Scotch College

Inaugural Scotch Global Village program in Cambodia

WORDS: Mr MARK WILLIAMS • DIRECTOR OF SOCIAL SERVICES
Photography: Ms Jodi Williams and Mr James Smith

Entering the room, his eyes lock with those of a stranger. Hers are from a bygone era. They’re colourless; a mere photograph. Still they seem to glisten with life. Is one most alive when faced with imminent death? Panning the room, thousands of faces stare through the lens, through time. Confusion. Fear. Anger. The humanity is overwhelming. So much grief. Tears well.

Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge exterminated an estimate 1.5 million Cambodians during his short rule in the late 1970s. Such a vast number is incomprehensible, especially following a visit to the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum in Phnom Penh. The sobering experience reminds one that each victim was a living soul – many young, most afraid. The Killing Fields at Choeung Ek, still littered with bones and clothing underfoot, speak too of the recent atrocities inflicted on this nation. The memorial stupa there houses over 5000 human skulls extracted from the surrounding mass graves.

Entering the courtyard, his eyes lock with those of a stranger. Hers live for today. They’re beautifully coloured. They glisten with life. Is one most alive during the innocence of youth? Right there tens of faces sing ‘If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands’, the song of choice. Youthfulness. Exuberance. Hope. The humanity is overwhelming. So much joy. Tears well.

This orphanage, like many in Phnom Penh today, is home to hundreds of children whose parents have either died or conceded that they cannot afford to raise their child on the pittance that they earn. Despite their tragic circumstances, the children exude happiness and love. The chance to play with a group of strangely tall boys, albeit brief, excites them into a frenzy of games, hugs and piggyback rides.

Cambodia’s horrific recent past, juxtaposed with the current sense of hope and optimism shared by its people, many of whom lived through the Khmer Rouge era, make for a land of intriguing contrasts. While not yet as developed as neighbouring countries, Cambodia is finally beginning to heal. A small delegation of Scotch Collegians recently visited Phnom Penh to experience and contribute to the nation’s healing process.

The inaugural Scotch Global Village Team travelled to Cambodia in late June. Global Village is a program run by Habitat for Humanity Australia, an aid organisation that aims to ‘eliminate poverty housing from the face of the earth’.

The program offers a hand up, not a hand out, empowering families in impoverished nations to build their own homes. Interest-free loans are granted to make essential building materials affordable. Each participating family is asked to invest ‘sweat equity’, while receiving construction assistance from local experts and foreign volunteers.

On arrival in Phnom Penh, the Scotch team was briefed by the Habitat For Humanity Cambodia staff. The meeting was held at Hagar, a restaurant staffed by young Cambodians recently freed from the slave trade. The Scotch boys were soon itching to get their hands dirty, after a weekend of sightseeing and shopping at the local markets. The first day of building gave them the chance to meet both the families they’d be working alongside in the Samaki community, a slum relocation village north-east of Phnom Penh.

Sochetra Doung, a local policeman who drives taxis to supplement his wage, and wife Sophea Phat, who sells sugar cane juice, have been married for 15 years. They have no children of their own but support their two nephews, who are both studying at the National University of Management. The family’s combined income is a mere US$325 per month. Sochetra and Sophea were thrilled to hear about Habitat For Humanity’s Global Village program. Owning their own home, once only a dream, suddenly became feasible.

Garment factory security guard Sothearith Bou married Samnang Sok, a local pig raiser, only three years ago. Their US$160 per month combined salary is barely enough to feed and house themselves, let alone their two-year-old son. Sothearith and Samnang also drew hope from the prospect of owning a home through Global Village assistance.

A small delegation of Scotch Collegians recently visited Phnom Penh to experience and make a contribution of their own to the nation’s healing process.

After a brief meet and greet, the hard work began. A typical day on the building sites began with a 6am wake-up call, allowing boys an hour to ready themselves for the 40-minute bus ride to work. The temperature was already well over 30˚C by the time construction commenced each morning. Building tasks included shifting and compacting dirt and rocks to form a foundation, digging a toilet and laying piping, making concrete reinforcement out of metal rods, mixing and pouring concrete and mortar, and laying bricks.

The days were punctuated by three main breaks, during which the team was served local cuisine including a host of exotic fruits and curries. Despite regular rests, work on the sites proved to be a challenge. The construction methods and tools were primitive by Australian standards and the heat was oppressive. One by one the workers were temporarily struck down by bouts of diarrhoea or heatstroke. Nevertheless, morale was high onsite. Interacting with the locals, especially the children, brought a smile to even the sweatiest face. The unique opportunity to be immersed in a community essentially untouched by tourists was really something special.

A week of intense manual labour passed surprisingly quickly. While foundations, plumbing and walls were laid, neither house was roofed by the time the Scotch team had to leave. This didn’t seem to bother Sochetra and Sophea or Sothearith and Samnang, as each could see the fulfilment of their dream only days away. House dedications and a farewell dinner brought closure to the working holiday before the team flew to Siem Reap, Cambodia’s tourist capital.

Only 10 years ago Siem Reap had a solitary hotel. Now hundreds of accommodation options are available within a short drive of the awe-inspiring ancient Buddhist and Hindu temples of the Khmer Empire. Angkor Wat, featured on the Cambodian flag, is the main attraction, but hundreds of other temples are scattered throughout the region. The relaxed pace of life in Siem Reap soothed the aching bodies of the Scotch build team. Leisurely tuk tuk rides to the market, a boat cruise along Tonle Sap Lake at the floating village of Chong Khneas, and Thai massages by the pool were the perfect remedy for the weary workers.

The Scotch Global Village Program is in its infancy but already a second team will travel, this time to Fiji, over the Christmas vacation. Plans for a Thailand team in 2009 are also underway. It is hoped that a partnership, not dissimilar to that formed with World Vision through the Kapumfi Project, will flourish as future Scotch teams join Habitat For Humanity in their mission of eradicating housing poverty from our global village.

Scotch is most grateful to Old Boy Dr Alan McPhate (’45) for his generous support of the Scotch Global Village Program. If you are interested in supporting the program, please contact Acting Director of Development Astrida Cooper on 9810 4300. GS