Campuccino #79
Sou Sdei and welcome to Campuccino, your fortnightly dispatch of key headlines in Cambodia with a dash of opinion.
To new subscribers, welcome! I’m Darathtey, a communication consultant, writer, and researcher. Learn more about my work here.
I’ve been reading a lot recently as I’m trying to complete my personal goal of 36 books this year. Quota aside, I actually enjoy reading to relax, escape, and get inspiration for my own writing. Recently, I discovered that the act of reading itself is sufficient for me, and I do not need any background music to accompany me while reading. Before some of you may ask, yes, I mostly read English-language books as I have yet to find Khmer books that keep me turning the pages. To Cambodian readers who would like to recommend something, hit me with your best Khmer-language books.
- Darathtey
As I was writing this, I quietly thought to myself: am I going to talk about THE canal again? The answer is: yes, we’re talking about THE canal again because it is all anyone (in the government) can talk about since the announcement of its existence. The talk continues as the groundbreaking date is near, and it seems pro-canal government officials now have a new Facebook profile photo frame that congratulates the opening of the Funan Techo Canal construction. An article by Agence France-Presse published in VOA provides a good round-up of potential impact driven by the uncertainty of the canal plan. The plan is shrouded in many unanswered questions, including its primary purpose, funding source, and potential impact on the Mekong River. The lack of clear information about the project is causing great distress for people living along its proposed path, which starts about an hour's drive from Phnom Penh. I also like that the article shared one of my concerns regarding the correlation between the canal’s benefits and how it is financed.
While my people are still in doubt about how this overhyped canal is going to be useful to our daily lives, I wish we would have something like an overhyped state-of-the-art healthcare system. That’s right, to say that our healthcare system has a lot of room for improvement is an understatement. This CamboJA article provides many valid reasons that drive many Cambodians (who can afford it) to seek medical care abroad. Low capability to provide specific and accurate diagnoses, questionable code of ethics, and negligence are some of the major sore points in Cambodia’s medical system. If you speak to any Cambodian you know, regardless of their economic status, they will tell you that they have experienced at least one of these issues. I experienced multiple of them myself: misread numbers of lumps in my chest from the ultrasound, unreasonable demand to cut me open (aka conduct an operation) without telling me the price first, or telling me that a lump of 2.5cm radius with uneven border in my chest does not need to be removed. Spoiler: it needed to be removed, and was removed. Having said all that, I believe it is only fair to add that not all of my medical experiences here were bad. I’m grateful for my regular GP and his team who took great care of me around exactly this time last year when dengue almost took my life (literally), as well as my very blunt and frank gynaecologist who has been keeping me healthy for years. The point is there are great and dedicated medical practitioners here in Cambodia but you have to go look very hard.
Now, here we have other headlines some of you may find interesting but I have no (or no more) two cents to give. So, here goes the list:
NBC and United Nation (sic!) Launch 5-Point Plan to Address Growing Indebtedness in Cambodia’s Microfinance Sector 🔗
Cybercrime in Cambodia - A Ticking Time Bomb For Human Rights and Investments 🔗
Cambodian Journalists Face Legal Intimidation; Use of Criminal Law Instead Of Press Law 🔗
Visually Pleasing
Arts & Culture
📖 Slow Noodle by Chantha Nguon is one of the most beautiful, creative, and heartfelt memoir/recipe books by a Cambodian writer I’ve read. I’m jumping the gun a bit here as I’m about 35% into the book but the storytelling in this book got me to sit up straight starting from the first page of its Prologue. By telling her story beautifully using the metaphor and memory of her mother’s kitchen, the writer reminded me how my own mother and grandmother’s kitchen used to feel, taste, and smell.
📽️ Rendez-vous avec Pol Pot (Meeting with Pol Pot), a film by Rithy Panh is scheduled to hit cinemas across Cambodia from August 9, 2024 onwards. While I don’t doubt that I will be in awe of another masterpiece from Rithy, I’m also very scared of the tsunami of emotions that this film may provoke in me. We shall see.
💻 Siem Reap House by Siem Reap Academy is a freshly launched co-working space which describes itself as a dynamic social impact hub dedicated to fostering innovation, collaboration, and positive change. It is located on the ground of Rose Apple Square in Siem Reap. Obviously, this is not sponsored (because since when did I get paid sponsored content? LOL). I give this a shout because I think it is cool and I happen to know Virak Ou, one of the brains behind this.
PS. They’re running a free access promo for the co-working space and lecture halls for the entire month of August if you’re in Siem Reap and interested in checking it out.
Worth Reading
Can 1 million saplings save Cambodia’s forests? | RFA
A great read if you, similar to me, are not sure how planting small trees (while not caring for the existing forest) is going to help change the course of environmental decline.
Can a carbon offset project really secure Indigenous rights in authoritarian Cambodia? | Mongabay
In pursuing the implementation of the Keo Seima REDD+ project, Indigenous communities were blocked from access to ownership of their customary farmlands and culturally significant forests. Despite these land disputes arising from the project's activities, a project partner WCS failed to disclose these issues to Verra, the project’s standard setter, and subsequent audits overlooked these problems. Put two and two together, Indigenous peoples in the REDD+ project area have faced severe consequences including arrests, imprisonment, crop destruction, and property confiscation.
Hun To went after the press; who really won? | RFA
The coming out of multiple investigative news pieces on Huione Guarantee appeared to have brought Hun To back out into the limelight. Mind you, most people living in Cambodia know this individual and the many pies he has his fingers in. Spoiler alert: it is not the kind of pie that makes you feel cosy and miss your grandma.
Campuccino is a fortnightly dispatch of key headlines in Cambodia, written by @DarathteyDin.
I’d love to hear from you. If you have feedback or content ideas, please write to me at hello@darathteydin.com