God child

Tep Sareth, 21, claims he woke up one day at the age of 13 with the power to predict the future. Now, in his home province Svay Rieng, Cambodia, he's reffered as a "god child". "I cannot make things happen, I can only say what will and won't happen offering advice on how to escape bad fortune", he explains. In the process he seems to have secured himself a lucrative business. He earns up to 300$ a week telling the futures of rich and poor alike, while his mother sells special packs of herbal brews for 1.20$ each. A monk at a local pagoda remains sceptical: "People believe what they will, but this is not Buddhism".

© Grzegorz Ostrega / Babel Images

Sleeping on the street

Homeless street child sleeping in early morning on a sidewalk of one of the most touristic streets of Phnom Penh, Cambodia (31.07.2009).

It is hard to estimate the number of street children in Phnom Penh as they are very mobile and often move from place to place. Some sources say it is two thousand, other say it's much higher. Aged from four to seventeen they are hugely vulnerable to all kinds of exploitation, abuses, drugs use and gang activities. Money they collect from tourists goes mainly to other people, what leaves them in extreme poverty and "no way out" situation.

© Grzegorz Ostręga / Babel Images