Social And Economic Defeatism Of Cambodia

More than 30 years after Ð''Year Zero' and more than a decade after the Ð''return to democracy,' Cambodia remains in a league of its own Ð'- corrupt, miserable, and ruthless. There is hardly any social net working in the country, only the toughest and the most dishonest people of the society can succeed and go ahead. The psychosis of the Khmer Rouge was replaced with savage capitalism, but often with the same people in charge which made polite speech fully forgotten; conversations are now brutally direct and open.

Despite the recent economic progress, Cambodian economy suffers from the effects of civil war, internal conflict and widespread corruption. Per capita income is rapidly increasing, but is rather low compared with other countries of the region including its neighbor Vietnam. Most rural households still depend on agriculture and related sub sectors for living; industrialization is moving in a slow pace. Many who work in land and forests do not have a proper title to the land, which, on occasion, is sold by corrupt officials to big investors. The collusion between land grabbers and government officials makes it next to impossible for those affected to seek redress for their grievances. The population at large lacks education and productive skills, particularly in the poverty-ridden countryside, which suffers from a lack of basic infrastructure. This is especially severe in Ratanakiri and Mondolkiri provinces, where communities are forced to clear land further into the forests to compensate for land lost to speculators through illegal channels.

The terrible concentrated area Ð''Kilometer 11' of child prostitution and sex slavery was raided by Cambodian police several years ago largely due to international pressure but under-age girls are popping up all over the capital again, often controlled or at least frequented by officials and police officers who are, at least in theory, supposed to fight the heinous crime of child prostitution. "Abuse a child in this country and face justice in yours" and "Sex with children is a crime" proclaim large posters on strategic intersections of Phnom Penh; as the issue is still a concern for the country. Television stations are owned fully or partly by the government and speak in the official tone. More than two dozen privately owned newspapers