MUSLIM EDUCATION IN CAMBODIA AFTER THE POL POT ERA

Abstract

The Cambodian civil war in the 1970's has ruined the country in terms of properties and society as a whole. The Cambodian people of all walks of life and of various religions were badly affected. The Muslims, mostly descendants of the kingdom of Campa and the Malays from Nusantara, were not exempted. After the Khmer Rouge was defeated, the Cambodian society is rearing to develop their nation once again. The Muslim community started to reorganize themselves around the teachings of Islam by reorganizing Islamic classes, rebuilding madrasas, mosques and suraus as they believe that Islam is the core and strength of their community. They reestablish their relations with Muslim countries especially Malaysia, by sending delegations to various organizations including ministries in order to request for aids. Their brothers, the Malay-Cam who migrated earlier and settled in Malaysia gave very positive response toward rebuilding up the community by providing religious teachers, mostly graduates from the Middle East. Besides, together with other Cambodians they actively rebuild their beloved country, the Kingdom of Cambodia. Now they have become once again a force to be reckoned with. They prove once again that religion can play an important role in the community building, preserving their ethnic identity and at the same time playing an important role in Cambodian nation building process.