Soldiers burned their house to the ground

March 19, 2009

It happened without warning: Soldiers and hired thugs burned their house to the ground. The reason: A military officer wanted their land for himself.

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Years of living dangerously

March 10, 2009

Here is one of the most dangerous professions in the world: Scavenger at the Stung Meanchey garbage dump in Cambodia’s capital Phnom Penh. var addthis_pub = ”; var addthis_language = ‘en’;var addthis_options = ‘email, favorites, digg, delicious, myspace, google, facebook, reddit, live, more’;

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Travel photos from Cambodia

March 7, 2009

Cambodia is a fascinating country to visit for anyone interested in photography. Here is a slideshow of some of my travel photos from Cambodia. var addthis_pub = ”; var addthis_language = ‘en’;var addthis_options = ‘email, favorites, digg, delicious, myspace, google, facebook, reddit, live, more’;

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Acid attack victim finally sees hope for future

March 5, 2009

She was one of Cambodia’s most beautiful “whisky girls”. But then she was blinded and had her faced destroyed in an acid attack in a Phnom Penh night club. Today Srey Ya finally is happy with her life again and sees great hope for her future. var addthis_pub = ”; var addthis_language = ‘en’;var addthis_options [...]

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A video documentary of Cambodia

March 4, 2009

Film maker Josh McKague wants to help people with his video camera. Although it might be a little tainted (not much, really) by his politically conservative and Christian views, I found this video touching and well worth watching. He covers pressing issues of poverty in Cambodia today, like child prostitution, as well as giving eye [...]

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Kicked out of their homes by force

March 2, 2009

Together with her family, Soun Kasal (34) had lived in Dey Krahorm in Phnom Penh since 1995. A few weeks ago, in a matter of a few hours, their lives were turned upside down  as more than 150 families forcefully were evicted from the area where they had lived for so long time. – It [...]

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Now required by the law: Wear a helmet!

February 26, 2009

Finally the law in Cambodia is requiring motor bikers to wear helmets. But are they observing the law? Not necessesarily. And nobody cares about the passengers. var addthis_pub = ”; var addthis_language = ‘en’;var addthis_options = ‘email, favorites, digg, delicious, myspace, google, facebook, reddit, live, more’;

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Became sex worker to pay husband’s hospital bill

February 24, 2009

19 year old Srey Mom’s tragic tale illustrates some of the most pressing social problems in Cambodia:Domestic violence, poverty, poor health care, prostitution and corruption. It all hit on her at the same time. Subscribe to Cambodia Tales with RSS var addthis_pub = ”; var addthis_language = ‘en’;var addthis_options = ‘email, favorites, digg, delicious, myspace, [...]

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Teenage scavenger died for no reason

February 19, 2009

She was 17 years old and the main source of income for her family.  But last week Chantha Sreymao was killed in an accident on Stung Meanchey – Phnom Penh’s garbage dump. Always eager to make money for her family, she ran too close to the garbage truck. Suddenly a large garbage bin fell off [...]

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Torture chief Duch finally to face justice

February 17, 2009

It has been a historic day: 30 years after the Khmer Rouge regime was overthrown, the first of their leaders finally went on trial. And it is not often you see that many people show up for a trial and sit through hours of boring procedural elaborations. var addthis_pub = ”; var addthis_language = ‘en’;var [...]

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Lost the legs while helping his parents

February 14, 2009

It took just one wrong step – and Chan Theth (14) was yet another person on the long list of mine victims in Cambodia. This is the story of a young boy who wanted to help his parents build a new house for the family. One day they went to the forest to find wood [...]

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Kids on bikes

February 12, 2009

In Cambodia everybody travels on motor bikes. Even small children are used to taking a seat on dad’s motor bike. Here are some of my photos. I will add more as I continue to travel in the country. Click on the photos to view a slide show. Subscribe to Cambodia Tales with RSS var addthis_pub [...]

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A Khmer Rouge border story

February 12, 2009

In no other area of Cambodia Khmer Rouge ruled for so long. Yet the first to meet visitors as they cross the border at Psar Phrum is exactly what Khmer Rouge supposedly fought against: Casinos, corrupt officials, brothels and a colorful Buddha overlooking it all. var addthis_pub = ”; var addthis_language = ‘en’;var addthis_options = [...]

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Survivor of torture – against all odds

February 4, 2009

Chum Mey was one of only seven prisoners to survive the torture center Tuol Sleng. Will the coming trial of Duch finally give him justice? var addthis_pub = ”; var addthis_language = ‘en’;var addthis_options = ‘email, favorites, digg, delicious, myspace, google, facebook, reddit, live, more’;

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