Unordinary Khmers

The draconic cycle of life of ordinary Khmers will continue to spin while the life style of the “unordinary” elites continues to flourish as if the world of the poor and the desolate many does not exist.

It is indeed a sad affair to have witnessed and to have heard of cases of Khmers who have but a few square meters of land upon which they could build what they call home. It is even more sorrowful to have known the very few who own not just one hundred, but hundreds or even thousands of hectares of land. It does not take a genius to figure out that there is something fundamentally wrong with this picture.

I am a firm believer in a capitalist system. I am convinced that free competitive spirit propels the economy to move forward, enriching those who have the resources while at the same time helping the rest to inch forward toward a better life. However, Kampuchea is another story.

Having said that, what I, and I am sure the rest of us, am seeing today in Kampuchea is similar to the episode which I read of primitive culture of Europe back in the Dark Age. In short, though we are living the twenty-first century, we are still in the modus operandi of the past.

And speaking of the past, I am reminded of a book that I read called “How the Irish Saved Civilization” in which feudal lords and the like of them positioned and repositioned themselves in the realm of politics so that they could garner a bigger piece of the lion share. I am witnessing the same scenario today in srok Khmer where the knights and lords (Okña and Ek Oudam) are vying for a better spot upon which a lion share could be had.

What becomes of the “ordinary” (more than 80% of the population) Khmers then are but serfs whose lives depend on the mercy of their lords; whose livelihood depends upon the leftover (if any) or any spillage that may have occurred after the “lions” had their fill. The have-nots are transforming, unwillingly, daily to become beasts of burden while the Okña and their peers are themselves The Beasts...predators who will prey on their own if needed be.

If the description of Kampuchea thus far seems bleak it because it is bleak. And the future is not that promising either, if the current trend continues. Will the trend continue? No one really knows, but as an old adage goes “the future lays in the hands of younger generation.” True, the future will definitely rest upon the shoulders of young bloods. The question is “which shoulder”? Will it be the shoulder that further sink Kampuchea to the abyss of regressiveness or will it be the one that elevate her from her current state of being?

The shaking off of the yoke of poverty and the shifting from a good to a bad shoulder all depend on our ability to distinguish between what is moral and what is immoral. It must be understood that it is oxymoronic to take the money that would otherwise belong to the poor to help build a grand temple; it must be understood that it is rather odd to wish for democracy while ignoring the plight of humanity.

It is never too late to change, but before any changes can take place, Khmers must come to a realization that mistakes have been made and that the same mistakes must not be repeated.