About the Orphanage
Children's drawings are stuck up on the concrete walls. Smiling kids played on the rusted swings. And a little toddler laughed as he got his backside washed by an older child by the water pump.

These are the scenes that greeted us when we first visited the orphanage in 2002. At the same time, ten babies were hanging in string hammocks suspended from the ceiling in the covered outdoor area. There weren't enough adults to hold these tiny children so they spent the day in isolation, getting some attention when they cried, vomited or urinated through the netting. Flies swarmed to the floor underneath until someone could mop up the mess.

The 60 children in the Sunrise Angkor Children's Village Siem Reap Provinciale shared one basic toilet between them. They slept on mats on the floor and when the babies were brought inside at night, they rested in rickety cots. Some were broken, but there was no money to repair them or buy new ones.

Occasional helpers and even visiting tourists sometimes gave the babies a chance to be held by another warm human being, but this didn't provide the children with other pressing needs - milk, food, clean facilities and basic medicines.

The government funded the orphanage with US$5 a day (A$6.70). This had to extend to feed the children breakfast, lunch and dinner. This was not only difficult,
it was near impossible.

The children ranged in age from four months old to 15 years old. Generally, the children arrived at the orphanage as babies and leave when they are old enough to get a job.

There are lots of concerns in Cambodia about the illegal trafficking of babies. Sometimes, babies are bought from poor and vulnerable villagers for a few hundred dollars and then sold to foreigners for tens of thousands of dollars. The problem is endemic and there are many agencies addressing these issues. The orphanage only accepts babies if the chief of the village provides paperwork authenticating they are indeed orphans. Sometimes the fate of the father is unknown, however, the mother often dies as a result of childbirth.

Today, the orphanage is now being run by the Australia Cambodia Foundation. As a result of the Foundation's many donors and supporters as well as the efforts of Taylor & Khoo and its customers and supporters, the children's lives are changing.

The numbers of children have swelled to 140. But there are now beds and mattresses with clean sheets, there are cots, more toilets, a dining hall and a proper kitchen. The children have access to healthy and nutritious food, medicine, education and vocational training is starting.

The progress is reflected in the happy faces of children who rush home from school to proudly show the carers their latest academic results. These children are now motivated. They have hope for a brighter future and people helping them to achieve that future.

So much has changed, but there is still a lot to do. Read on to find out more.

About Cambodia
Cambodia lies at the heart of Indochina, bordered by Thailand to the west, Laos and Thailand to the north and Vietnam to the east. Despite its tiny size and large powerful neighbours, Cambodia has managed to remain uniquely Khmer. Its culture and traditions have travelled the passage of time, pre-dating those of Thailand, and unlike Vietnam, which was always influenced by China, its dominent influences stem from the Indian subcontinent.

Modern-day Cambodia is the successor state to the mighty Khmer empire, which during the Angkorian period (9th to 14th centuries AD) was the cultural heartland of South-East Asia. It ruled over much of what is now Thailand, Laos and Vietnam and its legacy is one of the wonders of the world. The ruins of Angkor are in a class of their own unmatched by any other historical site in Southeast Asia. Angkor Wat is often compared in grandeur to the Great Pyramid of Giza or Machu Pichu in Peru.

Despite its rich cultural heritage, Cambodia is one of the poorest countries in Asia as a result of years of war, upheaval and genocide. In the mid 1970s a vast communist-inspired "experiment" removed Cambodia from the rest of the world and plunged its people into the dark ages. The very word Cambodia came to be associated with war, atrocities, poverty and refugees. Fighting in the northern provinces ceased as recently as 1998 and today there remains many displaced families, refugees and those disabled as a result of the conflict.

Following the May 1993 elections Cambodia became a constitutional monarchy. Prince Sihanouk, who abdicated in 1955, accepted the crown once more and ruled as king until he abdicated to his son Sihamoni in 1995. Hun Sen is the country's sole prime minister and owes much of his success to the business world and the military. There is very little national interest in Cambodian politics. Rather, it is ruled by self-interest. Many though accept this as at least Hun Sen has brought stability.

Infant mortality rates in Cambodia are among the highest in South-East Asia at 95 per 1,000. Due to poverty, poor sanitation and disease it is estimated that one child in 10 dies before the age of five. Diarrhoea is the biggest killer of young children. Malnutrition and the effects of mononutritional (single-staple) diet are also common, with about half the children under five stunted or underweight. Maternal mortality rates are also high at 437 per 100,000 live births.

Life expectancy is low at an average of 53.6 years for men and 58.6 years for women. The much discussed imbalance of men to women after years of conflict is not as bad as it once was. There are currently 93.1 males for every 100 females. But there remains are marked imbalance in age groups: about 50 per cent of the population is under 15 years of age.

Cambodia's economy is in terrible shape having been traumatised by years of internal conflict. Today tourism, garment manufacturing and timber exports are the main drivers of growth. However, half the Government's annual budget still comes from foreign aid. Average salaries are around US$260 a year and about 36 per cent of the population are classified as poor. These are the rural population engaged in a subsistence struggle for survival, growing rice and other basic crops or fishing the rivers and lakes. Cambodia's membership in ASEAN is a step forward for the country as it means that its neighbours have a vested intertest in peace and prosperity. It should help the country attract more technical assistance for social welfare, healthcare and infrastructural development. It also offers Cambodia the opportunity to benefit from joint promotions of tourism and culture funded by ASEAN. The challenge for Cambodia is to create an environment where sustainable economic development benefits everyone rather than short-term projects that line the pockets of a few. The culture of corruption is endemic in Cambodia to the degree that it is galling to the average citizen.

The floating villages near Siem Reap

It is not just the culture of Cambodia and historical relics drawing tourists, it is the landscape. The wild and mountainous landscape in the north is home to Cambodia's ethnic minorities, isolated national parks, countless mysterious temple complexes forgotten for generations and diminishing wildlife and jungles. This gives way to empty beaches and islands along the south coast. The meandering Mekong River dominates the landscape and as well as providing a crucial transportation link throughout the country it is the home to some of the last remaining freshwater dolphins in Asia.

Then there is the people. Cambodians have weathered years of bloodshed, poverty and political instability. Somehow they have come through the experience with smiles intact and a genuine air of enthusiasm and warmth towards visitors. Nobody comes away from Cambodia without a measure of admiration and affection for the inhabitants of this beautiful, yet troubled country.

(Text last updated November 9 2005. Some facts and figures taken from Lonely Planet Cambodia guide by Nick Ray, 2002)

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