Phnom Penh
03 April 2009
[Editor's Note: Carol Rodley became Cambodia’s ambassador in October 2008. In an interview with VOA Khmer in March, she discussed the growing relationship between Cambodia and the US, on topics ranging from the Khmer Rouge tribunal to the global financial crisis. Below is the first of a six-part series resulting from the interview.] (Part 1 of 3)
Q. We are making history here. The United States has elected the first African-American as president. Ambassador Scot Marciel is the first US Ambassador to Asean. And you are the first female US Ambassador to Cambodia.
A. It is of course a very exciting time for America, with the historical election of Barack Obama as president, and it’s very exciting to be representing America overseas at a time like this, because people all around the world seem to be very excited about his presidency. As far as being the first female ambassador of the United States in Cambodia, I can only say that I was very glad to come here and find a number of other female colleagues in the diplomatic corps. The Australian ambassador is a woman. The Chinese ambassador is a woman. The ambassador of Singapore is also a woman. It’s a brave new world.
Q. You were the former deputy chief of mission from 1997 to 2000. How did that experience prepare you to be the US ambassador to Cambodia?
A. It gave me a chance to get to know the Cambodian people, to know Cambodian history, to travel to the countryside and see for myself what’s going on, and it really just inspired in me a real love for Cambodia, for Cambodian culture and especially for the Cambodian people, who are very warm, friendly, open and easy to get to know.
Q. Have Cambodia and its people changed since you were here last time?
A. Yes, in some very interesting ways. What I find is that in 2009 Cambodians are much more confident; they know more about the world outside Cambodia. They are more connected to the outside world through the Internet, through studies abroad, through travel, through music and the arts. So they have become much more integrated with the rest of the world, and they have become noticeably more confident and more optimistic about the future. I would say they have become more forward looking. In the past people were very focused on the past. That’s understandable, because Cambodia went through a very hard time. But now I find Cambodia very much focused on the future. Of course, it’s such a young country [that] I think having a future focus with such a young population is a very natural thing.
Q. You have met with many high-ranking Cambodian officials since you arrived. What is your overall assessment of Cambodia?
A. Many of the officials I met, I consider them my friends. I knew them from when I was in Cambodia before. So it has been very good to renew those friendships and those relationships, and I find [the officials] working very hard. They are very focused on development across the board, in all ministries. It’s clear that the real priority of this government is development. I find them taking very seriously the global financial downturn and working hard on plans to weather the rough financial times ahead.
Q. Is Cambodia less affected in some ways?
A. The banking sector has almost no exposure to what we call the “toxic securities” that have caused such difficulty in the US banking sector and in some other developing countries and trading partners that have invested heavily in US securities or in the US mortgages. So Cambodia has been insulated a little bit in that area. But since the United States is Cambodia’s main export market—over 60 percent of all Cambodian exports go to the United States—the downturn in the American economy has had an inevitable and noticeable effect on the Cambodian economy. When Americans stop buying T-shirts, Cambodian garment factories are in a lot of trouble. And a number of them have closed already because demands are down.
Q. We are making history here. The United States has elected the first African-American as president. Ambassador Scot Marciel is the first US Ambassador to Asean. And you are the first female US Ambassador to Cambodia.
A. It is of course a very exciting time for America, with the historical election of Barack Obama as president, and it’s very exciting to be representing America overseas at a time like this, because people all around the world seem to be very excited about his presidency. As far as being the first female ambassador of the United States in Cambodia, I can only say that I was very glad to come here and find a number of other female colleagues in the diplomatic corps. The Australian ambassador is a woman. The Chinese ambassador is a woman. The ambassador of Singapore is also a woman. It’s a brave new world.
Q. You were the former deputy chief of mission from 1997 to 2000. How did that experience prepare you to be the US ambassador to Cambodia?
A. It gave me a chance to get to know the Cambodian people, to know Cambodian history, to travel to the countryside and see for myself what’s going on, and it really just inspired in me a real love for Cambodia, for Cambodian culture and especially for the Cambodian people, who are very warm, friendly, open and easy to get to know.
Q. Have Cambodia and its people changed since you were here last time?
A. Yes, in some very interesting ways. What I find is that in 2009 Cambodians are much more confident; they know more about the world outside Cambodia. They are more connected to the outside world through the Internet, through studies abroad, through travel, through music and the arts. So they have become much more integrated with the rest of the world, and they have become noticeably more confident and more optimistic about the future. I would say they have become more forward looking. In the past people were very focused on the past. That’s understandable, because Cambodia went through a very hard time. But now I find Cambodia very much focused on the future. Of course, it’s such a young country [that] I think having a future focus with such a young population is a very natural thing.
Q. You have met with many high-ranking Cambodian officials since you arrived. What is your overall assessment of Cambodia?
A. Many of the officials I met, I consider them my friends. I knew them from when I was in Cambodia before. So it has been very good to renew those friendships and those relationships, and I find [the officials] working very hard. They are very focused on development across the board, in all ministries. It’s clear that the real priority of this government is development. I find them taking very seriously the global financial downturn and working hard on plans to weather the rough financial times ahead.
Q. Is Cambodia less affected in some ways?
A. The banking sector has almost no exposure to what we call the “toxic securities” that have caused such difficulty in the US banking sector and in some other developing countries and trading partners that have invested heavily in US securities or in the US mortgages. So Cambodia has been insulated a little bit in that area. But since the United States is Cambodia’s main export market—over 60 percent of all Cambodian exports go to the United States—the downturn in the American economy has had an inevitable and noticeable effect on the Cambodian economy. When Americans stop buying T-shirts, Cambodian garment factories are in a lot of trouble. And a number of them have closed already because demands are down.
5 comments:
May Buddha bless you madam!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CJYbq6wd70&NR=1
Yes, I think this time the US have understood Cambodia more.
Things will change for those overseas Cambodians. They will accept this perception some day when they learned from their Ambassador of their second home.
11:04 AM
I'm oversea Cambodian. US just understood about Cambodia when its own Dollar losing values.
But it is a good feeling that US will help the pipsqueak thug state to live a better life. Those who are in power produce nothing on their own, they are too corrupt, and cannot even protect our resources.
We (Khmers) ought to put the USA on trial for Bombing Cambodia back to the Stone Age during 1973. We should DEMAND that America to pay back to lives that's been lost during the ILLEGAL bombing of Cambodia.
Monetary is not what we're looking for, but AMERICA NEED TO HELP KHMERS BUILD THE INFRASTRUCTURES OF THE CAMBODIA COUNTRY IN ORDER TO PAY THE WAR CRIMES COMMINTED ON KHMERS.
The infrastructures needed badly are roads, educations, mining industries--so Khmers don't have to buy goods from Thailand/Vietnam, Military supports (weaponry, equipments, tactics...), Sanitation, health, etc.
The United States of America owe much to Cambodians people. The Bombing that decimated/obliterated thousands of lives.
8:33PM.
The US is bankrupt. No money to pay Cambodia. Trillion of dollars owed to China and China's currency "Yuan" will soon replace Dollar.
American people don't know who is running America. They thought the Presidents run America. Some people called these goups
"Mafia", they are the Bankruptcy of America, the Corporate United States, the New World Order, and they are US Presidents' maker too. Their agents are the collection agency, IRS, the American Bar Association, the legal arm of the banking interest and the federal reserve corporation. Recently they just made a new president, a black maxist-socialist who was not born in the US not even has experiences to be the president, and don't try to challenge this facist monopolistic cartel. Now you know who owned the Media.
Now look who is the lucky one? By contrast to his Kings, Neak Leng Phnom Penh is a lucky man. He will be surrounded by female Ambassadors from Vietnam, China, US, and more to come. If Abhisit wants to send a female Thai ambassador it has to be a pretty one who will tell him "Preah Vihear belongs to Cambodia". Neak Leng Phnom Penh is now a virgin man.
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