Sok Kong is another close friend to prime minister Hun Sen, his company, Sokimex, obtained the exclusive concession for the sale of tickets to foreign tourists visiting Angkor Wat. (Photo: RFA)Monday, September 18, 2006
Dogs Banned From Angkor Park Temples
By Saing Soenthrith
THE CAMBODIA DAILY
Dogs will no longer be allowed inside temples in Angkor Park, and pet owners bringing in their animals will be fined and have their pet confiscated, Siem Reap provincial Govemor Sou Phirin said Sunday.
The decision was made Thursday during his meeting with the government agency Apsara Authority, which managers Angkor, and the Interior Ministry's heritage police, Sou Phirin said.
"I have notified all hotels and guesthouses last week that we don't permit any kind of dogs to tour the temples," he said. When dogs leave excrement inside a Buddhist temple, he said, "This is not good for our culture."
Police stations throughout the park have been enforcing the ban since Saturday, said Tan Chay of the heritage police.
The rule applies to all dogs, whether they belong to tourists or villagers living in the park.
Even police patroling at night are not allowed to bring their dogs inside the temples anymore, he said.
Up to now, visitors traveling with their dogs would sometimes take them along to tour the temples, said Seung Kong, deputy director of Apsara Authority. "Some foreigners regard their dogs as family," he said.
The pets of the 27,000 villagers living in Angkor Park never climb the temples, said Tek Sakana Savuth of the NGO Angkor Participatory Development Organization, which works with the 20 villages in the park. He added that he agreed with the ban.
In the past, villagers who brought their cows to graze near the temples would bring their dogs along, he said. But since Apsara Authority prohibited them from bringing cattle to the temples in 2000, villagers' dogs don’t come near the temples, he said.
This ban is the latest in a series of park regulation developments in recent weeks. In August, a tuk-tuk protest over an Apsara Authority decision to ban tuk-tuks, taxis and mini-buses from taking visitors directly to the temples ended with Prime Minister Hun Sen reversing the decision.
The decision was made Thursday during his meeting with the government agency Apsara Authority, which managers Angkor, and the Interior Ministry's heritage police, Sou Phirin said.
"I have notified all hotels and guesthouses last week that we don't permit any kind of dogs to tour the temples," he said. When dogs leave excrement inside a Buddhist temple, he said, "This is not good for our culture."
Police stations throughout the park have been enforcing the ban since Saturday, said Tan Chay of the heritage police.
The rule applies to all dogs, whether they belong to tourists or villagers living in the park.
Even police patroling at night are not allowed to bring their dogs inside the temples anymore, he said.
Up to now, visitors traveling with their dogs would sometimes take them along to tour the temples, said Seung Kong, deputy director of Apsara Authority. "Some foreigners regard their dogs as family," he said.
The pets of the 27,000 villagers living in Angkor Park never climb the temples, said Tek Sakana Savuth of the NGO Angkor Participatory Development Organization, which works with the 20 villages in the park. He added that he agreed with the ban.
In the past, villagers who brought their cows to graze near the temples would bring their dogs along, he said. But since Apsara Authority prohibited them from bringing cattle to the temples in 2000, villagers' dogs don’t come near the temples, he said.
This ban is the latest in a series of park regulation developments in recent weeks. In August, a tuk-tuk protest over an Apsara Authority decision to ban tuk-tuks, taxis and mini-buses from taking visitors directly to the temples ended with Prime Minister Hun Sen reversing the decision.
5 comments:
Mafia Sok Kong feels that dog excrements will be bad for his business, so he orders the local authority to deal with it. This way he will not have to spend a penny of his fees collection on cleaning up the temples ground. Soon, any wild animals and birds found guilty of dropping unkind deposits on the temples ground will be shot on sight.
Uh? This make alot of sense to ban dogs from entering Angkor Wat. Most people tend to forget that Angkor Wat is a religious monument which dedicated to God just like Chuch, Synagogue, temple, and wat...
Do people of God allow animal such dog to enter so called the place of worship? Such as Church, Synagogue, temple, and wat?
The answer is no! no! and no!
Dogs are always a common sight in the compound of pagodas (wats) all over Cambodia. They eat left over, guard the temples, and are generally well-behaved. It was human who cut the heads of ancient statues and sold them to antique dealers, not the dogs. Of course, dogs should not be allowed inside the religious buildings, and they don't usually go inside anyway. Tourists don't usually bring their dogs aboard the aircraft with them when they are on holiday abroad. Wild animals (such as deer and wild cats) and birds (such as bats) also do cross the ancient temples at night, and their excrements smell no better than dogs.
If this new policy is a sincere measure to respect the ancient temples, that will be fine. If God creates life on earth then He will not mind the presence of His creation in the place of worship. Knowing how Cambodian officials operate, these are the usual rules:
Rule 1: the Boss is always right.
Rule 2: if the Boss is wrong Rule 1 will apply.
Their decisions are sometimes taken without proper exchange of ideas, research and analysis. Whatever the Boss says (just listen to the kind of language Hun Sen uses on national TVs and radios), the rest will just follow with their tails between their legs.
During the dark days of communism in Cambodia (late 1970s and 1980s), many dogs were either killed or confined. That way, their agents could spy on people in their houses at night. Once again, if this specific discrimination has the interests of the temples at heart then it will be fine. If not, let's ask some more questions.
Do you know that dog spelled backward is God?;-)
To brother 5:23PM
Are you crazy or what? What is so special about spelling the Dog backward and get God? I see nothing special in it! How about spell the same word backward and still get the same word! Now that is interesting!
The following words can spell forward and backward! ahahahah!
MADAM, NUN,EYE,POP...ahahahah!
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