Political Sacravatoons: "Praet of Khmer Pchumben" (98 vintage but still relevant)

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://sacrava.blogspot.com/)

Anti -Hun Sen Demonstration in Brussels on 04 October 2010

MANIFESTATION CONTRE HUN SEN A BRUXELLES LE 4 OCTOBRE 2010

La Police de Bruxelles est prévenue de la manifestation publique que vont organiser plusieurs associations et groupements de Cambodgiens en Europe le lundi 4 octobre 2010 pour protester contre la venue de Hun Sen à Bruxelles et dénoncer son régime dictatorial, corrompu et anti-national. Une autorisation pour organiser une telle manifestation n'est pas nécessaire dans un pays démocratique comme la Belgique.

- Heure du début du rassemblement: 14 H 00

- Lieu du rassemblement: PARC DU CENTENAIRE, ROND-POINT SCHUMAN, 1040 BRUXELLES. C'est l'endroit où la prochaine rencontre "Euro-Asie" se tiendra ce lundi 4 octobre 2010 avec la participation de nombreux dirigeants européens et asiatiques dont Hun Sen.

Pour contacter les organisateurs : (00) 32 24 65 00 95 / (00) 32 48 67 86 988 /

(00) 32 83 21 17 79 / (00) 32 48 89 73 366.

VENEZ NOMBREUX AVEC VOS AMIS

POUR PROTESTER CONTRE LES VIOLATIONS DES DROITS DE L'HOMME

ET RÉCLAMER LA DÉMOCRATIE AU CAMBODGE.

DÉMOCRATIE AU CAMBODGE !

LES ACCORDS DE PARIS DE 1991 DOIVENT ÊTRE RÉELLEMENT APPLIQUÉS !

LE PEUPLE KHMER A LE DROIT DE VIVRE LIBRE ET DIGNE !

INDÉPENDANCE POUR LE CAMBODGE !

LA TERRE KHMÈRE AUX PAYSANS KHMERS !

LES OUVRIERS KHMERS NE SONT PAS DES ESCLAVES !

LA JEUNESSE KHMÈRE VEUT UN MEILLEUR AVENIR !

JUSTICE SOCIALE AU CAMBODGE !

-------

Unofficial English Translation

Anti-Hun Sen Demonstration in Brussels on 04 October 2010

Brussels police authority was informed about a public demonstration which will be organized by several Cambodian associations and groups in Europe to oppose the visit of Hun Sen in Brussels and to denounce his dictatorial, corrupt and anti-national regime. An authorization to organize such demonstration is not required in a democratic country such as Belgium

When:

Gathering for the beginning of the demonstration at

2PM on 04 October 2010

Where:

Parc du Centenaire

Rondpoint Schuman

1040 Brussels

(This is the location where the upcoming « Asia-Europe Meeting » (ASEM) meeting will take place on 04 October 2010. The meeting will be attended by several European and Asian leaders, including Hun Sen)

Contact:

(00) 32 24 65 00 95 / (00) 32 48 67 86 988

(00) 32 83 21 17 79 / (00) 32 48 89 73 366

Please attend in large number with your friends and family to protest against the violation of human rights and to reclaim back democracy in Cambodia

Democrary for Cambodia!

The 1991 Paris Agreements must be truly put into application!

The Khmer People have the right to live free with dignity!

Independence for Cambodia!

Khmer lands belong to Khmer farmers!

Khmer workers are not slaves!

Khmer Youths deserve a better future!

Social justice for Cambodia!

Behind the scenes in Cambodia

A typical Chinese movie dubbed in Khmer

Dubbing artists have the most iconic voices in the country, yet nobody knows their faces.

September 29, 2010
By Terry McCoy — Special to GlobalPost

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — Touch Sohka has arguably the most famous voice in Cambodia, and yet nobody has seen his face. The 49-year-old is on every Khmer television station daily, but nobody has any clue what he looks like.

Confused? Well, so is he. Touch says he has trouble understanding his own profession. It’s that strange, he says. Just ask his kids. They think he’s nuts.

Touch is one of the only voice actors in a country that almost explicitly runs, and obsessively manages, foreign entertainment on television. He has dubbed them all: Wolverine, Jackie Chan, that whiny kid from Transformers — each role contorted by his grouchy baritone and signature gusto, “Ay-ya!”
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Cambodian leader says meeting with Thai PM restored bilateral confidence

Wednesday, September 29, 2010
By Sopheng Cheang (CP)

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said Wednesday his country's relationship with Thailand has improved after he met his counterpart last week.

Hun Sen said the 40-minute meeting in New York with Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva restored confidence and co-operation between the two countries, which have been feuding over disputed border territory and other issues. The two leaders were attending the U.N. General Assembly meeting.

Relations took a turn for the worse last year, with both countries withdrawing their ambassadors, after Hun Sen made former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra an official adviser and hosted him like a VIP.
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New [Thai] 2nd Army Region commander pledges to improve ties with Cambodia [... until the next clash]

NAKHON RATCHASIMA, Sept 29 (MCOT online news)- Thailand's new Second Army Region commander Lt Gen Thawatchai Samutsakorn pledged to boost ties with Cambodia and will attend a Regional Border Committee (RBC) meeting in Siem Reap in late October.

Speaking to journalists after assuming the post from his predecessor Lt-Gen Veevalit Chornsamrit who will retire on Friday, Gen Thawatchai said he was not worried as he has been working in the northeastern region since he was a second lieutenant.

Regarding relations with the neighbouring country and the questions of peace and order along the Thai-Cambodia border, he said his policies will not be different from his predecessor, but there will be additional policies such as more frequent visits to Phnom Penh and Siem Reap.
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KRT releases demographic survey results

Wednesday, 29 September 2010
James O'Toole
The Phnom Penh Post

THE Khmer Rouge tribunal yesterday released a demographic survey conducted as part of the investigation in its second case that offers new estimates of the death toll under Democratic Kampuchea.

In their 143-page report, researchers Ewa Tabaeu and They Kheam estimated that Cambodia’s population was between 7.84 million and 8.1 million as of April 1975. Of those, they said, between 1.75 million and 2.2 million perished under Democratic Kampuchea: Between 800,000 and

1.3 million died violently and the remainder succumbed to starvation, overwork and other causes.

The researchers relied in part on previous academic and government surveys, though they noted that the dearth of official statistics from the period created a significant degree of uncertainty in any estimate.
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Prosecution for an old crime puts Cambodian refugee at risk

Melinda Youk, 16, during a demonstration by members of the Cambodian community. Mout Iv, who awaits deportation to Cambodia, is her uncle. (JULIETTE LYNCH / Staff Photographer)

Wed, Sep. 29, 2010
By Michael Matza
Philadelphia Inquirer Staff Writer (Pennsylvania, USA)

After he was convicted of assaulting a Philadelphia man in 1998, Cambodian refugee Mout Iv knew he was in the United States on borrowed time.

As it turned out, quite a lot of borrowed time.

He was freed from a Pennsylvania prison after four years, but paperwork snafus prevented his immediate return to Cambodia, as required by law. So immigration agents put Iv on "supervised release," allowing him to open a barber shop in Olney

The government kept tabs on him with scheduled interviews, random phone calls, and unannounced visits.
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Khmer Rouge tribunal takes message to the movement's heart

September 29, 2010
ABC Radio Australia

Last week, the Khmer Rouge war crimes tribunal in Cambodia, visited the border town of Pailin in the country's west.

The trip was to explain the court and its workings, to an audience of 250 people - most of whom are former members of the Khmer Rouge. The week before, the tribunal had indicted four former Khmer Rouge leaders - all of whom used to live in Pailin.

Presenter: Robert Carmichael

Speakers: Mey Mak, deputy governor of Pailin; Andrew Cayley, international co-proscutor; Lars Olsen, legal affairs spokesman, ECCC

Listen: Windows Media

CARMICHAEL: The town of Pailin in the hilly countryside of western Cambodia near the Thai border is well-known for its association with the Khmer Rouge.

The communist movement that brought Cambodia to its knees in the 1970s, and which fought on from bases along the Cambodian-Thai border after that, finally collapsed in the late 1990s. Pailin played a central role in precipitating that collapse when the regime's foreign minister, Ieng Sary, defected to the Cambodian government with several thousand fighters in 1996. In return Ieng Sary received a royal pardon and an amnesty. His timing was good. Within a few years the Khmer Rouge was finished. But over the next decade Ieng Sary's luck turned. In 2003 the government and the United Nations agreed to establish a tribunal to try those most deeply implicated in the regime's crimes. Amnesties were declared null and void.

In 2007 both Ieng Sary and his wife, the former social affairs minister Ieng Thirith, were arrested. Earlier this month the tribunal indicted both for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. Indicted along with them were former head of state Khieu Samphan, and the man known as Brother Number Two, Nuon Chea. In most of Cambodia, their indictments are seen as long overdue. But not here.
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You can change, if you desire to

September 29, 2010
By A. Gaffar Peang-Meth
PACIFIC DAILY NEWS (Guam)

As I contemplated the topic for my column this week, the one I am about to write did not occur to me. But the quantity of e-mail from Khmer readers and some important questions in the Khmer blog, KI-Media, obliges this column.

I didn't think that my personal story would open a torrent of mail about readers' own life experiences, but that is what happened. There are painful stories about life under Pol Pot. And a story about a schoolboy made to stand still at a school flag pole with a stone on his shoulder for an entire class period in the 1950s because he "played with girls" reminds me that the authoritarian mentality has its roots in small actions.

I am sorry some Cambodian readers feel the need to write their comments anonymously. Stand up for what you think and say. Pol Pot is dead, and change will bring down a dictator like Hun Sen. Even so, some of the questions in the week's mail deserve answers.

Answering questions

An anonymous blogger commented that as readers and the writer don't know one another, "we tend to assume. ... Eventually, those assumptions become a reality." So, he was happy to read my life story.
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US Providing $51 Million in Health, Education and Other Aid

(Photo: Cambodia Express News)

Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer
Phnom Penh Tuesday, 28 September 2010

Cambodia's economic growth and future development rely on “an educated and healthy population,” US Ambassador Carol Rodley said in Phnom Penh at a signing ceremony Tuesday.

The US on Tuesday provided more than $35 million to Cambodian health and education, part of more than $51 million in funding expected this week.

The US will provide $33.55 million in grant funds to reduce HIV and AIDS and prevent major diseases like tuberculosis and other dangers such as maternal and child health, officials said. And it will provide another $1.55 million for Cambodia's “education objectives,” including improving basic education and access to education.
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US Seeks 'Leadership Role' in Asia: Obama [-How about leadership in human rights respect, where does the US stand? 2nd to last?]

President Barack Obama, center, is joined for a photo with ASEAN leaders, from left, Lao President Choummaly Sayasone, Vietnam Priesident Nguyen Minh Triet, Philippines President Benigno Aquino III, and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Raza, before a luncheon in New York, Friday, Sept. 24, 2010. (Photo: AP)

Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
Washington, D.C Tuesday, 28 September 2010

“The United States intends to play a leadership role in Asia. So we've strengthened old alliances; we've deepened new partnerships, as we are doing with China; and we've reengaged with regional organizations, including Asean.”

In his meeting with Asean leaders in New York last week, President Barack Obama vowed to deepen ties with the 10 Southeast Asian nations, including Cambodia.

“The United States intends to play a leadership role in Asia,” Obama said during the first US-Asean Summit on Friday. “So we've strengthened old alliances; we've deepened new partnerships, as we are doing with China; and we've reengaged with regional organizations, including Asean.”

Obama said the US is focusing on economic trade and growth with Asean—a bloc of about 600 million people.
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Workers, Factories Agree to Negotiation Commission

Factory workers strike

Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer
Phnom Penh Tuesday, 28 September 2010

“We urge all parties to respect the process and engage in good faith dialogue to find a solution, show commitment to constructive action for a long term solution and refrain from any inflammatory action or counterproductive rhetoric, and find a solution that is inclusive of all parties’ concerns and provides a long term stability for the industry.”

Trade unions and garment manufacturers have agreed to establish a government-brokered commission in order to break an impasse over increased income for workers, after thousands went on general strike earlier this month.

Union and factory representatives met with government officials on Monday, agreeing to establish the commission, with five members each from workers and manufacturers, in order to reach some kind of agreement over monthly income that workers say does not enable them to meet a decent standard of living.

Thousands of workers from one block of unions went on strike earlier this month to demand more negotiations, after manufacturers said they would not increase salaries beyond a $5 raise, for a monthly total of $61, in July.
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Challenges Still, as Cambodia Looks to US Investors

US-Asean Business meeting on Sept 24, 2010 in New York. (Photo: By Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer)

Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer

New York City Tuesday, 28 September 2010

“These major US companies have experience in areas like agro-industry. I hope all these companies will come to invest in Cambodia, because the most important thing for the investment of foreign companies in Cambodia, like that of the US, is that they already have their market.”

Emerging from a meeting with US business leaders on Friday, a senior Cambodian investment official said the country is ready to start welcoming US interest.

Sok Chenda, secretary-general of the Council for the Development of Cambodia, said major US companies are starting to show an interest in Cambodia as well.
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Gallup poll finds depression up 25 percent after oil

Tuesday, September 28, 2010
By JAY REEVES
Associated Press Writer

ORANGE BEACH, Ala. — Before the BP oil spill, the Gulf Coast was a place of abundant shrimping, tourist-filled beaches and a happy if humble lifestyle. Now, it’s home to depression, worry and sadness for many.

A Gallup survey released Tuesday of almost 2,600 coastal residents showed that depression cases are up more than 25 percent since an explosion killed 11 people and unleashed a three-month gusher of crude into the Gulf in April that ruined many livelihoods. The conclusions were consistent with trends seen in smaller studies and witnessed by mental health workers.

People just aren’t as happy as they used to be despite palm trees and warm weather. A “well-being index” included in the Gallup study said many coastal residents are stressed out, worried and sad more often than people living inland, an indication that the spill’s emotional toll lingers even if most of the oil has vanished from view.
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Cambodia's Kep: Sleepy seaside town begins to stir

This September 2010 photo provided by Soula Walters shows Cambodian vendors selling shrimp and other seafood at the Crab Market, a motley collection of seaside shacks that make up the main drag in Kep, Cambodia. (Soula Walters / AP)

9/28/2010
By MIKE ECKEL
The Associated Press

KOH TONSAY, Cambodia — Ask for the crab. In black peppercorn sauce.

The proprietor of the thatched-roof and bamboo-walled island restaurant will acknowledge the order in sign language and broken English. She'll shuffle across the seaside grass over to the dock where the crab cages sit, steeping in the Gulf of Thailand's tepid waters.

She'll return with a bucket of crustaceans and fry them in an iron wok over a charcoal fire in her open-air kitchen, searing them in a sauce made largely from sweet, fiery Kampot peppercorns. She'll bring you a heap of steaming seafood, pepper sauce, paper napkins and beer to the shaded picnic tables. You'll eat the crab — soft-shells and all — sucking the sauce from your fingers, drinking the beer to blunt the fiery pepper and thank the stars that few people have discovered the culinary and aesthetic pleasures of this southern coastal region.
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Court investigates Sam Rainsy again

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy speaks to reporters during a press conference in March 2009.related coverage (Photo by: Sovan Philong)

Tuesday, 28 September 2010
Meas Sokchea
The Phnom Penh Post

Phnom Penh Municipal Court has held an abortive hearing into a two-year-old defamation charge facing embattled opposition leader Sam Rainsy.

The move comes just a week after the court sentenced him to 10 years prison on unrelated charges.

The opposition Sam Rainsy Party leader was summonsed to answer questions relating to a lawsuit filed by Foreign Minister Hor Namhong in connection with a 2008 speech made by Rainsy.

During the speech Sam Rainsy accused Hor Namhong of running the notorious Khmer Rouge prison at Boeung Trabek.
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Political Sacravatoons: "The Heirs"

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://sacrava.blogspot.com/)

Stones of contention

28 September 2010
Charlie Lancaster
Southeast Asia Globe

For decades, Preah Vihear has been witness to a war of words and sporadic fights between Cambodian and Thai troops over territorial claims.

The 11th century cultural tourist site lies at the heart of a border dispute that harks back 100 years and was re-ignited in 1954 when Thai forces occupied the temple following French withdrawal from Cambodia. Cambodia's successful bid to have the temple listed as a Unesco World Heritage site in July 2008 sparked the recent series of cross-border spats and political posturing. Since then, nationalists, media sensationalists and politicians pursuing private agendas have commandeered the temple. All the while, tourists and cultural enthusiasts are left waiting in the wings for the curtain to finally close on the drama, so they can visit this World Heritage site in peace.

It is in no one's interest for the issue to spiral out of control, for the disputed land surrounding the temple to turn into a 'zone of death', as Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, once threatened or for Thailand to employ military force to resolve the issue, as The Nation quoted Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva as saying in August. Dialogue, with or without Asean as a mediating body, is the best hope for a peaceful solution. But why is this conflict dragging on? Who, or what, is adding fuel to the fire?
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China's Xi'an signs MOU with Cambodia to enhance economic cooperation

September 27, 2010
Source: Xinhua

Businessmen from China's Xi'an city are interested in investing in Cambodia's electronics, technology and packaging factories for agricultural products, an official from the city said Monday.

Hao Mangxi, head of Xi'an Bureau of Trade and Commerce, is leading a delegation of seven large companies from Xi'an, the capital of China's Shaanxi province, to visit Cambodia. "Firstly, we are interested in technology or electronics--I will inform my people to learn more and invest in the sectors," Hao said on Monday, after the signing ceremony on Memorandum of Understand to further enhance the economic and trade cooperation between Xi'an and Cambodia.

The MoU was signed by Hao Mangxi and the Director General of Cambodia Chamber of Commerce, Nguon Meng Tech.
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Cambodia denies hunt for Red Shirts

Monday, 27 September 2010
Cheang Sokha
The Phnom Penh Post

GOVERNMENT officials have denied Thai media reports that Prime Minister Hun Sen talked to Thai counterpart Abhisit Vejjajiva about deporting Red Shirt protesters that might be hiding in Cambodia.

Hun Sen and Abhisit met for face-to-face talks on the sidelines of the 2nd ASEAN-United States Leaders’ Meeting in New York on Friday, where they pledged to reduce tension at the countries’ border and rehabilitate their diplomatic relationship.

The Bangkok Post on Sunday quoted Abhisit as saying that Hun Sen had promised to send back any Red Shirts who might be found living in exile in Cambodia.

But Foreign Ministry spokesman Koy Kuong said the topic of Red Shirt protesters was not raised between the two leaders during their brief talks.
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Political Sacravatoons: "My Boy"

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://sacrava.blogspot.com/)

Hun Sen's eldest son appointed Deputy Commander of Mr. Hun Sen's Bodyguard Unit

Monday, 27 September 2010
By Khmerization
Source: DAP News

Deum Ampil online has just reported that Hun Manet, Prime Minister Hun Sen's eldest son, has just been appointed Deputy Commander of his father's Bodyguard Unit.

According to Deum Ampil, the announcement of the appointment was made by Gen. Hing Bunheang, Commander of Mr. Hun Sen's Bodyguard Unit, this afternoon.

Hun Manet, who is Prime Minister Hun Sen's favourite son, graduated from the prestigious West Point Military Academy in the U.S, holds a masters degree from Georgetown University in the U.S and holds a Ph.D from the UK's Bristol University.
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All dictators promote their sons to general

Hun Xen and Hun Manet: the other father-dictator and general-son team in S.E. Asia

Kim Jong Il promotes son, several others to general

PYONGYANG, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- The top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Monday issued an order promoting his son Kim Jong Un and several commanding officers to the rank of general, the official KCNA reported early Tuesday.

Top leader Kim Jong Il's son Kim Jong Un, and Kim Kyong Hui, Choe Ryong Hae and three others from the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) were promoted to general, said the order.

The order also give the rank of colonel general to Ryu Kyong, lieutenant general to Ro Hung Se, Ri Tu Song and four others, and the rank of major general to Jo Kyong Jun, Jang To Yong and Mun Jong Chol and 24 others.
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Cambodian, Thai Leaders Vows To Avoid Armed Clashes

PHNOM PENH, Sept 28 (Bernama) -- Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and his Thai counterpart Abhisit Vejjajiva have pledged to avoid armed clashes along the shared border, according to Vietnam news agency.

That is one of the four points both leaders reached consensus upon during their 40-minute meeting on the sidelines of the US-ASEAN Summit in New York last week, said Cambodia's Secretary of State of the Office of the Council of Ministers Prak Sokhon.
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Kasit outlines plan to boost relations with Cambodia

September 28, 2010
The Nation

But the row over Preah Vihear is unresolved, as the joint boundary committee has been unable to resume meetings to settle the boundary dispute (until minutes of previous meetings are approved by the Thai Parliament)

Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said yesterday he was mapping out a new plan to restore diplomatic relations with Cambodia, by encouraging local authorities on the border to have more engagement with their counterparts.

The plan would set guidelines for local agencies and national administrators to try to boost relations with Cambodia after ties soured due to a diplomatic row between the two governments mostly over the appointment of ex-Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra as an adviser to Phnom Penh and disagreement over World Heritage listing of the Hindu temple at Preah Vihear.

The plan would encourage local agencies, both military and civilian, to have direct contact with Cambodian counterparts, he said.
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[Thai] Govt pushes new border checkpoints [with Cambodia]

Kasit: ‘Understanding vital to bilateral ties’

28/09/2010
Thanida Tansubhapol
Bangkok Post

They also agreed to allow border problems - particularly the dispute over the Preah Vihear temple - to be settled by legal processes.

NEW YORK : The Foreign Ministry is preparing to review a proposal to open new temporary checkpoints along the Cambodian border as part of a plan to restore relations.

The proposal to open new checkpoints was put on hold while relations cooled between the two countries, only thawing recently when the two agreed to return their ambassadors to each other's capital.

Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya did not specify yesterday where the border checkpoints would be located but said the spots had been picked and would be in areas safe from landmines.
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Political Sacravatoons: "The Political Courts"

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://sacrava.blogspot.com/)

Sam Rainsy 'Not Surprised' by 10-Year Sentence

Cambodian opposition party leader Sam Rainsy (Photo: RFA)

Click here to listen to the audio program (MP3)

Pin Sisovann, VOA Khmer
Washington, D.C Monday, 27 September 2010

“I am not surprised. Instead, it encourages me, because if the Phnom Penh government has its court sentence me, it means I am right.”

Following a court decision last week that sentenced Sam Rainsy to 10 years in prison, the exiled opposition leader maintained in an interview the cases against him are political.

“I am not surprised,” Sam Rainsy told VOA Khmer in a question-and-answer session, reacting to a court decision. “Instead, it encourages me, because if the Phnom Penh government has its court sentence me, it means I am right.”

Sam Rainsy was convicted of forgery and disinformation, after he published a map alleging Vietnamese land encroachment on his party's website.
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In New York, Hun Sen, Abhisit Agree to Diffuse Tension [-Not much to boast about?]

Prime Minister Hun Sen (left) met with his Thai counterpart, Abhisit Vejjajiva (right) at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel's room for border talk at the sideline of US-ASEAN Summit. (Photo: By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer)

Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
New York City Monday, 27 September 2010

Speaking to VOA Khmer ahead of the meeting Saturday afternoon, Abhisit said he hoped for a “good conversation.” He declined to comment on whether Thailand would seek concessions from Cambodia in order to solve the border issue.

Prime Minister Hun Sen met with his Thai counterpart, Abhisit Vejjajiva, on Friday, as both agreed to move toward peaceful resolution of a contentious border issue that has turned into a nearly intractable row.

Speaking to VOA Khmer ahead of the meeting Saturday afternoon, Abhisit said he hoped for a “good conversation.” He declined to comment on whether Thailand would seek concessions from Cambodia in order to solve the border issue.

Both sides claim a small stretch of land west of the clifftop temple of Preah Vihear and have heavily armed troops entrenched along the border. Only recently did the two sides restore diplomatic ties, after a spat last year over the hiring of ousted Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra as an economic adviser to Hun Sen.
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Tribunal Investigating Judge Leaves After Indictments

Marcel Lemonde, co-investigating judge for the Khmer Rouge tribunal, gestures during an interview with the Associated Press at his office in Phnom Penh, Cambodia in 2007. (Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer
Phnom Penh Monday, 27 September 2010

“I have many projects. I have scheduled for a long time to do other things after Cambodia. I will be traveling, writing and I have scheduled as well a personal project. It will not be a passive retirement, you'll see.”

Now that indictments are in for four senior Khmer Rouge leaders, international tribunal investigating judge Marcel Lemonde will resign from the UN-backed court.

In an interview with VOA Khmer Friday, Lemonde said he hoped his successor, German judge Siegfried Blunk, would carry the tribunal forward for Cambodian victims of the Khmer Rouge.

“I take my retirement absolutely,” Lemonde told VOA Khmer. He would not only be retiring from the hybrid court, but from the French judiciary as well. However, he said he would not have an inactive retirement.
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Small Demonstration Greets Hun Sen in New York

Around 20 Cambodians gathered outside the UN offices in New York on Saturday, to demonstrate against Prime Minsiter Hun Sen ahead of meetings with US and Asean officials. (Photo: By Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer)

Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer
New York City Monday, 27 September 2010

Around 20 Cambodians gathered outside the UN offices in New York on Saturday, to demonstrate against Prime Minsiter Hun Sen ahead of meetings with US and Asean officials.

They carried placards reading, “Hun Sen must respect human rights;” “Hun Sen must stop illegal evictions in Cambodia;” “Hun Sen must stop using the court to silence opposition voices;” and “Hun Sen is a tyrant, mafia, a traitor.”

Protesters said they were concerned over Cambodia's human rights record and inability to solve longstanding border disputes with its neighbors. And the demonstration came as Hun Sen was to meet US leaders, including President Barack Obama, and Asean officials, including sideline talks with Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva over border issues.
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Consulate Vows To Help Cambodians 'Unconditionally'

Sok Savoeun, the newly appointed consular. (Photo: By Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer)

Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer
Philadelphia Monday, 27 September 2010

Cambodia opened a consulate office in Philadelphia, Penn., on Saturday, the third of its kind, aimed at serving Cambodian nationals and attracting tourism and investment.

Located on the ground floor of a building in the north of the city, the five-by-fifteen-meter office will certify documents and work with Cambodians facing issues like deportation, officials said.

“The opening of the general consulate is to help functions for our people who live in the US, to use it as a bridge for people in Philadelphia to our motherland,” Ouch Borith, secretary of state for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told a crowd of about 100 Saturday.
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The Curse of a Nation

GRIM REMINDER: Skulls of Khmer Rouge victims.

CHARGED: From left, Kang Kek Ieu (aka Duch, was sentenced to 30 years in July), Khieu Samphan
CHARGED: From left, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary and Ieng Thirith.

The second trial of Khmer Rouge leaders is due to start, and for some, it's none too soon

26/09/2010
By Luke Hunt
Bangkok Post

"The likelihood that these four individuals will see the beginning and the end of their trial is depressingly low" - Theary Seng, a US-trained lawyer who survived the Killing Fields as a child

The Khmer Rouge tribunal in Cambodia has indicted the last surviving senior leaders of the regime and charged them with crimes against humanity, breaches of the Geneva Conventions, genocide and murder, torture and religious persecution.

The final four - Khieu Samphan, 79, ex-foreign minister Ieng Sary, 84, his wife Ieng Thirith, 78, and Nuon Chea, 84, the ultra-Maoist's second-in-command - are blamed for the deaths of perhaps a third of the population and will front a trial reminiscent of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.

When the ousted president swung miserably from the gallows almost four years ago there was no shortage of political leaders - past and present, East and West - who were willing to express their dismay, or a touch of glee. The political point scoring has abated since, however. Among the least noted was Nuon Chea, who defended the former Iraqi leader and claimed "Saddam Hussein had a spirit of national love". His comments were not surprising.
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Cambodia urged to be 'rice basket'

27/09/2010
Posted by The Bangkok Post

PHNOM PENH : Indian President Pratibha Devisingh Patil recently encouraged Cambodia to transform itself into a "rice basket" and increase the use of preferential trade tariffs with her country.

"India and Cambodia are at a modest level [of trade], but there exists a much greater scope for expansion," said a transcript of the president's speech.

Highlighting potential for Cambodia's agricultural development, she recommended that the government find ways to improve productivity and developed the kingdom into a "key exporting country in the world" while utilising trade incentives. She added that the agricultural sector had drawn "a lot of interest" among well-regarded Indian companies that she hoped that would eventually bear fruit as business transactions.

Nguon Meng Tech, the director of the Cambodia Chamber of Commerce (CCC), said the meeting was an important step in solidifying business relationships, adding that he hoped India's expertise in the fields of medicine and information technology, as well as agriculture, would benefit the Kingdom.

Kith Meng, the CCC president, said in a speech that Cambodia was an "economic star of Asia" and that Cambodia's competitiveness would improve.

Rivher Prasad, Cambodia country director of the Indian trading company PPS Group, which specialises in pharmaceuticals and water pumps, said before the meeting that he thought the kingdom's potential was growing day by day.

"I can say there is a lot of development, as the situation is very stable and controlled here," he said.

Bilateral trade between Cambodia and India increased more than 23% to reach more than US$22 million in the first six months this year, up from $18 million for the same period last year. The vast majority of trade consisted of Indian exports to Cambodia, according to data from the Ministry of Commerce. They included medicines and medical instruments, textiles, leather, and machinery.

The two countries are preparing to ratify a free-trade agreement on agricultural products as part of a raft of measures that have been undertaken to boost trade between Asean and India.

Suthep Thaugsuban may be the next heir to Thailand's Democrat Party?

Democrats tap Suthep as saviour

ANALYSIS: The deputy PM, chosen to contest Surat Thani by-election, could be last man left standing if party is banned

27/09/2010
Pradit Ruangdit and Suphapong Chaolan
Bangkok Post

The Democrat Party is looking to its own survival in choosing its secretary-general Suthep Thaugsuban to contest a by-election in Surat Thani next month.

A branch meeting in the southern province yesterday voted for the 61-year-old political veteran to stand in the by-election in Constituency 1 set down by the Election Commission for Oct 30.

The seat was vacated when the Supreme Court's Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions ruled on Sept 16 against Democrat incumbent Chumpol Kanchana.
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Abhisit Praises Hun Sen After US Meet [-Siem Min Choal Kbuon ... and Hun Xen is gullible as usual]

PM clinches rogue red shirt deal in New York

26/09/2010
Thanida Tansubhapol and Thai News Agency
Bangkok Post

NEW YORK : Cambodia has pledged to send rogue red shirts caught on its territory back to Thailand and resolve the border dispute near Preah Vihear temple through talks, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said yesterday.

The Thai and Cambodian leaders met on Friday for the first time since Thailand opposed Cambodia's management plan for the Hindu temple at the World Heritage Committee meeting in Brazil in August.

"Cambodia's Premier Hun Sen told me that if he finds wanted red shirt protesters in his country, he will send them back to Thailand," Mr Abhisit said yesterday.

They met after the summit between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the United States on Friday.
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Thai-Cambodian border trade lively after PM's pledge to improve relations

BANGKOK, Sept 26 (MCOT online news) - Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has agreed to improve bilateral relations with Thailand - relations which have been impeded by border dispute near an ancient temple, according to his Thai counterpart Abhisit Vejjajiva.

Speaking Sunday during his weekly TV and radio address, Mr Abhisit said his meeting with Mr Hun Sen on the sidelines of the annual UN General Assembly in New York on Friday produced fruitful results as both agreed that relations between the two countries should become lively.

He said he will meet several times with Mr Hun Sen during upcoming sessions of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to which both countries belong.
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Help Cambodia's disadvantaged with Food4Everyone

Margarita Parrish on a trip to Cambodia where Food4Everyone assists in building huts and wells

Food4Everyone assists in building huts and wells in Cambodia.

26 Sep 2010
by Omar Hamwi
Penrith Press (Australia)

PENRITH psychologist Margarita Parrish says a lack of fresh food and water has made Cambodia one of the most socio-economically depressed countries in the world.

For four years Mrs Parrish has operated Food4Everyone, a charity that raises money in Australia to build huts and wells there.

She travels to Cambodia twice a year to work with a team to help desperate families.

“Cambodia is one of the poorest countries in the world,” she said.
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Thai, Cambodian PMs agree to improve bilateral relations [-Is that it?]

MCOT Online News

NEW YORK, Sept 25 - Despite a diplomatic standoff which resulted in part from Cambodia's unilateral management plan for the environs of the ancient Preah Vihear temple that sits on contested land claimed by both Thailand and Cambodia, the prime ministers of the two countries have agreed. to improve relations for the benefit of their peoples.

Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen talked for half an hour on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly agreeing that warm relations between the two neighbouring countries are vital for the benefit of their peoples.

Although conflicts remain, bilateral trade has increased, Mr Abhisit told a TNA journalist.
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Cambodia Spends 6 Mln USD in 2010 for HIV/AIDS Treatment

2010-09-25
Source: Xinhua

Cambodia spends approximately six million U.S. dollars for HIV/AIDS treatment through providing of anti-retroviral drugs, a senior official of HIV/AIDS authority said Saturday.

Mean Chhiv Vun, director of National Center for HIV/AIDS Dermatology and STI said the government has approved a total amount of 6 million U.S. dollars for buying anti-retroviral drugs to help people with HIV/AIDS.

He said, as of June this year, there were 40,039 people living with HIV/AIDS who received the drugs, among them 3,881 were children.
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Photos from the Anti-Hun Xen demonstration in New York

(All Photos: Visal R. and Michael Duong)

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Messages on the posters held by the protesters sum up very well the current situation in Cambodia under Mr. Hun Xen's regime

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