Op-ed day 3: Looking Through the Right End of the Telescope --by David

I have no plans to call myself a religious man any time soon, but I can still appreciate that the Buddha offers the world the Four Immeasurables: to practice loving kindness to overcome anger, compassion to overcome cruelty, sympathetic joy to overcome hatred, and equanimity to overcome prejudice.  At one time, these aphorisms nourished the daily life of nearly every Cambodian.  Today in Cambodia, sadly, following a generation of economic and political repression, senseless years of horrific butchery, and the deluge of blessings and curses of post-genocide foreign aid and investment, Buddha may need to call a meeting to help us all stay on task.

A movement towards a more secular lifestyle here in Cambodia, where 96% of the population is in theory Buddhist[1] signals a shift away from the tenets of the religion’s fundamentals of forgiveness and self-reconciliation.  Young Cambodians’ interest in their ancestral faith is simply waning, and it only compounds the problem. What is ironic, particularly to a humanist mindset like mine, is that organized faith could be a part of the ongoing solution, but is losing its footing in the Kingdom.

A desert of genocide education for children and pervasive Cambodian anxiety to revisit an ugly, muddy past leave outspoken Cambodian-American attorney, and former Khmer Rouge prisoner and refugee, Theary Seng, one very busy Christian woman.  She creates an important space for witnessing the events of the Khmer Rouge’s violence through reflection, but also spotlights sensitive current issues such as the rights of women, forced land evictions, and building civil society. I only wish I had half her energy for connecting and sharing her story.

This past evening I was fortunate to join Seng and the UBELONG team for a passionate exchange about these issues, where Seng reminded us that the Khmer Rouge history is “not just about 1975-1979”.  After having my eyes opened for me, I am seeing more clearly. The issues Cambodia faces as a nation crippled by reliance on outside aid[2] and hungry foreign investors are deeply rooted in the bloody past.  And, in an environment where people are working to make social and legal justices more than mere dreams, Cambodians can look to their ancient faith to find openings for discussion and reconciliation.  It is a sensitive, complex practice to reconcile past and present, and it must be viewed through the right end of the telescope.

1. The World Factbook, www.cia.gov

2. Ear, S. (2007):  The political economy of aid and governance in Cambodia, Asian Journal of Political Science, 15:1, 74.