Cambodia had always been on my bucket list. As a nine-year old I could not comprehend how a country could change its name. I remember very vividly that day in April 1975 watching the news on our black and white television when the Khmer Rouge had just captured Cambodia’s capital city Phnom Penh and changed the country’s name from Cambodia to Democratic Kampuchea.
I would say that we Missionaries of Charity Brothers have, to some extent, a special link with Cambodia. It was in 1974 when our general superior, already living in neighboring Vietnam, had decided to open a community in Phnom Penh. It was the height of the civil war in both countries and even Mother Teresa had decided against opening a community there. But our superior was audacious enough to visit the city, and discern and decide in favor of the presence of a small community of love. But when, a year later, the Khmer Rouge took over, the Brothers were evacuated. One candidate decided against the superior’s wishes and stayed in Phnom Penh with the people. The last time he was seen, he was marching with the Cambodians and surely executed.
Bro Carmel Duca MC
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