Parents Meeting at Riverkids

On the 15th of October 2008, a parents meeting was organized by the Riverkids staff, twenty five participants from the Riverkids Community attended the meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to make the parents aware of the value of their children’s education and to encourage them to play an active role in their children’s learning process. In this new academic year, nearly one hundred kids have been reintegrated to the state school making them new students at the school. They are unfamiliar with their surroundings; they are afraid to meet their new teachers and are intimidated by the crowds of students. They do not know where they have to go to, they are not sure what is expected of them, at this time they especially need help and support from their parents.

During the meeting, we also had a special educational workshop on the topic of domestic violence. It was presented by Miss Azin, a volunteer from USA working with Riverkids for three weeks. In California Azin was a social worker who ran two domestic violence shelters. She introduced the topic of domestic violence to the community by defining what it is, discussing the different types of abuse, the cycle of violence, how to know if you are in an abusive relationship, the ways an abuser gains and maintains control and the legal rights of women in Cambodia who are abused. At the end of the presentation the audience was provided with the contact information of two organizations available in Phnom Penh for those who are interested in attaining services, these included the CWCC and PADV.

The parent’s meeting is a regular workshop conducted each month with the Riverkids community. The families and children here are faced with social problems such as child labor, domestic violence, neglect, trafficking, and drug abuse and so on. We take the time to discuss these issues with the families along with emphasizing the importance of education and the role of parents in the lives of their children. Working with the families in the slums (which is the poorest community) is difficult but we strongly hope that with the assistance of the Riverkids Projects the children and their families will be more educated and empowered; with the tools provided we feel that a brighter future is ahead of them.