Tuesday, November 23, 2010

In Mourning (by SRP MP Mu Sochua)


November 22, 2010

Palo Alto, California- As a nation we mourn the loss of hundreds of our sisters and brothers in the Koh Pich stampede today. As a nation we are shocked and horrified by the tragedy. Condolences to the families go beyond our feelings of grave sadness as we, as a nation must find means for the injured to recover, the orphans to find homes and the families to heal. We also want to know the causes so that such tragedy will never occur again. Safety and security of the people must come first and the truth must be told.

I truly believe that we must work together as a nation and heal as a nation. In the days and months to come, we will continue to pray for the souls of the people who paid dearly with their lives for merely wanting to celebrate the ancient Khmer tradition of Oum Touk- the Water Festival. This moment of great sadness for the hundreds of our sisters and brothers who died should also be a moment for re-evaluating the value of our people's lives because payments or gifts can not easily help rebuild lives that are shattered. Thorough independent investigations must be conducted and testimonies of the survivors taken into serious consideration and with great protection and sensitivity.

My most sincere gratitude goes to each and everyone for their courage, their heroism and their deep sense of duty. Many helped rescue those who were injured, those who cried out for help, the children who were being stampeded, while they themselves were looking for a safe escape.

In California, I am appealing for contributions for the children whose parents have died, for women and men who now are facing the burden of supporting their families alone. Their lives must be rebuilt. In the next days l will seek out each and every source for contribution and to bring this very tragic news to those whose hearts will also be touched by the Koh Pich tragedy.

Going with our beliefs, we must light candles and burn incense and place them on our family altar for the next 100 days.

Mu Sochua, MP

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

អាឆ្កែកញ្ជះយួនបីក្បាល ហ៊ុន សែន, ហេងសំ រិន, ជាស៊ីម
បើគ្មានសមត្តភាពទេ ល្មមចុះចេញទុកឱ្យ លោកសម រង្ស៊ី
ធ្វើម្ដងហើយ។

Anonymous said...

Congratulations Mrs Mu Sochua for your kind words for the victims of Koh Pich. That's what people want to hear from all Khmer when a tragedy of this magnitude happened in our homeland. A sensitive and humble voice in harmony with the mood of the country. Absolutely not the angry voice that tries to take political profit from the tragedy. You are the moderate voice of your formation. Actually that what Cambodia needs in this circumstance. We are moderate people who have never been comfortable with extremism. “Science without consciousness is only ruin of the soul.” Please keep it that way.

Anonymous said...

This Speech should be heard by the victims.

Anonymous said...

Today,I've seen a rainbow,a rainbow bridge that connect us from earth and heaven everyone have a dream a dream that take us to the promise land but to get there we must build a rainbow bridge that will get us there,today I've saw my cambodian friend had lost there precious life many of them are young male and female and now they have no more suffering like us nor pain like us!they has reach a rainbow bridge that will lead them to heaven with God love.My friend we have to love our own people before some tragedy happen it too late.

Anonymous said...

heh heh...should be write in Khmer language. If you want Cambodian know, you should write in Khmer.You treat that you are not Khmer, that's why you wrote in English!

Kulen Monorom said...

Your Majesty Samdech Ta former King Norodom Sihanouk,

Prime Minister Samdech Hun Sen,

Thank you for your both kindness and understanding.
What we need is prevention methods, not to let this type of accident happen again in the future.

It also makes me very worried to see so much alcohol allowed to enter or be produced in our beloved Kingdom of Cambodia? What about “ YA BA “ and other types of DRUGS from Thailand and Vietnam?

Can His Majesty Samdech Ta and Samdech Hun Sen stop all sorts of drugs coming to Cambodia? The accident may not be related to drugs and alcohol but just some thing that I could not sleep peacefully from now on to the future, in the names sake of true Khmer citizen.

Can Samdech Hun Sen kindly ask all 5 million Vietnamese illegal immigrants to peacefully return to Vietnam, so Koh Pich will not be too crowded more and more every day, every month and every year to come.
All Vietnamese illegal immigrants can easily come in and settle inside Cambodia even though they already have their own country Vietnam.

When Cambodia is too crowded, definitely we Khmer people can not go to settle inside Vietnam, can we?
Please Vietnamese, you said you came to rescue us from Pol Pot, and you don’t want to return home, it is not right according to 23rd October 1991 Paris Peace Agreement, can all of you go back to your country now.

Vietnamese illegal immigrants, you see because 5 million of you are inside Cambodia, it makes us too crowded and we wasted our lives at Koh Pich without good reasons.

Your Vietnamese Communism expansionist mind in Cambodia, is to give an excuse to China mainland to occupy your Spratly Islands, Parcel Islands, the whole of your Eastern sea border and perhaps the Northern border sooner or later.

5 million Vietnamese illegal immigrants in Cambodia, please go back home to defend your country from Chinese mighty economic invasion.

May I pray to God and the Lord Jesus Christ that those who have lost loved one will be comforted.

My condolences to all the victim's family.

Regards,

Kulen Monorom
(The rice farmer's son)