On December 13, 2016, Paññāsāstra University of Cambodia (PUC) invited a special guest speaker, Ms. Sok Monica, an American Cambodian poet to present her award as well as to encourage the habit of writing’ especially Cambodian traditional poetry.

Ms. Monica said that compared to American poetry, Khmer poetry has more than 90 forms totally. They have different rhymes. “The writer has a purpose, an emotional truth to bring a dream to life,” said Ms. Monica. In addition, “Writing is scary to the beginner if he or she makes mistake, but it will empower the writer when he or she is confident,” added Dr. Kol Pheng, PUC founder and President.

It was noted that PUC had done literature contests in Asia; however, it has been less active in the last few years.

Ms. Monica graduated her undergraduate in International studies. After travelling to a few countries in ASEAN such as Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia to discover poems and their history, Monica is passionate about poetry. Then, she works deeply in a poem which allows her to get more support and achievements.