CAMBODIA: LET'S DO IT!

At the beginning of this year I wrote in a blog that I hoped 2011 would bring better things than did 2010 - a year that brought upsets and problems for many people.  Well, we are now almost five months into 2011 and it seems as if the main theme of the year across the globe is "negativity".  Such a pity - and why is it I wonder? Without a positive look at life and things around, it is virtually impossible to move forward on anything.

In the United States an untold amount of media coverage is being given to the "wanna-be" politicians who in order to get their names in the public eye for the 2012 elections, are trying to convince people with their negativity that President Obama was not born in the United States.  How stupid can people be when there is positive proof that he was?  And they call themselves good potential leaders?   Crazy! 

In England in the run-up to the wedding of Prince William and Miss Catherine Middleton, commentators, Talk Show hosts, analysts and myriads of others in the media from around the world are negatively discussing the cost of the wedding without mention of the millions and millions of dollars that will be brought into the country because of the wedding.  They just like to concentrate on the negative side, while at the same time totally ignoring things like the 4-million dollar bonuses being paid to financial moguls in addition to enormous salaries. To me something does not seem right here but maybe it is the trend of the times. I could go on and on with other like examples from around the world.

Since I came to live in Cambodia almost six years ago, I have written and spoken many times - often to the point of boredom, I have been told - about this wonderful country. I have written and spoken about the people of this country who are an amazingly resilient people, the epitome of friendliness and hospitality and a people who are proud - proud to be Cambodian, proud of their country and their heritage and proud of their King.  The younger generation is a determined one here.  One that is determined to work to make sure their country is one that prospers, not just for themselves personally, but for the entire population and is recognized throughout the world.  Those qualities are certainly not found in all countries around the world.


In every country whether it is a developed country or an undeveloped country there are always some negative aspects.  That is norm, but I believe here in this country the positive far out-weighs the negative,  These positive aspects should be shown to the world.

On Saturday, April 23rd a tremendous event took place in the capital city of Phnom Penh.  JCI Cambodia (Junior Chamber International) and AIESEC together with several sponsors organized a project called "Cambodia: Let's do it".   In every developing country, and especially one where education has been somewhat lacking for many years, people are not always aware of the environment and as a result garbage can be a problem - not just visually, but health-wise also.  

Phnom Penh is no exception.  However, the project organized on April 23rd had been planned over many months. It had the support of the city authorities and the Government.  The city was divided into zones and there were teams of people delegated to work in set areas.  By the start of the project over 2,500 young (and some not so young) people had arrived at the National Olympic Stadium to sign up and help.  That is a tremendous achievement in any one's book. A fleet of buses took the various teams from the Stadium to their work areas and brought them back later to the stadium.   His Excellency Khieu Kanarith, the Minister for Information and his wife as well as His Excellency Kep Chutemo, the Governor of Phnom Penh City were also present and addressed the crowd before joining in the clean up.  The young people felt honored that Their Excellencies had come to support them.   

By the end of the day the workers had done a tremendous job.  The enthusiasm of these young people to improve their city should be shown to the world as an example of what can be done with just a little effort when people old or young get together.  I feel proud to have the privilege of living here in this great country and being friends with such a wonderful people.  May their example be an influence to others around the world to work for improvement also rather than concentrating on the negative.