Human trafficking in Cambodia

Cambodia is transit country for victims from neighboring countries such as Thailand and Vietnam. There are many causes of human trafficking in Cambodia and has increased because of a number of factors, including lack of unemployment, education, safe migration, increased tourism and poverty. Poverty being the most significant of trafficking.

Men are trafficked for forced labor in the agriculture, fishing and construction industries. ( I met a man about 2 months ago. He is one of the victims who were escaped from a fishing boat in Thailand. He said that I paid some money to a man who promised that he could get me to work in a factory in Thailand and I would get paid around $300 to $400 a month. He traveled to Thailand through a boat and when he arrived the place he was ask to get on a fishing boat to go out to the sea. He had only a few hours only to sleep everyday and worked like that for about 3 years and he never get any money. He always stayed on the boat so he had no chance to escape from the boat. One day the owner of the boat had party and all workers were landed back and join the party and on that night it's a good chance for him to talked with a few other friends who were working with and they decided to escaped. There are five of them were trying to escape but himself by chance was cut by a sword from the guard and other friends were rescued him. They traveled back to Cambodia and had to begged people for money in order to traveled back to homeland.)

Women are trafficked for sexual exploitation and forced labor in factories or as domestic servants. Children are trafficked for sexual exploitation and forced labor in organize begging rings, soliciting, street vending and flower selling.

This video is telling you about a girl who sold by her mother to get money.

Khmer Rouge (Red Khmer)

Khmer Rouge soldiers at Angkor Wat.

Nearly a quarter of Cambodia's population at least 1.7 million people died under 1975-1979 from execution, starvation, diseases and overwork by Khmer Rouge regime, according to the Documentation Center of Cambodia.

During their four years in power, Khmer Rouge overworked and starved the population, at the same time executing selected groups who they believed were the enemies of the state or spies or had the potential undermine the new state. People who they perceive as intellectuals or even those who had stereotypical signs or leaning, such as glasses, would also be killed. People would also be executed for attempting to escape from the commune or for breaching minor rules. If caught, offenders were taken quietly off to a distant forest or field after sunset and killed.   

During this time, everyone was deprived of their basic rights. People were not allowed to go outside of their cooperative. The regime didn't allow anyone to gather and hold discussion. If three people gathered and talked, they could be accused of being enemies and arrested or executed.

People were forcing by Khmer Rouge to work

All religions were banned by Khmer Rouge. Anyone seen taking part of religious rituals or services would be executed. Several thousands Buddhists, Muslims and Christians were killed for exercising their beliefs. Married couples were only allowed to visit each other on a limited basis. If people were seen being engage in sexual activity, they would be killed immediately. Almost all freedom to travel was abolished. People were not allowed to eat in privacy, they required to eat with everyone in the commune instead. All personal utensils were banned, they were given only one spoon and a bowl to eat with. All postal and telephone services were abolished.

Vietnamese troops fought their way into Cambodia in December 1978. They captured Phnome Penh on January 7, 1979. The leaders of the Khmer Rouge then fled their to the west of Cambodia and reestablished their forces.

The Khmer Rouge continued to exist until 1999 when all of it's leaders had defected to the Royal Government of Cambodia, been arrested or had died but their legacy remain.

Millions of mines were laid by the Khmer Rouge and Government forces, which have led to thousands of deaths and disabilities since 1980s. The large proportion of the Cambodian people have mental problem because their family members were lost and their spirits damaged. These factors are the major causes of the poverty that plagues Cambodia today.

Khmer New Year Celebration

Khmer New Year the word which say in khmer language ''Bon Chol Chhnam Thmei'' usually held in the middle of April every year, which is the end of the harvesting season before the next planting season coming in the next few weeks after the Khmer New Year Celebration. Normally this celebration last fro 3 days.

People usually clean up their houses, buy new clothes and prepare incenses, candles, flowers, fruits, drinks to be ready before the New Year coming.

In between one week of the New Year lots of people travel back to their homeland to meet their family for this special day.

1st Day of the New Year ( Moha Songkran)

In the morning Cambodian people will go to the monastery (Temple) to offer food to the monks and also to get blessing from the monks. 

2nd Day of the New Year (Wanabot)

It's the day that children will offer gift to their parents and grandparents, younger will offer gift to their elders. In the evening people go to build sand mountains at the monastery to remember their ancestors who have passed away and the monks give them blessings of happiness and peace in their lives.

3rd Day of the New Year (Leung Sak)

It's the last day of the New Year celebration. Today they held a ceremony called Srang Preah the purpose of this this ceremony is to clean the Buddha Statues, parents, grandparents and elders. During this ceremony they apologize for any mistakes they have made from their parents and elders.

Beside that during these 3 days celebration they also gather around and play some traditional games with relatives and friends and also dancing together with their traditional music.

Angkor Wat at night of the New Year Days.

ABOUT CAMBODIA

Population

15,205,539 (July 2013 est.)

Note: estimates for this country take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS, this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of  population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected.

Age structure

  0-14   years            : 31.7% (male 2,428,507/female 2,397,327)

15-24 years              : 21.2% (male 1,597,990/female 1,627,161)

25-54 years              : 38.2% (male 2,828,752/female 2,985,226)

55-64 years              :   4.9% (male    287,073/female    464,991)

65 years and over    :   3.9% (male    221,356/female    367,156) (2013 est.)

Population growth rate

1.67% (2013 est)

Birth rate

24.88% births/1,000 population (2013 est)

Death rate

7.88% deaths/1,000 population (2013 est)

Major city population

Phnom Penh (Capital) 1.55 million (2011)

Map of Cambodia

HANDS UP IS BETTER THAN HAND OUT

Hands up is better than hand our!

Please think again before you give something to beggars on the street especially kids who ask you to buy milk powder for the baby who he or she carrying with. It's just a SCAM!

Milk powder will sell back to another shop with cheaper price than they make money!

If you want to help poor people, try to find a better way than hand out something to them directly because it's the way to create more begging culture and make jealousy between people or families.

Education is the best way to break the poverty so you should find more information about some organizations who are working with this program and help poor people through them by donate books, school materials and what ever you think helpful to this program.

Some orphanages and organizations are not reliable so check more information about them or better see them directly then you will see how they generate fund to program. 

Better buy goods from adults

Siem Reap has known as the most touristic city of Cambodia. When ever you go to visit temples you will see a lot of kids selling post cards and some other stuffs. It's not a good way to buy goods from kids because it's like you encourage more kids to sell goods to the tourists.

You will ask why you can't buy goods from kids?

==> When you buy goods from a kid then parents of that kid and the other kids will think that kids can attract tourists to buy goods from them so they will ask all of their kids to sell that everyday and some of them might ask their kids to stop for a few days from school or give up the school to help them selling goods. Or some of the kids will think the same that they can earn a lot of money easily from selling goods then they stop going to school by themselves.

If this make sense to you please share it to your friends!