… May I express my deep thanks to the venerable monk as well as our people in the district of Chamkaleou of Kompong Cham who offer me this valuable moment to inaugurate the Buddhist temple and I am grateful to see that our people have made efforts in realizing this achievement. The pagoda is just 22 years old but it has gone through four venerable head monks already. I hope it will stay on to be respectable by our people of many generations to come. This year of the goat could be said to be the year in which Buddhism has made great progress in Cambodia and I could say so because I have inaugurate so many temples already. Though we may follow different religions, still religion should in fact not stand as a barrier between us for a common effort to develop our country at all. Different political belief has in fact not separated us from one another in cooperating for the construction of our homeland. Take for instance Buddhism which is respected by all political parties and they could pray to the same Buddha. So this should not be a barrier to cooperation for development.
… It has been 24 years already since 1979 and we all have rebuilt our lives from scratch with difficulties but we have arrived at the present condition where, according to what I have seen, thatched cottages also have TV antenna above them. This indicates that our people have developed a reasonably good living condition and because they could improve their living condition they also could offer good food to our monks. The secular and Buddhist worlds are the two of complementary roles. If I were to sum up developments in all pagodas throughout the country, I would say it is not less than one billion dollars. It is a great amount of money. As far as poverty is concerned, it has not got wings to fly away on its own, and we have to make efforts ourselves to evade it. Once we could do that with our own strength, we would be helped by others.
… We still have more to be done. Our people in Chamkaleou are waiting for the renovation of the national road 71 which is 30 kilometres between the National Road 7 at Troung and the cross road to Speu. Now the construction site is under operation and the Mongrithy Company is implementing the project. The company has requested for imports of right-hand drive engines and I have accepted but they have to be exported elsewhere after the construction finished. We do not allow them to operate in Cambodia and/or to pay tax. As for the road requested by the Buddhist monks here I would say that the road has to be built and not just 33 kilometres but all the ways. I have to take this time to repeat my order the other day to the company of Oknha Srey Nguon to continue to build a nine kilometres road and two bridges between Haan Chei and the district of Stoeung Trang.
… I am glad that we have the presence of Oknha Duong Chhiv, who is the Head of the Chinese Association in Cambodia. We have lots of associations but we have mobilized them to support the one China policy as set out by the Royal Government. Oknha Duong Chhiv should remember what I recommended in the past and today I have decided to confer a medal to you for first to recognize your contribution to the economic construction of Cambodia and second to thank for the implementation of the Royal Government’s one-China policy. We have accepted only one Chinese flag which is the People’s Republic of China’s flag and this is our long-term policy. I wish to let you know that after PRC becomes a member of the World Trade Organization, PRC has offered its favour for three least developed countries of ASEAN – Cambodia, Laos and Myanma. As for Cambodia alone, PRC has allowed Cambodia to export to PRC 297 tax-free favoured products. We have got not a single product to export these days. Here in the district of Chamkaloeu we have rubber, rice, soybean, banana, groundnut, and cassava and they could be of value to export to China. PRC is a big market. In short we have to adhere to a one-China policy and as for Taipei only trade, tourism and investment relations would be allowed and diplomatic relation will not be approved.
… I have spent most of my time last night reviewing our historical records “Eksar Mohaborus Khmer or Documents of the Khmer Heroes.” I went through many times in my reading to find out exactly the size of Cambodia and under what reign that it was partially lost. The material is available everywhere in the market and we should buy and read them as they are very important documents about our history. Once we all know them well some people could not falsify the facts.
Samdech Hun Sen offered 20 million Riel to the pagoda of Trapeang Lpeo, 20 tons of cements to the pagoda of Mesar Chei, 10 tons of cement to the pagoda of Chey Muni, ten tons of cemenets to the pagoda of Seilaram, tem million Riel to the Mosque Au Krai, 10 million Riel to the Mosque Ak Mork, two school buildings of ten classrooms to the College of Speu, one school building of six classrooms to the Primary School of Trapeang Lpeo, one school building of six classrooms to the Primary School of Cheiyo, one school building of six classrooms to the Primary School of Trapeang Russei, a school building of six classrooms to the Primary School of Au Veay, a school building of six classrooms to the Primary School of Banteay Chei, 37 tons of rice for work to the commune of Cheyo and US$ 2600 to the pagoda of Cheyo.
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