Almost 2000 participants attended the International Children Day event at AFESIP Kompong Cham Center this year. Nearly one thousand secondary school students and 600 primary school students participated in the celebration of the day. The Kompong Cham Center has the privilege to organize such a fabulous meeting ever made before.

Her Excellency San Arun, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Women’s Affairs was invited by Somaly Mam, President of AFESIP Cambodia and Founder to honor as the honorable guest speaker. Participated in the meeting were Her Excellency Ith Yuth, Deputy Governor of Pailin province; Moeurn Pha, Deputy Governor of Kang Meas District; Commune leader, District/Commune police, teachers, AFESIP staff and the residents of the center. The team of Voices for Changes and staffs of SMF-SEA and teachers and students from Hong Kong Li Po Chin Institute also attended this event. The whole event was co-funded by AFESIP-Cambodia, SMF-SEA and Hong Kong Institute.

To welcome the honorable guests and all the participants, a classical Wishing Dance was performed by AFESIP Kompong Cham center’s  girl artistic troop.

Ms Kheng Sochenda, the head of the center delivered a welcome speech and told the participants about the purpose of the organization of this event and the history of the International Children day. She also quoted the purpose of the new 3-storey building as saying that rooms are dedicated for library and English lesson classroom where school girl children from poor family are allowed to take part or access to reading and learning.

Next, Miss Vann Sina, representative of SMF’s Voice for Change team shared her experience while being victim of trafficking since she was so young.

Miss Ny Daly, representative of children expressed her strong hope of a better future being with AFESIP as her own home, especially with Somaly Mam as her own mother.

The principals of both primary and secondary schools invited as speakers expressed their gratitude towards AFESIP Cambodia for its effort in finding donors to support their schools such as furnished with tower, water tank and well and school material and hope to further cooperate with the center and especially in organizing the next year International children day.

The deputy district governor praised AFESIP Cambodia, especially Somaly Mam for her untiring effort to combat human trafficking in collaboration with local authorities and the government and the new building just completed co-funded by SMF-USA, No Child Abuse Foundation and New day Foundation.

Somaly Mam expressed her thanks to all participants in particular the students and teachers from the 2 nearby public schools who have never have the feeling of discrimination toward the children of the center. She said she would try her best to assist the schools which always support the center spiritually and physically.

In the end of her speech, she took the opportunity to declare temporary inauguration of the new 3-storey building co-funded by No Child Abuse, Somaly Mam Foundation and New Day Asia. It will be officially inaugurated and participated by the top government and AFESIP officials and relevant donors in the near future.

In her turn,  Her Excellency San Arun, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Women’s Affairs who presided over the ceremony expressed her joy over the good cooperation between the center and the 2 schools nearby. It is the sign of non-discrimination among people especially the primary and secondary school students and the students from the center.

She motivated all the students to learn harder in order to reach their individual goals, getting good jobs in the society and more importantly to keep in mind the 4 main children’s rights such as the right to life, development, participation and protection.

At the end of the event, the center has organized the gift donation to the 2 schools which were 2 first aid boxes, with some medecine for students’ first aid service. It is another cooperative gesture between the 2 institutions, public school and AFESIP Cambodia. To return this favor, the primary school master expressed his gratitude toward AFESIP Cambodia for its ever assistance, in particular, the Thlok Chreou Primary School has received support from SEN Stop Exploitation Now (SEN) pumping-machine, water-tank, repair toilet and teaching materials for primary schools, sports materials for both schools. More significantly, the 2 neighboring schools can get access to clean drinking water from the center free of charge. AFESIP Cambodia now in the process of finding donation for the installation of clean water system to secondary school with one thousand students in need of clean water.

DONATION TO POOR STUDENTS

In addition to the first aid box donation, there are 59 gift boxes to be distributed to the children of the center and other 325 school material such as books and pen/pencils funded by AFESIP Cambodia, to be donated to the selected 325 poor students among 1,500 students. The distribution were honored by San Arun, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, Somaly Mam, President of AFESIP Cambodia and Founder, Ith Yuk, Pailin Provincial Deputy Governor and Ok Sokun Kanha and Chhan Sovanareach, Hang Meas Pop Singers.

TEMPORAIRY INAUGURATION

The construction of the 3-storey building was completed mid-April 2010. Up to 28 May, the day when the International Children Day was celebrated at Kompong Cham Center, still the  whole building is not furnished yet. The center has moved some old furniture and other necessary items to the new building, following set plan. Taking this special occasion, AFESIP management officials decided to inaugurate the building and put in use from now on.

After everything will be put together and in order, the official inauguration plan will be arranged. Joined the symbolic red-ribbon cut were Moeurn Pha, Kang Meas District deputy governor, Kheng Sochenda, Kompong Cham center director, Ith Yuth, Pailin provincial deputy governor, Somaly Mam, AFESIP Cambodia president and Founder, and San Arun, MoWA’s Secretary of State.

The unfurnished 3-storey building (Oct 2009-April 2010)

Moeurn Pha, Kang Meas deputy governor and Kheng Sochenda,

Kompong Cham Center Director

Somaly Mam, AFESIP Cambodia president and Founder,

and H.E. San Arun, MoWA’s Secretary of State

The visit to each room by top government and

AFESIP officials and students

At the end of the International Children Day celebration, AFESIP Cambodia organized a friendly lunch to staff participants and then diversity of games led by Li Po Chun college students started making everybody fun and dancing session also began until late at night.

It is also to inform that the activities of the International Children Day event was recorded by the Television of Cambodia (TVK), a state channel and broadcast the next day between 7-7:30PM and CTN and Bayon channels on Monday 31 May 2010.