The Hands of Don Bosco - The volunteers are persons who want to share their skill and science with those persons in the world with less opportunities. They are often associated with organizations or institutions that promote it. Throughout the history of Don Bosco in Cambodia, since 1991, many persons have come from different countries to be with us since two weeks to years, just to train our youth. There are not words to thank their effort, sacrifices and love for humanity. Their work is written in a very big book in Heaven. 

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Alfred (Fredie) Hendrik Jozef Theodoor van Hagen was born in Doesburg (prov. of Guelders), the Netherlands on February 6th, 1950. His profession: Technical teacher, authorized to give technical training, machining, welding, teaching technical theory about these subjects. His formation: Senior Technical School, Education for Vocational Teachers, Technical University (Eindhoven, the Netherlands); for teaching English: Certificate TEFL from Stamford, Haadyai, Thailand, free interpreter for the Thai Judiciary, translator for Thai-Dutch, sworn in at the court of Den Bosch in 1997.

History in Asia:

1990: He came to Don Bosco Development Center, Phudhong, Ron Phibun, prov. of Nakhorn Si Thammaraat, Thailand. Vocational training and sometimes even to carpenter troubleshooting and repairing machinery, supervising the work in the compound. 

1994-1995: Don Bosco Technical School Phnom Penh, Cambodia, help in building up the automotive department.

1995-1999: Back to the Don Bosco Development Center, Phudhong, Ron Phibun in Thailand doing the same things as before. Making yoking wheelchairs for leprosy-patients from the leprosy village beside the Centre.

1999-2003: Teaching English in the province of Nakhorn Si Thammaraat in the schools of the municipality of Nakhorn Si Thammaraat city, technical school in Thungsong (technical English). His wife has a small private school in that city. 

Since 2003 he is teaching English at home. 

In June 2007 he came to Don Bosco Technical School Sihanoukville for a few weeks to check the inventory and make up a list of equipment to be bought as a replacement of worn out and lost things and of things that should be bought to make the workshops up to date again.

How can you compare Thailand to Cambodia in development, technical education and human resources?

As for development I must say that Thailand is more modern, the infrastructure is very good and in Thailand laws are still better implemented than in Cambodia . So, for investment, Thailand could be a little safer, as far as I can see this in Thailand and here in Cambodia .  But I think that this is a minor problem, because I see that Cambodia ’s infrastructure is being improved and many foreigners are coming to invest here and that is a good thing.  We must keep in mind that Cambodia is crawling up from a state of total devastation and it must go the way to become a modern country.

As for morality I think that the moral standards of the Cambodians are similar to those of the Thais. As the Thais have a higher standard of life, they are more influenced by things from outside like “western” fashion, all kinds of cyber games, and so on.  This causes sometimes conflicts with their morality.  As these things have not yet so much influence in Cambodia , the Cambodians are still strongly fixed to their morality.  Look only how (young) women dress themselves in Thailand and in Cambodia .  And look at the campuses.  You will see a more formal way of being dressed by students. 

As for technical education, Thailand is more modern than Cambodia , but I think that that is a question of time, according with what I said about development. 

As for human resources, I think Cambodians can adapt themselves very well to every situation.  When I only look in workshops, I see that there is much creativity in doing things using very simple tools, but they make good quality products.  Handicraft is very refined.  Very important: the Cambodians are widely interested and eager to learn, not only techniques and the exact subjects, but also languages.  These are the door to the world for a country.  In this Cambodia has a big advantage.

Why have you come to work and live in Asia and not in your own country? Why did you choose Asia ?

From my childhood on there was something that pulled me to South East Asia . There are no relatives that could have initiated that feeling, but being in Asia I felt more at ease than in Europe . So I looked for a way to work in Asia (and be more useful to people than I could be in Europe) and I found Don Bosco Technical School in Bangkok where Father Johan Visser was the director at that time. Since that time I went to Thailand several times, did special jobs with a few students of Don Bosco. Finally in 1990 Father Johan Visser contacted me to go to Father Lorenzo (Renzo) Rossignolo of the Don Bosco Development Center in Phudhong , Thailand , as a volunteer to do technical training.

How do you see the future of a country like Cambodia ?

I think that Cambodia must have a very good and bright future, because Cambodians are very open to foreigners and open to the world.

Sihanoukville, June 18, 2007 - Rights Reserved to Don Bosco Cambodia