Cambodia 2011 Peace Project Event (Part1 The Story)

PREVI HEAR JOURNAL 2011 ! The Peace Project
PREVI HEAR JOURNAL 2011 ! The Peace Project
part of the temple until they
pass through the gateway,
making it impossible to
see the complex as a whole
from any one point. The
fifth gopura, in the Koh
Ker style, retains traces of
the red paint with which
it was once decorated,
although the tiled roof
has now disappeared. The
fourth gopura is later, from
the Khleang-Baphuon
periods, and has on its
southern outer pediment, a
depiction of the Churning
of the Sea of Milk. The third
is the largest, and is also
flanked by two halls. The
sanctuary is reached via
two successive courtyards,
in the outer of which are
two libraries.
I think to myself,
“But now they just look
like old ruins. The books
have long gone. The monks
have gone and so have
the roofs. Just as soon
this picture will no longer
be here. Only the grass,
the wind and the porous
dry stone with the moss
covering it will remain.
Oh and the insects and
soldiers....”
Once we have arrived on
the summit we roll out the
picture and apply the newly
repaired picture to the
stretcher. The sun is high
in the sky by now and there
are, as usual, a few if not
one or two tourists. I can’t
see Mr Vanna. So lets make
that one less tourist!
We begin painting. Sre
Pich II is holding umbrella
and in the afternoon the
paint tins. Mr Bora soon
starts holding another
umbrella and begins
whistling a Cambodian
song about Battambong. Su-
Pert follows my actions and
when we do the painting
together he follows my
every command. He’s slow
but he’s enthused by the
project at least. Dib dab...
We had sought out another
artist in Siem Reap who at
first I believed was more
mature and a master in his
own right. But I decided he
was going to be difficult. I
thought to myself,
“I need someone flexible,
open and energetic.
Younger! The old man
was going to be too selfimportant,
and too much
a problem. Su- Pert on the
other hand is keen to learn
and enthusiastic.”
As he begins work I look
across at him and think,
“So-Pert is so easy
going and laid back.
Today he has asked t for
his wife to visit. He’s cool
and not so interested in
other women. So its nice
to see a married man
keep to himself.”
We take the wood out
we have brought for the
easel to create a stronger
painting. At lunch Sre
Pich drops the camera on
a rock by accident and I
think we have a problem
now. But it maybe minor.
After lunch filming at
the historical site, Mr
Vuthy explains about
the site. Apparently he
has to ring his superior
to find out if he can do
the interview. He has
received permission from
his Captain to speak on
camera. He’s one of the
tourist police here and
lives on the top of the
mountain. He’s another
one on our payroll.
He coughs and looks
embarrassed. Maybe
he has never been on
camera. Then he pauses
and walks away.
Standing with me in the
ruins he explains,
“Preah Vihear Temple
is an ancient temple
built during the reign of
Khmer Empire, that is
situated atop a 525-metre
(1,722 ft) cliff in the
Dângrêk Mountains, in
the Preah Vihear province,
Cambodia.”
I look around. and think,
“It only looks like
crumbling stones. Broken
and jagged.”
But if I squint I can
imagine it as if it was
yesterday and my mind
wonders again,
”How the fuck did they
build this massive temple
in the middle of nowhere
on the top of nowhere?
With what and by whom?
Monks? Soldiers could not
do this. And Cambodians
now definitely can’t.”
We walk past the to ruin
passing some Japanese
tourists with orange
back packs. The sun is
descending and it will be
night soon.
I stare into the distance
across from a granite table
rock balancing on a rocky
crevice. Here there is a
view for many kilometers
across a plain, Prasat
Preah Vihear has the most
spectacular setting of all
the temples. But from
where we are we can only
see the plain. The blue
mountains punctuating
the horizon and the sun
setting.
Mr Vunty is halfway
through the talk when
Sambo stops and explains
that sound recorder
memory card is full.
So we must write down
the rest of what he has
to say. So this is what we
wrote:
“In 1962, following a
lengthy dispute between
Thailand and Cambodia
over ownership, the
International Court of
Justice (ICJ) in The Hague
awarded the temple to
Cambodia. As a key edifice
of the empire’s spiritual
life, it was supported and
modified by successive
kings and so bears
elements of several
architectural styles.
Preah Vihear is unusual
among Khmer temples in
being constructed along
a long north-south axis,
rather than having the
conventional rectangular
plan with orientation