Cambodian daughter tears
【Ministry】Introducing the Cambodian ministry of Christ Abundance Fellowship
Photo courtesy/Christ’s Glory Fellowship
The symbol of Angkor Wat, representing Cambodia, is flying on the national flag. This temple, which is listed as a World Cultural Heritage by UNESCO, has an endless stream of tourists wandering around. After thousands of years of wind and rain, only the ruins, dilapidated stone pillars and stone pillars are left. Among the pagodas, we pay homage to Jayavarman VII, the famous ruler who built the national temple of the Angkor Dynasty (Chenla Dynasty). His lowered eyes and smiling mouth are called "Khmer's smile" .
Preferring boys over girls deprives girls of their right to education
Cambodia, located in the Indochina Peninsula, has a land area of approximately 180,000 square kilometers and a population of more than 15.3 million. It is slightly smaller than China's Hubei Province and has nearly a quarter of its population. According to World Bank statistics, the per capita gross national product (GDP) in 2014 was approximately US$1,095, ranking 144th among 185 countries, making it one of the poorest countries in the world.
The Cambodian people have a deep-rooted discrimination against women. The local proverb goes: "Men are gold, women are cloth." The disparity in the value of the two genders is self-evident. If the family has money, boys should be given priority to study; if the family has good things, boys should be given priority. Girls have fewer and later opportunities to enter school; more and earlier opportunities to drop out of school. It is common for girls to drop out of school in the fourth or fifth grade and stay at home to help with housework, or go out to work to help support the family, or even be "sold". The illiteracy rate among women is as high as 32%. Lack of knowledge makes it difficult for girls to survive, and they are even less able to support their families financially.
Superstitious habits with no medical basis
Children living in poor families are often forced to bear the burden of family finances. A shortcut for little girls to make money is to sell their virginity. It is widely believed in Southeast Asia that virginity is good for the health of the "user" and can cure AIDS. It is even superstitious that virginity will bring good luck, not only smooth career, but also longevity. What is shocking is that a travel agency has created a package tour that includes a five-star hotel, golf courses, tourist attractions and a pre-puberty (Pre-Puberty or Pubescence) girl, attracting many tourists from China, Singapore, Thailand and other places.
Not far from the capital Phnom Penh, there is a notorious small village called Svay Pak. Almost all the girls in the village between the ages of eight and twelve are sold into brothels, including three-year-old children. It is one of the few girls on the planet. There are hells where girls are sexually exploited, destroying their souls and ruining their futures.
CNN filmed a shocking reality documentary "Every Day in Cambodia" here. In the film, they interviewed a beautiful girl, Keo, who was raped before her menstrual period at the age of twelve. The mother negotiated with the pimp and sold her first night for US$1,500. Keo thought he was going to work, but without knowing it, he was taken to a specific large hospital for a blood test. After it was confirmed that he had no sexually transmitted diseases and that he was a virgin, he was sent to a hotel for two days and two nights. Keo said: "My heart was torn!" The client, who was in his fifties and had three children himself, violently, beat and ravaged the little girl in front of him. In fact, her mother did not receive the agreed amount of money, but she had no choice but to do anything when the gangsters were cheating her. After quickly spending the money, she pushed Keo into the fire pit again and again, until Keo was disheartened by her family and contacted a Christian The organization was rescued and given a new lease of life.
The U.S. State Department released the "2015 Trafficking in Persons Report" and Cambodia has been included in the Tier 2 Watch List for three consecutive years. This means that Cambodia has a serious human trafficking problem and the country does not have adequate preventive measures. The report stated that Cambodia is a major source country, transit point and destination for human trafficking. The sex slave industry in Cambodia is developed. There are 40,000 to 100,000 sex slave workers, one-third of whom are children. Like Keo, they are often tricked or sold by their parents, relatives, friends, neighbors, and their virginity is sold. ; The budding girls were mercilessly picked off, and then transferred to brothels as "broken flowers and willows", where they were trampled on.
A sick culture of poverty and ignorance
The residents of Svipark are all stateless Vietnamese from Cambodia. In history, the Vietnamese people moved to Cambodia for various reasons. They were once the suzerain protector of Cambodia and had a glorious and glorious era. However, today, due to complex reasons such as resentment and political corruption, they are prohibited by law and unable to enjoy the benefits. Public medical services, access to education, employment and land purchase are the objects of hatred, slander and even murder by Cambodians. The villagers live below the poverty line and sell their children's virginity to pay debts, seek medical treatment and make ends meet. This sick culture is also a way for the extremely poor Vietnamese who settled along the Tonle Sap Lake and the Mekong River to solve the extremely difficult survival situation.
What should we do?
Who expresses this sorrow to man and heaven? The innocent girl who was born in troubled times shed helpless and sad tears under the "Khmer smile".
God has special love for this group of Cambodian daughters. He miraculously placed their tears and cries in the heart of Professor Wu Shuyi, who had a completely different happy situation on the other side of the world, so that she could not forget them for a long time.
Wu Shuyi, who lives in the United States, majored in mathematics, and once taught at a university. When she entered Westminster Theological Seminary for further study, she had a profound reflection on the status of women in the Bible, which inspired her to pay attention to modern society. The issue of oppression and destruction of women. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, Wu Shuyi shared the global human trafficking issues that touched her most at the "Christ Abundance Fellowship" retreat in San Francisco, California, at the end of 2007. The sisters who attended the meeting shed tears and cried bitterly for these issues. The women and children living in hell on earth prayed, knowing full well that Christ on the cross laid down his life for them, and they all asked: "What should we do?"
God inspired Wu Shuyi: "It must be implemented in one place!" Throughout 2008, for some reason, "Cambodia" has been lingering in her thoughts. At the retreat in the same year, she shared her understanding and research on Cambodia, the distortion of human nature after the Khmer Rouge and the urgent need to rebuild it, especially the subsequent rampant sex trafficking, as well as some feasible ministry strategies. But how to get started?
God Himself brings workers
That day, more than thirty people were sitting in a circle. A stranger next to her turned to Wu Shuyi and said, "I have been a missionary in Cambodia for more than a year!" Wu Shuyi described her feeling at that time as "electric shock" and blurted out in surprise. Ex: "Can you take me to Cambodia?" God actually arranged for missionary Cai Wanling, the only one who has been to Cambodia, to sit next to her, and on March 8 of the following year, he led her to the unfamiliar but deeply impressed Cambodian land. .
On March 8, 2010, Cai Wanling accepted Wu Shuyi's invitation and resolutely returned to Cambodia. She became the first Cambodian missionary of "Christ Abundance Fellowship" and served as the workshop director. According to God's commission, she launched "Cambodia Abundance Fellowship". Ministry".
▲On March 8, 2016, Wu Shuyi (second from left), Qiu Qingping (third from left), Cai Wanling (fourth from left) and other dedicated co-workers happily celebrated the dedication ceremony of "Fengrong Girls' School" in New Phnom Penh.
Treatment and prevention go hand in hand
The first ministry: "Fengrong Daughters' Home"
On March 8, 2011, the "Fengrong Girls' Home" was officially launched in Phnom Penh, with the first batch of fifteen girls admitted. Seven of them were trafficked by their families or boyfriends to engage in labor or sex work in neighboring Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand and other places, and were "rescued"; some were "high risk" people who were on the verge of similar encounters; some were victims of Victims of rape or gang rape by family members, relatives, friends, and villagers; and girls who were forced to beg in front of temples to get a meal. These girls came in with severe psychological problems such as extreme anger, worry, and anxiety.
However, with the love of the cross of Christ among co-workers and countless short-term mission team members, and the sincere prayers of all the intercessors, these girls have been able to regain their confidence today, and many of them have accepted salvation and love them. God’s words, I like to pray, and someone even called my mother to persuade her to accept the Lord!
▲Girls in "Girls' Home" play with Lego bricks and regain their lost childhood and innocence.
The second ministry: "Fengrong Girls' School"
On March 8, 2016, "Fengrong Girls' School" held a dedication ceremony in New Phnom Penh. It will gradually provide regular courses for grades one to six, and supplementary courses for grades four to six. The auditorium can be used for student gatherings for worship and women's activities, etc. Open to the community.
▲"Fengrong Girls' School" will bring the grace and truth of Christ into the lives of students in a full and full way, and cultivate them to become the future leaders of Cambodia.
Providing educational opportunities for girls from poor families is the most effective prevention strategy to combat sexual abuse and sex trafficking.
Wu Shuyi expressed her insights in the article "Girls' Education": "According to an analysis published by economic sociologists at the United Nations, investing in girls is the most cost-effective: one more year of primary school education for a girl will increase 20% their earning power; one more year Secondary school education will increase by 25%. Women’s money will not be spent on tobacco and alcohol, but will only benefit the whole family. Moreover, when girls grow up, they will become mothers who know how to educate their children, so that poverty and ignorance will not be a vicious cycle from generation to generation. , is also the most effective long-term defense method against human trafficking; girls' education can also cultivate the next generation of women leaders for the society and the country. "Helping a woman is helping a village."
▲The school with a magnificent appearance provides educational opportunities for girls from poor families.
The third ministry: "Fengrong Women's Center"
This ministry that is being actively planned will be a community outreach center. "Christ Abundance Fellowship" will cooperate with local churches to bring the gospel of the Kingdom of God into the community and is committed to raising the public's attention to girls in society and families.
When Jesus was on earth, he often put aside the "big" things that others considered more important and popular, and instead cared for the "little" people, women, children, and women who were discriminated against, harmed, and exploited. "Christ's Abundance Fellowship" experienced the power of God. A tender and compassionate heart: "A bruised reed he will not break; a smoldering wick he will not quench" (Isaiah 42:3). Fully committed and courageous to follow the example of service left by Jesus.
Are you willing to join in the fight against the abuse of girls in Cambodia with your prayers and dedication?
▲Students performed Cambodian traditional dance during the school dedication ceremony.
Notes The content of this article about "Christ's Fenghuang Fellowship" and "Cambodia's Fengrong Ministry" is excerpted from the "Christ's Fenghuang Fellowship" website (http://www.ficfellowship.org/about-ficf.html). If you want to know more about Fengrong Ministries or have touched devotees, please check online.
作者小檔案 楊韓甲華，本刊企編 ，由於關懷特殊孩童及他們的家庭而進入文字事奉，多年來使用「國度社區」成為關懷社會正義的發聲平台，並以此為連結的踏板，服事最小的弱勢群體。