For many Cambodians, to defecate in the open is a necessity. Besides the obvious loss of privacy and self-dignity, this practice can cause the spread of fatal disease. The answer is a latrine, plus soap and water. A donation for a latrine will: send sick kids back to school to study, restore dignity back to Cambodian women, and protect children from dying from preventable illnesses.
IMAGINE THIS: You are a Cambodian village woman. You live with no bathroom, no soap and no privacy. When you need to go, you find a bush behind your home, near the water well and vegetable patch. Village men and women pass by, and do not wave, pretending not to see you. Quickly, you pull up your Sampot dress and dash back into the house to finish cooking the meal for the children, playing outside in the bushes, while the newborn cries endlessly with fever. This is a common scene in Cambodia.
One latrine can restore health to an entire family or to children at school. Waste will be confined, and parents and children will be at peace, knowing their food is safe, and their water is clean. Along with the latrine, by donating you will help assemble a hand-washing facility, provide soap, and drill a water well ensuring students have access to clean water to wash. Sanitation classes will be arranged for students and village families, imparting the vital importance of safe hygiene.
The long-term impact of a single latrine is powerful. Sick kids can return to school to grow and learn. Women will no longer face humiliation in their communities. And parents will sleep easy, knowing that their child is no longer at risk of dying from a preventable disease caused by lack of sanitation.
