Ministry Weary as Cupid Looms

Khmer Times/Ros Chanveasna

Valentine’s Day is destroying Cambodian culture, according to a letter released yesterday by the Ministry of Education. Their officials will have their eyes peeled this coming week in an effort to crack down on any controversial displays related to the lovers’ holiday on Saturday. According to the ministry, youths have begun to confuse Valentine’s Day with “Relationship Day or Dating Day,” using the 14th of recent years to engage in non-Cambodian revelry.

“This celebration doesn’t belong to our Cambodian culture and it also was not celebrated in the past. But as of a few years ago, this celebration has influenced and become more grown up, making youths overjoyed and causing them to forget their studies and lose their and their families’ honor. This has a negative effect on the unique culture and traditions of the nation as well,” the letter read. The ministry has instructed public and private schools throughout the country to strictly monitor any out-of-the-ordinary behavior in classes. Communication with parents of students “must be enhanced to strictly enforce the bylaws of schools – especially regarding morality and attendance.”

read more: http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/21225/ministry-weary-as-cupid-looms/

Expressing love and affection .....Should be a part of every culture!

It's ironic how what started as a Catholic holiday celebrating St. Valentine, has been so embraced by Thai & Cambodian Buddhist.

Expressing love and affection .....Should be a part of every culture!

Depends on how you define "expressing love and affection" sir.

making youths overjoyed!

We certainly do not want students to become overjoyed once per year...do we??

What a tragic turn of events for Cambodia...gone from the "killing fields" to having Cambodian youth expressing love and affection...what could be more disconcerting?

This celebration doesn’t belong to our Cambodian culture

well, but it will be as it is in uncountable countries in this world. You can't stop those changes and you can't preserve tradition.

You should'nt need a special day to display love and affection. This should be in us all all the time. In my country valentines day was never celebrated when I was a kid, Australia and NZ. It has only been introduced by businesses that could see as a way of making more money, greed, hardly love and affection.