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OVERVIEW:
When
we were in Cambodia, we witnessed many wonderful things. However,
we also witnessed several human rights violations. We saw
child prostitution, child labor, gated factories, lack of
sanitation, and the list goes on.
This page summarizes our research and interview findings based
upon our work with the University of MN Human Rights Resource
Center. It also includes information about an interview we
had with a former UN Diplomat.
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Information
on Human Rights and Human Rights Education
from the University of MN Human Rights Resource Center
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| Q. What are Human Rights? |
A. The Human
Rights Resource Center (2007) explains, “The rights contained
in the US Bill of Rights are mainly civil
and political rights, such as the right to a fair
trial, to assembly, to free speech, and worship. Human rights,
however, also include social,
economic, and cultural rights that are not included
in the US Constitution or Bill of Rights, such as the rights
to adequate housing, health care, and a living wage.
Human rights also reflect
a broader value system than the Bill of Rights and other sources
of "legal rights" in the United States. Human rights
are not related to citizenship in a particular country. Human
rights also include how individuals relate to each other,
not just how people and governments relate. Every human being
has the right to know about and enjoy these rights. “ read
more…. http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/edumat/hreduseries/hereandnow/Part-2/HRE-FAQ.htm |
| Q. What
is Human Rights Education? |
A.
The Human Rights Resource Center (2007) asserts, “HUMAN RIGHTS
EDUCATION declares a commitment to those human rights expressed
in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948, the UN
Covenants, and the United States Bill of Rights. It asserts
the responsibility to respect, protect, and promote the rights
of all people.” Read more… http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/edumat/hreduseries/hereandnow/Part-2/whyhre.htm |
| Q. Why is Human Rights Education Important: |
The Human Right Resource Center (2007) states, “Education
in human rights is itself a fundamental human right and also a responsibility:
the Preamble to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) exhorts ‘every
individual and every organ of society to ‘strive by teaching and education to promote respect
for these rights and freedoms.’ The International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) declares that a government
‘may not stand in the way of people learning about [their rights].”
See:http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/edumat/hreduseries/hereandnow/Part-2/HRE-intro.htm |
| Q. What
can we do to learn more? |
Visit
this site: http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/edumat/
and see our video. |
| The
question we are seeking to fully understand includes one we
should all ask:
We
believe to unlock the doors to diplomacy in Cambodia, the
citizens, especially the children, need their human rights
better protected. The issues we focused our project upon
include: clean water, sanitation, access to free education,
a home to live in, food to eat, and protection from sexual
exploitation and human trafficking, are these considered human
rights issues and how are they related to fair elections in
a country where the government has not been stable and where
elections have not been fair? |
Photo:
www.uwec.edu
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Mr.
U Sam Oeur
FORMER CAMBODIAN DIPLOMAT
ACTIVISIT, HUMANITARIAN, WRITER AND POET |
Photo:
http://manoajournal.hawaii.edu/ |
- OUR INTERVIEW
He is also a scholar, writer, poet, chanter, and public
speaker. He lives near us in Winona, MN with his long-time
friend, Ken McCullough
for part of the year, and in Texas with his son at times.
He presented a poetry
reading in Rochester and we helped serve a reception
for this event. Since we cleaned up after the event, we
had a chance to talk at more length. We also attended a
lunch with him the next day to interview him. We wanted
to know what service learning projects we could become involved
in for our service learning trip to Cambodia. We wanted
to create a project that would be sustainable and useful.
It needed to be a smaller project that we could accomplish
successfully.
- OUR SHOCK
In an interview he told us, “The best way to help Cambodia
is to go and pass out your pencils….” We looked at him
shocked. He noticed our shock. He continued, “Until Cambodia
experiences a regime change, all you can do is pass out
pencils. There is nothing you can do…” Nothing we said?
He thought, was silent, and then said, “Well, if you build
a well for a village, you can help the people of that village
– that would be good.”
- OUR RESPONSE
So – we did just that, we built wells, toilets,
and chalkboards. We also brought paper, crayons, books,
educational supplies and uniforms. No pencils though.
- MORE!
Kim Sin, one of our mentors, has created a number of videos
of U Sam Oeur
posted in you.tube. See the Doors2Cambodia
Channel for videos such as these:
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Photo:www.hawaii.edu |
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Click
here to see our Comprehensive Bibliography
See our Videos too!
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