A SOULLESS NATION: In Need of Principles of First Things

First published in The Phnom Penh Post as part of the Voice of Justice columns, with Khmer translation in Koh Santepheap, 2007.

The Lesser-Among-Evils Mentality

We are a soul-less nation. We have lost our moral bearings. We have reduced our choices to scraps and tattered spoils.

Among the countless legacies left by the Khmer Rouge - the 2 million deaths - there is one that is particularly damaging and darkening to the soul, the prevailing mentality (and I believe, an existing reality) that everything Khmer and in Cambodia is relegated to a choice of "the lesser among evils": of all the bad choices before us, this is the less bad; this election is free, fair and peaceful as it counted only 5 political deaths in comparison to the 25 of the last one; one-third percent abject poverty rate is nothing in comparison to the cannibalism under the Khmer Rouge; so what if there are charges of corruption, the judiciary is not independent, and standards are sub-international - the Khmer Rouge Tribunal will move ahead.

For a long time to come, Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge is and will be the yardstick that Khmers and foreigners alike use for anything happening in Cambodia; everything Khmer will be judged in light of the blackness of the Khmer Rouge years, leading to a pervasive mentality of using the darkest anything as the point of reference.

Is it any wonder then, that we Khmers, are so easily pleased, to paraphrase C.S. Lewis, to making mud pies in the slum because we cannot imagine one day by the sea?

To contrast, in a healthy society, people freely debate and ponder whether in a particular situation "the best is the enemy of the good"; their choices are among the excellent and the good, whereas we Khmers are satisfied to choose among the crumbs, the crumbling and the seriously flawed.

This current Royal Government of Cambodia is very keen to distance itself and to whitewash its history from the Khmer Rouge. This RGC is very keen and quick to make cheap, superficial pronouncements for morality - e.g., banning phones and miniskirts, shutting down karaoke parlors, adopting an anti-adultery law, implementing detention rules in contravention to juvenile rights in response to the Bong Thom gang problems etc. - acknowledgements that we are unwell as a society.

These acts have the appearance of cures and taking the high road of morality, but they are meaningless quick-fixes that do nothing to heal the nation and mend the shredded moral fabric. They ring hollow because we have lost our soul; we are crushed in spirit. We, as a nation, are in need of finding our soul and renewing our spirit.

To do so, we must instill in ourselves and in our children fundamental ideas universally accepted which form the principles of first things. We, Khmers, are more than ever in need of fresh reminders of what those principles are.

Principles of First Things

Stephen R. Covey writes persuasively of habits and principles that lead to effective and successful individuals. But those concepts are also the necessary cornerstones for the health of a society, particularly our Khmer society. "Principles are like lighthouses", he writes. "They are natural laws that cannot be broken." This idea is echoed by Cecil B. deMille in his movie The Ten Commandments, "It is impossible for us to break the law. We can only break ourselves against the law."

What are some of these prerequisite principles for individual and interdependent existence?

• Fairness: out of which our whole concept of equity and justice is developed. We, Khmers, have much work to do in this area and we must begin with the independence of the judiciary, the primary organ to exact fairness.
• Integrity and honesty: they create the foundation of trust which is essential to cooperation and long-term growth. We, Khmers, are immensely distrustful of each other; we have the potential to build upon the integrity and honesty within ourselves and in our relationship to others.
• Human dignity: we have inherent value and worth; therefore they must be protected at all costs. We are a society that prizes "elitism" and demeans the vulnerable and the poor; look at the way that we drive our vehicles: it has been commented to me whether a Khmer driving a Lexus genuinely cares if s/he runs over a child begging on the street.
• Service: the idea of making a contribution. We, Khmers, are more concerned about how to line our own pockets at all costs than for the collective welfare of society. We need not look any further than the greediness of the haves in oppressing the have-nots into further poverty through feverish land-grabbing.
• Excellence (quality): Aristotle best sums up this idea: "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." We, Khmers, are of the mentality of doing just enough, of showing form without emphasis on substance. We teach our children how to "get around the system". Rather than building an ethics of character, we praise the "personality ethic", that there is "some quick and easy way to achieve quality of life without going through the natural process of work and growth that makes it possible... It's symbol without substance. It's the 'get-rich quick' scheme promising 'wealth without work'. And it might even appear to succeed - but the schemer remains" (Stephen R. Covey). Of those driving a Lexus around town, how many can genuinely say they earn that Lexus through honorable, honest work?
• Potential: the idea that we are embryonic and can grow and develop and release more and more potential, develop more and more talents. I am daily appalled by the loss of human potential of the young in this society because of the lack of opportunities before them; to me, this loss of potential ranks as one of the crimes against humanity.
• Responsibility: the idea that at the end of the day, we are held personally answerable for our conduct; it is the idea of the "ability" to "respond" or to choose between right and wrong. This lack of responsibility is reflected in the poor governance of national resources and the prevalence of corruption pervading all systems of Cambodia.
• Compassion and love: Webster defines "compassion" as sympathetic consciousness of other's distress with a desire to alleviate it; this is part and parcel of "love" which is the strong affection and devotion for another. In Khmer society, rather, in the words of Erich Fromm, "Today we come across an individual who behaves like an automaton... whose meaningless chatter has replaced communicative speech, whose synthetic smile has replaced genuine laughter, and whose sense of dull despair has taken the place of genuine pain." Again, the leaders, the elites and the rest of us can act more out of compassion and love toward one another, especially toward the most vulnerable, impoverished and oppressed - the majority - of our nation.

I agree with author Covey that these principles are not esoteric, mysterious or only "religious" ideas. These principles of first things are not specific to any one faith or religion. They are instead a part of all major enduring religions, social philosophies and ethical systems.

We, Khmers, are very quick to claim a cultural distinction, that these ideas are Western and do not apply to us, our history, our culture. We cannot claim the Khmer exception from them without doing damage to ourselves and our culture. To claim an exception of these principles as non-Khmer would be to claim their opposites to be Khmer; this would be absurd. The nature of these principles is self-evident. Put it another way, consider attempting to build a healthy Khmer society based on their opposites: unfairness, deceit, baseness, uselessness, mediocrity or degeneration, irresponsibility, hate as a solid foundation for personal and social development?

Let's Begin with Ourselves

Individuals compose a family. Families compose a society. Societies compose a nation. These principles must first begin with each one of us individually, which naturally affects the interaction within a family, within society and ultimately within the nation. We are crushed; we are soulless. To reclaim our national soul and revive our national spirit, we must take to heart these principles of first things. As C.S. Lewis reminds us, "In a sort of ghastly simplicity we remove the organ and demand the function. We make men without chests and expect of them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honor and are shocked to find traitors in our midst. We castrate and bid the geldings be fruitful." Should we decide to ignore these principles, do not then be surprised at the happenings of our current society and the unveiling of a hopeless, despondent, restless future.

Theary C. SENG
Executive Director