MetaFilter posts tagged with Cambodia

“He took an umbrella to fight me”

ActingTheGoat — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 07:05:50 -0800

For those of you who haven't been following the ongoing saga of Cambodia's Biting Monk, the Department of Cults and Religious Affairs failed to find sufficient evidence to defrock him and passed the matter on to the monk management board. After two weeks of silence, the accused monk denied the charges. However, there are those who claim the the monk is protected by his fearsome street rep.

The Mine Whisperer.

lazaruslong — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 08:33:50 -0800

As a child soldier in Cambodia's notorious Khmer Rouge army Aki Ra laid many landmines. He now clears these deadly bombs with a stick and a pocketknife, more than 10,000 to date. It is very dangerous. No one pays him to do it. Aki is the real deal.

Defending the Indefensible

smoke — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 20:57:53 -0800

Jacques Vergès has defended Milosevic, Carlos The Jackal, Saddam Hussein and nazi Klaus Barbie (you know, with with the one with the museum) in court. What kind person does it take to do that, and why? To hear from the prosecution, read what Geoffrey Robertson has to say about these trials, and their justice.* *warning both of these are long. But very readable and worthwhile, and you don't have to be a lawyer.

Translated for Courage

parmanparman — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 10:23:09 -0800

“I have seen many Anne Franks in Cambodia. ...Under Pol Pot, many children were separated from their families. They faced starvation and were sent to the front to fight and die,” she explains. “Like Anna, they never knew peace and the warmth of a home.” Translated by Sayana Ser with help from the Dutch embassy in Cambodia (Kampuchea, Khmer), The Diary of Anne Frank has now become one of the most popular and discussed books in this war-torn country.

Dith Pran, RIP

flapjax at midnite — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 09:23:23 -0800

Dith Pran, the photojournalist whose story inspired the film The Killing Fields, has died.

The Sound of Cambodia, pre-Khmer Rouge.

flapjax at midnite — Sat, 15 Dec 2007 02:07:12 -0800

The 1960's and early 70's saw an explosion of creativity and an astonishing variety of stylistic influences coming together in the pop and rock music of Cambodia.Tragically, almost all of the artists of that era were executed (or otherwise perished) during the nightmarish Khmer Rouge years. The following MySpace Music pages will help you to get acquainted with some of the wonderfully eclectic and adventurous music of this fertile period: Pen Ron, Yos Olarang, Rous Sareysothea, Sin Sisamouth, Vor Sarun, Houey Meas, So Savoeun, Eng Nary, In Yeng, Choun Malai, Mao Sareth, Sem Touch, Chea Savoeun, Toche Teng, Teth Sombath, Pen Rom, Em Songserm and Choun Vanna. Also, these related pages: Cambodian Rock, Radio Khmer Sitya, Cambodian Style and Cambodian Soundtracks. NOTE: For personal recommendations, check the hover-overs accompanying each link.

Grave Robbers of Indochina

trinarian — Sun, 20 May 2007 10:44:18 -0800

Mass Grave Ghosts [NY Times BugMeNot]

Cluster Bombs, landmines and bombhunters

james_cpi — Sat, 24 Feb 2007 12:12:03 -0800

While the world debates the use of cluster bombs due to their impact on civilians in post conflict areas, today is also Landmine Awareness Day in Cambodia. Some ignore the warnings and seek out the landmines to defuse and sell... while others seek a much larger quarry (Youtube)

They say you can buy anything in Cambodia... and NYC.

Amizu — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 14:51:57 -0800

The modern slave trade is thriving. The Dept of State estimates that 800,000 to 900,000 human beings are trafficked - brought across borders and forced to labor. Among them, DOS estimates, hundreds of thousands are minor children. Some of those children - as young as 5 years old - are being sold as slaves and kept in cages while they are raped and sold for sex, some servicing as many as 30 men a day. They are bought for as little as $10 from desperate parents. But all is not lost: Somaly Mam, a former child prostitute, is the Mother Theresa of Southeast Asian child prostitutes, using AFESIP as her vehicle for saving them. Glamour awarded her their Woman of the Year honor, and she has been lauded in other ways internationally. Cambodian sex traffickers weren't as happy with her, though - her opponents kidnapped her 14-year old daughter, held her hostage for days, and raped her. It's hard to be on the wrong side of this issue, but some advocates raise a few hackles by claiming legalized prostitution and porn contribute to sex trafficking and child prostitution. Sex trafficking, and child prostitution, is a sizeable problem in the US as well. Although trafficking is illegal in the US, combating trafficking is tough in part because victims often fear authorities, personal reprisals, harm to their families at home, or even deportation (although special visas - T visas - are available to them in certain circumstances). In Southeast Asia (and throughout the world), child sex tourism is even harder to stop.

Khmer Rocks

PHINC — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 08:29:35 -0800

Ros Sereysothea and Sinn Sisamouth were two of the more famous Cambodian musicians creating amazingly inspired music in the 60s and early 70s that fused Khmer with western rock. They were both killed by the Khmer Rouge; but not before leaving a powerful legacy that has inspired a short film about Sereysothea, a documentary and a band. They are still loved in Cambodia.

Now You Can Go Where People Are One

fandango_matt — Sun, 24 Dec 2006 15:46:17 -0800

Tuol Sleng: 114 photographs taken by the Khmer Rouge at Pol Pot's secret prison, code-named "S-21" in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. When the Vietnamese invaded in 1979, the S-21 prison staff fled, leaving behind thousands of written records and photographs.

How Hanuman Fell In Love and other stories.

the cydonian — Thu, 03 Aug 2006 10:05:49 -0800

Robam Apsara: The dance of celestial nymphs, classical Khmer dance is the single greatest link between the ancient Angkor civilization and contemporary times. Reputed to follow the ancient percepts laid down in the Natya Sastra, Khmer dance is sensual but spiritual, time-less and yet, so very reconstructivist _{(all YouTube videos)}. It is such a delight to watch that a single performance will keep you enthralled for months. Extremely saddening, then, when you realize that it survived only by the barest of history's strands. more inside

Crime in Cambodia

Xurando — Wed, 08 Feb 2006 07:34:43 -0800

Crime and violence are everyday happenings in Cambodia. The Cambodian media thrives on it. But is it just everyday violence or something deeper?

Asian progressive music from the 60s and 70s

carter — Thu, 08 Dec 2005 10:13:10 -0800

60s/70s psych, crossover, beat, and a go-go from Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Burma, Cambodia and Vietnam with band/music scene histories, streaming audio, cover art, etc. Part of a large site devoted to 60s/70s progressive music around the world.

a quincunx of towers

languagehat — Mon, 14 Nov 2005 09:20:32 -0800

Angkor Wat guide. "Published in 1944 in Saigon, republished in 1948 and again in Paris in 1963, The Monuments of the Angkor Group by Maurice Glaize remains the most comprehensive of the guidebooks and the most easily accessible to a wide public, dedicated to one of the most fabled architectural ensembles in the world." Now online, updated, with maps and photos. (More Angkor Wat links in this previous post.) Via Plep.

Angelina Jolie: Cambodian

maxsparber — Fri, 12 Aug 2005 19:36:06 -0800

Angelina Jolie: Cambodian. Has anyone else noticed that the press doesn't really know what to make of her lately, if ever. I mean, she broke up Brad and Jen! But she does good work for humanity! But she's crazy and seems like she may have had sex with her brother! But she's a good actress! Who makes bad movies! Well, apparently Cambodia wants her. Cambodia and every 16-year-old boy on the planet, as well as most of the girls.

The last US battle in Southeast Asia

three blind mice — Thu, 12 May 2005 06:44:30 -0800

Thirty years ago today, on May 12, 1975, less than two weeks after the fall of Saigon, the U.S. flagged container ship Mayaguez was seized by the Cambodian Khmer Rouge who took the crew hostage. Late that night the ship was located, anchored off a tiny island called Koh Tang in the Gulf of Siam. U.S. President Gerald Ford ordered the aircraft carrier USS Coral Sea, the guided missile destroyer USS Henry B. Wilson and the frigate USS Holt to the area of seizure. He also ordered a battalion of Marines to assault the island and rescue the crew. The rescue was bungled. 41 US servicemen were killed. The crew of 39 was released.

...for sale or rent

mudpuppie — Wed, 19 Jan 2005 15:17:47 -0800

A year ago, NYT reporter Nicholas Kristof purchased two Cambodian prostitutes (discussed here). Today, he's published an update, along with a multimedia presentation about the girls' lives.

Pol Pot's Dead?

BradNelson — Wed, 08 Dec 2004 09:44:03 -0800

25 years in a non-existant war In 1979, a Khmer Rouge guerrilla fled to the hills of Cambodia when his village was attacked by Vietnamese troops. He and a small group of friends and family lived in the dense forests for 25 years, emerging in 2004 to discover that the war was over and that Pol Pot was dead. They had been fearful of any human contact, believing everyone to be the enemy.

Angkor

homunculus — Wed, 09 Jun 2004 15:29:59 -0800

Water woes, not wars, ended Angkor's empire, according to the Greater Angkor Project. Ecological failure and infrastructure breakdown brought down Cambodia's great city and Hindu civilization.

One more voice of reason

tomcosgrave — Fri, 20 Feb 2004 09:27:56 -0800

King of Cambodia supports gay marriage, says that transvestites should be accepted by society
And here I was thinking that old patriarchs were conservative. Cambodia apparently is quite conservative when it comes to GLBT issues, but I wonder if this will change, especially as the king is well loved?

Southeast Asian Monuments: A Selection of 100 Slides

plep — Sat, 07 Feb 2004 02:13:31 -0800

Southeast Asian Monuments: A Selection of 100 Slides. ''100 slides of monuments in Mainland Southeast Asia ( Burma, Thailand,Cambodia, Vietnam, selected from the collection of Marijke J. Klokke, are presented here ... '

Cellphone or freedom?

languagehat — Wed, 21 Jan 2004 12:20:23 -0800

Buying prostitutes. Nicholas Kristof (of the NY Times; reg. req.) bought the freedom of two young Cambodian prostitutes in order to return them to their villages... but it wasn't as simple as you might think. It's easy to be cynical (yes, he's using it as grist for columns; yes, it's a drop in the bucket), but isn't it better than doing nothing? Anyway, it's a fascinatingly messy story. (He discusses why he picked these particular girls, and addresses some of the moral issues, here—scroll down to January 20.)

Artserve

hama7 — Sat, 29 Nov 2003 20:42:46 -0800

Welcome to ArtServe: Art & Architecture mainly from the Mediterranean Basin and Japan.

90 Days in Cambodia

plep — Sun, 23 Mar 2003 11:20:01 -0800

90 Days in Cambodia as a travel writer and election observer.
Related :- Cambodia in Modern History: Beauty and Darkness focuses on the Khmer Rouge period, and also has a nice section on Cambodian art.