From battlefield to sport arena: the rebirth of bokator
May 15th, 2007 - 1:42 pmBy Angello Traphinos, The Mekong Mail
Grand Master San Kim Sean conjures up images of King Jayavar man VII, the Buddhist ruler who united a war-torn Cambodia in the 12th century.
Sean says Jayavarman was an expert of the ancient Khmer martial art of bokator, and like Jayavarman, he is using bokator to make Cambodia great.
“Everything Jayavarman VII achieved came from bokator,” Sean said. “I cannot build temples as he did, but I follow in his footsteps. I want to make Cambodia great in the 21st century as he did in the 12th.”
Beginning on September 26, 2006, Sean came a little closer to achieving his aim. The first Khmer Bokator Championship was held over four frenetic days in Phnom Penh’s Olympic Stadium.
Attracting 307 participants, sizable audiences, and unprecedented levels of media attention, it has gone some way in furthering Sean’s dream of having Cambodia’s indigenous martial art recognized across the globe. Read more
Corruption and poverty get school dropout blame
May 11th, 2007 - 2:22 pmBy Angello Traphinos, The Mekong Mail
At 11am on a recent weekday, Daun Penh district in Phnom Penh is filled with the excited chatter of children as they spill out of a school playground in a messy, giggling wave.
Schoolchildren in neat blue-and-white uniforms, clutching text books, are a common sight. Across Cambodia, primary school enrolment rates are now the highest in the region, according to the 2006 World Bank poverty report.
But despite the increase in enrolment, poverty and systemic corruption throughout the education system are causing a worrying number of children to drop out of school too early to benefit from instruction, education officials told the Post.
“Dropout rates in Cambodia are the hot point for my association,” said Rong Chhun, president of the Cambodian Independent Teacher’s Association (CITA).
“If we look at children aged between 13 and 15, only 26 percent attend school, so 74 percent of children of this age have no access to schooling. This is a very serious problem for Cambodian society; if education cannot develop, a country cannot develop.” Read more
Filed Under Cambodia, Education
Lesbians struggle to change perceptions
May 11th, 2007 - 2:06 pmBy Angello Traphinos, The Mekong Mail
Pon Samnang has close-cropped hair and a face devoid of make up. Oversized men’s clothes hang loosely from her slight frame, but her lips are full and her cheek bones high. Her androgynous beauty demands attention.
Samnang, 25, was just four years old when she realized she was a lesbian. She has been grappling with the social implications of her sexual orientation ever since.
Her parents, who are farmers, were devastated when she first came out. Blaming her for bringing them bad luck, they pleaded with her to change her behavior. But as the years passed they have gradually grown to accept her as she is.
For Keo Samet, 26, parents have never been a problem - hers always knew she was a lesbian and have loved and supported her all her life. But her siblings were initially opposed to her sexuality.
“At first my brother and sister didn’t like me being a lesbian,” she explained. “But we have talked about it a great deal and they now understand and love me.” Read more
Filed Under Cambodia, Lifestyle