CNRP Protest March: Day 1

The CNRP began another round of demonstrations today, October 23, promising three days of protests based out of Freedom Park in Phnom Penh. Though there have been marches connected to CNRP demonstrations before, this is the first time that it is integral to the protest. The CNRP has promised to march to the UN office and several embassies (the signatories of the 1991 Paris Peace Accord) in order to deliver a petition demanding an independent investigation into significant irregularities and alleged fraud in the 2013 National Assembly elections. The CNRP notification of their intention to march was initially rejected by city hall, raising concerns that an attempt to march might be met with force from the police. But a deal was struck and city hall agreed to a plan for a peaceful march following a specific route with a limited number of participants.

Today, protestors gathered at Freedom Park throughout the morning. Though I was not at Freedom Park this morning, reliable commentators on the scene put the number of protestors at 10,000-20,000 midday before the march, perhaps more later in the day after the march.

Today's march was to the UN Human Rights office and came off peacefully, both sides - police and protestors - behaving responsibly. It followed the agreed upon route though far exceeded the participation cap requested by city hall. The marchers left Freedom Park early afternoon and proceeded up Street 51, across town to Boueng Keng Kang 1 and the UN office. Street barricades were minimal and police presence along the route was comparatively light, except at Sihanouk/Suramarith Boulevard crossing where, in a show of force, hundreds of geared up riot police, soldiers and water cannons stood blocking the road 50 meters to one side of the protest route, guarding the way to the Prime Minister's house and the Independence Monument. The protestors passed without incident and continued into Boeung Keng Kang 1. After the petition was delivered to the UN office, protestors reversed course, making their way back up Street 51 to Freedom Park.

The only point of tension I noticed was at the crossing of Sihanouk Blvd where riot police and marchers came so close. The police stood at the ready, shields in hand with hundreds more police and soldiers in backup. Passing protestors slowed and gawked and sometimes jeered the police lines but CNRP organizers endeavored to keep people moving and CNRP peacekeepers made another impressive display of peaceful protest technique, linking arms to keep people back away from the barricades and police. As Sam Rainsy passed during the return march, he made an abrupt turn to the barricades and stopped, people cheered, several protestors followed, prompting police to move that way as well, drawing jeers from the crowd. He tarried only briefly before moving on, in a 'made you flinch' moment, defusing tension as quickly as he had raised it.

Sam Rainsy began and ended the day on one of his central political themes - the Vietnamese. When he first spoke at Freedom Park before the march he told the crowd that the Vietnamese must leave Cambodia. After the march, back at Freedom Park he ended the day saying that the only support for the CPP was from "ghost voters and Vietnamese."

The following video is of part of the protest march as it passed on Street 51 at about 4:15PM, a bit past the half-way point on its way to the UN Human Rights office.

More information and photos:
Ruom: CNRP starts first day of protests
John Vink: The Afternoon Of Day One…
Omar Havana: First of Three Days of Mass Demonstrations
The Cambodia Daily: Thousands Join Opposition Rally in Phnom Penh
George Steptoe: Day One of Protest: CNRP Slips into Something Comfortable

The Vietnamese

With the election approaching, many of the ethnic Vietnamese in Phnom Penh are expressing increasing fear – fear of racial/ethnic violence directed against them by the opposition party and/or opposition party supporters.

I first started hearing concerns over this election from the Vietnamese a couple of months ago, just small talk in the cafes. They were saying that they felt this election had more potential for anti-Vietnamese problems than any election since 1998, but the reasoning seemed non-specific at the time. In an effort to get a better handle on these fears, over the last couple of weeks since the beginning of the campaign I’ve made it a point to have my afternoon coffee at cafes in the Phsar Kandal area of Phnom Penh, (where there is a large ethnic Vietnamese population,) hoping to overhear some scuttlebutt, perhaps talk to some local Vietnamese about their fears. I got a bit of both.

It has been said that the ethnic Vietnamese in Cambodia support the CPP (the ruling party of Prime Minister Hun Sen, the Cambodian Peoples Party) because the CPP will not deport the illegal Vietnamese immigrants from the country. But to listen to the Vietnamese talk about it, while this is certainly an element, perhaps a stronger element from their point of view is that the opposition parties have always represented potential discrimination and even ethnic violence against them.

In my couple of weeks listening to the Vietnamese talk about the election, rumors have swirled and grown and are getting thicker. Though not verified, there is tell of groups of intimidating young men stopping Vietnamese appearing people in the evenings, demanding to know “what number” (which party) they support. “Number 7” is said to be the safest answer. They tell of racial epithets yelled by passing CNRP supporters, of Vietnamese caught alone after dark receiving a beat down, of women soup and egg sellers having their wares overturned and smashed by groups of young men. In light of these rumors the Vietnamese offer safety and security advice to each other: Vietnamese should not go out after dark, be careful not to get caught alone even during the day, don’t challenge them, just say “7” and keep your head down. They are also making contingency plans of where to go should widespread violence erupt, exchanging phone numbers, determining whose house is most secure, where they should gather, how they can get there, etc.

None of this should come as a surprise to Cambodia watchers. This sort of anti-Vietnamese intimidation and violence is far from unprecedented. The Vietnamese are the Khmer’s ethnic Other, the first minority group onto which blame falls during times of political and social tension.

The relationship between Vietnam and Cambodia is complicated, and traditional ethnic antagonism is deeply intertwined with historical and political animosities which are not completely unjustified, but when things turn bad in Cambodia, it is often if not always the poor, powerless ethic Vietnamese that take the violent brunt of it. They were massacred in a nationalist fury under Lon Nol in the early 70s, and again by the Khmer Rouge, not only in the late 70s when the KR were in power, but through the 80s and right up into the mid 1990s. Racially provocative rhetoric has been part-and-parcel of every Cambodian election since 1993, with the Royalist and the Sam Rainsy party leading the way in this regard. In the pre-election period of 1998, ethnic Vietnamese were assaulted and murdered in the provinces. During the post-election opposition protests of 1998, when the anti-Vietnamese rhetoric became particularly heated, there was significant anti-Vietnamese violence in Phnom Penh, including the murders of a couple of Vietnamese women, innocent street sellers, by an angry mob right in front of the French Embassy.

The Royalists (FUNCINPEC), and now the opposition party, (formerly the Sam Rainsy Party [SRP,] now the Cambodian National Rescue Party [CNRP]), have always played to the anti-Vietnamese sentiments in their election rhetoric, employing a convoluted mix of anti-government (the current government is seen to be aligned with Vietnam,) anti-immigration, nationalistic, historical and racial rhetoric. In this election (2013) the opposition has altered the rhetoric slightly, reframing much of it in terms of land issues and jobs in a seeming attempt to make it more palatable to the western press, but the underlying racial appeal remains the same, just in slightly new garb. (And, unbelievably, the international press and English press in Cambodia was apparently fooled, or perhaps indifferent, even sometimes playing into it in their reporting.)

Now, with the election nigh, even those new clothes are beginning to fall away. There are increasing reports of anti-Vietnamese sentiments being yelled from opposition party parades. And the reports are coming not just from Vietnamese but Cambodian and western observers. At Sam Rainsy’s return to the country on July 19, I heard several anti-Vietnamese chants (though interestingly it went unreported in the local English language press.) And apparently Sam Rainsy, as he stumps through the country in this final week of the campaign, has ratcheted up the anti-Vietnamese rhetoric, helping to fuel some of his supporters’ anti-Vietnamese resolve.

Many ethnic Vietnamese in Phnom Penh are scared, and justifiably so – of the increasing anti-Vietnamese fervor of this last week, and even more of what may follow the election.

Also see:
Cambodia Daily: 'In CNRP Campaign, a Subtler approach to 'Vietnamese Issue'
Cambodia Daily: 'CPP the Clear Choice for Ethnic Vietnamese Voters'

Cambodia's other New Year

Chinese New Year (Tet) at Wat Phnom is always an amazing experience. I continue to be surprised that so few (if any) foreigners/tourists come to see the scene at midnight. This year I saw 3 besides myself. I've done photo essays of Chinese New Year at Wat Phnom the past couple of years and so won't burden the reader with yet more photos of the coming of the year.  (See Greeting the Dragon at Wat Phnom - 2012 and It's New Year again - 2011.) But I couldn't resist taking a couple of short shaky videos with my iPad, and managed to capture the clamorous scene at midnight.

A few points of note: This was the end of the year of the Dragon (Naga on the Khmer calendar) and the beginning of the year of the Snake, the Water Snake to be specific... The crowd at Wat Phnom was about the same size as last year - a good crowd but still a bit smaller than the crowds of 5-10 years ago... Unlike last year, there were more beggars lining the steps up the hill this year, including a couple of dozen young children. Many people brought stacks of small bills especially for the beggars... Midnight seemed to arrive a little late this year. As I was filming I could hear people in the crowd muttering "midnight already." The clock on my iPad concurred. Yet the gong was not sounding. About a minute later the bell clanged, people cheered and the New Year was officially in... Lastly, in the videos notice the motorcycle helmets and aluminum foil gloves that people were wearing to try to protect against incense burns. People have been wearing helmets for the last year or two, but the foil gloves are, to my memory, a new innovation this year. Check out 1:00 in the second video - midnight, the moment New Year arrives - to see why such protective gear is necessary.

The first video is about 15 minutes before midnight. The second video from 11:59PM to 12:03AM and captures the moment New Year enters. 

Chinese New Year, 2013. About 15-20 minutes before midnight at Wat Phnom, Phnom Penh. Note people wearing motorcycle helmets and foil gloves to protect against incense burns.

Chinese New Year, 2013. Midnight at Wat Phnom, Phnom Penh. 

See 1:00 for the moment the New Year gong sounded.

Greeting the Dragon at Wat Phnom

Ushered in the new Year of the Dragon at Wat Phnom in Phnom Penh a couple of hours ago. The crowd seemed a bit bigger than last year. I didn't see any foreigners there besides myself. Like last year, the beggars were conspicuously absent and there seemed to be fewer incense vendors. Like every year the smoke from burning incense was overwhelming and the threat of being burned or set alight by an errant joss stick was constant. Note that many people in the crowds are wearing helmets. It's not because they're all responsible motorcycle riders. It's to protect against burns. The following are a few photos from earlier this evening at Wat Phnom around midnight.

A gong rang. People looked. It was midnight (or about 12:04 by my watch.) The Year of the Dragon Enters. The gong stopped. People cheered, then the crowd made a mad rush to escape the smoke filled pavilion. Not sure if it was part of the tradition or just a desperate dash for oxygen.

 

Arriving at Wat Phnom. Incense smoke rises.

Incense vendor.

Overlooking the pavilion madness, a churning mass of people packed sardine tight, covered in a thick cloud of incense smoke. 

At midnight people jostle aggressively to get their personal joss stick in the pagoda incense pot at the most auspicious moment. Afterward they take the joss stick and burn it at home.

 

Pavilion crowd.

Offerings

The crowd on the pavilion.

Lady Penh Shrine. (Legendary 14th century founder of Wat Phnom. Name sake for the city.)

Smoke

21st century ghosts

         

Last Monday (August 14th) was the 'Hungry Ghost Festival' (中元節 / 中元节 / Tết Trung Nguyên), a Chinese holiday not officially observed here in Cambodia but still kept amongst the country's Chinese, Chinese-Khmer and Vietnamese communities. My neighbors here in Phnom Penh were burning joss paper on the sidewalk several times that day and had me over to take a few photos for them.

Celebrated on the 15th day (half-moon) of the seventh month of the Chinese lunar calendar, the Hungry Ghost Festival is the Chinese version of the Khmer P'chum Benh, that time of year the gates of the underworld are opened and the spirits released to roam the Earth, if only briefly. During this period the living (at least the Chinese and Vietnamese ones) make offerings to these souls at the pagoda and at home, both to aid and appease their ancestors, as well as other loosened spirits.

In one of the most apparent manifestations of the festival, believers burn joss paper and place offerings to the spirits on tables and blankets in front of their homes - on the sidewalk, the balcony, porch or just inside the open gates.

The spread of offerings is often centered on a roasted red pig, candles and burning incense, and may include things such as rice, sugar, fruit, drinks, candy, cigarettes, snacks, etc. Apparently the afterworld is similar to this one and the idea is to provide for the welfare of the deceased to help ensure a comfortable afterlife. Providing for their financial needs, joss paper, including 'ghost money' is burned, the process sending it to the dead for use as ghostly tender.

Traditionally, joss paper offerings were gold and silver colored paper and later stylized Chinese currency ('ghost money.') It could also include paper representations of clothing, fabric, houses and other practicalities. But times change. As the neighbor showed me the various joss offerings he was preparing for the fire I discovered that 21st century ghosts get to enjoy the niceties of modern consumerism and even the trappings of conspicuous consumption, not unlike Phnom Penh's upper crust of 2011.

Most of the following are examples the various joss items my neighbor had on hand. Most of the interpretations of what they represent come from my Chinese-Khmer neighbors, who were not in complete agreement with one another about what it all meant. I am sure it would be easy to get the answers at the market or the pagoda but I haven't followed up.

Gold and Silver

Gold and silver paper, representing the metals, are the most traditional of the joss paper offerings. The gold paper is intended for ancestors and the gods. The silver is meant for ancestors exclusively.

Traditional gold and silver joss paper. Smooth gold and silver leaf or paint on coarse bamboo paper. 9cm x 14cm. 

Gold joss paper at the market. Phsar Oreussey, Phnom Penh

Gold ingots and coins. Printed on light newsprint paper.
 

Left and center: Modern gold bullion bars, .9999 pure. Made of light cardboard, embossed. No printing. 
Right: Silver and gold on bamboo paper. 

Gold bullion bars, .9999 pure. Made of light cardboard, embossed. Left in Vietnamese. Right in Chinese..

There was some debate about this one - coins or a fabric with pattern. Most felt it was coins. Printed on reclaimed paper or scrap paper from print houses, often old newspapers and office materials. Many of these had the old Cambodia Dailys on the reverse. 

Currency (copper)

Classic 'ghost money,' i.e. ghost currency/bank notes,  has been used since at least the 19th century AD. It is usually denominated in Chinese Yuan, often in absurdly large denominations, and sold in bundled stacks. The face of the note very often sports a portrait of the Jade Emperor, and the reverse an image of the 'Bank of Hell.' The note is often signed by the Jade Emperor and the King of Hell (Yan Wang/Yanluo.) Ghost money is said to be 'copper' as differentiate from gold and silver that is sent to ancestors. It is meant for use by the more recently dead (as opposed to distant ancestors) and other relatives and as an offering (if not better termed a bribe) to the Judge of the Dead (also Yan Wang.)

The use of the English word 'Hell' in e.g. the 'Bank of Hell' and 'Hell Money' is probably an imperfect reference to the underworld and the court of the dead. Upon death, all souls, regardless of their merit or lack thereof, are first sent to the underworld where their eternal fate is determined by the judge Yan Wang. The ghost money is intended, in part, as a gratuity of sorts to the judge in the hope that he will adjudicate their ancestors case favorably and/or lighten the length of their stay in the underworld. My neighbor, in trying to explain it to me, smiled wryly and called it "corruption money for God."   

These are a few examples the neighbor happened to have on hand.  

   

100 yuan note. Jade Emperor on front. The Bank of Hell on the reverse.

Joss money with dragon on the front and Bank of Hell on the reverse.

10,000,000 yuan note. Hell Bank note. Jade Emperor on front with signatures of Jade Emperor and the King of Hell. The Bank of Hell on the reverse.

1,000,000,000,000 yuan note. Jade Emperor on front. The Bank of Hell on the reverse. 

100,000,000,000 yuan note. Jade Emperor on front with signatures of Jade Emperor and the King of Hell. The Bank of Hell on the reverse.19cm x 43 cm. 

20 baht note for those traveling in the Thai quarter of the Hereafter. The design on the front is loosely based on a new style Thai 20 baht note, with '20' in Thai script.

50,000 dong for those in the Vietnamese section of the afterworld. Jade Emperor on front and the Bank of Hell on the reverse. The design of the bill seems loosely based on US currency. 

Perhaps the most common non-Chinese ghost money, the US$100 is still the universal currency even in the Hereafter. A pretty good replica of a US$100, though the paper and the print quality is far inferior to even the crudest counterfeit bills. The only design difference from a real US$100 is on the reverse where 'United States of America' has been replaced by 'Abode of the Dead Bank,' which is presumably a reference to the underworld as the word 'Hell' on other notes.

50 Euro note. Jade Emperor on face. 

Ghost money at the market. Phsar Oreussey, Phnom Penh

Clothes and fabric

Joss paper clothing and fabric seems to be the next most common paper offering. Some of the clothing paper contained other symbols (cups, hat?, boat? cups, ect.) about which my neighbors could not agree on the meaning.
 

Clothing. A set of traditional clothes and a set of modern clothes. Also what appears to be a bell, a vase, drinking cups scissors, a leaf or feather, a hat(?) and a boat (?.) Nobody knew the story behind the cups, scissors, feather, etc. Printed on light newsprint. 16cm x 21cm. 

Clothing. A set of traditional clothes and a set of modern clothes. Also what appears to be a bell, a vase, drinking cups scissors, a leaf or feather, a hat(?) and a boat (?.) Nobody knew the story behind the cups, scissors, feather, etc. Printed on light newsprint. 16cm x 21cm.

Clothing. Two sets of traditional clothes. Also what appears to be a bell, a vase, drinking cups scissors, a leaf or feather, a hat(?) and a boat (?.) Nobody knew the story behind the cups, scissors, feather, etc. Printed on light newsprint.16cm x 21cm.

Large pieces of paper fabric. In folded bundles of five different colors. Made of very light crepe paper.

There was some diagreement but most thought this was fabric for making clothes. Made of light crepe paper.

Travel and Banking in the Hereafter

Fold over passport made of Cardboard. Form on the inside with space for name and personal details. Accompanying visa paper in passport. Visa for 'Hell & Paradise.' 

Air ticket on the 'Hell & Paradise Airline,' first class of course. 2 parts. Cover and separate passenger detail form.

Bank account book for the 'Bank of Hades and Heaven.' Insert left and cover right, both fold over. The insert is made of light paper. The cover is made of cardboard.

Ghost Vesa Card. Portrait of the Jade Emperor.

Cheque book including blank checks for a ghost account at the 'Bank of Hades - Heaven Main Branch.' 

Toiletries, personal items and travel kit for the well-prepared ghost. All made of paper and light cardboard. Slippers, wallet (Adidas) with US$200, iPhone and one million dong cell card, glasses, watch, comb, razor, pen, Zippo lighter and a pack of cigarettes (555 Gold.) The cigarette pack bears no health warnings. Personally, I think this would be one of the greatest benefits of being dead - smoking without fear of health consequences. Unfortunately, next to the mountains of precious metals and stacks of cash being sent to the afterworld , it appears that there are comparatively few cigarettes being forwarded to the dead. If the law of supply and demand holds in the afterworld, gold silver and currency would be in great oversupply, common as paper and probably very cheap, whereas cigarettes would be rare and, if smokers are the same there as here, worth their weight in... well, their weight in gold, so to speak. Wouldn't that be the ultimate rub for the smoker - cigarettes could be enjoyed without adverse health effects, but cost a mountain of gold per pack.  

 

Ghost Bling, Luxury Vehicles and Phones

And for the 21st century ghost, the trappings of a nouveau riche Phnom Penh lifestyle - black Lexus, iPhone, bling and more.

Ghost car. Black Lexus LX 330 with a Phnom Penh number plate and chauffeur.  

Ghost phones and cell card. Nokia and iPhone. Cell card in Vietnamese, 1,000,000 dong. Made of folded cardboard.

Ghost bling. Gold watch (Omega.) Gold bangle. Gold ring. Gold money clip. Gold coins (?.) Gaudy gold necklace. Phone (Nokia). Made of folded and embossed cardboard.