CAMBODIA TODAY
Today Cambodia is one of the poorest countries in the world because of more than two decades of isolation, war and holocaust by the Khmer Rouge. During this time as many as 2 million men, women and children have been killed. The war also destroyed the basic infrastructure and social services of Cambodia. During the Killing Fields, between 1975-1979, Pol Pot eliminated most of the educated Cambodians; leaving only the remnant of the educated, plus mostly illiterate farmers and widows who survived, to rebuild this nation.
In a society plagued with religious superstition, anarchy, corruption and poverty; unemployed parents and widows cannot get any financial help such as welfare, food stamps or medical aid. Nor can they receive any unemployment benefit, worker’s compensation, DTI or medical insurance from their employers. Most employed parents will often work all day for the day’s food, with nothing left for housing, health care or education.
While parents attempt to work to put food on the table, older children, often sick themselves, are the primary caregivers to babies and younger children. The image of a poor girl or boy age 7-12, holding a baby sister or brother on their hip, is a very common sight in Cambodia. Children may often be malnourished. Added to that is an abusive aspect to the culture, which condones polygamy, spousal violence, illiteracy and the abandonment of women.
More women are now windowed and the head of the household. A home run by a single mother with three to eight young children is commonplace. It is typical to see many homes having two or three generations of windows living together, in order to survive in this devastated economy. The worst injustice is perpetrated against vulnerable young girls under the age of 17, who are lured and sold to brothels in Phnom Penh or other countries; numerous women are forced to become prostitutes because of their destitute living conditions.
As a result, thousands of children are abandoned and neglected, creating orphans and street children who survive by begging from the public or by digging in the dumps for trash to recycle or for items to sell. What will be the future hold for these unloved and uneducated Cambodian children?
Because of the economic situation, education is not a priority for most families, but the good news is that the poorest children are the most eager to be loved and are the ones who are really open to hear the Gospel. We believe that children between the ages of five and twelve are able to understand and are open to salvation through Jesus Christ.
In the year 2003, the population of Cambodia was recorded at 12 million people. Only 35% of the nation’s population over 15 years of age is literate. Five million people, or 42% of the population, is under the age of 14. Cambodia’s mortality rate of children under five is high. Almost one in every five children dies before reaching the age of five. Due to the high-rates and with half the female Cambodian population under 18 years of age, the current population structure contains an unusually large percentage of young children and pregnant women.
If young girls and boys survive, poverty usually hinders them from going to school or they drop out of school at an early age; this is so that the girls can tend to the younger siblings and cook for their families and so that the boys can assist on their parents’ farm or find a job that is often difficult and dangerous. Less than 1% of children will persevere until high school graduation. Many of these girls age seven to twelve may have her own baby on her hip in less than 10 years. It is important for her to have the opportunity to learn good health practice at an early age. Our church ministry not only provides health education, but also gives each child the opportunity to hear the Gospel.
Today Cambodia is in the midst of rebuilding itself, socially, economically and psychologically. The scar of the past, however, will take decades to heal.
The people of Cambodia are among the poorest in the wold and trying to rebuild a country where most of the governmental and social structures were destroyed. The fact that most of the educated people, especially educated males, were killed during the Red Communists' purge makes the rebuilding an overwhelming task.
Sixty-five percent of the total adult population between the age of 35 and 40 are women. They head 30% of households of which 41% are widows. Women also constitute 74% of the total labour force. They dominate small-scale businesses and work mostly in the factories and the service sector. In the rural areas, women represent more than 60 percent of the agricultural workforce, working more than 12 hours a day because of their double workload inside and outside of the home.
Some of the worst problems facing Cambodian women are health condition, illiteracy and violence, both in domestic and public places. The United Nations Development Fund for Women point out that the lack of educational opportunities for Cambodian women are the greatest obstacle to their advancement in society. In many poor families, female children are forced to discontinue school to help with farm work or housework; only 20% of high school students are female. The saddest thing of all is when girls over 13 years old are lured away, sold to brothels and become trapped in the world of prostitution. Some girls allow themselves to be sold for as little as $500 to assist their families in paying for medical treatments.
Cambodia is a constitutional monarchy. A democratically elected prime minister, with a National Assembly composed of 123 representatives and 61 senate member's heads the government. The reigning monarch is King Norodom Sihamoni, but his duties are mainly ceremonial. The current prime minister is Hun Sen.
Over 90% of Cambodians are Buddhists and less than 1% are Jesus followers. Only three pastors survived the Khmer Rouge purges and in 1993 Christianity was finally legalized again. Most Cambodians still have not heard the true gospel of Jesus.
Many Cambodian Christians ask this question: “Will a person who has never heard about Jesus go to hell?”. Some people answer “no”, believing that people who never hear about Christ and the gospel are going to heaven. They believe only those who have heard the gospel and have rejected it will go to hell. If what they believe is true, and Jesus allows people to go to Heaven because of their ignorance, Jesus would not have commanded His disciples and Christians to fulfil the Great Commission. If it is so, churches have no need to send out missionaries to preach the gospel in all nations. Pastors do not need to challenge their congregations to share their faith within their communities. Why give people an opportunity to hear the Gospel then reject it and end up in Hell? Why don’t all the apostles and Christians stay silent about Jesus so everyone can go to Heaven?
Roman 1:18-25 teaches that general revelation can reveal many things about God. If a person lives up to the light that he has from general revelation, if he seeks and worships the creator rather than creation, God will ensure he receives more light by sending missionaries to share the gospel with him. That is how one can explain how a person born and raised in a different part of the world, suddenly has a tremendous burden to go to a remote tribe in Africa or Cambodia etc.
The truth is that people are lost when they die without surrendering their lives to Jesus, a very real possibility, given the social and economical condition of Cambodia. Through generational bondage, the trauma of war, false religion, systemic poverty and social injustice the people of Cambodia are severely oppressed by Satan. We who have received salvation and eternal life through the blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ have a duty to proclaim the good news of Jesus to those He has prepared for us before the foundation of the world. We want to be the messengers of hope to the vast number of lost souls in Cambodia and we invite you to join us in this mission.
In a society plagued with religious superstition, anarchy, corruption and poverty; unemployed parents and widows cannot get any financial help such as welfare, food stamps or medical aid. Nor can they receive any unemployment benefit, worker’s compensation, DTI or medical insurance from their employers. Most employed parents will often work all day for the day’s food, with nothing left for housing, health care or education.
While parents attempt to work to put food on the table, older children, often sick themselves, are the primary caregivers to babies and younger children. The image of a poor girl or boy age 7-12, holding a baby sister or brother on their hip, is a very common sight in Cambodia. Children may often be malnourished. Added to that is an abusive aspect to the culture, which condones polygamy, spousal violence, illiteracy and the abandonment of women.
More women are now windowed and the head of the household. A home run by a single mother with three to eight young children is commonplace. It is typical to see many homes having two or three generations of windows living together, in order to survive in this devastated economy. The worst injustice is perpetrated against vulnerable young girls under the age of 17, who are lured and sold to brothels in Phnom Penh or other countries; numerous women are forced to become prostitutes because of their destitute living conditions.
As a result, thousands of children are abandoned and neglected, creating orphans and street children who survive by begging from the public or by digging in the dumps for trash to recycle or for items to sell. What will be the future hold for these unloved and uneducated Cambodian children?
Because of the economic situation, education is not a priority for most families, but the good news is that the poorest children are the most eager to be loved and are the ones who are really open to hear the Gospel. We believe that children between the ages of five and twelve are able to understand and are open to salvation through Jesus Christ.
In the year 2003, the population of Cambodia was recorded at 12 million people. Only 35% of the nation’s population over 15 years of age is literate. Five million people, or 42% of the population, is under the age of 14. Cambodia’s mortality rate of children under five is high. Almost one in every five children dies before reaching the age of five. Due to the high-rates and with half the female Cambodian population under 18 years of age, the current population structure contains an unusually large percentage of young children and pregnant women.
If young girls and boys survive, poverty usually hinders them from going to school or they drop out of school at an early age; this is so that the girls can tend to the younger siblings and cook for their families and so that the boys can assist on their parents’ farm or find a job that is often difficult and dangerous. Less than 1% of children will persevere until high school graduation. Many of these girls age seven to twelve may have her own baby on her hip in less than 10 years. It is important for her to have the opportunity to learn good health practice at an early age. Our church ministry not only provides health education, but also gives each child the opportunity to hear the Gospel.
Today Cambodia is in the midst of rebuilding itself, socially, economically and psychologically. The scar of the past, however, will take decades to heal.
The people of Cambodia are among the poorest in the wold and trying to rebuild a country where most of the governmental and social structures were destroyed. The fact that most of the educated people, especially educated males, were killed during the Red Communists' purge makes the rebuilding an overwhelming task.
Sixty-five percent of the total adult population between the age of 35 and 40 are women. They head 30% of households of which 41% are widows. Women also constitute 74% of the total labour force. They dominate small-scale businesses and work mostly in the factories and the service sector. In the rural areas, women represent more than 60 percent of the agricultural workforce, working more than 12 hours a day because of their double workload inside and outside of the home.
Some of the worst problems facing Cambodian women are health condition, illiteracy and violence, both in domestic and public places. The United Nations Development Fund for Women point out that the lack of educational opportunities for Cambodian women are the greatest obstacle to their advancement in society. In many poor families, female children are forced to discontinue school to help with farm work or housework; only 20% of high school students are female. The saddest thing of all is when girls over 13 years old are lured away, sold to brothels and become trapped in the world of prostitution. Some girls allow themselves to be sold for as little as $500 to assist their families in paying for medical treatments.
Cambodia is a constitutional monarchy. A democratically elected prime minister, with a National Assembly composed of 123 representatives and 61 senate member's heads the government. The reigning monarch is King Norodom Sihamoni, but his duties are mainly ceremonial. The current prime minister is Hun Sen.
Over 90% of Cambodians are Buddhists and less than 1% are Jesus followers. Only three pastors survived the Khmer Rouge purges and in 1993 Christianity was finally legalized again. Most Cambodians still have not heard the true gospel of Jesus.
Many Cambodian Christians ask this question: “Will a person who has never heard about Jesus go to hell?”. Some people answer “no”, believing that people who never hear about Christ and the gospel are going to heaven. They believe only those who have heard the gospel and have rejected it will go to hell. If what they believe is true, and Jesus allows people to go to Heaven because of their ignorance, Jesus would not have commanded His disciples and Christians to fulfil the Great Commission. If it is so, churches have no need to send out missionaries to preach the gospel in all nations. Pastors do not need to challenge their congregations to share their faith within their communities. Why give people an opportunity to hear the Gospel then reject it and end up in Hell? Why don’t all the apostles and Christians stay silent about Jesus so everyone can go to Heaven?
Roman 1:18-25 teaches that general revelation can reveal many things about God. If a person lives up to the light that he has from general revelation, if he seeks and worships the creator rather than creation, God will ensure he receives more light by sending missionaries to share the gospel with him. That is how one can explain how a person born and raised in a different part of the world, suddenly has a tremendous burden to go to a remote tribe in Africa or Cambodia etc.
The truth is that people are lost when they die without surrendering their lives to Jesus, a very real possibility, given the social and economical condition of Cambodia. Through generational bondage, the trauma of war, false religion, systemic poverty and social injustice the people of Cambodia are severely oppressed by Satan. We who have received salvation and eternal life through the blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ have a duty to proclaim the good news of Jesus to those He has prepared for us before the foundation of the world. We want to be the messengers of hope to the vast number of lost souls in Cambodia and we invite you to join us in this mission.