Cambodians celebrate traditional fishing methods at annual ceremony

CHOAM KROVEAN: Running into a thigh-deep muddy lake, villagers in eastern Cambodia used bamboo baskets and nets to scoop up their catch for an annual fishing ceremony where only traditional tools are used.

Sporting straw hats and cotton checkered scarves to shield themselves from the blazing sun, hundreds of children and adults cheered Saturday (Feb 18) as they netted freshwater catfish and snakefish in Boeung Kroam lake, about 250km from the capital Phnom Penh.

The annual ceremony, back after a two-year COVID-19 pandemic hiatus, is held after the rice harvest and participants are only allowed to use traditional tools such as woven baskets and nets, Tbong Khmum province governor Cheam Chan Sophorn explained.