Finding my Feet

Above: First Weekend in Phnom Penh, view of the ongoing construction looking South.
Below: Exploring the Russian Market on International Womens day, one of the many public holidays in Cambodia   

At CCHR i'm lucky enough to be put on the social Forum/Community outreach project- and luckier still to be joining the group attending a community forum in San Dann in the province of Kampong Thom before my first week is up. We travel by bus through some incredible countryside, flat and saturated with sun - the rest of these photos document the trip.  Above: Another CCHR worker and our brilliant translator for the two days Sokly, bargaining for some fruit
Below: Houses on Stilts to protect homes from the monsoons - and Sambor Prei Kuk Temple site - with prayer flags and Aurelie and Alfi giving it some style. 

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One less gecko

Above and Below: The Forum kicks off at 9am with residents from the 4 surrounding provinces attending.  The Forums aim is to connect officals and locals over the chopping of Prey Lang forest by a Vietnamese rubber company CRCK - the  Prey Lang forest is the biggest in Asia, situated in a valley has a natural basin rich in fauna and flora. The Forums key debate was the vague and confusing land rights of the community, who are being forcibly evicted off their farmland by the government - Still no clarity was achieved after 3 hours listening to officials contradict themselves. Despite this frustration there was a high level of attendance with 400 people strong audience - the forum gave communities a platform for lcoals to speak and address members of parliament directly and was followed by 7 media crews gathered from across Cambodia, including the Phnom Penh Post.