Nearing the shady end of the lane, by a grand Buddhist temple, 69-year-old Bun Roeung lives in the same house in which she was born. The structure, a fine example of traditional Khmer architecture, was categorised as an ‘antique house’ in 2005 by provincial authorities under a listing scheme that officials hope will both preserve these architectural gems and bring tourists to the area to see them.

Built in 1920, the grounds of Bun Roeung’s house are surrounded by mature fruit trees that hang low with fat oranges, pawpaw and jackfruit, their leaves littering the stone staircase leading up to the traditional living quarters of the once vibrant family home. But the rooms these days are empty, and the houses only remaining inhabitant sleeps beneath the floorboards on a rotting hammock, waiting for tourists to come and see the frozen splendour of the home.

‘My first memory of this house is my mother singing songs to me and my sisters in our hammocks to put us to sleep’, Bun Roeung said. ‘Her voice was sweet and she used to sing so softly. So my first memory is of a feeling of a great peace within the walls of this house’. Bun Roeung’s grandfather was an affluent army commander and later a lawyer, and his wife Yin had the house built in 1920 during the reign of King Sisovath, in the classical Pet style, meaning a house had verandas. Bun Roeung’s parents, who inherited the house, were also wealthy and socialised frequently with the French officials working in the area. However, in 1975 everything changed. Bun Roeung’s father was killed by the Khmer Rouge, as were 30 other members of her family, including her mother and most of her siblings. Bun Roeung was evacuated to the north of Cambodia and stayed with peasant relatives with whom she toiled in the fields. In her absence, the house was taken over by the Khmer Rouge and used as a storage facility and barracks for soldiers.

When Bun Roeung returned home in 1979, 80 percent of the house was destroyed. Bun Roeung survived by selling fruits and vegetables at the market, as she began the slow process of rebuilding her life. She now lives alone, and supports herself from a donations box to which tourists sometimes contribute.

The traditional house is located in Wat Kor village on the road next to the Sangke River. It is a 10-minute drive from the centre of Battambang and is located by Wat Kor. Entry is free, but donations are welcome. Battambang.

For interesting tours of Battambang contact: info@asia-adventures.com

Edited from Phnom Penh Post (15-12-08)

Wildlife officials are using cash to entice Mekong residents in north eastern Cambodia to protect nesting grounds of Cantor’s soft-shell turtles, believed extinct just two years ago.

The Cantor’s habitat lies mostly within a 55-kilometre stretch of the Mekong in north eastern Cambodia between the towns of Kratie and Stung Treng, where scientists have noted the richness of the natural environment. In a report released Thursday, the WWF said the “near-pristine region of tall riverine forests, waterways and island archipelagos” is a sanctuary for the critically engandered Irrawady dolphin and other vulnerable fauna populations, a total of 36 of which are listed as threatened under the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. The area used to be one of the last strongholds of the Khmer Rouge until as late as 1998. Now, it is rapidly shrinking as peace is leading to migration of communities to areas previously off limits due to security concerns, the group said. The two dams proposed for just outside the unique strip would “massively disrupt the delicately balanced ecosystems in the area", it said. WWF has petitioned the government to designate the area as protected.

LAST year, Mekong resident Su Pie sold the delicate eggs he unearthed to Chinese miners working in the area, banking around US$20. This year, he stands to make exponentially more by not laying a hand on any nests he discovers, as well as ensuring no one else does either. The 59-year-old fisherman and farmer, whose home lies along the Mekong in a district called Sambor, about an hour from the town of Kratie, stands along the banks of the river with his wife and three children as he explains to Conservation International (CI) officials his mixed success this year in contributing to their project.

The good news was he found two nests. The bad news was he ate the eggs from one after he suspected it would be discovered by other local fishermen, given its visible location. The conservation officials cringe as they hear this. They can count the number of meals that could push Cambodia’s population of the endangered Cantor’s giant soft-shell turtle to extinction. But the program employing locals to protect nests is in its first year, and they expected it to develop with hitches.

Cantor’s can grow up to two metres in length and reach weights of more than 50 kilograms. The turtle’s flat, soft shell is covered with rubbery skin and has been valued for use in post-natal traditional Khmer cures. In 2007, wildlife experts found the super-sized freshwater turtle species, which was previously believed to have vanished from Cambodia.

Since then, the wildlife groups planned to employ local villagers to protect the species’ breeding grounds. “I like helping protect them, but if I didn’t get money, I would always take half of them and leave the other half,” the fisherman said. “Other fishermen come around looking for eggs, also, so it can be difficult to do what I’m asked.” After verifying the location of the preserved nest, the conservation officials pay Su Pie $30 on the spot. The fisherman receives a net, which he is instructed to place over the nest to protect it from natural predators, such as monitor lizards, so the baby turtles can be caught and studied before they are released by the CI team, which will base itself in the area as the hatching period nears.

“Thirty dollars for finding the nest, plus $2 a day from the time we see the nest until it hatches, plus $2 per hatched egg,” explained the program’s head monitor, Kim Chamnan. Nests typically hold 20 to 50 eggs, which take more than 60 days to hatch. “He can make a lot more by cooperating with us. He’ll get more than $200 for this nest if they hatch,” said Kim Chamnan.

Last year, CI officials were able to preserve four nests and held onto twelve hatchlings for a “Head-Start” program in which they allow them to mature in captivity before they are released at a size large enough to overwhelm any would-be natural predators.

To visit Kratie and Stung Treng and find out more about the turtle project contact: info@asia-adventures.com

Edited from the Phnom Penh Post (20-1-09)

Siem Reap is home to only 17 elephants, but that small number comprises almost a fifth of Cambodia’s total number of domestic pachyderms, the second-largest provincial population after Mondulkiri.

Gavin Bourchier, elephant manager at Compagnie des Elephants d’Angkor, oversees all of Siem Reap’s remaining elephants, and under his regime the only interaction they have with tourists is giving rides near the temples, a “necessary evil” that provides funding.

Elephant exploitation for a quick tourist buck is just one of Bourchier’s worries. Cambodian pachyderms are threatened by habitat loss, an aging population, poaching and the lack of trust and coordination between various NGOs and the Cambodian government. Unless that hurdle is cleared soon, Bourchier said, domestic elephants could vanish from the country altogether. “In 10 or 20 years, the number of domestic elephants will absolutely crash. Not decline, but plummet,” he said.

His view is shared by Matt Maltby, project adviser at Fauna and Flora International who has recently put together a Cambodian domestic elephant census - the first nationwide survey conducted by one body. The results show that there are 102 domestic elephants left in the Kingdom, down from 160 five years ago. “Following current trends and an aging domestic population, there are likely to be none remaining in 10 or 15 years,” he said. The reason for the decline is demographics. “There are 17 elephants in Siem Reap,” Gavin said. “And their general condition is ‘aging’. Most elephants are getting old. If everything goes well, an elephant can live to around 70. … The average age of an elephant in Cambodia is 46 to 48.”

Maltby maintains the decline of domestic elephants isn’t a death sentence for the species in Cambodia. But Bourchier believes the futures of both domestic and wild elephants are linked, and NGOs need to join forces to prevent the domestic elephant disappearing.

Edited from the Phnom Penh Post (12-3-09)

Author and journalist Denise Heywood describes traditional Khmer dance as an “embodiment” of the country’s past. As Heywood explains, “The story of Cambodian dance is … in fact, the story of Cambodia. Every chapter in Cambodian history includes dance.”

Heywood’s most recent publication, Cambodian Dance: A Celebration of the Gods, explores the many phases of this variegated history through the prism of one of the country’s oldest art forms. A lavishly illustrated 144-page work, the book is described by Heywood as a “labour of love". “The very first time I saw Cambodian dance was children performing at the foot of Angkor Wat. I just fell in love with it,” she said.

In contrast to this idyllic scene, however, it was the brutalities suffered by classical dancers under the modern Pol Pot regime that most inspired Heywood’s fascination. “I love dance generally, but I was most touched by the plight of Khmer dancers,” she said. “I just found their story so moving and so heroic.”

Dance in Cambodia had historically been the domain of royalty, with dancers serving functions of entertainment, worship and diplomacy in the nation’s courts for over a millennium. As a result, dance became an emblem of the Cambodian monarchy, and subsequently under the Khmer Rouge, of all that was abhorrent and outlawed. Like others from artistic and educated classes, dancers were singled out by the regime and transported to rural camps or the killing fields, where 90 percent of them were slaughtered.

An epic task awaited those who survived. As Heywood describes, “The remaining dancers walked barefoot and starving back to Phnom Penh, where they attempted to restore together their art.” Classical dance has historically existed only in the minds and bodies of performers, “Expertise was handed down through the generations from master to pupil and never documented in written form,” Heywood said.

The renascent Khmer dance has received modest sponsorship from international aid organisations and NGOs. The art has been embraced both within Cambodian and internationally, with the Royal Ballet of Cambodia added to Unesco’s 2004 list of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

It is the original spiritual function of the art that holds most appeal for Heywood and informs the title of her book. “Cambodian dance is … first and foremost … a sacred art-form. It originated in the ancient temples and is tied up with cosmic symbolism.” So too, this mysticism has bound Heywood to Cambodia since her initial visit. “I came here by chance, although I always say it was my destiny,” she said.

To see wonderful traditional dance shows when in Cambodia please contact: info@asia-adventures.com

Edited from The Phnom Penh Post (5 March 09)

An eight-day otter protection workshop that will include lectures, discussions and field training began in Phnom Penh this week, drawing experts from across the globe to Cambodia - which many called a key location for otter protection.

‘This is a very important region because of the variety of otter habitats,” said Nicole Duplaix, founder of the Otter Specialist Group of the International Union for Conservation of Nature. “Cambodia has large lakes, mountain ranges and the Mekong delta, and many of these areas are still wild enough to protect.”

Annette Olsen, research manager for Conservation International, said the purpose of the workshop is to bring international experts together to discuss priorities in otter conservation, raise awareness, improve government involvement and train university students to continue the work of research and otter conservation both here and overseas.

Cambodia is home to four rare species of otter including the previously thought-to-be-extinct hairy-nosed otter, which was rediscovered in the Tonle Sap Lake.

Forestry Administration research and monitoring manager Peov Somanak admits there are still improvements to be made. “Poverty is the biggest problem threatening wildlife protection,” he said. “Hunger makes people do things without thinking. Cambodia does not have an otter fur trade, itself, but poor people are easily persuaded by international traders and local middlemen.” Peov Somanak said another big problem is enforcement. The national status of many species does not reflect local studies or scientific research, he said. But he saw international cooperation at this workshop as a positive sign for things to come. “If we work together and care about wildlife conservation, we can preserve our wildlife for the future,” Peov Somanak said.

Edited from The Phnom Penh Post (Feb 09)