Wishes from KKF President as Year 2006 closes its final chapter. Happy New Year!!! The 2006 is finally ending and so comes the closing of this year’s agenda. We are proud of our work, of the results and the benefits for our Khmer-Krom people as a whole. The fifty campaign stops around the globe made 2006 the best year of our struggle. We have learnt to share our thoughts; experiences and ideas of our Khmer-Krom’s future. We must not let our people lose hope. We, KKF, would like to appeal to all Khmer and Khmer-Krom worldwide to continue their support for our cause, to unite, brave and proud of being Khmer. We need a great nation; not a great hero. We want a Khmer-Krom voice; not a single individual, group or single organization voice but one united Khmer-Krom voice. Working Together: One Khmer-Krom, Two Khmer-Krom and Every Khmer-Krom We, KKF, have asked to share individual thoughts, respect others for the sake of our Khmer-Krom people. It is about moving from an “individual or me, myself” mentality to “We, all of us”. We must take our individual skills and learn to incorporate them into a team environment. One Khmer-Krom, Two Khmer-Krom and every Khmer-Krom together can become greatest and effective non-violent movement. We do not to look around very far, for example, His Excellency Judge Abdul G. Koroma of the International Court of Justice and Professor Rodolfo Stavenhagen, UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of Indigenous Peoples, encouraged and educated us about the various mechanisms available to achieve our goal of self-determination. We, too, are making great strides in breaking down the psychological and organizational barriers that result from “me or individual” thinking. Even though we have much more to do, we have achieved remarkable milestones by the effective use of work teams and implementing new approaches to reengineer processes, thus gaining recognition worldwide. In 2000, we began gathering KKF leaders around the globe for a leadership training held in St.Peterburg, Florida. The result of that the leadership training has seen KKF as it is today, a organization filled with youths, women and seniors alike proud to be Khmer-Krom and to participate and get involve with KKF. We are moving from just a simply organization representing Khmer-Krom to one that is deeply valued and respected by others. Of course, well-integrated teamwork exemplifies the successful transition from “me” to “We” thinking. We must apply our energies and use our passions in cooperation to plan for our success. And we need every Khmer-Krom to take part in this historical work. The Japanese proverb once said “None of us is as smart as all of us” is true. And other way is to consider is: One Khmer-Krom, two Khmer-Krom and every Khmer-Krom together we win. We require all Khmer-Krom to become self conscious on how they can help and support our struggle. We want to see them put Khmer-Krom first, then themselves and their organization after. We want to see our Khmer-Krom become wise, educated and to understand their rights and their duties. After all, we do not want to see our Khmer-Krom people become “YES MEN”. We all know that “Yes men” tell us what they think we want to hear rather than what they really want. We want our people to tell what they need to know in order to fulfill the goals of Khmer-Krom, the KKF’s goal. 2007: What’s next? KKF will continue ahead with our struggle to pursue self-determination, not only a Khmer Krom goal but the goal of the international community as well. We must never lose our hope or not let it slip away. Do not for one second think that the Vietnamese government will give us freedom unless we fight for it. We have to double our work in 2007 to gain the world’s attention and to place our Khmer-Krom issue amongst the world issues. The KKF needs your financial support, strength, ideas, thoughts and what you think that is best for Khmer-Krom. During this special occasion, we would like to wish you all the very best for the holidays. May our lord Buddha bless your family with good health, happiness, prosperity and long life. T.Thach
