Friday, December 30, 2011

Yingluck’s administration brings close ties for Cambodia, Thailand: Cambodia PM

PHNOM PENH, Dec 30 (Xinhua) — Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen on Thursday hailed the Thai government led by Yingluck Shinawatra for her efforts to restore good relations with Cambodia.

Speaking at a meeting with visiting Thai foreign minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul and energy minister Pichai Naripthaphan at the Phnom Penh’s Peace Palace, Hun Sen said that the bilateral relations between Cambodia and Thailand have “turned good” since the Pheu Thai Party led by Yingluck Shinawatra won the general election in July this year.

He added that it was the open of the new chapter of Cambodian and Thai relations and cooperation.

The premier said that since July this year, the bilateral trade and tourism have been significant increased.

Meanwhile, Surapong pledged to continue boosting the bilateral ties on trade, investment, tourism and cultures for the mutual interests of the two countries’ peoples.

Cambodia and Thailand have had sporadic border conflict over territorial dispute near Cambodia’s Preah Vihear temple since the UNESCO listed the temple as a World Heritage Site on July 7, 2008 and witnessed fierce border fighting in February and April this year during the previous Thai’s administration led by the Democrat Party.

Cambodian, Thai FMs pledge to intensify bilateral cooperation

PHNOM PENH, Dec 29 (Xinhua) — Cambodia’s foreign minister Hor Namhong and his visiting Thai counterpart Surapong Tovichakchaikul on Thursday agreed to boost bilateral cooperation in all fields for the interests of both people and countries.

“We had agreed to strengthen and expand bilateral cooperation on trade, investment, tourism, and humanitarian activities,” Hor Namhong told reporters in a joint press briefing after a one-hour meeting with Surapong.

Both sides agreed to work together to open a new Stung Bath border checkpoint near Poipet checkpoint in Banteay Meanchey province as soon as possible to cope with the increasing growth of goods and tourists between the two nations, he said.

On the border issue side, both sides agreed to implement the Order of the International Court of Justice dated July 18, 2011 in regard with the immediate withdrawal of Cambodian and Thai military personnel from the Provisional Demilitarized Zone of about 17 kilometers on the disputed border near Preah Vihear temple and allow ASEAN observers access to the zone to monitor ceasefire.

The two ministers also pledged to speed up talks on negotiations on the plan for the joint development of Overlapping Claim Area (OCA) in the Gulf of Thailand, which is believed to be rich in oil and gas.

Surapong said, “The meeting was held in a friendly, warm and mutual faithful atmosphere and had created closer cooperation between Cambodia and Thailand.”

He added that Thailand is scheduled to host the 8th Thailand- Cambodia Joint Boundary Commission meeting on Feb. 29-March 1, 2012 in order to work on border demarcation on areas outside Preah Vihear temple.

There are remaining 25 border poles need to be searched and demarcated outside the area of Preah Vihear temple, said Hor Namhong, adding that for the border demarcation at the area of Preah Vihear temple, it has to wait until the ICJ interprets the judgment of 1962 on the case concerning the temple of Preah Vihear temple.

Cambodia and Thailand have had sporadic border conflict over territorial dispute near Cambodia’s Preah Vihear temple since the UNESCO listed the temple as a World Heritage Site on July 7, 2008 and witnessed fierce border fighting in February and April during the Thai’s Democrat-led administration.

However, the military tension has eased since the former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s Pheu Thai Party won a landslide victory in the general elections on July 3.

Cambodia, Thailand agree in principle to resume oil deal talks

PHNOM PENH, Dec 29 (Xinhua) — Cambodia and Thailand on Thursday agreed in principle to resume negotiations on the plan for the joint development of Overlapping Claim Area (OCA) in the Gulf of Thailand, which is believed to be rich in oil and gas.

The verbal agreement was made during a meeting between the minister of the Council of Ministers Sok An, the Chairman of Cambodian National Petroleum Authority, and visiting Thai minister of energy Pichai Naripthaphan.

“In principle, we had shown our intention to resume the negotiations on the overlapping claim area,” Pichai told reporters after the meeting. “We want it (the joint development of OCA) to happen for the interests of both countries in terms of energy security for another 40 to 50 years.”

The OCA covers about 26,000 square kilometers in the Gulf of Thailand.

He added that if the countries reach an agreement on this matter, oil and gas in the OCA will come out in 8 to 10 years.

Cambodia and Thailand inked the Memorandum of Understanding ( MoU) regarding the plan of joint development area (JDA) at the OCA in 2001, but it had been cancelled by the previous Thai government under Abhisit Vejjajiva administration.

“I come to talk about re-installation of the MoU and according to Thai law, we have to get approval from our Parliament for the restoration first before proceeding to the next step talks,” he said.

Phay Siphan, spokesman for Cambodia’s Council of Ministers, told reporters after the meeting that both sides are committed to jointly developing the OCA for the energy needs of the two countries.

Both sides had not talked about revenue sharing yet, he added.

During the meeting, Thai side also pledged to accept Cambodian officials for training in oil and gas sector.

Pichai arrived here on Thursday morning for a two-day official visit.

A preview of Hun Manet’s future after the Strongman’s death?

Supremos.jpg
Kim+Jong+Il+funeral+on+29Dec2011+%2528KRT%2529.jpg
Thousands of North Koreans participated in a memorial service for Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang on Thursday. (Korean Central News Agency, via Agence France-Presse — Getty Images)

At Huge Rally, North Koreans Declare Kim Their Leader

December 29, 2011
By CHOE SANG-HUN
The New York Times

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea publicly declared the young heir Kim Jong-un its supreme leader at a huge rally on Thursday in Pyongyang that culminated with his ascent to the top of the hermetic Communist nation after nearly two weeks of national mourning for his father, Kim Jong-il.

A crowd of tens of thousands, most of them uniformed soldiers, packed the plaza — named after Mr. Kim’s grandfather, the North’s founding president, Kim Il-sung — and those gathered swore their allegiance to the dynastic transfer of power. The event, a memorial service for Kim Jong-il, who died on Dec. 17, capped 13 days of mourning and introduced the era of his son.

“Respected Comrade Kim Jong-un is now supreme leader of our party, military and people,” said Kim Yong-nam, the president of the North Korean Parliament, who is considered the ceremonial head of state. “He inherits the ideology, leadership, courage and audacity of Comrade Kim Jong-il.”

Addressing the crowd, Kim Yong-nam also asked North Koreans to “solidify the monolithic leadership” of Kim Jong-un, who is believed to be in his late 20s.

In the last few days, North Korea has showered Kim Jong-un with the honorific epithets reserved, until now, for his father: “great leader,” “dear leader,” “peerless leader,” “the sun of the 21st century,” and even eobeoi, the Korean word for parent, which North Korea had used only for Kim Jong-il and his father, Kim Il-sung.

The ceremony on Thursday was particularly symbolic of the son’s rise to top leadership: for the first time since his father’s death, he was facing a massive crowd of North Koreans alone — without his father standing by him.

Though North Korea declared Kim Jong-un its top leader throughout the carefully choreographed ceremony, and in relentless pronouncements of the past week, he has yet to take any official titles, like supreme commander of the 1.2 million-strong Korean People’s Army and general secretary of the Workers’ Party. Those are bestowed at meetings of top party and government representatives, most likely in the coming months, that in the past have been mere formalities.

From a balcony, with top party and military officials standing behind him, the new leader looked over the snow-covered plaza, where people stood in neat rows. He was dressed in a black greatcoat — like the one favored by his grandfather, a godlike figure among North Koreans whom the young leader appeared to copy in dress, demeanor and physique.

In September 2010, Mr. Kim was unveiled as the future successor to his father, who had a stroke in 2008. After Kim Jong-il’s sudden death on Dec. 17, he was rapidly elevated to the top military and party posts, though without official titles.

How much he had consolidated his grip on power before his father’s death, and whether he would have to depend on caretakers or even regents, remained topics of intense speculation and contention among outside analysts. All indications from the North, however, suggest that he will not share power with anyone, at least in the public eye.

North Korea has said that the “great successor,” as the young Mr. Kim has been called, will faithfully follow his father’s songun, or “military-first,” policy, which has raised tensions with Washington and Seoul.

In his speech, Kim Yong-nam, the ceremonial head of state, credited that policy with “turning our fatherland into a global military power and a proud nuclear-weapons state.” Under Kim Jong-il, North Korea conducted two nuclear tests, in 2006 and 2009.

The government often stages huge rallies or military parades at Kim Il-sung Plaza to mark important state events and demonstrate unity.

At noon Thursday, the country observed three minutes of nationwide silence in memory of Kim Jong-il. Trains and ships sounded their horns, state news media reported. Similar but smaller ceremonies were held in cities across North Korea, the country’s official news agency, K.C.N.A., reported.

On Wednesday, as the funeral motorcade traveled through the capital, Pyongyang, North Koreans lined the streets weeping and wailing over the death of the man who, bolstered by a state-orchestrated cult of personality, had ruled their country for 17 years.

The funeral showcased seven senior party and military officials who are believed to be mentors or major aides to Kim Jong-un. They included Jang Song-taek, Mr. Kim’s uncle and a vice chairman of the National Defense Commission; Kim Ki-nam, North Korea’s propaganda chief; Choe Tae-bok, the party secretary in charge of external affairs; Vice Marshal Ri Yong-ho, head of the military’s general staff; Kim Yong-chun, the defense minister; Kim Jong-gak, a four-star general whose job is to monitor the allegiance of other generals; and U Dong-Chuk, head of the North’s secret police and spy agency.

The rising status of those seven men was confirmed Thursday when Rodong Sinmun, the Workers’ Party’s official newspaper, released a photograph that showed them standing with Mr. Kim as he paid his last farewell to his father shortly before the funeral procession began on Wednesday.

On Thursday, the newspaper’s Web site also carried photos of Mr. Kim and the seven men walking alongside the hearse during the procession. It identified them as “key figures who will lead the party and military during the Kim Jong-un era.”

Political Sacravatoon: NGO Law

sacrava+no+2130+-+NGO+Law.jpg
Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at www.sacrava.blogspot.com)

Thai-Cambodian talks to neutralise exploration conflict

December 29, 2011
The Nation

Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An called for a renewed discussion with Thailand over power generating and conflicts over overlapping petroleum exploration area, said Energy Minister Pichai Naripthaphan.

After his meeting with the Cambodian minister today, Pichai said that Sok An wanted all conflicts cleared within a year and a half, for the mutual benefits of both countries.

Pichai noted that the matter is now upto the Foreign Affairs Ministry’s negotiation team. He insisted that no particular person would gain benefits if the negotiation allows a joint development similar to what Thailand agreed with Malaysia or Vietnam. To lead the Thai investment is PTT Plc, which is majority owned by the government, he said.

“During my trip to Burma, there was a criticism that former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra would benefit from the petroleum concessions granted to PTT and he insisted that he had no share in PTT Group. I’d like to say that all should be concerned about Thailand’s long-term gain,” the minister said.

Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul said that the Thai government also wished to quickly solve the conflict. He would soon ask for the Cabinet’s endorsement if it wants to revoke the memorandum of understanding with Cambodia signed in 2001. If it stands by the Abhisit government’s proposed revocation, the parliamentary approval will be sought and then a new round of negotion would begin.

But if the Yingluck government wants to maintain the MoU, the negotiation with Cambodia on the overlapping area would be restored accordingly.

He noted that should such negotiation lead to a joint development, it would take over 10 years to discover natural gas.

Phnom Penh proposed swap deal for Veera and Ratree

December 29, 2011
The Nation

Cambodia on Thursday refused to free the two Thai activists jailed on spy charges but offered a deal to swap them with Cambodian prisoners jailed in Thailand.

Thai Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul said Phnom Penh insisted that Veera Somkwamkid and Ratree Wiwattanapaibul have to serve a portion of their jail terms as stipulated in the law before being eligible to request for royal pardon.

Surapong was in Phnom Penh Wednesday to hold talks with his Cambodian counterpart, Hor Nam Hong. Top on the agenda was the fate of Veera and Ratree who were arrested along with other Thais on December 28 last year while inspecting a border area.

The other Thais were freed after a Cambodian court suspended their jail terms. Veera and Ratree were sentenced to eight and six years in jail respectively.

Surapong said he would ask authorities concerned to consider Cambodia’s latest offer as it is the first case and the country has no experience of this.

Meanwhile Veera’s mother; Wilaiwan, met Surapong at the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh to ask the minister to talk to Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen and help secure freedom for her son and Ratree.

Villager lodges land complaint with ministry

Lao+Meng+Khin+with+King+06.jpg
Hun Xen’s cronies: Lao Meng Khin (R) and Choeung Sopheap (L), his wife

Thursday, 29 December 2011
May Titthara
The Phnom Penh Post

A representative of more than 300 families from Preah Sihanouk province locked in a dispute with a company run by ruling-party senator Lao Meng Khin travelled to Phnom Penh yesterday to seek government intervention.

Yon Savat, a village representative from Prey Nop district’s Bit Traing commune, said he had filed a complaint with the Ministry of Information after receiving no reply to a complaint he had lodged with Prime Minister Hun Sen’s cabinet in August.

“I asked [Information Minister Khieu Kanharith] to go and research our place, because he is a government representative,” he said.

Since 1993, 323 families had lived on 728 hectares of land in Puo Thoeung village in Bit Traing commune, Yon Savat said, before businessmen and officials violently seized the land in 2005.

Provincial governor Sbong Sarath said the villagers were living on property that was part of the Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone.

“The company is developing that land, but those villagers came to take it over,” he said.

Shukaku Inc, a local developer run by Lao Meng Khin, is one of many firms granted the right to develop land in the Sihanoukville SEZ.

Yon Savat claimed that when the government issued a map of the SEZ in 2008, Lao Meng Khin requested that the government include 1,113 hectares spanning Bit Traing and Ream communes in the zone ­– which included Puo Thoeung village – which were not part of the original zone.

He cited six instances in which he claimed businessmen and government officials had harassed villagers. Lao Meng Khin could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Prey Nop district governor Tit Vuthy said the villagers had never complained to him.

“I don’t know who is right and who is wrong, because recently it has become very hard to believe villagers – some are good and some are not good,” he said.

Lim Leang Se, deputy chief of Hun Sen’s cabinet, said the premier had sent a letter to the National Authority for Land Dispute Resolution in order to seek an end to the dispute.

Supporters rally: Monks need help, rights groups told

Sieng+Sovannara+%2528Suon+Bora%2529.jpg
Ven Sieng Sovannara (Photo: Suon Bora)

Thursday, 29 December 2011
Mom Kunthear
The Phnom Penh Post

Supporter yesterday urged human rights groups to help two Khmer Kampuchea Krom monks – one who was fired from his pagoda and another who was accused of inciting protesters – because they said they had done nothing wrong.

The Khmer Kampuchea Krom association wrote a letter to Licadho, Adhoc, the Cambodian Center for Human Rights and the UN Office of Higher Commissioner for Human Rights in Cambodia, calling on them to intervene to help the Buddhist monks.

In early November, Mok Kampoul district officials in Kandal province forced Khmer Kampuchea Krom Buddhist monk Chea Sovannaphum to leave the Keo Monyvorn pagoda without reason.

Last week, Khmer Kampuchea Krom Buddhist monk Sieng Sovannara, who lives in Samki Raingsey pagoda, was summonsed to Phnom Penh Municipal Court to face accusations of inciting protesters involved in a land dispute in Phnom Penh’s Meanchey district.

“On behalf of the organisation and association of Khmer Krom in Cambodia, we are worried very much about these two Khmer Krom monks’ safety,” Son Yoeung, executive director of Khmer Kampuchea Krom for Human Rights and Development Association, said in the letter.

“We need the human rights group to intervene to allow Chea Sovannaphum to return to manage his pagoda and the court officials to stop accusing Sieng Sovannara and stop summonsing him to court,” he said.

“We are waiting to see whether those human right groups can help them, and we will send the letter for help to the government if we still receive nothing,” he said.

Thursday, December 29, 2011

2011 a Critical Year for Khmer Rouge Tribunal: Spokesman

Wednesday, 28 December 2011
Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh

“We have worked quickly and efficiently.” (sic!)

The past year was “very important” for the UN-backed Khmer Rouge tribunal, a court spokesman said last week, in which the court took crucial steps toward a trial of jailed regime leaders.

Sok Khemara hosts ‘Hello VOA’ 26 December, 2011
http://www.archive.org/flow/flowplayer.commercial-3.2.1.swf
Download: MP3

The trial of Nuon Chea, Khieu Samphan and Ieng Sary for atrocity crimes, including genocide, is now under way.

The final Supreme Court sentencing is expected for the completed trial of Kaing Kek Iev, the Tuol Sleng prison commandant better known as Duch.

A fourth suspect, Ieng Thirith has been found mentally unfit to stand trial, though she remains in detention.

Speaking as a guest on “Hello VOA,” court spokesman Huy Vannak looked back on a year of the court’s work as it prepared for a major trial of three leaders.

“We have worked quickly and efficiently,” he said, but he conceded that time and financial constraints still loom for the UN-backed court.

Over the year, nearly 110,000 people sat in on court proceedings to observe the trial process, Huy Vannak said. Public participation and national reconciliation are key mandates for the hybrid court.

Meanwhile, the tribuanl is still plagued with the looming question of cases 003 and 004, which are before the office of investigating judges.

Senior government officials object to both cases, and the Cambodian government has failed to approve an international replacement for the former UN investigating judge, who resigned earlier this year amid widespread worries of government interference in the court’s work.

Playing with fire: Obama’s threat to China

Obama says US influence will turn from the Middle East towards the “vast potential of the Asia-Pacific region”.

by Michael Klare: 10 Dec 2011 – Al Jazeera

y1pMhISK64zZnv3teEj6Bh4wGfzzKXxdUXUquPwSEsGh8I91_w59sOfrOz1x9sGRhnshd2FQAvD8BtXEm9XwquDtN07vC3aWN5K?PARTNER=WRITER
China’s anti-aircraft carriers missile, “Kill Weapon” developed to counter US naval threat – U. S. Naval Institute

Indeed, almost every tanker bringing oil to China travels across the South China Sea, a body of water the Obama administration is now seeking to place under effective naval control.

By securing naval dominance of the South China Sea and adjacent waters, the Obama administration evidently aims to acquire the 21st century energy equivalent of 20th century nuclear blackmail. Push us too far, the policy implies, and we’ll bring your economy to its knees by blocking your flow of vital energy supplies.

Hun Sen Calls for More Talks on NGO Law

Wednesday, 28 December 2011
Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh

“If there is no agreement in 2012, it must wait until 2013.”

The Cambodian government on Wednesday took a step back on a controversial law to regulate NGOs, with Prime Minister Hun Sen saying in a public speech he wanted the Ministry of Interior and local NGOs to continue discussions that would make the law “acceptable” to all.

The draft law has come under continued criticism from international and local NGOs, who say it will stymie their work and expose them to arbitrary legal measures if enacted.

But Hun Sen also made it clear that the draft law would not be dropped altogether.

“If there is no agreement in 2012, it must wait until 2013,” he said at a graduation ceremony in Phnom Penh. “And if it is not until 2013, it will not die,” he said.

While some groups have said the law is altogether unnecessary, others have said it needs further revision to ensure that small associations can form, that registration not hamper the work of NGOs and that it not leave groups who dissent with government positions open to closure or other legal repercussions.

A US Embassy spokesman told VOA Khmer Wednesday the US has not changed its position on the draft law and that the government should “refrain from passing any new law that restricts rather than enhances the important role of civil society in Cambodia.”

Critics Say Nixing of Forest Land Titles Could Create Chaos

Hun+Sen+speaking+on+02Nov2011+%2528PPP%2529.jpg
I am the law: Hun Xen

Wednesday, 28 December 2011
Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer | Washington, DC

“No one on any day is paying attention to the laws, but [they are] listening only to the prime minister.”

Prime Minister Hun Sen has called for the nullification of land certificates in protected natural areas, but opposition lawmakers and rights groups say the edict will create widespread chaos and demonstrates Cambodia’s inability to follow the rule of law.

Land issues have emerged as one of Cambodia’s biggest problems, with disputes over tracts of land across the country leading to protests, violent demonstrations and arrests.

Leadership today has caused anarchy and turmoil in society,” said Kem Sokha, president of the minority opposition Human Rights Party. “They don’t know whether to catch the head or the tail at all, if one just follows orders, follows the word of the prime minister, who acts arbitrarily and disappears. Keeping the issues for the lower levels to pursue, they can’t pursue them.”

Cambodia’s land issues cannot be solved by local leaders, who have for a long time exchanged land certification for bribes, he said.

An unclear land law and the decentralization of power will startle people when combined with an announcement from the prime minster to nullify land certificates in protected areas, Kem Sokha said.

Speaking at a visit to a new hydroelectric dam in Pursat province on Monday, Hun Sen said he wanted to nullify land certificates in protected areas to strengthen conservation and prevent powerful officials from buying land in illegal areas. He threatened to demote officials caught buying such property.

However, Yim Sovann, a spokesman and lawmaker for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, said local officials have given land titles to some villagers already, so Hun Sen’s edict could hurt people’s confidencein the government.

“If they have ownership certificates recognized by the government, the government cannot use a few words to say, ‘Hey, they should be nullified,’” he said. “That can create instability and cause a loss of confidence in the current administrative system today, especially with investors.”

“No one on any day is paying attention to the laws, but [they are] listening only to the prime minister,” said Ou Virak, head of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights. “In my view, that’s a country without the rule of law. And a country without the rule of law is disorderly, like today. The authorities don’t know when they need to do something, even though there are laws.”

That leads to effective mandates that only last for a short time, such as crackdowns on karaoke parlors or illegal fishing lots, he said.

“Governing a country like this is not making progress,” he said. “There’s no substantial progression because there is no structural system, no rule of law, and people aren’t equal. Those who are close to powerful people seem to have more advantages in society.”

Lesbian love comes to surface

Lesbians+in+Cambodia+%2528PPP%2529.png

Wednesday, 28 December 2011
Ou Banung and Ven Sakol
The Phnom Penh Post

It might not be strange to see male couples walking along the street in this day and age. However, many lesbians are still afraid of being honest about their sexual orientation, and hide it from their friends and families.

“Being a lesbian is not my personal wish, but it comes naturally,” Nhen Sombo said. Now aged 31, Nhen Sombo realised she was a lesbian back when she was a child and knew it was something she couldn’t change about herself.

“I don’t love men. Still, I’m as ordinary as others,” she said.

For some women, the decision is not as natural as it is for Nhen Sombo. They’ve turned to the same sex because of traumatic experiences with men, such as domestic violence or infidelity.

At the age of 20, Jessica, who asked for her real name not to be revealed, said that she used to have many boyfriends before becoming a lesbian. However, her experiences with men were cold and disheartening; but her experiences with women are sympathetic and relatable.

“Before, I never thought I was homosexual. But after spending time with other lesbians, I’ve found these women quite warm. They care about me and understand me, even when it comes to little stuff. My boyfriends never understood at all,” Jessica said.

“Also, lesbian women are definitely not demanding when it comes to sex, while men ask me for it all the time.”

Ms Sothearoth, 22, a university student, said that although she identifies with being a lesbian, she’s not sure if it’s biological or not. Her decision to love other females was prompted by the pain of growing up with a physically and emotionally abusive father, who eventually abandoned her family.

“I don’t like men,” she said. “They are irresponsible. They love to make women hurt and keep us controlled, while they have many lovers.

“Honestly, I would rather be a lesbian, even though I don’t think I am, than dare to love a man.”

Lesbians face many challenges in Cambodian society; first and foremost, finding a role in family life. Second, they often face discrimination from their families and offices.

Nhen Sombo, for instance, had to leave home after telling her family she was a lesbian. Then, in 1997 when she applied for employment as a garment worker in Phnom Penh, she was denied the job for looking too masculine.

“I felt isolated, but I have never given up,” she said.

Currently, Nhen Sombo works as a security guard.

The Women’s Network for Unity (WNU) and the Rainbow Community Kampuchea (ROCK) are working to find gays and lesbians a voice in society. These two NGOs encourage homosexuals to be open and honest.

Noy Sitha, a volunteer at ROCK, said: “We’ve formed ROCK to find legal and social acceptance for homosexuals. They were brave enough to express themselves, and it is within their freedom to have happiness.”

“ROCK and WNU will stay by their sides.”

Kamnap:”Chunh-choat Proleung Choun Reas Khmer” by Yim Guechsè

Chunh-choat+Proleung+Choun+Reas+Khmer.jpg

Tycoon Logging 'Illegally'


Activist leader Chhut Vuthy speaking on the phone in Sandan district in Cambodia's Kompong Thom province. RFA
Cambodia-illegall-logging122811-400.jpg
Try Pheap was granted land concessions in three preservation areas around Cambodia. Credit: RFA
2011-12-28
RFA

A businessman with ties to Cambodia’s government may be using land concessions to cut timber.

A forestry protection group has accused a tycoon with ties to Cambodia’s ruling party of working in collusion with the government to illegally log precious wood from protected habitats in the country.

Chhut Vuthy, president of Natural Resource Protection in Cambodia, said that last month Try Pheap was granted a land concession by the government to develop a hydroelectric dam in the southwestern Cardamom Mountains region.

Instead, he said, the businessman had been ordering his workers to cut high-value timber in the forest reserve and transport it to Vietnam for sale.

“Try Pheap’s company, with the strong support of the military, is selling millions of dollars in timber to Vietnam under the assistance of an unidentified Vietnamese group,” he said.

Try Pheap had cut “most” of the big timber in the area—more than a million cubic meters (35.3 million cubic feet)—and had been using a fleet of Lexus, Land Cruiser, and Range Rover vehicles to ferry it over the border to Vietnam where much of it is then brought to China, Chhut Vuthy said.

“They were not only cut from the central Cardamom Mountains [where he was granted a land concession], but also other places around the area,” he said.

Chhut Vuthy accused Try Pheap of running similar logging operations using land concessions in central Cambodia’s Boeng Peae Wildlife Sanctuary and in northeastern Virachey National Park.

In the Boeng Peae Wildlife Sanctuary, which straddles the border between Preah Vihear and Kampong Thom provinces, Try Pheap has logged some 10,000 hectares (24,700 acres) of precious wood, including highly sought after rosewood varietals, he said.

Chhut Vuthy said that even the roots of a rosewood tree can sell for U.S. $8 per kilogram (2.2 pounds), while a standard plank of rosewood can sell for U.S. $30,000 to Vietnam before being marked up to as much as U.S. $60,000 when sold in China. Exceptional pieces can sell at U.S. $100,000 in Cambodia before being marked up five times in price to Vietnam and again as much to China.

“[There are] at least 10 trucks every day. Each truck carries not less than 40 cubic meters (1,400 cubic feet) of wood to the Derm Dong Prampi Derm border with Vietnam in Kampong Cham province,” he said.

“The Vietnamese receive at least U.S. $1,000 in taxes paid for one cubic meter (35 cubic feet).”

In Virachey National Park in Ratanakiri province, Try Pheap was granted a land concession of nearly 10,000 hectares (24,700 acres), Chhut Vuthy told RFA, saying precious trees in that protected habitat are also facing destruction.

Repeated calls to Try Pheap for comment went unanswered.

Minister of Agriculture Chan Sarun’s assistant said he was too busy to take calls about the land concessions granted Try Pheap.
Party connections

Try Pheap is known to have strong connections with the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP), which many believe has helped him secure preferential business treatment in the country.

A 2007 report by the London-based Global Witness, a natural resource watchdog, found Try Pheap to be closely involved with Vietnam in a number of business operations.

Global Witness said the tycoon was the driving force behind the business interests of Vietnamese company Hongfu, which made its money from the logging of thousands of hectares of forest in Cambodia. He also owns a casino near the Vietnamese border in Ratanakiri province.

The report referred to Try Pheap as “one of the biggest money-earners for the CPP.”

Chhut Vuthy said Try Pheap also has a strong connection with a senior official in the Council of Ministers, or cabinet, who has helped him to secure state economic land concessions. He identified him as Msas Losh, a secretary of state in the council.

“Most of Cambodia’s natural resources have been granted to companies that have a deep relationship with the Council of Ministers. Most of the decisions from the Council of Ministers have been made by Msas Losh. The latest concession document that I saw had Msas Losh’s name on it,” he said.

“As you know most concessions do not reflect the forestry law, the sub degree on land concessions, the Constitution, or the law on protected [habitat] zones,” he said.

Most concerning, Chhut Vuthy said, is a recent rash of 99-year leases granted to Vietnamese and Chinese companies by Prime Minister Hun Sen’s government, which he said are likely to lead to greater poverty among Cambodians who rely on the land to make a living.

Affecting livelihoods

Chhim Savuth, a human rights investigator for the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR), said that logging around Cambodia was not only hurting the people’s daily lives, it has been destroying the local ecology and could contribute to global warming.

“Logging in Prey Lang alone has affected thousands of families already, including the ethnic minority members who collect resin to sell everyday for food. Now tens of thousands of resin trees have already been cut down,” he said.

“If this can happen in Prey Lang, what about places like the Cardamom Mountains?”

Executive Director of the NGO Forum in Cambodia Chhit Sam Art told RFA that despite Cambodia’s rich forestry and natural resources, the country remains one of the poorest in the region with 30 percent of Cambodians living under the poverty line.

Some 90 percent of Cambodians live in rural areas and depend strongly on the water, land and forest resources, but he said the government has failed to preserve adequate land for its people, despite granting thousands of hectares in land concessions to private companies.

“As we have seen, the government provides more economic land concessions to the companies. The granting of social land concessions seem very slow and does not meet the needs of those living in poverty. We found that 20 percent of the poor do not have farmland,” he said.

In 2008, Global Witness found that Cambodian forest coverage had dropped to 35 percent from 59 percent in 1997. Forests covered 73 percent of the nation in 1969.

Reported by Sarada Taing for RFA’s Khmer service. Translated by Sarada Taing. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Thailand, Cambodia to re-start talks on oil and gas

BANGKOK Dec 28 (Reuters) - Thailand will send a ministerial delegation to Cambodia on Thursday to revive stalled talks on the joint development of offshore energy reserves in the Gulf of Thailand, its energy minister said on Wednesday.

Thailand and Cambodia were keen to re-start negotiations on joint exploration and development of the Overlapping Claim Area (OCA) in the Gulf, which covers 27,000 sq km (16,000 sq miles) and is thought to be rich in oil and gas deposits.

Cambodian officials say the two sides had come close to an agreement on joint exploration and development in the Gulf but that was scuttled when former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was toppled in a military coup in 2006.

Ties have improved significantly, however, since Thaksin's sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, came to office in August after a landslide election win that Cambodia's Foreign Ministry publically celebrated by opening bottles of champagne.

"The Ministry of Energy wants negotiations to be done as quickly as possible for the sake of stability through energy and for the benefits of the two countries," Thai Energy Minister Pichai Naripthaphan told reporters.

Chevron Corp is operating Block A in the Gulf and Total also has exploration rights in the area and recently told Reuters it was ready to start work as soon as the dispute was settled.

Three Japanese firms - Inpex, Marubeni Oil and GaS, a subsidiary of Marubeni Corp, and Mitsui Oil Exploration Co, a unit of trading house Mitsui & Co Ltd - have also shown interest in exploring, as well as some from Europe.

Thailand and Cambodia have claimed sovereignty over the offshore area since the early 1970s and a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed in 2001 to jointly demarcate the offshore area and 800km (500 miles) of disputed land.

However, a series of diplomatic spats since 2007 have put paid to the plans, including troop clashes in February and April this year that marked the deadliest Thai-Cambodia border fighting in two decades.

Ties with Cambodia take turn for better

28/12/2011
Bangkok Post

A new chapter in Thai-Cambodian relations began when Thailand elected a new government in the middle of this year.

The Pheu Thai Party, widely known to be friendly with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, won the general election on July 3.

Following the victory, Hun Sen's hostility towards Thailand softened and he sought to strengthen bilateral ties during the second half of the year.

Relations during the first half of the year were soured after Cambodian police arrested seven Thai political activists who illegally entered Cambodia after crossing the border near Aranyaprathet district of Sa Kaeo province on Dec 29, 2010. They were put on trial early this year.

The seven were former Democrat MP Panich Vikitseth; Kitpolthorn Chusanasewi, Mr Panich's driver; Narumol Jitrawaratana, coordinator of the Thai Patriot Network; Veera Somkwamkid, a joint-leader of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD); Ratree Pipattanapaibun, Veera's secretary; Samdin Lertbutr, a PAD activist; and Tainae Mungmajon , another PAD activist.

Five were later released. Veera and Ratree were detained, tried and sentenced to eight and six years imprisonment respectively on charges of illegal entry and spying.

Relations worsened after the two countries became embroiled in border disputes that led to military confrontations. Both claimed ownerhip over a 4.6-sq km piece of land next to Preah Vihear temple.

During the confrontations, Phnom Penh called for the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to mediate in the dispute.

The UNSC, however said the two countries should let Indonesia, which has held the Asean chair this year, mediate.

Not satisfied with this course of action, Phnom Penh went to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to interpret a 1962 ruling on the sovereignty of Preah Vihear temple, since the court did not rule at that time on who owned the disputed areas around the centuries-old structure.

Phnom Penh insisted the existing bilateral talks had failed.

The ICJ later ruled both countries withdraw their military personnel from the 17.3 km demilitarised areas defined by the court. This provisional order led the two countries to host talks at the General Border Committee (GBC) on Dec 21 in Cambodia. They set up a joint working group to work on details about the troop withdrawal but have not set a timeframe yet.

With signs of improving relations between the two countries, the Pheu Thai-led government is optimistic Veera and Ratree will be freed soon as their release will be one of the topics that Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul will raise at talks with Cambodia during his visit on Dec 29-30.

Two Thai spies jailed in Cambodia withdraw Appeal complaint

PHNOM PENH, Dec. 28 (Xinhua) -- The two Thai "Yellow-Shirt" activists jailed in Cambodia for espionage appeared in the Court of Appeal on Wednesday to withdraw their complaint against the verdict of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court of First Instance.


The pair are Veera Somkwamkid, one of the leaders of the People 's Network against Corruption and a high-profile activist in the Thailand Patriot Network, and his secretary Ratree Pipatanapaiboon.

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court of First Instance, on Feb.1, convicted Veera and Ratree of illegal entry, unlawful entry into military base and espionage and sentenced them to eight years and six years in jail respectively.

In later February, the two Thais lodged an appeal against the verdict.

Speaking before the Court of Appeal on Wednesday, the pair said they decided to withdraw the complaint without reason explannation.

Meanwhile, the Appeal Court Judge Samrith Sophal agreed the withdrawal and said that the duo could seek Cambodia's King for royal pardon after they have served two thirds of the jail term.

The duo's appearance in the Court of Appeal was just a day before the visit of Thai Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul to Cambodia.

Speaking to reporters at a short break at the Court, Veera said in the prison, he has been given good care from the guards and inmates, adding that he missed his homeland very much.

Veera and Ratree were arrested on Dec. 29, 2011, along with five others including Democrat Party Member of Parliament Panich Vikitsreth, after they illegally entered Cambodian territory to observe border demarcation process.

The five were released in late January after Cambodian court suspended their sentences of nine months in jail.

ក្រុមសិទ្ធិមនុស្ស ត្រូវតែមានយោបល់ ពី ការគំរាមកំហែង របស់ មេបក្សប្រឆាំង ជ ទៅ កាន់កូនចៅ

Hun+Sen+angry+%2528DAP%2529.jpg

Wednesday, 28 December 2011
ដោយ ៖ ស៊ន សុភក្ដ្រ
DAP-New

ភ្នំពេញ ៖ សម្ដេចតេជោ ហ៊ុន សែន នាយករដ្ឋមន្ដ្រីនៃកម្ពុជា បានផ្ញើសារមួយ ទៅកាន់ក្រុម សិទ្ធិមនុស្ស ទាំងឡាយ ដែល តែងតែរិះគន់ឥតសំចីមាត់ដល់រដ្នាភិបាលនោះ ត្រូវមាន យោបល់ និង ចេញសេចក្ដីថ្លែងការណ៍ថ្កោល ទោស ឬប្រឆាំងទៅ នឹងការគំរាមកំហែង របស់ថ្នាក់ ដឹកនាំ គណបក្សប្រឆាំង ដែលបិទ សិទ្ធិសេរីភាពបញ្ចេញមតិ ចំពោះ សមាជិក សមា ជិកា គណ បក្ស របស់ខ្លួនសម្រាប់ការ ចូលរួមបោះឆ្នោតសមាជិកព្រឹទ្ធសភា នាពេល ខាងមុខនេះ

ប្រមុខនៃរាជរដ្ឋាភិបាល ក៏បានផ្ដាំផ្ញើទៅ កាន់សមាជិក-សមាជិកា បក្សប្រឆាំងនៅ តាមបណ្ដាខេត្ដថា តើគួរបន្ដ បោះ ឆ្នោតឱ្យ គណបក្សរបស់ខ្លួនទៀត ឬយ៉ាងណា នៅ ពេលដែលមេបក្សរបស់ខ្លួន បានគាបសង្កត់ ឱ្យស្បថ និងដកហូតទូរស័ព្ទ មុនពេលចូល ទៅបោះឆ្នោត ។

សូមបញ្ជាក់ថា បណ្ដាញប្រជាជនកម្ពុជា ដើម្បីសន្ដិភាព ដែលមានសមាជិកជាអង្គការ មិនមែនរដ្ឋាភិបាល សមា គម និងសហជីព នៅកម្ពុជាចំនួន ១៩៩ បានលើកឡើងថា សមាជិកក្រុមប្រឹក្សាឃុំ-សង្កាត់ របស់គណ បក្សសម រង្ស៊ី អាចនឹងត្រូវគំរាមកំហែងបង្ខំ ឱ្យស្បថត្រូវតែបោះឆ្នោត ឱ្យគណបក្សសម រង្ស៊ី ហើយព្រមានដកទូរ ស័ព្ទ នៅ ថ្ងៃទី២៨ ខែមករា ឆ្នាំ២០១២ មុនការបោះឆ្នោតព្រឹទ្ធ សភា ។ បណ្ដាញប្រជាជនតាមរយៈសេចក្ដី ថ្លែង ការណ៍ របស់ខ្លួនបានបន្ដថា កាលពីពេល កន្លងទៅថ្មីៗនេះ មេដឹកនាំគណបក្សប្រឆាំង លោក សម រង្ស៊ី បានបញ្ជាក់ តាម ទូរស័ព្ទពី ក្រៅប្រទេសយ៉ាងដាច់អហង្ការ តម្រូវឱ្យ សមាជិក-សមាជិការបស់ខ្លួនទាំងអស់ ត្រូវ តែស្បថស្បែថា បោះឆ្នោតឱ្យគណបក្សនឹង ត្រូវដកហូតទូរស័ព្ទ មុនពេលចូលទៅបោះ ឆ្នោត ។

នៅក្នុងពិធីប្រគល់សញ្ញាបត្រជ័យលាភី ដល់និស្សិតវិទ្យាស្ថានវ៉ាន់ដា គណនេយ្យ នៅព្រឹកថ្ងៃទី២៨ ខែធ្នូ ឆ្នាំ២០១១ នេះ សម្ដេចនាយករដ្ឋមន្ដ្រី ហ៊ុន សែន បាន ពិពណ៌នាថា សមាជិក-សមាជិកា ក្រុមប្រឹក្សា ឃុំ-សង្កាត់ របស់គណ បក្សសម រង្ស៊ី ដូច ជាប់គុកឥតជញ្ជាំង នៅពេលដែលមេដឹកនាំ របស់ខ្លួនបង្ខំឱ្យស្បថ និងដកហូតទូរស័ព្ទ ដូច្នេះ តើសមាជិក-សមាជិកាទាំងនោះនៅ បន្ដបោះឆ្នោតគាំទ្រទៀត ឬមួយយ៉ាងណា។ សម្ដេចនាយករដ្ឋមន្ដ្រី ក៏បាន អំពាវនាវឱ្យ ក្រុមអង្គការសិទ្ធិមនុស្ស ត្រូវមានយោបល់ និងចេញសេចក្ដីថ្លែងការណ៍ ជុំវិញបញ្ហាទាំង អស់នេះ ។

តំណាងរាស្ដ្រ គណបក្សប្រឆាំងមណ្ឌល ព្រៃវែង លោក ជា ប៉ូច បានចាត់ទុកថា ការ លើកឡើងរបស់សម្ដេច នា យករដ្ឋមន្ដ្រី គ្រាន់ តែជាការលើកឡើងលក្ខណៈបុគ្គល តែ ប៉ុណ្ណោះ ។ លោក ជា ប៉ូច បានប្រាប់មជ្ឈ មណ្ឌលព័ត៌ មានដើមអម្ពិល តាមទូរស័ព្ទនៅ ព្រឹកថ្ងៃទី២៨ ខែធ្នូ ថា “នេះគឺជាកិច្ចការផ្ទៃ ក្នុងរបស់ គណ បក្សសម រង្ស៊ី ហើយ បក្ស នីមួយៗមានយុទ្ធសាស្ដ្រនយោបាយ រៀងៗ ខ្លួន “។

តំណាងរាស្ដ្ររូបនេះ បន្ដអំពាវនាវដល់ សកម្មជនទាំងអស់របស់ខ្លួន គាំទ្រគណបក្ស សម រង្ស៊ី និងដើរតាមបន្ទាត់ នយោបាយ គណបក្ស ។
ជុំវិញព័ត៌មានដែលលើកឡើងថា ប្រធាន គណបក្សប្រឆាំងបានគំរាមកំហែង ឱ្យសមា ជិក-សមាជិការបស់ខ្លួន ស្បថ និងព្រមានដក ហូតទូរស័ព្ទនេះ អង្គការសិទ្ធិមនុស្សអាដហុក នៅកម្ពុជាបានចាត់ទុកថា ជាទង្វើខុសឆ្គង ជាខ្លាំង ដែលជាការរំលោភសិទ្ធិបុគ្គល ។

ប្រធានក្រុមមន្ដ្រីស៊ើបអង្កេត នៃសមា គមសិទ្ធិមនុស្សអាដហុក លោក ចាន់ សុវ៉េត បានថ្លែងថា ប្រសិនបើគណ បក្សប្រឆាំងធ្វើ បែបនេះ ដូចតាមសេចក្ដីរាយការណ៍មែន នោះ អង្គការរបស់លោកមិនគាំទ្រឡើយ ហើយចាត់ ទុកថា ជាការរំលោភសិទ្ធិបុគ្គល និងរំលោភលើសិទ្ធិនៃការសម្រេចចិត្ដ ។ តែ ទោះជាយ៉ាងណា ប្រធានក្រុមស៊ើប អង្កេត អង្គការសិទ្ធិមនុស្សរូបនេះ បានបញ្ជាក់ថា កន្លងទៅពុំទាន់មានពាក្យបណ្ដឹង ពីសំណាក់ សមាជិក-សមា ជិកា បក្សប្រឆាំងនៅឡើយ ទេ ជុំវិញបញ្ហានេះ គ្រាន់តែជាសេចក្ដីរាយ ការណ៍ និងព័ត៌មានតែប៉ុណ្ណោះ ។

សម្ដេចនាយករដ្ឋមន្ដ្រី ហ៊ុន សែន ក៏បាន លើកឡើងថា ថ្នាក់ដឹកនាំគណបក្សប្រឆាំង តែងតែលាបពណ៌ដល់មន្ដ្រី និងសមាជិក ថ្នាក់ក្រោមរបស់ខ្លួន និងធ្វើការចោទប្រកាន់ ថា លក់ក្បាលឱ្យគណបក្សកាន់អំណាច ។ សម្ដេចតេជោបានបញ្ជាក់ថា “ខ្ញុំសោកស្ដាយ ណាស់ ដែលសមាជិក-សមាជិកា ក្លាយជា ទំនិញ “៕

North Korean Mourners Line Streets for Kim Jong-il’s Funeral

Kim+Jong+Il+funeral+01+%2528KRT%2529.jpg
In an image made from KRT television, a hearse carried Kim Jong-il during a funeral procession in Pyongyang, North Korea on Wednesday. (KRT, via Associated Press)

The photo is displayed in case you can’t tell who the deceased is:

Kim+Jong+Il+funeral+02+%2528KRT%2529.jpg
A portrait of Kim Jong-Il was seen at his funeral procession in Pyongyang, North Korea, in this image made from KRT television on Wednesday. (KRT, via Associated Press)

December 28, 2011
By CHOE SANG-HUN
The New York Times

SEOUL, South Korea — Kim Jong-un, the designated successor to the socialist throne in Pyongyang, North Korea, bid farewell on Wednesday to his deceased father, Kim Jong-il, walking along his hearse through snow-covered downtown Pyongyang in an extensive funeral closely watched for early glimpses of who’s rising and who’s fading under the young untested leader.

Neat rows of soldiers stood bowing in front of the Kumsusan mausoleum, where Kim Jong-il’s body had been lying in state since his death was announced on Dec. 19.

When the funeral motorcade stopped before them, they gave a last salute, and then a military band played the national anthem. North Korea’s Central TV also showed crowds of people wildly crying along snowy streets, the route of the funeral procession.

A car with a large portrait of Kim Jong-il on its roof led the motorcade, followed by the hearse bearing his coffin draped with a red flag. A phalanx of soldiers carrying various party and military flags followed.

Kim Jong-il, who suffered a stroke in 2008, died of a heart attack on Dec. 17. He left behind a country gripped by chronic food shortages but armed with nuclear weapons and a dynastic successor in his 20s whose control on military generals and party secretaries remains a subject of intense speculation among outside analysts.

In the past week, the regime has moved briskly to rally the key agencies of power behind Mr. Kim. When he visited his father at the Kumsusan mausoleum for the fifth time on Tuesday, the North Korean media referred to him as the “sagacious leader of our party, state and military.”

Wednesday’s events were seen by many analysts as a continuation of cementing the leadership of Kim Jong-un. Speaking on the BBC, the journalist and author Michael Breen noted that Wednesday’s televised images had shown Kim Jong-un standing next to his relatives, with top military leaders nearby.

Those images followed carefully orchestrated reports last weekend that included North Korea’s state-run media publishing an entreaty to Kim Jong-un to become “supreme commander” of the military. That official plea, along with the television footage of the generals and Jang Song-taek, Mr. Kim’s uncle and a vice chairman of the powerful National Defense Commission, in a military uniform, signals that the military is spearheading Kim Jong-il’s succession.

“This is the structure that is running the country,” Mr. Breen said. “They will be very much telling him what to do, what policies to follow. He will be following them for quite a while.”

On Tuesday, Pyongyang said it wanted to restore scuttled agreements with South Korea that could channel extensive investments from the developed South into the impoverished North. But it was unclear whether North Korea was prepared to offer any concessions in return for restoring those agreements, which the South Korean leader, Lee Myung-bak, scrapped when he came to power nearly four years ago.

Kim Yong-nam, president of the North Korean Parliament and a ceremonial head of state, expressed the request when he met with Lee Hee-ho, the widow of former President Kim Dae-jung of South Korea, according to Ms. Lee’s spokesman.

Ms. Lee’s 13-member delegation returned home on Tuesday after visiting Pyongyang, where she expressed condolences to Kim Jong-un. Members of her delegation and one led by Hyun Jeong-eun, chairwoman of Hyundai Asan, a company that has business ties with North Korea, were the first South Koreans to meet with Kim Jong-un and other North Korean leaders since his father’s death.

Bazaar boot camp: military rank easy as a trip to market

Military+uniform+for+sale+at+Teuk+Thla+market+%2528PPP%2529.jpg
A vendor sells military apparel at a clothing stall at Teuk Thla market in Phnom Penh yesterday. (Photo by: Pha Lina)
Cambodian+soldiers+along+the+border+%2528PPP%2529.jpg
Meanwhile along the border: Poorly equipped Cambodian soldiers?

Wednesday, 28 December 2011
Yi Somphose with additional reporting by Bridget Di Certo
The Phnom Penh Post

The military uniform that cost Australian-Cambodian returnee Tim Kimsuth two years of his life and US$500 cost him a mere $30 at the Teuk Thla Market, in Phnom Penh’s Sen Sok district.

Tim Kimsuth had purchased Royal Cambodian Armed Forces two-star general shoulder pads and a military uniform he had embroidered with his name at the Teuk Thla Market because he “liked the uniform”.

I had worn it in my room only and was not aware that wearing military uniforms and ranks is illegal,” Tim Kimsuth told the Phnom Penh Municipal Court yesterday at this sentencing.

Tim Kimsuth, who spent 20 years in Australia and has only recently returned to Cambodia, had reason to be confused.

Theuk Thla Market has about 50 stalls selling various police and military uniforms as well as a variety of general ranks. The market even offers while-you-wait embroidery of uniforms.

A set of police clothes sells for between US$8 and $9, but military general uniforms go for as much as $50.

“Police who have a low position sell their uniforms here because they don’t get paid enough money and they need extra to send home to their wives and children,” one vendor told the Post yesterday.

Many sellers said artillery and various automatic weapons were still secretly dealt at the market. “Sometimes, if there is something in the press, police will come and confiscate all the uniforms being sold,” another vendor said.

“They tell us it is illegal to sell them, so they take everything – we have lost a lot of money from this before.”

National Police spokesman Kirt Chantharith said there was still legal uncertainty relating to the selling of uniforms.

“There is no clear law about this,” he said.

“But police are given only two sets of uniforms a year. For an official that works out in the sun or in the forest every day, it’s not enough, and they need to go to the shop to buy more.”

Kirt Chantharith said the police minister had been in negotiations with the finance ministry to get extra funding for officers’ uniforms.

ជន​រងគ្រោះ​បារម្ភ បន្ទាប់​ពី​ ការ​ដោះលែង​ជន​រំលោភ​លើ​កុមារ

Wednesday, 28 December 2011 12:02
ម៉ៃ ទិត្យថារ៉ា
The Phnom Penh Post

ព្រះសីហនុៈ អ្នក​ភូមិ​រងគ្រោះ បាន​អះអាង​កាល​ពី​ថ្ងៃ​អង្គារ​ថា ជន​រងគ្រោះ ២២​គ្រួសារ ដោយ​សារ​តែ​លោក Alexader Trofimov អតីត​ប្រធាន​ក្រុមហ៊ុន​វិនិយោគ​កោះ​ពស់ ក្នុង​រឿង​រំលោភ​កុមារ​នៅ​កម្ពុជា បាន​បារម្ភ​អំពី​សុវត្ថិភាព​កូនៗ​ពួក​គេ បន្ទាប់​ពី​លោក Alexader ត្រូវ​ដោះលែង​ពី​ពន្ធនាគារ​នា​សប្តាហ៍​មុន។

ម៉ៅ រិន វ័យ ១៧ ឆ្នាំ ជា​ឈ្មោះ​ជន​រងគ្រោះ​ដែល​សន្មត​ដាក់​ឲ្យ​ដែល​ត្រូវ​លោក Alexader Trofimov រំលោភ​នាង កាល​នៅ​វ័យ​៨-៩​ឆ្នាំ បាន​ឲ្យ ដឹង​ថា នាង​បារម្ភ អំពី​សុវត្ថិភាព បន្ទាប់​ពី​ឮ​អំពី​ការ​ដោះលែង​បុរស​ម្នាក់​នេះ​ពី​ពន្ធនាគារ។ នាង​និយាយ​ថា ៖ «នៅ​ពេល​ដែល​ខ្ញុំ​ទទួល​ដំណឹង​នោះ ខ្ញុំ​នឹក​ឃើញ​អ្វី​ៗ​គ្រប់​យ៉ាង​ដែល​គាត់​បាន​ធ្វើ​មក​លើ​រូប​ខ្ញុំ កាល​ពី​ខ្ញុំ​នៅ​វ័យ​ក្មេង»។

នាង​អះអាង​ថា នាង​ចង់​ឲ្យ​អាជ្ញាធរ​ឃុំ​ខ្លួន លោក Alexander ក្នុង​ពន្ធនាគារ​មួយ​ជីវិត ឬ​បណ្តេញ​គាត់​ចេញ​ពី​ប្រទេស​កម្ពុជា ព្រោះ​នាង​ខ្លាច​ថា គាត់​នឹង​សងសឹក​ជាមួយ​មនុស្ស​ដែល​ប្តឹង​គាត់។ នាង​ថា ៖ «ខ្ញុំ មិន​ដឹង​ថា ត្រូវ​ធ្វើ​យ៉ាងម៉េច​ទេ បើ​គាត់​មក​គំរាម​កំហែង​អាយុ​ជីវិត​គ្រួសារ​ខ្ញុំ»។ នាង​បន្ត​ថា​៖ «ខ្ញុំ ​មិន​អាច​រក​ពាក្យ​អ្វី​មក​និយាយ​បាន​ទេ ជុំវិញ​រឿង​គួរ​ឲ្យ​រន្ធត់​របស់​ខ្ញុំ។ ជានិច្ច​កាល ខ្ញុំ​តែង​សុបិន​ឃើញ​រឿងរ៉ាវ​ខ្ញុំ​កាល​នៅ​ពី​ក្មេង។ ខ្ញុំ ខ្លាច​ថា វា​នឹង​កើត​ឡើង​ចំពោះ​ខ្ញុំ​ម្តង​ទៀត»។

នាង​បន្ថែម​ថា ថ្មី​ៗ​នេះ នាង​បាន​ស្នើ​ទៅ​អង្គការ​ក្រៅ​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​ដែល​ធ្លាប់​ជួយ​នាង​ឲ្យ​តាម​ឃ្លាំ ​មើល​ក្រុម​គ្រួសារ​នាង​ផង ចៀសវាង​មាន​រឿង​កើត​ឡើង។

រស់ សាសនា វ័យ ៤៧ ឆ្នាំ ជា​រហ្សសនាម​ដែល​ដាក់​ឲ្យ​ជា​ម្តាយ​ជន​រងគ្រោះ នៅ​ខេត្ត​ព្រះសីហនុ​បាន​ថ្លែង​ថា អ្នក​ស្រី​បារម្ភ​អំពី​សុវត្ថិភាព​កូន នៅ​ពេល​ដែល​ទទួល​ដំណឹង​ថា ជន​រុស្ស៊ី​នេះ​ត្រូវ​គេ​ដោះលែង​ពី​ពន្ធនាគារ។ អ្នក​ស្រី​ថា ៖ «ខ្ញុំ​បារម្ភ​ថា​គាត់​មិន​បញ្ឈប់​មារយាទ​អាក្រក់​របស់​គាត់ ហើយ​ដើរ​រុករាន​ក្នុង​ខេត្ត ទៅ​លួងលោម​ឲ្យ​ក្មេង​ៗ រួម​ភេទ​ជាមួយ​គាត់​ជា​ថ្មី​ទៀត»។ អ្នក​ស្រី​បញ្ជាក់​ថា គាត់​បាន​ប្រាប់​កូន​ៗ​ទាំង​អស់ ត្រូវ​តែ​ត្រឡប់​មក​ផ្ទះ​ភ្លាម​បន្ទាប់​ពី​ចេញ​ពី​សាលារៀន និង​ពី​កន្លែង​ធ្វើ​ការ។ អ្នក​ស្រី​ថា ៖ «ខ្ញុំ នៅ​ចាំ​គាត់ នៅ​ក្នុង​ខួរ​ក្បាល​របស់​ខ្ញុំ»។

អ្នក​ស្រី​រំឭក​ថា នៅ​ពេល​ដែល​អ្នក​ស្រី​ប្តឹង​ទៅ​តុលាការ អំពី​រឿង​គាត់​រួមភេទ​ជាមួយ​កូន​ស្រី វ័យ​៩​ឆ្នាំ អ្នក​ស្រី​មិន​ចាំ​ថា គេ​កាត់​ឲ្យ​គាត់​ជាប់​គុក​ប៉ុន្មាន​ឆ្នាំ​ទេ ប៉ុន្តែ នៅ​ចាំ​ថា កាល​នោះ​គាត់​ទទួល​បាន​សំណង ៥ លាន​រៀល។

សែន សុខ វ័យ ៤០​ឆ្នាំ​ជា​ឈ្មោះ ដែល​សន្មត​ដាក់​ឲ្យ​ជា​ម្តាយ​ជន​រងគ្រោះ​ម្នាក់​ដែរ អះអាង​ថា អ្នក​ស្រី​បារម្ភ​អំពី​សុវត្ថិភាព​គ្រួសារ ពីព្រោះ​ផ្ទះ​គាត់​នៅ​តែ​កន្លែង​ដដែល ហើយ​ថា ជន​រុស្ស៊ី​ម្នាក់​នេះ​ស្គាល់​ផ្ទះ​គាត់​ច្បាស់​ណាស់ ប៉ុន្តែ សំណាង​ត្រង់​ថា កូន​ស្រី​កំពុង​សិក្សា​នៅ​ភ្នំពេញ​ជាមួយ​អង្គការ​ក្រៅ​រដ្ឋាភិបាល។

លោក សំលៀង សិលា នាយក អង្គការ​សកម្មភាព​ដើម្បី​កុមារ ប្រចាំ​ប្រទេស​កម្ពុជា បាន​ថ្លែងថា បន្ទាប់​ពី​លោក Alexader Trofimov ត្រូវ​ដោះលែង​ពី​ពន្ធនាគារ គ្រួសារ​ជនរងគ្រោះ ៧​នាក់ នៅ​ខេត្ត​ព្រះសីហនុ បារម្ភ​អំពី​សុវត្ថិភាព​ពួក​គេ ហើយ​បាន​ស្នើ​ឲ្យ​អង្គការ​ក្រៅ​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​ជួយ​គាំពារ​ពួក​គេ​ផង។

លោក តាក វណ្ណ​ថា ស្នងការ នគរបាល​ខេត្ត​ព្រះសីហនុ បាន ថ្លែង​ថា លោក​ឲ្យ​មន្ត្រី​ប៉ូលិស​ឃ្លាំ​មើល​សកម្មភាព Alexader Trofimov តាំង​ពី​គាត់​ត្រូវ​បាន​ដោះលែង​កាល​ពី​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​២០ ខែ​ធ្នូ ថ្មី​ៗ​នេះ​គាត់​នៅ​តែ​ក្នុង​ខេត្ត​ព្រះសីហនុ ទី​ដែល​លោក​ធ្លាប់​នៅ​ក្នុង​សង្កាត់​លេខ​២ ហើយ​គាត់ បាន​ប្រើ​រថយន្ត​ឡិចស៊ីស ប៉ុន្តែ គាត់​មិន​មាន​ទំនាក់​ទំនង​ជាមួយ​ក្រុម​ហ៊ុន​វិនិយោគ​កោះពស់​ទេ គាត់​គ្រាន់​តែ​បើក​ឡាន​ជុំវិញ​ក្រុង​នេះ​។ លោក​ថា៖ «យើង​តាម​ដាន​សកម្មភាព​គាត់ ថា​តើ​គាត់​ធ្វើ​ដូច​មុន​ឬ​យ៉ាង​ណា? ហើយ​ថា គាត់​នឹង​ធ្វើ​អ្វី​ទៀត​ទេ?»។

ជនបរទេស​រំលោភ​កុមារ​បី​នាក់​ត្រូវ​បាន​គេ​ដោះលែង​ពី​ពន្ធនាគារ​បន្ទាប់​ពី​ទទួល​បាន​ការ​លើកលែង​ទោស​ពី​ព្រះមហាក្សត្រ​៕ NR

SRP lawmaker, lawyer implicated in ‘escape’

Wednesday, 28 December 2011
Meas Sokchea
The Phnom Penh Post

I am not afraid to face the chargesI want to know to what level that prosecutor [Ouk Kimsith] and judge [Lim Sokuntha] will abuse the law.

Kandal Provincial Court has charged an opposition Sam Rainsy Party parliamentarian, deputy commune chief and their lawyer with evading the law, the court’s prosecutor said yesterday.

SRP lawmaker Chan Cheng had his parliamentary immunity stripped in a landslide vote of the National Assembly last week in connection with the allegation he aided and abetted a prison escapee.

“We charged them on Friday last week. We charged three persons. Meas Peng was charged with escaping from prison, parliamentarian Chan Cheng and lawyer Choung Choungy were charged with aiding and abetting his escape,” Kandal’s prosecutor, Ouk Kimsith, said.

Kien Svay district’s Bantey Dek commune deputy chief Meas Peng was accused of masterminding a violent protest against a property owner embroiled in a land dispute.

He was summoned for questioning in connection with the incident on September 23, and while being questioned by Judge Lim Sokuntha, the judge told Meas Peng he was under arrest and sent him to prison.

The judge did not issue any arrest warrant or associated paperwork and when Meas Peng’s lawyer, Choung Choungy, arrived at the prison, he said that he and his client walked out and drove off in Chan Cheng’s car.

“The charge is an abuse of law,” Choung Choungy told the Post. “My client did not escape from prison – he freely walked out … because there were no papers to detain him.

“That is not an ‘escape’ – an escape is to run.

I am not afraid to face the charges,” he said. “I want to know to what level that prosecutor [Ouk Kimsith] and judge [Lim Sokuntha] will abuse the law.

Judge Lim Sokuntha defended his procedure for sending Meas Peng to detention and said he has the legal power to immediately send people for arrest after questioning them.

“It is not difficult for judges to issue the warrant for detention,” Lim Sokuntha told the Post. “When I decide to detain in the questioning room, if the suspect runs out of the room right then, they are still a detainee, even though I have not signed a warrant.”

Meas Peng, now in hiding, said he had never escaped detention, but merely walked out of the facility after his lawyer requested his release.

It is very unjust, and I would rather commit suicide than have this injustice,” Meas Peng said.

Lawmaker Chan Cheng was not available for comment yesterday.

Eviction clock ticks for families in Preah Vihear

Wednesday, 28 December 2011
Phak Seangly
The Phnom Penh Post

More than 130 families in Preah Vihear province who continue to defy eviction orders will not receive any compensation if they do not leave their homes by Friday, the Choam Ksan district governor has warned.

Choam Ksan district governor Sok Hai yesterday said police and military police will use force and knock down homes if villagers in Svay Chrom village do not follow orders issued early this month to vacate their homes to make way for a government office.

“Svay Chrom village will not go to any individual, but will become state property in accordance with the royal decree,” he said. “We will dismantle the houses on Friday and not offer compensation because they have dismissed our announcement”.

Preah Vihear provincial governor Om Mara said it was time for the 132 families to move and said the government would no longer be obliged to compensate villagers who defied its orders.

The National Authority for Preah Vihear has offered the families land in nearby Samdech Techo village and US$500, but most have refused because they believe the land is not developed enough, villagers said.

Victims wake to pedophile nightmare in Sihanoukville

A+victim+of+Alexander+Trofimov+%2528Reuters%2529.jpg
A girl who was sexually abused at age 11 by Russian pedophile Alexander Trofimov rests in a hammock at her rented house in Preah Sihanouk province in August 2010. At the time the photo was taken the girl was aged 15. (Reuters)

Wednesday, 28 December 2011
May Titthara and Vincent MacIsaac
The Phnom Penh Post

For Mao Rin, not her real name, the past week has sent her back to the time when she was eight or nine years old. She is not sure exactly how old she was when it happened because she has blocked most of it out of her mind.

“I always dreamed about that story,” she said yesterday, referring to the series of sexual assaults she experienced from serial pedophile Alexander Trofimov. Now, however, the nightmares she had learned to shake herself out of have returned as thoughts that shock her while she is awake. “I cannot find the words to describe what I felt when I heard he was released,” she told the Post. “Now, I remember everything he did to me when I was a child.”

Trofimov, who was convicted of sex crimes against 17 girls from 2005 to 2007, most from the coastal resort of Sihanoukville, is now living in a villa next to a primary school behind Sokha Beach, provincial police told the Post yesterday.

He was released on December 20 after receiving a royal pardon. Since then, he has been seen driving around the town in a white Lexus, police said.

Mao Rin is more afraid for her family’s safety than her own. She said she believes Trofimov would not recognise her now that she is a teen. What frightens her is that he knows where her family lives, she said.

Preah Sihanouk police chief Tak Vanntha said officers had been monitoring Trofimov since his release. The company he used to run, Koh Pous (Snake Island) Investment Co, is now selling villas on Snake Island, after investing an estimated US$300 million to develop it, but Trofimov is no longer working for it, Tak Vanntha said.

“We follow him to see if he does what he did before,” he said, adding that Trofimov would be arrested if he committed the same crimes again.

Mao Rin said she would like to see him imprisoned for life or deported. “I don’t want to hear the name of that Russian man again,” she said.

He has at least two names, and may be in pursuit of a third, investigators following the case said. In Russia, he is known as Stansilav Molodyakov. He has two passports, one with each name, according to Samleang Seila, director of child protection NGO Action Pour Les Enfants.

Ros Veasna, not her real name, is the mother of one of his victims. As soon as she heard he was free, she told children in her neighbourhood to return home immediately after school or work. “I still remember him. He is sticking to my mind,” she said. “I am afraid he will go around Sihanoukville looking for children to have sex with.”

Another mother whose daughter was sexually assaulted by Trofimov said the girl was safe because she was in Phnom Penh. “I am worried about the children in the town and am afraid he will seek revenge against me,” she added. “I am afraid he can find me, because I did not change my name.”

Seven families have sought protection since Trofimov’s release, APLE’s Samleang Seila said. APLE is leading an effort to have Trofimov deported to his native Russia, where he is wanted for the alleged rape of several girls as young as nine. Russia’s previous attempts to extradite him failed, with Cambodian authorities saying he had to serve his 17-year sentence here before he could be deported. Now that he has been freed, another attempt to extradite him will be made, Samleang Seila said.

During the trials here, victims and their families were terrified of testifying, even though they had protection from NGOs and police, Samleang Seila said. Staff at some of these NGOs have become cautious since Trofimov’s release, citing death threats they had received during his numerous trials, they told the Post.

They are urging international groups to help them, and this should occur within the next week. A spokesperson for Plan Cambodia said yesterday it was “carefully following the case” and would “discuss it with relevant counterparts” for a collective response. Save the Children is doing the same.

The two other pedophiles released last week by royal pardon – one in Sihanoukville and one in Phnom Penh – are both under surveillance by police and NGO staff, according to APLE. German national Alexander Watrin – who had been serving a seven-year sentence for sex crimes against four boys under the age of 15 – was freed from the same prison as Trofimov on the same day. He is staying at a guesthouse in Sihanoukville, APLE said.

The German embassy is unaware of any move so far to seek his extradition, it said yesterday. Privacy laws prevented its staff from commenting further.

Dutch national Rene Paul Martin Aubel was freed on December 23 from Prey Sar prison, where he had been serving a 10-year sentence for sex crimes against six boys in 2005. Aubel had also photographed the boys, most of whom had been shoe shiners he had paid about $10 each for sex.

He is staying at a guesthouse in Phnom Penh, where he registered under a false name and nationality, according to its register. He provided his real age, but listed his occupation as “merchant”, and did not provide the guesthouse with a copy of his passport.

Meanwhile, the controversial royal pardons used to get pedophiles out of prison early have been welcomed by a lawyer who has represented more than 50 of them.

Dun Vibol told the Post that the pardons would be helpful because they would allow lawyers another option besides courts. The early release of pedophiles was “sometimes a good idea” because prison conditions were poor, he said, adding that whether or not they left Cambodia was “up to their conscience”.

The number of foreign pedophiles he is defending is rising, but this is likely a result of NGOs bringing more cases to court rather than a surge in arrivals, he said.

Pedophile cases are lucrative because of their complexity, Dun Vibol said. “They pay more money,” he added. “I hate the pedophiles, but it’s a good business.”

Staying on both sides of the medical fence

Traditional+medicine+merchant+%2528PPP%2529.jpg
A vendor of traditional medicine at Phnom Penh’s Orussey market tends his wares. (Photo by: Pha Lina)

Wednesday, 28 December 2011
Roth Meas
The Phnom Penh Post

While modern science has found ways to cure and treat a host of diseases, many people have not given up on traditional medicine. In Cambodia, traditional medicines are available across the country, prescribed by practitioners of traditional medicine known as krou khmer.

Roeung Serey Sokun, who owns traditional clinic Phka Chhouk in Phnom Penh, learned traditional medication from his father in the 1970s, and in 1981 he began his own career specialising in healing broken bones.

“Many trees in Cambodia contain substances to treat diseases. Some trees grow in the deep forest, near lakes or next to our house. Some medicine we eat almost every day, but we don’t know them. For instance, banana can cue our stomach, carrots can cue our veins, guavas can heal diarrhoea. Some scientific pills are derived from these trees too,” Sokun says.

But not all parts of trees are right for medicine. Sometimes only the roots, bulbs, bark, leaves or flowers can be used for medicine. krou khmer will take the part they need and dry the roots, bark, flowers or leaves and dry them under the sun. Often, they will boil them in water or soak them in rice spirit.

“If people can, they will soak it [the substance] in rice spirit. If they can’t, they can boil them with normal water to drink. If they can boil in the clay pot, that will be more efficient. They can also use scientific pills together with traditional medicine, except with herbs because that can be poisonous,” he says.

For mending broken bones, Sokun uses a different way from a modern doctor. He just bandages the injured area and feeds his patients traditional medicines. He has treated hundreds of patients. People come to his clinic every day. He claims that most of his patients with broken bones can recover in three months.

Orussey Market is the place to buy all kinds of traditional medicine in Phnom Penh. Products used in traditional medicine are brought from rural districts across the Kingdom Cambodia.

Vong La, 52, a villager from Koh Dach village, Kandal province, makes the trip to the capital to buy traditional medicine to relieve her sore muscles regularly.

“Actually, I didn’t do any hard work, but my body still got sore. Villagers told me to come here. I just told the healers my symptoms and they chose some pieces tree trunk and told me to soak it in rice spirit to drink. Now I never feel sore anymore,” Vong La says.

Although she feels comfortable with traditional medicine, Vong La has not given up on Western scientific medicine. She sometimes takes them together and both of them are efficient for her.

One traditional doctor, Ly Bunnarith, who promotes his traditional medicine clinic in the media claims that traditional medicine can cure many kinds of disease, but not HIV.

Concerned about an increase in advertising touting the curative power of traditional medicines – including dubious claims about such diseases as HIV/AIDS and cancer – the Ministry of Health has warned practitioners of traditional Cambodian medicine to obey the law or face a crackdown.

“It is the opinion of the health minister and health officials at all levels that controlling the use of traditional medicine in the Kingdom is a top priority for the Ministry of Health,” under-secretary of state Yim Yan told the Post in November.

Hieng Punley, director general of the department of traditional medicine, says that the Ministry even established school of traditional medicine recently and has called on all traditional healers to get more training.

If music is the food of life, Play On

Concert+Dec+2011+01+%2528BkkPost%2529.jpg
After School
Concert+Dec+2011+02+%2528BkkPost%2529.jpg
Thmore band
Concert+Dec+2011+03+%2528BkkPost%2529.jpg
Concert+Dec+2011+04+%2528BkkPost%2529.jpg
Concert for Cambodia heightens awareness about the problem of human trafficking in the region

28/12/2011
Yanapon Musiket
Bangkok Post

The capital city of neighbouring Cambodia, Phnom Penh, recently hosted a concert with the aim to raise awareness about a problem that’s long afflicted our region – human exploitation and trafficking.

The concert, MTV Exit, where Exit is the acronym for End Exploitation and Trafficking, was staged on December 17 to a full house at Phnom Penh’s Olympic Stadium.

The MTV Exit movement began in Europe, but its roots have spread to Asia which has played host to 28 such concerts the past three years, including in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Nepal, Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia and Timor-Leste. It uses music to communicate to young peers the world’s single most important message, respect for human rights, and has long waged a crusade against human trafficking and exploitation.

Taking to the stage were local and international artists, rising and established stars, and the concert was a resounding success as over 40,000 fans packed every inch of the stadium’s parking space, where the stage was set to offer fans a chance to feel close to their idols, according to the organisers, while for foreign visitors, it was an eye-opener to Cambodia’s up and coming music scene.

The opening act was performed by Ekhlectic, an emerging Cambodian hip hop crew whose members include US-born rappers and local B-Boy dancers. Ekhlectic created eccentric sounds that combined old-school Khmer rock to classic American music. After sunset Cartoon Emo took to the stage with their high-pitch emo-rock numbers, when its skinny lead singer wowed every spectator with his powerful screams.

Thmore showcased their rockstar attitude with heart-breaking Khmer tunes and a surprise act from Michael Jackson’s cover of Black or White. Known as Cambodia’s top female artist, Sok Pisey crooned sweet songs and spoke about human trafficking, which won her cheers from the audience. After some mellow tunes, the crowd seemed full of energy as Preab Sovath, the last local performer went on stage. When asked about the degree of Sovath’s popularity, one of the locals said he was a Cambodian superstar and compared him to our Thai legend Thongchai “Byrd” McIntyre.

After their first performance in 2008, American power pop band The Click Five was back to entertain their Cambodian fans with their popular tunes, including Good Day, Happy Birthday, I Quit, Just the Girl, Jenny, and Headlight Disco. The unforgettable moment was when the band performed the acoustic version of Don’t Let Me Go, produced in collaboration with MTV Exit to communicate key anti-trafficking messages through a specially produced music video that has now reached over a million views online.

Before rocking the stage that night, as spokespersons of the MTV Exit campaign, members of The Click Five visited survivours of human trafficking at their shelters.

“Even though we only spent a short time playing music for them, we were happy to be able to help them forget their bad memories and just enjoy the music,” said its lead singer Kyle Patrick during an interview.

The most-awaited performance of the night was a spectacular show by the Korean girl group After School. The Korean wave hit feverish heights as many fans present that night were there especially to support this group, evident from the colourful signs in Korean they were waving. Performing for the first at an MTV Exit concert, members of After School revealed that each of them were pleased to be part of the campaign and said that they have learned more about the problem of human trafficking after collaborating with this project.

Prior to the concert, MTV Exit also organised a four-day forum for Cambodian youths to sharpen their creative skill, where they were challenged to produce a campaign plan to tackle human trafficking to their communities. Selected videos from the forum were also shown during the concert.

Human trafficking is a crime that affects 2.5 million people worldwide. Of those, more than half are living in or are from Asia and the Pacific. Often, the victims are young people who are guilty of nothing more than wanting a better life for themselves.

“We are excited to be back in Cambodia after three years. This is a new beginning to something greater as we bring together international and local artists in solidarity with over 40,000 youth who attended this concert _ to make a statement that we all have to join together to end this modern day slavery,” said Matt Love, MTV Exit’s campaign director.

With strong support from USAid, the US Agency for International Development, and AusAid, the Australian aid programme, the concert marked the celebration of the new partnership with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) announced earlier this year.

“Asean is very delighted to be partnering with MTV Exit in the campaign to eradicate human trafficking. I am even more delighted to see Asean youth so engaged in an issue of concern not only to Cambodia but the entire region,” said Dr Surin Pitsuwan, Asean secretary-general in his taped video message aired at the concert.

The five-hour music experience ended with unforgettable joy, and as the audience learned together that the power of their voices can make a difference, let us hope that the music could inspire our young generation and ignite them to stand up against human trafficking and exploitation, or at least prevent them or their loved one to become a victim.