Sunnix Touch, left, helps her father, Touch Sieng, study English in their Elk Grove home. Sunnix Touch was a popular singer in Cambodia when assassins shot her in Phnom Penh, leaving her paralyzed. (Photo: Autumn Cruz / acruz@sacbee.com, Sacramento Bee)Wednesday, November 28, 2007
By Hudson Sangree - hsangree@sacbee.com
Sacramento Bee (Sacramento, Calif., USA)
Sunnix Touch was one of Cambodia's most popular singers when assassins on motorcycles shot her outside a Phnom Penh flower shop four years ago.
Her mother died trying to shield her from the assassins' bullets.
Now 27, Touch lives with her father and siblings in a modest duplex in south Sacramento.
She is paralyzed from the neck down and gets around in a high-tech wheelchair.
Touch is able to speak with effort, but no longer has the breath to sing.
She cannot scratch her nose or read a book without help.
And she cannot pet her small brown dog, Pily, who has stayed by her side through her long ordeal.
"For now I dream that someday I will walk again and start to sing again," Touch said.
Who ordered the young singer killed remains something of a mystery, though Touch believes it was powerful people who objected to her songs promoting democracy and urging Cambodians to take back their traditional lands from neighboring Vietnam.
Touch and her family came to the United States as political refugees in 2005.
Though she recorded about 3,000 songs, the money she earned from her performing career was spent during more than a year in a Bangkok hospital, her family said.
In addition to being a singer, Touch was a scholar in her homeland.
The holder of a graduate degree, she taught Cambodian literature at a university in the national capital.
Now she wants to keep learning English and to study American history.
She said she'd just like to be able to read a book or use a computer without someone always sitting beside her.
"That's what I really want – independence – so someone doesn't have to turn the pages," she said.
Touch is being tutored by volunteer Joan McFarland, and another tutor, Elsie Feliz, helps her father learn English.
Touch assists with her father's lessons.
"Her mind is so good and quick," Feliz said. "A computer would help her explore the world."
Touch and her family have asked Book of Dreams readers to help purchase a computer with software that would allow her to control it with voice commands.
Her mother died trying to shield her from the assassins' bullets.
Now 27, Touch lives with her father and siblings in a modest duplex in south Sacramento.
She is paralyzed from the neck down and gets around in a high-tech wheelchair.
Touch is able to speak with effort, but no longer has the breath to sing.
She cannot scratch her nose or read a book without help.
And she cannot pet her small brown dog, Pily, who has stayed by her side through her long ordeal.
"For now I dream that someday I will walk again and start to sing again," Touch said.
Who ordered the young singer killed remains something of a mystery, though Touch believes it was powerful people who objected to her songs promoting democracy and urging Cambodians to take back their traditional lands from neighboring Vietnam.
Touch and her family came to the United States as political refugees in 2005.
Though she recorded about 3,000 songs, the money she earned from her performing career was spent during more than a year in a Bangkok hospital, her family said.
In addition to being a singer, Touch was a scholar in her homeland.
The holder of a graduate degree, she taught Cambodian literature at a university in the national capital.
Now she wants to keep learning English and to study American history.
She said she'd just like to be able to read a book or use a computer without someone always sitting beside her.
"That's what I really want – independence – so someone doesn't have to turn the pages," she said.
Touch is being tutored by volunteer Joan McFarland, and another tutor, Elsie Feliz, helps her father learn English.
Touch assists with her father's lessons.
"Her mind is so good and quick," Feliz said. "A computer would help her explore the world."
Touch and her family have asked Book of Dreams readers to help purchase a computer with software that would allow her to control it with voice commands.
27 comments:
They should never drag her into politic.
All retarded politicians should you use Khmer-Oversea artists to decorate their party and stop using Real-Khmer artists for that.
Having an affair with a married man is one thing. Having an affair with politics--that's a "NO, NO." In other words, she should not have been put in this position.
MOI
So you are saying "she deserved it?"
Bravo! Let's make it into Khmer national law "Moi-Affair-Be-Shot".
That's a brilliant idea I have ever heard?
Well, the purpose of singer is to entertain people, and I will be pissed if any singer tried to brainwashed me or my relatives with political junks.
she should not had been shot for expressing her opinion. Now she is a living icon of Cambodia violent regime.
Nope, she will be a good example for the rest of the singers to stay out of politic.
Whatever all of you think, but Hanoi and Hun Sen are behind her assasinate attempt to her life and no doubt about it. When Hanoi sings about Khmer Krom, Hun Sen doesn't send his black bike to kill Hanoi, but he did vise versa.
She's Khmer hero not like the rest of you thought she did the bad thing. What I blamed for is the persons who made her sing those compatriot songs should help her to leave the country before they release those songs in Cambodia.
Justice will prevail on Hun Sen and Hanoi one day. They both need to stand trial before UN tribunal for political assasination.
9:30 PM,
Is it all you have for me?! I'm quite disappointingly upset at you.
What a pathetic shortsighted idea.
Let me know when you have come up with a better idea.
Until then... you should not foray into politics--this is not your environment (if you have not yet tested the water).
Anyway Touch Srey Nich is still"NOV KRO MOM TE NA". SOUM META KOM CHHA CHAO NEANG EY TUK OY KHNOM TOV, KHNOM SOUM ONG VOR.OR KUN.Comment by New England Patriot Resident.
Let's me make myself clear: I don't typically scratch my ass, unless it itches, and I don't dance without music on.
Cheers,
MOI
11:44pm is Khmer Rouge Spy 1975-1979 Dance with Pol Pot's Musics.by Long Saroath.
The fluke boy has returned.
People use their talents to live their life in ways they find meaningful. Touch is an example of that, and she was suppressed for doing just that. Living her life.
Cambodia is no democracy, it is a place to be under fear and judgement for believing and having a conviction in your life.
These are setup by the father and grandfather of people like MOI, who himself comes from an IP address of an oversea person.
what a shame. Those people who criticise others for being oversea and wants to defend Cambodia, as cowards, is a foreigner himself.
tsk tsk.
Being a singer doesn`t mean you can not exspress your feelings. It is what you call Freedom of exspression like everyone on here is commenting. Nothing wrong with being Patriot. Is`nt that the way it should be? I applaud her for her bravery to defend our motherland unlike those who insult her for loving her country. I support her all the way and even contributed to her donation.
PS.. Sin Sisamouth even fought to defend our Country. He could have left the country. Even sang about all the evils that was happening during the 70`s. He even sang about Sihanouk betraying the country. Do your research online and you will find it. I even still got the old taping of those songs. And I was born after the khmer rouge.
Best regards,
Khmer Pride
12:07 AM,
I guess I'm experiencing a taste of the United States of America. I still prefer Khmer fishpaste over hamburgers and french-fries (nothing can substitute prahok).
In the meantime, perhaps getting preapared to repatriate these refugee criminals back home (when they served their sentence behind bars).
I applaud this impeccable exradition treaty.
Cheers,
MOI
Well, was she expressed her opinions or someone else, 12:23?
12:37 her exspression led to her attempted assasination because someone else decided to exspress their cowardly exspression.
should these exspression lead to destruction of another person life? then everyone here would lose their life for exspressing. Like I said we all here got the privileges to exspress ourselves. So no need for the sarcasm.
11:41PM You're so Funny, If you love her why don't you go to "Don Deng Neang Tov?Hehehehe...Boston Mass.
Mother fucker, you animal son of a bitch, you who less than shit!
Politic is part of people life in democracy world that we should not live like a poppet or a slave!
you mother fucker should not turned Cambodia-politic to this kind of criminal and dirty thing, so you mother fucker son of the evil in hell forever can enslave us!
May you mather fucker children and grand children will suffer just like the victime of your fucking criminal act not politic should be!
You fucking-head know how to write can you fucking read and think too,Can you mother fucker feel shame called killing people as politic!
killing people, invading another country, imprison inocent people, is not politic fucking shit head, it is criminal!
start reading Khmer-rouge case fool!
When living in a civil society, everyone needs to follow something that is called "Law." Fundamentally, when one contravenes or transgresses law, one needs to be chastised in accordance with the (applicable)law in which one perpetrated, irrespective where you live.
A tout à l'heure !
And to be more prosper we not only obey law but do good thing for others!
CPP did not obey law at all!
UN where is the promise of Paris agreement? Where is the Democracy to the people of Cambodia?
That Blue Devil Girl is mine!
Miss Touch Sunix is my heroine. She is a heroine of Khmer Nation.
Miss Sunix did the right to teach the corrupt and puppet Hun Sen regime, through her sons.
Miss Sunix has served her GREAT King Javaraman VII who built Angkor Wat and founded the Khmer Great Civilization in southeast Asia. Miss Sunix has awakened our Great Ancestors' Souls of Angkors to save Khmer Nation by getting rid of foreigners who steals Khmer properties, Khmer lands, Khmer nationhood.
Miss Sunix could easily be a "lok chum teow" of the corrupt Hun Sen regime if she chose, by playing ignorance and blind-eyes to the Yuon's domination in Khmerland.
Miss Sunix is NOT Pich Chenda. Miss Sunix is Khmer Heroine while Pich Chanda an opportunist and "cherry picker" marrying to a corrupt Ho Chi Minh's slaves.
Miss Sunix is unique and distinguished. She has chosen Khmer Nation over living under the dirty and corrupt Hun Sen regime.
It is not a problem when one expresses her beliefs in her songs, BUT it is the real problem when the tyrants (like Hun Sen and Ah Yuons) refuse to accept the truth-- the KHMER TRUE HISTORY--KAMPUCHEA KROM IS KHMER ANCESTRAL TERRITORIES
Miss Sunix is similar to the "Dixie Chicks" in the America who sang songs against the Bush's war in Iraq.
The sad news ah Yuon's Hun Sen can not tolerate criticism while Mr. Bush accepts it all. That is why Miss Sunix was almost killed while the "Dixie Chicks" is still singin g away in the free America.
GODS BLESS MISS TOUCH SUNIX AND HER FAMILY.
I WISH HER A SPEEDY RECOVERY.
Khmer Angkor
Die and go to hell soon, you political slaved bitch (Touch Sunij)!
PUTOE AHH RAK HANK!!
Putoe kdeut eiy?
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