Scouting in Cambodia
Encyclopedia
The National Association of Cambodian Scouts (NACS) (Khmer: សមាគមជាតិកាយារិទ្ធិកម្ពុជា) is the national Scouting
organization in Cambodia
. It was founded in September 2005 through the merger of the Scout Organization of Cambodia and the Cambodian Scouts (Khmer: ខេមរកាយារិទ្ធិកម្ពុជា) and became a member of the World Organization of the Scout Movement
(WOSM) on 1 July, 2008. The coeducational association serves 5,404 members as of 2011.
and other leaders. This first era of Cambodian Scouting spread over several provinces and numbered more than 1,000 members.
André Lefèvre
, chief of the Eclaireurs de France
, set up a training camp for 60 Scoutmasters from all over French Indochina
. At the end of 1937, French Scouting sent Scoutmaster Raymond Schlemmer
to the Cambodia
n, Laotian
, and Vietnam
ese areas of Indochina
to oversee the setting up of the Fédération Indochinoise des Associations du Scoutisme
(FIAS, Indochinese Federation of Scouting Associations) in all three regions.
From 1939 through 1945, the political situation affected Scouting activities all across the country, as World War II engendered a movement for an independent Cambodia. The French began to lose control and were finally overthrown by Japanese intervention. This ceased the French Scouts' activity in Cambodia, as well as all Scouting activities.
In 1956, the Cambodian Scouting movement was transformed into the Scouts of the Queen. That year, there were 500 active Scouts and Guides
in Phnom Penh
, and some 700 Scouts in the provinces of the Kingdom of Cambodia.
In 1957, under the direction of socialist-leaning Prince Norodom Sihanouk
, the Angkar Khemarak Kayarith was transformed into the Jeunesse Socialiste Royale Khmer (JSRK, the Royal Socialist Khmer Youth), with Sihanouk himself serving as president of the state ruled organization, now controlled by the Royal government. The 2,000 members and the leaders of Cambodian Scouting were permitted by the government to carry on activities. Scouts and Scout leaders attended the 8th World Scout Jamboree
in 1955 in Canada and the 10th World Scout Jamboree
in 1959 in the Philippines
, among them Prince Norodom Yuvaneath
, the son of Norodom Sihanouk.
On 1 November, 1964, Prince Sisowath Essaro, then President of the Angkar Khemarak Kayarith, announced the dissolution of the Cambodian Boy Scout Association, whose members were subsequently integrated into the Jeunesse Socialiste Royale Khmer, a government-sponsored socialist youth movement.
In 1972, the Cambodian Scouts were reestablished for a short period with ten groups, confined to the capital in Phnom Penh. In 1975, the movement was banned by the Khmer Rouge
communist regime.
Cambodian Scouting in exile existed at least into the early 1990s in Los Angeles
, alongside fellow Vietnamese Scouting in exile and Laotian Scouting in exile groups.
As the political system changed in the country, Scouting was gradually reestablished and Scout groups were organized in the refugee camp
s at the Thai
border. After the 1993 election supported by the United Nations, Beat Gruninger, a Swiss Scout
leader was commissioned by the World Scout Bureau to coordinate with Cambodian leaders for the possible rebirth of Scouting in the recovering land.
In 1994, two visits were made by the Asia-Pacific Region
to assess the development of the Cambodian Scout movement. As with Afghanistan, Scouting was conducted under the auspices of a government agency, in this case the Department of Youth and Sports. Asia-Pacific Region staff met the Minister of Education, Youth and Sports and several other government officials, after which full government support was assured.
In April 1996, the first Basic Unit Leaders Training Course was held in Phnom Penh, assisted by the National Scout Organization of Thailand
and the Asia-Pacific Regional office.
Subsequently, two main Scout groupings emerged in Cambodia and were registered in July 2000: the Scout Organization of Cambodia and the Cambodian Scouts. Both Scout associations were run by rival political parties. For this reason, WOSM could not admit either of them as a member. In the effort to unite these into a new single national association, the Coordinating Scout Committee of Cambodia (CSCC) was created on 21 April, 2000. A working group composed of leaders from the two groups was established in May 2005 to work on a new constitution and new bylaws. In September 2005, the National Association of Cambodian Scouts was created. It sought formal government recognition to launch it as a nongovernmental organization.
The World Scout Bureau Asia Pacific Regional Office reported in their May 2006 Newsletter, that the first annual general meeting
of the National Association of Cambodian Scouts was held on 27 April, 2006 in Phnom Penh, at which the constitution was adopted and the first office-bearers were elected.
The World Scout Bureau received an application for membership in the World Organization of the Scout Movement from the National Association of Cambodian Scouts in 2007. Members of the World Scout Bureau and of the Asia-Pacific Regional Office assessed the organization in November 2007; they proposed its admission to WOSM. Full WOSM membership was granted on 1 July 2008.
The National Association of Cambodian Scouts is planning to organize their first National Scout Jamboree, to be held in December 2008, close to the Angkor Wat
World Heritage Site
.
The National Association of Cambodian Scouts is divided in three sections according to age:
The Scout Motto is ត្រៀមខ្លួន, pronounced Triam Kloun.
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
organization in Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
. It was founded in September 2005 through the merger of the Scout Organization of Cambodia and the Cambodian Scouts (Khmer: ខេមរកាយារិទ្ធិកម្ពុជា) and became a member of the World Organization of the Scout Movement
World Organization of the Scout Movement
The World Organization of the Scout Movement is the Non-governmental international organization which governs most national Scout Organizations, with 31 million members. WOSM was established in 1920, and has its headquarters at Geneva, Switzerland...
(WOSM) on 1 July, 2008. The coeducational association serves 5,404 members as of 2011.
Earlier Scouting organizations
The original Khmer Scout Association Angkar Khemarak Kayarith (AKK, in Khmer: អង្គការខេមរកាយារិទ្ធិ) was created in 1934, under the direction of Prince Sisowath MonirethSisowath Monireth
Prince Monireth Sisowath was Prime Minister of Cambodia, during the French Protectorate Period, from October 17, 1945 to December 15, 1946. One of the most prominent members of the Sisowath line of the royal family at the time, he had earlier been passed over for the throne by the French...
and other leaders. This first era of Cambodian Scouting spread over several provinces and numbered more than 1,000 members.
André Lefèvre
André Lefèvre (Scouting)
André Lefèvre was National Commissioner of the Éclaireurs de France from 1922 to 1940. In the 1930s, Lefèvre set up a training camp for 60 Scoutmasters from all over French Indochina...
, chief of the Eclaireurs de France
Eclaireuses et Eclaireurs de France
Eclaireuses et Eclaireurs de France is an interreligious and coeducational Scouting and Guiding association in France. The first interreligious Scouting groups in France were founded in 1911, and interreligious Guiding started in 1914; both movements merged in 1964 forming the EEdF...
, set up a training camp for 60 Scoutmasters from all over French Indochina
French Indochina
French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887....
. At the end of 1937, French Scouting sent Scoutmaster Raymond Schlemmer
Raymond Schlemmer
Raymond Schlemmer was a seminal figure in the early history of Scouting in France, from 1922 to 1952.In late 1937, French Scouting sent Scoutmaster Schlemmer to the Cambodian, Laotian, and Vietnamese areas of Indochina to oversee the setting up of the Fédération Indochinoise des Associations du...
to the Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
n, Laotian
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
, and Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
ese areas of Indochina
Indochina
The Indochinese peninsula, is a region in Southeast Asia. It lies roughly southwest of China, and east of India. The name has its origins in the French, Indochine, as a combination of the names of "China" and "India", and was adopted when French colonizers in Vietnam began expanding their territory...
to oversee the setting up of the Fédération Indochinoise des Associations du Scoutisme
Fédération Indochinoise des Associations du Scoutisme
The Fédération Indochinoise des Associations du Scoutisme was the earliest Scouting governing body in French Indochina, encompassing several smaller Cambodian, Laotian, and Vietnamese Scout associations, open without bias of faith or political viewpoint, from 1930 to 1954...
(FIAS, Indochinese Federation of Scouting Associations) in all three regions.
From 1939 through 1945, the political situation affected Scouting activities all across the country, as World War II engendered a movement for an independent Cambodia. The French began to lose control and were finally overthrown by Japanese intervention. This ceased the French Scouts' activity in Cambodia, as well as all Scouting activities.
In 1956, the Cambodian Scouting movement was transformed into the Scouts of the Queen. That year, there were 500 active Scouts and Guides
Girl Guides
A Guide, Girl Guide or Girl Scout is a member of a section of some Guiding organisations who is between the ages of 10 and 14. Age limits are different in each organisation. It is the female-centred equivalent of the Scouts. The term Girl Scout is used in the United States and several East Asian...
in Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh is the capital and largest city of Cambodia. Located on the banks of the Mekong River, Phnom Penh has been the national capital since the French colonized Cambodia, and has grown to become the nation's center of economic and industrial activities, as well as the center of security,...
, and some 700 Scouts in the provinces of the Kingdom of Cambodia.
In 1957, under the direction of socialist-leaning Prince Norodom Sihanouk
Norodom Sihanouk
Norodom Sihanouk regular script was the King of Cambodia from 1941 to 1955 and again from 1993 until his semi-retirement and voluntary abdication on 7 October 2004 in favor of his son, the current King Norodom Sihamoni...
, the Angkar Khemarak Kayarith was transformed into the Jeunesse Socialiste Royale Khmer (JSRK, the Royal Socialist Khmer Youth), with Sihanouk himself serving as president of the state ruled organization, now controlled by the Royal government. The 2,000 members and the leaders of Cambodian Scouting were permitted by the government to carry on activities. Scouts and Scout leaders attended the 8th World Scout Jamboree
8th World Scout Jamboree
The 8th World Scout Jamboree was held in 1955 and was hosted by Canada at Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. The Jamboree saw the introduction of the World Membership Badge which is still worn on the uniforms of Scouts the world over....
in 1955 in Canada and the 10th World Scout Jamboree
10th World Scout Jamboree
The 10th World Scout Jamboree was held in 1959 and was hosted by the Philippines at Mount Makiling, Los Banos, Laguna. Dubbed as the "first World Jamboree in the Far East" and "The Bamboo Jamboree" due to nipa palm and Bamboo City, there were a total 12,203 Scouts from 44 countries. The theme was...
in 1959 in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, among them Prince Norodom Yuvaneath
Norodom Yuvaneath
Prince Norodom Yuvaneath is a son of the former king of Cambodia, Norodom Sihanouk and Princess Sisowath Pongsanmoni...
, the son of Norodom Sihanouk.
On 1 November, 1964, Prince Sisowath Essaro, then President of the Angkar Khemarak Kayarith, announced the dissolution of the Cambodian Boy Scout Association, whose members were subsequently integrated into the Jeunesse Socialiste Royale Khmer, a government-sponsored socialist youth movement.
In 1972, the Cambodian Scouts were reestablished for a short period with ten groups, confined to the capital in Phnom Penh. In 1975, the movement was banned by the Khmer Rouge
Khmer Rouge
The Khmer Rouge literally translated as Red Cambodians was the name given to the followers of the Communist Party of Kampuchea, who were the ruling party in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, led by Pol Pot, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Son Sen and Khieu Samphan...
communist regime.
Cambodian Scouting in exile existed at least into the early 1990s in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, alongside fellow Vietnamese Scouting in exile and Laotian Scouting in exile groups.
Reemergence of Scouting after 1990
Refugee camp
A refugee camp is a temporary settlement built to receive refugees. Hundreds of thousands of people may live in any one single camp. Usually they are built and run by a government, the United Nations, or international organizations, or NGOs.Refugee camps are generally set up in an impromptu...
s at the Thai
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
border. After the 1993 election supported by the United Nations, Beat Gruninger, a Swiss Scout
Swiss Guide and Scout Movement
The Swiss Guide and Scout Movement is the national Scouting and Guiding association of Switzerland...
leader was commissioned by the World Scout Bureau to coordinate with Cambodian leaders for the possible rebirth of Scouting in the recovering land.
In 1994, two visits were made by the Asia-Pacific Region
WOSM-Asia-Pacific Region
The Asia-Pacific Scout Region is the divisional office of the World Scout Bureau of the World Organization of the Scout Movement, headquartered in Makati City, Philippines, with satellite offices in Australia and Japan...
to assess the development of the Cambodian Scout movement. As with Afghanistan, Scouting was conducted under the auspices of a government agency, in this case the Department of Youth and Sports. Asia-Pacific Region staff met the Minister of Education, Youth and Sports and several other government officials, after which full government support was assured.
In April 1996, the first Basic Unit Leaders Training Course was held in Phnom Penh, assisted by the National Scout Organization of Thailand
The National Scout Organization of Thailand
The National Scout Organization of Thailand is the national Scouting organization of Thailand. Scouting was founded in Thailand in 1911 and was among the charter members of the World Organization of the Scout Movement in 1922...
and the Asia-Pacific Regional office.
Subsequently, two main Scout groupings emerged in Cambodia and were registered in July 2000: the Scout Organization of Cambodia and the Cambodian Scouts. Both Scout associations were run by rival political parties. For this reason, WOSM could not admit either of them as a member. In the effort to unite these into a new single national association, the Coordinating Scout Committee of Cambodia (CSCC) was created on 21 April, 2000. A working group composed of leaders from the two groups was established in May 2005 to work on a new constitution and new bylaws. In September 2005, the National Association of Cambodian Scouts was created. It sought formal government recognition to launch it as a nongovernmental organization.
The World Scout Bureau Asia Pacific Regional Office reported in their May 2006 Newsletter, that the first annual general meeting
Annual general meeting
An annual general meeting is a meeting that official bodies, and associations involving the public , are often required by law to hold...
of the National Association of Cambodian Scouts was held on 27 April, 2006 in Phnom Penh, at which the constitution was adopted and the first office-bearers were elected.
The World Scout Bureau received an application for membership in the World Organization of the Scout Movement from the National Association of Cambodian Scouts in 2007. Members of the World Scout Bureau and of the Asia-Pacific Regional Office assessed the organization in November 2007; they proposed its admission to WOSM. Full WOSM membership was granted on 1 July 2008.
The National Association of Cambodian Scouts is planning to organize their first National Scout Jamboree, to be held in December 2008, close to the Angkor Wat
Angkor Wat
Angkor Wat is a temple complex at Angkor, Cambodia, built for the king Suryavarman II in the early 12th century as his state temple and capital city. As the best-preserved temple at the site, it is the only one to have remained a significant religious centre since its foundation – first Hindu,...
World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
.
Program
To further the development of Scouting in Cambodia the association focuses on:- Orientation of adult leaders on Scouting at all levels
- Training of adult leaders
- Participating in various community development/service projects
- Production of a range of Scouting literature
- Establishment of partnerships with government and other external agencies
- Participation in regional and other national level Scout activities.
The National Association of Cambodian Scouts is divided in three sections according to age:
- Cub ScoutCub ScoutA Cub Scout is a member of the section of the worldwide Scouting movement for young persons, mainly boys normally aged about 7 to 11. In some countries they are known by their original name of Wolf Cubs and are often referred to simply as Cubs. The movement is often referred to simply as Cubbing...
s - ScoutsBoy ScoutA Scout is a boy or a girl, usually 11 to 18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement. Because of the large age and development span, many Scouting associations have split this age group into a junior and a senior section...
- Rovers.
Scout ideals
As with most other countries, the Scout sign and salute are made with three fingers.The Scout Motto is ត្រៀមខ្លួន, pronounced Triam Kloun.