About Sareka Cambodian Children's Arts

Sareka Cambodian Children's Arts, in short Sareka, is a charitable organisation registered in Cambodia under no. 158. Founded in 2007 by Director Peng Sokha, Sareka's aim is to improve the lives some of Cambodia's most disadvantaged people - the families, in specific their children, which live and work on the dumpsite of Sihanoukville. The name Sareka is chosen after the Cambodian Myna bird. To Cambodians, Sareka is much more than just a talking bird: it is a creative voice - a voice that we are dedicated to giving the children of Cambodia.

life on a dumpsite

Sareka operates in Sihanoukville dumpsite, which lays 20km outside of the town centre. There are 21 families that live and work on the dumpsite, scavenging recyclable materials which they can later sell - plastic water bottles, tin cans, metal and paper make the contents of their found 'treasures'. Life on the dumpsite is very hard and dangerous. An appalling smell, ever smouldering trash, the pollution of air, water and ground, and millions of flies set the scene. While the elderly look after the new born babies, the adults and their children scavenge the dumped, half composed trash in search for recyclable materials, and on average they earn between 25 and 50 cents a day. The children are not exempt from this lifestyle, for if they do not work they can not eat, and after a day roaming the dumpsite often barefooted, there's hardly enough money to buy food for that day. Obviously this leaves no time for education, or any kind of innocent childhood upbringing. As well as disease and infection, high infant mortality and low life expectancy, the inhabitants do not even have a clean water supply. The well, placed years ago by a Korean charity organisation, now only pumps up undrinkable, polluted water. They have no medical or dental care, no legal help, in short; there is no way out of the spiral of poverty in which these people live.

Sareka was the first who responded to their cry of help. With a few small donations received from friends abroad, Sareka bought and distributed several facemasks and footwear among the people of the dumpsite. Later on Sareka provided, with help of a volunteer doctor, some medical attention. Although this was an incredible start, the received funds were soon depleted, and with that, sad enough, Sareka was unable to provide more help. It was clear Sareka needed some other means of generating money than to rely on donations alone.

Sareka's ongoing projects

Sareka has initiated several projects with the families living on the dumpsite. In 2007 Sareka started the Children's painting project, where the children were provided with paint and brushes to create small pieces of art wish then could be sold to generate a small income.

In 2008 the the paper project was launched. Some of the adults on the dumpsite were taught to recycle old paper into new sheets of paper. After a few of the older children attended a master-class in Siem Reap, and after some experimenting, the quality of the paper improved by the sheet. Besides selling the paper created, it was also used to create hand made postcards. By selling the paintings not only in Cambodia but also overseas to friends and supporters, Sareka generated enough money to keep the project alive and continue aiding the dump-site community with medical treatments, rice and protective clothing. More importantly, by painting the children were liberated from child labour and for the first time in their life could do something the really enjoyed.

In February 2009, in cooperation with Sareka's earliest supporters Jean-Michel and Martijn, the Sareka-House was founded. The house is a shelter, situated less than 1km away from the dumpsite, where the 20 most desolate children from the dumpsite now live. It was created to provide the children with three basic needs; a home in a clean environment, daily nutritious meals and clean water, and the opportunity to go to school - things which no child should live without.

Recently Sareka opened Sareka's Gallery on the popular beach of Sihanoukville. In the Sareka Gallery all kind of products made by the children are sold. Besides a shop, the gallery is also an information center for Sareka's work and the community of the dumpsite. Here tourists and locals alike can learn about the community, arrange to visit the children to buy paintings off the artists themselves, and offer to volunteer.