Original report from Phnom Penh
05 August 2008
Eth Thang lived happily with her husband until they sold a house and two fields of paddy for $2,000. Eight cars, $10,000 in debt and an absent husband later, she regrets the decision.
Over the past few years, land sales have jumped, creating windfalls for many Cambodians. However, not everyone is spending the new money wisely.
In Phnom Penh, land that once sold for $20 per square meter now sells for $6,000 per square meter. In Siem Reap, Battambang and Sihanoukville, land has gone from $5 per square meter to $2,000 per square meter.
Soung Bunna, a realtor, said recently the high prices were driven by political stability and economic improvement, making people want to live "very clean and modern." But the booming land prices have also meant that some Cambodians have gone into debt, unaware of the dangers of the market.
Other Cambodians have been able to make money, making the rising price of land a good thing, said Kong Chandararoth, an economic analyst and director of the Economic Development Institute.
"It's a way for people who don't have money to have an opportunity," he said. "They can sell and make money. But what will they spend the money on?"
Poor choices after the land sale can have a negative impact, he said.
Eth Thang, who lives about 20 kilometers from central Phnom Penh, in Dangkao district, had a good life two years ago. She and her husband were farmers, spending their days together, tending rice fields.
They had two fields and one house, and another parcel of land not far away, though they had no motorbike or car.
When land hit $2,000 per square meter, they sold the two fields and house, moving to the other piece of land and building a small wooden house on stilts.
Eth Thang bought a motorbike for her children and a car for her husband, she recalled recently.
But it wasn't long before her husband took a mistress, and began changing cars.
He went through eight cars, and now her children are asking her for another motorbike, an expense she can ill afford.
With no paddy and no income, she has been forced to sell her house and borrow $10,000, a debt she still owes.
"Now I've sold the motorbike as well," she told VOA Khmer. "We do not have enough money to buy rice to eat, or for other expenses. My husband has sold the car and expended the money with a young girl."
Over the past few years, land sales have jumped, creating windfalls for many Cambodians. However, not everyone is spending the new money wisely.
In Phnom Penh, land that once sold for $20 per square meter now sells for $6,000 per square meter. In Siem Reap, Battambang and Sihanoukville, land has gone from $5 per square meter to $2,000 per square meter.
Soung Bunna, a realtor, said recently the high prices were driven by political stability and economic improvement, making people want to live "very clean and modern." But the booming land prices have also meant that some Cambodians have gone into debt, unaware of the dangers of the market.
Other Cambodians have been able to make money, making the rising price of land a good thing, said Kong Chandararoth, an economic analyst and director of the Economic Development Institute.
"It's a way for people who don't have money to have an opportunity," he said. "They can sell and make money. But what will they spend the money on?"
Poor choices after the land sale can have a negative impact, he said.
Eth Thang, who lives about 20 kilometers from central Phnom Penh, in Dangkao district, had a good life two years ago. She and her husband were farmers, spending their days together, tending rice fields.
They had two fields and one house, and another parcel of land not far away, though they had no motorbike or car.
When land hit $2,000 per square meter, they sold the two fields and house, moving to the other piece of land and building a small wooden house on stilts.
Eth Thang bought a motorbike for her children and a car for her husband, she recalled recently.
But it wasn't long before her husband took a mistress, and began changing cars.
He went through eight cars, and now her children are asking her for another motorbike, an expense she can ill afford.
With no paddy and no income, she has been forced to sell her house and borrow $10,000, a debt she still owes.
"Now I've sold the motorbike as well," she told VOA Khmer. "We do not have enough money to buy rice to eat, or for other expenses. My husband has sold the car and expended the money with a young girl."
8 comments:
Good for them, they deserve it for being dumb.
Please go to see Samdech Hun Sen for help. I am very sure, he will help you because you voted for him.
Cheers,
Dumb cambodians. That's the problem when money is in the hand of those who don't know how to spend it wisely. Cambodia as a country is like that. Millions after millions of dollars pour in from international donors every year and yet the country is still poor like dirt, still a begger state after so many years begging.
The government is incapacitated; it is, of course, the government's job to maintain interest rate and land price, not to skyrocket them. This negligence causes greater rich and poor gap. Those who are rich become even richer while those who are poor remains poor. How would the next generation be able to afford such expensive land plots and other real estates? of course those who are fortunate to grow up in a wealthy family will but what about those in the rural areas?
it shows, perhaps, some cambodian people needs to learn the skill of money management because it shows that not everyone is capable to manage their fortune. i guess, some people need to learn to be smart and wise about their money, otherwise, they can lose it all. now, who is it to blame? people can become rich and then go back to being poor again because of this poor judgment. i hope everyone can learn from this sad but a good life lesson on money management.
With regard to this case. The family should blame themselves for such a silly mistake they made. They once had opportunities to turn their lives to be more prosperous but instead made the wrong move.
Many farmers in Cambodia are quite smarter than this stupid materialistic family. At least they know how to plan for their children future unlike this bunch of jerks.
You deserve it lady. Don't complain. Live with it. Take your family into account NOT others...not even the government.
NO MERCY.
I don’t at all feel bad for her. I think, she wouldn’t learn if it never happen to her. Here in US, I used to have a sister in law that was sudden rich like her. She won lottery. The first year she live her life like there’s no tomorrow. She bough new house, new cars for her children, bough stuffs for her new friends, party and gotting drunk every weekend, and also, she divorced her husband (my brother) and got her a new, Brazilian boyfriend (later found out he was illegal immigrants).
Second year, things started to fall apart. One day, her boyfriend got arrested for beating her and when police found out that he was illegal to live in the state they turned him to INS police, then they deported him back to his country. A few months later, two of her children (boys) were arrested and put in jail for possessed guns and illegal drug. Around time, the youngest child (girl) ran away with a guy she met on myspace and still don’t even know where she is or if she is dead or a live. This lady lives her life for about three years, one by one the bank started take back everything she owned. And now, she has nothing, no husband, no children, no house, no car, no money. The only things she has right now is her cloth and a small room rented from one of her old friends. This lady didn’t just have couple hundred thousand dollars; she had millions but lost it all in couple years.
easy come, easy go
If her husband get HIV from one of the young girl, then one problem solved. For the woman she can prostitute herself.
See I just solved all your problems.
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