Episode 2

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0:00:02 > 0:00:05Ahh, I'm not very good at steering!

0:00:05 > 0:00:07OK, OK. It's hard work!

0:00:08 > 0:00:11'This is the Mekong. The Mother of Water.

0:00:11 > 0:00:13'The greatest river in South-East Asia.'

0:00:13 > 0:00:16These are the best noodles ever.

0:00:16 > 0:00:18'It brings life to millions,

0:00:18 > 0:00:20'from the paddy fields of Vietnam

0:00:20 > 0:00:22'to the mountains of the Tibetan Plateau.'

0:00:22 > 0:00:25I think I might be engaged to be married now.

0:00:25 > 0:00:29'I'm travelling nearly 3,000 miles upstream to its source,

0:00:29 > 0:00:32'exploring the lives of its people.'

0:00:32 > 0:00:34- Two. - Two.

0:00:34 > 0:00:35- Three. - Three.

0:00:35 > 0:00:37THEY LAUGH

0:00:41 > 0:00:44'The Mekong is about to change forever.

0:00:45 > 0:00:48'Massive dams are being built to harness its power,

0:00:48 > 0:00:50'changing traditional ways of life

0:00:50 > 0:00:53'that rely on the ebb and flow of this great river.

0:00:55 > 0:00:58'In Cambodia, I saw the horrors of the Killing Fields,

0:00:58 > 0:01:01'and how the country is struggling to recover from the legacy

0:01:01 > 0:01:05'of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge.

0:01:05 > 0:01:07'Now it's facing a new, environmental battle.'

0:01:09 > 0:01:13If I were to stick a massive sign, saying "For sale."

0:01:13 > 0:01:17'Rampant deforestation and a booming trade in illegal wildlife

0:01:17 > 0:01:21'is stripping this place of its last precious habitats.'

0:01:21 > 0:01:23Come on, little ones, you're free, you're free!

0:01:23 > 0:01:25'I'm passionate about animal welfare,

0:01:25 > 0:01:28'so this could be a very emotional trip for me.

0:01:28 > 0:01:32'But I want to understand what's driving this destruction...'

0:01:32 > 0:01:35These people are so poor. I just feel really torn!

0:01:35 > 0:01:39'..and what can be done to save the Mekong's last truly wild places.'

0:01:39 > 0:01:42I know you won't be able to understand a word of this,

0:01:42 > 0:01:46but I have not felt this profoundly peaceful for such a long time.

0:01:59 > 0:02:02I'm back in Cambodia at the edge of the Mekong river basin,

0:02:02 > 0:02:05home to some of the world's most biodiverse areas,

0:02:05 > 0:02:07and the odd osteopath, I'm hoping!

0:02:09 > 0:02:11Now I'm leaving the main river

0:02:11 > 0:02:14and heading to the home land of the indigenous Bunong people,

0:02:14 > 0:02:17one of Cambodia's 12 remaining hill tribes.

0:02:23 > 0:02:25Sorry, love, I'm slowing you down.

0:02:27 > 0:02:31As the Mekong tumbles down through the mountains gathering strength,

0:02:31 > 0:02:35it nourishes a breathtaking eco-system of rivers and rainforests.

0:02:37 > 0:02:41It's the second most bio-diverse place on Earth after the Amazon

0:02:41 > 0:02:45and is alive with extraordinary wildlife and isolated people.

0:02:46 > 0:02:50The Bunong live in the highland forests of Mondulkiri

0:02:50 > 0:02:52on the far eastern edge of the vast Mekong basin.

0:02:55 > 0:02:59In the last 40 years, Cambodia has seen almost 40%

0:02:59 > 0:03:02of its forests cut down for timber and agriculture.

0:03:02 > 0:03:04But here, for some reason,

0:03:04 > 0:03:07there are still rolling hills covered in deep jungle.

0:03:07 > 0:03:10And I want to find out why.

0:03:14 > 0:03:18'The Bunong have brought me into one of their most sacred sites,

0:03:18 > 0:03:20'the spirit forest.'

0:03:20 > 0:03:22Bit of limbo!

0:03:22 > 0:03:25'They are animists and have a profound connection

0:03:25 > 0:03:27'with the natural world.'

0:03:29 > 0:03:32The Bunong believe that the ancestral spirits are here

0:03:32 > 0:03:33and they live in the forest?

0:03:38 > 0:03:40So if you cut down a tree it causes sickness?

0:03:45 > 0:03:47- Just general bad luck. - Yeah, yeah, bad luck.

0:04:14 > 0:04:17These cool forests, protected by the Bunong's ancient beliefs,

0:04:17 > 0:04:21provide a sanctuary for some of Cambodia's most iconic animals.

0:04:23 > 0:04:26The Bunong are renowned for their skill in catching

0:04:26 > 0:04:28and training wild elephants to work in the jungle.

0:04:31 > 0:04:35There's a unique refuge here for retired working elephants,

0:04:35 > 0:04:38where I can get up close to these beautiful creatures.

0:04:39 > 0:04:42It's run by Englishman Jack Highwood.

0:04:44 > 0:04:46This is Onion.

0:04:46 > 0:04:49What she likes to do is open up her mouth

0:04:49 > 0:04:51cos she thinks there's bananas involved.

0:04:51 > 0:04:53So she is smelling you right now for bananas.

0:04:53 > 0:04:55Look at this beautiful Onion.

0:04:58 > 0:05:00ELEPHANT TRUMPETS

0:05:00 > 0:05:03Can't actually believe that happened!

0:05:03 > 0:05:06That's a great sign though, if they're trumpeting, is it not?

0:05:06 > 0:05:08Yeah, yeah. Put your hand on it for a moment.

0:05:08 > 0:05:10What's that low vibrational noise that she was making?

0:05:10 > 0:05:11That's how they talk.

0:05:11 > 0:05:15They've got several hundred different types of rumbles.

0:05:15 > 0:05:16She's doing it again!

0:05:16 > 0:05:20Yeah, they can push air and vibrate their sinus up there.

0:05:20 > 0:05:22I think I can vibrate my sinus at the moment.

0:05:22 > 0:05:24We've got a lot in common.

0:05:29 > 0:05:33The sanctuary uses the money from tourism to fund a protection team

0:05:33 > 0:05:35to look after the last wild elephants here.

0:05:36 > 0:05:39They need all the help they can get.

0:05:41 > 0:05:44There were 10,000 of them here 40 years ago,

0:05:44 > 0:05:47but many were killed for food during the desperate years

0:05:47 > 0:05:50of the Khmer Rouge, when millions of Cambodians starved.

0:05:51 > 0:05:56Today, there are just 450 left, in the whole of Cambodia.

0:05:58 > 0:06:00Up, right up, right up.

0:06:00 > 0:06:02That's it.

0:06:02 > 0:06:05That is actually the first time I've popped a tiny banana

0:06:05 > 0:06:09into the enormous open mouth of an elephant.

0:06:09 > 0:06:13It's like feeding a toddler with an added frisson that you could lose

0:06:13 > 0:06:14the entirety of your arm.

0:06:14 > 0:06:17Love this one because she is pining.

0:06:17 > 0:06:19Late 30s, she has lost her boyfriend

0:06:19 > 0:06:24and now she just wanders this part of the forest looking for him.

0:06:24 > 0:06:27I'm going to try and tell her that life gets better after 40,

0:06:27 > 0:06:29life begins.

0:06:30 > 0:06:34The elephants draw tourists from all over the world.

0:06:34 > 0:06:37But the arrival of outsiders in this sacred place

0:06:37 > 0:06:39presents the Bunong with a bit of a problem.

0:06:42 > 0:06:45The powerful forest spirits aren't too keen on tourists

0:06:45 > 0:06:47and need a bit of persuading.

0:06:49 > 0:06:52It's a big day because it's a festival today

0:06:52 > 0:06:55where they go to try and appease the spirits of the forest,

0:06:55 > 0:06:58to guarantee good luck for the whole community.

0:06:58 > 0:07:02It's like a picnic essentially, but with a sacrifice at the end of it.

0:07:02 > 0:07:04I'm going to keep my mouth shut in case it's me.

0:07:06 > 0:07:08Ooh-oh!

0:07:08 > 0:07:11The Mekong again is trying to claim me!

0:07:15 > 0:07:18Next time I come back, I'm going to build a bridge for you.

0:07:22 > 0:07:24Look at that!

0:07:25 > 0:07:27I'm a sucker for a waterfall, I really am.

0:07:36 > 0:07:40There's a little pig down there that's tied up ready for sacrifice.

0:07:40 > 0:07:42This is an important part of their culture

0:07:42 > 0:07:45and it's important for them that they commemorate the forest

0:07:45 > 0:07:48and venerate the forest in the way that they see fit, so my...

0:07:49 > 0:07:52My personal feelings have nothing to do with this

0:07:52 > 0:07:53and I shall keep them at bay.

0:07:56 > 0:07:59'Tom Yam, the village elder, leads the ceremony.'

0:08:00 > 0:08:03I'm blonde. I always wanted to be blonde.

0:08:04 > 0:08:05Looks better on you, I think.

0:08:05 > 0:08:07Oh, that is good.

0:08:11 > 0:08:14The Bunong believe that if the spirits are angry

0:08:14 > 0:08:16it is they that will pay the price.

0:08:16 > 0:08:20It seems a little unfair, not least on the poor pig, but there you go.

0:08:20 > 0:08:22That's gods for you.

0:08:27 > 0:08:29The stripped bamboo is daubed with blood

0:08:29 > 0:08:33and taken to the ceremonial altar in the spirit house.

0:08:35 > 0:08:39So the pig's spirit, all the spirits are convening in that one place,

0:08:39 > 0:08:41from what I can understand.

0:08:41 > 0:08:43And they're hoping that with this sacrifice now,

0:08:43 > 0:08:45that the forest will be appeased

0:08:45 > 0:08:47and the elephants will continue to live here.

0:09:00 > 0:09:02So I think that's the ritual part over

0:09:02 > 0:09:05and I think now there's a massive great piss-up, I think.

0:09:05 > 0:09:08I think there's rice wine coming.

0:09:16 > 0:09:19I've drunk a lot of things out of canisters like this,

0:09:19 > 0:09:20but mainly when I was about 15.

0:09:29 > 0:09:32Couple of straws, umbrella and cherry on the top, apparently.

0:09:32 > 0:09:34That's how you do it. Yeah?

0:09:34 > 0:09:35Good health!

0:09:39 > 0:09:42It looks a tad swampy, but it's good!

0:09:42 > 0:09:44Really pokey.

0:09:44 > 0:09:45Cheers!

0:09:47 > 0:09:49I was wondering why it wasn't going down.

0:09:49 > 0:09:52He's such a cheat. He's got some guy to top him up the whole time,

0:09:52 > 0:09:54so it looks like he hasn't drunk anything.

0:09:54 > 0:09:57So first I'll drink this jar and then I drink this jar.

0:09:57 > 0:09:58- Yeah, yeah.- Magic!

0:09:58 > 0:10:00HE LAUGHS

0:10:05 > 0:10:08HE SPEAKS IN KHMER

0:10:08 > 0:10:09SHE LAUGHS

0:10:09 > 0:10:12You, my friend, are what drunk looks like.

0:10:22 > 0:10:25'At sundown, the Bunong give their elephants their evening meal

0:10:25 > 0:10:27'in an upland meadow.'

0:10:30 > 0:10:32Ooh, you beauty!

0:10:32 > 0:10:37'And it's here that the lessons of the day finally sink in.

0:10:38 > 0:10:41'For many Cambodians, the only source of income is the forest.

0:10:41 > 0:10:45'First it's sold for timber, then the land is stripped

0:10:45 > 0:10:47'and sold for agriculture.

0:10:47 > 0:10:49'But here things are different.

0:10:49 > 0:10:53'Crucially, the elephants have provided a way to make the forest

0:10:53 > 0:10:55'worth more left intact.'

0:10:57 > 0:10:59As much as I'm a conservationist at heart,

0:10:59 > 0:11:02I've never got behind a single species conservation before,

0:11:02 > 0:11:05and today I really understand it because if you save the elephant

0:11:05 > 0:11:06then you save the forest.

0:11:06 > 0:11:09If you save the forest, you save the deer and the pigs

0:11:09 > 0:11:12and the snakes and the rats and everything.

0:11:14 > 0:11:18I not only feel I've had one of the most memorable days of life

0:11:18 > 0:11:21here, but I've also had a proper education

0:11:21 > 0:11:26that I will ruminate now and take back home with me.

0:11:52 > 0:11:54I'm leaving the tranquillity of the forest

0:11:54 > 0:11:58and heading back towards the complexity of modern-day Cambodia.

0:12:00 > 0:12:04It doesn't take much to see that the root of Cambodia's problems

0:12:04 > 0:12:06reach back into its bloody past.

0:12:06 > 0:12:1040 years ago, Pol Pot wiped out a generation of educated people

0:12:10 > 0:12:14and left the country crippled by poverty and riven with corruption.

0:12:14 > 0:12:16Susaday.

0:12:16 > 0:12:18Susaday!

0:12:18 > 0:12:20It's no wonder conservation is so low down

0:12:20 > 0:12:22on people's list of priorities.

0:12:22 > 0:12:25They are more concerned with putting food on the table.

0:12:27 > 0:12:29The forests are being plundered for bush meat,

0:12:29 > 0:12:33wildlife for exotic pets and body parts for Chinese medicine.

0:12:34 > 0:12:36Any animals rescued from the traders

0:12:36 > 0:12:40are brought to Cambodia's only wildlife rescue centre.

0:12:41 > 0:12:45Basically, they've taken on animals that have been illegally trafficked

0:12:45 > 0:12:47and this really is the last chance saloon for them.

0:12:47 > 0:12:50It's also the last chance for people like me to see bears in Cambodia

0:12:50 > 0:12:52because they have been all but eradicated

0:12:52 > 0:12:54from their natural habitat.

0:12:54 > 0:12:56I've never seen a moon bear before or a sun bear,

0:12:56 > 0:12:58so I'm hoping to see at least one.

0:12:58 > 0:13:01Or three if I'm lucky, so I can have the full Goldilocks experience.

0:13:04 > 0:13:07The Phnom Tamao sanctuary is run jointly by the government

0:13:07 > 0:13:10and a couple of foreign conservation charities.

0:13:11 > 0:13:14- Hi, welcome! - Hello, I'm Sue. Good to see you.

0:13:14 > 0:13:18'Peesay and Jon are the baby bear handlers - the lucky blighters!'

0:13:19 > 0:13:22These are our youngest cubs here.

0:13:22 > 0:13:23They are moon bears?

0:13:23 > 0:13:26Sun bears. They have a U-shape on their chest marking.

0:13:26 > 0:13:30These cubs get exercise every day.

0:13:30 > 0:13:32The keepers will take them out of their enclosures

0:13:32 > 0:13:34to teach them to climb the forest.

0:13:34 > 0:13:36Come on sausage, this way.

0:13:36 > 0:13:39'These beautiful little cubs were rescued from poachers.

0:13:39 > 0:13:40'Their mothers had been killed

0:13:40 > 0:13:43'and they were destined to be sold as pets.'

0:13:43 > 0:13:45How old were they when you got them?

0:13:45 > 0:13:48One month old. They arrived when they were very tiny.

0:13:48 > 0:13:51- He is Jesus. - This is Jesus?

0:13:51 > 0:13:54Because he almost died three times.

0:13:54 > 0:13:55And he survived.

0:13:55 > 0:13:58Oh, so it's a resurrection thing?

0:13:58 > 0:13:59Come on!

0:14:01 > 0:14:03It's like herding cats, basically.

0:14:04 > 0:14:06There's forest this way, you're going to a car park!

0:14:11 > 0:14:13They've got this lovely forest here

0:14:13 > 0:14:16and they're mainly interested in bin liners and a car park!

0:14:16 > 0:14:19We're trying to save you from all that.

0:14:19 > 0:14:21Come on, boys and girls.

0:14:21 > 0:14:22So beautiful.

0:14:22 > 0:14:24Come on!

0:14:24 > 0:14:27- Oh, Jesus, come on. - Good boy!

0:14:27 > 0:14:30Good boy, Jesus, Jesus is good.

0:14:30 > 0:14:32Oh, yeah, look, some climbing's going on.

0:14:32 > 0:14:34'These little ones are gorgeous.

0:14:34 > 0:14:38'They'll soon grow into powerful adults that will need

0:14:38 > 0:14:40'to be kept in cages.

0:14:40 > 0:14:41'It's very difficult for me to understand

0:14:41 > 0:14:44'why you'd want to keep animals locked up, but many people here

0:14:44 > 0:14:47'have a very different relationship with wildlife..

0:14:47 > 0:14:49'However, attitudes can change.'

0:14:51 > 0:14:53At first, I was really scared.

0:14:53 > 0:14:57And I don't like to have marks on my hand and a bear touching me,

0:14:57 > 0:15:00because I just think they are dirty animals and bite you and things.

0:15:00 > 0:15:03But after two months, I learned that the bears will not harm you,

0:15:03 > 0:15:04if you don't harm them.

0:15:04 > 0:15:07So I changed my mind completely and I love all the animals.

0:15:07 > 0:15:10I tried to tell my family and my friends.

0:15:10 > 0:15:12- They didn't understand still. - Still?

0:15:12 > 0:15:16Still. Like, they say, "I understand that you love animals,

0:15:16 > 0:15:19"you like to work with wildlife and stuff,

0:15:19 > 0:15:22"we respect you, but we will never do whatever you do."

0:15:22 > 0:15:24No...

0:15:24 > 0:15:27Oh, not the groin! Not the groin!

0:15:28 > 0:15:31Six inches higher than that, that could have been...

0:15:31 > 0:15:34Yeah, that really was my bare necessities it was going for.

0:15:38 > 0:15:41The sanctuary provides a safe house for animals that are too scarce

0:15:41 > 0:15:44and too valuable to live in the wild.

0:15:48 > 0:15:52A single tiger, stripped down to its constituent parts

0:15:52 > 0:15:54and sold to the Chinese medicine trade,

0:15:54 > 0:15:57could fetch a poacher 50,000.

0:15:59 > 0:16:03It seems a pathetic amount for one of the most precious creatures

0:16:03 > 0:16:06on Earth, but here it's a king's ransom.

0:16:06 > 0:16:10Little wonder there are only 30 wild tigers left in Cambodia.

0:16:12 > 0:16:14I get very sentimental about animals.

0:16:14 > 0:16:18I get very angry... Animal cruelty makes me cry, it makes me rage,

0:16:18 > 0:16:22all those things. But actually, when you're in the middle of all

0:16:22 > 0:16:25those frenzied emotions, you're not doing anything. And actually

0:16:25 > 0:16:28coming here, you're DOING. Removing all that emotional element

0:16:28 > 0:16:32and actually DOING practical things is the most important thing.

0:16:32 > 0:16:34TRILLING

0:16:36 > 0:16:39That's a cool trick if you can do it.

0:16:39 > 0:16:41This one's really good at the parallel bars.

0:16:41 > 0:16:46Honestly, he'd make Louis Smith weep with his skills.

0:16:54 > 0:16:57I'm heading west now to meet a man called Dean

0:16:57 > 0:17:00from the Wildlife Rapid Response Rescue team,

0:17:00 > 0:17:03which remains Cambodia's most alliterative wildlife rescue team.

0:17:06 > 0:17:10And there's a team that's about to make a bust on a local restaurant.

0:17:10 > 0:17:12I'm joining them at a top secret location

0:17:12 > 0:17:14and I'm trilling with excitement

0:17:14 > 0:17:17at the thought of my very first mission.

0:17:18 > 0:17:20It's all very clandestine.

0:17:20 > 0:17:22I don't even know if his name is Dean.

0:17:22 > 0:17:25I'm just being very open minded and just going with the flow.

0:17:29 > 0:17:32OK, we've been driving for about two hours,

0:17:32 > 0:17:34finally reached the rendezvous point,

0:17:34 > 0:17:37which is this rather anonymous lay-by.

0:17:37 > 0:17:40It's not the most august place for a couple of spies meeting,

0:17:40 > 0:17:43but I've been practising catchphrases.

0:17:43 > 0:17:45Does the swan fly south this summer?

0:17:45 > 0:17:47The pangolin has landed. We'll see what he goes for.

0:17:49 > 0:17:53I'm looking for somebody shifty and beefy with the look

0:17:53 > 0:17:55of sort of "animal saviour" in their eyes.

0:18:00 > 0:18:03Oh, hello! There is a look of the official about this.

0:18:06 > 0:18:08- Susaday. - Susaday.

0:18:08 > 0:18:11- Hi, are you Dean? - Hello, yes.

0:18:11 > 0:18:13Dean, it's good to see you. I'm Sue.

0:18:13 > 0:18:15- Really nice to meet you, nice to see you.- Nice to meet you, Sue.

0:18:15 > 0:18:18I'll pop round the other side. Are you keeping out of the thick of it?

0:18:18 > 0:18:21- Yeah, yeah, keeping a low profile. - How secret is this mission?

0:18:21 > 0:18:24I'm trying to make sure that nobody knows where we are going.

0:18:24 > 0:18:27The reason we keep everything fairly quiet is that we'll do raids

0:18:27 > 0:18:32and inspections on places that we know sell wildlife or wildlife meat.

0:18:32 > 0:18:33OK.

0:18:33 > 0:18:36'Heading up this operation is Saro from the forestry department.

0:18:36 > 0:18:39'The military police provides the muscle.

0:18:39 > 0:18:42'And then there's Dean from the Wildlife Alliance,

0:18:42 > 0:18:45'an ex-Aussie cop who was working on human trafficking

0:18:45 > 0:18:46'until he joined the wildlife team.'

0:18:46 > 0:18:48Do you get fairly heavy?

0:18:48 > 0:18:50Do you become nasty Dean in those situations?

0:18:50 > 0:18:53No, no. I leave that to these guys.

0:18:53 > 0:18:55Your uniform looks great!

0:18:55 > 0:18:58He doesn't look like he's strict. He looks very cute and benign.

0:18:58 > 0:19:00- He's got a cheeky smile. - At the moment.

0:19:00 > 0:19:01Oh, right, OK!

0:19:01 > 0:19:04He'll turn if he sees somebody trying to trade a macaque or something.

0:19:08 > 0:19:11We're in a convoy, closing in our target -

0:19:11 > 0:19:14a line of restaurants, all consistent offenders.

0:19:14 > 0:19:16They're confident we'll find something -

0:19:16 > 0:19:19if not live animals, then bush meat.

0:19:23 > 0:19:25OK, we're nearly there.

0:19:25 > 0:19:28What's going to happen is that Saro, who's the head dude, basically,

0:19:28 > 0:19:32he's currently wearing a denim shirt to conceal his uniform from everyone.

0:19:32 > 0:19:34He will decloak, like a Klingon,

0:19:34 > 0:19:39because in order to make the seizure he needs to be visibly in authority.

0:19:45 > 0:19:47Saro's taken his shirt off,

0:19:47 > 0:19:49so everyone is now in full military uniform.

0:19:49 > 0:19:51Shirt off.

0:19:51 > 0:19:53So this is the restaurant.

0:19:57 > 0:20:00Everything in the cool boxes is legit.

0:20:03 > 0:20:07But there's a definite Marie Celeste feeling about the place.

0:20:07 > 0:20:10Just a few little babies and kids to look after them.

0:20:11 > 0:20:14It's all quiet, Dean. What does this mean?

0:20:14 > 0:20:16It means they've done a runner.

0:20:16 > 0:20:18They've done a runner.

0:20:18 > 0:20:20Saro has sent the team out

0:20:20 > 0:20:24to look to see if any of the meat has been thrown into the jungle.

0:20:30 > 0:20:31Who tipped them off?

0:20:31 > 0:20:35It could be anyone that sees us come through. They all know the cars.

0:20:35 > 0:20:37Can you change your cars around?

0:20:37 > 0:20:38We'd like to.

0:20:38 > 0:20:40Money.

0:20:40 > 0:20:44'There are only three of these teams to cover the entire country.'

0:20:45 > 0:20:48What would you be looking for? Just sort of bin bags?

0:20:48 > 0:20:51They'll often have a cooler buried in the ground.

0:20:51 > 0:20:55'The restaurant owners hide anything illegal off their property,

0:20:55 > 0:20:58'so it's impossible for the authorities to pin down

0:20:58 > 0:21:00'who exactly is responsible.'

0:21:05 > 0:21:07So, Saro, what is this one?

0:21:07 > 0:21:10- Roe deer. - Roe deer, yeah.

0:21:12 > 0:21:14What's this?

0:21:14 > 0:21:18This is the...mouse deer.

0:21:18 > 0:21:19What will happen to this meat now?

0:21:19 > 0:21:23- Will you confiscate it and destroy it?- Yeah, sure.

0:21:23 > 0:21:28The problem is we could not find the owner of this bush meat.

0:21:34 > 0:21:38You go into this sort of situation thinking Dean's a good guy,

0:21:38 > 0:21:40they're the bad guys, but it's not as simple as that.

0:21:40 > 0:21:43Because you go into the restaurant, these people have no money.

0:21:43 > 0:21:47Of course, they're going to want to trade in something

0:21:47 > 0:21:48that brings cash in for their kids.

0:21:50 > 0:21:55It's very difficult because animal welfare and conservation

0:21:55 > 0:21:58are on the top of my passion list, and yet

0:21:58 > 0:22:02these people are so poor. It's just a couple of hind legs of deer.

0:22:02 > 0:22:04I just feel really torn!

0:22:10 > 0:22:12It's such small quantities as well.

0:22:12 > 0:22:14You know, when there are people, you know,

0:22:14 > 0:22:18at a dining table requesting tiger penis from 2,000 miles away

0:22:18 > 0:22:21so that they can feel like a big man, you know,

0:22:21 > 0:22:24those are the people you really want to send Saro after.

0:22:24 > 0:22:26Not a kind of...

0:22:26 > 0:22:28subsistence guy, who's running a small restaurant,

0:22:28 > 0:22:30trying to make ends meet.

0:22:36 > 0:22:39In total, they find five cases full of bush meat.

0:22:39 > 0:22:43Some of the animals, like the mouse deer, are very endangered.

0:22:48 > 0:22:51To stop anyone from profiting from their death,

0:22:51 > 0:22:55the animals are coated in kerosene and set alight.

0:23:01 > 0:23:03There's so many questions in my mind.

0:23:03 > 0:23:07I look at this charred carcass of a mouse deer,

0:23:07 > 0:23:10which is one of the most beautiful timid creatures you could possibly

0:23:10 > 0:23:13find in the forest, and its death has served no purpose.

0:23:13 > 0:23:17It hasn't fed anybody, it hasn't enlightened anybody

0:23:17 > 0:23:19or enriched anybody or made anybody any money.

0:23:20 > 0:23:23Its death hasn't served as a sort of education tool,

0:23:23 > 0:23:27or a warning or a deterrent.

0:23:27 > 0:23:29It's just dead.

0:23:31 > 0:23:34At certain points today, I felt very despairing but I've tried

0:23:34 > 0:23:36to lift myself by thinking, well,

0:23:36 > 0:23:39ten years ago these guys didn't exist, that project didn't exist,

0:23:39 > 0:23:42that education drive didn't exist, and now people,

0:23:42 > 0:23:44when they kill animals in the forest,

0:23:44 > 0:23:46or keep them away from their property,

0:23:46 > 0:23:48they are starting to realise it's wrong.

0:23:50 > 0:23:52That image of that bonfire will stay in my mind

0:23:52 > 0:23:55for a really long time for all sorts of reasons.

0:24:14 > 0:24:19The team's work, thank God, also has its perks.

0:24:19 > 0:24:21I'm joining them for what's got to be a better day -

0:24:21 > 0:24:25the chance to release live animals rescued in previous raids.

0:24:27 > 0:24:30In a top secret location, far from the prying eyes

0:24:30 > 0:24:34of potential poachers, we have a boat full of slow loris -

0:24:34 > 0:24:35my favourite animal -

0:24:35 > 0:24:39snakes and macaques, all ready to taste freedom once again.

0:24:43 > 0:24:45- There's two in there. - Two macaques?

0:24:45 > 0:24:48Yeah. We'll just open the gate and away they'll run.

0:24:48 > 0:24:50Do you want to do that?

0:24:51 > 0:24:52- Really? - Yeah.

0:24:52 > 0:24:54I'd really like to!

0:24:54 > 0:24:57One, two, three.

0:24:57 > 0:24:59Freedom little ones, you're free!

0:25:00 > 0:25:02Woo-hoo!

0:25:02 > 0:25:05There was just a moment where they went, "Really?"

0:25:05 > 0:25:07And then poof! Off.

0:25:07 > 0:25:11It's a brilliant feeling.

0:25:12 > 0:25:15'These pythons were caught for their skins,

0:25:15 > 0:25:18'and I've been given the dubious privilege of releasing them.

0:25:18 > 0:25:22'I'm actually terrified of snakes, but I don't want to let on!'

0:25:23 > 0:25:27OK. That's how you deal with a phobia. OK.

0:25:27 > 0:25:28Be free, little thing.

0:25:32 > 0:25:33There you go.

0:25:33 > 0:25:35SUE LAUGHS

0:25:35 > 0:25:37Just wait till I've picked up the end!

0:25:37 > 0:25:40The weight of it! It's so powerful.

0:25:40 > 0:25:42Brilliant.

0:25:42 > 0:25:45'Yeah, I think I got away with it.

0:25:45 > 0:25:47'We head further upstream, to as remote a spot

0:25:47 > 0:25:50'as we could possibly find for our final release.'

0:25:54 > 0:25:56In there is a little loris.

0:25:56 > 0:25:58I'm not sure if it's a boy or a girl.

0:25:58 > 0:26:00It's hiding it's eyes.

0:26:01 > 0:26:03Must be starting to wake up.

0:26:03 > 0:26:05It needs to go in at dusk,

0:26:05 > 0:26:08so we are pretty good to go, aren't we, Dean? It's almost time.

0:26:08 > 0:26:10Yeah, yeah. It's about right.

0:26:10 > 0:26:14I don't think I have been as excited about the contents of a box

0:26:14 > 0:26:17since Christmas Day, 1979.

0:26:18 > 0:26:21'This beautiful little thing was destined to be killed

0:26:21 > 0:26:23'for traditional medicine, dried, crucified

0:26:23 > 0:26:28'and used to ward off evil spirits, but now...freedom beckons.'

0:26:31 > 0:26:33It's OK, out you come.

0:26:40 > 0:26:42(Beauty).

0:26:42 > 0:26:46Slow, slow loris, slow loris.

0:26:50 > 0:26:52Unbelievable.

0:26:52 > 0:26:54Come on, come on.

0:26:54 > 0:26:56Up you go, up you go.

0:26:56 > 0:26:58That's it, you've got it, you've got it.

0:27:02 > 0:27:06I hope that animal never has to see anything on two legs ever again.

0:27:06 > 0:27:08That's my wish for it.

0:27:10 > 0:27:11Hey.

0:27:11 > 0:27:13(You need to come here.)

0:27:20 > 0:27:22It's a medium-to-fast loris.

0:27:22 > 0:27:24It's the Usain Bolt of lorises.

0:27:24 > 0:27:27Amazing. Well done.

0:27:27 > 0:27:30Yeah, that was quite a scamper for a loris,

0:27:30 > 0:27:32he's right up in the canopy now.

0:27:33 > 0:27:37Such a good feeling to see all those cages and crates empty.

0:27:37 > 0:27:39Job done.

0:27:41 > 0:27:44It's a small victory in a difficult and complicated war.

0:27:44 > 0:27:47But it sure felt good to me.

0:28:06 > 0:28:09So having sort of travelled through some of the tributaries,

0:28:09 > 0:28:11I'm now back on the main course of the Mekong

0:28:11 > 0:28:14and I've been felled with Mekong lurgy almost as soon

0:28:14 > 0:28:16as I set foot back on this river.

0:28:17 > 0:28:20It sort of feels like very familiar topography now.

0:28:23 > 0:28:27It's joyous but also slightly painful of throat.

0:28:29 > 0:28:33I'm motoring upstream to a place called Kratjie.

0:28:33 > 0:28:36It's one of the last places on the whole of the Mekong

0:28:36 > 0:28:38where you can still see its most endangered

0:28:38 > 0:28:42and iconic species - the Mekong River Irrawaddy dolphin.

0:28:43 > 0:28:46Its domed head - think aquatic Patrick Stewart -

0:28:46 > 0:28:50is a symbol of a new generation learning to value their wildlife

0:28:50 > 0:28:52in a new way.

0:29:02 > 0:29:04Whoa, here we go.

0:29:04 > 0:29:06Now I'm famous for falling over at these points.

0:29:06 > 0:29:10'I'm heading out on the river with a bunch of fishermen

0:29:10 > 0:29:13'who have changed their way of life to help save the river dolphin.'

0:29:13 > 0:29:16Chum reap suor.

0:29:17 > 0:29:18THEY LAUGH

0:29:18 > 0:29:21Already, the laughter has begun, which is something

0:29:21 > 0:29:24that's followed me. It's almost the soundtrack of my travels.

0:29:35 > 0:29:39Traditionally, Mekong fishermen use gill nets - long fine nets

0:29:39 > 0:29:43that float in the water and capture all the fish that pass.

0:29:43 > 0:29:47But the dolphins were also getting caught and drowning.

0:29:47 > 0:29:50Now the fisherman are being encouraged to use different gear.

0:29:52 > 0:29:55HE SPEAKS IN KHMER

0:29:55 > 0:29:56Keep it safe, yeah?

0:29:56 > 0:30:00There's some ancient Cambodian rope bondage going on here.

0:30:00 > 0:30:03You imagine it's going to feel like gossamer - very, very light.

0:30:03 > 0:30:06It's so heavy, it's unbelievable.

0:30:06 > 0:30:09One, two, three, yeah!

0:30:09 > 0:30:12Oh, now look at that!

0:30:12 > 0:30:13OK, ready, here I go.

0:30:19 > 0:30:20SUE BLOWS A RASPBERRY

0:30:21 > 0:30:24I seem to have caught quite a lot of mud.

0:30:24 > 0:30:25'These are cast nets -

0:30:25 > 0:30:29'small, circular nets with heavy weights at the ends.'

0:30:29 > 0:30:32Biceps like you wouldn't believe if you did this for a few hours a day.

0:30:32 > 0:30:35Hello, hot stuff. Right, what am I doing?

0:30:35 > 0:30:39'These are hard work and less efficient than gill nets,

0:30:39 > 0:30:43'but you'd struggle to catch any passing dolphins with them.'

0:30:43 > 0:30:45Show off!

0:30:50 > 0:30:53The idea of practice is that you get better slowly

0:30:53 > 0:30:57and incrementally. I've managed to get worse each time I've done it.

0:30:58 > 0:31:01This whole project was the dream of one man -

0:31:01 > 0:31:02conservationist Touch Seang Tana,

0:31:02 > 0:31:06who saw the dolphin was approaching the point of no return

0:31:06 > 0:31:09and decided to persuade the fishermen to change their ways.

0:31:09 > 0:31:11Like most of Cambodia's problems,

0:31:11 > 0:31:15the decline of the river dolphin can be traced back to Year Zero.

0:31:48 > 0:31:51Overfishing and gill netting only made things worse.

0:31:51 > 0:31:56By 2007, there were only 100 dolphins left in the Mekong.

0:32:00 > 0:32:02Tana invested his own money and time

0:32:02 > 0:32:05in training the fisherman to use cast nets.

0:32:05 > 0:32:09He set up river patrols to catch fishermen using illegal gear.

0:32:10 > 0:32:15But most importantly, he introduced new ways of making a living

0:32:15 > 0:32:17to replace lost revenue from fishing.

0:32:48 > 0:32:52Now 20,000 visitors come here each year to get a glimpse

0:32:52 > 0:32:54of this extraordinary creature,

0:32:54 > 0:32:57bringing much needed tourist dollars to local people.

0:33:01 > 0:33:04For now, the dolphins are worth more alive than dead.

0:33:06 > 0:33:09There are 60 Irrawaddy Mekong dolphin in the whole world

0:33:09 > 0:33:12and this is my opportunity to see them.

0:33:12 > 0:33:14I naively assumed they'd be delighted to see me

0:33:14 > 0:33:15or as delighted as I was to see them,

0:33:15 > 0:33:18- but of course you only really get... - SPLASH

0:33:18 > 0:33:19I love that noise.

0:33:19 > 0:33:22Just get a glimpse of a fin but nothing more than that,

0:33:22 > 0:33:26and why would you, because we've hunted them almost to extinction.

0:33:26 > 0:33:28The story of the Mekong dolphins,

0:33:28 > 0:33:32the story of what one person did, involving the community,

0:33:32 > 0:33:36finding a combination of education programmes and, you know,

0:33:36 > 0:33:39river enforcement and economic boom

0:33:39 > 0:33:42that would change the hearts and minds of this population,

0:33:42 > 0:33:46that would incentivise them to take this path over this path.

0:33:46 > 0:33:49What's happening here is nothing short of a small Cambodian miracle

0:33:49 > 0:33:53and I really hope if I come back here in 20 or 30 years' time,

0:33:53 > 0:33:56I'll be able to buy a stone carving of an animal

0:33:56 > 0:33:57that still exists in these waters.

0:34:01 > 0:34:04The future of the river dolphin is far from certain.

0:34:04 > 0:34:07There's a massive dam planned just upstream from here

0:34:07 > 0:34:09that will affect their migration routes.

0:34:09 > 0:34:11And the population is now so small

0:34:11 > 0:34:14that it may no longer even be viable.

0:34:14 > 0:34:17But the fact that local people are at least trying

0:34:17 > 0:34:19to do something about it gives me hope for the future.

0:34:31 > 0:34:34As I move upstream, the landscape changes.

0:34:37 > 0:34:41The thick forest that would once have lined the river banks

0:34:41 > 0:34:42has all been cut down.

0:34:42 > 0:34:47But up ahead, a small patch of jungle has survived,

0:34:47 > 0:34:50apparently, protected by a monastery...and a hermit!

0:34:52 > 0:34:56I'm off to see Mr Song, who is a hermit.

0:34:56 > 0:34:58I've never met a hermit before.

0:34:58 > 0:35:01I'm slightly confused that I'm meeting one now,

0:35:01 > 0:35:05because I thought the whole point of hermits was that they shooed people,

0:35:05 > 0:35:09and that someone coming visiting would be a hermit's worst nightmare!

0:35:09 > 0:35:11But apparently he quite likes hanging out with people

0:35:11 > 0:35:14and anyone's welcome to drop round for tea.

0:35:16 > 0:35:21Well, this is the most interesting gangplank I may have walked yet.

0:35:21 > 0:35:24It just adds to my sense of creeping inadequacy

0:35:24 > 0:35:27that there is a family of seasoned fishermen watching me.

0:35:27 > 0:35:31It sort of feels like I'm taking part in an episode

0:35:31 > 0:35:33of Total Wipeout.

0:35:33 > 0:35:35Cambodian style.

0:35:37 > 0:35:40Oh, yeah, it's like Woman on Wire now.

0:35:41 > 0:35:44I think I hear the sound of mocking laughter.

0:35:49 > 0:35:51Imagine this is like the first test

0:35:51 > 0:35:54to see if you actually want to become a hermit.

0:36:09 > 0:36:13In Buddhist teachings, animals carry the souls of our ancestors

0:36:13 > 0:36:15and harming nature will bring bad karma.

0:36:17 > 0:36:19This place feels like a sanctuary.

0:36:24 > 0:36:27I think that's the hermit's three o'clock appointment leaving.

0:36:35 > 0:36:38I climb up through surprisingly rich jungle.

0:36:38 > 0:36:41It is an oasis of calm - cool, thick forest cover,

0:36:41 > 0:36:46and at the top of the hill, there really is a hermit.

0:36:46 > 0:36:47Chum reap suor.

0:37:17 > 0:37:18You're a good one.

0:37:18 > 0:37:21I know you are a good man.

0:37:24 > 0:37:25Oh...

0:37:25 > 0:37:28That was a little harder than I expected.

0:37:28 > 0:37:31That was sort of like a friendly head butt.

0:37:37 > 0:37:40There is nothing in there.

0:37:40 > 0:37:43'I have no idea what's going on...

0:37:43 > 0:37:45'but I kind of like it.'

0:37:56 > 0:37:59I think we might be engaged to be married now.

0:38:06 > 0:38:08Beautiful, look at this.

0:38:18 > 0:38:19NOKIA TUNE PLAYS

0:38:19 > 0:38:21Is that your phone going?

0:38:27 > 0:38:28Is this you?

0:38:34 > 0:38:35Look at you!

0:38:43 > 0:38:46That is marvellous. So, basically, I've come here,

0:38:46 > 0:38:48I've been shown a picture...

0:38:48 > 0:38:52Yeah, we are married now, when this mega-dude had this hair,

0:38:52 > 0:38:55this great Jimi Hendrix hair, he's now got it as a hairpiece.

0:38:59 > 0:39:01I want to try the hairpiece on.

0:39:06 > 0:39:09He likes a bit of that. There you go, what about that?

0:39:13 > 0:39:18What made you want to be apart from the world and be a hermit?

0:39:27 > 0:39:30And so do you look after this forest?

0:39:37 > 0:39:40I see. So you have half and the Buddhists have half.

0:39:40 > 0:39:41Together you protect it.

0:39:41 > 0:39:45- NOKIA TUNE PLAYS - That's your mobile.

0:39:45 > 0:39:48You see, hermits have got to stay connected.

0:39:51 > 0:39:52Who is phoning the hermit?

0:39:56 > 0:39:57Want me to have a look?

0:39:58 > 0:40:00It's your mum, she says,

0:40:00 > 0:40:03"Where have you been for the last 30 years?"

0:40:03 > 0:40:06She's furious. She's absolutely furious with you.

0:40:06 > 0:40:09Really is furious. You need to know that.

0:40:09 > 0:40:14Do you worry that this forest is in danger

0:40:14 > 0:40:16from people cutting down the trees?

0:41:01 > 0:41:04I hear that you tell fortunes. Is this true?

0:41:08 > 0:41:09Would you tell my fortune?

0:41:25 > 0:41:27So I will have love.

0:41:29 > 0:41:32Little charmer you are, you are a charmer.

0:41:38 > 0:41:39We do hugs in my country.

0:41:40 > 0:41:42Patting's good.

0:41:42 > 0:41:43Take care.

0:41:44 > 0:41:46Aw khun.

0:41:52 > 0:41:55Extraordinary thing to meet a total stranger

0:41:55 > 0:41:58and to just have him bang his head against yours

0:41:58 > 0:42:01and almost suck the thoughts out of your head.

0:42:01 > 0:42:04He really touches your flesh and squeezes it.

0:42:04 > 0:42:07You know, for it to be such an innocent and pure connection,

0:42:07 > 0:42:10non-verbal connection. I sort of understood everything

0:42:10 > 0:42:13he said without having it really be translated.

0:42:13 > 0:42:17It was very profound. Sometimes silence is the best medicine.

0:42:17 > 0:42:21This is the lesson for my sore throat, I should just...

0:42:34 > 0:42:38These remnants of wilderness are good for the soul.

0:42:38 > 0:42:41Just what I need to prepare myself for the journey ahead.

0:42:46 > 0:42:49I'm now heading into north-eastern edge of the river basin,

0:42:49 > 0:42:52to the Ratanakiri region near the borders with Vietnam and Laos,

0:42:52 > 0:42:56and the most intensively logged area in Cambodia.

0:42:56 > 0:42:59This is the front line in this war with nature.

0:43:01 > 0:43:05Cambodia has the highest rate of deforestation of all the countries

0:43:05 > 0:43:08in the Mekong region, and one of the worst in the world.

0:43:08 > 0:43:13The only way to see the scale of the destruction is from the air.

0:43:15 > 0:43:18You can just see these massive scars running through the land.

0:43:18 > 0:43:21The worrying thing is those scars are roads,

0:43:21 > 0:43:23and once we've got infrastructure,

0:43:23 > 0:43:26they can just start buying up more and more parcels of land

0:43:26 > 0:43:29and planting rubber and destroying primary forest.

0:43:29 > 0:43:31They might as well just stick a massive sign.

0:43:31 > 0:43:36"For sale. Highest bidder, will take all offers."

0:43:36 > 0:43:39Because that essentially is what it amounts to.

0:43:39 > 0:43:42'Just ten years ago, this would have been beautiful rainforest

0:43:42 > 0:43:44'as far as the eye could see.'

0:43:46 > 0:43:50There's something vaguely despondent about seeing a landscape on fire,

0:43:50 > 0:43:55about seeing trees destroyed, sort of bare earth just exposed.

0:43:57 > 0:43:59I'm glad I've seen the scale of it,

0:43:59 > 0:44:02but it's been totally disheartening.

0:44:02 > 0:44:05Totally disheartening.

0:44:08 > 0:44:11'The government has leased 45% of

0:44:11 > 0:44:14the country's land to private investors.

0:44:14 > 0:44:18'In many areas, the valuable tropical hard woods are ripped down

0:44:18 > 0:44:21'and replaced with cash crops like rubber and cashew nuts.

0:44:21 > 0:44:24'In the last decade, 300,000 hectares -

0:44:24 > 0:44:26'an area the size of Kent -

0:44:26 > 0:44:29'has been covered with rubber trees.

0:44:31 > 0:44:35'These vast monoculture plantations replace small farms

0:44:35 > 0:44:37'and forests full of life.

0:44:39 > 0:44:42'And this land is often sold to investors

0:44:42 > 0:44:46'without the locals' consent in what is basically a legalised land grab.

0:44:48 > 0:44:51'We tried to film in these heavily logged zones

0:44:51 > 0:44:55'but were refused access. We were told it was simply too dangerous.'

0:45:06 > 0:45:09The Krung people live in the remote highlands of Ratanakiri

0:45:09 > 0:45:13and are one of the tribes most affected by the changes.

0:45:16 > 0:45:21I've come to experience their unique way of life, before it's too late.

0:45:21 > 0:45:23I'm joining the women of Kan Chun

0:45:23 > 0:45:26and I've been practising the local lingo.

0:45:26 > 0:45:29"Gangala," I'm hoping, means hello.

0:45:30 > 0:45:32Gangala!

0:45:33 > 0:45:36- Gangala! - Gangala.

0:45:36 > 0:45:38Oh, gangala!

0:45:41 > 0:45:42Oh, yeah.

0:45:50 > 0:45:53I think that meant, "She just sat in pig dung!"

0:45:53 > 0:45:55Yes, yes, now I know.

0:45:55 > 0:45:58It's just poo that I've sat in.

0:45:58 > 0:46:00Better, better.

0:46:00 > 0:46:04Never sit on the brown, that's what I've learned.

0:46:10 > 0:46:11Pig!

0:46:11 > 0:46:15SHE SNORTS LIKE A PIG

0:46:20 > 0:46:21What's that, darling?

0:46:23 > 0:46:25- Sue. - Sue.

0:46:25 > 0:46:27- Sue. - Sue.

0:46:27 > 0:46:29- Sue. - Sue.

0:46:31 > 0:46:32What's your name?

0:46:32 > 0:46:34Sabach.

0:46:36 > 0:46:39Would you be able to teach me one to ten in Krump?

0:46:39 > 0:46:42THEY COUNT IN KRUMP

0:47:01 > 0:47:03In English, one...

0:47:03 > 0:47:05- One.- Two. - Two.

0:47:05 > 0:47:07- Three. - Three.

0:47:19 > 0:47:22She is saying someone has farted and they have.

0:47:22 > 0:47:24I was too polite to say it, but she just went like that.

0:47:24 > 0:47:27It was like, yeah, someone just did a terrible fart.

0:47:27 > 0:47:29I know who it was.

0:47:29 > 0:47:31There was a lot of chitchat back there.

0:47:31 > 0:47:34It was awful wasn't it? Terrible!

0:47:34 > 0:47:37Yeah, off you pop!

0:47:38 > 0:47:40Really terrible.

0:47:47 > 0:47:48And pop it in there.

0:47:50 > 0:47:51Thank you!

0:47:57 > 0:48:01Here we go! I've got pack mule written all over me.

0:48:01 > 0:48:04I always like to meet a tribe first,

0:48:04 > 0:48:07by just sitting in a little bit of pig turd.

0:48:07 > 0:48:10I found it a real icebreaker, sort of dried on me now.

0:48:20 > 0:48:24What's incredible for me is I met these people ten minutes ago,

0:48:24 > 0:48:28they have now welcomed me into their home, taken my hand in theirs

0:48:28 > 0:48:30leading me off for a day's work, no questions asked.

0:48:30 > 0:48:33No suspicion, no mistrust. Open!

0:48:33 > 0:48:35What's theirs is mine.

0:48:38 > 0:48:40It's really wonderful, it is a bit teary.

0:48:40 > 0:48:43I live in such a closed off way.

0:48:43 > 0:48:46Come to somewhere like this and it just blows you wide open.

0:48:48 > 0:48:51Now this is, that is.. Now I'm native.

0:48:51 > 0:48:52This is good.

0:48:53 > 0:48:55I like this, it's nice.

0:48:55 > 0:48:57Both sides!

0:48:59 > 0:49:01Aw khun.

0:49:03 > 0:49:05I'm loving that pipe.

0:49:05 > 0:49:09She's rocking that bit of tobacco ware.

0:49:11 > 0:49:14'On our way to their fields, our language lesson continues.'

0:49:14 > 0:49:17Neck.

0:49:17 > 0:49:19- Dang.- Dang, neck.

0:49:21 > 0:49:23And what is this?

0:49:23 > 0:49:25Ears!

0:49:25 > 0:49:28'And the ladies quickly cut to the chase.'

0:49:28 > 0:49:30Oh, this?!

0:49:30 > 0:49:32LAUGHTER

0:49:36 > 0:49:37Fanny.

0:49:37 > 0:49:39Fanny.

0:49:39 > 0:49:40Fanny, yeah.

0:49:42 > 0:49:44Fanny or...

0:49:44 > 0:49:47There's lots of words.

0:49:47 > 0:49:48Um...

0:49:48 > 0:49:51Fud! Fud.

0:49:51 > 0:49:52Charlat.

0:49:52 > 0:49:53Charlotte?

0:49:53 > 0:49:55LAUGHTER

0:49:55 > 0:49:57Who's Charlotte?!

0:49:57 > 0:50:01'The village grows most of its food on a hectare of hillside.

0:50:01 > 0:50:05'The red volcanic soil is very fertile -

0:50:05 > 0:50:08'one reason the big agricultural companies

0:50:08 > 0:50:10'have targeted this part of the country.

0:50:10 > 0:50:12'It's very different to the neat lines of veg

0:50:12 > 0:50:15'we grow in our gardens at home.

0:50:15 > 0:50:18'It's a wild collection of exotic plants, and well,

0:50:18 > 0:50:21'I don't know what any of it is to be honest.'

0:50:21 > 0:50:23This is like a herb, I think...

0:50:25 > 0:50:27Does that look like that?

0:50:27 > 0:50:28What's this?

0:50:30 > 0:50:33If I was foraging, I'd last about five minutes.

0:50:33 > 0:50:35I'd just cry and want a Kit Kat.

0:50:35 > 0:50:40'Ten of these fields provide enough food for a village of 200 people.

0:50:40 > 0:50:42'In the dry season when there's less to eat,

0:50:42 > 0:50:45'they turn to their forests for food.

0:50:45 > 0:50:48'Right now, after the rains, there's plenty,

0:50:48 > 0:50:51'if you know what to look for.'

0:51:00 > 0:51:02I know you will not be able to understand a word of this,

0:51:02 > 0:51:06but I have not felt this profoundly peaceful for such a long time.

0:51:08 > 0:51:10It's such a privilege to be here.

0:51:10 > 0:51:12SPEAKS IN KHMER

0:51:17 > 0:51:20Oh, God, here we go, that was long!

0:51:24 > 0:51:27The collection forest is an important part of this wild larder -

0:51:27 > 0:51:30an area where they hunt and gather food.

0:51:30 > 0:51:32Today, we're collecting branches for making dyes.

0:51:36 > 0:51:37Oh, take that!

0:51:40 > 0:51:43Basically, if you strip back this bark and you boil it,

0:51:43 > 0:51:46it turns into a beautiful red colour which can dye

0:51:46 > 0:51:47a load of their woven products.

0:51:50 > 0:51:52And I just heard a chain saw.

0:51:54 > 0:51:57Never too far away from a logger.

0:52:12 > 0:52:14The threat of losing their land

0:52:14 > 0:52:17and their way of life is not new to the Krung.

0:52:19 > 0:52:2250 years ago, this region was bombed by US warplanes

0:52:22 > 0:52:27heading for Vietnam and then became a focus for Khmer Rouge brutality.

0:52:27 > 0:52:29The hill tribes were forced out of their villages

0:52:29 > 0:52:31to work on communal farms.

0:52:32 > 0:52:36Despite all this, they have maintained their unique identity.

0:52:36 > 0:52:39Most of the villagers only speak their tribal language,

0:52:39 > 0:52:43and few leave to work or get an education outside the village.

0:52:45 > 0:52:50The community feels very separate from modern day Cambodia.

0:52:52 > 0:52:56Yesterday's foraging has given us plenty of work to do.

0:52:56 > 0:52:59Clothes don't just go dyeing themselves, you know.

0:52:59 > 0:53:03SUE HUMS "THE BRITISH GRENADIERS SONG"

0:53:10 > 0:53:14Right, is this good? Ah, now we're stripping it.

0:53:14 > 0:53:15I get you.

0:53:15 > 0:53:18Now, I can see the red, though, the red dye.

0:53:18 > 0:53:21OK, time to dye.

0:53:21 > 0:53:23'Water from the village well is on the boil

0:53:23 > 0:53:25'and the bark is cooked up for an hour

0:53:25 > 0:53:27'before it's ready for the silk.'

0:53:29 > 0:53:31Don't worry, you're not for the pot.

0:53:37 > 0:53:40It looks like an evaporated Anne Robinson at the moment.

0:53:47 > 0:53:49This is so complicated.

0:53:49 > 0:53:53It's like learning to play the harp in zero gravity.

0:53:55 > 0:53:58So many little intricate bits, and different yarns...

0:53:58 > 0:54:00You are a very clever sausage.

0:54:00 > 0:54:02- Thanks.- You're welcome.

0:54:02 > 0:54:06How do you feel about the forest being threatened?

0:54:13 > 0:54:16So how do you try and protect the forest from people

0:54:16 > 0:54:18who want to chop down the trees?

0:54:45 > 0:54:47Do you love your life?

0:54:55 > 0:54:58Yeah, I thought so. I thought so.

0:55:05 > 0:55:08Sabach was very confident about the future of this village

0:55:08 > 0:55:10and very confident that they could save the forest,

0:55:10 > 0:55:14and the sort of child innocent part of me wants to believe that,

0:55:14 > 0:55:17the part that believes that good triumphs over evil.

0:55:17 > 0:55:20But what she hasn't seen and what I have seen

0:55:20 > 0:55:22is the view of her homeland from the air,

0:55:22 > 0:55:26and the fact that the forest is being decimated at a rate that she

0:55:26 > 0:55:29will never be able to understand until it's at her front door.

0:55:29 > 0:55:32So all you have to do is hope.

0:55:35 > 0:55:38You can hear chain saws.

0:55:38 > 0:55:41When you hear them, I don't think hope

0:55:41 > 0:55:46is enough of a hook to hang the survival of this community on.

0:55:52 > 0:55:56It's so important not to romanticise this way of life.

0:55:58 > 0:55:59It's hard work,

0:55:59 > 0:56:03and by our materialistic western standards, they have very little.

0:56:03 > 0:56:06But I can't help but feel they have retained something

0:56:06 > 0:56:09that we have lost. A distinct culture,

0:56:09 > 0:56:13a relationship with the natural world that so many of us crave.

0:56:13 > 0:56:16Like many forest peoples, they live sustainably,

0:56:16 > 0:56:18and see value in the living trees.

0:56:21 > 0:56:26But with big business closing in, I fear this could all be swept away.

0:56:33 > 0:56:36I'm genuinely sad I'm going. I don't want to go!

0:56:39 > 0:56:41SUE SPEAKS KHMER

0:56:41 > 0:56:43Until next time.

0:56:43 > 0:56:45Goodbye, goodbye.

0:56:45 > 0:56:47Goodbye.

0:56:47 > 0:56:48Goodbye, as we do it.

0:56:48 > 0:56:51These women made me feel so welcome

0:56:51 > 0:56:55and have a warmth and a happiness that was just infectious.

0:56:57 > 0:57:00It's been a once in a lifetime, total privilege to be here.

0:57:02 > 0:57:04To meet people who live so far away,

0:57:04 > 0:57:07but with whom I feel such an instant connection.

0:57:08 > 0:57:10In many ways though, I've found this

0:57:10 > 0:57:12the most difficult journey of my life.

0:57:12 > 0:57:14Cambodia's caught in a real battle,

0:57:14 > 0:57:17between the urge to modernise and rise out of poverty

0:57:17 > 0:57:22and the desire to retain what's unique, precious and irreplaceable.

0:57:22 > 0:57:26The hardwood from the tropical forests that we in the West buy

0:57:26 > 0:57:28is a huge source of foreign revenue,

0:57:28 > 0:57:31but when they're gone, there will be nothing left.

0:57:33 > 0:57:36It's very hard to put into words my time in this country,

0:57:36 > 0:57:41because the emotions still feel very raw and very unprocessed,

0:57:41 > 0:57:44so I'll round somebody else's words up, I think.

0:57:44 > 0:57:47I don't think anyone's put it better than the former US ambassador,

0:57:47 > 0:57:49a guy called Joseph Mussomeli,

0:57:49 > 0:57:54and he said, "Cambodia is the most dangerous place you'll ever visit.

0:57:54 > 0:57:58"You'll fall in love with it and then it will break your heart."

0:58:00 > 0:58:02It's perfect.

0:58:04 > 0:58:06Next time I'm in Laos...

0:58:06 > 0:58:07Oh, that's cold!

0:58:07 > 0:58:10'Sleepy, beautiful, and forgotten.

0:58:10 > 0:58:12'It feels like Buddhism

0:58:12 > 0:58:15'and communism have helped hold back time.'

0:58:15 > 0:58:17I've had to travel this many miles upriver

0:58:17 > 0:58:21to finally get to the Mekong of my imagination.

0:58:21 > 0:58:25'But it's here the biggest changes of all are coming to the Mekong.'

0:58:26 > 0:58:28Whether you think that it will bring renewable energy

0:58:28 > 0:58:31or whether you think it's an ecological disaster,

0:58:31 > 0:58:35the dam is coming and it will change this entire land forever.