Back in Phnom Penh just today, after three days up in the northwest – Battambang Province. It was the last hold out of the Kymer Rouge back in the 90’s, and today it bears the scars of that conflict not only through the millions of landmines that dot that border area, but also through the legacy of HIV – often at its highest rates in areas where soldiers live or travel frequently. Spent a few days meeting up with HIV positive beneficiaries there. The health care system here is in tatters, especially in the poor rural areas. It really suffered under Pol Pot, and then under the Vietnamese in the 1980’s, so real devlopment work didn’t start here until the early 1990’s. So there is a long way to go.
Back in Phnom Penh after a four hour drive down today, and will be seeing more HIV projects here in the capital tomorrow and Friday. Saturday I’m doing some work with NIH – a hospital in the city as well – and then off on Sunday night. Not sure if I’ll have any time – these trips are so busy – but if I do I’d like to duck out on Sunday to see some of Pol Pot’s legacy, the notorious Killing Fields outside of town a few kilometers. Everyone who is old enough to remember that time in the mid to late 70’s has a story about being separated from their parents, or forced to work in the rice fields all day, every day, with no food. Must have been madness. Hard to believe country, any country, can ever really recover from an experience like that.
July 9th, 2008 | by David in Uncategorized
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All Material © 2008 David Snyder
