Interview with Lux Mean: Teaching Cambodians in Rural Areas To Blog

Lux Mean works for the IRI. He is currently training young people in Cambodia's provincial areas how to blog.  His organization is excited about the potential for Cambodian blogs to generate more political dialogue.  Mean was only recently introduced to blogs and the organization got the idea of doing a blog projects from one of Cambodia's better known bloggers, Ex-King Sihanouk.

The trainings were held in different Community Information Centers in the provinces.  Keep an eye on some future developments in Cambodia and blogging as the Open Forum's Khmer Open Source expects to launch khmer language blogging software.

We did started this email interview several weeks ago after I first heard about his project. Meanwhile, Mean Lux has become a digerati of sorts -- his story and the story of other bloggers was published in the Cambodia Daily, one of the largest English language newspapers in Cambodia, in an article in Wired News, and Global Voices Online.

His english language blog can be found here.  He recently started a "Khlog" or Khmer Language blog.

1.    First of all, tell me about yourself?  How did you start working with Cambodians on technology training projects?   

I am Cambodian.  I earned a bachelor of law from Royal University of Law and Economics in 2003. I am not technologist. I find that blog is interesting and helpful for Cambodian young people as well as fun. Then I started the training along the way with my other programming activities while going out to the rural areas.

2.   Why did you decide to train Cambodians living in rural provinces how to blog? What are your expectations or outcomes for the project?  What do you want to accomplish?


I also conducted the training in Phnom Penh last month. I hope young people will put their issues on their blogs (health, employment, environment in their communities, education, gangsters … etc.) Participants of the training are selected from local NGOs. So, they will blog about their activities. I hope to see blog play at least a small role in the next general election and want Cambodians to make use of it as in other countries.

3. What did the people in the trainings think about blogs?  It seems like a few of them were very excited to start blogging?  What will they write about?


First they were a bit confused with email. They are excited to have their own website. The problem is what they have for posting in their blog. But, participants who are mainly from NGOs will post about their local activities.

4.   How can other bloggers who are interested in Cambodia encourage or support your project?

I need creative ideas to promote blogging in Cambodia. I hope they can email me about new idea. I am setting up a blog team for a few blogs of Clogger (http://www.clogger-cam.blogspot.com), which is an umbrella site. If I am less busy, those will come out next month which include corruption issue (http://www.corruptalk.blogspot.com), legal update (http://www.lawatch.blogspot.com), update about demonstration/protest which mainly on land issue (http://www.protestrack.blogspot.com), border issue (http://www.protestrack.blogspot.com), and for picture or Khmer hand writing (http://www.arorm.blogspot.com) which maybe workable for non-English Cambodians and children. Till all these blog are operated that I know what kind of support I need.

For, rural area, internet extension is critical to blogging promoting. This is what I really need.

(Here's a sampling of some of the "Clogs." )

• Keo Kalyan
• Battambang Network
• CamView
• Saransopha
• YCC Kampong Cham
• Kampong Speu YCC
• Phnom Penh Network
• Siem Reap Network
• YCC Network
• Phorlleap
• Wat Thmey
• MONICA
• Keo Dina
• Clogger

For a map of the Cambodian Blogosphere, check out the Global Voices Wiki.

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