Cambodian women under the spotlight

Is it just me, or do women, generally speaking, get a bum deal in Cambodia? I don't want to start a debate but in my limited experience, they are the fabric that keeps everything together, they work extraordinarily hard, yet they are still seen as second-class citizens in many ways. So its good to see that the Nordic Institute of Asian Studies are bringing out two books which will give a greater focus on women in Cambodia and the uphill battle they face. Trudy Jacobsen's Lost Goddesses: The Denial of Female Power in Cambodian History highlights the lofty position women once held against their struggle to regain that lost ground today. Its published next month, while Mona Lilja's new book, due out in June, will give a unique insight into the political struggles of Cambodian women. Its called Power, Resistance and Women Politicians in Cambodia: Discourses of Emancipation. You can find out more at NIASPress.

New Cambodia documentaries

In my desire to highlight and promote all films, documentaries, books and so forth that focus on Cambodia, I have news of new documentaries in progress. Cambodian Dreams, produced by Stanley Harper, has been 18 years in the making as he followed the fortunes of Yan Chhieng and her family, beginning in the Site 2 refugee camp in Thailand. Its due to be shown on Cambodian tv later this year and may even get a viewing at film festivals this Spring. Meanwhile, acclaimed documentary filmmaker Bob Elfstrom is still shooting a yet-untitled documentary on a rising star in the world of dance, Sar 'Sy' Sokvannara, a gifted Cambodian dancer who's trained at the School of American Ballet and is currently an apprentice with the Pacific Northwest Ballet School in the Seattle. The documentary will chronicle Sokvannara’s journey as a dancer as he uses the skills he learned from traditional, ritualistic Cambodian dances on the ballet stage in America.

In addition, you might be interested in these already-completed documentaries. Produced in September 2006, A Few Drops in Cambodia: Stories From a Relief Effort, is a documentary that highlights the challenges NGOs/donors face in seeking to provide health care to those most in need in Cambodia. Watch it here. Eliminated Without Bleeding is a touching and revealing one-hour documentary on the Khmer Krom indigenous peoples from the Mekong Delta in Southern Vietnam and which highlights evidence of human rights abuse. It's written, directed and produced by Rebecca Sommer. Watch it here. And if you haven't seen it on your cable channel yet, Les Guthman's superbly photographed 70-minute Churning the Sea of Time: A Journey Up The Mekong to Angkor, released last year, is now available from Amazon.com and elswehere.

The Drum - 2 events not to be missed!

The Drum, just ten minutes outside Birmingham city centre, is the UK's premier arts venue dedicated to African, Asian and Caribbean arts and cultural activities. There are two forthcoming events that I really want to see, involving two musical friends of mine. On Tuesday 17 April at 7pm, Who Shot the Sheriff, is the story of the Rock Against Racism movement featuring unseen footage of artists of the 70's and the Love Music Hate Racism (LMHR) movement today. Groups like Steel Pulse, Sham 69, The Clash and Ms Dynamite will be featured. The film tracks the rise of racism and the National Front in Britain and how a generation, black and white, fought back. There will be a post screening discussion and songs from Birmingham's very own singer songwriter Yaz Alexander. Incidentally Yaz will also be supporting the Mighty Diamonds at the same venue, on 17 March.

Then during most of June, from the 4th to the 29th to be precise, artist and musician Colin Gabbidon will have an exhibition of his paintings on show at The Drum. In Birmingham & the People Of, Colin has captured the beauty of Birmingham city, the people and their rich cultures from the 1920s to the present day. Featuring oil paintings, pastels and water colours tracing Birmingham's historical landmarks through the decades. I've known Colin for a few years and he's already exhibited his art in Germany and in his home town of Birmingham at the Symphony Hall and Central Library. He's also sketched and painted many famous musicians which he's sold to retail outlets and street sellers, including one of his Bob Marley paintings that has been widely copied throughout Europe and America (see above). When he's not painting, he's the drummer with reggae group Gabbidon. You can find out more about Colin here.

Update on Vansy

My recent return to Cambodia allowed me to meet up with lots of old friends and one in particular, Vansy. She's now 14 and growing up so fast, is doing really well at regular school and is so determined to learn and speak English to give herself, as she tells me, the chance of a career as a teacher or tour guide. I wanted to see the standard of the extra English classes she receives for an hour each day so I paid an unannounced visit to her evening class, only to find that the teacher was absent, so I took an impromptu lesson myself. It was abundantly clear that she's a 'leader' amongst her peers, the other students look up to her and her English is improving leaps and bounds each time I see her. We practised as much as we could in the few days I was with her and her family and I'm so proud of the way she applies herself and absorbs everything. I've now been afforded the privilege of 'god-father' status, which I will take very seriously. She's as bright as a button and I hope I can help her blossom into a confident and successful young woman. You can read more about Vansy here.

Peace & Reconciliation...in Oregon

The Khmer Rouge Tribunal, currently stumbling along inside Cambodia, will reach far and wide at the end of next month. On April 27 & 28, the Cambodian-American Community of Oregon (CACO) will hold a free public forum to raise awareness about the Tribunal. The two-day forum will take place in Portland and the event will include panel discussions by Khmer Rouge genocide survivors and scholars of Cambodian history and culture, as well as presentations and performances by authors, musicians, and community activists. Any Cambodia watcher will know that the United Nations and the Cambodian government are scheduled to prosecute surviving senior Khmer Rouge leaders sometime in 2007, but no-one knows what effect this may have on the Cambodian population, though it is hoped that it will bring a sense of closure and healing for many of the survivors of the Khmer Rouge regime. An estimated 250,000 refugees from Cambodia currently reside in the US, with approximately 10,000 living in Oregon and SW Washington. CACO believes it can help community members cope with individual and collective trauma by confronting the past and exploring the effects of the Khmer Rouge genocide, including post-traumatic stress disorder and will use the forum to inform and educate the general public about the long-term effects of genocide.

The line-up of speakers is an impressive one. It includes Sichan Siv, former US Ambassador to the UN; Loung Ung, renowned author featured often in this blog; Daran Kravanh, internationally renowned musician; Beth Van Schaack, legal advisor to Documentation Centre of Cambodia; Alex Hinton, author of Why Did They Kill? Cambodia in the Shadow of Genocide; and Craig Etcheson, author and prosecutor for the Tribunal, alongwith Ronnie Yimsut, author and organiser of the event. Visit www.CACOregon.org.

Loung Ung

I posted a blog-item on Loung Ung a few days ago and forgot to include this photo of Loung and myself, taken when we joined up for a chat and a meal in Phnom Penh during my recent visit to Cambodia. Loung was in Cambodia seeing family and writing an outline for her new book (sorry, I'm sworn to secrecy). She is scheduled to come to London in the next month or so for the publication of both her books in England & Europe, so I hope we can catch up again, this time on my home territory. This lady holds a special place in a lot of hearts around the globe, and mine is no exception.
You can read more about Loung Ung here.

Tourism Asean magazine & HeritageWatch

The latest edition of Tourism Asean (Jan-Apr 2007) has just landed on my door-mat, and for the third edition running, it carries one of my travel stories from Cambodia. My 'Preah Vihear - one of Cambodia's most dramatic temples' story takes up two pages with 5 of my own photos. The magazine is a gorgeously glossy trade magazine published in Singapore and sent to travel agents around the globe, in order to promote the exotic locations of Asia. My previous stories were on the Tonle Sap Lake and the Temples of Kompong Cham. In the latest edition, the main focus is on Malaysia and Koh Samui but most of the Asian countries are included with articles on Myanmar's Indawgi Lake and Vietnam's Quang Ninh province alongside my own.

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Another magazine that will feature an article from yours truly will be the next edition of Touchstone, the new glossy magazine produced by the NGO, HeritageWatch to help keep a high profile public focus on the richness of Cambodia's heritage and culture and the necessity to preserve it. I picked up a copy of their first edition when I was in Phnom Penh recently and it was literally brimming with excellent and informative articles on a variety of topics from local traditions and attractions, to forthcoming events, the art scene and numerous feature stories on places like Kampot & Kep. And it's free, just pick up a copy in the numerous bars, restaurants and guesthouses. The second edition is going to print as I type and I'm looking forward to immersing myself in its many articles soon enough. I met the HeritageWatch director Dougald O'Reilly in Siem Reap and I know how hard Dougald and his team are working to preserve Cambodia's rich cultural heritage through education projects, tourism campaigns, and as many other means as they can think of. Please support HeritageWatch and visit their website to find out more. A word of thanks to Kathy Fossati, HW's Communications chief who was helpfulness personified and gave me copies of two of their excellent comic-style education booklets, Wrath of the Phantom Army and If The Stones Could Speak, both of which are superbly produced, and printed in both Khmer and English. If you want to find out how you can help HeritageWatch, contact Kathy at kathy@heritagewatch.org.

Loung Ung - a national treasure

One of the highlights of my recent month in Cambodia was meeting up with a long-time friend, best-selling authoress, Loung Ung. We met in Phnom Penh and enjoyed a gorgeous meal together and great conversation. She epitomizes what is so appealing about Cambodians across the globe, wherever they are, whatever their background and whatever they do for a living. She is a national treasure, both in the US and Cambodia, and a captivating dinner companion. And both of her books are best-sellers for a reason, she's an extremely gifted writer.

Next month, both of her books will be published in paperback in the UK for the first time, by Mainstream Publishing, who have the rights for the UK, the Commonwealth and Europe. Her first book, First They Killed My Father - A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers will be available at £7.99, whilst her second book, After They Killed Our Father - A Refugee from the Killing Fields Reunites with the Sister she left behind (known as Lucky Child elsewhere) will retail at £12.99. I'm awaiting confirmation of whether Loung will visit the UK to coincide with the publication, but I have been told that she's accepted an invitation to appear at the Edinburgh International Book Festival in August this year. She's an accomplished public speaker, regularly touring the US and beyond, talking about her childhood experiences as well as the continuing threat of landmines around the globe. You can read more about Loung Ung here.

Aspects of Black - Yaz Alexander

If you are quick, you can still catch a photographic exhibition by local snapper Mac13soul at The Central Library in Birmingham City Centre. It runs until 28 February and opening times for the library are 8am to 8pm. The exhibition is called Aspects of Black and it focuses on One Woman - reggae singer Yaz Alexander.

If you fancy hearing Yaz sing, she will perform a solo set at the library between 6pm-7pm on Saturday 24 February. She will also perform at the forthcoming open day for The Drum music venue in Aston on 8 March and will appear as support for the Mighty Diamonds in concert, at the same venue, on 17 March. I can vouch that this lady sings like an angel and 2007 looks set to be a milestone year for her.

WOMAD invites Cambodian masters

WOMAD, the music festival that encourages & expounds music, arts and dance from around the globe, will be held near Malmesbury on 27-29 July this year and amongst the 70+ artists that will perform, two Cambodian master musicians, Kong Nai and Ouch Savy, will join the event. Of them, the most famous is Kong Nai, a blind musician whose appearance is dominated by thick dark sunglasses and a toothy, face-splitting grin. He lives in a corrugated metal hut in his Phnom Penh slum; his chapei dang veng, a two-string long-necked guitar, carved from wood and inlaid with polished bone, cost him $250 and is probably worth more than his home. Kong Nai, 60, is known for his witty improvised song and satire, for the stories that he hears, stores in his head and retells in rhyme. Once a regular at the Royal Palace, Kong Nai now teaches students on a shaded wooden pallet outside his house. There is also an outside possibility that Kong Nai will perform at The Barbican in London during his visit to England.

As I reported in my blog on 30 December, The Barbican is already hosting Weyreap's Battle, performed by members of the Amrita Performing Arts company, as part of the 2007 Barbican Bite Festival with performances on March 30, 31 and April 1 in London. This is a rare opportunity to watch classical Cambodian masked dance - don't miss it.