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It’s been many people’s observations that, for some reason or another, the vast majority of marriages between Khmer-American guys and girls from Cambodia don’t work out. One reason that people often cite for these failed relationships is the involvement of black magic.

Here’s a scenario that may or may not have actually happened to cause some of these marriages to fail.

One day the happy newlywed couple in America receive a package from the girl’s parents in srok Khmer. The package contains the usual items: photos, dried fish, and Khmer condiments not easily found in the U.S.

But those are not all it contains. Found in the package is an envelope with a letter and thin sheets of paper coated with a thin film of golden powdery substance. The golden sheets called yon. A letter written in Khmer instructs the daughter to have her Khmer-American husband rub the yon regularly on his forehead.

“Tell him it’s for good fortunes and prosperity,” instructs the letter, with or without the daughter’s knowledge and complicity.

The Khmer-American husband doesn’t believe any of that magic stuff but finds the idea amusing. So he plays along and rub the yon on his forehead, thinking it’s harmless fun– just like rubbing the fat Buddha’s belly for good luck at a Chinese restaurant.

Little does he realize that the yon had been charmed through an elaborate and solemn ritual by a voodoo master back in srok Khmer. The girl’s parents might have asked the famed Cham voodoo practitioner to charm the yon with a love spell to cause the Khmer-American guy to become blindly infatuated with their daughter. They might ask him to help them gain control over their son-in-law’s volitional capacity, negating any objections he might have for their daughter’s monthly trip to Western Union.

At any rate, the intentions behind this kind of practice are invariably impure and morally suspect. It goes without saying that people who use black magic generally have poorly developed concepts of justice and morality. They want things, but they don’t want to work for them. Instead, they resort to unfair and unnatural methods to achieve their desires.

Of course, the yon does not work. It doesn’t work for the very simple reason that it can’t. It doesn’t matter how famous the Cham voodoo master is or how elaborate the ritual he used to cast a spell on it. There is nothing in the cosmos that suggests that magic practices, black or white, would work. They’re based purely on human fantasy, superstition and ignorance.

Nevertheless, if the Khmer-American guy rubs the yon on his forehead often enough, some of the golden powdery substance may be absorbed through the pores of his skin, entering his bloodstream and causing neurological disorders. So he may end up doing crazy things anyway because of the yon, even though the supernatural basis behind it is totally bogus.

The yon by itself won’t cause the marriage to fall apart. It’s the unjust, impure, secretive, malevolent, ignorant, dishonest, unethical, underhanded, (should I go on?) intentions behind it that create a climate of distrust and suspicion that leads the marriage to fail.

And I’m not going to gross people out by even mentioning some of the other vile and disgusting black magic rituals that people practice.

Discuss this article at Khmercity.net

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I finally settled in an apartment here in Phnom Penh. A furnished one-bedroom apartment can rent for as much as $1,700 a month here. While that’s a lot by any standard, it’s an astronomical figure for a country where the average worker makes less than $70 a month.

You can get a decent, fully furnished one-bedroom condo apartment (600-800 sq. ft) for around $700 to $900 a month in Phnom Penh (mostly in Boeung Keng Kang and Toul Kouk districts). The rent usually includes 24-hour security and daily cleaning and laundry services. Utilities and internet access are extra. Although you can get a much more spacious three-story flat (ptheas laveng) for less– around $400 to $500 in residential areas– you may need to hire a couple of maids to help keep the place clean because of the prevalence of dust from the outside. Plus, you can’t really leave your flat vacant for even one day with any peace of mind. I don’t like the idea of locking up two to three layers of steel doors and burglar bars every time I leave the house and to keep oneself safe at night. With a secured serviced apartment, you can just lock your door normally without fear of thieves breaking to slit your throat or steal your belongings.

Despite their high prices, serviced apartments are not easy to find here. The nice ones do not stay vacant for very long. These units are occupied mostly by foreigners. Very few local Khmers favor them. Not only are they perceived as over-priced, but they also don’t fit the lifestyles of most local Khmer people. They fit mine perfectly because I value privacy, security, and quietness.

When I show up at these places, the guards and landlords just assume that I’m not Khmer and begin to speak to me in English. When the landlords, usually Khmer, find out that I’m a Khmer from abroad, they’re generally receptive and courteous. If they had a vacant unit to lease to me, they’d often tell me, “We usually only rent to foreigners here”– but not to drive me away, just to let me know that they’d make an exception just for me since I’m not a typical Khmer.

Let’s see….I’m supposed to feel flattered when a Khmer landlord puts down her own people? What they’re implying, of course, is that Khmer people lack the class and civility to share the same premises with foreigners and that I’m supposedly special because I’m from abroad.

Of course, that’s not true at all. First, it’s highly unlikely that any Khmer, local or from abroad, who could afford a $800-a-month rent in a country where most people make less than $100 a month, would be a troublemaker. In fact, foreign troublemakers are much more likely to afford the rent than their Khmer counterparts. Through the years, there have been many Western scumbags who have rented these high-priced apartments to molest young Khmer children. Yet, you’d NEVER hear the landlords say, “We usually rent to only Khmers.”

The truth is, these serviced apartments are out of reach for most Khmer people, and they do not appeal to the rich ones. “We only rent to foreigners” is just a sales pitch the landlords use to tell you how classy and exclusive his or her property is and how special you should feel to be allowed into the company of foreigners. This is akin to all the Khmer billboards and magazine ads that use Western models to advertise products to an exclusively Khmer customer base. It reflects a deep inferiority complex and our false perception of outsiders’ superiority.

Discuss this article at Khmercity.net

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Hi Everyone,

I am launching a new site called Khmerflix.com, a video sharing site for the Khmer community. It is similar to YouTube but is dedicated to Khmer content and designed for better viewing experience by the Khmer audience.

For instance, contents are categorized into “channels”. Click on the “Channels” tab to view different various Khmer singers. Click on the picture of an artist and you’ll be taken to a page listing all the videos performed by that artist.

As the site is still very new, there are still a few issues to be resolved. But it is fully functional and I invite everyone to register (for FREE) and start viewing and adding content to it. There are currently around 600 videos on the site, and I will be adding more in the near future. I will try to integrate Khmerflix.com with Oudam.com and Khmercity.net.

As with Oudam.com and Khmercity.net, I am committed to providing the highest level of excellence in content and user experience on Khmerflix.com.

Click here to visit Khmerflix.com now!

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Hi Everyone,

We’re launching a campaign to raise public awareness about the current standoff between Cambodia and Thailand involving Preah Vihear and to protest Thailand’s aggression on Khmer sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Please visit the following URL to join the group if you have not already.

http://www.khmercity.net/group/khmer

I invite everyone to join the group and participate in the group discussions.

Since this is a group effort, my role in this campaign is simply to gauge public opinion, moderate group discussions, and provide technical and marketing expertise to build public support for the initiative.

Thanks for your kind consideration!

Oudam

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