Avid readers will recall Jemima Hall who featured in the February issue of the SSH. Now coming to the end of her eight-month mission as a volunteer in Cambodia, Jemima took time to answer some questions before boarding a plane for home.
What has been the biggest challenge for you?
Accepting that not everyone is here for the same reasons as me. Admitting that I was an “expat” who chose to leave my country but who couldn’t live my life here without my family. Admitting that most women my age have seen and heard more than I can ever imagine. I’ve been working with Cambodian Women’s Development Agency and Australian People for Health, Education and Development Abroad. During this time I have met women my age who are the providers for their families.
What has been the most rewarding part of your volunteer work?
The most rewarding time was when I met Raksmey, a 19 year-old girl who was living under a shelter. Her mother is living with AIDS. Raksmey was sent away from her family to make mats for an aunt. Whilst working in the sweatshop surroundings she was beaten and disowned. She heard of her father’s death and mother’s illness and managed to escape to find her brother in similar conditions. Together they fled to the city to reunite with their mother. Only to find her suffering and unable to provide. They were both taken in by two separate NGOs. Raksmey told me she would lose her brother if she couldn’t provide any more for her family. I connected her with a guesthouse run by an Australian mother and her son. Her family has been reunited. Now her brother is also employed at the guesthouse and she is able to support her mother.
Can you take us through a typical day of work?
Working as an ESL teacher of VET for an NGO was wonderful. Every day the girls who were living in the shelter would be preparing meals, studying, weaving, or attending their counseling or medical checks. In the two-hour Khmer lunch break we would ride down to the market, 10 between four bikes. I’d then return back to work with the staff and train them in English and communication.
You must have arrived with some idea of your mission, what you wanted to achieve. Did this change whilst you were there as you gained a better understanding of Khmer life?
My mission was to work with an orphanage outside of the city but within a month my whole vision shifted. The more I learnt about the truths behind the orphanage life I felt angry at myself for my idealistic approach. Think of our Aboriginal kinship systems, or binding blood of families, of course it is the same for Khmer people, how could I have not thought that? Many pass children through as orphans, but really they have family members waiting for them to be returned. An orphanage run by westerners is seen as a boarding school for the lucky children selected. They are cared for, they study, they have toys and beds, some even have computers! Many people donate their money to the orphanages and the next thing you see the director driving a Lexus. I can’t help but question their values.
Did your expectations change dramatically once you were faced with the difficulties of being a volunteer?
I wouldn’t say I had difficulties being a volunteer, it was the best decision I ever made. Since volunteering I feel I have had my eyes pulled out and opened. I see life through many eyes and angles. I struggled when I saw the young in pain, and constantly caught myself asking why. I fear I don’t know how to enter the western world after seeing what I have been exposed to.
What can we do to contribute to your cause?
I highly recommend volunteering but make sure you do research into the organisations first and read into their founders. Legitimacy is still so hidden and difficult to distinguish. However, programs such as the Australian Youth Ambassadors for Development (AYAD) are wonderful, and well-known Unions such as Australian People for Health, Education and Development Abroad (APHEDA) are fabulous with productivity and support. I would recommend organisations that are run by locals, such as CWDA as they rely on immediate hands-on support and donations rather than being an established worldwide recognised logo.
