Professional Predicaments

My official job title at the Housing Rights Task Force (HRTF) is ‘Community Organizing Intern’.  Almost every day, I’m out in the community with Star and another person on HRTF’s staff that serves as a translator.  We conduct demographic surveys and discuss with community leaders the threat of eviction the community faces.  HRTF advocates for Phnom Penh’s urban poor and through these trips into the field, I’ve seen a lot of parts of Phnom Penh that I would never have seen before.  Most of these little villages will never appear on a map (we frequently get lost trying to find them) and since they are small and vulnerable, few ever know that the government mistreats the communities.

The four of us HRTF interns from Duke have 4, 20 minute Tuk Tuk rides together every day to and from work.  These trips tend to generate intense discussions about what we’re doing this summer.  One of our most common conversation topics is whether or not the communities we visit have a legitimate claim to their land and how the government should balance development and providing for its people.  We also tend to have heated discussion about the validity of our organization’s primary goals.  These are a couple of the communities I’ve been to and their stories, as well as a bit of commentary on what they do, or do not deserve from the government in the case of eviction, as well as some thoughts on HRTF.

Cheko Community

The Cheko community has been settled in this area since 1981.  The government has refused to grant the community land titles despite numerous requests.  The community has been organized since 1998 and has been working extensively with several NGOs to develop the infrastructure of the neighborhood, educate the residents, and great a strong community leadership to fight for land titles.  The community’s 360 residents contribute to a communal savings fund that has been used to improve the community infrastructure by fixing the water and sewage systems.  There have been vague rumors that the government wants to sell the land to a private company to develop.  Under Cambodian law, the members of this community should be given titles to their land when it is registered because they are considered legal possessors and are peacefully settled in their homes.  In addition, the community has made substantial improvements on its own to systems that the government is obligated, but neglected to, supply.  Therefore, the community members deserve greater compensation should they be evicted due to a greater market value of their property.  This is a well established and strong neighborhood that would cause the government a lot of trouble if they are unfairly evicted.  City Hall should leave well enough alone in this case.

Tampa Community

The Tampa community is located on the upper floors of a building that was largely gutted by a massive fire in 2002.  The 92 residents have been living in the community since 1979 and in 1991 were granted a communal land title for 17 homes.  Before the fire, residents were threatened with eviction due to the building’s poor drainage system and a lack of a sewage system.  Now, government officials are again threatening eviction due to the risk of another fire. It was hard to tell given the language barrier, but it seems like the building will soon be condemned and that is why the residents will be evicted.  The community members do not want to leave their homes but should they be forced to, they are entitled to compensation because they possess a land title.  This was a strage case because Cambodia does have very clear building codes and the community seems to have ignored this and waited for the government to come fix their building for them.  Since these people are land owners, it is their responsibility to keep their homes up to code.  The government therefore has every right to force them to make the necessary improvements to prevent another fire, force them to sell their homes so the building can be restored, or to move elsewhere.  This was a case where we agreed that housing rights do not extend to owner negligence and the government is actually doing the right thing to protect the people.

These cases are two of the less complicated ones we’ve faced.  One of these communities deserves to stay on its land and the other deserves to leave due to its own negligence.  The thing about HRTF is, the organization believes that neither community should be evicted.  In fact, HRTF doesn’t think anyone should be evicted, ever, even if people are living on public land, opening shops on top of a railroad track, or can’t afford their rent.  This is an ideological stance that doesn’t really sit well with me.  I feel like we’re giving false hope to communities that really have no chance of keeping their land when we tell them we’ll be their advocates.  In addition, HRTF seems to have an unrealistic view of the government.  The staff all see the government as being out to get the poor people of the country.  I’m no fan of Hun Sen, the dictatorial Prime Minister, but it’s important to keep in mind that Cambodia is industrializing, people are going to have to leave their homes to fix the railroad, to build water storage facilities on state land, and to develop the country.  There’s a fine line between recognizing the shortcomings of a government while considering it’s realities and developing a Big Brother complex.  Well, HRTF looked at that line and long-jumped over to the side that hates the government.  I know I’m learning a lot by working at HRTF but I can’t help but feel that the organization is a bit misguided in its views.  Some days, going to work feels like a fight against brainwashing.  I don’t think such a small organization was ready for the scrutiny, or maybe just cynicism, that the four of us Duke students subject it to.

~Jessica Sun

Monsquitoe Season

Only in Cambodia…

Five weeks, 4 days, and 40+ mosquito bites later, I think I am finally getting used to the lifestyle here in Cambodia. Oftentimes I find myself humming along to the Cambodian songs that we can hear in our room every night (right next door to our apartment is a lively karaoke bar that is always blasting songs once the sun goes down)

—The day we found out about the kindergartens shutting down—

A Ratastrophe

The weekend didn’t start out in the best way. We learned that the Cambodian Ministry of Education had decided to shut down all Kindergartens and Primary schools in the country for an indefinite period of time, due to the rampant virus EV-71. You may have heard of it – 62 children died recently from complications of it. It was all over the news and was a really big deal here in Phnom Penh. It’s obviously great that they are taking measures to prevent the spread of this awful contagion, but I’m still really sad that I didn’t get a chance to say goodbye to the kids in case the kindergartens don’t reopen before we leave.

Khemara, our NGO that runs the Kindergartens, is going to have us work with staff on their other projects for the time being. For example, Khemara runs the Child Protection Program, which serves to educate children and teenagers about topics such as harassment, sexual abuse, and dangerous actions in general. They also provide care to children afflicted with HIV, both through monetary donations (they provide medical insurance to the children) and through home visits. Stephen and I went on four of these home visits with Khemara staff yesterday. These visits really got to me—they were heartbreaking. The children were so vibrant and alive. The first boy we saw was 13 years old and so adorable. He played the piano for us and was so good at it! He said it was his favorite thing to do. He also told us that he wants to be a doctor when he grows up, so that he can help children with HIV like his doctors do. This was a common theme—all three of the other children we saw also aspired to become doctors, and for the same reason. I wanted to cry. On a brighter note, we found out yesterday (Tuesday) that the Kindergartens will most likely reopen on Monday! I’m so happy that I will be able to spend my last week and a half there with the kids.

But I’m getting ahead of myself—I should tell you about our amazing weekend trip to Koh Rung Samleon, an island that is a 2-hour boat ride from Sihnoukville. There is a Projects Abroad marine conservation project there, so we stayed in the bungalows with the other volunteers. It was really interesting to learn about the work they do there. They’ve done tremendous work in reducing water pollution around the island and in getting rid of unnecessarily destructive fishing practices. Most of the volunteers go there to either become more experienced with scuba diving or to do marine biology research. Apparently this island has species of animals, sea or otherwise, that have yet to be found anywhere else in the world. This is true for their seahorse population and for a type of terrapin living in the island’s jungle.

Staying in the bungalows was definitely a “roughing it” experience, but in a good way! I’m glad I experienced it. We had to take bucket “showers”. My bungalow was of course home to a very large rat, which decided to chew a bunch of holes in one of my bags. Lena and I slept on the porch of the bungalow one night—partially to avoid waking up to the rat in our beds, and partially to sleep with the great ocean breeze. Our bungalow was right on the water! Island life is pretty amazing—I wish we could have stayed longer. I had the best night on Saturday. We went night swimming and I experienced bioluminescence for the first time! It was truly amazing. Meanwhile, we had the most unbelievable view above us. The stars were unlike anything any of us had seen before. The island volunteers said that the night sky was the best that they had seen. It was something that I will never forget, as cheesy as that sounds! It was so beautiful.

We went scuba diving on Sunday! I was panicky at first because you don’t feel like you’re getting much air with the oxygen apparatus, but you just have to get acclimated to it. It ended up being such an awesome experience. We saw a seahorse on our swim! I definitely would love to try scuba diving again in the future.

I can’t even believe that we leave in two weeks. The time has gone by so quickly. I’ve had such an amazing time here and have fallen in love with the country. I’m going to be so sad to leave!

~Paige Morschauser

When in Phnom Penh…

 

For the first time since I’ve gotten here I forgot about the language barrier at work. It’s not that Ravvy and the other teachers can speak to me or I to them…it’s more like I didn’t have to frantically mime concerns and questions to them. Today followed its normal (well, I am proud to say my school is far from normal) rhythm. The kids greated me with enthusiastic “THANK YOU BONG WILEY!! THANK YOU!” to which I tried for the sixth time to explain to them the difference between “Thank you” and “Hello”. But at the end of the day, who really cares? If anything the kids will seem extremely gracious whenever surrounded by westerners. I consider that a job well done on my part. Later Soltei (the chef’s mischevious two year-old son) decided he is worthy of learning English with the six year olds. This resulted in my every five minutes stopping teaching to pry Soltei away from the older kids as he grabbed at their small chalk boards. The “time out” area at my school is ingenious. It is an ancient Cambodian secret that never was discovered by us lesser Americans. Basically, when a kid is bad they are put upon the “tower of shame” which consists of at least 25 stacked plastic chairs. From up high the kid is stuck there to watch the others play and try not to fall off. This is Soltei’s stomping ground…or sitting ground. I finished up the lesson while checking outside every now and then to make sure he didn’t fall a tragic 6 feet. Don’t worry. He was fine. He was singing “Ali Ba Ba”. For those who don’t know Ali Ba Ba it’s probably the most catchy song I have ever heard. And I mean that, Carly Rae Jepsen. The song is  like a Khmer, disco/ska hybrid. Go look it up on google. I haven’t yet but I can only imagine the music video is amazing.

Anyways….after teaching, the kids ran outside for recess and I took over my more important role as the kindergarten’s jungle gym. Despite running in the mornings (yeah, our DukeEngage group is RIPPED) my real workout starts when at least 6 of the kids grab my legs and arms and make me carry them everywhere. I feel just like Mr. Incredible in that scene when he’s being attacked by the giant iron blobs in that one fortress thing. (Terrible attempt at a movie reference. My bad).

~Riley Gluskey

The Killing Fields

Killing Fields. On Sunday, we went to the Choeung Ek Genocide Center, otherwise known as the Killing Fields. For those of you who don’t know, from 1975-1979 a regime known as the Khmer Rouge (made up of native Cambodians) ruled in Cambodia. They forced all Cambodians out of the cities, made most essentially slave workers, closed all schools, religious institutions, hospitals, and more, eliminated private property, etc. There is a lot of backstory I could tell you I have learned about them, but it’s too much for here so I would look online if you are interested.
The Khmer Rouge was arrest people who committed crimes seen as being against the Kampuchea party (the party of the Khmer Rouge). However, most of these people didn’t actually commit any crimes. They would arrest people simply for being educated, wearing glasses, observing religions, etc. I mentioned in a previous post that I visited S21, one of the prisons. The Killing Fields are where people would be transferred from S21 to be executed. There were many of these prisons and mass graves throughout the country. People would be told they were being transferred to another prison when in reality, they were being taken to their graves.
During our visit, I got to see many of the mass graves and other important sites at the killing fields. Between this and a fantastic audio tour, I learned so much about it. I learned about what the prisoners would experience from the moment they left the prison (being put blindfolded in a dark truck) to the moment they were executed. They would have to sign in, would then be put in a containment building, brought to a place to be executed usually by being beaten on the head with something (machete, hammer, etc.) and then would be tossed into a mass grave. One extremely disturbing part of the tour was a tree known as the Killing Tree. Khmer Rouge officers would bash children into this tree until they died. And yes, whole families would be arrested if one member of the family was to be taken. Another was the Magic Tree where loudspeakers were hung from the branches playing music to mask out the sounds of people screaming when they were being killed. Some other things I saw: many mass graves (the bodies are buried underground) including one containing only headless corpses, bones and rags from prisoners, sites where some buildings such as the storage building and detaining building used to stand, and much more. The audio tour also provided some extremely memorable stories from people who survived through the Khmer Rouge. One was of a mother whose infant died because she could not provide for him. She was forced to work all day and was barely given any food. This is how many people died during the Khmer Rouge. Another story I heard was of someone who witnessed someone being murdered by a Khmer Rouge officer because she was holding 2 bananas. The officer said she stole them and was the reason for the execution while the woman said another officer gave her them.
The Killing Fields are actually really pretty now and I couldn’t help but think throughout it, how is this gorgeous place where some of the worst acts ever committed took place.
My visit to the Killing Fields was extremely memorable. While all that I saw and learned is extremely sad, it is important to know about it so we can hope to prevent atrocities like this in the future.

~Dustin Alin

Children on the Beach: An Ethical Dilemma

There’s a shop by our guesthouse, and others in S-ville like it, where they try to sell children’s products, and give 100% of the proceeds to the kids, while they stay in school. They have lots of signs telling you to not buy anything from kids on the beach, because they don’t work for themselves, and the more they sell, the more likely they’ll stay on the beach and not go to school. It’s a sad situation, but groups such as the one next door to our guesthouse are trying to improve it.

At dinner on the beach, the first night, this group of older Cambodian kids came up to us (the most talkative one said he was 13). They were funny and interesting. The main one tried to get me to play tic-tac-toe with him, betting a bracelet (If I lost, I would have to buy one). Blair ended up playing him, but ended up in a tie game every time. His English was very good, and he knew a lot of American phrases. He then offered to bet on an arm wrestling match (he got to use two hands). I thought it would be a fair fight, and he was pretty cool, so I took the bet. We was pretty strong for a scrawny 13 year-old, so I ended up losing and buying a bracelet (wearing it right now).

I ended up seeing him again when we went back to the beach Monday afternoon. He tried to get me to bet on a game of pool, but I told I had no money (which was very true), so he was bored enough to just play me for fun. Of course, he creamed me (he sunk 5 balls in a row his first turn). We ended up betting push-ups, so I did 30 push-ups for him, much to the amusement of the locals in the place. He had his friends with him, about his age, who also had pretty good English. Was I wrong to have bought something from him?

Since he was 13, he most likely too old to go back to school. He most likely learned his good English and variety of skills (he said he once won $60 off some British guys) on the beach. The big question is: where we he go when he’s no longer a cute little kid? My hope, and he definitely has the skills to, is that he will get a job as a bartender, waiter, or tuk tuk driver, all jobs which require interacting with tourists. I can’t imagine this crafty little kid getting some manual labor job: he has too unique a skill set to do that. I’m just wondering, even though I defied all the signs that told me not to, was I wrong to have bought something from him? It also goes back to the ideas of boycotting: even if I don’t buy something from him, someone will, so my boycott will really mean nothing. I wouldn’t buy something from a 6-year old, but this almost young adult is a different story. What would you have done?

~Stephen Robin

Free the 15!

Cambodia has certainly been a place of a lot of firsts for me and this week has proved no different.  Two days ago, I went to my first major international human rights protest  with the staff of HRTF, in support of the Boeung Kak 15.  That day, Wednesday, the 13 women arrested at the original protest were back in court to appeal their previous conviction.  Nearly 200 protesters gathered to support them and call for their release.  It’s difficult to effectively describe the day and it’s one I’ll certainly remember forever.

The protest began at 7 AM outside the Court of Appeals.  As with other Boeung Kak Lake protests, this one was led by women and the children of the 13 imprisoned women.  When the 13 entered the courthouse, the crowd of protesters, namely the children, rushed to hug their mothers.  They were violently beaten back by the police.  In this struggle, a pregnant woman was kicked in the stomach by a police officer.  She fainted and was taken to the hospital where she eventually miscarried (read about it here).  The memory of this police brutality made for a tense atmosphere throughout the day.

After the women entered the court, police pushed the protest down the road along the riverside until they ended up blocking off an area in front of the Foreign Correspondents Club (seems like a silly idea if they’re trying to avoid international attention).  We arrived at the protest around 8 AM with Saron from our office.  We all sported Free the 15 shirts, headbands, and checkered scarves and immediately began taking photos.  Though we could not understand what was being said unless we had someone translate, it was easy to tell how passionate the speeches made were, and how intensely the people condemned the government and the courts.

Periodically throughout the morning, the protestors would escalate their rhetoric and sing songs calling for the release of the 13.  At these times, the approximately 60 police officers surrounding the protest would pick up their shields and form a human wall, obviously intending to intimidate the protestors.  The supporters were unfazed and continued to chant until around noon.  Then, the protest took a heated turn.  The police attempted to confiscate the megaphone that was attached to a tuk tuk that the protestors had been using to amplify the sounds of their chants and spread news from the courtroom.  The protestors immediately moved to reclaim the speakers and when the police showed signs of initiating a scuffle, a number of children moved in front of the women grabbing the megaphone.  The police backed down, unwilling to instigate another incident of brutality against children.

Around midmorning, the Venerable Luon Savath, an award-winning human rights activist and Cambodian monk arrived in order to encourage the protestors and support the people of Boeung Kak Lake.  Additionally, others dressed up as representations of spirits.  One sprinkled holy water with lotus petals.  This was to serve both as a blessing and to deter the police from using electric shocks to deter the people.  Another man dressed up as a spirit king who would judge one’s potential in the afterlife.  He intended to remind the police officers that there is a greater power to judge them and that what they are doing in beating children and pregnant women will hurt their karma and affect them after this life.

After protesting in the sun for nearly 5 hours, the 6 HRTF interns decided to grab lunch at the FCC.  We went up to the balcony where we still had a view of the protest.  Just as we sat down with our menus, the crowd erupted—the announcement had been made that the 13 women would be freed!  We immediately grabbed our cameras and began snapping photos from the balcony.  People waved at us happily, recognizing our t-shirts and sharing their excitement.  After a couple minutes, we ran back down to the street to join the celebration.  One little girl who I befriended through rock paper scissors came up to me and gave me a celebratory hug.

After dancing and cheering in the streets, we grabbed lunch before heading to the prison.  Nearly 250 people gathered to witness the release of the 13 and celebrate their return to the community.  The atmosphere was festive and even though we ended up having to go home for dinner before the women were released, we knew it would be a touching moment.

That night, the residents of Boeung Kak held a party in celebration.  Two other interns and I went and got to meet 4 of the 13 recently released women.  They were all so appreciative of our presence at the protest and for bringing international attention to their issue.  These four were obviously staunch activists but that night, it was more important for them to be mothers and friends, reintegrating themselves into their community after being in jail for over a month.

Seeing this protest was a great privilege, as was being able to participate in some way in the happiness of the residents of Boeung Kak Lake.  Though I certainly was more of an observer than an active participant, I prefer it that way.  While I’ve been following this issue for nearly a month, I didn’t feel comfortable taking part too actively because, because although I feel that it is my responsibility to raise awareness and do all I can to help, this, in the end, isn’t my battle.  I’m not like the other NGO workers who live in Cambodia and have been working with these people for years.  It was a bit strange to have so many people thank me for simply showing up to see their victory.  However, it put into perspective the work we’ve been doing at HRTF—this is what it’s all about.  Though I disagree with some of its basic positions (more on that later), this was a cause I could get behind and I am a better informed activist after attending this protest.

The protest to Free the 15 may end up being the most exciting thing I get to be a part of here in Phnom Penh.  It demonstrated that popular will can overcome corrupt government and showed that there is potential for Cambodia’s dismal human rights record to change.  It was a great victory but came at an obviously cost, most noticeably in the loss of an unborn child.  The 13 women are free but I still have five weeks in Phnom Penh and there is certainly more work to do to help the people of Cambodia improve the recognition of their housing rights.