January 26, 2010
Source: RFAVideo
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at Cambodian drug centres deny abuse
January 27, 2010
ABC Radio Australia
ABC Radio Australia
Operators of drug rehabilitation centres in Cambodia have denied accusations patients are subjected to "sadistic violence". Human Rights Watch claims people are being held in the centres against their will, where they are subjected to torture, rape and humiliation. The organisation is calling for Cambodia authorities to shut down controversial facilities.
Presenter: Stephanie March
Speakers: Joe Amon, director, Health and Human Rights Commission, Human Rights Watch; Nean Sokhim, director, My Chance Drug Detention and Rehabilitation Centre, Phnom Penh
Listen: Windows Media
MARCH: The report by Human Rights Watch says 2,000 people are being held in so-called "drug rehabilitation centres" across Cambodia. Joe Amon is the director of the Health and Human rights commission for the organisation.
AMON: There were reports of beatings, being shocked with electric batons. There were cases where people would describe very specifically how staff and guards would wind together electrical cables together and whip inmates with them. But we also heard about rapes, we heard about people being shackled for long periods of time and being forced to stand in the sun.
'Cambodia today is a country for sale'
January 27, 2010
By A. Gaffar Peang-Meth
Pacific Daily News
The conflict between Cambodia's proponents of development and of human rights continues, despite the 1991 Paris Peace Accords' stipulation that economic development and respect for human rights must go hand in hand.
By A. Gaffar Peang-Meth
Pacific Daily News
The conflict between Cambodia's proponents of development and of human rights continues, despite the 1991 Paris Peace Accords' stipulation that economic development and respect for human rights must go hand in hand.Surely a Cambodia in relative peace, with new roads and buildings, is better than the Khmer Rouge's Cambodia of forced labor, destruction and death.
Last month, even U.S. Ambassador to Cambodia Carol Rodley, who acknowledged Cambodia's continued problems with democracy and human rights, told a Long Beach audience that today's Cambodia has more roads, more buildings and more businesses; the people are more competent and more optimistic; Cambodia sends troops with U.N. peacekeepers abroad.
The Monivong Boulevard's Kentucky Fried Chicken, the 27-story Canadia Bank Tower with health club and restaurant, among others, are eye-catching. The third of Cambodia's 13 million people who live on 50 cents a day; the poor scavenging the city's dumps, eating rodent meat or who are evicted from their homes and their land to accommodate new development, aren't.
Stop Killings and Bring Perpetrators to Court: Family of 1997 Grenade Attack
By Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer
Original report from Washington
26 January 2010
It has been nearly 13 years since Ly Neary’s son died without a final word and the person responsible for tearing her family apart remains unknown, but she remains hopeful that one day the person responsible for the grenade attack on the demonstration her son took part in will be prosecuted.
Original report from Washington
26 January 2010
It has been nearly 13 years since Ly Neary’s son died without a final word and the person responsible for tearing her family apart remains unknown, but she remains hopeful that one day the person responsible for the grenade attack on the demonstration her son took part in will be prosecuted.The grenade attack on a peaceful demonstration led by the opposition leader Sam Rainsy on March 30, 1997 in front of the then National Assembly and near the Royal Palace injured more than 100 and killed 16 people, including Ly Neary’s son, Chet Duong Daravuth, a former reporter for Neak Prayuth (the Fighter) newspaper.
No one had foreseen that a peaceful demonstration to demand an independent judicial system would turn out to be such a devastating and bloody event long after the fall of the Khmer Rouge regime. This tragedy remains deeply resonant for victims and situation monitors.
Hun Sen Says Tourism to Lead Economic Growth in Cambodia
2010-01-26
Source: Xinhua
Source: Xinhua
Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen said Tuesday that tourism is a locomotive for economic growth in his country and vowed to accelerate it as one of the world's most wanted tourism sites.
Giving his speech at the inauguration of Cambodia-South Korea Center for Culture, Tourism and Trading in Phnom Penh, Hun Sen said the tourism has become a priority sector for economic policy and is a locomotive for sustainable socio-economic development of Cambodia.
"Cambodia is in a process to develop itself into a cultural, social and natural tourism center in Southeast Asia where is considered the most developed tourism in the world today," he said.
Cambodia cracks down on condom sales in capital
26th January 2010
Source: GNA (Ghana)
Source: GNA (Ghana)
Cambodian authorities have cracked down on as many as 37 condom sales shops in Phnom Penh over the last three months, a government official said Tuesday.
Sok Sokun, director of Phnom Penh Municipal Health Department said that the Ministry of Health in cooperation with police and local authorities have cracked down on 37 shops since November last year.
He said those shops owners had sold condoms which had expiry date and drugs for sexual-enhancement without being first advised or prescribed by doctors.
Govt inaction means K Krom still in limbo
Tuesday, 26 January 2010
By Cameron Wells and Tharum Bun
The Phnom Penh Post
By Cameron Wells and Tharum Bun
The Phnom Penh Post
POLICE in Boeung Tumpun commune have forwarded to their superiors information about a group of ethnic Khmer Krom who say they are fleeing persecution in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta region, and a representative of the group said Monday that he was planning to meet today with the commune chief to discuss their plight.
Members of the group – deported on December 5 from Thailand after a failed asylum bid – have been seeking formal recognition of their citizenship since arriving in the Kingdom, but are poor and reportedly running out of food.
The deportees’ status has been uncertain since their arrival, despite repeated requests to the Ministry of Interior and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees to formally recognise their citizenship.
Sam Rainsy could face fresh legal challenge -[Yuon puppet regime: Deny! Deny! Deny!]
Tuesday, 26 January 2010
By Sebastian Strangio and Meas Sokchea
The Phnom Penh Post
By Sebastian Strangio and Meas Sokchea
The Phnom Penh Post
Govt disputes SRP post about Vietnam border encroachment
OPPOSITION leader Sam Rainsy could face fresh criminal charges after his party released what it said was concrete proof of Vietnamese border encroachments, a senior government official said on Monday.
Government adviser Tith Sothea said the government was considering whether to take legal action against the Sam Rainsy Party president for publishing documents denigrating the government’s border-demarcation efforts.
“The government will consider taking legal action to prohibit any illegal publication that affects the security of the social order,” he said, adding that a decision would not be made until after Sam Rainsy’s trial on Wednesday.
Please click here to read more...
Brisbane charity rescues trafficked children in Cambodia
January 26, 2010
By David Barbeler
CourierMail.com.au
By David Barbeler
CourierMail.com.au
A BRISBANE-based organisation that rescues child sex workers in southeast Asia has cracked its first Cambodian syndicate, saving two girls, 10 and 14.
The rescue was carried out by the Brisbane-based charity The Grey Man, comprising former Australian special forces soldiers, former police and civilians.
A spokesman said the group's director of operations - a former Sydney policeman who uses only the name Tony to protect his identity - was in Cambodia on a fact-finding tour when a motorbike driver offered to arrange some young girls for him.
Cambodia Opens Coconut Char Factory
2010-1-25
NTDT
NTDT
Cambodia is joining the race for green energy. The first biomass briquette factory in the country has opened its doors. Based in the capital of Phnom Penh, the Sustainable Green Fuel Enterprise factory is turning waste coconut husks into clean fuel.
The plant director recommends consumers to switch from wood charcoal to coconut briquettes, not just for the environment’s sake but also for their own health benefits.
[Ly Mathheat, Director, Sustainable Green Fuel Enterprise]: "Why do we want people to use this environmental charcoal and replace the wood charcoal? Because firstly, we want to save our green forest, and secondly we want them to know that this product was made from waste that gives less smoke and poses less of a threat to human health and it gives better heat for cooking compared with wood charcoal."
Film on Cambodia sparks forgiveness
.jpg)
Thet Sambath, left, and Rob Lemkin talk about their movie after showing clip at Cambodian Christian Reform Church. (Scott G. Winterton, Deseret News)Sunday, Jan. 24, 2010
By Aaron Falk
Deseret News
SALT LAKE CITY — Thet Sambath lost his family to the Khmer Rouge but found peace in Cambodia's "killing fields," the site of mass executions in the 1970s.
Now the investigative journalist and documentary filmmaker hopes his personal search for closure can help lift the dark cloud that hangs over his country.
Sambath spent more than a decade making the film "Enemies of the People," a world cinema documentary competition entry at this year's Sundance Film Festival. The watershed work features some of the only recorded accounts from the Khmer Rouge soldiers and officials who committed the atrocities.
Costello pushes USD$600 mil investment in Cambodia
January 25, 2010
ABC Radio Australia
Presenter: Karon Snowdon
Speaker: Peter Costello, former Australian treasurer
Listen: Windows Media
ABC Radio Australia
Australia's former Treasurer Peter Costello left parliament four months ago and now is hard at work in Cambodia. Mr Costello is acting as a financial adviser to an investment fund that's planning a 600-million dollar project. If successful it will be the biggest single foreign investment in Cambodia to date, roughly equalling the total approved investment in the country last year.
Presenter: Karon Snowdon
Speaker: Peter Costello, former Australian treasurer
Listen: Windows Media
SNOWDON: Peter Costello was Australia's longest Treasurer, holding the post for the 11 years of the Howard Government. Mr Costello resigned from Parliament in October having spent two years in opposition after the Liberal party lost the 2007 federal election.
In November he joined the Australian company BKK Partners, which provides financial and corporate advisory services in the Asia Pacific region. His client in Cambodia is Indochina Gateway Capital Limited, which focuses on private equity investments in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. Its hoping to develop an agri-business fund to focus on Cambodia's agriculture.
Peter Costello told Steve Finch of the Phnom Penh Post newspaper he's in the country to meet with government officials.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at Khao Phra Viharn national park closes after Sunday clash
SI SA KET, Jan 26 (TNA) – Thailand’s Khao Phra Viharn national park closed on Tuesday after a Sunday clash between Thai army rangers and Cambodian troops in an area disputed by both countries.
The army rangers are stationed at the national park entrance and the public is not allowed to enter for safety reasons. Thai authorities are monitoring Cambodian radio and television news to report to their superiors.
Thai Army Rangers clashed early Sunday with a unit of Cambodian soldiers near the disputed 900-year-old Preah Vihear temple. No casualties were reported.
Anupong plays down clash with Cambodian soldiers
26/01/2010
By Wassana Nanuam and Anucha Charoenpo
Bangkok Post
By Wassana Nanuam and Anucha Charoenpo
Bangkok Post
Army commander Anupong Paojinda is playing down Sunday's clash with Cambodian forces along the border near the Preah Vihear National Park.
Gen Anupong yesterday said 2nd Army commander Weewalit Chornsamrit had held talks with Cambodia's 3rd supportive division commander, Lt Gen Sarai Duek, to clear the air.
There were no problems and both sides now understood each other's position, Gen Anupong said.
But a military source along the border said there were concerns that troops from the two countries might find it difficult staying in such close proximity to each other.
Situation Along Thai-Cambodia Border Back To Normal After Clashes
1/25/2010
(RTTNews) - The situation along the Thai-Cambodia border has returned to normal after a brief exchange of fire between security forces of the two countries near a disputed border temple a day earlier, Thai News Agency quoted Thailand's army chief General Anupong Paochinda as saying on Monday.
Gen. Paochinda said that the tense situation along the border with Cambodia returned to normal after military officers from both countries held a meeting to discuss the incident near the site of Sunday's clashes. He added that the military officers who took part in the talks agreed that the brief exchange of fire was caused by a misunderstanding.
Moneaksekar Khmer set to publish again
Monday, 25 January 2010By Sam Rith and Sebastian Strangio
The Phnom Penh Post
THE publisher of opposition-aligned Moneaksekar Khmer newspaper has been granted permission to relaunch the daily more than six months after he ceased publication in response to the threat of criminal prosecution.
Dam Sith (picture), the paper’s publisher and editor in chief, said he received permission from the Ministry of Information on Friday and expected publication to restart next month.
“I am now preparing relaunch,” he said Sunday, adding that the new-look daily would maintain its strong opposition stance. “I will keep the same position that was published before in order to keep our readership,” he said.
U.N. special rapporteur pleased with Cambodian rights
January 25, 2010
Source: Xinhua
Source: Xinhua
The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia informed Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Sok An on Monday that he has seen real progress in this Kingdom's rights respect.
Surya Prasad Subedi told Sok An at the meeting that "I am familiar with the progress you have made over years, which is very encouraging ones."
Subedi, who is visiting here from Jan. 18 to 30 for his second mission to Cambodia, focus on the functioning of state institutions that should promote and protect rights, ensure checks and balances on the power of the executive, and promote and protect democratic development.
Thailand and Cambodia: Time for ASEAN to act
January 25, 2010
By Michael Vatikiotis
Asia Security Initiative News & Blog (Mac Arthur Foundation)
By Michael Vatikiotis
Asia Security Initiative News & Blog (Mac Arthur Foundation)
It doesn’t take long for a visitor to the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh to hear about the country’s problems with Thailand. Almost anyone you speak to has a view, mainly centered on Thailand’s alleged provocative actions over a disputed boundary that intersects a 12th century Buddhist temple.
The dispute was formally resolved more than forty years ago when the International Court of Justice awarded sovereignty of the Preah Vihear temple to Cambodia. The dispute erupted again two years ago when Cambodia applied to UNESCO to have the temple declared a world heritage site. Thailand initially supported the bid. But opposition politicians in Bangkok’s highly polarized political climate protested that the temple’s world heritage status would mean encroaching on Thai territory, forcing the Thai government to withdraw support for Cambodia’s UNESCO bid. This led in 2008 to an escalation of military tensions along the border and the outbreak of some fighting, quickly quelled by local commanders.
Situation On Thai-Cambodian Border Normal: Thai Army Chief
BANGKOK, Jan 25 (Bernama) -- The Thai-Cambodian border's situation is now back to normal, after the brief exchange of gunfire on early Sunday morning, Thailand's army chief General Anupong Paochinda said on Monday.
Everything is now fine after senior military officials from the two countries discussed following the clash, Thai News Agency quoted General Anupong as saying.
The border clash between military patrols of the two countries occurred on an undemarcated area next to Thailand's northeastern province of Srisaged near ancient Preah Vihear temple, which is claimed by both countries.
Thai PM: Thai-Cambodian border clash will not intensify conflict
BANGKOK, Jan 25 (TNA) - Thailand's Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on Monday reaffirmed that fighting between military patrols of Thailand and Cambodia early Sunday in an area claimed by both neighbours will not intensify the current conflict between the two neighbouring countries.
The Thai premier commented following the Sunday clash at the Thai-Cambodian border near Si Sa Ket province which left two Thai army soldiers wounded.
Mr Abhisit said that such incidents occur from time to time as there is still illegal logging along the border.
The Thai prime minister however said he believes that the incident will not lead to further conflict as officials at the operational level in both countries will discuss to create mutual understanding.
Monday, January 25, 2010
[Border] Clash was misunderstanding: [Thai] PM
Mon, January 25, 2010
The Nation
The Nation
A brief fight between Thai and Cambodian soldiers on the disputed site near Preah Vihar Temple was caused by misunderstanding and has been resolved, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said Monday.
There is no report of casuality from both sides after they exchanged gunfire early Sunday about 20 kilometers from the temple.
The premier said both sides have met and agreed to settle. "There would be no escalation of the situation," he said.
Army spokesman Col Sansern Kaewkamnerd said Monday, "It was a misunderstanding. I cannot say who first opened fire but the misunderstanding has been settled."
Ex-Khmer Rouge commander jailed for backpacker murders seeks pardon
Chhouk Rin (Center)
Jan 25, 2010
DPA
Jan 25, 2010
DPA
Phnom Penh - A former Khmer Rouge commander jailed for the killings of three Western backpackers in 1994 is to seek a royal pardon on the grounds of ill health, local media reported Monday.
Chhouk Rin, who was jailed for life 10 years ago for his role in the killings, is reportedly suffering from AIDS, malaria and liver disease.
'I will submit a document requesting the king pardon him before the [November] Water Festival this year,' his lawyer Puth Theavy told the Phnom Penh Post newspaper.
Chhouk Rin's wife said her husband is in poor health, and called on the government to assist in his release.
Cambodian rehab centres torture drug users: rights group
A drug addict (C) smokes a cigarette in a street of a shanty town in Phnom PenhAFP
PHNOM PENH — Detainees at Cambodian government-run drug rehabilitation centres suffer "sadistic violence" such as electric shocks, forced labour and rape, a human rights group said Monday.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) called on Cambodia to close at least 11 centres around the country where it said people are often arbitrarily sent without reasonable cause, suffer grave abuses and are denied access to a lawyer.
"Many detainees are subjected to sadistic violence, including being shocked with electric batons and whipped with twisted electrical wire," said a 93-page report from the group.
Cambodia: Close Compulsory Drug Detention Centers
Respect Rights and Expand Voluntary, Community-Based TreatmentJanuary 24, 2010
Source: Human Rights Watch
Download press release in Khmer (PDF)People who use drugs in Cambodia are at risk of arbitrary detention in centers where they suffer torture, physical and sexual violence, and other forms of cruel punishment, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Detention centers, mandated to treat and ‘rehabilitate' drug users, instead subject them to electric shocks, beatings with electrical wire, forced labor, and harsh military drills.
In the 93-page report, "Skin on the Cable," Human Rights Watch documents detainees being beaten, raped, forced to donate blood, and subjected to painful physical punishments such as "rolling like a barrel" and being chained while standing in the sun. Human Rights Watch also reported that a large number of detainees told of receiving rotten or insect-ridden food and symptoms of diseases consistent with nutritional deficiencies.
Clash at Thai-Cambodia border was misunderstanding, Thai army says
Jan 25, 2010
DPA
DPA
Bangkok - A short firefight between Thai and Cambodian troops near a disputed border area temple was a misunderstanding and the situation has been resolved, a Thai military official said Monday.
Neither side reported casualties after they exchanged gunfire early Sunday about 20 kilometers from the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple.
'It was a misunderstanding. I cannot say who first opened fire but the misunderstanding has been settled,' Thai Army spokesman Colonel Samsern Keawkamnerd told the German Press Agency dpa.
Samsern said the firefight was in an area claimed by both countries, and where Cambodian smugglers sometimes fell trees. He did not say if there were smugglers in the area at the time of the clash.
Cambodian officials said Thai soldiers crossed about 200 metres into Cambodia where they encountered Cambodian soldiers.
Don't depend on the king ... if you are not from the ruling CPP party?!?!
Friction between the opposition and the royal palace23 January 2010
By Pen Bona
Source: Radio France Internationale
Editorial
Translated from Khmer by Socheata for KI-Media
Click here to read the article in Khmer
The monarchy institution expressed its extreme displeasure towards Cambodia’s opposition party. This displeasure was shown in two letters sent by Prince Sisowath Thomico, the advisor attached to the king’s office, to the SRP which was seeking royal intervention from King-Father in the border stakes uprooting lawsuit case in Svay Rieng province. The content of these two letters showed the friction that exists between the royal palace and the SRP.
Relationship between Cambodia’s opposition party and the royal palace shows that an intense friction is taking place between the two parties, a situation that was never seen in the past. The friction is observed through two major events:
No royal audience for Sam Rainsy whose party is accused of disrespect toward royalty: Thomico, King-Father’s new guard dog
Sam Rainsy will not be received by Norodom SihanoukWednesday 20 Jan 2010
By A.L.G.
Source: Cambodge Soir Hebdo
Originally posted at KI-Media
Prince Sisowath Thomico has decided: opposition leader Sam Rainsy’s letter asking for an audience with King-Father will not be handed over to the ex-monarch.
In a letter sent to Sam Rainsy, Prince Thomico indicated Norodom Sihanouk will not see Sam Rainsy in his Beijing residence as the latter requested him in a letter dated 22 December. Sam Rainsy could be jailed if he returns back to Cambodia.
Thomico’s letter from Beijing dated 02 January sent to “Very Dear Rainsy” indicated that Sam Rainsy’ private audience request will not be handed over to the ex-monarch due to “the general attitude of the Sam Rainsy Party toward the monarchy and the party’s flaunted disrespect toward the royal institution which is currently represented by King Sihamoni and which was represented by P’Kona [Norodom Sihanouk] in the past.”
Sisowath Thomico chided Sam Rainsy for criticizing the “’subjugation’ of the King to the CPP.”
The letter written in French was published in the pro-CPP newspaper Kampuchea Thmei in its Wednesday 20 January’s edition.
“This is not about me taking revenge back on you, but just like what you thought what you could do best for your interest and your party at the time, I believe that your request is not timely in the current situation and it would not benefit P’Kona, nor the monarchy institution,” the prince wrote.
Dog nominated 4-golden star general by Hun Xen? (Chien nommé général 4 étoiles par Hun Xen?)
+ECCC+meeet+and+talk+in+Pailin+01.jpg)
Y Chhien handsomely compensated by Hun Xen for kowtowing to Hanoi about 07 January?Thursday, January 21, 2010
By E.B.
Cambodge Soir Hebdo
Translated from French by Luc Sâr for KI-Media
The Pailin governor was given a promotion. He is now joining the rank of 2,000 other generals in the RCAF.
It was during the inauguration of business buildings and new army barracks inside the Cambodian Royal Navy headquarters held in Phnom Penh on Monday 18 January, that the Pailin governor, Y Chhien received the precious honor from Hun Sen’s hand, The Cambodia Daily reported.
Hun Xen also indicated that he wanted to promote soldiers who have served in the army in the past. Y Chhien, Pol Pot’s former bodyguard and secretary of the KR division 415, is joining the rank of about 20 generals who hold the rank of 4-golden stars.
In 2006, among the 110,000-soldier-strong RCAF, 613 held the rank of general, i.e. a ratio of 1 general per 179 soldiers. This ratio is far higher than that of the US army in 2004. In the US, the ratio is one general per 1,347 soldiers.
Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at 
Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at Khmer political poem: "Roboeuk Muk Chor Yuon Hanoi"
Please click on Khmer poem to zoom in. Khmer poem by Hin Sithan (on the web at http://kamnapkumnou.blogspot.com/)[Thai] PM defends his record on human rights
January 25, 2010
The Nation
The Nation
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva yesterday defended his government's record on human rights, saying it was determined to uphold universal principles.
He dismissed criticism of his government's record in Human Rights Watch's annual report as lopsided and not consistent with the facts.
The New York-based group blamed the prime minister for failing to honour his pledges to make human rights a priority.
[Southeast Asia] Region's media under threat
25/01/2010
By Achara Ashayagachat
Bangkok Post
HUMAN RIGHTS
By Achara Ashayagachat
Bangkok Post
HUMAN RIGHTS
Southeast Asian media and human rights activists are being increasingly ostracised and threatened, both legally and physically, according to the Southeast Asian Press Alliance (Seapa) annual report.
Journalist killings in 2009 illustrate the vulnerability of the press in Southeast Asia, particularly the November massacre in Maguindanao, Philippines, which claimed the lives of 31 journalists, Bangkok-based Seapa said in a statement released at the weekend.
The group said journalists are being physically threatened in Indonesia and Thailand, ostracised and demonised in Burma and Vietnam, and imprisoned, detained and harassed everywhere, from East Timor to Malaysia and Singapore.
Lawyers and human rights advocates working to defend journalists are also being arrested and harassed in Vietnam, Burma, Cambodia, Singapore and the Philippines, Seapa said.
Cambodia police bust paedophile ring
January 24, 2010
AFP
AFP
Police in Cambodia have arrested two locals and a US man after smashing a seven-year pedophile ring offering underage "virgin" girls to tourists for $US3,000 ($A3,327) a night, they say.
Taxi driver Mey Sovann, 36, and his female accomplice Sek Vy, 47, were arrested on Friday for providing underage girls for sexual services, said Bith Kimhong, head of Cambodia's anti-human trafficking unit, on Sunday.
A six-month investigation, aided by the French Police's International Technical Co-operation Delegation (SCTIP), found that since 2003, Mey Sovann had advertised underage virgin girls on the Internet for $US3,000 ($A3,327) a night.
Cambodian, Thai troops in shoot-out
.jpg)
A Cambodian soldier covers his anti-aircraft gun system at the Thai border. (AFP)Bangkok Post
Thai border rangers have clashed with Cambodian troops near the Preah Vihear national park in Si Sa Ket's Kantharalak district.
Twelve rangers attached to the 23rd Ranger Forces Regiment were on patrol near Huay Khanun dam, east of the national park, when they were ambushed about 9.25am yesterday by Cambodian troops, a military source said.
The Cambodians fired RPG rockets and sprayed the rangers with bullets. The rangers sought cover before returning fire. The gunfight lasted about 10 minutes but no one was hurt.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Misunderstanding causes Thai and Cambodian clash near Preah Vihear temple early Sunday
SI SA KET, Jan 24 (TNA) – After negotiations later in the day, Thai and Cambodian army officers said that fighting between military patrols of the two countries early Sunday in an area claimed by both neighbours was caused by misunderstanding and they agreed to jointly find a solution to ease the tension.Two Thai army soldiers were wounded in the clash.
Col Thanet Wongcha-um, chief of staff of the commander for the Suranaree Task Force and Col Thawatchai Changprachak, commander of a special unit from Thailand’s Ranger Forces Regiment 23 met Maj-Gen Srey Doek, commander of Cambodia’s 3rd Reinforcement Division Sunday at an operation base in Kantharalak district following the clash.
The one-hour meeting agreed the clash was caused by misunderstanding and that soldiers of both sides would initially withdraw from areas near the clash site and return to their bases before officials of the two countries will meet again Monday to discuss patrols in overlapping areas.
Cambodian troops clash with Thai troops at border area
PHNOM PENH, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian troops encountered and clashed with Thai troops on Sunday at the two countries' disputed border area, a senior military official told reporters.
Gen. Chea Dara, deputy commander of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces and commander at the border area near Cambodia's Preah Vihear Temple said the skirmish lasted a few minutes after Thai troops intruded in Cambodian soil.
He said the skirmish happened when the intruded Thai troops encountered Cambodian troops at Choam Te border point, located about 20 kilometers east of the Preah Vihear Temple.
Chea Dara said following the fire first launched by Thai troops, Cambodia made a counter fire as a self defense. However, he said there was no casualty from the Cambodian side.
VN food firm forms joint venture for rice export in Cambodia
Sunday, Jan 24, 2010
SGGP
SGGP
The Southern Food Corporation (SFC) has established a joint stock company with two Cambodian firms to produce and export rice, said Chairman of the Vietnam Food Association Truong Thanh Phong.
The new joint venture, called the Vietnam-Cambodia Food Joint Stock Company (Cavifoods), is headquartered in Phnom Penh.
The company has a chartered capital of US$8 million, with 37 percent owned by SFC, 30 percent by the Green Trade Company, and 33 percent by the Cambodian Investment and Development Company.
Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at Khmer political poem: "Attahi Attano Neatho"
Please click on Khmer poem to zoom in. Khmer poem by Sam Vichea (on the web http://kamnapkumnou.blogspot.com/)
Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at Cambodia reports clash with Thai troops on border
.jpg)
General Chea Dara reviewing troops in the border area. DAP-news quoted the general as saying: "We told them already not to trespass. Cambodia does not want land from anybody, but if they tresppass, that's how it is." (Photo: DAP)By Sopheng Cheang
The Associated Press
Cambodian troops clashed Sunday with Thai soldiers near a temple that lies along a disputed part of their border and has been the scene of several deadly skirmishes in recent years, Cambodian military officials said.
Lt. Gen. Chea Tara, deputy armed forces commander and field commander for the area, said Cambodia suffered no casualties in the fighting in northern Cambodia, about 12 miles (20 kilometers) east of Preah Vihear temple. He said the fighting began when Thai troops intruded into Cambodian territory.
Defense Ministry spokesman Lt. Gen. Chhum Socheat said there were two firefights lasting about five minutes each. He could not say if Thai forces suffered any casualties.
Cambodia, Thai troops clash
Lieutenant General Chea Tara, deputy armed forces commander and field commander for the area, said Cambodia suffered no casualties in the fighting on Sunday, about 12 miles (20 kilometres) east of Preah Vihear temple. -- PHOTO: REUTERSThe Associated Press
PHNOM PENH - CAMBODIA'S military says its troops have clashed briefly with Thai soldiers along a disputed border area.
Lieutenant General Chea Tara, deputy armed forces commander and field commander for the area, said Cambodia suffered no casualties in the fighting on Sunday, about 12 miles (20 kilometres) east of Preah Vihear temple. He said fighting began when Thai troops intruded into Cambodian territory.
Defence Ministry spokesman Lieutenant General Chhum Socheach said there had been two firefights lasting about five minutes each beginning shortly after 9am (0200 GMT, 10am Singapore time).
Thai military authorities could not immediately be contacted for confirmation of the fighting in an area which has seen several deadly clashes in the past couple of years. --
Cambodian and Thai troops clash at border near disputed temple
Jan 24, 2010
DPA
DPA
Phnom Penh - Cambodian and Thai soldiers exchanged fire early Sunday 20 kilometres from a disputed ancient temple site on Cambodia's northern border, a Defence Ministry spokesman said.
General Chhum Socheat told the German Press Agency dpa that the clash occurred on the morning that Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong was visiting the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple.
Chhum Socheat said Thai soldiers had crossed 200 metres into Cambodian territory near an abandoned village 20 kilometres from the temple when they encountered Cambodian soldiers.
Thai Army Rangers clash with Cambodian troops near Preah Vihear temple
SI SA KET, Jan 24 (TNA) -- Thai Army Rangers clashed early Sunday with a unit of Cambodian soldiers near the disputed 900-year-old Preah Vihear temple, a senior Thai army officer said. No casualties were reported.
Lt-Col Nut Sri-in, commander of Suranaree Task Force Unit 163, said the fighting took place while a group of Thai rangers were patrolling and confronted Cambodian soldiers who were felling trees in Kantharalak district bordering Cambodia.
As the Rangers shouted at the Cambodian soldiers asking their purpose in crossing over to the area, the Cambodian soldiers fired M79 grenades and automatic rifles at them, Col Nut said.
The troops exchanged gunfire for over 20 minutes before the Cambodian soldiers withdrew into Cambodia, he said, adding that senior Thai and Cambodian officers would hold talks to prevent similar clashes from occurring in future.
Khmer political poem: "Sithi Monus"--Human Rights
Please click on Khmer poem to zoom in. Khmer poem by Sék Serei (on the web http://kamnapkumnou.blogspot.com/)
Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at Nothing changes with the authoritarian regimes in Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Burma
Saturday, January 23, 2010
By Scott Johnson
Canada Free Press
Regards
Scott
Human Rights Watch
-------------
January 21, 2010
Source: Human Rights Watch
By Scott Johnson
Canada Free Press
Nothing changes in Vietnam. Nor in Laos, Cambodia or Burma. These authoritarian regimes continues to do anything to repress its people in order in maintain a corrupt and brutal regime.
And can you beleive that hundreds of Montagnards remain in Vietnam’s prisons and the US State Department doesn't want to include these people as prisoners of concern?? (ie: not enough evidence of religious persecution)
Just an appalling act of abandonment.
Regards
Scott
Human Rights Watch
-------------
Vietnam: Repression Intensifies Prior to Party Congress
Rights Defenders, Democracy Activists TargetedJanuary 21, 2010
Source: Human Rights Watch
(New York) - This week’s convictions and heavy sentences for four Vietnamese democracy activists, including the prominent human rights lawyer Le Cong Dinh, highlighted the climate of increasingly harsh political repression in Vietnam, Human Rights Watch said today after the release of its World Report 2010.
The 612-page World Report 2010, the organization’s 20th annual review of human rights practices around the globe, summarizes major human rights trends in more than 90 nations and territories worldwide. In Vietnam, the report says, the government arrested and imprisoned dozens of democracy activists linked to opposition parties, independent bloggers, land rights protesters, and members of unsanctioned religious organizations during 2009.
Long Beach Red Cross honors its volunteers
.jpg)
The Cambodian Cooking team received a Community Service Award because the Cambodian Senior Nutrition Program and the United Cambodian Community Center are working closely with the Long Beach Chapter of the American Red Cross to better prepare the Cambodian community for disasters. As part of the Great California ShakeOut on October 13, 2009, Board of Directors members Charles Song and Danny Vong, along with Disaster Volunteer Mike Farrar, designed a mobile feeding and preparedness exercise to teach disaster preparedness skills to the Cambodian community and to offer paid and volunteer staffs a greater understanding of the local Cambodian community. (Long Beach Chapter ARC)01/23/2010
By Sarah Peters, Staff Writer
Long Beach Press Telegram
LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Neil Allgood was at the right place, at the right time. It could have happened to anyone, but for some reason it happened to him, he said.
That's not the way the Red Cross sees it.
Five years ago the retired 82-year-old Army brigadier general had an award named after him in recognition of his volunteer work and years of service -- 48 years now and still going, he said.
Almost 200 Red Cross volunteers and staff gathered Saturday at the Long Beach airport Holiday Inn for the annual Long Beach Chapter awards and volunteer recognition breakfast.
Sundance Film Review: Enemies of the People
.jpg)
Nuon Chea (R) talking to Thet SambathBy Dan Nailen
Salt Lake Magazine (Blog)
.jpg)
Thet Sambath (pictured left) is a Cambodian newspaper journalist whose father was murdered by the Khmer Rouge in 1974, and whose mother was forced to marry a Khmer Rouge militiaman two years later.For a decade, Sambath spent his free time journeying into the notorious "killing fields" of his home country to try and understand why so many of Cambodia's people were murdered. The result of that work is Enemies of the People, which Sambeth co-directed and produced with Rob Lemkin.
The film revolves around the relationship Sambath established with Nuon Chea, aka "Brother Number Two" (pictured below with Sambeth) and dictator Pol Pot's right-hand man. It took Sambeth years of gaining Chea's trust before he opened up and admitted that he and Pol Pot had plotted the killings as a means of defending their communist vision from "enemies of the people." Chea doesn't ever express remorse for the program he calls the "solution," but he does to Sambeth directly when the reporter tells the old man about his own family's relationship with the Khmer Rouge.
Opinion: The long road to justice in Cambodia
.jpg)
A Cambodian Buddhist monk draws a picture depicting the arrest of a Cambodian civilian by Khmer Rouge soldiers, during an art workshop in Kampot province about 90 miles west of the capital, Phnom Penh, July 25, 2009. (Chor Sokunthea/Reuters)13 years of working to ensure that the Khmer Rouge trials belong to Cambodians
January 23, 2010
By Youk Chhang
Special to GlobalPost
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — During the Khmer Rouge period from April 17, 1975, to Jan. 7, 1979, Cambodians walked constantly. They walked from the cities to the countryside, from their villages to distant provinces, and from the rice fields to the battlefields. After Jan. 7, 1979, the survivors of our country's genocide walked again; this time back to their homes.
In 1997, Cambodians began another journey: the journey to seek justice for crimes committed by the Khmer Rouge. And today, 31 years after the Khmer Rouge regime fell, we are taking a giant step along the road to justice.
On Feb. 6, 2006, the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) — commonly referred to as the Khmer Rouge Tribunal (KRT) — officially began setting up offices at the military barracks outside of Phnom Penh. The first trial, Case 001, began on March 30, 2009, two years behind schedule. The case opened with the defendant, former head of S-21 prison Duch (Kaing Geuk Eav), apologizing to victims and accepting responsibility, but ended shockingly however on Nov. 27, 2009, with Duch rejecting responsibility on jurisdictional grounds because he was not a "senior Khmer Rouge leader or those most responsible" as stated in the Khmer Rouge Tribunal Law. The judgment of Duch will be delivered this March.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at 
Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at 
Rogue general gives Bangkok the jitters
.jpg)
Thai “red shirt” supporters cheer during a rally at Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok. — Reuters pictureThe Straits Times
BANGKOK, Jan 23 — Thai police have found caches of weapons in the houses of rogue army Major-General Khattiya Sawasdipol and some associates in a raid, bringing the underlying volatility of the country’s political conflict into sharp focus.
The major-general is now under investigation over a grenade attack last week on a building in the Thai army’s headquarters in Bangkok, which houses the office of army chief Anupong Paochinda.
Nobody was injured in the attack, which appears to have been meant as a warning, analysts said.
China is wise to put brakes on its economic growth
January 23, 2010
The Nation
The Nation
CHINA, which is expected to overtake Japan this year as the world's second largest economy, is putting the brakes on its turbo-charged growth.
The world's most populous nation of 1.3 billion reported a breakneck year-on-year growth of 10.7 per cent for the fourth quarter of last year.
Its December 2009 inflation also jumped to 1.9 per cent from a negative inflation last July, while bank lending rose sharply last year.
China Played No Role in Khmer Rouge Politics: Ambassador
By Kong Sothanarith, VOA KhmerOriginal report from Phnom Penh
22 January 2010
China’s ambassador to Cambodia told a group Friday that the Chinese had not aided the Khmer Rouge but had sought to keep Cambodians from suffering under the regime.
“The Chinese government never took part in or intervened into the politics of Democratic Kampuchea,” the ambassador, Zhang Jin Feng, told the opening class at Khong Cheu Institute.
The Chinese did not support the wrongful policies of the regime, but instead tried to provide assistance through food, hoes and scythes, Zhang said.
Rights Violations Worsened in 2009: Group
By Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
22 January 2010
Original report from Phnom Penh
22 January 2010
The human rights situation in Cambodia has deteriorated in the past year, Human Rights Watch said on Friday, citing numerous examples of apparent government failure to protect basic freedoms.
“Cambodia’s respect for basic rights dramatically deteriorated in 2009 as the government misused the judiciary to silence government critics, attacked human rights defenders, tightened restrictions on press freedom and abandoned its international obligations to protect refugees,” the group said in a statement, issued in the midst of a two-week visit by the UN’s special envoy for rights.
The statement coincided with the release of Human Rights Watch’s 2010 world report.
UN rights envoy to meet with opposition parties next week
Friday, 22 January 2010
By Meas Sokchea
The Phnom Penh Post
By Meas Sokchea
The Phnom Penh Post
CAMBODIA’S opposition parties will meet with the UN’s human rights envoy, Surya Subedi, in the coming week to raise concerns about perceived injustices in the Kingdom, party members said on Thursday amid warnings from officials that these discussions should not be used to insult the government.
Human Rights Party spokesman Yem Ponarith said Subedi is scheduled to meet the Sam Rainsy Party on Saturday and then hold talks with the HRP on Monday.
“We want to talk about issues of injustice in society, including corruption, violation of land rights, human rights and freedom of expression,” he said.
UN Agency To Prioritise Development Areas In Cambodia
PHNOM PENH, Jan 22 (Bernama) -- The Cambodian government has said that its development partner, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), is planning to prioritise five areas for development projects in the country from 2011 to 2015, China's Xinhua news agency reported.
A statement released by the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC) on Friday, said government officials from various institutions had held a meeting with their development partner UNDP to review the implementation of projects assisted by the UNDP in 2009 and the ongoing projects for years ahead.
The statement said the meeting was chaired by Keat Chhon, deputy prime minister and minister of the economy and finance, and also the first vice chairman of the CDC.
From 2006 through 2010, the UNDP were focusing on governance; promotion of human rights protection, agriculture and poverty in rural area; capacity building and human resource development; and national development plan.
UNDP has assisted Cambodia between 80 million and US$120 million a year.
Government Forcibly Evicts 60 Disabled Veterans ... to make way for the despised Yuon rubber plantation
01/22/2010
ShortNews.com
ShortNews.com
60 disabled veterans and their families were among the hundreds of people forcibly evicted from the Kraya commune, in Cambodia, in December. The government claimed that all the families were given land to move to, but the families claim otherwise.
The 60 disabled veterans recently moved back to the Kraya commune and are harvesting their cassava fields and hiding from the government officials, knowing that if they are caught, they will be sent back to the relocation site.
The evicted vets claim the land at the relocation site is of poor quality and no land was marked off for them. The veterans and hundreds of people were evicted from Kraya so that a Vietnamese rubber plantation could use the land.
Source: www.phnompenhpost.com
CNN to air "World's Untold Stories: Innocence for Sale"
January 22nd, 2010
By Swati Arya
TVnext.in
By Swati Arya
TVnext.in
In a new "World's Untold Stories" program airing on January 26th, CNN travels to Cambodia to examine the heartbreaking stories of Southeast Asia's child sex industry.
Seen through the eyes of Aaron Cohen, CNN goes undercover into the karaoke brothels where sex with a child costs the same as a round of drinks. We witness the destitution and deprivation that keeps the young girls in the brothels and we're there when Cohen pays his final respects to the teenage girl he'd rescued, but couldn't save from the heartless grip of prostitution, in the face of her family's poverty.
What's uncovered in this half-hour will shed new light into the dark corners of the human trafficking problem in Cambodia, where we discover in many cases, the blame for the children's exploitation lies not solely with the pimps and madams.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)