KI Media: “Our Sincere Condolences to the People of Japan” plus 24 more |
- Our Sincere Condolences to the People of Japan
- Can Your Truck Haul This Much Stuff?
- Child's surgery depends on fundraising by Hearts Without Boundaries
- Cambodia's growing dispossessed [-Hun Xen's land revolution is approaching fast?]
- Khmer future in hands of youths
- CITA's Press Conference on Giving Teachers a Voice in Education Policy
- CITA's Communique on the 2011 Education Congress
- Illegal Detention of Workers in Phnom Penh- Day One
- Illegal Detention of Workers in Phnom Penh- Day Two
- Lakeside villagers speak out
- Cambodian unions threaten strikes over new laws
- Cambodia charges six foreigners for drugs
- Thai gov't to ask for royal pardon to two "Yellow Shirt" activists jailed in Cambodia
- 2 Cobras outside social
- Tribunal’s Supreme Court Prepares for Duch Hearing
- Cambodia Considers Repercussions of Japan Disaster
- Cambodian Students Shaken, But Unharmed in Quake
- Kong Nay and Ouch Savy tour documentary
- Fourth blast hits Japan - 15 March 2011
- Khmer villagers protesting against Prey Lang deforestation by Viet Company authorized by Hun Xen's regime
- Fourth Japanese Nuclear Reactor Explodes and Catches Fire
- SRP MP Men Sothavarin prevented from visiting Prey Lang in Kampong Thom by Khmer cops working for the Viet CRCK company
- The First Vietnamese Military Intervention in Cambodia (1658-1659) - in French
- Khmer M'chas Srok: The UN Special Rapporteurs on the Situation of Human Rights in Cambodia
- PM targets private school pay
| Our Sincere Condolences to the People of Japan Posted: 15 Mar 2011 09:17 PM PDT
Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, Love leaves a memory no one can steal. Our sincere condolences ------------------------------------------ Dear Readers, We apologize for the mix up in the previous photo we posted. As some of our readers have correctly pointed out, the previous photo was taken from the Chinese movie "Aftershock". Thank you, KI-Media team  | ||||||
| Can Your Truck Haul This Much Stuff? Posted: 15 Mar 2011 06:01 PM PDT March 15, 2011
Former PUTC intern Robby DeGraff is studying overseas and caught up with this overworked and overloaded Toyota Hilux Mighty-X in Cambodia. It appears to be a mid- to late-1990s model with a 2.8-liter four-cylinder diesel. Robby calls this the Phnom Penh heavy-duty payload torture test. We agree and we're wondering if the new Ford Ranger and Chevy Colorado will be able to do the same.  | ||||||
| Child's surgery depends on fundraising by Hearts Without Boundaries Posted: 15 Mar 2011 05:55 PM PDT
03/15/2011 Long Beach Press Telegram (California, USA) To help Bunlak Song, please donate to Hearts Without Borders at: http://heartswithoutboundaries.org/ LONG BEACH - Supporters of an adopted, impoverished Cambodian boy have learned he may get a chance at having his heart repaired. All that remains is to find the money to pay for the procedure. Bunlak Song arrived in the United States this week with Peter Chhun, the head of a Long Beach nonprofit that helps arrange surgeries for poor Cambodian children with heart defects, who cannot receive treatment in their home country. On Thursday, Chhun learned that the International Children's Heart Foundation is willing to perform the surgery during one of its upcoming missions, either in the Dominican Republic or Honduras. However, Hearts Without Boundaries, the nonprofit with about $200 in its account, must raise about $15,000 to $20,000 to cover hospital costs, travel and lodging at either of the locations. The International Children's Heart Foundation performs surgeries for poor children worldwide, donating the services of surgeons and staff and charging only for hospital costs. Chhun was overjoyed to get approval from Dr. William Novick, who heads the international program, and Dr. Rodrigo Soto, the surgeon who performed a similar procedure in the Dominican Republic on Socheat Nha, a Cambodian girl Chhun helped save last year. Chhun continues to negotiate with U.S. hospitals, which would be far more affordable for the fledgling nonprofit if services were donated. "We are so lucky there is a group that will do this," Chhun said of International Children's Heart Foundation. "It costs some extra money, but (Song's) life is in danger so we have to move quick. We'll do whatever it takes." Song is the fourth child Hearts Without Boundaries has helped. The first two, Davik Teng and Soksamnang Vy, were treated in the U.S. by Los Angeles Childrens Hospital and Sunrise Children's Hospital in Las Vegas, respectively. Nha, whose surgery and condition were deemed too high a risk by U.S. surgeons, was operated on by Soto. All three children are living healthy lives in their home country. greg.mellen@presstelegram.com, 562-499-1291  | ||||||
| Cambodia's growing dispossessed [-Hun Xen's land revolution is approaching fast?] Posted: 15 Mar 2011 05:45 PM PDT
As the country's economy booms, thousands of people have been evicted from their homes to make way for developments. 15 Mar 2011 Jonathan Gorvett Al Jazeera When armed construction workers turned up at dawn to start pumping thousands of gallons of sand and water into Ly Si Moan's home, her terrified scramble for safety had her joining thousands of others who have recently had to flee developers in Cambodia. "They started pumping during the night," she says, "while we were sleeping. I think they wanted to eliminate all trace of us." Indeed, all that remains of the village where Ly Si Moan's house and business once stood is a long sandbank, covering three-quarters of what was once a lake at the heart of Phnom Penh. Ly Si Moan is also just one of some 20,000 people who have been evicted from their homes either on or around the historic, 90-hectare Boueng Kak Lake during the last few months. And according to Surya P Subedi, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Cambodia, what is happening is also "representative of the problems of this nature that exist in the country. Land grabbing by the rich and powerful is a major problem in Cambodia today". An 'escalating problem' Indeed, Cambodian rights group Adhoc says that last year alone, 12,389 families in the country became the victims of forced evictions. Another rights group, housing advocates STT, estimates that around 10 per cent of the population of Phnom Penh has faced eviction in the last decade. At the same time, the Cambodian Human Rights Foundation (LICADHO) director Naly Pilorge says that in their survey of half the country's provinces "between 2005 and 2009 some 250,000 people were evicted. Last year alone we dealt with 94 new cases of land grabbing involving approximately 49,280 people". "And the problem is escalating," she adds. The residents of Boeung Kak are being moved as developers fill in the lake with sand and silt scooped out of a nearby river. Where this lake once spread, a new, residential, commercial and entertainment complex is due to be constructed. Economic boom As Cambodia's economy booms, land is becoming more valuable, particularly in the capital, Phnom Penh. "Cambodia has so much land available for concessions," says Ngnon Meng, the director-general of the Cambodian chamber of commerce. "The government is very willing to do things for foreign investors too … when they come in they don't want to leave." The economy grew by 5.5 per cent last year, according to government figures, with last year seeing a new law allowing foreign ownership of property. It also saw another new law allowing the government to expropriate land for developments it deems to be in the public interest. The Cambodian ministry of agriculture, forestry and fisheries says that the government granted more than 1.38 million hectares of land in concessions to 142 different private companies between 1993 and June 2010. "When land belongs to the government, they can do what they like with it," says Ngnon Meng. "Although some people are just trying to hold back our country's development with their protests." Yet Cambodia has some very unique issues when it comes to land and the people who live on it. Rooted in war "It all goes back to the war," says Sung Bonna, the vice-president of the Cambodian Real Estate Developers Association. "Everything got completely mixed up back then." In 1975, the notorious Khmer Rouge took control of Cambodia, after years of fighting and US bombing. One of their first acts was to evacuate the entire population of Phnom Penh. Forced into the countryside, this was the beginning of the horror of the Killing Fields. Around 20 per cent of the country's population died in that carnage, while the Khmer Rouge also abolished private property, destroying land titles and records. In 1979, Vietnam invaded Cambodia. Many Cambodians fled to neighbouring Thailand, with conflict then continuing into the 1990s. This left an enormous displaced population, with many survivors moving to areas because they were safe and offered a chance of survival. Boueng Kak Lake was one such place. Many of those there now were born in refugee camps in Thailand, or remember all too well the horrors of that era. "In 1979, the Khmer Rouge shot my husband in front of me, by the roadside, as we tried to get back into Phnom Penh," says 67-year-old Ngin Savoeun. Her house was flooded with sand and water last November. "I've lost everything now," she says. "I had no time to take anything away when they started flooding my home. I survived the Khmer Rouge and now this." Land denied In 2001, the Cambodian government issued a new land law recognising the problem of land title. If you could show you had lived in a place for five years continuously, and there were no challenges, you could apply for a title. Many at Boeung Kak, who had been there since the early 1980s, applied. Yet, "in early 2007, the residents were denied title en masse," according to a January 2011 report on the issue from Bridges Across Borders Cambodia, an NGO advocating for the residents. "In the same month, the Cambodian government entered into a 99-year lease agreement with private developer Shukaku Inc.," the report continues. A representative of Shukaku declined to comment on this story when contacted. While this was going on, the World Bank - along with the German, Canadian and Finnish national overseas development organisations - was cooperating with the Cambodian government in a project to assess and award land titles across the country. Too little too late Last week, the Bank announced the results of an internal inquiry into this project. The inquiry found that "residents in the Boeung Kak Lake area were denied access to due process of adjudication of their property claims and were displaced in violation of the policies the Bank agreed with the government for handling resettlement". The Bank admitted failings in the project and called on the government to stop the evictions. The Cambodian ministry of land management then responded in an official statement that Boeung Kak had been outside the remit of the project and thus was "not under the conditions set for social safeguards". Now, residents are calling for the Bank - and other international agencies - to take stronger action. "Only foreign pressure can help us now," says resident and local organiser Tep Vanny. "We believe the companies are tied to the government and when we protest, we are threatened and no one listens. Please, see what is happening here." Time may also be running out. Last week, Vanny says the remaining residents were given seven days to accept the company's offer of $8,500 compensation and demolish their homes, or get nothing. "We would rather die here," says Vanny. "People must also understand this. This is our home and we will not leave."  | ||||||
| Khmer future in hands of youths Posted: 15 Mar 2011 05:22 PM PDT Mar. 16, 2011 Written by A. Gaffar Peang-Meth PACIFIC DAILY NEWS In the final analysis, the future of the Khmer nation rests in the hands of the young generation of Khmers who must decide and dictate which road to development and progress Cambodians need to take.  A quotation familiar to many -- "All that is needed for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing" -- is attributed to Anglo-Irish statesmen Edmund Burke, who supported the cause of the American Revolution and criticized the French Revolution.Another statement I have often quoted, "The world is a dangerous place. Not because of the people who are evil; but because of the people who don't do anything about it," was offered by the Nobel Prize winning American physicist Albert Einstein. And perhaps French playwright Moliere summed up best who's accountable: "It is not only for what we do that we are held responsible, but also for what we do not do." We are today in the year 2011. The world has changed and would be an unfamiliar place, indeed to the sages of centuries past. Yet French critic Alphonse Karr said long ago, "Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose" -- "The more things change, the more they stay the same." I, as you, am a product of so many things I've learned from the words and the experiences of the men and women who have walked life paths I never knew. As I connect what wise men and women have expressed in the past to my contemporary thinking, I choose to think that although "things" have changed physically, "c'est la meme chose" as long as our thinking, attitudes, and values resist change. Change Change is inevitable, we know. I told my students endlessly that even if we don't do anything, things will change, but not necessarily to our liking. Because while we sit, others don't, and others still are diligent. They bring the change they want to see -- which may be different from what we want. Ironically, the great philosopher Gautama Buddha was not only a critical thinker, he was an activist. He never taught man to wait for the next life to change. Man can take action now. if he is passive, then he can be sure that his destiny will be his fate. In his words, "I do not believe in a fate that falls on men however they act; but I do believe in a fate that falls on them unless they act." He taught man, "To be idle is a short road to death and to be diligent is a way of life; foolish people are idle, wise people are diligent. " He warned that man is responsible for his fate: "No one saves us but ourselves. No one can and no one may. We ourselves must walk the path." Buddha counseled: "Work out your own salvation." Buddha's precept, "What we think, we become," tells man he has a choice. We choose through our thoughts: "Through our thoughts we make the world," affirmed Buddha. It is sad that some Khmers found my writing on Buddha's teaching as "preaching" to others. Oh dear. Pol Pot and Hitler are dead. No one can force anyone to read anything. We live in the United States, where First Amendment rights are inviolable. Our choice I often note that the pleasure I gain from producing columns comes from learning that someone has benefited from reading them. After all, I spent much of my professional life as a teacher. The weekly feedback I receive is usually (but not always) positive. But to know I have regular readers is satisfying and makes the time spent researching and writing each week worthwhile. Sometimes what people read here starts a new conversation, sparks a new idea, illuminates a fresh perspective. When we are intellectually challenged, our mind continues to ask essential questions. Eventually, we arrive at a panorama of options from which we can choose. Recall the words of the seventh secretary general of the United Nations, Kofi Annan: "To live is to choose. But to choose well, you must know who you are and what you stand for, where you want to go and why you want to get there." There's a lot to learn if one engages in quality thinking. Some quotations familiar to regular readers continue to enrich my life: "Don't compare yourself with others. You have no idea what their journey is all about." And I like what has been attributed to Native American sources: "Before you criticize a man, walk a mile in his moccasins." They teach me empathy and humility. That's how I learn and develop, and I don't think God is yet finished with me. Help or hindrance? In a competitive, modern world that requires our creativity and innovation, if we are to remain afloat, Cambodian democrats must give serious thought to what Khmer Buddhism and Khmer traditions help and what they hinder in terms of development and progress. I think Buddha's thoughts help. Unfortunately, as a prominent Khmer Buddhist monk in Cambodia quietly lamented, Cambodian Buddhists appear ignorant of Lord Buddha's thoughts and what he was actually teaching. The monk wasn't sure how many monks themselves truly understand Buddha's thoughts and teaching. And there is little doubt that the Khmer traditions -- from beliefs in blind obedience, to beliefs in class, status, rank and role relationships that fossilize the superior-inferior, master-servant, leader-follower distinctions -- are not helping to develop and modernize the Khmer nation. They may even hasten Cambodia's doom. In the final analysis, the future of the Khmer nation rests in the hands of the young generation of Khmers who must decide and dictate which road to development and progress Cambodians need to take. A. Gaffar Peang-Meth, Ph.D., is retired from the University of Guam. Write him at  | ||||||
| CITA's Press Conference on Giving Teachers a Voice in Education Policy Posted: 15 Mar 2011 08:26 AM PDT Dear All, Tomorrow CITA will hold a press conference on giving teachers a voice in education policy. Please find below the press release. Phoung Sotras Administrative Officer of CITA CITA's Press Conference on Giving Teachers a Voice in Education Policy 16 March 2011  | ||||||
| CITA's Communique on the 2011 Education Congress Posted: 15 Mar 2011 08:13 AM PDT | ||||||
| Illegal Detention of Workers in Phnom Penh- Day One Posted: 15 Mar 2011 07:57 AM PDT March 15, 2011 Originally posted at: http://sochua.wordpress.com On Sunday, March 6, Sing Sina, a 35 year-old woman died at T&P Recruitment Agency from a heart attack, according to the police. However, locals remain skeptical. Since then, more and more women have come forward asking for help to be released from T&P, a recruitment agency that trains women to work in Malaysia. Women are being detained illegally. Children are not allowed to see their mothers. And two weeks after Sina's death, another woman leapt from the third floor of the T&P building to try and escape, breaking her ankle and heel.
Hearing this news, I joined other SRP members on Thursday, March 10, to Sen Sok district in Phnom Penh to begin investigating T&P recruitment agency where 23 year-old Srun Chan Nang, a maid trainee was being held against her will.
Without her mother present, they denied her release. Local authorities and police ignored the law that forbids detention against one's will. Furthermore, local authorities accepted the company's practice of debts and the charges for food, lodging and extra fees.  | ||||||
| Illegal Detention of Workers in Phnom Penh- Day Two Posted: 15 Mar 2011 07:50 AM PDT March 15, 2011 Originally posted at: http://sochua.wordpress.com The following day we returned with Srun Channa's mother in order to negotiate her release. It was only with the assistance of the city prosecutor, that on March 11th, Channa was released.
Despite our requests, no officials from the Labour of Ministry were present over the two days we visited. We can conclude that the Labour Ministry leaves it up to the companies to draw guidelines and that inspections of the premises and the application of the laws are very weak and that negligence from the part of the government led to the deaths and injuries of the women.
I will post our findings soon! Please follow along and share your thoughts. Have you heard of similar cases like T&P that detain their employees illegally?  | ||||||
| Posted: 15 Mar 2011 07:42 AM PDT
Khouth Sophakchakrya The Phnom Penh Post Boeung Kak lake residents spoke out against government officials who accused them of living on state land illegally, during a press conference yesterday in Daun Penh's Srah Chak commune. "If they accuse us of being thieves, what are government officials and local authorities who issued legal letters to us?" Ly Mom, a representative for Boeung Kak residents, said yesterday during a press conference in Village 24 of Srah Chak commune. Sia Phearum, secretariat director of the local NGO Housing Rights Task Force, said yesterday that if government officials accused residents of being thieves who stole state land as they have alleged, "this language is shameful and they are not suited to be leaders … and this is not a resolution". Nun Pheany, spokeswoman for the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction, said yesterday that she had not personally stated that Boeung Kak residents were living illegally on the disputed land. Nun Pheany and Sar Sovann, director of the Land Management and Administration Project, were accused of alleging villagers were living on stolen land by representative at the press conference. She added that the development of the Boeung Kak area is within the framework of the LMAP and that the World Bank's recent criticism of the project incorrectly connected it to land disputes with Boeung Kak villagers. "LMAP is not relevant to the villagers of Boeung Kak area because we took it out of the project because it was a disputed area," she said, adding that the dispute arose after officials from Phnom Penh Municipal Hall and Daun Penh district accused the villagers of living on the land illegally. "However, so far we haven't registered land for any parties until the dispute is successfully resolved."  | ||||||
| Cambodian unions threaten strikes over new laws Posted: 15 Mar 2011 02:07 AM PDT
PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Cambodia's biggest trade unions on Tuesday demanded a review of a draft law to regulate them, threatening nationwide strikes against what they said were government attempts to weaken the labour movement. Union leaders and activists said their proposals for the legislation had been ignored and the law would allow the government to block protests, jail leaders, disband unions and prevent new bodies from forming. The government says it is drafting the law to protect the interests and rights of workers. It follows similar plans to regulate non-governmental organisations, which have outraged rights groups and prompted criticism from the United States. Prime Minister Hun Sen's ruling Cambodian People's Party is widely accused of abusing its parliamentary majority to pass laws curtailing freedom of expression and leaning on the judiciary to punish critics. The draft legislation for NGOs and unions is seen as a further effort to stifle dissent and entrench its power. According to the draft law, unions or associations can be dissolved or suspended by court order if there is a complaint against them from a third person or the government. Union leaders face prison terms for organising protests or strikes that are deemed illegal. "The conditions to even form a union are strict. It is also really easy to dissolve unions and leaders are facing lawsuits or imprisonment over minor union work," said Ath Thorn, president of the Cambodia Labour Confederation. Rong Chhun, head of the Cambodian Confederation of Unions, said recommendations of labour groups had been overlooked and warned that 70 percent of the country's 300,000 garment workers would strike if changes were not made. The garment industry is the third-biggest contributor to Cambodia's $10 billion (6.2 billion pound) economy after agriculture and tourism and factory workers' wages are a key source of income for impoverished rural families. At least 210,000 workers went on strike last year over pay and working conditions. Cambodia's government has been credited with reducing poverty and boosting economic growth in one of Asia's poorest countries, but critics and aid donors say its democratic institutions remain weak and its human rights record is worsening. (Reporting by Prak Chan Thul; Editing by Martin Petty)  | ||||||
| Cambodia charges six foreigners for drugs Posted: 15 Mar 2011 02:01 AM PDT Mar 15, 2011 AFP PHNOM PENH - A CAMBODIAN court on Tuesday charged five Vietnamese and one Laos national with drug trafficking after police seized more than 11kg of methamphetamine from Laos in a major raid. The six were arrested after police confiscated nearly 88,000 methamphetamine tablets, weighing 8.8kg, and three kilograms of methamphetamine powder during a raid at a Phnom Penh residence on Friday, said national police spokesman Kirt Chantharith. 'The drugs were supplied from Laos... and could have been destined for Vietnam and Thailand,' he said. If convicted, the six men and women face 'a minimum of 20 years in prison", Hing Bunchea, a prosecutor at Phnom Penh Municipal Court, told AFP. Local media estimated the drugs have a street value of more than half a million dollars. Cambodia has ramped up its war on drugs in recent months, resulting in hundreds of arrests.  | ||||||
| Thai gov't to ask for royal pardon to two "Yellow Shirt" activists jailed in Cambodia Posted: 15 Mar 2011 01:58 AM PDT March 15, 2011 Xinhua The outgoing Thai ambassador Prasas Prasasvinitchai said Tuesday that his government will submit a petition to Cambodian government in order to ask Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni to grant a royal pardon to the two high-profile "Yellow Shirt" activists jailed in Cambodia for espionage. The ambassador made the remarks during a farewell meeting with Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong on Tuesday. The ambassador also told reporters after the meeting that so far the two Thais have not signed the letter for royal pardon yet. "As soon as they sign the request, I will present it to the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs; then, ask the royal government of Cambodia for high consideration," he said. The two Thai prisoners 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, on Feb. 1, convicted Veera and Ratree of illegal entry, unlawful entry into military base and espionage and sentenced them to 8 years and 6 years in jail respectively. Koy Kuong, the spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation,declined to comment if Cambodia will consider royal amnesty for the duo. According to Cambodian law, a prisoner can be granted a royal pardon only if he/she has served two third of the jailed term in prison. Meanwhile, the ambassador also said that Thai government will hold an internal meeting on Wednesday to decide if it will join the ASEAN-arranged meetings on Cambodia-Thai General Border Committee (GBC) and Joint Border Committee on Demarcation for Land Boundary (JBC) in Bogor, Indonesia on March 24-25 to resolve the border dispute between the two countries.  | ||||||
| Posted: 15 Mar 2011 01:26 AM PDT | ||||||
| Tribunal’s Supreme Court Prepares for Duch Hearing Posted: 15 Mar 2011 01:15 AM PDT
Phnom Penh Monday, 14 March 2011 "The Supreme Court Chamber will "review whether or not Duch is a most responsible senior official." The Supreme Court Chamber of the Khmer Rouge tribunal will conduct three days of hearings later this month in the case of torture chief Kaing Kek Iev, who was found guilty last year of atrocity crimes. His 2009 trial lasted 77 days under the Trial Chamber of the UN-backed court, and many victims of the regime were outraged by the 19 years he received in commuted sentence. The Supreme Court hearing will mark the completion of the trial, the court's first. It is scheduled to begin March 28 and will be much shorter than the original trial because the appeals are limited in scope, a tribunal spokesman said. "There are a few questions in the appeal," the spokesman, Lars Olsen, said. "So we don't need to hear all the witnesses and experts that appeared during the trial chamber. In addition, they have made long written submissions before this hearing." The Supreme Court hearings will mark the official end of the tribunal's first trial, during which Kaing Kek Iev, better known as Duch, admitted responsibility for the more than 12,000 deaths that took place at Tuol Sleng prison under his leadership. He expressed remorse and sought forgiveness from the families of his victims, and in the end, he asked to be released. His sentence was commuted form 35 years to 19 years. Tribunal prosecutors are now seeking a full 45 years imprisonment. The lower court also issued little in the way of reparations for civil parties, choosing to list the names of some on the tribunal website. The Supreme Court Chamber will "review whether or not Duch is a most responsible senior official," Olsen said. "Then they are going to review sentencing and they are going to review the decision on civil party application admissibility and reparation." The question of whether Duch is one of those most responsible for the crimes of the Khmer Rouge—a key mandate for the court—was raised by his defense lawyers following his trial. The question of sentencing was raised by prosecutors. And the question of reparations was raised by civil parties. According to the tribunal schedule, the first day will be dedicated to Duch's personal jurisdiction and whether he committed crimes against humanity; the second day will focus on his sentencing; and the third will focus civil party appeals.  | ||||||
| Cambodia Considers Repercussions of Japan Disaster Posted: 15 Mar 2011 01:10 AM PDT Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer Phnom Penh Monday, 14 March 2011 "We cannot predict what will happen to the upcoming Japanese aid for Cambodia." As Japan continued to assess the damage from a major earthquake and tsunami on Monday, Cambodian officials and development workers considered the implications here, where Japan is a major donor. Speaking at a graduate ceremony at the Royal University of Law and Economics, Prime Minister Hun Sen said the Japanese government was set to sign a large aid package on Tuesday. But he warned that the devastation from the disaster could have knock-on effects for Cambodian development. "The destruction in Japan was the largest, and it will affect the Japanese economy, as well as Japan's international obligations and implementation [of projects] overseas, including us," he said. The severe earthquake and subsequent tsunami hit Japan's northeast coast on Friday, leveling entire villages and likely killing many thousands, though the official death toll and economic damage is so far unknown. However, Japanese Ambassador Massafumi Kuroki told reporters at the Japanese Embassy on Monday that aid would continue, including a $94 million package he will sign Tuesday. The grant aid will go toward flood protection, water distribution systems and demining activities, underscoring the reliance of many groups on Japanese aid across many sectors. In the period between 1992 and 2009, Japan was the country's single largest donor country, providing more than 18 percent of overseas development aid, or about $1.83 billion, according to government figures. "We're thinking about the earthquake that hit Japan and the following tsunami," said Yong Saing Koma, president of the Cambodian Center for the Study and Development of Agriculture, which has $800,000 in Japanese funding for 2011 and 2012. "We're worried that it can hurt or stop or suspend Japanese aid to these projects." Chheam Chan Sophorn, chief of the Battambang provincial department for agriculture, said he worried about the possibility of losing Japanese aid that promotes rice production across nine districts. "We cannot predict what will happen to the upcoming Japanese aid for Cambodia," he said. "But I have my own worries. It can badly impact our project." Him Sophal, chief of the Prey Veng provincial department of education, said the province had at least three projects funded by $150,000 in Japanese development funds to provide study centers and build schools. He had seen footage as the massive tsunami swept the coast of Japan, he said. "I just saw the event of the biggest wave, the tsunami," he said. "I'm very worried because our donor met with a serious earthquake and tsunami. So I'm very worried we won't reach our goal."  | ||||||
| Cambodian Students Shaken, But Unharmed in Quake Posted: 15 Mar 2011 01:06 AM PDT Soeung Sophat, VOA Khmer Washington, DC Monday, 14 March 2011 "We were not allowed to use the elevator. I was terrified as Hell." The massive earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan Friday was the strongest in the country's history. Among those caught up in the disaster were Cambodian students currently enrolled in various Japanese universities, who were frightened but otherwise unscathed. "I was so terrified that I ran downstairs barefoot," Chea Poleng, an economics student in Tokyo, told VOA Khmer shortly after the quake. "We were not allowed to use the elevator. I was terrified as Hell." Chea Poleng said she had lived in Japan for two years, and though she had felt earthquakes before, they were small in comparison. Friday's main quake, off the northeast coast of Japan near the city of Sendai, reached 8.9 on the Richter scale and triggered a 10-meter-high wave that swept people away amid cars, ships and homes. Fatalities are estimated in the thousands. "Everything fell down," said Chea Poleng, who was on the 9th floor of her university dormitory when the quake struck. "My books, water bottles, teapot, even one television—they fell down and broke. In my kitchen, too, things were thrown out of place and broke. We were frightened and were told to run down, not because the building would collapse but because things could fall on us." Him Sopheak, a Japanese-language student, said he was stuck in a 32-story building in Tokyo's Sinagawa district. "When the shaking started, we were certainly frightened because we had never experienced such strong tremors," he told VOA Khmer by phone. There are 350 Cambodians registered with the Cambodian Student Association in Japan, 200 from the Tokyo area. The head of the association, Ly Socheath, said the group was quick to locate its members by phone, e-mail or social media to learn their whereabouts. "Most reported that they were safe and unharmed, none injured or dead," he said. "They were mostly unaffected except for the disruption it has caused to their daily lives, because phone services were down and train services were halted." Ly Socheath said the quake had been light in his area, 30 kilometers outside Tokyo. He had been educated about potential natural disasters on his arrival as a student, and he had faith in Japan's social services, he said. Japan must now struggle with the aftermath of the quake, which damaged nuclear power facilities and swept entire villages away. Power remains out or intermittent for many in the areas hardest hit, and the death toll has yet to be tallied. On Friday night, one student, Tea Seang Houng, who had traveled to Sendai city ahead of the quake, was at first unaccounted for. Chea Poleng, her friend, said she seven hours after the quake she was still worried and had not heard from her. "Just this morning she called me, saying that she was in Sendai visiting her host family," Chea Poleng said. "I saw on television that the city was hit by a tsunami that swept away whole houses, and even the Sendai airport had water rushing in. I have been concerned all day because I unable to reach her." However, Tea Seang Houng later contacted friends and family to say she was unhurt. Cambodian Embassy officials could not be reached late Friday, but the student association said embassy officials had made calls after the quake to learn the status of the students. On the far southwestern island of Kyushu, far from the areas most affected, Chea Vitom, a doctoral student at the Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University and head of the student association's branch there, said some 50 Cambodian students on the island were fine. "It is too early to tell what will happen next, because it just happened today," he said Friday. "Cambodians and particularly the Japanese are just starting to assess the destruction, firstly, and secondly, we will continue to monitor the situation. So we are preparing for what can happen while keeping in contact with other Cambodians."  | ||||||
| Kong Nay and Ouch Savy tour documentary Posted: 15 Mar 2011 12:53 AM PDT http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nrIpJDcisVc&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N95gjSKfZqw&NR=1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMhx6_2WZZw&feature=related  | ||||||
| Fourth blast hits Japan - 15 March 2011 Posted: 15 Mar 2011 12:40 AM PDT http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6MMIlqvRx4  | ||||||
| Posted: 15 Mar 2011 12:26 AM PDT http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XW71mWYLLwM&feature=channel_video_title  | ||||||
| Fourth Japanese Nuclear Reactor Explodes and Catches Fire Posted: 15 Mar 2011 12:18 AM PDT
Mar 15, 2011 By Helena Zhu Epoch Times Staff The tsunami-ravaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant's No. 4 reactor caught fire and exploded on Tuesday morning, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan's office tweeted. The fire and the hydrogen explosion have added to the already high radiation level at the Daiichi plant. The plant's No. 1 reactor exploded on Saturday afternoon, No. 3 exploded on Monday morning, and No. 2 blasted early Tuesday morning. An official at Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO), which runs the nuclear plant, speculated that the explosion probably led to the fire. The explosion itself was most likely caused by hydrogen seeping from a pool storing spent nuclear fuel on the reactor's fifth floor, Japanese media Nikkei reported. TEPCO said that the fire, which broke out at 9:38 a.m. local time, appears to have been extinguished, according to Kyoto News. "The level seems very high, and there is still a very high risk of more radiation coming out," Kan said in a nationally televised address. Kan warned danger of more radiation leaks, but asked the public to stay calm. He advised residents living between 12 and 19 miles (20 to 30 kilometers) of the plant to stay indoors. Those closer to the plant—some 185,000 people—have already been evacuated. A heroic team of TEPCO workers is continuously trying to cool the reactors down with seawater to prevent large-scale meltdown. "They are putting themselves in a very dangerous situation," Kan said. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, the pressure of the reactor's water coolant needs to be around atmospheric level and the temperature below 212 degrees Fahrenheit (100 degrees Celsius) for the reactor to be considered safely under control. The National Policy Agency's tally shows that the number of those confirmed dead or remain unaccounted following Friday's magnitude 9.0 earthquake is believed to exceed 6,000 people. As of Tuesday, 2,475 were dead and 3,118 were missing, but thousands of unidentified bodies have been detected in quake-hit coastal areas. TEPCO said that the radiation level at the plant's gate following the No. 2 reactor's explosion surged to 8,217 microsieverts per hour. The average background radiation a person absorbs per year is about 1,000 microsieverts, Kyoto News reported. The prime minister's office said that at 11:22 a.m., 400 microsieverts of radiation—or 20 times the annual limit for nuclear industry employees and uranium miners—were detected near the No. 3 reactor, 30 microsieverts between No. 2 and No. 3, and 100 microsieverts near No. 4. "Now we are talking about levels that can damage human health," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said. "These are readings taken near the area where we believe the releases are happening. Far away, the levels should be lower." Although higher than normal radiation levels were reportedly detected in Tokyo, the government said they were not high enough to affect human health. "The radioactive substances will likely spread far and wide in minute amounts, but these doses will not be enough to cause any harm to the human body," Edano said. The magnitude 9.0 earthquake that struck northeast Japan last Friday knocked out power and damaged the plant's backup generators needed for running the cooling systems. Facing a limited power supply, TEPCO started unprecedented rolling blackouts on Tuesday. Tokyo and eight prefectures in TEPCO's service area have been divided into five regions for the rotating outages. The blackouts are expected to last at least until the end of April, affecting most of the 45 million people in its service area.  | ||||||
| Posted: 15 Mar 2011 12:03 AM PDT On Friday 11, 2011, SRP MP for Kampong Thom province H.E. Mr. Men Sothavarin was participating in the public forum organized by the Cambodia Center for Human Rights (CCHR) in Meanrith commune, Sandan district, Kampong Thom province on "stop logging". At the end of the public forum, MP Men Sothavarin with villagers who participated in the public forum went to examine the deforestation by the CRCK Company located in Meanrith commune, Sandan district. But they were prevented by district polices authorities who were guarding the company when they were on the way to visit the CRCK Company. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4g4o2hGnXiQ&feature=channel_video_title http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3auWxK3uQ_I&feature=channel_video_title  | ||||||
| The First Vietnamese Military Intervention in Cambodia (1658-1659) - in French Posted: 14 Mar 2011 11:51 PM PDT Dear KI-Media Readers, Please find below an article by Messrs. Mak Phoeun and Po Dharma regarding "The First Vietnamese Military Intervention in Cambodia (1658-1659)." Unfortunately, the article is only available in French right now. The article relates to King Chey Chetha II and his Viet queen Ang Chau. Additional articles on the Cambodia-Vietnam relationships in French and English are available at: Thank you, KI-Media team Mak Phoeun and Po Dharma - The First Vietnamese Military Intervention in Cambodia (1658-1659) http://www.scribd.com/doc/50768155/Mak-Phoeun-and-Po-Dharma-The-First-Vietnamese-Military-Intervention-in-Cambodia-1658-1659  | ||||||
| Khmer M'chas Srok: The UN Special Rapporteurs on the Situation of Human Rights in Cambodia Posted: 14 Mar 2011 11:25 PM PDT    | ||||||
| Posted: 14 Mar 2011 11:20 PM PDT Monday, 14 March 2011 Vong Sokheng The Phnom Penh Post Prime Minister Hun Sen appealed today to private educational institutions operating in Cambodia to pay taxes on teacher salaries after reports that many such facilities have sought exemption status. "[Tax] is an obligation, and it is not only in our country. Many other countries have to pay higher tax on salary than us, and I think that many institutions of education have requested exemptions," Hun Sen said during an address to graduating students at the Institute of National Education in Phnom Penh. Cambodia's Taxation Law implemented in 1994 stipulates that employees earning more than 500,000 riel (about US$125) per month must pay salary tax, said Cheam Yeap, senior lawmaker for the ruling Cambodian People's Party. Rong Chhun, president of the Cambodian Independent Teachers Association, said he was not opposed to the measure but said all forms of tax collection should be transparent. Yim Sovann, a lawmaker for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, said the government must also focus on other areas of tax collection, particularly from businesses. "Imposing salary tax on workers averaging $125 per month is not appropriate in the current economic situation, when all kinds of goods are at higher prices, including gasoline," he said.  |
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