(ANS – Phnom Penh) – Princess Norodom Arunrasmy of Cambodia presided at the opening of the Bicentenary celebrations in the Kingdom of Cambodia. More than 3,000 students, teachers and past pupils camped at the Don Bosco Phnom Penh campus for three days.

by Fr Albeiro Rodas, SDB

The celebrations for the Don Bosco Bicentenary in the Kingdom of Cambodia began on 30 January with a Royal guest, Princess Norodom Arunrasmy, the youngest daughter of late King Norodom Sihanouk and sister of current king Norodom Sihamoni.  

More than 3,000 volunteers and members of the Salesian Family camped for two nights on the Campus of the Don Bosco Technical School in Phnom Penh. They included students from Poipet, Battambang, Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville, teachers, volunteers, past pupils, members of the Salesian Family and representatives from the Cambodian government and the Catholic Church.

Students of the Salesian sisters and boarders of DBTS Phnom Penh sang for Don Bosco. The programme started with the welcome extended to Princess Norodom Arunreaksmey in the morning of 30 January by Fr. Roel Soto, Superior of the Cambodian Delegation, Fr. John Visser, Country Representative and other members of the Salesian Family.

Princess Norodom Arunreaksmey congratulated the Salesian Family on the Bicentenary of the birth of Don Bosco and praised the contribution of the Salesians to the education of Cambodian children and youth in the troublesome times of the country's history.

The Solemn Mass was presided over by Bishop Olivier Schmitthaeusler of the Apostolic Vicariate of Phnom Penh. The celebration in Cambodia of the Bicentenary of Don Bosco offers an occasion to evaluate the social impact of the Salesian works in the Kingdom since the time of the refugee camps. For this reason, there was a Semi-permanent exhibition of the Don Bosco projects. Fr. John Visser and Fr. Roel Soto showed Princess Norodom Aronreaskmey around the exhibition.

The Celebrations included sports and culture, of course, where young people could display their talents and meet their friends. Teams from different schools met in friendly games.

The Bicentenary Celebrations in Cambodia are not over. The different schools and works of the Salesian Family have their own schedules to say #HappyBirthdayDonBosco.

For this reason, the Don Bosco Cambodia Audiovisual Centre dubbed the Strenna 2015 in Khmer. "It is the first time that a Rector Major speaks clearly in the Khmer language." You can watch the Strenna in Khmer here:  Strenna 2015

For more news about the Bicentenary Celebrations in Cambodia, see the official YouTube channel and the Facebook page.

Published 06/02/2015