My Hometown

HOMETOWN – KAMPONG CHAM PROVINCE

Kampong Cham is Oeur Sawin’s hometown province consisting of 16 districts, 173 communes and 1767 villages as mentioned in the list. One of them is Batheay district, with 12 communes and 80 villages, is mentioned in the list below:

DISTRICT	COMMUNE	VILLAGE
BATHEAY	Batheay	Svay Pok, Batheay, Srah Pring, Chreaek, Tuol, Ou Mal
	Chbar Ampov	Chbar Ampov, Tuol Chan, Anlong Chrey, Stueng Chveng
	Chealea	Chea Lea, Ta Ngil, Tang Krang, Baek Peang, Phnum Thum
	Cheung Prey	Cheung Prey, Andoung Snay, Prasoutr Ka, Prasoutr Kha, Trabaek, Trayang Pong
	Me Pring	Me Pring, Tang Thlaeung, Tang Srei, Tang Roleang, Prey Kaor
	Pha'av	Ph'av, Samraong, Tang Boeng, Ba Kal, Prey Nha, Kandaol
	Sambour	Sambour, Balang, Veal, Sangkaeub, Ta Poy, Chong, Tao Baek
	Sandaek	Kampal, Pou Steang, Svay Prey, Tang Chrey, Sroengk
	TAING KRAING	Phnum Del, Cheung Chhnok, Tboung Phnum, Popit, Ak Tieng, Kampong Preah, TAING KORK, Prasat
	Tang Krasang	Boeng Veaeng, Kradas Ka, Kradas Kha, Sdok Thum, Trav Phni, Khvet, Boeng, Khtum, Chan, Chi Neang
	Trab	Roung Damrei, Kampout, Phnum Touch, Tum Prong, Thmei, Pou Ruessei, Trab, Chan Kong, Thkov, Thma Kaev, Routh
	Tumnob	Tumnob Leu, Prayuk, Doun Paen, Rung, Prasam, Sroeng, Trapeang Snao

He was born in Taing Kork village, the 51^st of the 80 mentioned villages above, located in Taing Kraing commune, Batheay district, Kampong Cham province, the Kingdom of Cambodia. It is one of the villages in Taing Kraing commune that is far from the national road no 6A about 3 kilometers. We could approach it approximately 50 minutes from Phnom Penh by motorbike and 20 to 30 minutes by car. Taing Kork is 39 kilometers in distance alongside the National Road No 6A from Phnom Penh. In the Taing Kork village, there are more than 150 families living here. If we calculate in percentage of the people are about 85% of the villagers do the rice farming, 7% open small domestic businesses as us groceries, selling vegetables, 3% do the fishing and transfer fish to the local markets, 2% raise their domestic income by running motor dup (motor taxi driver), 1% run microfinance (domestic loans) and buying rice for stock of exchange and another 2% raise pigs, ducks, chickens and geese especially some of them of this percent dig ponds to raise fish for their family incomes near their homes. Traditionally, for whom are not business people wake up early morning to go working at the rice fields while the business people go to purchase groceries, food, fish, vegetables, clothes and goods at the Khbal Thnal, Pha’av, Skun and Rokakong markets.

Most of the villagers go to markets every early morning to buy food and groceries, vegetables, meats, ports, beefs, chicken meats and fish for cooking before they leave their homes daily for their farming and business jobs. Agriculturally, they used to consume buffaloes, oxen, horses to produce and transport the goods and plow field lands but now they use modern machines to do the farming rice. They normally do the agri-farming based on the climate and sky but they are improving to dig ponds and channels to transfer and irrigate water from the lake and river nearby. The local forests are gradually going down and less because the climate changes each year. It causes people here to hit hard with these climate changes. They transplant the rice and they sell rice after they harvest. The rice price is too low that is why it could not be adequately supported people.

Taing Kork is closed to Chhoeung Chhnouk a village of which is connected to the National Road No 6 from Prasath village. We could approach Taing Kork after we get through three villages called Chhoeung Chhnouk, Thboung Phnom and Prasath villages. We travel alongside the pathway cross the rice fields from Prasath village with less trees and palm trees but there are views of green small forests on the left hand sides over the rice fields. They look so young and short forests or called them “Prey Lbas or sparse forests”. All of these sparse forests are flooded when the rainy season comes each year.

Other two villages called Por Peth and Ouk Tieng located near the Taing Kork village as well. They are connected from the point of a tri-crossed pathway at the beginning of village when we just arrive Taing Kork firstly. Looking toward the right hand side is the direction to Por Peth which is in the North West direction before we arrive within Taing Kork alongside the pathway to reach Ork Tieng which is in the South direction. There is much dust when we travel by vehicles during the dry seasons because it is dried hotly by the sun shining. All houses and trees flooded with sand and dirty on them. They look old and dry. People here transport water from the ponds in the pagoda and the community pond “Srah Poh” which is located in Taing Korkrav village. Taing Kork provides its people the secured health stability and peace.

In addition, we can see and visit the dry season rice fields with so green colour of the rice at the South East of Taing Kork and Ork Tieng villages. After we continue to leave Ork Tieng, we can arrive in a river called “BOEUNG MALORNG or MALORNG RIVER” which provides local people the fish for food and water for irrigating into dry-season rice fields. The people in Ork Tieng village do the farming like Taing Kork’s as well.

If we talk about the pathway, the pathway has been paved with small stones and sand surrounded by the rice fields. It has been repaired by the local authorities cooperated with the villagers. There are too many green grasses and rice fields during raining season from June to December. People do the farming rice twice per year– the first is the rainy season starts from June to December. The people sow rice seeds at the fields closed to their home villages. They transplant the late rice “Srov Thngun” which can afford the flooding for reasonable period of time. The second is the dry-season from January to May. They transplant the early rice “Srov Sral” called “dry-season (April-May) rice. Within this season, the people plant lotus and purchase fish from Beung Malorng river to the markets. In each year of this river, some local fishing traders buy whole river of stock. The villagers’ children go fishing at the Malorng river for their personal food. People who do the businesses are always busy because they have to contact their costumers for purchasing goods. They get up very early in the morning to prepare fish and groceries to be sold at homes and at the markets (Kbal Thnal, Pha’av, Batheay, and Rokakong markets).

Particularly, the people here are very friendly and kind to each other, usually help each other in case of emergency required. For example, if there is any robbery or thief coming into the villages, they all alert each other by hit pagoda drum and cry out loudly from one person to another. It will be immediately a mob of the people to kill and fight thief or robber. Now they are very understandable to each other in a smooth solidarity to protect the whole benefits in the villages. For other work performances, some are carpenters who are specialized in constructing houses, pagodas, cottages, hatched houses and wooden houses for raising incomes to support families.

In the percentage of about 60% of the villagers’ children both female and male have gone far from their homes and parents to work at the urban areas for garment factory industries in Phnom Penh and provincial towns. Some have gone to work in Malaysia and Korea due to the few works in Cambodia and is not easy for them. They have to apply for overseas posts of the industrial workers to help support families. They send money to their parents for each three to four months based on any of their work achievements. For the remaining people have used their times after they finish their rice field works to come together to discuss about something at their friends’ houses to find out more smooth village cooperation and methods to do the farming.

Taing Kork is a hometown village which gave Oeur Sawin the birth and preliminary general education after the Khmer Rouge Regime passed way for one year. It is very romantic and unforgettable village that Sawin was working and studying hard when he studied in Taing Kork Primary and Chhoeung Chhnouk Secondary Schools. He helped his parents transplant, harvest and sow rice; moreover, he plowed rice field and constructed dikes or levee in rice fields especially in the dry-season. He also helped raise and feed animals like cows, oxen, chickens, pigs and ducks. Taing Kork is the centered point storing the pagoda and primary school sources for sharing three villages: Taing Kork, Ork Tieng and Popeth villages. Taing Kork is divided into parts: 1^st is Taing Kork Khnoung and 2^nd is Taing Kork Krav. This is easy for people joining their Krom, community groups of each is with twelve members with a group leader rolling duties to invite her or his team members to join in the official events. This village is the place where Mr. Kong Norn who is the Taing Kraing Commune Governor lives in as well.

In Taing Kork, there are too many houses made of wooden look very traditional and antique Khmer models. The most house roofs used roofing tiles with traditional Khmer decorations to be protected the sun shine and storm especially the security. Nevertheless, there are ponds for serving people with the water in the village. The guardian spirit collages are also made to secure the three whole villages. Those are Preah Ang Kdei Lech located in the south of the Popeth. Louk Ta Krong Samrith (Copper or Gold Guardian Spirits located in the northeast of Taing Kork. Yeay Keo & Yeay Nuon collage is closed to Taing Kork temple in the southeast direction. The guardian spirit collages made of magic stones, bricks to take care of the peaceful situation and secured health for these three villages. So Taing Kork is one of the unforgettable hometown villages in the countryside and a centered point of peaceful villages in Taing Kraing commune.