Here is someone to be proud of!

It is with great pleasure I introduce you to (or re-introduce the old East Keilor gang!) to Steve Morrish. Steve has set up an amazing NGO here in Cambodia and is doing fantastic work helping prevent exploitation of at risk people. I hope you enjoy reading about his organization and are proud that one of our own has taken it upon himself to help those less fortunate. Well done Steve and good luck for the wedding!

http://www.sisha.org

Company Overview:
SISHA is an Australian registered international non-religious, non-partisan, non-government and not-for-profit organization that strives to ensure justice and protection of human rights for victims of human trafficking, bonded labor, physical and sexual assault and other forms of exploitation and oppression in South East Asia. Mission:SISHA’s mission is to:

“provide justice for victims of human trafficking and other forms of exploitation by detecting and investigating breaches of relevant domestic and international protocols, legislation and law related to the trafficking and exploitation of people in South East Asia and providing the best possible aftercare and legal representation to rescued victims to give them the opportunity for a brighter future free of oppression and abuse”

Products:
SISHA’s Investigation Team of investigators and police officers, in both covert reactive and proactive operations, detect and investigate breaches of relevant law related to the trafficking and exploitation of people. Working in close collaboration with local police, SISHA secures the rescue of victims from situations of oppression and places them in immediate safe custody. They are provided with round-the-clock support from trained SISHA staff that includes food, secure shelter and SISHA Aftercare Packs consisting of basic necessities such as clothing, shoes, toiletries, towels and toys for children.

Consisting of lawyers and professional social workers, SISHA’s Aftercare and Legal Team ensure that victims are placed in quality aftercare facilities and where they receive accommodation, medical assistance, trauma counseling, education and vocational skill training. SISHA guarantees that all victims are given the opportunity to be provided with legal representation from SISHA’s Attorney-at-Law to ensure justice for those willing to pursue complaints against their perpetrators.

My morning in pictures.....07/01/2010

A picture speaks a thousand words or so they say. So here are a heap. This was how I spent my morning. All fairly self-explanatory (except for perhaps the shaving of the pigs feet, God forbid you have a hairy trotter!) Enjoy!

Todays Bizarre List

-saw a lady taking a dump on the footpath.
-decided not to eat the "goat, ostrich and crocodile salad. Wise yes?
-did go for a great bowl of "pho" Vietnamese noodle soup for $2.
-found Wheetbix in the supermarket. Yay!
-really should have been more explicit when asking Sok Chen to make the children some vegemite and some jam cruskits. Oh well, they liked them!
-ordered 2 pairs of prescription glasses for $85.
-found myself bartering over 25 cents and then had a reality check and just paid it!
-must have heat stroke as have decided to run the Ocean Road half marathon in May after my run today.
-was asked by a very mature 4 year old when picking up the kids if we would like to come to her house to play. She had cleared it with her mum at work and the nanny would be home to watch us.
-saw a restaurant called "Mother in Law Restaurant". I wonder if they grill or fry them?

Wat Phnom

Set on top of a tree-covered knoll 27m high, Wat Phnom is the only hill in town. According to legend, the first pagoda on this site was erected in 1373 to house four statues of Buddha deposited here by the waters of the Mekong and discovered by a woman name Penh. The main entrance to Wat Phnom is via the grand eastern staircase, which is guarded by lions and naga (snake) balustrades.

Today, many people come here to pray for good luck and success in school exams or business affairs. When a petitioner's wish is granted, he or she returns to make the offering (such as a garland of jasmine flowers or bananas, of which the spirits are said to be especially fond) promised when the request was made.

We came on new years eve which from what we can gather is the holiest of days to make an offering to Buddha. It was rockin'! There were loads of cages with little birds that you could purchase and set free as you make a wish, wonderful offerings including flowers, money, even a whole cooked pig.

The abridged version of the history of Cambodia

Most Cambodians consider themselves to be Khmers, whose Angkor Empire extended over much of Southeast Asia and reached its zenith between the 10th and 13th centuries. Subsequently, attacks by the Thai and Cham (from present-day Vietnam) weakened the empire ushering in a long period of decline. In 1863, the king of Cambodia placed the country under French protection; it became part of French Indochina in 1887. Following Japanese occupation in World War II, Cambodia became independent within the French Union in 1949 and fully independent in 1953. After a five-year struggle, Communist Khmer Rouge forces captured Phnom Penh in April 1975 and ordered the evacuation of all cities and towns; at least 1.5 million Cambodians died from execution, enforced hardships, or starvation during the Khmer Rouge regime under POL POT. A December 1978 Vietnamese invasion drove the Khmer Rouge into the countryside, led to a 10-year Vietnamese occupation, and touched off almost 13 years of civil war. The 1991 Paris Peace Accords mandated democratic elections and a ceasefire, which was not fully respected by the Khmer Rouge. UN-sponsored elections in 1993 helped restore some semblance of normalcy and the final elements of the Khmer Rouge surrendered in early 1999. Factional fighting in 1997 ended the first coalition government, but a second round of national elections in 1998 led to the formation of another coalition government and renewed political stability. The July 2003 elections were relatively peaceful, but it took one year of negotiations between contending political parties before a coalition government was formed.

S21

This place will haunt me forever. It used to be a high school until the Khmer Rouge turned it into a prison. it is located just in a normal street near the Russian Market. You would never know what went on there. In fact, it was not until 2 weeks after the Vietnamese liberated the city that it was discovered....by the smell. Men, women and children were all bought here for interrogation (read: tortured) for 1-3 days before being transported by truck to the Killing Fields where they were executed. No life was spared. They documented every single person who came through and their photos and faces still swim before my eyes. It is like a bad road smash where you just can't look away. I felt like I owed it to every single one of them to see their faces. I tried but it was just too overwhelming. Face after face after face. Each with a story to tell. Each etched in their own personal pain. Even in death, they do not look in peace. They look like what they were. Tortured souls. I will never understand mans capacity to do this to each other. In the famous words of Forrest Gump.....that's all I have to say about that.

The Killing Fields

Words escape me.

New Years Eve 2009

Better late than never....Christmas Pics!

Here are some shots from Christmas morning at our place. Sorry they have been a bit slow in arriving. There has been so much going on! It has been wonderful having the girls here and I feel like I have had a holiday. Have been able to do with them a lot of things that I have been wanting to cross off my list. We went out to the Killing Fields and S21 today which was incredibly moving and humbling. Will post some pics soon. New years was a blast and we ending up seeing the new year in at the Foreign Correspondents Club which is a bit of an institution. Midnight hit and fireworks lit the sky over the river. It was a great place to celebrate! Off to deliver some donations to the Orphanage this afternoon and the girls head home tonight. Will be sad to see them go but hope they have had a good time. Any other takers????