Cockfighting: The Cambodian Slasher Cup 2006

Cockfighting is popular throughout Cambodia. There are bets on money in arena of cockfighting. Traditionally, the farmer and the peasant in rural areas always played the kind of cockfighting during their free time and thy betted on drinking palm wine. By the way, on the Southern face of the Bayon Temple depicted cockfighting in the The Angkor Era.

There is Coclfighting tournament ” The Cambodian Slasher Cup 2006″ broadcasting on (the Cambodian Television Network-CTN). The competition started since January 2006 more than 40 cockfighting teams from across Cambodia. The first-place cockfighting team will receive a new Toyata Camry, the second and third place runners-up will both get motobikes. The team in fourth place wins a $1,000 cash prize.

Audiences’ point of views of cockfighting gambling in a negative way think that it’s bad because it seems like animal torture, but others think it promotes the sport.

According to Mrs. Thida Khus’s comment on The Cambodia Daily on 25 July, she said that ” I fear how this might progress: from cock to dog, from dog to humna? She added that ” To promote it as a national sport, with a law to regular it, it is a national sin and shame for a Buddhist country.”

Deputy Prime Minister and Cabinet Minister Sok An introduced a draft law to regular cockfighting in 2004, but the National Assembly has sent it back to the Council of Ministers. Presently, Sok An provided the space for the arena at his Takeo residence.

Sok Sam Oeun, Exacutive Director of the Cambodian Defenders Project, said cockfighting is synonymous with gambling in the pulic mind and that associating with the sport is not a good image for the government (The Cambodia Daily reported).

At the arena of cockfighting, the well-to-do spectators could be seen lifting their fingers to indicate the amount of their bet. Last year, I went to watch cockfighting tournament at Reesay Keo district that was my first time. I really had a pity on fighting cocks wheny they were fighting with attaching spurs to both legs. One of them or both died instantly during a few minutes because of sharp spur attack.