Siem Reap, Cambodia
1-15-18
Overflow Guesthouse
I’m sitting here on my bunk bed in the Overflow Guesthouse located just outside the hustle of the city known as Siem Reap in Cambodia, and I find myself struggling to find the right words to begin this blog. My heart and my mind are still trying to sort through everything I’ve learned recently and I’m not sure what the beginning, middle or end of the upcoming compilation of thoughts will actually look like. I didn’t know much about Cambodia before arriving to this humid country filled with $1 smoothies on the side of the road, endless amounts of motorbikes & tuk-tuks, lily pads & lotus flowers, dusty roads, persistent shop owners who want to sell their merchandise, temples, more tourist-catered attractions & marketing than I would have dreamed, flowy elephant pants, bright patterns, small shrines in front of every building dedicated to their perceived gods, smiling children, and friendly people.
Today I went to visit Angkor Wat, along with a few other ancient temples around Siem Reap, which if you didn’t know is one of the biggest tourist attractions in Cambodia and brings in millions of dollars a year to their economy. I found myself wondering about why these places were so important to them? More importantly, what is the history behind them? Through our mentor & host here at the Overflow Guesthouse (and a little research of my own on the good ol’ google), I have learned that there’s more to be known about Cambodia than just it’s beautiful appearance. There’s a history filled with chaos, confusion, oppression, deep sorrow, and fear that I want to share a little bit about, as well as the issue at hand right now of human trafficking and what that looks like here.
Cambodia’s Back Story & History:
I’m going to try to keep this as simple as I can since I actually wrote the part of the blog that follows this section and it’s a little long, but I don’t make any promises because the history of Cambodia is anything but simple.
-As far back as we know, the country of Cambodia has had roots of Hinduism (lots of gods they worship mostly out of fear), there was a lot of influence from India. There was also an animism influence on the culture.
-Right now they are under a constitutional monarchy and Hun Sen, the present Prime Minister, has been the head of the government here for the past 25 years.
-Until 1953, Cambodia was a state controlled and protected by France. France played a big part of developing roads and trading, but they didn’t really touch education or Buddhism. Before this, going back to the 1st century, this area has been under the control of different kings, some of whom built up the temples that everyone comes to see today, and then in more recent centuries, Cambodia has been in almost constantly been controlled by surrounding countries like Thailand or Vietnam.
-From 1963-1973 during the Vietnam War, the U.S. bombed Cambodia.
-Between 1975 and 1979 (ONLY about 40 years ago!), genocide was carried out by the Khmer Rouge (KR) regime, killing at least 1.5-3 million people. The Khmer Rouge can be defined as a communist guerilla organization, and it opposed the Cambodian government in the 1960s and waged civil war from 1970. The aim of the party was to establish a classless state with a rural agrarian economy. It desregrarded human life, and during it’s rule, repression and massacre prevailed on a massive scale. KR gained control of Cambodia in April 1975, but it was kept secret until 1977. It’s secretary and leader was Pol Pot (real name- Saloth Sar) was touted as one of the world’s most infamous dictators. The genocide came to end when Vietnam invaded Cambodia in 1979. The bodies of the people that were killed in the genocide were buried in the “killing fields”. I will actually visits this site in Phnom Phen next week.
Some other interesting facts about Cambodia is that the predominant religion practiced here is 95% Buddhism. Also, millions of land mines were planted during war years- almost half of which have yet to be removed. Cambodia has the largest population of amputees in the world caused by land mines. One more thing- more than 2.5 million people in the country live on less than $1.20 per day.
This is just the basics. If you’re interested in more info, I encourage you to do your research. I found some of my info from:
http://www.tourismcambodia.com/about-cambodia/cambodian-history.htm
http://thefactfile.org/cambodia-facts/
Sex Trafficking in Cambodia:
Yesterday we had the honor of talking to a missionary here whose passion is for women trapped in human trafficking. She has been here for a while, learning the language, building relationships, and interceding for the women, children, and even men being sold. She was very knowledgeable about what’s going on in the city we are currently staying in, and I felt the need to extend that knowledge to whoever might be reading this. So, after the Khmer Rouge, the nation of Cambodia was left with a lot of poverty and in a vulnerable state. Some Vietnamese men actually came and began the sex trafficking industry here, and it has just grown ever since.
Up front you should know that the main reason for human trafficking here is because of poverty. What happens is that people prey on the uneducated and those in poverty out in the villages and tell them that they can offer education for their child if they pay x amount of money a month. Then people will give them their children thinking they are getting an education, when actually children (usually between 8-12 years old) are sold to massage parlors to be sold as sex slaves behind closed doors. Another scenario might be that the family has debt or someone is very sick and they can’t pay the hospital fees, and then an opportunity comes along for the child to “make money” for this huge burden the family is carrying. It’s not an easy choice, but it is almost justified to them because it’s for the good of the family and family is HUGE in this culture. So these children grown up in these businesses fronted as massage parlors (because sex trafficking and prostitution is illegal in Cambodia), then they turn 18 and are “too old” and unwanted by the people buying them…which is not only foreign tourists (Americans being in the top 3), but also Cambodian men and women. Now what do they do? They are uneducated and all they have known they are good at is selling their bodies. Yep, they go into prostitution to make a living to provide for their families if they they’ve actually been reunited with their parents, or young women may have gotten pregnant. (Sidenote- there aren’t really abortions here because there is such a high value on family that if a woman were to get pregnant, she would keep the baby and raise it. I thought this was very interesting.)
There is another scenario where children, women, or men sold into the human trafficking industry would be working at a business fronted as a KTV, or Karaoke place. If you’ve never been before, these places are set us as rooms you can rent for groups of people to sing in, order drinks, and have a good time singing your favorite songs. That’s what a KTV is supposed to be. Instead, here, if you were to go to one of these, you would pick which girl you want, and essentially have the room to do whatever you wanted with her, ranging from companionship to actual sexual intercourse.
The last scenario that is very common is where women, usually 18 or older, prostitute themselves at a places called “Beer Gardens”. It looks like a restaurant or bar, except there are women working there that have already worked a deal with the owner so he/she will get a cut of the money, too. They are in little dresses and men or women can come in, sit down, have a drink with them and basically work out what they want. Beer gardens are usually located next to a hostel or hotel of some kind where the arrangement will go down. In this situation, the women are either working to provide for their families or this is the only life they know because they were trafficked when they were a kid and growing up.
The woman I mentioned earlier who is really invested in ending this problem, she told us that her and one of her ministry partners used to go to a specific bar all the time and have a Sprite or something with the different girls. Then, one day they Lord convicted them to just drive around and they did this for months, and over that period the Lord showed them over 100 places in which this was happening all over Siem Reap and on the outskirts of the city. They prayed over countless street corners that had never been prayed over and a multitude of “businesses”. She shared her heart to just run in break them out and bring them home with her and let them live there, but then she would be the captive. She explained her righteous anger towards the men and women who would take advantage of a child and of women who are clearly broken and not doing something, and how the Lord met her in that place of anger and showed her how the men buying them were just as broken and looking for something to fill a void or distorted mindset about themselves. She realized that there was a bigger picture that required a lot more prayer and intercession on what God wanted to do about it, because its great to rescue, but if there isn’t restoration and eventually reintegration with the knowledge of Christ and the love, hope, and healing He brings, the rescue won’t matter because they will fall back into what they were in before.
I know that is a lot of information, and if you’re anything like me, you might find yourself feeling frustrated or angry or empowered to take action or heartbroken or confused on what the next move is. My encouragement to you would be to pray and let God answer those questions. Obviously, you can email me if you have questions about the sex trafficking here, but I’m talking about the bigger questions that usually start with “Why”. I also would ask that you pray without ceasing for this country. God is moving here and the believers that are here are ablaze with passion for their Savior, Jesus Christ, but there is still a lot of ground to cover for those trapped in bondage. The power of prayer is real and prayer does change things. I believe that wholeheartedly.
Also, the Lord told me that this blog was supposed to be written for one person. He didn’t tell me who, but it was clear that it was meant to be read by one person and He was stirring up a fire in their heart about these things. If that’s you, I would love to talk to you more and I will gladly put you in contact with the right people, if it’s not you, I think you were still supposed to read this, whether it was just to raise awareness, or to spur you to pray for Cambodia, or something else that only God Himself knows. I love you. Thank you for reading and being a part of my race.
