May 31, 2006
Swimming in Cambodia
Now that the rainy season has started here, each afternoon (roughly sometime between 3 and 5) is interrupted by a torrential downpour. I'm not talking about the rain that we get during bad storms in America. This is like a wall of water that falls down in sheets so rapidly that the streets flood within minutes. And the thunder is like nothing I've ever heard before. It's so loud that it hurts my ears and vibrates like bass in my throat.
The scene in Phnom Penh is memorable. Instead of shutting down and closing up, the city adapts to the extreme weather with a sense of humor. Young schoolgirls pile onto bicycles and splash through the flooded streets. Teenage boys, barefoot and bare-chested, play a game of water soccer in less flooded areas. Moto drivers zip by wearing long, colorful, plastic ponchos, trailing behind them in the wind. Old men push food carts through the water, looking for refuge.
Unfortunately for me, I've gotten stuck outside in the rain for the past two days, trying to run errands. Yesterday was the worst. Our tuk-tuk got stuck in two feet deep water and we barely made it to our destination. Then, as I was trying to cross the street, I misjudged the depth of a puddle and ended up jumping into thigh-deep water! As I type right now, I'm taking refuge from another crazy storm.
As for our work, Emma and I have spent this week compiling and transcribing interviews. We were also able to interview a man named Sophat who was seven at the time that Khmer Rouge took over. He spoke in English, and he told us his incredible (and horrific) story of survival for an hour and a half. He lost his father, mother, and all his sisters and brothers, not to mention his uncles and a lot of cousins. Emma and I have decided to edit and use his story as the narration to a picture slideshow, as part of our exhibit in the fall.
This weekend we're taking a much-needed break to go to the coastline of Cambodia, namely Sihanoukville, Kampot, and Kep. We're excited to relax!
Posted by laraf at 05:28 AM | Comments (0)
May 28, 2006
A Weekend Full of Fruit
Emma and I just got from our second day-trip travelling to the Kandal Province. It was our first time outside of Phnom Penh so we were really excited to go...even at 7 am in the morning!
DC-Cam set up the whole trip for us. We went in conjunction with a few people who had to go to the provinces to do interviews in the Muslim communities and the DC-Cam film team. The DC-Cam staff was incredibly accomodating and helpful. The whole trip was covered by DC-Cam: the transportation, the food, etc. I heard Youk (the director) joking about how much the DC-Cam team liked to snack on these trips, and he wasn't joking! I ate so many different kinds of fruit this weekend, some I didn't even know! We ate bananas, mangos, jackfruit, pineapple, watermelon, and some green apple-like fruit. Emma and I had a great time getting to know some of the staff better as well.
We picked out a list of former perpetrators and victims in the Kandal province before we left. All we had to do was stop in the village, ask where the people lived, and go to their houses or farms. No appointments or warnings were necessary.
In all the places and houses we visited, no one acted offended or surprised at our visit. The Cambodian people are so welcoming and open. They would run to bring us chairs or mats, and offer us tea and fruit wherever we went (sidenote: I did drink the iced tea offered to me by an old man, because I decided stomach sickness would be better than being rude, sorry mom!)
I was able to interview nine different people over the past two days, using an interpreter from DC-Cam. Emma got some incredible photographs as well. Our project is really coming together, and it's only our second week here!
After talking to the Cambodian peole, the victims and the former Khmer Rouge, I can say that the upcoming trial is incredibly important in Cambodia. Everyone I talked to wanted to see these leaders convicted (although one man, a devout Buddhist, said he didn't want them punished, only forgiven.) Everyone also told me that they thought the Cambodian children should learn about it in school, because they don't understand the scope of the suffering and they need to learn about it in order for it to never happen again.
Tomorrow we are meeting with a Cambodian man who was a victim during the Khmer Rouge. I found him through the guestbook at the Tuol-Sleng (S-21) prison. He wrote a long and interesting comment and left his e-mail address so I e-mailed him and asked if we could interview him. He seems very excited.
Tuesday and Wednesday, Emma and I are tagging along with DC-Cam to a meeting with all the NGOs (international and national) operating in Cambodia. It should be very interesting, as well as a great place to get contacts. We already have appointments to meet with UNHCR, MSF, and CARE so far.
Emma and I are also starting Khmer lessons on Tuesday. Oh! And we moved to John Vink's house on Friday. It is extremely nice, we even have a cook that has her own menu!
So far this trip has been incredible, and I can't even express how grateful I am for this opportunity. I'll keep you updated!
Posted by laraf at 06:55 AM | Comments (0)
May 22, 2006
Our project begins...
Today was our first day of work at the Documentation Center, and the official start to our project. Emma and I had no idea what to expect. Although we knew that DC-Cam were sort-of our academic sponsors, we had no idea what that would entail and DC-Cam really had no idea what our project would entail.
We got to work at 8 am to meet the director, Youk Chhang. We went from secretary to secretary all the way up to the top floor in the building, then we were taken to the roof and across a walkway to the building next door. After that, we were taken all the way downstairs and given to another secretary--it was like out of a movie! Finally we were able to meet Youk. He didn't remember that we had a meeting today, but when he realized who we were, he got very excited. He gave us a tour of the buildings, which are incredibly beautiful and filled with amazing amounts of information. DC-Cam employs 60 Cambodians, which is very large for any NGO.
Youk was so kind, and he gave Emma and I our own office as well as full access to all of their archives and databases. Not only that, but he said that we could travel with their teams to the provinces any time we wanted, which is perfect, since what we really want to do is to meet with survivors and former Khmer Rouge to interview and photograph them. DC-Cam is like a dream come true, beyond any of my expectations. It's like the final link in the chain for our trip. Everything has worked out so well, and all of our hard work has paid off. Youk even told us that DC-Cam provides free plane tickets to Cambodia for all their interns once they return home. That means Emma and I can come back any time we'd like.
After this amazing meeting, Youk told us that today happened to be a special day at DC-Cam, as they had brought over 500 survivors and former Khmer Rouge from the provinces into Phnom Penh to visit the memorials and sites of genocide, and to learn more about the upcoming trial. Emma and I were allowed to tag along with the DC-Cam staff all day; we were the only foreigners. Many of these people were very old, and had seen very few white people in their lives. Therefore, we were kind of a big attraction. Nevertheless, these Cambodians were so kind and open. Since they lived in the rural areas, none spoke English, so I was able to use my Khmer to meet them and ask them some simple questions. DC-Cam set up seven interviews for us with an interpreter, so we met with former Khmer Rouge soldiers, survivors of prisons, and people who had lost all of their family. Although Emma and I were unprepared to do this kind of work today, we managed to do pretty good interviews (I recorded them while she photographed.) It was a really draining day; these people were very emotional and I had to fight back tears on several occasions during the interviews. What all the people wanted--even former Khmer Rouge--was justice. They want the leaders to be punished. Cambodia needs this upcoming trial to be fair and to be quick. Cambodia needs healing.
On the way home from Choueng Ek (the Killing Fields), the bus ahead of ours got stuck in the mud and died. We were stuck in the baking sun for an hour trying to push this bus. Emma and I were pouring with sweat. It was a one lane road so the traffic was stopped on both sides. A truck tried to go around us and it got stuck in the mud too. Someone tried to jump the bus by connecting it to a tractor. Everyone--Emma and I, the DC-Cam staff, the old Cambodians on the buses--were laughing hysterically. It was a fitting end to such a day.
Tomorrow Emma and I are getting up very early to see these people one last time as DC-Cam is taking them to the ICC to see where the trial will take place. I think it's amazing that DC-Cam is doing so much for the Cambodian people. They are encouraging them to learn as much about the trial as possible and to become a part of the process.
I'm so grateful and excited to be connected to these people, this process, and this organization in any way. Today was our first day, and we already have powerful and valuable material.
Posted by laraf at 08:31 AM | Comments (0)
May 18, 2006
Humidity!
We made it. After almost a year of planning and almost thirty hours of travelling, we finally made it.
Phnom Penh is an amazing city. It's full of extremes--traffic alternating between slow and manic, tradition juxtaposed against modernity (e.g. a Buddhist institute being right next door to a huge, brand-new casino--as I wrote that, a Buddhist monk just walked into this internet cafe), and a constant clash between Khmer and foreign culture.
Our friend Tele (a cousin of a Cambodian friend at U of M) picked us up at the airport and toured us around last night. He tooks us to a Khmer restaurant on the outskirts of Phnom Penh and we ate all kinds of good food, including frog.
Emma and I don't start work until Monday, so we are going to explore the city this weekend. We are staying at a guesthouse across from Tuol-Sleng, so we'll probably start there.
Emma and I stick out a lot in this city, but the people are very friendly and kind. We both realized how much we need to start Khmer lessons here though!
I'm anxious to start our project. We've gotten invitations from UNHCR, MSF, and CARE to come learn more about their work here in Cambodia, and we also have a great academic sponsor--The Documentation Center of Cambodia.
The adventure has only started, and we're incredibly excited and grateful for this opportunity.
Posted by laraf at 09:10 PM | Comments (0)