austraLasia #2706
Thai Provincial highlights importance of communications
Sihanoukville: 4 August 2010 -- In a conference on 2 September to students and teachers of the social communication section of the Sihanoukville Salesian community, the Salesian Provincial for Thailand, Cambodia and Laos, Fr John Bosco Thepharat Pitisant, underlined the importance of communications for the Salesian mission and the development of societies like Cambodia.
Fr Thepharat spoke as part of his canonical visit to the Don Bosco schools in Cambodia, mainly in Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville, where he participated in their respective Graduation Days. About 800 young people finished their 24-month technical formation in both schools this year in fields including general mechanics, electricity, secretarial studies, hotel management, automotive mechanics, social communications. Since 1991 Don Bosco has given technical certificates to some five thousand young people from the most impoverished communities of Cambodia, especially rural areas and for very low affordable fees, while relying on charitable funds to cover the rest.
On Graduation Day at Sihanoukville on August 13, the governor of the city, Mr Bong Sarath and other members of the city authorities, visited the school and greeted the newly graduated Don Bosco technicians. Fr Thepharat and Mr. Sarath exchanged thanks and talked about the contribution of the Don Bosco schools for the development of the country by offering skills formation to young people from poor communities. For Fr Thepharat, this gesture of Mr Sarath as governor of the port city is a very important encouragement for the continuation of the Salesian mission in the region and in the Kingdom of Cambodia.
Thursday, September 2, was Fr Thepharat's final day in Sihanoukville and Cambodia. By way of closure to his official visit to the centre, he addressed a conference to the students and teachers of the social communication section in the Don Bosco Audiovisual Centre TV studio. As the students have by now completed their first year and one of their skills is English as a second language, the conference was done entirely in English. Fr Thepharat encouraged the project and underlined the importance of areas like communication and information technology for the Salesian Mission and the development of countries like Cambodia. He said to the 18 young students that they must dream the best future for their country. His desire for the section was that it might be able to afford the creation of a radio station and television channel. He said that in Thailand the government has opened up the possibility to create Radio Communities and with that idea the Salesians have already founded three radio stations that have been very important for the encounter with contemporary young people in the country. "If Don Bosco were alive at this time, he would be very happy with the Internet, radio, television, the modern media, to reach more and more young people," he said.
Fr Thepharat also motivated the Salesian communities in Cambodia to welcome the Don Bosco Casket due to arrive in Cambodia in December 2010 for three days. The Pilgrimage of the Don Bosco Casket began in Turin on April 2009 as a way of preparing the Salesian world for the celebration of the bi-centenary of the birth of Saint John Bosco (1815 - 2015).
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AustraLasia is an email service for the Salesian Family of Asia Pacific. It also functions as an agency for ANS based in Rome. For queries please contact admin@bosconet.aust.com . Use Bosconet-wiki to be interactive. RSS feeds - just go to Bosconet, click on austraLasia 2009 in the sidebar. You will see the RSS orange icon in your browser address bar - add it from there. Or be interactive with the EAO blog Cetera Tolle. Avail yourself of the Salesian Digital Library at http://sdl.sdb.org
Thai Provincial highlights importance of communications
Sihanoukville: 4 August 2010 -- In a conference on 2 September to students and teachers of the social communication section of the Sihanoukville Salesian community, the Salesian Provincial for Thailand, Cambodia and Laos, Fr John Bosco Thepharat Pitisant, underlined the importance of communications for the Salesian mission and the development of societies like Cambodia.
Fr Thepharat spoke as part of his canonical visit to the Don Bosco schools in Cambodia, mainly in Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville, where he participated in their respective Graduation Days. About 800 young people finished their 24-month technical formation in both schools this year in fields including general mechanics, electricity, secretarial studies, hotel management, automotive mechanics, social communications. Since 1991 Don Bosco has given technical certificates to some five thousand young people from the most impoverished communities of Cambodia, especially rural areas and for very low affordable fees, while relying on charitable funds to cover the rest.
On Graduation Day at Sihanoukville on August 13, the governor of the city, Mr Bong Sarath and other members of the city authorities, visited the school and greeted the newly graduated Don Bosco technicians. Fr Thepharat and Mr. Sarath exchanged thanks and talked about the contribution of the Don Bosco schools for the development of the country by offering skills formation to young people from poor communities. For Fr Thepharat, this gesture of Mr Sarath as governor of the port city is a very important encouragement for the continuation of the Salesian mission in the region and in the Kingdom of Cambodia.
Thursday, September 2, was Fr Thepharat's final day in Sihanoukville and Cambodia. By way of closure to his official visit to the centre, he addressed a conference to the students and teachers of the social communication section in the Don Bosco Audiovisual Centre TV studio. As the students have by now completed their first year and one of their skills is English as a second language, the conference was done entirely in English. Fr Thepharat encouraged the project and underlined the importance of areas like communication and information technology for the Salesian Mission and the development of countries like Cambodia. He said to the 18 young students that they must dream the best future for their country. His desire for the section was that it might be able to afford the creation of a radio station and television channel. He said that in Thailand the government has opened up the possibility to create Radio Communities and with that idea the Salesians have already founded three radio stations that have been very important for the encounter with contemporary young people in the country. "If Don Bosco were alive at this time, he would be very happy with the Internet, radio, television, the modern media, to reach more and more young people," he said.
Fr Thepharat also motivated the Salesian communities in Cambodia to welcome the Don Bosco Casket due to arrive in Cambodia in December 2010 for three days. The Pilgrimage of the Don Bosco Casket began in Turin on April 2009 as a way of preparing the Salesian world for the celebration of the bi-centenary of the birth of Saint John Bosco (1815 - 2015).
_________________
AustraLasia is an email service for the Salesian Family of Asia Pacific. It also functions as an agency for ANS based in Rome. For queries please contact admin@bosconet.aust.com . Use Bosconet-wiki to be interactive. RSS feeds - just go to Bosconet, click on austraLasia 2009 in the sidebar. You will see the RSS orange icon in your browser address bar - add it from there. Or be interactive with the EAO blog Cetera Tolle. Avail yourself of the Salesian Digital Library at http://sdl.sdb.org
