Y Sida: Striving to Live for My Children and My Country
Y Sida and one of her twin children. Her family were displaced from their home in Oddar Meanchey Province for the second time during the December fighting. DC-Cam
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A research team from the Hill Tribes Memory Community Center in Mondulkiri province visited a young family who were displaced twice from their home in Pongro village, Ampil commune, Ampil district, Oddar Meanchey province, by Thai military aggression.
When the team arrived on the morning of February 1, Sida was looking after her newborn twins. Her husband was at his construction job in the village, where he earns 40,000 riels a day.
When asked about her and her family’s health condition, Sida explained that the twins had just been discharged from the hospital after catching a cold due to extreme cold two weeks ago.
Her eldest son was attending class at primary school in Putang village. It had been 50 days since Sida and her family moved to Putang village to escape the fighting.
The family is one of many who have not yet returned home. They are among the 100,000 people remaining in makeshift displacement camps, since the second phase of the Thai military invasion of Cambodia began on December 7, 2025.
When asked about her stay in Putang village, Sida said:
“I want to go back to my hometown in Oddar Meanchey province, but I don’t know when. I just called my mother and she said, ‘Don’t come home yet because the Thai people voted for the same person [Anutin Charnvirakul] who invaded us. The situation is not good. If you can stay in Mondulkiri, stay there because you have small children. Wait until we have lasting peace and I will keep you posted’.”
“Hearing that, I didn’t dare to go back. Maybe I’ll stay in Putang for a while longer. I’ll wait until it’s completely safe and until my eldest son has entered grade 6 or 7 here. When we move, it makes my child lose concentration and he cannot stay focused on studying. Hence, my husband and I decided to stay longer in Putang. My brother has agreed to let my family live with him in his house,” she added.
She spoke further about the impact of the displacement.
“This hardship is not comparable to the hardships of previous generations who fought through the war and survived to this day. My father is 54 years old. He was evacuated when he was young, lived through the war and survived. We are proud and grateful to the Cambodian soldiers who defended us and our land,” she said.
“Even though the weather here is very cold for me and we are economically disadvantaged, we can adapt little by little. As young parents, we must continue to fight for our children. I hope we will get justice and the world will not stand by and watch us suffer,” she added.
So farina is DC-Cam’s Principal Deputy Director on charge of Hill Tribes Memory Community Center, Mondulkiri. The views and opinions expressed are her own.
-Phnom Penh Post-
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