Day 12

Time moves fast in Cambodia and have lots to say and little time to say it.

The first week here went by so quickly, as our professor had us on a heavy schedule from 8am-5pm everyday, but I'll touch on some of the things we did.

After visiting the Killing Fields, we moved onto Toul Sleng, the former high school turned prison, where 20,000 people were tortured for confessions and sometimes beaten to death. Its a lot like going to Dachau, the photos staring out at you. It was extremely creepy to see that, I felt eyes running up and down me as I walked through those rooms and it was incredibly uncomfortable.
So that was our introduction to Cambodia and it was incredibly depressing.

Moving on to issues facing civil society today, our second day was fascinating. We started at the Documentation Center of Cambodia, DC Cam, an organization working to preserve the history of the Khmer Rouge era through interviews, films and confessions. The work they do there is amazing, gathering testimony from people from all areas of the country, victims and perpetrators alike. Some of the testimony collected will be used in the upcoming Tribunal (the ECCC) and for educational purposes. Its difficult to believe, but many of Cambodia's younger generation doubt the existence of the genocide. There is no curriculum in school addressing the Khmer Rouge era, and so children grow up hearing the stories of their parents but they don't believe them. This is a huge issue facing Cambodia as it tries to have an open discussion about the genocide with the upcoming trials. DC Cam is working to develop a curriculum on how Khmer did in fact kill other Khmer and to preserve the history of the genocide. They have begun outreaching with education field trips to places like the killing fields and Toul Sleng, but many people in Cambodia still live in rural areas and so access is not what it could be. DC Cam also does a bit of film, and we watched a film documenting the history of a woman who was raped and escaped. Very few of the survivors are rape victims as rapes usually occurred right before the executions and very few survived.

Following that we went to the Extraordinary Chambers of the Court of Cambodia, (ECCC) which is the UN back tribunal set to begin in June 2007. Trying the top 7 remaining members of the Khmer Rouge (KR) era, this court hopes to provide some sort of justice and closure for Cambodia and its KR history. The difficulty will be the active engagement of the Cambodian people. Centered in Phnom Penh, the trials are far removed from most of the population and due to difficult communication links of radio and TV, not everyone will have access to the court proceedings as they happen. We met with Marcel Lemonde (I think that was his last name) the international co-investigating judge who ran down for us the aims of the tribunal and the hope that it will provide a sense of closure and justice for the Cambodian people.

One of the most interesting meetings we had last week was with Women's Agenda for Change, a rather radical group of feminists working with garment and sex workers to address the rising HIV /AIDS rates, pay scales, abuse and security. Sex work in Cambodia is not illegal, nor is it really legal. Sex work is also usually the last resort, most women came from rural area to find work, and after stints in other industries are forced to work in the sex industry. The women we spoke with talked about the difficult working conditions, with unsanitary houses and neighborhoods, a lack of security due to gang violence and police harassment. A Cambodian sex worker can make from 3000-5000 riels per customer, that's about $0.75-$1.25. Condoms are expensive, about 5000 riels for a packet, and although many organizations work to provide them free to sex workers, the outreach is limited and not always accessible to everyone. They used to be a bit easier to get, but with the incoming Bush administration in 2001, the "God policy"was instituted and now USAID will no longer fund organizations that work to promote condom use education because its pushing an abstinence line.

Garment workers face similar issues though can have a better time depending on the factory they work with. We met with a group of 25 women, and one man, at a safe drop in house run by Women's Agenda for Change. If their factories knew they had gone to talk to us, they would have been fired, but come they did. They said that if even someone would hear the it was worth it. Conditions vary, but for the most part they reported dismal conditions. Unsanitary working spaces, not getting their pay, difficulty living off their wages, harassment by police when walking come late at night, health issues from working at the factory, all of these were issues that came up. It was a moving experience, made very difficult because they kept wanting to know what we were going to do to change this. I felt like an ass really, I had nothing to say to them except watch where we buy our clothes from but that seemed like such a pitiful answer after their incredibly moving stories.

The safe house was in the area where garment workers live, and sewage littered the place. During our discussion, sulphur kept drifting up my nostrils, it was nauseating. Most people keep an outdoor stove over a fire. We also visited a factory, one of the best of course. It was really nice actually. Sanitary, a childcare center, and a well stocked medical facility. I have photos to post that will show what it really looks like.

Another thing I'd like to mention is the rather blatant and disgusting prevalence of pedophilia. You see fat, disgusting western men with children, encouraging them to rub their feet, they buy them drinks, and are overly affectionate with them in a way that's just repulsive. Unfortunately, Cambodia has a serious problem with underage brothels. We were at the beach Sunday and men were surrounded by children, the children massaging them and sitting on their laps. Ugh.

There are some great legacies of colonialism, such as baguettes in the mornings and pastry shops and bakeries. I think I am finally getting used to the heat, as last night I actually got cold and turned off the AC. Its dropped from the low 90s to the mid 80s and the days actually feel quite comfortable. I also had a run in with a moto yesterday. All I heard was a loud THWACK and there I was, left in the middle of the street in a bit of a daze. The guy razed my left side and I have a neat bruise on my arm. :-)

I'm looking forward to tomorrow as we are going to the dump. :-D

Night!