Valentine's Day in Cambodia Once More; School Children Warned
Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2020 10:02 am
Every year, Cambodian authorities issue dire warnings to the youth of Cambodia on the evils of St Valentine's Day - giving flowers to the opposite sex, and vaguely alluding to sex and debauchery, all of which is contrary to Cambodian culture - and this year is no different:
February 13, 2020
Don’t skip school on Valentine’s Day: Officials tell youth
With the arrival of another Valentine’s Day today[sic], educational officials said that all institutions and guardians should prevent students and their children from “romantic pursuits which break Cambodian culture and tradition”.
In a statement issued Tuesday, Education Minister Hang Chuon Naron said that in the past, a small number of students have used the day as an excuse to skip school, while bringing shame on themselves and their families through behaviour that violates the country’s culture and tradition.
Mr Naron said that discipline should be strictly applied by monitoring students’ attendance.
“They [educational institutions] have to communicate closely with the students’ guardians and communities to provide and receive information about students’ misconduct in order to prevent, educate and correct them on time,” he said.
Education Ministry spokesman Ros Soveacha said the majority of students understand the meaning of Valentine’s Day as it is not a traditional Cambodian event, and still come to class.
He enouraged students to use their free time by doing socially beneficial work such as giving blood.
“On the afternoon of February 14, the ministry also plans to organise a lecture on Buddhist mental healthcare,” Mr Soveacha said.
Chou Bun Eng, a secretary of state at the Interior Ministry, said that young people should not misinterpret Valentine’s Day.
“Previously, we saw that some young people and children lost their dignity through an exchange of a flower and destroyed their future by shaming themselves,” Ms Bun Eng said.
https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50690277/d ... tell-youth
February 13, 2020
Don’t skip school on Valentine’s Day: Officials tell youth
With the arrival of another Valentine’s Day today[sic], educational officials said that all institutions and guardians should prevent students and their children from “romantic pursuits which break Cambodian culture and tradition”.
In a statement issued Tuesday, Education Minister Hang Chuon Naron said that in the past, a small number of students have used the day as an excuse to skip school, while bringing shame on themselves and their families through behaviour that violates the country’s culture and tradition.
Mr Naron said that discipline should be strictly applied by monitoring students’ attendance.
“They [educational institutions] have to communicate closely with the students’ guardians and communities to provide and receive information about students’ misconduct in order to prevent, educate and correct them on time,” he said.
Education Ministry spokesman Ros Soveacha said the majority of students understand the meaning of Valentine’s Day as it is not a traditional Cambodian event, and still come to class.
He enouraged students to use their free time by doing socially beneficial work such as giving blood.
“On the afternoon of February 14, the ministry also plans to organise a lecture on Buddhist mental healthcare,” Mr Soveacha said.
Chou Bun Eng, a secretary of state at the Interior Ministry, said that young people should not misinterpret Valentine’s Day.
“Previously, we saw that some young people and children lost their dignity through an exchange of a flower and destroyed their future by shaming themselves,” Ms Bun Eng said.
https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50690277/d ... tell-youth
