We rode up to Pub Road in Seim Reap, Cambodia on a tuk-tuk, and once we got off we were asked by a few kids if we wanted some Post Cards of Angkor Wat. We just got to the city that night and were ready to have a meal, so we simply said “NO”. One kid kept asking and sticking with us, and his English was actually pretty good.
JD started up a conversation with him asking his name, how he was, etc etc. By this time we were sitting down on at a pop up sidewalk restaurant place that only comes out at night. Trust me, during the day you would Never know it was there. So, this boy’s English was pretty darn good like I said, and we began to ask him what he knew of America. He blew us away with his knowledge about U.S. He even knew of Michelle Obama…really?
After about 10 minutes had passed other guys had joined us and JD got the kid a meal. While we were all eating, I (and probably the others) were watching the street and some other kids who were selling postcards would occasionally run out and meet this guy standing in the middle of it. This street is Very popular at night and lots of tourists were walking and going to the many restaurants and bars along it. So, if you were just walking along you wouldn’t have noticed the system they had.
After a while, we start to ask the kid some more questions and in the matter of 5 min. we knew a Whole bunch that blew my mind. The kid is about 12 years old, his older sister is apparently the “Lady of the Night” at some Club, he goes to school from 7 to mid afternoon, he works from about 5 till 11 on the street selling post cards for about $2, we found out about nothing of his family, and his Boss was the guy we saw standing in the street. We also learned that they must sell these cards, give the money to their designated boss, and if they are unable to then they are punished (whatever that may be).
A few of us had no problem getting up right then and just beatin the crap out of the “Boss” guy in the middle of the street. He looked like some 17 year old punk. However, that wouldn’t solve the problem and the kids would surely be more punished after that might have happened. What we Really wanted to see was that Boss’s Boss, yet that would be very unlikely by sitting there for about an hour.
It’s a very simple yet SAD system All over Cambodia and the World. For those of you who’ve traveled, you are very familiar with what I’m talking about. Everyone in our squad had been impacted by the kids we met in Siem Reap. The look of the child’s faces are sometimes so depressing, because if they are unable to sell anything then they will probably go without food or punished.
For me, it’s just another thing in this World that breaks my heart. I absolutely LOVE kids, and to see them “Working” on the street selling just post cards makes me sick. Please keep children such as these and their Bosses in your prayers, so that the Bosses will have a Crazy encounter of the Lord that they can Realize what they are doing.
Angkor Wat at like 6 in the morning Definitely didn’t want to wake up for this at 4:30 AM, but I guess in the end it was kinda neat.
