Neouy at her family home
NEOUY’S STORY
Neouy is 21 years old, and lives with her parents and younger siblings in a rural village in Ratanak Kiri province,
Cambodia. She has had difficulty moving since her left leg was damaged during an illness when she was 3 years old.
Since completing training in make-up skills through Plan International and Krousar Yoeung’s project, Vocational
Training for Disadvantaged Young People, Neouy says this is the happiest time in her life.
When I was 3 year-old I was sick. My body was very heated
and at that time my parents offered one pig and one cow to
our spirit to pray for my recovery. This is the belief among
our Kreung ethnic people. My parents wanted to bring me to
the hospital at the centre of Voen Sai district but my parents
didn’t have money, and if we went we had to walk from our
home about half a day because there is no road for a vehicle
yet. My village is located in a forest.
Days later, my left leg was smaller and I cannot move it. I was
so hurt. My family was not happy and some missed their
work in the field. My father was very sad and told me,
“Father feels so upset. Father loves children but father
cannot help.”
My left leg is almost gone and I cannot move properly. When
I was 11, I wanted to go to school and I went on my feet to
enroll my name for grade one at school for my first time,
accompanied by my older sisters. We walked to school
together. Along the way to school, I stopped three or four
times because my leg hurt. I left home at 6 AM for school
and I arrived at the school at 8:30AM on a less than 10 km
road.
That was the first time that I could see the school and also
the last time. I missed it forever. The school that I
remembered was three classrooms at Vong Primary School
and in my classroom there were about 10 students.
I will never forget that time - the time that my classmates ran
away from me when they saw me like this. I felt so upset and
I cried when I heard my male classmates curse me and say
they didn’t want to be friends with me because I am a
disabled girl. My male classmates said that they detested
me. Some of the boys are living in the same village with me. I
don’t want to meet them.
It is not only because of my disability, but also my family
condition that prevented me from going to class. The rice
yields from the 2 hectares of land could feed ten members in
my family for nine months only, and we lack rice for three
months each year. So my two older sisters also had to give
up school and went to sell their labor on the farm with my
parents, leaving me at home to look after my five younger
siblings, one girl and four boys.
Among my eight siblings, only the second sister could finish
grade 6 and there was no secondary school near my village.
In general, the ethnic population density is 1km each. We
have a house in the village and a hut at our farm. I moved to
live on the farm with my family. Simply, ethnic people have
two houses and they move to prepare and live on their farm
before the agriculture season, which falls between June and
December.
I live on the farm and look after my siblings. I don’t often
… NEOUY’S STORY
meet other teenagers. After harvesting in March, our culture
is to celebrate an event every year similar to New Year,
called ‘Bun Phome’, where I can meet others villagers.
Actually, I prefer to stay home.
I want to have friends but no one wants to be my friend. I
only play with my siblings at my house. Coming to this point,
I feel so sad because my younger sister also passed away
when she was 5 years old, due to sickness. She died in 2001
when I was seven.
I don’t know what kind of sickness took her life away. My
father and one of my older sisters used a hammock to carry
my sick sister, walking along the forest to the health centre
at Voen Sai where they spent half a day. I only cried and I
couldn’t hear her last words. My parents already offered
animals to the spirits, following our traditional way to treat
her, and also brought her to the hospital. But both ways no
one can help her back. If my sister was brought to see the
doctor earlier, she might have been helped.
I became lonelier. I was so sorry - I didn’t want to lose my
sister. She would help me to look after our siblings, to run
our house and to cook together.
My sister died and I am a disabled girl. I was isolated from
other people. I have lived with this situation since then. I
often dreamt at night that I could walk as normal, but when I
awoke and saw my leg I cried.
In 2012, I had a radio. It cost about 35,000 Riels
(approximately US$ 8.75). When I was 19 years old, the radio
was my best friend. I listened to the radio every day. I like
listening to music and I heard many advertisements. The
radio station is at Banlung town of Ratanak Kiri province.
They broadcast in ethnic and Khmer languages.
I can understand Khmer language as well. I heard them talk
about cosmetics and I liked it.
I remembered it was in December 2013, the month that
brought me new hope for my life. The village leader came to
tell me about an opportunity for disabled people like me and
other youths who were living with a vulnerability to access
vocational training at the Banlung town. Then, NGO [nongovernment organization] staff came to talk to me and my
parents about this opportunity. I decided to choose to learn
a short course on makeup skills.
The 25th of December 2013 was the day that I had to move
from my house to the town. I was full of mixed feelings - the
feelings that I never had! I cleaned my house, my dishes, and
my kitchen and so on without tiring.
I did want to go to this school but I was so afraid. I was afraid
of people who would look down on me. That day, my
parents, and especially my older sister, tried to persuade me
to go for this opportunity. I packed my stuff and decided to
go.
I had lots of first times and this was my first time again! I
dreamt a lot about the school at night and I woke up a few
times. My first time that I was in a car, my first time that I
met new friends, my first time that I saw lots of people in the
town and my first time that I left my family.
My parents, my sisters and my brothers, they comforted me
warmly when we lived together. But I had to go for skills to
help my life get better. Because of my leg, I cannot do
farming.
When I got in the car I felt so ashamed with the people
around me. Along the way to the Ratanak Kiri Provincial
Training Centre (PTC) I saw green trees, river and we
chitchatted in the car. It was a bit relaxing. The car carried 12
youths from Vorng commune at 8 o’clock in the morning,
and ran on bumpy road to reach the centre at about 11.
When I got out of the car I just know only me, and that I
walked unlike others. I became homesick easily. I kept
shaming myself to walk among other students. However,
something was not like I was afraid of…
Today, life is changed. I have lived and learnt in the centre
for four months to complete my makeup skills. The teachers
and classmates here are kind to me and I have good friends
here. The teachers encourage me and my friends do not
mind about my disability.
I studied hard and became an outstanding student among
the 19 in my makeup class. This is the happiest time for me
to be here and equip me with this skill that I never think I can
do it in my life.
In April 2014, I came back home with the skills I got at
school. Now people in my village come to me for cleaning
their nails and to do some basic makeup services for them
during special events, like wedding receptions and other
parties. I want to have a small shop in front of my house with
makeup materials and my parents promise me they will
construct the shop in early New Year 2015.
I will live with my disabled leg and, if I can make good money
from my skill, I will not go to see a doctor for treatment for
my leg because I think it is already gone.
Now, I am thinking about my future shop. If the opportunity
provides for me again I will go for additional skills, like how
to mix powders and skin care techniques.
I am changed now.
The Vocational Training Project is managed by Plan International in partnership
with Krousar Yoeung and the Royal Government of Cambodia’s Provincial
Training Centres, and funded by the Australian Government and public
donations.