Chuoy Sarin passed away at the age of 77 on Friday 28, June 2000 in her home, a hut adjoining the "Bos", a small wooden Buddhist worship hall she had built in the Preah Si Ar Metriy temple grounds in Angkor Thom. She was known amongst us as "Yiey Pnong" or "Grandmother Pnong" for the ethnic minority group of this name. According to Yiey Pnong, her father was from this ethnic group, and her mother was Lao from Stung Treng. A soldier in the French ranks, her father was transferred to Siem Reap during the Issara period. The family followed andYiey Pnong was to live out her life in the Angkor area. Yiey Pnong was illiterate. She was born into a poor family and was only to know precarious material circumstances. She dedicated herself to the care of the sick and orphans, sending "her children" for the schooling she never had. Yiey Pnong brought only dignity and the fruits of giving with her to the other world. The convictions Yiey Pnong bore so humbly yet so proudly are well summed up by the Khmer national motto "Nation - Religion - King". Angkor has lost a daughter whose love for Cambodia's cultural heritage is unsurpassed. Farewell, Yiey Pnong!

News from temple restoration sites

The restoration of the eastern gate of the ancient Royal Palace of Angkor Thom carried out by the ITASA (Indonesian Technical Assistance for Safeguarding Angkor) team was completed at the end of April 2000. A formal completion ceremony will be held at a later date.

Restoration work at Preah Ko temple, financed largely by the German Government and implemented by GACP (German Apsara Conservation Project) team was completed at the end of May 2000. The APSARA Authority is currently seeking a partner with which to establish a collaborative project for continuing restoration work at Preah Ko.

On March 29, 2000, a ceremony was held to officially inaugurate restoration work at Chau Say Tevoda temple by he Chinese Team for Safeguarding Angkor. Presiding delegates included H.R.H. Norodom Bopha Devi, H.E. Nam Tum, H.E. Yang Tin Ai, Ambassador for the People's Republic of China; and Mr. Zang Bai, Vice-President of the Chinese National Office for Cultural Relics.

Preparatory work for the restoration of the entrance causeway to Angkor Vat (Sophia University Angkor International Mission in collaboration with the APSARA Authority) is well underway, in accordance with plans established by Professor Masao Katagiri. The team is currently dismantling pavement and underlying stones of the northern section of the causeway.

Research

1 . The first issue of Udaya, Journal of Khmer Studies, is currently in press. Although as a rule, the journal welcomes articles on any aspect of Cambodian culture in its largest sense (archaeology, anthropology, linguistics, history, litterature, art, religion, etc...), from time to time we will produce a thematic issue. Such is the case with the inaugural issue on Cambodian ceramics.

2 . The French Government has confirmed continued financial support of a research project on the history of Angkor Thom. The project, centered on Angkor Thom's ancient Royal Palace complex, is carried out by the Mission Archéologique Française au Cambodge in collaboration with the EFEO, under the direction of archaeologists Jacques Gaucher. Research is planned out over the coming four years and will pursue initial finding from two field campaigns carried out in the 1990s. This work promises to significantly broadens understanding of Angkor Thom.

3 . Research on the ancient kilns of Tani village is continuing as planned. Excavation work on two kilns was renewed in February and March by members of the Sophia and Nara teams in collaboration with APSARA.

Training and recruitment

The Ta Nei training programme was formally concluded on March 31, 2000 with a certificate distribution ceremony. On the twenty Ta Nei graduates, sixteen were recruited by APSARA. These new employees form the core of a variety of new technical teams operating throughout the Park, including, amongst others, a unit for the Conservation of Angkor Thom, a Maintenance Unit, a Village and Temple Research Unit and a Cultural Heritage Inventory Unit.

Department of Archaeology Field trip to Angkor

Fourth year students of Phnom Penh's Department of Archaeology (Royal University of Fine Arts) make a fieldtrip to Angkor every year. APSARA contributes to this study trip by providing teaching, logistics, and financial assistance. During their time in the field, students explore civilization at Angkor from pre-historical to modern times, with a particular emphasis on the Angkorian and post-Angkorian periods. This year's trip was held in February.

Cultural Objects

Protection of the cultural heritage is not yet sufficiently ensured. Pillaging and vandalism continue, though the rate of destruction would seem to have been somewhat reduced. This situation is at least partially attributable to a recent restructuration of the Cultural Heritage Police Force by the Ministry of the Interior and associated enhanced support of the Police Force by APSARA. Two ancient pots were found in two different locales and turned into the APSARA Authority upon discovery. These cultural objects are to be transferred to the Angkor Conservation for safekeeping.

The Kulen

In January of this year we began surveys of relatively isolated archaeological sites atop the Kulen mountain range. Though we have yet to visit all identified sites in the area, initial observation of those accessible confirms that Kulen heritage has been, and perhaps continues to be the object of extensive pillaging. Two important kiln sites, at Thnal Mrec and in the village of Sasai, demonstrate the gravity of the situation. We also join other authorities in sounding the alert to the pillaging of sites beyond the Angkor area, such as the astoundingly violent and recent destruction of Preah Khan Svay.

Tradition and Religion

With increased security across the region, and in spite of persistent poverty, the cultural life of isolated communities in and beyond the Angkor Park is currently undergoing a renaissance. Maintaining the traditions of their ancestors with particular fervour, these materially poor villagers constitutes an invaluable part of the national cultural heritage. The APSARA Authority makes a point of supporting local initiated cultural activities, such as the ceremonial incineration of the Vat Run temple Superior held in March 2000. The notable increase in religious practice inside the Angkor Park is of a somewhat different nature. This difference is largely due to the fact that religious events, as well as the general daily management of religious practices in the central Park area, are increasingly financed and organised by people from provincial cities or Phnom Penh, or from abroad. This activity can have a positive impact on cultural heritage preservation and cultural life in general; one example of such a case is the traditionally designed and aesthetically pleasing new vihear recently consecrated at Vat Kong Chum in Angkor Thom. Yet, the often overriding commercial aspects of "religious" activity in the Park should also be noted. APSARA is currently seeking close collaboration with religious authorities at all levels, along with concerned local villagers, to protect and promote genuine religious practices.

Urban and tourism development

1 . The Royal Government has announced a new policy concerning urban develoment in the town of Siem Reap and tourism development in the Angkor Park. Services associated with tourism, such as transport, emergency medical care, restrooms... have to be created or improved. The roads of the "Petit" and "Grand" circuit are to be repaired, and the road to Banteay Srei is to be tarred. The Royal Governement has also requested that APSARA manages 1007 hectares of land east of Siem Reap town.

2 . Establishment of the Siem Reap hotel zone is a governmental priority. In a first phase, infrstructures are to be established across sixty hectares of the zone in order to ensure major hotel group investment. An interministerial committee is presently resolving issues concerning previous occupation of the land in question. Following public information campaigns regarding land use, and after indemnisation, the majority of concerned occupants have moved from the area, enabling APSARA to begin preparations for the construction of a new road from the zone to the Park. A first stretch of the road will lead to a new bridge to be built across the Siem Reap river, where it will then join the second stretch running north into the Park, to cover a total of some ten kilometers.Rescue excavations are currently being carried out along this planned road situated in a protected archaeological reserve. The Royal Government has received assistance from the French Government for these public works.

3 . In the framework of tourism development, APSARA has also collaborated with the Sokha Hotel company to build new ticket booths for entrance into the Park. (All profits are managed by this private company which was awarded a concession by the Royal Government.)

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