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Cambodia, a country that sells poverty
I have lived in Cambodia for about a year. The photo shows Seo Barai, Psa, and Tonle Sap lakes in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
Since I am currently communicating with people living in Cambodia, I was able to see and hear the reality there a little more closely.
With recent kidnapping incidents of Koreans and unstable security issues,
It made me think again about the structural reality of the country called Cambodia.
After Cambodia experienced the killing fields of the Pol Pot regime,
To this day, they are still deeply scarred and unable to escape extreme poverty.
The country’s primary sources of revenue are extremely limited.
① Foreign textile and chemical factories in the capital Phnom Penh,
② Angkor Wat tourism in Siem Reap,
③ Casinos in border areas such as Boypet,
④ Food resources of the Mekong River and Tonle Sap Lake,
⑤ And Sihanoukville’s online casino industry.
In this way, the structure is overly dependent on foreign capital and unstable industries.
It is bound to collapse easily even from a single external shock.
Cambodia is often called ‘a country that sells poverty.’
Although international aid and foreign currency exchange are constantly coming in,
Much of that money is lost in corrupt administrative systems.
Projects such as poverty relief projects, road construction, and infrastructure expansion are nominally packaged as ‘development projects’;
On site, it often ends with a formal completion and a commemorative photo taken.
For example, Siem Reap established a sisterhood relationship with Suwon City in Korea and received support for roads and libraries.
The paved road was only about 5 km long, and the quality was not as good as that of domestic farm roads.
It was closer to ‘business performance’ rather than a donation.
Nevertheless, since it is a very poor country,
People can’t help but say, “I’m thankful for even this.”
At one time, tourism at Angkor Wat in Siem Reap was the core of Cambodia’s economy.
However, most of the profits came from foreign capital.
High-profit industries such as airlines, hotels, and food and beverage industries were all operated by foreign companies.
Cambodians performed only simple labor at low wages.
As the number of tourists increased, sexual crimes and security problems became more serious, and behind the slogan ‘development through tourism’
A structure of unequal exploitation was in place.
Then COVID-19 collapsed everything.
Siem Reap quickly turned into a ghost town as the more than 2 million Korean tourists visiting each year disappeared.
As flights decreased and routes were abolished, the entire tourism industry was paralyzed.
Large hotels and restaurants closed, and guides and drivers left for neighboring countries to make a living.
Siem Reap, once a ‘tourist city’, has now returned to being a quiet rural town.
Sihanoukville also followed a similar path.
It is the only city in Cambodia facing the sea,
Governments and investors have developed China-centered casino tourism destinations for greater profits.
Since Koreans were not legally allowed to gamble, Chinese capital naturally became the focus.
However, when casinos stopped due to COVID-19, the industry switched to illegal online casinos.
In this process, crimes involving kidnapping and confinement of personnel in the name of developing various programs and building Internet infrastructure have rapidly spread.
The recent kidnapping cases of Koreans are also an extension of this structure.
In the end, ordinary and poor Cambodians
They live without knowing anything and are exploited just to survive.
The once brilliant legacy of the Khmer Empire collapsed through the Killing Fields.
All that remains on top of the rubble is a reality that lacks education and cultural foundation.
What they need is not generous aid or temporary donations,
able to stand up on one’s own
Educational opportunities and growth environment
no see.
True help is not ‘out of pity’, but ‘
Helping people stand on their own
’ I keenly realized this through my time there.