About Tourism

Cambodia recently showcased the creative talents of disabled individuals from around the region in a thought-provoking arts event at Chenla Theatre

ON DECEMBER 3, hundreds of people gathered at the park next to Wat Botum for a special ceremony – and to share talents and ideas – in celebration of the 26th International Day of Persons with Disabilities. This happy gathering was different from others in the park – though one could hardly tell at first glance – because most of the participants, who hailed from numerous NGOs, happened to be disabled.

The day has been an international observance promoted by the United Nations since 1992, typically organised by volunteers. In Cambodia this year’s event was co-organised by the Ministry of Social Affairs and the Cambodian Disabled People’s Organisation [CDPO].

Messages of support from both the King and prime minister were read to the 3,500-strong crowd. A representative from the CDPO, Ngin Saorath, later requested the government ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. After the serious business, however, games and wheelchair races started up, finishing the day on a fun note.

Two days later, on December 5, many of the same people showcased their abilities in the Spotlight 2009 arts performance, co-organised by London-based NGO Epic Arts and the Nippon Foundation. In front of Chenla Theatre, the strains of classical music, played by a group of disabled children near the theatre’s entrance, wafted over the street.

The evening featured performers from Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines, as well as Cambodia. According to one of the Khmer performers, Kong Nai, a self-taught master of chapei, a traditional form of improvised songwriting often compared to American Delta blues: “People should have equal rights and values in society, even though they may be ‘disabled’ – because not every person shares the same physical abilities.”

In his song, the musician lyrically bemoaned the hardships of being blind since the age of 4.

As he didn’t expect to be offered other jobs, Kong Nai learnt to play chapei at age 13 and started performing at 15. This is one musician who not only sings the blues, but actually lives them.

At the song’s end, Kong Nai explained how sad handicapped people feel when they are mistreated: “Because I cannot see, I have been tricked into walking into objects to make people laugh.”

This year, Epic Arts, which employs some disabled workers in its Kampot and Phnom Penh offices, is compiling a database of disabled artists in Southeast Asia to facilitate regional collaboration.

“We are trying to connect people to develop their vocational skills on inclusive arts,” said Epic Arts’ project manager Marie de Pibrac. “We are also working to encourage disabled people to be stronger and show their abilities, not disabilities,” she added.

“I hope that after two years of our vocational training program, Epic Arts dancers will become professionals performing in Southeast Asia in 2010.”
This article quoted from Phnom Penh Post website issued on 15 December 2009.
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Will the long-awaited trial of Khmer Rouge leaders ease Cambodians' trauma, or stir painful memories?
PHNOM PENH—A Cambodian psychiatrist has testified at the trial of a confessed Khmer Rouge torturer that up to 40 percent of Cambodians suffer psychological trouble as a result of the faction’s brutal four-year rule.

“According to research conducted after the Khmer Rouge period, two out of five Cambodians have [suffered] mental problems and psychosocial crises. This figure is high—up to 40 percent” of the population, Chhim Sotheara said.

Studies this year also found that some 14 percent of Cambodians aged 18 and older have suffered post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), Chhim Sotheara testified at the trial of Kaing Guek Eav, alias Duch, who commanded a Khmer Rouge torture center when the group was in power from 1975-79.

“During the Khmer Rouge regime, people were trained not to trust each other. This has continued among Cambodians today,” said Chhim Sotheara, of the Transcultural Psychosocial Organization, which promotes community mental health programs,

He added that Duch’s trial offers a chance for Khmer Rouge victims to heal through the administration of justice.

Painful memories
The Journal of the American Medical Association this month published new research by experts at the University of North Carolina that found most Cambodians feared the tribunal would stir up painful memories.

Those who most wanted revenge were also likely to suffer PTSD, they wrote.

Some 87.2 percent of Cambodians 35 or older believed trying Khmer Rouge leaders would stir painful memories, they found, adding, "Now that the trials have begun, longitudinal research is needed to determine the impact of the trials on Cambodians' mental health."

Duch is the first of five senior Khmer Rouge figures scheduled to face long-delayed trials and the only one to acknowledge responsibility for his actions. His trial, which started in March, is expected to finish before the end of the year.

He could face life imprisonment. Cambodia has no death penalty.

Original reporting by Leng Maly for RFA’s Khmer service. Translated by Uon Chhin. Khmer service director: Sos Kem. Executive producer: Susan Lavery. Written and produced in English by Sarah Jackson-Han.
This article quoted from website of RFA on 27 August 2009.
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Cambodia is branding itself as a natural wonder. As the PR campaign approaches its second year, the government is now expanding on the message – at home and abroad

Millions of viewers of CNN International may now identify Cambodia as the “Kingdom of Wonder”, but the tagline has yet to do wonders for the country’s tourism industry. Despite an international branding campaign launched in November 2008, the tourism sector in Cambodia has seen a decline in arrivals from developed countries.

Recent reports from the Ministry of Tourism showed a 9.98 percent increase in overall visitors to the country due to a 43.66 percent rise in arrivals from Vietnam and a 126.29 percent spike in visitors from Laos. However, arrivals from critical markets in China, South Korea and Japan have dropped.

Visitors from South Korea, which used to be the leading contributor of visitors to the Kingdom, have fallen 31.23 percent in the first eight months of the year to 123,729, Ministry of Tourism figures released last month show. Japanese visitors fell 14.05 percent over the same period to 77,305, as arrivals from China fell 10.24 percent to 70,135.

Translating the Wonder
With hopes of milking the economic recession for what it is worth, Cambodia’s Government-Private Sector Forum (GPSF) aims to turn Cambodia into a tourism boom and reel in regional travellers from developed Asian countries.

The GPSF tourism working group has proposed expansion of the “Kingdom of Wonder” campaign to countries such as China and South Korea.
“It would be very useful,” said Ho Vandy, co-chair of the group, about plans with the government to locate specific native-language TV stations in China and South Korea to broadcast translated versions of the “Kingdom of Wonder” spot. “We spend less money and the information goes directly to the places where we need it to go,” adding that the group has sent a request to the ministry for a recommendation of where they should begin to focus their creative effort, but have yet to receive a reply.

The ministry footed the bill for production of the promotional ads and the cost of airing them on CNN International, but the “Kingdom of Wonder” brand was born out of a branding campaign jointly produced by the International Finance Corporation, the private-sector arm of the World Bank, and the German Technical Co-Operation (GTZ). Sue Kennedy, a sustainable tourism professional, worked with an advertising agency to conceptualise the national branding campaign for Cambodia.

The GPSF is also tasked with developing policies and strategies regarding tourism that are sent to the Tourism Ministry to review and act upon. However, its most recent proposal has stalled while the government pursues other strategies.

The ministry wouldn’t give a target date for extending the campaign to local markets and said that it is pleased with its current television contracts. “CNN International reaches all of the places we want to reach,” said Secretary of State So Mara, adding that the ministry is trying to get journalists and news stations in foreign locations to report more on Cambodia.

The brand begins
In July, the government spent US$340,000 on a deal to show its ads on CNN International, an English-language channel that reaches more than 200 million households and hotel rooms throughout the world, at a 75 percent discount from the American-based company.

Although CNN is the only international outlet for the “Kingdom of Wonder” campaign, owners of Cambodia’s hotels, restaurants and tourist destinations have embraced the branding initiative at their own establishments.

Luu Meng, president of the Hotels Association of Cambodia and owner of the Almond Hotel in Phnom Penh, said that the ministry provided CDs along with a brand book containing seven logos as part of the entire “Kingdom of Wonder” branding campaign so that private companies can integrate it into their own promotional materials.

“Now the government has a nice slogan and a nice marketing tool,” he said. “It benefits all of us to participate in this campaign,” Luu Meng said.

The ministry has also produced a 10-minute “Kingdom of Wonder” DVD and magazines to hand out at tourism fairs around the world. On recent trips, the government has sent 30-40 Cambodian actors to Shanghai and Ho Chi Minh City with financial assistance from companies such as NagaWorld, Sokimex and Canadia Bank.

Living the wonder
The other side of the “Kingdom of Wonder” campaign, which is overseen by an inter-ministerial “Kingdom of Wonder” committee as well as a Ministry of Tourism sub-committee on campaign promotion, is an internal effort to make people conscious of their contribution to the country’s environmental and aesthetic appeal.

The “Kingdom of Wonder” campaign is aimed at promoting “clean resorts, clean cities and good service”, but places such as Phnom Penh may not fulfill such expectations. In an effort to change people’s methods of disposing trash, the Ministry has produced Khmer-language public-service announcements to be aired on all national television stations.

The public-service spots, directed by Sok Somart, who was also creative director of the “Kingdom of Wonder” campaign, promote throwing away trash and cutting down on pollution. These public-service spots are aired by Cambodian TV stations four or five times a day at no cost to the ministry.

“Internationally, we are attracting people to come here,” said So Mara. “But we must also prepare ourselves to welcome them.”
This article quoted from Phnom Penh Post newspaper on Monday 19 October 2009.
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Classical Dance of Cambodia The epic poem of Rama (Ramayana) is believed to have been revealed to a Hindu holy man named Valmiki by Brahma, the god of creation.

This religious literary work, dating from about ad 4, is known in various versions throughout India and Southeast Asia.

In Cambodia, the story has been set to music and dance and performed by the Royal Ballet since the 18th century. Although the epic is also known in the villages, where it is translated orally or dramatized in the popular shadow puppet theater, the ballet was traditionally a courtly art performed in the palace or for princely festivals. The music of the ballet is performed by the Pinpeat orchestra, which is made up of traditional xylophones, metallophones, horizontal gongs, drums, and cymbals.
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Water, light floating and moon praying festival are always held annually within three days, 14th 15th day of the waxing moon and 1st day of the waning moon in Kattika (name of the 12th month of lunar calendar that between October and November of solar calendar).

This festival consists of boats racing (men-women) from morning until evening and at night they float the decorated light of each institution.

Especially fireworks make every body in the festival happier. On the 15th of waxing moon of Kattika and the 2nd day of the festival, people pray the moon and Ak-ambok.

The source of Water Festival



The carving boat of Khmer group on a grand bronze drum. 3B.C National Museum According to book called “the History of Cambodia” shows ­that in 3rd B.C, Khmer society had developed itself. They could make the boat as carving on the grand bronze drum in National Museum and discovery of wooden boats in Kampuchea Krom (lower Cambodia). Until Fu-nan period, King Fan che-man had established the ships in purposes of oversea war and business.

The carving boat of Khmer group on a grand bronze drum. 3B.C National Museum

This activity was recorded by Chinese historian in their history. Then in Chenla period, Cambodia was divided into two parts, the higher and the lower. So the uses of boats or ships are very importance for Lower Chenla in transportation, businesses and war. Further more, the sculptures at Bayon and Banteay Chmar temples mentioned Jayavarman7 leaded the navy troops by boats to overcome Cham soldiers. This war aimed to liberate Cambodia from enemy (1177-1181). We could see Jayavarman7 standing on the boat, daringly hold an arch and long stick among the navy forces.

Refer to the document of board contesting of Mores and Customs Commission Nº 19-004, written by Mr. Thach Pain, called Pang, a lay man in sub-Buddhist Institute at Klang province, Kampuchea Krom, mentioned that in Long Vek time (1528 AD), King Ang Chan 1 appointed Paññea Tat Siddhaphubal as a feudal lord to govern Kampuchea Krom, Basak district. This king had organized his navy troops as follows

- Group 1, called the front line fighter and trained to fight with the boats profile as the boats contesting we have had every day.

- Group 2, called the back force and trained to fight with oaring boats which have two row seats the same as the boats we have had every day.

- Group 3, called Basak navy, a big boat with roof at the front part, oaring materials, sail, no wall etc. and it was similar to Basak boat. So it is called Pok Chay boat. It was the cargo boat. The fighting ­strategies, used by the feudal lord of Kampuchea Krom, depended on the four regional governors to restrict law and other regulations.

They prepared the festival while on the full moon in Kattika. Those governors gathered all forces to conduct “the Combined Fighting Training” for a day and a night every year at the strong hold of feudal lord.

Historically, we can conclude that the boat contesting was celebrated from pre-Angkor period the same as the other countries, China and India in the past. It shows the Khmer strong navy force and derived from combined fighting training in the past. Further more, in Buddhism, we found the scripture titled “dhammapadatthakatha” volume 3, page 137 mentioned that Nagas had created boat for Buddha in “Attano buppa kamma vathu” story.

Sources of light floating festival

There are three scriptures mention about this festival:
- Dathavongsa in Pali language tells that Buddha’s four canine teeth were placed at five sites: Second level of paradise, Dragon world, Ganthiara, Dantapura and Kalingaratth.

- In Phanaravara Pali scripture, chapter puddhanamakkaragatha said that the Buddha’s feet were placed at five sites: suvannamalikabarvata, suvannavarvata, sumanakutabarvata, yonakapuri and at nammada stream.

- The praised words of Buddha’s feet in Pali and Khmer also mention about Buddha’s feet as in Phanaravara Pali too. Whereas the books are the sources, Cambodian Buddha’s disciples always perform floating light festival at Assuj. For king always conducts this festival on14th 15th day of the waxing moon and 1st day of the waning moon in Kattika for canine teeth at dragon world, Buddha’s feet at nammada stream and where else as mention above. They believe that it is the good action for people and nation.

Source of moon praying- Aak Ambok festival

n baramattha dipani atdhakatha cariyapitaka scripture, pali language, said that in the early this phaddakabba, Preah Podhisat as born as Sasa pandit (a rabbit). On the day of full moon, Sasa pandit dedicated his meat as teanbaramattha barami to others who want and himself will be born as Buddha. Preah Indda knows this and turns to be an old Brahman to beg for Preah Podhisat’s meat. Preah Podhisat told an old Brahman to burn the light and he will jump into the fire. But fire could not burn Preah Podhisat and the old Brahman carried him to Chanda (moon) immediately. Brahman draw Preah Podhisat picture on the moon and we can see it until now. Believing in this fact, at the night of full moon in Kattika, all Cambodian people bring foods, cake such as pounded rice (called Ambok), banana, coconuts and other things to pray the moon.

In conclusion, Water, light floating and moon praying festival have two meanings. The first one is to keep our good traditional, custom and religion of our people and another one is to indicate about the development of all fields in the country. It shows the happiness, friendship, braveness etc. of our people to combat the enemies, nature in their living. We have to prevent these heritages from dangers. This festival also to show enthusiasm for water that is the special thing which can create life and prosperity to human being and the abundant of agricultural products that come from water and fertilized land I our country.
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The historic weekend floods were quite a shock for many Siem Reap residents, but this was particularly true of Leakhena Muth, wife of FCC Angkor’s Director of Rooms Division Benoit Jancloes. The first shock came when she stepped out of bed into a fresh puddle.

A nanosecond later came shock number two; one of the electric variety, from power points and electric cords that were underwater.

Benoit said, “My wife got out of bed last week thinking it was a normal day. But she got an electric shock when she stepped into 20 centimetres of water. She was holding the baby at the time, so it got a jolt as well. It was a nice wake-up call.”

Luckily, the shocks were mild.

But perhaps the most poignant scenes took place riverside on Sunday near Wat Bo Bridge, when family members of a missing boy presumed drowned in the river gathered to oversee the search for his body.



The boy, 17-year-old high-school student Amkong Chamrouen was among a group of young males jumping off the bridge into the flooded waters, when he disappeared while trying to rescue another boy.

Amkong Chamrouen’s uncle told Scene the utmost thing on the parents’ mind was to find the body, and they had engaged the services of a fortune teller who said it would be found on Sunday.

The parents then spent US$30 on hiring three Vietnamese men to search the water and offered a $1,000 reward for recovery of the body.
By late Sunday afternoon, more men were searching the river as the sun set, but sadly to no avail.
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Koh Rong Island is a Cambodian Island in the Gulf of Thailand, at about 40km off the coast of Sihanoukville. Actually, the island is deserted, undeveloped and untouched.

It's a secret island. But it will be soon one of the famous touristic destination of Cambodia. The island is certainly the most beautiful island of the Kompong Som Region. A snowdrift bay, covered by a crystal clear and turquoise water, stretches on several kilometers. At the center, a jungle with thousands of coconut palms and waterfalls invade the island. Paradise found on Koh Rong !

The Island has three unique attributes: location, raw beauty and size.
Firstly, Koh Rong is located in the center of the Indochina Riviera only 20 kilometers (13 miles) off the coast of Sihanuk ville, Cambodia’s leading resort destination.



The Indochina Riviera is influenced by the French Colonialism and stretches across 600 kilometers (375 miles) of Thai-Cambodian-Vietnamese coastline comprising untouched islands, pristine beaches, calm turquoise waterways (no exposure to tsunami or cyclones) and virgin rainforests. On the doorstep of China, and only a one hour flight from the international flight hubs of Bangkok and Singapore, the Island is easily accessible for tourists from all over the world.

Koh Rong is currently a wilderness and will be completely master planned. The quality and aesthetics of all of the Island’s development will be controlled by a building code dictated by the Master Developer. The Governments of Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam have allocated most of the desirable land in the region to tourism developers or zoned land as nature reserves; therefore large greenfield sites suitable for master planning are limited.
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Hundreds of Khmer Krom farmers are protesting in front of government offices to demand the return of ancestral land, arguing that they do not wish to disrupt Vietnamese society but merely want Vietnam to respect the rights of Indigenous peoples.



Below is a press release issued by the Khmer Kampuchea Krom Federation:
According to Radio Free Asia (RFA) broadcasted in Khmer and in Vietnamese, there are hundreds of the Indigenous Khmer-Krom farmers gathering in front of the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam office located at 210 Vo Thi Sau, Phuong 7, Quan 3, TP HCM to demand the Vietnamese authorities return their confiscated farmlands.

Some of the farmers have claimed that they have filed complaints for decades and today receive no compensation or satisfactory results from the Vietnamese officials. The Indigenous Khmer-Krom farmers have been sleeping on the streets in front of the National Assembly since Friday night [07 December 2007] (Vietnam local time).

For many of the protestors, it was a long way for them to travel from their villages to Prey Nokor (Ho Chi Minh City) because the Vietnamese authorities tried to stop them from going to file the complaints at the office of the National Assembly. This is the third time that they have been forced to go to Prey Nokor. The Vietnam authority has promised to solve the issues, but did not take any follow up actions causing yet another peaceful protest to be conducted at this moment.



Instead of returning the confiscated farmlands to the Indigenous Khmer-Krom farmers, the Vietnam authorities are accusing those innocent Khmer-Krom farmers for disturbing the Vietnamese society. Protestors have claimed that Vietnamese authorities are threatening to arrest them if they do not return back to their villages immediately.
Testifying via RFA, a female Khmer-Krom farmer has appealed to international organizations, especially the United Nations to help them because they felt that they had no rights to live on their ancestral lands. They are farmers and yet all of their lands are confiscated. For centuries, the rich fertile lands of the Mekong Delta have been an essential element for the survival of the Khmer Krom people, providing plentiful food and water. Since Vietnam’s occupation of their lands, however, hundreds of thousands are finding themselves homeless and further entrenched in poverty.

Highly frustrated with Vietnam false promises, the protesters have said via RFA that they are willing to be killed if that was what takes for Vietnamese authorities to return their rightful land. Unwilling to comprise to the wishes of the protestors, Vietnam authorities are using intimidation tactics by sending the Vietnamese soldiers to the villages of the Khmer-Krom farmers to threaten their families.

On behalf of the Indigenous Khmer-Krom voiceless farmers, we seek your help in an international cooperation to urge Vietnam to respect the Human Rights of the Khmer-Krom people, especially the right to own their ancestral lands. Since Vietnam signed the recent adoption of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples on September 13, 2007, it should show respect and implement the Article 26 of the Declaration “Indigenous peoples shall not be forcibly removed from their lands or territories.”

If Vietnam did in fact take serious consideration into the land confiscation issues and implements appropriate and necessary policies, protests would not be a common occurrence. The protestors are not attempting to disturb the Vietnamese society as alleged by the Vietnamese authorities. The Khmer-Krom farmers are merely use a human rights instrument to bring to the surface a hidden problem that is a massive obstacle hindering them from living a fulfilled life as embedded in the Vietnamese constitution, international declarations and the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
(Source: Khmer Kampuchea Krom Federation)

The Khmer Empire was at its apogee during the reign of Jayavarman VII (1181-1215 A.D.). Its territory covered the current Cambodia, all of southern Vietnam, all of the current Laos, all of the current Thailand, and part of the current Malaysia.


Unlike the Khmers, Thais, known then as Siamese, were not natives of the region. The kingdom of Thailand, known then as Siam, did not appear in Southeast Asia until the mid-14th century. A well-known Thai historian, Sulak Sivarak, who was a Nobel Peace Prize nominee and the winner of the Right Livelihood Award said of the Khmer Empire: “It included everything right up to Lopburi and all of what is now Bangkok'.
Again, describing the Khmer Empire, Peter Janssan of the Hindustan Times quoted Sulak Sivaraka in his article on 18 June 2008: “Thai invasions of Cambodia, then in its decline, led to the adoption of many Khmer cultural traditions by the Thais, including the Hindu concept of god-kings and court rituals, and an ongoing fondness for Brahman-inspired black magic, especially among Thai politicians”. Peter Janssan went on to describe that there are many more Khmer temples located in Thailand, especially along the northeast Thailand- Cambodian border like Buriram, Surin, and Sisaket.


THE FRENCH PROTECTORATE

Cambodia was a vassal state under Siam during the reign of King Ang Duong. Cambodia had lost Battambang, Sisophon, and Siem Reap to Siam. Siam had placed spies everywhere at the court of Oudong. To get out of the Siam’s manacles, King Norodom who succeeded his father, King Ang Duong, sought out help from France.

On 23 March 1907, under the reign of King Sisowath who succeeded his brother, King Norodom, France (as the protectorate of Cambodia) and Siam signed a border treaty that completed the 1904 treaty. In the 1904 treaty Siam ceded Tonlé Repou, Mlou Prey, Koh Kong, and Stung Trèng to Cambodia. The 1907 treaty subsequently produced the French-Siamese Commission 1907 Frontier, placing Preah Vihear under the control of Cambodia. The French-Siamese 1907 treaty had Siam ceded almost all Cambodia ancient territory of the 16th century back to Cambodia. The territory included Battambang, Sisophon, Siem Reap, Mongkol Borei, and Tnot.

In spite of this agreement, Thailand contested in 1934 that the Temple of Preah Vihear belonged to her and their surveyors redrew the frontier to locate Preah Vihear in Thailand’s territory. In 1954 Thailand occupied Preah Vihear. On 6 October 1959, Cambodia, under the leadership of Prince Norodom Sihanouk, petitioned the International Court of Justice (ICJ) of the Hague, Netherlands, to rule on the dispute. By the end of the year, Thailand retaliated with a claim listing Preah Vihear as a national archeological site. On June 15, 1962, the ICJ made a judgment recognizing that the Temple of Preah Vihear belonged to Cambodia using the French-Siamese Commission 1907 Frontier Line as one of the supporting arguments. A satellite photo showing Preah Vihear and its surrounding region with demarcations of the frontier established by the French-Siamese Commission 1907 is presented in Figure 6. Figure 7 shows another satellite photo of Preah Vihear and the Dangrek mountain range. Thailand never protested against the verdict. However, over the years Thailand has unilaterally redrawn the map that contradicts the ICJ judgment.

The temple of Preah Vihear was originally built under Yasovarman I, a Khmer king who reigned from 889 to 910 A.D. The building started in light material, but its completion in stone was carried on later by his successors. The temple was dedicated to Shiva (God of destroyer). The setting of Preah Vihear was ideal for a Khmer monarch who dedicated the temple for Shiva because of its spectacular location sitting atop of a high cliff over 500 meters above the lower ground.

THE THAI TWISTED THESIS OF THEIR ORIGIN

There are some Thais in the academic, the press, and the media who fantasize in their justification of Preah Vihear belonging to Thailand by advancing a twisted thesis claiming that Khmer is not the same as Khorm (note: the Thai used to call Khmer as either Khamin or Khorm). They say that Khmer is Khamin, which is different from Khorm. Furthermore, they say that Khorms are the real inhabitants of what is now Thailand and they were the builders of Preah Vihear, Angkor, and all the ancient temples found in Cambodia and Thailand. They are saying that Khmers are not the descendents of the Angkor builders. Therefore, they try to justify by implication that Thai people are the true descendents of the Khorms, the original inhabitants of Thailand and builders of Preah Vihear and Angkor. The Thai people have such a twisted mind. Believing in this twisted thesis is like believing that a bullet firing from a gun can be curved around a corner. The Thais are not only satisfied to steal everything that are precious to Khmers and then claimed them to be their own, such as Preah Ko Preah Keo, Preah Khan Reach, Khmer classical dance and music, Khmer style boxing, and Khmer scripts “Aksor Moul” (the Thai called it sacred scripts instead of Khmer scripts), but now they try to even steal Khmer identity. They want to strip Khmer people bare of any ancestry.

OBSERVATIONS

A few important observations to the central issue of the Preah Vihear temple must be brought up to the attention of the world. The following are two immediate points of interest concerning the affair of the Preah Vihear temples:
1. The press keeps mentioning that Preah Vihear was an ancient Hindu temple instead of a Khmer temple. Preah Vihear is not a Hindu temple but a Khmer temple built under the reign of Yasovarman I, a Khmer king in the 9th century, dedicated to Shiva, one of the Hindu gods. When the press says that Preah Vihear is a Hindu temple, it deemphasizes Khmer ownership and legitimacy to the temple. In modern time, the war of words is very important. This clarification is very important and it must be emphasized at all time.
2. Thailand kept insisting on using her own map to claim the disputed area around Preah Vihear instead of the French-Siamese Commissioned Map of 1907, where the International Court of Justice (ICJ) based its judgment on to award Preah Vihear to Cambodia. The map was the product of the treaty signed by Thailand and French (Cambodia was under the French protectorate) in 1907. It is legal and binding. Thailand wants to use its own map that is not binding and not recognized by the International Court of Justice. Cambodia must not give in to the Thai insistence of using her own map to settle the dispute of Preah Vihear and its surrounding area.

CAMBODIA AND THAILAND JOINT COMMUNIQUE

Originally, Thailand was opposed to Cambodia’s proposal to UNESCO for the inscription of the Temple of Preah Vihear on the World Heritage List. Thailand was objected to the languages and maps in the document that Cambodia submitted to UNESCO showing the contested areas surrounding Preah Vihear as belonging to Cambodia. In order to enlist Thailand’s support, Cambodia agreed to put aside her claim to the disputed areas around the Temple of Preah Vihear. A Joint Communiqué was signed on 18 June 2008 by H.E. Deputy Prime Minister Sok An, representing Cambodia, and by H.E. Minister of Foreign Affairs Noppadon Pattama, representing Thailand. The Representative of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Assistant Director-General for Culture Françoise Rivière, was the witness. The Joint Communiqué is presented herein.


THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE JOINT COMMUNIQUE

After the Joint Communiqué was signed, the Thai Constitutional Court voted 8-1 on 8 July 2008 that the Joint Communiqué signed by Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama to endorse Cambodia’s application to inscribe the Temple of Preah Vihear as World Heritage List was unconstitutional. The ruling stated that 'The government must consult and get approval from Parliament before signing treaties with foreign countries.' As a result of this ruling, the Thai government withdrew her support for Cambodia in all matters related to the inscription of the Temple of Preah Vihear as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In spite of Thailand’s objection, the UNESCO approved to inscribe the Temple of Preah Vihear as a World Heritage List at the 32nd session meeting in Quebec, Canada, on 7 July 2008.
It seemed that Cambodia and Thailand had the same philosophy but two completely different objectives. The philosophy from both sides was to divide and conquer. Cambodia was interested in getting UNESCO to list the Temple of Preah Vihear as a World Heritage Site first and deal
with the issue of the territorial dispute around Preah Vihear later. On the other hand, Thailand was mainly interested in Cambodia to exclude the territorial dispute from the application to UNESCO.
The objective from the Cambodian government was to expect that the UNESCO approval to inscribe the Temple of Preah Vihear on the World Heritage List was a tacit way of legitimizing Cambodia’s claim for the disputed areas around Preah Vihear. However, from the Thai government’s point of view, the signature of the Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister on the Joint Communiqué was considered a breakthrough that opened the door for Thailand to reclaim the disputed areas around Preah Vihear that she had lost at the International Court of Justice on 15 June 1962. The first question now ensued. Since the Thai government withdrew her support for
Cambodia’s application to UNESCO for the inscription of the Temple of Preah Vihear on the World Heritage List, would the Joint Communiqué that was signed by the Thai Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama become null and void? It requires two persons to tango. The second question ensued. Was the Joint Communiqué signed by Deputy Prime Minister Sok An constitutional under Cambodian’s laws? Like Thailand, does the government of Cambodia require consultation and approval from the Parliament before any treaties can be signed with foreign governments? A treaty deals with the national security of the nation. Therefore, it is too important for the government alone to decide it without consultation and approval from the Parliament.
The third question ensued. Even though Cambodia did not recognize the claim by Thailand concerning the disputed areas around the Temple of Preah Vihear, would the Joint Communiqué somewhat give credence to Thailand’s claim? Paragraph 3 in the Joint Communiqué is very disturbing because it says that the map shown in Figure 14 supersedes other maps, specifically the “Schéma Directeur pour le Zonage de Preah Vihear” and all the “core zone” mentioned in all graphics. Does this mean that the Cambodian government rejects the map from the French-Siamese Commission Frontier1907 Line? Paragraph 4 is also disturbing because it conforms to the claim by Thailand concerning the disputed area, which is on the west and north of the Temple of Preah Vihear (Figure 15). The Joint Communiqué cannot be left in its current format and understanding because it is more detrimental to Cambodia but more advantageous to Thailand. Like the Thai, The Cambodian Constitutional Court must declare that the Joint Communiqué was unconstitutional to avoid further challenges from Thailand. Cambodia territorial integrity is more important than the listing of the Temple of Preah Vihear as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

CONCLUSION

Cambodia is doing the right thing to seek help from the United Nations (UN). It is not in the interest of Thailand to have the UN intervene in the affair of Preah Vihear, because she knows that Cambodia has more legitimacy and historical claim of Preah Vihear and its surrounding area than Thailand does. The UN will have to consider and abide by the 1962 judgment made by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the recent recognition by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) that included Preah Vihear in the World Heritage List. If the UN were to side with Cambodia, then they would probably ask Thailand to withdraw from the disputed area.

Thailand is playing hardball because she knows Cambodia is no match with her militarily. Cambodia has no choice but to ask the UN for help. With the UN help Thailand will not dare to encroach further into Cambodia territory. If war were to erupt, Thailand would be condemned by the world and she will lose face. Additionally, the Muslims are now waiting for the right opportunity to stir troubles again in the southern region of Thailand if this latter decides to go to war with Cambodia. Thailand cannot afford to have war with Cambodia. Thailand may win in the short term but she will lose in the long run. Thailand fears the UN because among the five permanent members, Cambodia can count on France, China, and Russia to side with her. As to the US and the UK positions, nothing can be certain but if these two countries interpret the laws and historical facts properly, they should come to the conclusion that Thailand has no claim and basis over Preah Vihear and its surrounding area that she had ceded to Cambodia during the French-Siamese 1907 treaty.
The UN cannot ignore the ICJ judgment that recognized Preah Vihear belonging to Cambodia, because to do otherwise would bring chaos to the international rule of laws. There is no doubt, both based on the court of laws and historical facts, that the Temple of Preah Vihear is a Khmer heritage and belonging to Cambodia.

The intricately patterned ikat silks (silks that whose threads are tie-dyed before being woven) created by the Khmer and Cham ethnic groups may come to mind when thinking of Cambodian textiles, but the peoples of Cambodia have produced many other cotton and silk textiles. Cambodians traditionally considered both domestic and imported textiles to be markers of identity, prestige, and wealth, and quantity and quality of textiles possessed by an individual or family contributed to their status within society.
Traditional dress in Cambodia is similar to traditional dress in neighboring Laos and Thailand.

Sampot is the lower garment worn by either sex. The sampot for urban lower class and peasant women is a tube-skirt (sarong) approximately one and a half meters in length with both ends sewn together and is worn wrapped around the waist and secured with a cloth belt. Women of the middle and upper classes preferred to wear the sampot chang kben on a daily basis until the beginning of the twentieth century.





This rectangular piece of cloth is approximately three meters long and one meter wide and is worn by first wrapping the cloth around the waist and stretching the ends away from the body. The outstretched ends are then twisted together and pulled between the legs and toward the back. The ends are tucked into the waist at the back, and the sampot chang kben is lastly fastened with a cloth or metal belt. Women of all social strata wear the sampot chang kben on special occasions such as religious ceremonies and weddings.

Men also wear the sampot chang kben, but the traditional textile patterns worn by males differ from those worn by females. Traditionally, neither women nor men wore an upper garment. However, when the French colonial presence grew in Cambodia in the late nineteenth century, both men and women began to wear upper garments.

Even after the French presence in Cambodia from the 1860s onwards, Cambodians continued to wear traditional clothing. The Cambodian royalty and government officials combined the shot silk sampot chang kben (in the appropriate color for the day of the week) with a formal jacket. In the beginning of the twentieth century, Cambodians adopted forms of western style clothing such as a blouse or shirt.

Men more readily adopted trousers as the lower garment for daily use, and both sexes continue to wear the sampot chang kben for formal occasions. Lower class and particularly rural women still wear a tube-skirt, but the material may be printed batik-patterned cloth bought at the market rather than hand-woven silk or cotton.

Silk Textiles

The most important silk textiles of Cambodia are the ikat silks (hol), twill-patterned, weft ikat textiles. The pattern is made by tying vegetable or synthetic fibers on sections of the weft threads before the threads are dyed. This process is repeated for different colored dye baths until the patterns are formed and the cloth is woven. The two types of hol textiles have five traditional colors: red, yellow, green, blue, and black.

The sampot hol is the lower garment mentioned earlier, made from hol cloth (hol cloth can also be used for sampot chang kben). The pidan hol is a ceremonial hanging reserved for religious or sacred purposes.

The pidan hol is an example of excellent craftsmanship. It may be presented to a Buddhist temple or hung it in homes to create sacred space around the family's personal shrine. In a temple this textile is hung behind, above, or around the base of, a Buddha image. The narrative motifs of a pidan hol often depict tales of the previous lives of the Buddha.

Cotton Textiles

The various ethnic groups of Cambodia also produce cotton material for religious clothing and other purposes, such as for bedding and for various household textiles. The royal courts also imported Indian chintz with patterns especially for the Southeast Asian market.

The kroma is the all-purpose utility cotton cloth used by either men or women throughout the country as a head or neck scarf, belt, or towel. It is also used as a bag to carry things. This rectangular textile has a checkered pattern, usually blue and white or red and white, with striped ends. Political groups such as the Khmer Rouge have used the kroma to symbolize membership.

The Cham, an Austronesian group, are highly skilled silk weavers who produce cotton tube-skirts or sarongs for both men and women. Three or four hundred years ago, the Cham reportedly used to produce batiks (wax resist-dyed fabrics) in cotton similar to that of their kin in insular Southeast Asia. Cham women weave a checked or plaid cotton sarong for men. Natural or white cotton is important in Cham religious activities; it is worn by Cham priests and used as a sacred object during religious ceremonies.

Other Mon-Khmer and Austronesian minorities living in the northeastern region of Cambodia weave cotton cloth on back strap looms for clothing and domestic use. The groups of both of these linguistic families weave similar textiles by attaching the warp beam of the back strap loom to a tree or part of a house in order the achieve the lengths of woven material needed for their loincloths.

The male loincloth is approximately 20 to 25 centimeters wide and 3 to 7 meters long. It is indigo blue or black with large red warp stripes and smaller yellow and white warp stripes. Supplementary patterns also decorate the stripes. The ends of the loincloth are patterned with red bands with supplementary patterns of animal or plant motifs. Red tassels and lead, glass, or plastic beading sometimes decorate the edges and ends of the loincloth. Men of the various Mon-Khmer linguistic groups sometimes wear a blanket over a shoulder during rituals, but otherwise do not wear an upper garment.

Occasionally, men wear a simple tunic made from plant fibers such as bark cloth or banana leaves. These plant-fiber tunics are reported to have been more common when the technology to weave cotton was not familiar to these groups. It is now rare to find clothing made from these fibers. Men of the Jarai and Ede Austronesian minorities wear a collarless shirt of indigo or black cotton adorned with red yarn or metal beads on special occasions.

Women of the different ethnic minorities wear tube skirts. The long tube-skirt is worn tucked in around the breasts and is made from two pieces of material sewn together to form a tube. The shorter version is made from one piece of cloth sewn into a tube and is worn tucked in at the waist. The color scheme of the women's tube-skirts is similar to that of the men's loincloth. Women either do not wear an upper garment or wear a simple tunic made from a single piece of cloth with a hole cut in the middle of the textile for the head and the sides sewn together leaving open spaces for the arms. Ede women add sleeves to the tunic and decorate them with red yarn and metal beading.

As with other Khmer and Cham ethnicities, the minority groups of northeast Cambodia presently reserve traditional dress for special occasions. Textile production in Cambodia has experienced disruption because of political conflict, particularly during the Khmer Rouge regime of the late 1970s. Textile production increased in the calmer conditions at the beginning of the twenty-first century, encouraged by renewed local and foreign interest in hand-woven textiles, particularly in mastering the dyeing and weaving of the pidan hol produced prior to the twentieth century.

Visitor arrivals to Cambodia have decreased by 2.18 percent in the first four months of 2009 compared to the previous year, according to figures released by the Ministry of Tourism on Monday.

Visitor arrivals for the first four months of 2009 hit 800,243 compared to 818,108 in 2008, with Vietnamese and South Koreans making up the greatest number of visitors.

The report also showed a considerable difference between visitor arrivals to Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, the country’s foremost tourism destination. Whereas Phnom Penh has experienced a 12 percent increase in visitor arrivals in the first four months of 2009, Siem Reap has seen a 14 percent decline.





According to Ho Vandy, co-chair of the government-private sector tourism working group, this is because of the sustained level of commercial activity that continues to take place in the capital.
“Siem Reap is only concerned with tourists. But Phnom Penh is a commercial place. The business people are still coming to the city,” he said.

Mr Vandy said that Phnom Penh’s three and four-star hotels were still registering occupancy levels of between 60 and 70 percent across the board. However, hotels and guesthouses catering for budget clients – namely back-packers and package-deal tourists – are feeling the affects of the downturn, he said.

A stroll through the backpacking district along Boeng Kak lake in Phnom Penh makes it clear that the tourists that once poured into the area have largely stayed away.
At Mohammed Norulla’s Indian Curry Pot restaurant, every seat in his spacious dining area stood empty during the lunchtime hours of 1 and 2 pm on Monday. Outside his restaurant he has hung up a sign with a promotion that reads “Free beer with every meal.”
Ros Sokheth, a receptionist at the Green Lake Guesthouse on the Boeng Kok lake, says the guesthouse is also feeling the pinch.

“People used to sit eating and drinking in the restaurant. Now it is very quiet,” He said, adding that he is welcoming just a third of the clients than the during the same period last year.
Despite the slump in low-budget visitor arrivals to Phnom Penh, the hotel sector in the capital has largely escaped the disastrous drop in business that is currently being experienced in Siem Reap. There, both the Allison Angkor and the Princess Angkor Hotels – two of the city’s well-known hotels – have closed their doors for the remainder of the low season.
Bun Hok Chhun, sales executive at the four-star Phnom Penh Hotel, said that working in the hotel industry in Phnom Penh was a comparative blessing, as commercial activity in the city was keeping the hospitality industry afloat.

“Business is quite low down this year, but we are still filling 60 to 70 percent of the rooms in the hotel,” he said. “Unlike Siem Reap we depend a lot less on tourists.”
Mr Hok Chhun said that 60 percent of the hotel’s client base are traveling businessmen with the remaining 40 percent representing tourists from Asia, Europe and the US.

REVENUES from Angkor Wat admission fees have shrunk by 20 percent in the first quarter, the Apsara Authority - which runs the temple complex - announced Sunday, citing the knock-on effects of Thai political turmoil.

"Most foreign tourists enter Cambodia through Thailand. So, if Thailand has a problem, we are inevitably affected by their problem," said Bun Narith, director general of the Apsara authority.

He added that the decrease happened in line with a 22-percent drop in foreign visitors this year up to the end of March. The number of visitors to Angkor Wat continued to drop by 16 percent in April, he added.






"In 2007, more than US$32 million was earned from selling tickets to Angkor Wat, and the amount decreased about 5 percent in 2008," he said.

Sokha Hotels, which belongs to Sok Kong, the owner of Sokimex, has the right to collect ticket income for the government.

According to Bun Narith, 10 percent of the income is spent on tax and the remaining 90 percent is divided following an agreed formula: each party gets 50 percent from the first $3 million in revenues, after which 15 percent is used by the Apsara Authority for conservation and development of the temples, and the rest is divided 80-20 percent between the government and Sokha Hotels respectively.

According to the Apsara Authority, this formula has been followed since the second agreement between the government and Sokha Hotels in 2005.

Svay Sothy, a representative of Sokha Hotels, said his company reviews its contract with the government every five years, and the second contract will end in 2010.

The Apsara Authority's Department of Angkor Tourism Development showed that the number of tourists who visited Angkor Wat had decreased 13 percent in January, 26 percent in February, 26 percent in March, and 16 percent in April compared with last year's figures.

"I want younger generations to love Khmer artifacts, to keep them in Cambodia"
Liv Saa Em said.

Khmer Traditional Clothing
The lines of culture distinguishing one country from another are blurring. The globalization of technology, information and finance has allowed wealthy countries to export not only their political and economic ideologies to developing countries but their traditions and values as well.

The Cambodian government has made aggressive rhetorical efforts to preserve the integrity of traditional Khmer culture, but younger generations are hungry for a change. In a seemingly uphill battle to maintain cultural identity in an increasingly homogeneous global community, one man has made it his mission to preserve the past for future generations.





From household items and clothes to jewelry and sculpture, Liv Saa Em's private collection is one of the largest in Cambodia.

"It is my favorite thing to do since I was young. I like to keep antiques in my house because my parents bought a lot of antiques from villagers to keep at their house.

Upon first glance, Liv Saa Em could be mistaken for an ancient Khmer man in his traditional dress. Ancient relics adorn his house as well, stretching from the front door into the darkest corners. The building is his sanctuary; a place Liv Saa Em says keeps him smiling. Visitors to the house, which doubles as a museum, often have offered the collector money for his goods. But Liv Saa Em's mission is to maintain Khmer culture for Cambodia. His message: History is not for sale.

The robbery of Khmer artifacts, for sale to foreign countries, is a rising concern. In efforts to preserve the integrity of Cambodia's tangible history, the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts recently prohibited the exportation of artifacts from Cambodia to Vietnam and Thailand. Liv Saa Em agrees with the act's passage, as he too works to preserve artifacts so that all of Cambodia may enjoy them in years to come.

A sample of his Khmer silk collection
Since the tender age of 13, Liv Saa Em has taken the cue of his parents, who were avid collectors. Now preserving artifacts is not only a hobby--it's a mission. "I'm very upset when I see our artifacts exported to neighboring countries," he said. "We know that they are really Khmer artifacts, but I have no ability to take them back to the country." Even when it is not in transit, safeguarding art is not always easy. Liv Saa Em said artifacts kept in the National Museum cannot be promised security, and his house in Tang Yab, Prey Kabas district of Takeo province is no better. Pieces of history were shattered in 1976 when young Khmer Rouge soldiers destroyed his parents' house and the artifacts in it.

Unable to forget the loss, Liv Saa Em has made a conscious effort to buy pieces for his private collection at home. Trading medicine or rice for art, the collector has purchased relics from Takeo, Kampong Speu and Phnom Penh. Now Liv Saa Em's reputation for collecting precedes him, and tourists that visit his home hoping to make a purchase are always denied.

"I love Khmer artifacts and I love to keep them forever," Liv Saa Em said.

Liv Saa Em's love affair with the past started when he was just a boy. "I wore simple cloth like other people when I was young," he said. But after completing his studies, Liv Saa Em developed a style of his own. Entering adulthood, he wore the ancient Khmer cloth donned by people of the Funan period and shaved his head so that only a tuft of hair sat atop the middle of his crown.

Businessmen raised Liv Saa Em, the youngest son of a nine-member family that often dressed in traditional Khmer clothing. He was the most beloved of the lot then. Today he is alone. Liv Saa Em's brothers, sisters and parents perished during the war.

Struggling to overcome the loss of his family, Liv Saa Em filled his time honing his skills as a silk maker. He mixes together a rainbow of colors to produce the vibrant fabric that is exported to Japan today and earned him the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts' Award for Best Quality Producing in 1993. His Excellency Nut Narang, the former Minister of Culture and Fine Arts, personally recognized Liv Saa Em as the first successful producer of best quality silk following Pol Pot's regime. His creativity is unceasing. Liv Saa Em rearranges the relics in his house to assume a new look every week. In the afternoon visitors can find the collector sitting amidst his artifacts, which he says are a comfort to him. The house, an increasingly popular tourist destination, has drawn curious visitors from around the country and the world. Movie production companies have made the trip as well, using his traditional house for the backdrop to particular scenes.

Liv Saa Em preserves the past to protect the future. Concerned that irresponsible development could damage ancient artifacts, the collector suggested that Cambodia develop a tourism industry based on the riches of Khmer artifacts and temples.

Tourism Number To Fall Further in February, Minister Says.

Tourism in Cambodia got off on the wrong foot this year as the number of visitors in January dropped by roughly 2.2 percent, officials with the Ministry of Tourism said Wednesday.

Although the numbers have yet to be crunched, officials believe February will show another reduction, however at a gentler gradient, in Cambodian tourism.


Kong Sopheareak, director for the Ministry of Tourism’s Statistics and Tourism Information Department, estimated the number of visitors would fall by about 1 percent for February 2009. He attributed the slight improvement over January to the government’s waiver of visa fees for travelers coming from Vietnam and Laos.

“I think, in February, the number of visitors might be better because of [waiving visa fees] along the border with Laos and Vietnam,” he said.

Tourism Minister Thong Khon reiterated the anticipated 1 percent decline for February and said the figure for that month should be finalized by early next week.

Last year in February, there were 214,902 arriving tourists, about 2,150 fewer sightseers if the 1 percent drop holds true. Cambodia counted 218,691 foreign tourists during the opening month of 2009, Kong Sopheareak said, a decrease of 4,890 travelers when compared to January 2008.

He cited the global financial meltdown as well as the problem in the airline industry as reasons behind this year’s slowdown.

“The world financial crisis, the increasing price of plane tickets and the lack of flights from Taiwan are the factors for the slump in the tourism industry,” he said, adding that fewer direct flights connecting Cambodia to Taiwan are hurting tourism.

Businesses have braced themselves for a slowdown since late 2008, with some of them now reporting empty guestrooms and dinning halls that beforehand were frequented by groups of tourists.

Working as the front office supervisor at the Golden Sand Hotel in Preah Sihanouk provice, Ek Tola said the number of guests staying at the hotel’s 110 rooms has been falling each month. He said from December to January room occupancy dropped off by an estimated 30 percent and again by another 30 percent from January to February.

“The number of guests have dropped since January,” he said. “We are now so worried about the decline, and we might have no foreign guests during the low [tourists] season,” which runs from April to September.

Ho Vandy, co-chairman of the government-private sector working group, said the regional slump in tourism is a serious problem but is not beyond repair. He said a joint task force between the government and the private sector has brainstormed several solutions, such as reducing visa fees and making visits to the Angkor Wat temple complex more flexible.

Eco-tourism in Cambodia? Community based tourism in Cambodia? Whilst Cambodia is best known for the mighty Angkor Wat temples, beyond these temples the natural beauty of the country is waiting to be discovered. Cambodia offers many opportunities for adventure travel, eco-tourism, and community based tourism such as: trekking in tropical forests; home stays with ethnic highlanders; sighting rare wildlife; water-based adventures on rivers and beaches; cycling along dirt roads through traditional villages, and more…


Cambodia has unique ecosystems and impressive landscapes within the country’s 23 protected areas, from pristine beaches and coral reefs to evergreen and deciduous forests. Its abundant natural resources and rich biodiversity hold huge untapped potential for eco-tourism development. Because of decades of war and isolation Cambodia’s countryside remains largely unexplored by travelers. Eco-tourism and community based tourism in Cambodia are new introductions for the traveler with a sense of adventure.

There are over 60 rare of endangered species of wildlife in Cambodia, many of which are now extinct elsewhere in South East Asia, including: the Asian Elephant; Tiger; Clouded and Common Leopards, Asiatic Black Bear; Asiatic Wild Dog; Eld’s Deer; Irrawaddy Dolphin; Siamese Crocodile; Banteng; Bengal Florican; Douc Langur; Pileated Gibbon; Elongated Tortoise; Freshwater Sawfish; Giant Catfish; Giant Carp; Grey Ox; Javan; and Sumatran Rhinoceros. Cambodia’s seasonally flooded forests also provide an ideal habitat for several highly endangered water birds: the White Shouldered Ibis; Sarus Crane; and the Greater and Lesser Adjutant Storks.

Community and eco-tourism in Cambodia is helping to protect this wildlife as well as the natural environment and local cultures while offering opportunities for much needed employment and sustainable development to poor, often remote, local communities. A much welcomed alternative to the exploitation of the wildlife and local natural resources.

Come to discover the ‘real’ Cambodia, enjoy its wildlife, learn about the different cultures whilst chatting with local villagers, and become a part of the solution by supporting eco-tourism in Cambodia!

Mondulkiri is new destination for visitors. With real nature and tourism destination, the province presents a host of tourism activities to suite the interest of travel.


Ethnic groups provide the opportunity to experience local way of live while mountains, forests, waterfalls, stre
ams and wildlife suite not only the interests of adventurers but also those seeking authentic nature for relaxation. Moreover, the most popular tourism destinations are readily accessible by many kinds of transportation.

Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, sits on the banks of the Tonle Sap river, at the confluence of two other rivers, the Bassac and the mighty Mekong, and it holds an undeniable charm despite its recent tumultuous and violent past. In the early 1900’s, the height of French colonialism, Phnom Penh was known as ‘The Paris of the East’, and colonial style villas set along tree-lined boulevards still remain - however they are slowly being consumed by development and replaced by modern glass and concrete structures.



In 1975 Phnom Penh suffered a forced evacuation by the Khmer Rouge and became a ghost town for five years, followed by many years of international isolation.

Today the city has revived and is fast sharpening its contemporary cosmopolitan edge.

Chic new hotels and restaurants, shops and bars are springing up all over the city, plus the emerging art scene is attracting international acclaim. Visits to the Royal Palace, Silver Pagoda, and National Museum are a must, as is a late afternoon stroll along Sisowath Quay, alive with exciting riverside life - the restaurants and bars along here being ideal spots for a relaxing drink whilst enjoying the beautiful light shows caused by the setting sun. Phnom Penh is also home to many impressive wats or pagodas such as Wat Phnom, Wat Ounalom, and Wat Langka, and browsing the many local markets such as the Central Market (Phsar Thmei), and the Russian Market (Phsar Toul Tom Poung), interacting with the Cambodian people, are great experiences, as is experiencing your Phnom Penh city tour by cyclo.

Of course, you cannot talk about Phnom Penh without mentioning its more recent harrowing history at the hands of the infamous Khmer Rouge, and the sites of the Toul Sleng Genocide Museum (also known as S21), and the 'Killing Fields' of Cheoung Ek. Although visiting these sites can be emotionally straining it allows an insight of what the Cambodian people have endured, and an understanding of today’s Khmer society.

Phnom Penh is a charming city to explore yet far too many people rush through it in a day or two at the most.

With its elegant colonial architecture, alfresco lifestyle and laid-back locals it retains an irresistibly provincial charm, so base yourself in Phnom Penh for a few days more, not only visiting many of the new shopping and eating outlets (many offering employment to the less privileged), but also taking day trips to surrounding attractions such as: the hill top temple of Oudong - a former capital; a Mekong river cruise to Koh Dach ‘silk weaving island’; or the small, yet beautiful ancient temple at Tonle Bati, to name but just a few...

Preah Vihear Temple (Prasat Preah Vihear) is a Hindu temple situated atop 525-meter cliff in the Dangrek Mountains in the Preah Vihear Province. In 1962 the International Court of Justice in the Hague ruled that it belonged to Cambodia. The adjacent land to the north is under Thailand's control. Affording a view for many kilometers across a plain, Prasat Preah Vihear has the most spectacular setting of all the temples built during the six-hundred years-long Khmer Empire. As an edifice-complex of the Khmer empire's spiritual life, it was temples in being constructed along a long north-south axis, rather than having the conventional rectangular shape plan with orientation toward the east.




The temple gives its name to local province Preah Vihear, in which is located. On July 7, 2008, Preah Vihear was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Ground Plan of Prasat Preah Vihear

Construction of the first temple on the site began in the early 9th century; After that many building has been added in the following centuries it was dedicated to the Shiva Hindu god in his manifestations as the mount
ain gods Sikharesvara and Bhadresvara. The remaining part of the earliest structure of the temple, however,
date from the Koh Ker period in the early 10th century, when the empire's capital was at the city of that name. Today, elements of the Banteay Srei style of the late 10th century can be seen, but most of the templ
e was constructed during the reigns of the kings Suryavarman Ⅰ(1002–1050) and Suryavarman Ⅱ(1113–1150). An inscription found at the temple provides a
detailed account of Suryavarma
n II studying sacred rituals, celebrating religious festivals and making gifts, including white parasols, golden bowls and elephants, to his spiritual advisor, the aged Brahman Divakarapandita. The Brahman himself took an interest in the temple, according to the inscription, donating to it a golden statue of a dancing Shiva.

The site

The temple complex runs 800m along a north-south axis, and consists es
sentially of a causeway and steps rising up the hill towards the sanctuary, which sits on the clifftop at the southern end of the comple
x (120m above the northern end of the complex, 525m above the Cambodian plain and 625m above sea level).Although this structure is very different from the temple mountains found at Angkor, it serves the same purpose as a stylised representation of Mount Meru, the home of the gods.

The approach to the sanctuary is punctuated by five gopuras (these are conventionally numbered from the sanctuary outwards, so gopura five is the first to be reached by visitors). Each of the gopuras before the courtyards is reached by a set of steps, and so marks a change in height which increases their impact. The gopuras also block a visitor's view of the next part of the temple until he passes through the gateway, making it impossible to see the complex as a whole from any one point.

The fifth gopura, in the Koh Ker style, retains traces of the red paint with which it was once decorated, although the tiled roof has now disappeared. The fourth gopura is later, from the Khleang/Baphuon periods, and has on its southern outer pediment, "one of the masterpieces of Preah Vihear": a depiction of the Churning of the Sea of Milk. The third is the largest, and is also flanked by two halls. The sanctuary is reached via two successive courtyards, in the outer of which are two libraries.

Follow the ancient King’s Road for Preah Vihear via Beng Mealea and Koh Ker

1st Day Siem Reap to Koh Ker
The alarm clock woke me up at 6am. The day had broken already. After meeting the Cambodian friend who is going with me, I made sure the route for our destinations.
Preah Vihear monument is more than 200km away from Siem Reap near the Thai border. Our luggage is very small. We have only clothes for 3days and Cameras. First of all we aimed for Beng Mealea temple which is called East Angkor Wat. It was a bit cold in the early morning time. I held the bag in front. The road condition was very good. We saw many palm trees at the road side. And also we saw many buffalos bathing. Suddenly we found well dressed young ladies in colorful costumes at a road side village. We are very lucky this is the wedding ceremony. In Cambodia, immediately after the rainy season, they will start to organize wedding ceremony here and there. The bride and bride-groom in their snow white dresses were smiling at unexpected guest. After a 65km drive, we arrived at Beng Mealea monuments. This temple is very famous among Japanese visitors. Because the image of the monuments is closely resembles an animation movie [Raputa the flying castle]. Beng Mealea was built in 13th century. After the lunch we continued trip to Mt. Koulen and Koh Ker.

Angkor dynasty started at Mountaint Koulen in early 9th century as the kingdom of the Angkor region.
The Khmer empire controlled this region for nearly to 600 years. During late 13th century the Jayavarman VII’s reign, the empire covered whole of the Indochina Peninsula and part of the Malay Peninsula. We stayed at a guest house near by Koh Ker temple.

2nd Day Koh Ker to Preah Vihea
Around 7am, we saw many students going the school. They were wearing white shirts and blue skirts or trousers. At the school in the play ground there are several food stands to provide breakfast for them. The Koh Ker temple is located at the East of Siem Reap120km away. It was from 928AD to 944AD the capital city of the Kingdom. It is famous for the 7 storey Pyramid style monuments of the Hinduish temple. This temple is called Prasat Thoum.

The road for Preah Vihear temple from Koh Ker is under construction by the Chinese government with tied loan. We needed more than 3 hours drive from Koulen village to mountain foot. The final approach to the temple is very narrow and steep road. It’s partially paved however we had to get on a motor bike or a 4 wheels drive car. The big Naga (Snake) sculpture welcomed us. This is the gate for the temple in the sky. The national flags of Cambodia identifies the temple area as its territory. One more sign board explained the history of the place. The statement [I have the pride to be born as Khmer] tells you that the country Cambodia is the successor of the ancient Khmer empire which created the great civilization. Preah Vihear temple was built in 9th century and reconstructed many times. Present structure was completed mid 12th century during the reign of Yasovarman II.

Today there are many Cambodian migrants from other part of the country. They are running small businesses like souvenir sales. From the top of the mountain we could look over the big plain spread out on Cambodian side. We could look over the far West, East and South. We could feel comfortable winds at 600 meters above the sea level. Currently there is only one guest house near the temple. We got a room for the night. Many local people got together to watch a TV program in Thai language. They kindly invited us to sit down.

3rd Day A visit to the Thai side and return to Siem Reap
The sunrises in the East, direction for Champassak where the Khmer people originated.
The present border area of three countries Laos, Thai and Cambodia was the original site of Khmer civilization. In the 13th century there was a direct King’s road from Preah Vihear to Wat Phu temple. The distance is less than 100km. Preah Vihear is the transit point to the northern Thai area. There are many Khmer monuments in Thailand also.

After breakfast we visited the border village in the Thai side. Currently there is no border check point for one day visitors on both sides. We crossed the border without a passport check. In 2007 more than 100,000 travelers visited Preah Vihear temple from the Thai side. We visite a Thai market and a visitors center for a few hours and returned to the temple again. At the main cathedral, an old nun was praying in front of Ganesha (god of wisdom).

I hoped this god give us a good idea for the Khmer Empire Heritage Trail.