Messages From Readers

News of Cambodia N° 0811

MESSAGES FROM READERS
(The messages of the readers who wish to remain anonymous are not signed)

1°/ Following « News of Cambodia » on the KhmerOs (Open Source)

From an engineer computer specialist:

It is a formidable tool for preserving and conveying the Cambodian culture and language, free (open source) and complete (office continuation, Internet navigator and office manger)!

More the downloading server is very successful, I did make a test. It is amazing.

China, Japan and South Korea, three years ago, decided to use also Linux, an engine introduced by the Finn Linus Torwalds, from software written by researchers of all the planet and thus constantly improved, and conceived very seriously from Microsoft. Linux has the advantage to be free.

(…)

« (…) I wish to thank Mr. Javier Solan and his team for being kind enough to help Cambodia and the Cambodians to get out of this major strategic domain for its future, to begin with the future of its youth.

It is an immense step made by Cambodia. Henceforth it would not feel any more too much complex because of its delay in this domain regarding to her close neighbors, to quote only that and to take into account only to use of our own writing in all domains including internet, in our schools and universities, in our administration, in the editorial staff of the works etc...

I share full of enjoyment with great satisfaction of all fellow countrymen concerning this magnificent developments.(…)

MS

2°/ Following « News of Cambodia » N° 0806 on translations, we receive list of books translated into Cambodian :

- "Min Chos Samrong Ning Chivit", translated from "The Foreigner" of Albert Camus, by Yi Chheang Eng, published by Nokor Thom, Phnom Penh, 1974.Chuth Khay has translated also many novels from french :
· « The Centurions » of Jean Lartiguy, translated as « Both chhneum nei sangkream », Phnom Penh, 1971.
· « The Wall » of Jean-Paul Sartre translated into « Chunh Chaing », Phnom Penh, 1972.

· « L'ambassadeur » of Morris West, title into cambodian « Lok Akkeak Roth Tout », Phnom Penh, 1973.

· « Littérature cambodgienne du XXe siècle », by Khing Hoc Dy, PP, Angkor, 2005, pp. 585-586.

· « Romeo and Juliet » of Shakespeare translated by Hang Thun Hak in 1971 re-edited for many times.

· The Tartuffe (Ketéyoss reu Snêha) of Molière translated in verse of 9 words by Ann Khun, Phnom Penh, 1954, 138 pages (autorization of translation n° 1340/MFE signed by : H. Monteagle, chief of French Mission for Education and Cultural Cooperation in Cambodia). (re-edited).

· « Paul and Virginia » of Bernardin de Saint-Pierre, translated by Hang Thun Hak, Phnom Penh (no date), 146 pages (re-edited recently).

· « The mysterious » of Jules Verne, « Koh Ath Kambaing », Phnom Penh 1973.

· « Santheankram » (lexique des termes scientifiques français – cambodgien) by Khemarayeankam, 1973.

· A translation of Mathematics at the university by Cambodian mathematicians of the French universities in 1973.

· « Without family » of Hector Malot « Khmean Nheat Phaov », Phnom Penh, Yuvachon House, 1988.
· « A Voyage Round the World » de Jules Vernes (80 Thngai Chum Ving Piphublok), Phnom Penh, Rasmei Pak Dek Voat, 1990.

3°/ Following “News of Cambodia” N° 0807 on Cambodia-Finland Friendship :

Before posting messages of our readers, we would prefer to give some precision about Finland:

What is the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) ?What are its objectives?
The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) is a project of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) designed to provide policy-oriented international indicators of the skills and knowledge of 15-year-old students. Three literacy domains are being assessed in PISA: Reading, Mathematics, and Science (More details on each domain are provided in the section on PISA Domains). Three cycles of PISA are planned. In each cycle, two-thirds of testing time will be devoted to a major literacy domain: Reading in 2000, Mathematics in 2003, and Science in 2006.
PISA aims to assess to what degree students approaching the end of their compulsory education have acquired some of the knowledge and skills that are essential for full participation in society. PISA hopes to answer the following questions:
· How well are young adults prepared to meet the challenges of the future?
· Are they able to analyse, reason and communicate their ideas effectively?
· Do they have the capacity to continue learning throughout life?
· Are some kinds of teaching and school organization more effective than others?

PISA 2006 Science Competencies for Tomorrow's World
PISA 2006: Science Competencies for Tomorrow’s World presents the results from the most recent PISA survey, which focused on science and also assessed mathematics and reading. It is divided into two volumes.
Volume 1: Analysis gives the most comprehensive international picture of science learning today, exploring not only how well students perform, but also their interests in science and their awareness of the opportunities that scientific competencies bring as well as the environment that schools offer for science learning. It places the performance of students, schools and countries in the context of their social background and identifies important educational policies and practices that are associated with educational success. By showing that some countries succeed in providing both high quality education and equitable learning outcomes, PISA sets ambitious goals for others.
Volume 2: Data/Données presents the PISA 2006 full data set underlying Volume 1.
Together with the PISA 2000 and PISA 2003 surveys, PISA 2006 completes the first cycle of assessment in the three key subject areas. PISA is now conducting a second cycle of surveys, beginning in 2009 with reading as the major subject and continuing in 2012 (mathematics) and 2015 (science).

Key findings
Finland, with an average of 563 score points, was the highest-performing country on the PISA 2006 science scale.
Six other high-scoring countries had mean scores of 530 to 542 points: Canada, Japan and New Zealand and the partner countries/economies Hong Kong-China, Chinese Taipei and Estonia. Australia, the Netherlands, Korea, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium and Ireland, and the partner countries/economies Liechtenstein, Slovenia and Macao-China also scored above the OECD average of 500 score points.
On average across OECD countries, 1.3% of 15-year-olds reached Level 6 of the PISA 2006 science scale, the highest proficiency level. These students could consistently identify, explain and apply scientific knowledge, and knowledge about science, in a variety of complex life situations. In New Zealand and Finland this figure was at least 3.9%, three times the OECD average. In the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan and Canada, as well as the partner countries/economies Liechtenstein, Slovenia and Hong Kong-China, between 2 and 3% reached Level 6.

Precision made by Khemara Jati: The evaluations are made in the language of the country.

(…)

Effectively, “certain aspect of the history looks like the history of Cambodia, which obliged to fight for protecting her independence and her sovereignty, between her two powerful neighbours, in the situation of the conflicts of the major powers' geostrategic interests. Does not the policy of Cambodian neutrality call back the policy of Finnish neutrality?”

We can say that Finland owes its survival to its great patriotism, to its national unity and, important matter for us Cambodians, at its high intellectual, technical and technological level and at its economic dynamism who are painfully lacking at home at the moment.

MS

(…)

Readers wrote to us :

4°/ About Preah Vihear and about our needs in electrical energy:

From a reader in Cambodia: Why still it does not have any comfortable road to go towards Preah Vihear of the Cambodian side? There are now tourists who wish to know better our country more but feel regret for the roads in very bad conditions.

Thailand is building a train from Poipet to Sisophon and a road from Sisophon to Anlong Veng. While the road from Sisophon always remains little feasible? Thailand intends now to build an immense electric power run by coal in the province of Koh Kong. Why such an electric power plant so polluting to us? Already all our western provinces use the thai electricity. Why put itself voluntarily under the dependence in electrical energy of Thailand? It is also a way to enrich the thai electric companies.

In the Eastern, the situation is even worse. Our farmers are obliged to sell their harvests and farm products to Vietnam with the very low price compare to the market price in Cambodia : The lacking of roads to sell them in Cambodia. The poor Cambodian farmers are obliged to sell their land to the Vietnamese who speculates the market of the land everywhere in Cambodia. More nobody protests against the construction of two big hydroelectric dams by the Vietnamese on our lands. These dams were built by Vietnameses : engineers and executives who come to settle definitively on our lands with their family including women and children. It is already the case for the construction of roads on our lands coming from Vietnam. Then the electricity is run by Vietnamese companies which sell it back to us the electricity from these dams. On the other hand the eastern part of Cambodia already uses the Vietnamese electricity. Soon Phnom Penh will also use the Vietnamese electricity. Our fellow countrymen on our borders pay the Vietnamese electricity 50 % more expensive than what it costs in Vietnam.

5°/ Reaction from a Cambodian, excerpts from KI Media of January 31, 2008, relating to the hydroelectric dams by Chinese :

Anonymous said...

· It would be nice if the Americans, the Britishs, the Australians, the Canadians or the Frenchs decide to help Cambodia by investing in those Hydro Power Dams. It would be great if they would come with a price not higher that the one asked by the Chinese. So far, why no one other than China answers to our request?

· How long we should depend on the Viets or the Thais for electrical power we need?How long we should wait for our economic development?

Khemara Jati
Montreal, Quebec
February 1st, 2008
khemarajati@sympatico.ca