I am back in Cambodia, this time round, with a very different purpose and a different status. In this one month that I will be in Phnom Penh, my time here will be less to see the sights of a country on the cusp of heavy industrialisation tourism development. Instead, I felt greatly privileged to be able to go beneath and understand more about the inner workings of the people and the country, and it has been a humbling one week.
In a land with so much disparities, it can be pretty overwhelming to work to advance the conditions of the people, especially when one knows that there are so many forces they are working against. Hence I am very respectful of the staff at Riverkids where I am volunteering - they have such a crystal clear reality of the situation and the challenges that lie ahead of them, yet are so dogged and persistent in doing what they think they should do, if only to improve the condition of their charges, one child at a time.
Coincidentally, one of my friends in Singapore is involved in guest curating an exhibition on Cambodian photography and there are some very interesting works there, which helped me gain a greater insight into the country. Here's more about the exhibition, currently held at the Institute of Contemporary Arts Singapore, from 8 March to 1 April 2012.
http://zhuangwubin.posterous.com/ruptures-and-revival-cambodian-photography-in
He has a very comprehensive write-up here too, published previously in a magazine:
http://www.aaa.org.hk/newsletter_detail.aspx?newsletter_id=1144
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