a smaller sanctuary at the base. Powerful mystical beings lurk in the azure meadows, whispering each time the wind blows. Halfway up, water tumbles over jagged rocks, a place revered by ethnic Phnong.
I mentioned Phnom Dos Krawmon in my post about my visit to Mondulkiri. We stayed on top of that mountain for a few hours playing cards and eating and drinking Anchors. It was freezing up there in the late afternoon to evening. But it was fun and the sun set was memorable. You can read more about this mountain in Cambodian Scene Magazine. And you can read about "The Legend of Srosh and Phlom" too.

Good film

2007-02-24T10:30:00.000-05:00

Another award winning film about Khmer and made by Khmer. Very cool.
I have not seen it yet. Has anybody seen it? Check it out and check out the web site here.

They are at it again.

2007-02-01T06:33:00.000-05:00

Thursday, February 1, 2007A
DB Suspects Bid-Rigging in Rural Contracts
By Erik Wasson and Kay Kimsong
THE CAMBODIA DAILY
"Lu Laysreng, rural development minister and deputy prime minister, said from Bangkok that he was aware of the ADB investigation.
"I am not worried at all," Lu Laysreng said by telephone.
"I think everyone involved in the projects is corrupted—the ADB consultant, the provincial officials, the contractor, experts," he said.
If the ADB tries to point the finger of blame, it too should be held accountable, he said."If they want to blame, they have to blame all, both the ADB and the Cambodian partner," he said."
Corruption is out of control because corruption is everywhere," he added.
Lu Laysreng also said that both the ADB and the World Bank are difficult to work with because they use local contractors."
I really don't understand. Why would he says such a thing?
Instead of working together and try to solve the problem, they are blaming each other back and forth. Minister Lu offers no solution nor assurance nor responsibility.
Saying things like this is not an option when you are a leader, Minister Lu. Because You are responsible.
I'm disgusted.

Wow! What a cool family?

2006-12-16T10:31:00.000-05:00

Wow! Aren't they cool people or what? What a family! And nice pictures too.
How many famous, multi-millionairs, Hollywood movie stars out there can say that they spent a few days in very very rural Cambodia on their own?
Man, I wonder how they go to the bathroom out there? Hahaha...

Krour Sar Jaow Ket

Isn't Shiloh cute? She definitely has both Jolie and Brad's look. Beautiful dark eyes.

Dudes bonding.

Wow... just an ordinary day in rural Cambodia.

A giant billboard with "Beware of Landmines" sign on their land.

Looks like MaddoX gets a kick out of that art work.

Thanks to DaS ---> Hellomagazine.com