US Students Bring Menstrual Pads for Cambodian Village Women

CEOCambodiaNews · Post by **CEOCambodiaNews** » Wed Apr 03, 2019 12:03 pm

PUBLISHED: April 2, 2019 at 9:10 am | UPDATED: April 2, 2019 at 9:38 am
West Valley College effort on Cambodia feminine hygiene

Re: “Access to feminine hygiene poses major issue globally” (Letter to the editor, March 19):

At a time when global issues focus mainly on war, economics and political tensions, Franceli Zaragoza’s gets a big shout out for pointing to the life-limiting effects on women from lack of feminine hygiene care in the developing world.

While there are government and non-government agencies offering coming-of-age education and pads, I want to acknowledge a local group for its volunteering to introduce a UNESCO-supported program of instruction on feminine hygiene to the women and girls of a remote village in Cambodia.

Twenty students from West Valley College’s Society for Global Citizenship went to Cambodia in February as a service learning project to the Doris Dillon School in Cambodia. They solicited donations for getting a big supply of pads and instructional material in the local Khemai language. They want to do more but could use more donations. We should all be proud of these students.

Ken Colson
San Jose

RickyBobby · Post by **RickyBobby** » Wed Apr 03, 2019 12:16 pm

CEOCambodiaNews wrote: ↑Wed Apr 03, 2019 12:03 pm
PUBLISHED: April 2, 2019 at 9:10 am | UPDATED: April 2, 2019 at 9:38 am
West Valley College effort on Cambodia feminine hygiene

Re: “Access to feminine hygiene poses major issue globally” (Letter to the editor, March 19):

At a time when global issues focus mainly on war, economics and political tensions, Franceli Zaragoza’s gets a big shout out for pointing to the life-limiting effects on women from lack of feminine hygiene care in the developing world.

While there are government and non-government agencies offering coming-of-age education and pads, I want to acknowledge a local group for its volunteering to introduce a UNESCO-supported program of instruction on feminine hygiene to the women and girls of a remote village in Cambodia.

Twenty students from West Valley College’s Society for Global Citizenship went to Cambodia in February as a service learning project to the Doris Dillon School in Cambodia. They solicited donations for getting a big supply of pads and instructional material in the local Khemai language. They want to do more but could use more donations. We should all be proud of these students.

Ken Colson
San Jose

It's always about those poor girls ... An easy way to pull on the heart strings and open the wallets isn't it.

I don't know. It seems you can get every essential almost everywhere in Cambodia, not the least of which is sanitary napkins.

Anyhow, the vagina is an amazing self cleaning system, and aside from being messy, the menstruation is not a hygiene problem. The function of a pad is just to stop the blood from getting all over the linen or leaving an embarrassing stain on your white jeans.

In my moms day, she told me they used rags, and just washed them. So the rest was just an issue of comfort and efficiency.

I could be wrong, (its happened before) but to me this is just another naive misguided feminist endeavor.

Khmerican · Post by **Khmerican** » Wed Apr 03, 2019 12:43 pm

Imagine how many more they could have provided if it wasn't necessary for all 20 of the students to personally deliver the pads. Yes, we should be all so proud of them.

Twenty students from West Valley College’s Society for Global Citizenship went to Cambodia in February as a service learning project to the Doris Dillon School in Cambodia. They solicited donations for getting a big supply of pads and instructional material in the local Khemai language. They want to do more but could use more donations. We should all be proud of these students.

davegorman · Post by **davegorman** » Wed Apr 03, 2019 12:48 pm

Apart from the fact RickyBobby had conversations about her mums periods, so weird.

I think it’s very rare a Cambodian (not just Khmer) female would not have access, and knowledge, to cheap pads, 2500 riel for 10 pads, which for most girls would last their whole cycle.

Another pointless charity. (Let’s hope the kids take something positive home)

rozzieoz · Post by **rozzieoz** » Wed Apr 03, 2019 12:54 pm

Oh god I love it when men talk about women’s issues.

If men had periods they would have found a cure for it years ago.

RickyBobby · Post by **RickyBobby** » Wed Apr 03, 2019 1:03 pm

davegorman wrote: ↑Wed Apr 03, 2019 12:48 pm Apart from the fact RickyBobby had conversations about her mums periods, so weird.

I think it’s very rare a Cambodian (not just Khmer) female would not have access, and knowledge, to cheap pads, 2500 riel for 10 pads, which for most girls would last their whole cycle.

Another pointless charity. (Let’s hope the kids take something positive home)

MY MOM. Born in Germany 1935. Knew hunger and hardship, and the most saintly selfless woman I know.

But you're right. Its not expensive, and almost every girl uses pads not tampons. I am just saying that rags would work if in a pinch.

I once listened to a christian missionary pitch the washable re-usable pads as a fundraising initiative, FOR CAMBODIA. I later asked him if he had ever been; he had not. Pffft.

No one in the west really knows the need but wants that feel good "I helped a poor vulnerable girl" feeling.

I have read some reports about young girls menstrual cycles affecting their ability to attend school for lack of supplies. I think it was Africa based, and sounds sensible that somewhere perhaps, this does happen.

The reusable pads are a good initiative because they also are tied to enterprise whereby women in poor communities can be set up to make them and earn an income. That's a double bonus.

More often than not, these initiatives like mentioned in the OP exploit a lot. The tour is often a missionary thing that the individual participants are given tools to fund-raise their costs to go. The organizer makes money on the whole trip which is for them, (missionary) tourism.

These girls then are brainwashed with sad photos of poor brown people, and they go and see, and then come home and fund raise more.

No matter how good the cause, once people see it can make money, it will be overtaken by greedy people more often than not and exploited. There's no better way to dump out the purses than to pull on the heartstrings with those poor girls stories.

RickyBobby · Post by **RickyBobby** » Wed Apr 03, 2019 1:09 pm

A better model is to empower the smart young Khmer ladies to go and teach hygiene, and give them the tools and money to do it. Don't need some entitled brats from the west to do it.

davegorman · Post by **davegorman** » Wed Apr 03, 2019 1:20 pm

I think Tampon use in Cambodia is about zero. Partly because there’s very little supply (Omo?) and it’s taboo for a young lady to stick things up her vag.
Ok maybe not taboo as such but it’s not something parents/grandparents talk about and compared to pads they are quite complicated to use.

I’ve had to explain all this to my wife when we first met as she asked why her periods were so heavy. I’ve also had the talk to one of my daughters back home because her mum is a, appropriately, a cunt.

Wow. Periods, tampons.
To quote Felgerkarb “WTF are we talking about!”

ali baba · Post by **ali baba** » Wed Apr 03, 2019 1:30 pm

rozzieoz wrote: ↑Wed Apr 03, 2019 12:54 pm Oh god I love it when men talk about women’s issues.

If men had periods they would have found a cure for it years ago.

The oral contraceptive pill was invented by a man.

rozzieoz · Post by **rozzieoz** » Wed Apr 03, 2019 1:30 pm

I know Khmer girls who use tampons.

Seriously, men should not get involved in secret women’s business.

US Students Bring Menstrual Pads for Cambodian Village Women

US Students Bring Menstrual Pads for Cambodian Village Women

Re: US Students Bring Menstrual Pads for Cambodian Village Women

Re: US Students Bring Menstrual Pads for Cambodian Village Women

Re: US Students Bring Menstrual Pads for Cambodian Village Women

Re: US Students Bring Menstrual Pads for Cambodian Village Women

Re: US Students Bring Menstrual Pads for Cambodian Village Women

Re: US Students Bring Menstrual Pads for Cambodian Village Women

Re: US Students Bring Menstrual Pads for Cambodian Village Women

Re: US Students Bring Menstrual Pads for Cambodian Village Women

Re: US Students Bring Menstrual Pads for Cambodian Village Women

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