What do you think of at Christmas time? Food, presents, carols, or this year maybe even snow? After arriving back in frosty England after two weeks visiting Christian Aid partners in Cambodia, I found it quite difficult to feel at home in my comparatively luxurious house.

Don’t get me wrong, it was great to be back for Christmas with friends and family, but it was hard to settle back in. Let me set the scene. We were sitting at Christmas dinner, and as often happens, we started discussing ‘dinner party’ topics such as politics; complaints about the coalition government, about the cuts, and about the Wikileaks story sped around the table. My mind drifted off… how do our political concerns in the UK compare to those of Cambodian citizens?

In Cambodia, only 10% of the media is free from governmental control. How does this lack of freedom of speech and corruption continue? Why is it allowed to happen? Corruption persists throughout Cambodian society from the grassroots level right up to the high ministers. It’s a society where the weak rule of law generally favours the rich and powerful rather than the poor.

'While 1.4% of government expenditure went on agriculture, the office minister received a tidy 4.4%. How is it possible that huge sums of money like his can disappear without a trace, when more than two thirds of Cambodia’s people live on less than $2 a day?'

Corruption and contradiction are relevant concepts in Cambodia’s dramatic history, perhaps most notably in the communist Khmer Rouge regime in the 1970s. The Khmer Rouge claimed to believe in an equal education and background for all. In their case, this meant rejecting and persecuting the middle and upper classes and the educated.  All academics, foreign language speakers, and even those who wore glasses were massacred. The irony of the fact that the four top Khmer Rouge leaders themselves had studied in Paris, spoke fluent French, and been exposed to western lifestyles makes the situation all the more baffling.

The Khmer Rouge claimed in believing that the 'base people' – those from rural areas who hadn’t been ‘infected’ by the West – were the future. However, Khmer Rouge HQ was in Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital and most developed city. They claimed to be fighting for social equality; and in the process 1.7 million people died from starvation, torture or murder while the regime’s elite grew plump in safety. Almost a third of Cambodia’s population were wiped out by the murderous, hypocritical regime.

My mind was brought crashing back to the UK when the flaming Christmas pud arrived on the table. We stuffed ourselves with food… and yet we still complain about our lifestyles. The reality is we can’t compare our lives in the UK to the situation in Cambodia. In the South East Asian country, corruption continues. Last year $3-5 million of the government budget mysteriously vanished. While 1.4% of government expenditure went on agriculture the office minister received a tidy 4.4%, according to development coalition group the NGO Forum. How is it possible that huge sums of money like his can disappear without a trace, when more than two thirds of Cambodia’s people live on less than $2 a day?

What my trip taught me is that numerous organisations and community groups are seizing the moment and fighting for a better future for Cambodia and its people. Christian Aid partner Development Partnership in Action is doing this by working to protect the rights of rural communities. They educate people about land rights and enable them to hold their government to account; perhaps the only way that corruption will decrease and the government become more transparent.

We visited a DPA project in a beautiful, remote fishing community and met the delightful Hak Sokh On, the enthusiastic village chief. Hak, although only partially literate due to a lack of education during the war, has great hopes for the future of his village, and wants his children to go to school and get a good education. His passion and commitment has already enabled such great improvements in his village, and Cambodia needs community leaders and representatives like him to push for these types of changes to build a fairer future.

'...We were joined by a dozen or so young people from saffron-robed monks to school students, all involved in local politics and passionate for change. This is exactly what is needed; the general public to take an interest in their country’s future and make their voices heard'

The Khmer Youth Association, another Christian Aid partner, is working on a different form of advocacy, working to engage young people in global issues and participate in governmental decisions and their democratic right. This is so unusual in Cambodia because of the fear of politics and politicians stemming from the Khmer Rouge period. When we visited their offices we were joined by a dozen or so young people from saffron-robed monks to school students, all involved in local politics and passionate for change. This is exactly what is needed; the general public to take an interest in their country’s future and make their voices heard. One girl told us “when I was a student I didn’t know about social issues…then I joined KYA and now I know I can do more…I know my duty with social development”.

This grassroots level work of Cambodian NGOs is vital in holding the government to account and ensuring that the people have a say in how their country is run. If we’re serious about putting a stop to corruption, community leaders and representatives need to be empowered into action, political participation and advocacy from a grassroots level up. By making these progressive changes in the present, we can ensure that Cambodia’s future is brighter than its past.

To learn more about Christian Aid's work in Cambodia, click here

Words: Hannah Griffiths

Photos: Hannah Henderson