Simply defined as undeveloped, third world nations have large gaps between the upper and lower classes. Cambodia, a South East Asian country, is a third world country still undergoing economic and social development.
The Cambodian people’s lifestyle and national development was disrupted by the Khmer Rouge, a self-destructing genocide that killed 2 million Cambodians. Hence, Cambodia failed to develop into an industrialized nation during the 1900s at the same rate and level as the United States or Japan (both of which were not troubled by social turmoil) during the 1800s. In fact, despite some progress, the current conditions in Cambodia show that the nation is still far behind, and characterized by a significant gap between the rich and the poor, even in Cambodia’s capital, Phnom Penh.
The progress in transportation in Cambodia is evident in the creation of traffic laws, emergence of signal lights, and pavement of roads, all of which came to be in just the last decade or two. However, the vehicles that occupy these roads show that the size of the middle class is still far from substantial. Most Cambodians, who live on less than $4 a day, travel from place to place on motorcycles and bicycles, while the wealthy transport on cars, which cost about 15 to 50 times that of motorcycles. The significant gap between the rich and the poor can be conspicuously seen on the roads, where motorcycles, bicycles, Toyotas, and Lexuses travel side by side.
The same is also with buildings. While most shops and restaurants are independently owned, between these small one-story shanties are a few modern buildings sprinkled here and there. Electronics stores, pizza parlors, and clothing shops in the midst of street markets and bargain stores, are inconsiderable luxuries to Cambodians, 35% of whom fall below the poverty line of $1.25 per day.
Unlike nations such as the United States, Cambodia suffers from a social imbalance and economic insecurity. Before even considering the statistics, the disparity between the power-holding wealthy and the common citizens is clearly evident in merely observing the surroundings, a reflection of the Cambodian lifestyle and social culture.
