As I remembered, the celebration of Valentine’s Day has been made since 2000 after the first national election. Young youths always keep this event in their mind and regard it as the special day for their true love. In reality, this event is not Khmer culture. When I was at high school, I never heard and saw it at all but I used to celebrate Women’s Day.
Nearly a decade, Cambodian people are pleased with this event. Valentine’s Day is the Western event but it is because of the globalization, it was brought into Cambodia. And it is plaguing into the youth’s mind.
On Saturday, I drove pass the Samaki high school, I spotted the concert played in the school and there were two long banners hanging on the fence in front of the school building, bearing the Khmer Name Celebrate Valentine’ Day I felt ashamed when school master and teachers celebrated this event. I did not know what are they thinking this day? Is it Khmer Culture?
There were a lot of rose booths placed near schools and along main streets in Phnom Penh. Driving along river side, we saw young Cambodian girls holding a rose, flowers or gift box offered from their friends or special lovers.
Oopss… I had a rose for my girlfriend, too. But too ashamed that she dare not to hold it while sitting behind me
Cambodia is moving forward, such Western celebrities is unavoidable. However, we should make it Cambodianized.
We cannot ban people’s rights to offer and receive gifts or something from someone but what made me ashamed was that Why there was celebration of Valentine’s Day in School. Teachers and principles should reconsider this again and again. Normally, the weak culture always is affected by strong culture. That is the inflow of globalization.
It is just trying to find occasion to celebrate. It’s fun, It’s enjoyable, and nothing is wrong!
Culture is not static, it keeps evolving. But to me, celebrating such kind of event at school is far from acceptable. Everybody has right, but it is not boundless.
All young people have rights to celebrate the event, but it should not be done in the school. it is not khmer culture. and it affects the other students’ study and morality. Not all students are happy with this event.
To celebrate Velentine’s Day or not is up to individual as people have rights and shall be allow to freely act so. However, to safeguard our culture, again by respecting people rights, people shall also think of the unintentional consequences which might be arose because one decided to overact
Send out an alert! Phnom Penh with it’s hundreds of brothels and thousands of prostitutes is going to lose all it’s good morals and values………..the perpetrator of the crime…….VALENTINES DAY.
Forget for a moment about the Vietnamese girls in $5 knocking shops, and the Bong Thoms with their dozens of mistresses and government afficiols with second wives and consider that just around the corner there are youths that are giving flowers to girls they like. The ancient civilization of Cambodia is once again under threat from the west. Never mind that every other month some jealous lover is throwing acid on the face of a mistress. The really scary thing is that the dominant culture is now forcing Cambodian men to send a small note of love and thanks to their special person. And the dangerous part is that every woman now expects flowers!! And the schools sit back and support this disgusting foreign influence.
Think about how the country will be harmed!! Good citizens of Cambodia please uprise against this attack on the morals of Cambodians. Do not stand for it!!