A Mighty Heart

Touch Srey Nich (Hour), Sovan Raksmey and Sous Narin (Kampong Cham)

Photos by: Prum Ero

Story by: Tuy Raksmey

Edit by: Ly Pisey

“When our love succeeds and our family accepts us, it’s a happiness and warm feeling unimaginable.”

Suos Narin: I sell second-hand clothes and runa hair salon in Skun market. I have eight children and Hour is the 7th child. When I first knew that my child loves a girl, I was mad, because there was no one like him in this neighbourhood. However, I later tried to be open little by little and started to accept and belived that he could be responsible for his life. I told myself that I can only give birth to my children but I cannot rule their hearts. Besides, it’s their rights to love and be someone they choose. So, as a mother, we need to grant them their rights. If we restrict their rights, they might get depressed and it might even lead to suicide. In the end, we could only cry over the loss and it would be too little too late. On the other hands, if we accept our children as they are, they will be happy without being afraid of their parents. We should let them be sometimes, allowing them to choose their path. Don’t scold, use violence or kick them out of the house. When we give them love, they will love back and look after us. We can only look after them and teach them not to fight each other. I also want to tell the younger generation to listen to their parents.If your parents oppose you or your love, please try to convince them. Over time, they will understand and accept you.

Hour: It’s really important when our love succeeds and our family accepts us. It’s a happiness and warm feeling unimaginable. In addition, if the law protects us and if people around us don’t see us as stranger, we would feel more confident. Legal marriage for LGBT community is crucial, because we want our lives and love as meaningful as others’. I also want to have a legal adoption so that the law could protect our child and our family.

Raksmey: Since we’ve known each other and been together for the past three years, we have gone through many obstacles emotionally and within the family. At first, I felt so down and started to feel depressed because no one accepted us. Sometimes my dad appeared accepting us but with disappointment, so I left my family for a while. It was not my happiness. However, I always visited him first during each holiday.

Now, my dad accepted us and my parents in laws also love me as their own. This makes me so happy and I don’t know how to thank them enough for the love they have for me. My hope is to be able to get married legally like other couples. It would give us security, because as spouses and family, we want to be included in the Family Book as husband and wife or as children whom have ownership rights of our assets including land and house. Also, when a couple has a fight or decides to get a divorce, we have the law to resolve the problem. Currently, our names are listed as single in our family books which it is not true.

Suos Narin: I hope in the future, the government at all levels will understand and support LGBT people to have legal marriage like straight people too. Because my child also wants to get married just like others, and as parents we want to fulfill our children’s wishes.