COMMUNITY PEACE BUILDING
Objective # 4: To reduce people’s violence, unemployment and poverty by providing them with the relevant training on family violence awareness and life-skills to make more money. Then to coordinate these efforts to produce measurable improvements in food security and income potential from family business development, employment possibilities and the job placements
4.1. Domestic Violence Reduction & Prevention
After the war, the toll on the people was immense. Most of those remaining had lost members of their families, leaving countless widows and orphans. In addition, many were left disabled from war and its after effects such as land mines. The people faced many obstacles to normal life such as ill health, lack of education, unemployment, and in particular poverty. Moreover, the psychological trauma from years of war, compounded by the enduring suffering of many survivors, 
began to manifest in dangerous behaviours. These included an increase was seen in drug and alcohol addiction, the spread of communicable and venereal diseases, violence within families, sexual abuse of children and smuggling of children for sexual abuse, as well as other criminal activities. To reduce and prevent domestic violence, BFT has provided moral education to school children and people living in crisis. So far, over 3000 children from the five schools of Kravan, Srah Srang, Porlangka, Preah Enkosa and Preah Enksey have been receiving moral education and awareness training in domestic violence.
4.2. Establish Peace Building Network Volunteers:
Worried by this domestic violence crisis, the BFT Centre aims to provide the opportunity for people who have been living through hardships and poverty with effective solutions to improve their lives, with the ultimate aim of successfully establishing wellbeing, prosperity and peace for the people of Cambodia. 
BFT has initiated a peace building network. At the present, 11 monks from three different pagodas have graduated from their courses in “Build Peace for Community” at BFT. Two of them have successfully completed their four month’s training course on “Working for Peace” by Cambodia Development Research Institute (CDRI) in Phnom Penh. Thanks for the kind collaboration from CDRI which has granted sponsorship two of our monks.
4.3. Counseling for People living with Crisis:
The Buddhist monks are very respectful to Cambodian people and BFT has used the monks as key elements in providing moral education and consolation to school children and those living with crisis. All eleven volunteer monks have been actively providing training in moral education in school and the community, counselling to selected people in crisis and helping to avert further violence and conflict.
4.4. Food Security and Income Generation
A. Family Business Development Intervention
As the economic crisis develops around the world it causes lots of problems to people’s living conditions such as lack of food security, shelters, husbandry and poultry. This significantly increases the number of baggers and gangsters, and many people have lost jobs, and many of those with jobs are very poorly paid. Farmers have also lacked capital to start their businesses, and while some have an idea of how to run a business, few have the capacity to do it. This causes delays and from year to year and the loss of opportunity and income. There are 36% of the population living below the poverty line, and 85% of these are farmers, with most of them having problems with very low rice production. Understanding the current situation and problems, BFT has tried to mobilize local resources to help them improve their incomes through craft making, fruit tree plantation, vegetable growing and clothes making. Stable markets will be identified for them to sell their products.
BFT started its income generation activity on 1 June 2009, by providing loans to 75 families as well as other community members including students and individuals. The purpose of this activity is to provide them with working capital for starting businesses that could improve incomes and living standards. Besides this, they can manage time to participate in other development activities. Until now, BFT has had limited capital for investing in working capital loans, and we are now looking for generous people to help us further so that more needy families may start their businesses.
B. Fruit Tree Plantation for Food and Income
BFT has provided over 200 young fruit trees to 85 families in the two schools area. The various fruit trees (mango, jackfruit, coconuts, papaya, banana …etc) were grown in six villages and two schools. The purpose of this activity is to help these families have enough fruit for daily eating and for selling to support their living in future. Another advantage is in having green villages and a good environment.
C. Home Garden Training Course for Villagers
Basic Training on how to make composting fertilizer was conducted for 17 participants from six villages in the school areas. The villagers are also learning how to grow vegetables. For this we thank the volunteer trainer from GLOVESCO – Cambodia. At the present we plan to conduct further training in home gardens for some other groups of community members in the near future.
D. Local Cow’s Milk Production
In Cambodia, there is rarely this kind of project as most are not aware on how to take milk from cows and do not know of its advantages for humans and especially for children’s nutrition. Thus in 2009, a few families at Arak Svay and Kravan villages have received hands-on training in how to produce cow’s milk. An expert from GLOVESCO – Cambodia has worked very closely with the project staff to trial this project. We hope that Cambodian local cows can provide sufficient milk to supply additional nutrition for the children in future. BFT will expand further to other communities if the first trial of project is successful and provides better health and incomes for family living.
E. Job Placements
Job placement is a very important factor for all students, community people and individuals. Thus, BFT has so far provided jobs to 30% of students who have completed their course successfully at the BFT Centre. These have been in hotels, restaurants, companies, and NGOs. BFT has also linked them to friends around the world and we hope that in future some of them will have chance to work abroad or study. Two new “Tuk Tuk” motor bikes with trailers were purchased to make more jobs for unemployed people, providing them with an opportunity to generate their own income. This form of business expansion is useful in that it could provide benefits to the children, students and communities. BFT also hopes to extend this program to the public generally and especially to tourists. When you or your friends visit Siem Reap again, please contact us for Tuk Tuk arrangement and you will receive satisfaction and the best service.
4.5. Poor Family Adoption:
In the last 6 years, BFT has provided support to poor families who are living in crisis and need immediate help and support in terms of food, material supplies, advice and the necessarily skills for the present and future. The life skills we are also providing include handicraft making, vegetable growing, tree planting, poultry raising, pig raising, literacy, and working capital for starting up their business such as grocery stores etc.
A practical example is the case of one of the poorest families with 11 children. They have a very small piece of land for rice cultivation, have always lived in debt from year to year, and have been living constantly with poverty and hopelessness. The BFT project sought ways to help them with needs such as food and education, particularly aiming to help the children.
A. Mr. Chao Chet’s Family Story
This is the first family project that was initiated with BFT full support. They were the poorest family in Banteay Meanchey province. The parents have more than 10 children in the family and most of the children have been scattered seeking for food and possible jobs in different places. One girl called Srei, at 13 years of age went to work illegally in Thailand during the last 10 years. When she heard about BFT, she decided to come back to Siem Reap and stayed with Sedtha’s family as it has been known as the BFT centre for more than six years. Seven years later she got married with Mr. Chao Chet who also used to work with her in Thailand.
BFT has helped arrange their wedding and set up a simple house on a small plot of land at Kravan farm. It supported Mrs. Srei in vocational training for tailoring, vegetable growing, tree planting and poultry growing. As for Mr. Chao Chet, he was supported in training for TV and radio repair. Later he was also been trained as a car driver which helped him to be employed as a driver with an NGO. Now, they have 2 children, a son and a daughter, and have started living on their own since 2006. Adopted for 10 years by BFT, now their daughter has enrolled in school, while the son is still young. Their living conditions are better than the average family.
B. Two Poor Families newly adopted by Friends of BFT in Norway
In 2010, BFT was very lucky to receive a small grant from the Friends of BFT Norway for the purpose of adopting two poor families living in crisis. Through this kind donation BFT is able to improving the family’s economic situation, and help all the children go to school. Furthermore, BFT will continue to provide them with additional needs, advice and working capital for family business development so that in the future they will be able to manage their family in a self-reliant manner.
History of Ms. Din Davich,
Slakram is one village among seven villages of Slor Kram commune, Siem Reap District and Province. This village consists of 306 families with the total of 2089 population including 1050 females. Its location is in the centre of Siem Reap town. Mrs. Din Davich belongs to one of its poorest families. She is a widow whose husband died due to illness.
The family of Mrs. Din Davich has 10 members (7 females). She owns a small piece of land, 5 meters x 10 meters. She has no land for agriculture. Only two of her children are enrolled in school while others are not, because she is not able to afford it. Mrs. Din Davich has been trying very hard to feed her children as their mother. However, the effort to raise so many children is exhausting her, and without appropriate knowledge or resources she was fighting a losing battle.
Through the interview Ms. Din Davichs’s response was that “She was not having any clear occupation”. Sometimes she was employed to wash clothes and clean, but there is not always enough income for her family because of the large number of children. Her family life is miserable and wretched.
History of Ms. Ee Pov,
Srash Srang is one of the six villages in Norkor Thom in Siem Reap District and Province. This village consists of 128 families with a total of 660 including 323 women. It is located to the north of Siem Reap town about 14 km. Ee Pov is one of the poorest families among others. There are 13 people in this family, 8 females and 5 males but the husband and one son have died in the last few years. Now she is a widow with 10 children. She owns a small plot of land with a small house made from bamboo and thatch.
She has no agricultural farm land. None of her children have enrolled in school and one of her older sons went to Thailand for illegal employment. Two other children have been working as servants for other people in town. Ee Pov has been working very hard to feed her children and she has very few life skills. These difficulties constitute a very heavy burden. When the interview was done with Ee Pov her response was that “She has no occupation or money”. She sometimes makes baskets and cuts trees, but her work is not providing sufficient income to support her many children. Her family condition is impoverished, and her house is very old and about to collapse. During the rainy season they do not have a proper space to sleep at night because of the roof leaking.