austraLasia #2602
Mother Yvonne Reungoat FMA visits Cambodia
PHNOM PENH: 24th February 2010 -- The Mother General of the Salesian Sisters, Mother Yvonne Reungoat, is currently visiting Cambodia for the first time, particularly of course her own Sisters who have three communities in the country, two in Phnom Penh and one at Battambang in the north of the country. In fact they have a substantial presence in Cambodia with some 17 or more Sisters and Phnom Penh is also the provincial headquarters for the Cambodia-Myanmar province. Our Salesian communications department in Sihanoukville caught up with Mother Yvonne for a brief interview reported below. The interview was conducted in French.
Good evening Mother Yvonne, what is the message you bring in your visit to Cambodia?
Certainly a message of hope because our presence in Cambodia, is a presence in education, and working for education means having hope. It means working in order to build for today but also for tomorrow. In a world where sometimes hope is lacking, it is my joy is to support all people in Cambodia, to believe in its future, especially through the education of children and youth.
We often hear about the problems that the Cambodian women face today like domestic violence, labor and sexual exploitation. What are the responses of the Salesian Sisters for the Cambodian woman?
The Salesian Sisters try to welcome a number of young woman who experience conflict in the family and social difficulties, in order to give them the possibility to live in a serene and filial atmosphere. First, to regain their own energies, to be ready to become the women of that future we hope for, to be able to have their own families and find success in their lives. Another aspect is the development of their professional formation. In fact, to give such formation to a young woman is to give her the possibility of working, and earning her own resources, to live with dignity, to win respect from others and to build her own family. At the same time, she receives a training in human values and spiritual values, so she will find meaning in life.
Through the formation we give to the young woman, we also reach the family, because the woman has an influence in it. Even if it is not socially recognised but in fact, by her action, by her presence especially in the children's education, she has a very important influence.
The Province of the Salesian Sisters includes Myanmar and Cambodia. Why have you chosen Cambodia as the headquarters of the Province?
The choice of Phnom Penh as the headquarters is related with the beginning of the Salesian presence in the area, but also because it is easier to work in Cambodia. The educational activities we are doing for many years now, offer good hope for future development. For this reason, having the Province headquarters here is a great solution.
What are the prospects for vocations for the Salesian Sisters in Asia?
The prospects for vocations in Asia depends on the countries concerned. There are some countries that already have plenty of Salesian vocations, for example Vietnam, India, East Timor, Indonesia, Philippine, South Korea, Myanmar, but Cambodia because of its history, needs more time. We already have the first Cambodian Salesian Sister and other young women are in formation. So, we hope that the Salesian charism will flourish with the Sisters and that they will discover and become educators of the young. So, the prospects for vocations in Asia are those of hope and commitment, because we realise that the charism of Don Bosco unites children and older young people across all the Asian cultures. It is also a challenge because it supposes that we accompany them. Therefore, the charism is really to be integrated within culture. This way, young Asian vocations are able to translate Don Bosco's spirit into their lives.
_________________
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
Mother Yvonne Reungoat FMA visits Cambodia
PHNOM PENH: 24th February 2010 -- The Mother General of the Salesian Sisters, Mother Yvonne Reungoat, is currently visiting Cambodia for the first time, particularly of course her own Sisters who have three communities in the country, two in Phnom Penh and one at Battambang in the north of the country. In fact they have a substantial presence in Cambodia with some 17 or more Sisters and Phnom Penh is also the provincial headquarters for the Cambodia-Myanmar province. Our Salesian communications department in Sihanoukville caught up with Mother Yvonne for a brief interview reported below. The interview was conducted in French.
Good evening Mother Yvonne, what is the message you bring in your visit to Cambodia?
Certainly a message of hope because our presence in Cambodia, is a presence in education, and working for education means having hope. It means working in order to build for today but also for tomorrow. In a world where sometimes hope is lacking, it is my joy is to support all people in Cambodia, to believe in its future, especially through the education of children and youth.
We often hear about the problems that the Cambodian women face today like domestic violence, labor and sexual exploitation. What are the responses of the Salesian Sisters for the Cambodian woman?
The Salesian Sisters try to welcome a number of young woman who experience conflict in the family and social difficulties, in order to give them the possibility to live in a serene and filial atmosphere. First, to regain their own energies, to be ready to become the women of that future we hope for, to be able to have their own families and find success in their lives. Another aspect is the development of their professional formation. In fact, to give such formation to a young woman is to give her the possibility of working, and earning her own resources, to live with dignity, to win respect from others and to build her own family. At the same time, she receives a training in human values and spiritual values, so she will find meaning in life.
Through the formation we give to the young woman, we also reach the family, because the woman has an influence in it. Even if it is not socially recognised but in fact, by her action, by her presence especially in the children's education, she has a very important influence.
The Province of the Salesian Sisters includes Myanmar and Cambodia. Why have you chosen Cambodia as the headquarters of the Province?
The choice of Phnom Penh as the headquarters is related with the beginning of the Salesian presence in the area, but also because it is easier to work in Cambodia. The educational activities we are doing for many years now, offer good hope for future development. For this reason, having the Province headquarters here is a great solution.
What are the prospects for vocations for the Salesian Sisters in Asia?
The prospects for vocations in Asia depends on the countries concerned. There are some countries that already have plenty of Salesian vocations, for example Vietnam, India, East Timor, Indonesia, Philippine, South Korea, Myanmar, but Cambodia because of its history, needs more time. We already have the first Cambodian Salesian Sister and other young women are in formation. So, we hope that the Salesian charism will flourish with the Sisters and that they will discover and become educators of the young. So, the prospects for vocations in Asia are those of hope and commitment, because we realise that the charism of Don Bosco unites children and older young people across all the Asian cultures. It is also a challenge because it supposes that we accompany them. Therefore, the charism is really to be integrated within culture. This way, young Asian vocations are able to translate Don Bosco's spirit into their lives.
_________________
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
