(Unofficial Translation)
CNV: 28/04/2014
I
am so happy today to be able to come preside over the graduation of
1,823 students of the Asia-Europe University in the early part of the
Year of Horse of the Buddhist Year of 2558. It is a good thing to
present diploma at the start of a New Year like this. I listened to the
report of the Asia-Europe University (AEU) rector, Duong Lieng,
concerning the progress made by the University. First started as a
non-governmental organization in area of education, the University has
now a 15-storey building of its own.
Cambodia – A Case Different from Others’
In
fact, I am so glad to observe these progresses concerning human
resource training efforts in the past recent years, especially those
efforts made right after the liberation of on 7 January 1979. Cambodia
was in a different state from other countries in the world in the 20th century. Even in the 21st century,
no country in this world has experienced unique situation like that of
Cambodia. Compared to other countries experienced with genocide, like
Rwanda, Sierra Leone, etc. despites all the wars and killings,
Cambodia’s case has been dramatic with the fact that everything was
destroyed. The capital city of Phnom Penh was empty. There was a
Buddhist prediction that there would be homes but no one to live in it
and there would be roads but no one to use it.
Those
were true events. When I grew up, I just learned the Buddhist
prediction that was passing from one person’s mouth to another. No body
would have believed it. Then came this event of 17 April 1975, the
regime of Lon Nol met its failure and the Khmer Rouge came into Phnom
Penh. What they did was evacuating people from the city of Phnom Penh
and other provincial towns. Ended right in that refime were private
ownership in material as well as in sentiment, which, to the Khmer Rouge
regime was their worst enemy. The best way for the Khmer Rouge to
uproot people’s private ownerships of material was to move them out of
the city to move them away from their property holdings. They moved
people not one time but various times from one place to many others
until they had nothing left.
In
the course of moving, people left their becoming-obsolete objects like
cars, motorbikes for no gas and hold on to only cash and gold. When it
came to a time that no currency was of no value at all, Pol Pot
implemented his policy of collectivization, where his regime claimed to
have succeeded in eliminating the gap between the rich and the poor.
They said they had demolished the rich and brought about the equality.
They moved people from the city to live and exercise collectively in
rural areas. That had in fact cut off people’s ownership rights to
materialism.
As
far as ownership to sentiment was concerned, we all know that and would
have narrated it somehow to the younger generation. They gathered small
children away from their parents to form up what they called children
group. Adults also had to be in what they called mobile youth unit. As
far as marriage was concerned, you were in no right to choose your
partner. The relevant level of power of the “organization” of the Khmer
Rouge would choose with whom you would marry. That is what I called the
effort to eliminate human ownership of sentiment or feeling. That had
brought about social consequence in which killing of one another, even
own kin, was the case.
That
made Cambodia’s departure from after the liberation of 7 January 1979
more difficult. What happened in other countries also inflicted changes
but not the way Pol Pot did to Cambodia. Take for instance, those
countries allowed people to go on using existing currencies and
eventually replaced them later. Pol Pot did not do that. They closed
down markets right alter the liberation. Things had gone back to
bartering where people traded rice for fish, vegetable, clothing, etc.
Eventually, after the liberation, trading in gold started before we came
this far. Some foreigners or our people might have thought why
Cambodian carry out trading in so many different currencies. It is a
reason why in the Cambodian market many foreign currencies were trading.
Foreign
currencies circulation in the Cambodian market legally or illegally
would go on. Some asked why not taking action to de-dollarize or the
same should be doing to Euro or other currencies. The financial crisis
of 1997 is a good example of the fact that if Cambodia was not strong on
its feet, jumping would not be high or falling would not be hurtful.
There had been some studies too and their findings suggested that
because of the fact that Cambodian market traded in many different
currencies, the impacts were manageable.
More
than that, reopening the school day of 1979/1980 was hard, really. We
had to gather teachers survived the killing to get back to teaching and
to train new ones. Now, it is 39 years from that horrible time. It is so
sad to think about that. By this time in that year, people in Phnom
Penh and/or provincial towns had been evacuated. They walked in despair.
Some died on the roads. Thirty-nine years after that experience, we are
celebrating today the graduation and diploma presenting ceremony. That
is a stark difference.
Let
me recall the Khmer New Year of 1979, people living across the Mekong
from Phnom Penh – Lovea Em district, Arei Khsat and Sarikakeo – crossed
the river at night to collect various things like bicycles, shoes, etc.
The area of Independence Monument was covered with high grass. Where
there is park now, there used to be coconut trees. My wife, my son and I
were sitting in the house looking out to the quiet neighbourhood. There
were not many monks then. Now, though I do not go out during the
national holiday, I could stay watch TV at home.
Endorsing Three Draft Laws, Embracing Quality Education
We
had to convene the Cabinet meeting to study and approve three important
draft laws – Organization of the Courts, Organization and Functioning
of the Supreme Council of Magistracy and the Statue of Judges and
Prosecutors (before I was on a mission abroad). In fact, the law on
Organization and Functioning of the Supreme Council of Magistracy could
have been an amendment to the existing one. However, because we need to
make many corrections in order to do so, it is better that we write it a
new one. Following that important Cabinet meeting, I conducted a visit
to Azerbaijan and Belarus.
Thanks
to national efforts, we have ensured development in education in a
rather quick manner. I agree with the Rector Mr Duong Lieng that quality
in education continues to be a priority. He mentioned about the need to
strengthen capacity of professor and students’ learning efforts. It is
to everyone’s knowledge that quality in education is the major course to
raise high the country’s prestige in the international arena. This is
the case for all educational institutions – state and private, from
primary to tertiary levels. Our country would not be able to compete
with our partners – in ASEAN, ACMECS, GMS, etc., if we were to lack
quality in education. Let us continue to make efforts altogether.
I
take this opportune moment to give my sincere appreciation to the
former Asia-Europe organization for continuing to provide
certificate-level professional training for our students. I think it is
good to continue to provide this opportunity. Professional (short or
medium term) training would do a lot in our efforts to address immediate
lacking of human resource. It is a normal process. Even if in the case
of our people living abroad, it is not always the case that they all
finish tertiary education. On the face of this earth, there is no
country that everyone of its citizen gains university education. Seeing
the need for human resource achievement, I would urge continuing efforts
to provide professional training to create more chances for our
students to get job and to create jobs according to their specialties.
Cambodia to Focus on New Objectives
As
I arrived in the country from the mission abroad, I had taken the
chance to meet and work with some of our ministers. I told them that the
current Cambodia needed to change its objectives. What change would it
be? The point is that over the past almost two decades, we have made
great efforts to promote labour-intensive industry. While we continue to
carry on with this, we need also to promote new and value-added
industries. For example, we have garment and shoes factories in Cambodia
but we still have other value-added industry with great potential as
well, especially those industries that are using local material
resources. For instance, we still lack the sort of industry to process
our rice. When we sell it as paddy, we lose the value from rice bran,
the broken parts, husk and jobs for our people.
We
export dozens million of tons of cassava without processing it and
natural rubber in dry form. We should give more focus on prioritizing
processing industry using material resource available in Cambodia. We
also have to look at the possibility of opening up for industry that
other countries can bring into Cambodia. Take for example the Japanese
investment in a motor factory, which produces and supplies not only to
the Japanese but also to the world markets as well. This evening I will
meet with President of the Minebea Company, which, as far as I know, is
in consideration of putting into operation new factories and new
technology.
It
is in this note that I encourage the Asia-Europe organization in
collaboration with the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training to
continue to provide vocational training for our students on this front.
It is now clear that we have come to a time when we need to demand high
processing quality. We cannot afford to produce anyone product in a
large scale only to miss the standard required out there in the market.
Trade Diplomacy
I
was in Azerbaijan and Belarus recently. The main purpose of the trip
was to sell the Cambodian products and at the same time to buy those
countries’ products at a lower prices. That the trip also covered
political matters is true, but, for Cambodia these days, we give
importance on economic, trade, investment, tourism, etc. in our
diplomacy. Unlike in the previous years, when we gave importance on
politics in diplomacy, in the current Cambodia, we are giving importance
on economics in diplomacy to serve as a solid base for political
engagements.
Take
for instance in Belarus, aside from the joint communiqué we have nine
other agreements that indicate joint efforts in economics, trade and
investment. I visited a truck production company. They laid out rows of
trucks, including the one used to mount rocket launchers. However, you
should not confuse that I went there to buy any BM 21s. In Cambodia,
there are two kinds of well-known trucks – KAMAZ and FUSO. I went there
to visit the KAMAZ truck factory. They have made it more advanced. In
the time of the former Soviet Union, they supplied us with tractors and
KAMAZ trucks made in Belarus. I visited known places. They may come to
visit and build assembly line for trucks in Cambodia for local as well
as for regional markets.
Helps of Information Technology, Learning – a Continuing Process
As
I am glad to greet our students for their graduation and present them
diplomas, I would urge you that even if you have your Ph. D. degree, you
may not consider it your end of education. Even if you are becoming
Minister or Prime Minister, you must keep in mind that you need to keep
learning. Anyone continues with conservative thought and practice would
be in danger. Situation is evolving and we need to keep abreast of it.
We have modern tools these days but what we can do when human beings do
not modernize themselves. In the National Assembly and in the Cabinet,
we have provided with computer. However, it would depend on if each
member of the Royal Government would know how to operate them.
In
the Cabinet, all computers are online and have pre-logged on to various
websites – all Cambodian ministries and press – the Google GPS also
included. The tools are advanced and human beings need to be too. This
is a good example that learning is indeed a continuing process. I told
my counterpart over a dinner, as an SMS came to me there, that I had to
attend to numerous messages both in work and in family. As for family,
because I have 5 children and 16 grandchildren, it is normal that I have
so many messages to respond. My counterpart was surprised to hear that
since he only had two children. He said he did not use it. Well it could
add on to your busy schedule too.
Successful and Safe Khmer New Year, a Short Dry Season in July
Meanwhile,
please allow me to take this opportunity to express my sincere
appreciation to all national and sub-national authorities in the whole
country, the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces, Buddhist monks and people for
the fact that you have collaborated in making the traditional Khmer New
Year a successful and safe event. It is normal that competent authority
has to be alert in time of festivity. The region is still in sadness
for the fact that (1) the (believed-to-have-crashed) Malaysian MH 370
flight is nowhere to be found yet and (2) hundreds of people died and/or
unaccounted for in the ferry incident in South Korea. Cambodia also had
a bad disaster in 2010 just after ending its water festival.
As
you can see that in every festivity, competent authority of all levels –
Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Ministers, Ministers, commanders of the
armed forces, provincial authority – are keeping check on security until
the end of the festivity. As for this year, our people had concentrated
for New Year events in numerous places. Let alone the Angkor Sangkranta
event in Siem Reap had witnessed so many people. We had launched a
first ever record of a pork and bean sticky rice cake wrapped in banana
leaves at a weight never recorded before of two tons. The youth members
have cooperated with the Association of Chefs to make and display it.
They also had an eating contest. Union of Youth Federations of Cambodia
presented its first ever record of a two-ton bean-port sticky rice
wrapped in banana leaves. Let us see next year, will there be anyone or
province to break this Siem Reap’s record.
As
far as chess championship is concerned, I was amazed by the dressing
code competitors were wearing. It reminds us of the chess competition
between King Proma Toat and the Garuda King in (one of the Cambodian
court literature) in the Ka Key fairy tale. The champion is indeed a
student who finished his study in architecture and used to stay in the
Buddhist pagoda for his study too. It would be a great thing to see if
in other year any province would think of making a new record on chess
championship. It is my note that for those who stay in the pagoda, about
50 in 100 know how to play chess. The show of force between two groups
on either side of a big stranded wire was also an amazing event that
each side had up to a thousand pullers. There were also artistic
performances and volleyball on sand in the beach area.
Celebrating
the Khmer New Year, we now have come to the end of the dry season and
the rainy season is coming too. According to the Ministry of Water
Resource and Meteorology, the dry season will end in the second week of
May. The rainy season will start in the third week of May but there will
be a short dry period in July. I therefore urge our people to get ready
for new cultivation season.
Everything Proceed Normally, Payday at End of the Month
As
you can see, everything proceeds in its normal state. People enjoy the
Khmer New Year when it came. There was nothing different. To come to the
country or go out of the country is up to one’s mind. People may go to
Siem Reap province or Sihanoukville province or Ratanakiri province etc.
It was all up to them. What was not normal and gave us headaches was
the jacking up of hotel and transport’s prices. Otherwise, everything
was perfectly normal. After the Khmer New Year, the Cabinet met and
endorsed the draft laws.
However,
when I was abroad, according to the news sent to me, there have been
comments by civil society that (the RGC has not brought) the three draft
laws – (1) Organization of the Courts, (2) Organization and Functioning
of the Supreme Council of Magistracy and (3) the Statue of Judges and
Prosecutors – for consultation with them. I just needed to clarify that
we have listened a lot on the issue already and according to the
Constitution, we cannot present the draft laws to anyone. The process is
after being written, the law is passed to the Cabinet (and after
endorsing it) the Cabinet will pass it on to the National Assembly.
I
would urge them not to ask for right beyond theirs. They should just do
whatever their rights are to. As institution elected by the people and
defined by the Constitution, we perform our duty according to the law on
the organization and functioning of the Royal Government of Cambodia.
It has not been instructed anywhere that the Cabinet has to consult with
civil society organization. They should not ask to do other people’s
job.
Today
is April 28. It seems the payday happens in many places now. All I am
asking is whether the payday of the month happens regularly or not.
There is a team keeping watch on payday in the Ministry of Education.
They asked many teachers in a few places to find out if they had their
payday in the month. Their agents responded they did. I urge that the
Ministries of Public Functions and Economy and Finance to follow this
matter closely for me. I would not let this one slipped through my
watch. If anything happens, the Ministers of Public Functions and of
Economy and Finance must be responsible.
I
would not want to go into political debate. I think I had better leave
it at that. There should not be any concern there. I am here today and I
will receive a guest tomorrow. Before I came here, I noticed there are a
number of sub-decrees waiting for my signature. They are sub-decrees on
giving land to the people. We are in the process of measuring land for
the people – new action in existing policy. I am thankful that a number
of students from the Asia-Europe University also participated. No matter
how tired I could be, night or day, I must sign those sub-decrees. In a
democratic society in this world, there is no such thing as being alike
– some may be happy, some may cry. Our problem is to make the majority
of people happy. To respond (to political remark) would create soap
opera.
Let
us all do our job normally. On May 18, there will be this election of
the City and District Councils organized by the National Elections
Committee. All five registered political parties will prepare for their
participation. It is abnormal when some people behave wrongly. When we
all go to school, they decide to skip it and force other not to go to
school like them. How can we who are in class wait for those who skip
it? Class functions normally. Some lawyers would want us to bring the
law for consultation with because that would allow them to seek
financial help for organizations of seminars, etc.
The
spokesperson of the Royal Government already mentioned that the law we
wrote and endorsed, is in fact similar to those in France or Australia
and some other countries only with special alterations made in
consideration of the Cambodian situation. We have to get a hat that
suits our head./.