KI Media: “ECCC/UN Asleep, Hiding behind Veil of Confidentiality” plus 24 more |
- ECCC/UN Asleep, Hiding behind Veil of Confidentiality
- Ahead of New Year Revelry, Safety Concerns
- US Rights Report Sees Concern in NGO Law
- Low Pay, High Risk, Some Reward: Writer
- Greeting Card from Sacravatoons
- Politiktoons No. 159: Sumo
- Tribunal Complainant Defends Right to File
- Sinatoons: Hun Xen mooning
- Do or die for Thai democracy
- Khmer Grammar - Op-Ed by B. Boy
- Thai rice exporters eye investments in Cambodia-INTERVIEW
- JBC minutes to be withdrawn from [Thai] parliament [-Thailand never intended to resolve the border dispute with Cambodia]
- Cambodia's inflation to hit 6.5 pct in 2011: IMF
- "What Is CPP?" a Poem in English by Sék Serei
- Costello linked to Cambodian banana project opposed by NGOs
- Teacher's terror as 'booze cruise' party boat capsizes
- Watkinson School Presents The Children of Bassac, A Traditional Cambodian Dance Group
- Missing woman's family sues
- Khmer Student Association keeps Cambodian culture alive
- The Eccentricity of Evil: Khmer Rouge Leader Goes on Trial
- $96m suit over mine [-Who will win? The Chinese or the crony?]
- Sinatoons: Cambodia 17 April 1975
- Brain Food
- Caroline Casey: Looking past limits
- Thaksin pushes Yingluck for PM
| ECCC/UN Asleep, Hiding behind Veil of Confidentiality Posted: 12 Apr 2011 06:14 PM PDT ECCC/UN Asleep, Hiding behind Veil of Confidentiality By Theary C. SENG Dear Editor of The Phnom Penh Post:  I read UN spokesman Lars Olsen's response to my April 7 letter published in The Phnom Penh Post on 8 April 2011 with grave concern for his persistent, intentional misinterpretation of procedural provisions which clearly favor victims to file now as civil parties in Cases 003 and 004. It is the role of the CIJs, not Mr. Olsen, to determine whether my application pass legal muster on two grounds – procedural and substantive. Here, I address only the procedural ground in response to Mr. Olsen's highly charged accusations of "premature" timing, "irresponsible and reckless" breach of confidentiality and its relation to the well-established principle of the presumption of innocence ("PoI"). Mr. Olsen is deliberately "missing the point" on procedural matters in regard to (i) timing, and (ii) confidentiality. 1. TIMING. Based on national procedure and ECCC Internal Rules ("IR"), a victim can attach herself to a criminal proceeding as a complainant or civil party at any time. As the matters stand now, Meas Muth and Sou Met are "Charged Persons" as defined by the CIJs. Mr. Olsen is legally incorrect to refer to the five individuals in the Introductory Submission as "suspects", because anyone named as a suspect in the Introductory Submission is automatically considered a legally "Charged Person" whether they have been publicly named or not, according to an Office of CIJ Order D298/2, esp. fn. 6. In Sept. 2009, the UN prosecutor forwarded the Introductory Submission (the "charging instrument") for Cases 003/004 to the CIJs, making Meas Muth, Sou Met et al at that moment in time "Charged Persons." Hence, the 5 individuals of Cases 003/004 are already "Charged Persons" clearly within the IR definition. To consider them to be lesser "suspects" minimizes the stage at which this investigation is supposed to be. Victims should have been able to file applications for Civil Party status from the moment of the filing of the Introductory Submission. The CIJs are under an obligation to provide the public with enough information to file a IR 23bis application, which they are recklessly disregarding in Cases 003/004 for the last 19 months. 2. CONFIDENTIALITY. The names I mentioned have already been widely circulated and it is ridiculous to say that I am revealing "confidential" information. It is not confidential, I did not get access to it as a result of being a party to the court proceeding, and I am under no obligation to keep silent about who I think is responsible for a crime. In this light, the ECCC is deliberately hiding behind the all-encompassing, impenetrable veil of confidentiality and imperialistically abusing its power of transparency and accountability. The Office of CIJs has been sitting idly on Cases 003/004 for the last 19 months (!) with no meaningful activity. For the last 7 months since the Closing Order of Case 002, its 40-member staff have been collecting salaries in the conservative range of US$250,000 per month for doing absolutely nothing, as the investigations of Cases 001 and 002 are completed and there is no discernable activity for Cases 003/004. The stalling from overt political interference has been so outrageous, sustained and deep that one can hear the CIJs snoring under their cloak of secrecy against the backdrop of the deafening silence of the donor community. By attempting to shut me up, the ECCC is furthering its abuse of the rights of victims and covering up its failure to follow the law and investigate Cases 003/004 with integrity. 3. PRESUMPTION OF INNOCENCE: I am a victim (not a neutral observer or a judicial officer) alleging serious criminal charges against Meas Muth and Sou Met. I am not the only victim, but one among millions with the same right to make public allegations about our injuries and claims. The problem with mass crimes is that they produce majority victims in the minority public with the right to speak publicly about their claims and other available information (publications of the last 35 years!). In accusing me of "mere speculation" with "no basis", Mr. Olsen is asking me and other victims to suspend our reason, logic and knowledge of these materials relevant to our cases. Mr. Olsen is mistaking the right of mass victims with obligations of the court officials and minority unaffected public; this is not a simple murder in the local neighborhood by which the PoI principle is to be viewed through a very narrow local lens without incorporating the countless distinguishing factors associated with mass crimes of international renown. In sum, Mr. Olsen is again clearly, misleadingly, legally INCORRECT on the procedural law of timing and confidentiality and attempts to hide the outrageous circumstances of Cases 003/004 behind the cloak of confidentiality by imbuing the CIJs with imperialistic powers, unchallenged. As victims, we have the right to know, to apply as civil parties and the interests to demand a more satisfactory measure of justice than the current cheap, fabricated version vis-à-vis Cases 003/004 for our loved ones lost. (As an aside, I am curious to know why Mr. Olsen thinks my application is a "pretext", "irresponsible", "reckless" which "bullied" and showed a complete disregard for the law, while Mr. Rob Hamill's same application is only "unfortunate"?)  | |||
| Ahead of New Year Revelry, Safety Concerns Posted: 12 Apr 2011 06:07 PM PDT
Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer Washington, DC Tuesday, 12 April 2011
Government officials said Tuesday they are worried about a high number of traffic fatalities and other dangers over the Khmer New Year, but were not optimistic they would be able to lower the death toll. Last year, 49 people were killed and 530 others injured in accidents over the holiday, due mostly to drunken or reckless driving. "I am very worried about traffic accidents," said Ung Chun Hour, director of the general secretariat for the National Road Safety Committee. "We're instructing them to take care of their driving, such as no drunk driving, no fast driving, and in particular motorcyclists must wear a helmet." "But we have little hope in reducing the traffic accidents," he said. "We must continue our efforts, but we have no money to show jokes or distribute leaflets related to protection against traffic accidents." Security officials are also watching out for other dangers during the holiday. Khieu Sopheak, a spokesman for the Ministry of Interior, said provincial and city authorities are to ban the play fights of water and baby powder during the New Year. The annual tradition has caused accidents in the past. Khieu Sopheak will also be on the lookout for another annual problem, rural gang violence, which can surge during New Year revelry. "We will not allow trouble from gangsters or thieves or robbers," he said. "And each police post around the country is standing by to prevent these bad activities in Buddhist pagodas, entertainment sites and along the roads." Authorities in border provinces with Thailand, which celebrates its New Year at the same time, have also been put on alert to prevent incidents, he said. Some 1,650 police officers will be on guard in Phnom Penh, said Touch Naroth, chief of municipal police.  | |||
| US Rights Report Sees Concern in NGO Law Posted: 12 Apr 2011 05:53 PM PDT
Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer Washington, DC Tuesday, 12 April 2011
The US issued its annual Human Rights Report last week, voicing concern among other things about an impending law to regulate NGOs. US Assistant Secretary of State Michael Posner told reporters in Washington on Friday the law will make it harder for civil society to operate and could run counter to the nation's constitution. Cambodia is among some 90 other countries that have adopted laws or regulations that will potentially curtail rights of civic organizations, he said. "It is, to me, in some ways emblematic of this trend that I talked about, where governments are not happy with their critics, and so they decide to make it difficult or impossible for them to operate," he said at the release of the report. Numerous local rights groups and international organizations like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have called for the government to drop the draft law, which is being prepared by the Ministry of Interior for approval by the Council of Ministers. Critics say the law will erode development progress Cambodia has made over the past 20 years by opening groups to potential legal attacks with little redress and by making it hard for small groups to form. Koy Kuong, a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told VOA Khmer the law will not restrict freedoms, "but will ensure smooth implementation of civil society's work." "This will ensure better cooperation between the government and civil society groups," he said. "There is no reason to take it out." The law is not the only concern of the US in its 42-page report on Cambodia, which also cites arbitrary killings by security forces, forced evictions and limited freedoms as cause for concern. The report highlights the abuse of the courts against members of the opposition, including a lawsuit brought against Sam Rainsy Party lawmaker Mu Sochua by Prime Minister Hun Sen, and weighty charges of disinformation against self-exiled party leader Sam Rainsy. "The fact that the criminal justice system is not as independent as it could be, and the fact that the government is not comfortable with dissent, whether it's political opposition or the human rights types…these are concerns for us," Posner said Friday. Koy Kuong defended the government's rights record as good "overall." "Despite some problems," he said, "we are steadily moving forward and improving."  | |||
| Low Pay, High Risk, Some Reward: Writer Posted: 12 Apr 2011 05:48 PM PDT
Im Sothearith, VOA Khmer Washington, DC Tuesday, 12 April 2011 "They think that to write is to put their life in the line of danger, but I have a different opinion." Kho Tararith, a writer, says there is little that will stop him from expressing his thoughts in the written word. In Cambodia, he told "Hello VOA" Thursday, the freedom to write is limited, while some people write even though it threatens their life. "They think that to write is to put their life in the line of danger, but I have a different opinion," he said. "There are many people who have done bad things, and they are not afraid. But why do I have to be afraid of just writing what is really happening?" A native of Oddar Meanchey province and currently a writing fellow at Brown University, in Providence, R.I., Kho Tararith has dedicated much of his time to helping writers. He is the founder of PEN Cambodia, part of a worldwide organiation that supports writers under political pressure. He is also the founder of the Cambodian chapter of the International Board on Books for Young People, which promotes international understanding through children's books. He has written more than 200 poems and a number of short stories, including "Red Print" and "Regretful." He has published a book of poetry called, "Lesson of Life." When he was young, he said as a guest on "Hello VOA," he had little access to information. But by listening to radio broadcasts, including Voice of America, he began to understand social issues impacting Cambodia. That in turn kindled his love of writing, in which he explores those issues without an expectation of making any money. He has profited little from his work, he said, while facing many difficulties. But he said he want to raise social issues that many writers are afraid to raise. Writing is one of the best ways to educate people, he said, offering a Cambodian fable as an example. The story, "A Lady and a Rabbit," is about a hungry rabbit who plays dead so that a woman will put him among a basket of bananas she carries on her head. Once he has eaten all the bananas, the rabbit jumps from the basket and disappears into the forest. Kho Tararith said politicians are as tricky as that rabbit, so voters must be smart when electing officials. Kho Tararith's writing is available at http://khmerliterary.blogspot.com/.  | |||
| Greeting Card from Sacravatoons Posted: 12 Apr 2011 05:09 PM PDT   | |||
| Posted: 12 Apr 2011 05:02 PM PDT
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| Tribunal Complainant Defends Right to File Posted: 12 Apr 2011 04:59 PM PDT
Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer Washington, DC Tuesday, 12 April 2011
Listen: Men Kimseng Hosts 'Hello VOA' on 11 April, 2011 Seng Theary, a former child prisoner of the Khmer Rouge who lost her parents to the regime, filed a complaint last week against two former leaders not yet detained, or named, by the UN-backed tribunal. Seng Theary told "Hello VOA" Monday she filed the complaint, which drew sharp criticism from the court, in order to push for the indictments of more Khmer Rouge leaders. A spokesman for the tribunal called the complaint irresponsible, after she filed with the victim's unit of the court for cases 003 and 004, which remain confidential. But Seng Theary said Monday the court has been limited in its prosecutions of leaders, having only successfully brought one case to trial, the relatively simple case against Kaing Kek Iev, the former torture chief better known as Duch. Seng Theary has also filed as a civil party complainant in upcoming Case 002, against four jailed leaders, Nuon Chea, Khieu Samphan, Ieng Sary and Ieng Thirith. After millions of dollars spent on the court, she said, "the justice that we have received is not sufficient; it is messy and cheap." She said she filed the complaint against former Khmer Rouge commanders Meas Mut and Sous Met because she believed them responsible for the deaths of her parents. Khmer Rouge scholars have said the two men and others have a good chance of being indicted if the tribunal moves forward in cases 003 and 004. The court has kept the names of suspects confidential. But the cases have become politically sensitive, with Prime Minister Hun Sen and some Cambodian judges at the court claiming their prosecution could destabilize the country by inflaming former Khmer Rouge cadre. Seng Theary called such warnings "unacceptable political intervention" in the cases and asked that public officials stay clear of court procedures. "As a victim, my client has the full right to file her complaint to the court at any time to seek justice," said Choung Chou-Ngy, Seng Theary's attorney for the tribunal, who was also a guest on the show. And while tribunal officials say it is true complainants can file anytime, the court has not released the identities of the suspects. "Those who can reveal the name of any individual are only the co-investigating judges," said Reach Sambath, a tribunal spokesman. "I think we should leave them to do their job, as per the law." Civil parties must "respect the principle of the presumption of innocence before a trial," he added. "Therefore, once an individual files a complaint as a civil party, at a time when there is no name in public, and then to announce it publicly, this will affect court procedure." Seng Theary said she filed her complaint because the two cases have been with the office of investigating judges for more than a year after being handed up by the prosecution.  | |||
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| Posted: 12 Apr 2011 01:00 PM PDT Apr 13, 2011 By Shawn W Crispin Asia Times BANGKOK - Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has raised hopes that early elections will reconcile bitterly opposed political camps and steer the country's protest-plagued politics towards more stability. Despite a six-month period of relative political calm, it's not clear yet that powerful players - including the armed forces, royal palace and self-exiled former premier Thaksin Shinawatra - will honor a democratic result that goes against their interests. Abhisit is expected to dissolve parliament in early May, paving the way for polls by either late June or early July. Preliminary opinion polls show a neck-and-neck race, though no party is expected to win an outright majority and would likely require smaller coalition partners to form a government. A national unity government consisting of Abhisit's Democrats and the opposition Puea Thai is viewed as the most unlikely of electoral outcomes. Thailand has returned from the brink of last year's street protests, grenade attacks, anonymous bombings, military-style assassinations, arson attacks and fatal armed clashes. Clashes between pro-Thaksin United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) protesters and government troops resulted in 91 deaths, among them most were "red shirt" wearing civilians. Both sides have blamed the other for instigating the death and destruction. To date, the government and armed forces have declined to take responsibility for any of the fatalities. The calm before the proposed polls is the result of a behind-the-scenes accommodation reached late last year between Abhisit's government and the royal Privy Council on one side and Thaksin's camp on the other, according to a government aide with regular access to the premier. The first aspects of the multi-faceted deal were brokered in October, around the same time international mediators met with top Thaksin associates and government officials in Bangkok, according to the same insider. The exact contours of the accommodation are unclear, and its not immediately certain that the international mediation effort, including interlocutions by a former top United States diplomat, were instrumental in the deal. But soon after high-level meetings between known Thaksin allies and international mediators, the string of anonymous bombings across Bangkok and surrounding areas came to an unexplained halt last October. The bomb attacks commenced soon after a February 2010 Thai court decision to seize US$1.4 billion of $2.3 billion of Thaksin's personal assets on corruption-related charges during his tenure as premier. Based on analysis of the targets hit, several diplomats and analysts interpreted the bombings as part of a campaign of instability to maintain Thaksin's negotiating leverage vis-a-vis the government. Thaksin and his top lieutenants have denied responsibility for the attacks, while UDD leaders have consistently blamed them on unnamed dark forces in the military. At around the time the bombings stopped, the government pulled back its previous vigorous pursuit of Thaksin's extradition from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where the former premier has resided since fleeing a two-year jail term handed down by a Thai court in August 2008. Near the end of last year, Abhisit's government also allowed Thaksin to repatriate a portion of the US$900 million that was not seized in last February's landmark court decision, according to the insider familiar with the situation. The Ministry of Finance would neither confirm nor deny that Thaksin was allowed access to the funds. Comparatively tame At the same time, the UDD's post-crackdown rallies in Bangkok have been comparatively tame and highly circumscribed, with events held around once a month and only until dark on weekends under the new leadership of Thida Thavornseth. Abhisit and Thida held what was billed as an impromptu meeting at a Bangkok hotel in mid-December that in retrospect hinted at the wider accommodation that had already been reached. In late February, seven UDD leaders were released on bail and have since been allowed to continue moderated protest activities. Since then, other UDD leaders who fled to Cambodia after last May's crackdown have been allowed to return to Thailand immune from arrest. A group of 12 UDD guards believed to be among the protest group's armed wing were also released and have since been seen providing security at a recent UDD rally in Udon Thani province, a Thaksin and UDD stronghold. In an apparent concession to government demands, the UDD announced from its protest stage last month that it would not tolerate any protesters involved in disseminating anti-monarchy messages from its rally site. Marking a significant turn on the group's known republican element, at least one protester was apprehended by UDD guards and handed over to authorities that same day, according to a source familiar with the situation. Last September, a UDD rally held while civil society activist Sombat Boonngam-anong was the group's de facto leader, saw several protesters scribble anti-royal graffiti on the walls of a construction barrier built around the Central shopping mall that was torched along with over 30 other buildings in apparent response to the military's May 19 crackdown. Soon thereafter, in what one UDD insider referred to as a "silent coup" inside the UDD, Thida assumed the group's leadership role and Sombat has since faded into obscurity. More significantly, perhaps, officials have refrained from arresting four former top soldiers loyal to Thaksin who they believe commandeered a "war room" that orchestrated much of the protest-related violence. Abhisit told Asia Times Online that police were investigating the four, who include a senior army officer who was tipped to become army commander under Thaksin but was demoted after the 2006 coup and another with well-known ties to military mafia. The common thread through the broader accommodation is a commitment by both sides to settle their substantial differences through elections rather than more conflict and violence, according to the insider. Consistent with those terms, he notes that Thaksin has dedicated his recent phone-in rhetoric to galvanizing Puea Thai to compete at the polls rather than stoking the UDD to rise up and topple the government, as he has previously. Thaksin's interventions, including a drawn-out waiting game over who he will anoint to lead Puea Thai at the polls, have split the party into competing camps that some analysts estimate threaten substantial pre-election defections. Increasingly it seems Thaksin will pick his political novice sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, over his former commerce minister Mingkwan Sangsuwan in a bid to maintain tighter control over the party and its agenda, including a push for amnesty and his return to Thailand. Former Thaksin spokesman and justice minister Pongthep Thepkanchana recently told reporters that Puea Thai's internal polling shows it would win 30 more seats than the Democrats, though it was unclear by that estimate whether the party would win the majority needed to form a one-party government. Independent polls show Puea Thai will likely sweep the populous northeastern region, split the north and central regions with the Democrats and other parties, and make new inroads in Bangkok. Korbsak Sabhavasu, the Democrat's top election strategist, predicts his party will fare better than it did in 2007, when it placed second to the Puea Thai's Thaksin-aligned predecessor, the People's Power Party. He believes the Puea Thai's leadership crisis has worked to the Democrat's and Abhisit's electoral advantage. Recent electoral amendments that call for more party list and fewer constituency parliamentarians and ongoing gerrymandering are also expected to benefit Democrat candidates, he said. The party is riding a high economic tide, with gross domestic product growth bouncing from -2.3% in 2009 to 7.8% last year - though rising inflation in recent months has taken much of the shine off that credential. Korbsak believes that the government's pro-poor policies, including a rice price support scheme for farmers, monthly payments to the elderly and a raft of price caps and subsidies, will dull the appeal of Thaksin's past populist offerings and win his party more grass-roots support. Agony of defeat With a widely anticipated tight race, the bigger question surrounds whether the losing side will accept defeat and allow the rival party to freely form the next government. It is significant in this regard, say people familiar with the situation, that the military was not an active participant in the reconciliation-through-elections deal reached by Thaksin's camp and Abhisit's government late last year. Army commander and palace favorite General Prayuth Chan-ocha has said that he supports the polls and would willingly step down if a Puea Thai government wished to relieve him of his duty. A Puea Thai-led administration, particularly one led by Thaksin's sister, would likely launch new investigations into Prayuth's and Abhisit's alleged roles in the killings last year of scores of UDD protesters. Despite Prayuth's public assurances, that scenario has raised concerns that the military could have an interest in subverting the polls, particularly if it became apparent in the run-up to the result that Puea Thai was poised to notch a convincing win. An internal poll conducted in recent weeks by the military's secretive Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC) showed Puea Thai outpacing the Democrats by around 10 seats, according to a source who saw the poll. Soldiers have historically guaranteed the security of Thai elections but in the current political context troops at polling stations could become easy targets for allegations - contrived or legitimate - of vote-rigging and voter intimidation. The risk of an election meltdown was raised last week when the government rejected on nationalistic grounds a proposal to deploy international election monitors to put an independent eye on the voting. Puea Thai is cobbling together its own election monitoring units to determine from its perspective whether expected tight races are held and tallied without irregularities. Thaksin ally Pongthep recently told reporters that "disaster" would strike if the polls were stacked against Puea Thai candidates and that the UDD "would not stand for" any military intervention in the next government's formation. Independent observers have expressed concerns that ISOC may have co-opted or even created its own red shirt-wearing groups who could be mobilized to sabotage the polls in pro-Thaksin guise. In a recent research presentation in Bangkok, Harvard PhD anthropology candidate Claudio Sopranzetti noted that ISOC now pays the office rent for a nominally pro-UDD association of motorcycle taxi-drivers. Others see the potential for a military-backed "administrative coup" where a sudden dissolution of the Election Commission (EC), whose members have expressed reservations about their ability to manage the polls, creates a procedural vacuum that would require a Constitutional Court ruling before elections could be held. If the EC's dissolution came after parliament was dissolved, it would theoretically allow for the creation of an appointed caretaker government until the legal case was resolved. Any case scenario where the elections or pre-election period descend into chaos could provide an opening for the military to seize power and suspend democracy indefinitely under an appointed administration. That would be consistent with the "yellow shirt"-wearing People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) protest group's recent rally cries for a three to five year "reset" of the political order under an appointed government. That time period, some suggest, speaks to the looming royal succession and royalists desire for stability to manage the delicate transition. The PAD, whose rallies paved the way for Thaksin's 2006 military ouster, has failed to galvanize significant numbers during its current crusade against Abhisit's handling of a border dispute with Cambodia. While many analysts have speculated on the PAD's fading relevance, its leaders' recent protest speeches have presaged hardline military positions, including a spike in hostilities with Cambodia and the rejection of allowing Indonesian observers to the contested border area. Whether the PAD could galvanize larger numbers around allegations of a botched election and hence the need for an appointed government is unclear. Opinion polls have consistently shown that another military takeover would be widely unpopular, including among the Bangkok middle class that supported the 2006 putsch. Responding to widespread but unsubstantiated coup rumors, Abhisit recently quipped to foreign journalists that Prayuth has vowed to warn him "in advance" if he planned to overthrow his government before the polls. Another senior Democrat politician contends that the military top brass is "scared shitless" by any scenario where they would need to govern in light of the abysmal performance of its appointed administration after the 2006 coup. With the hardliner Prayuth now in charge and by some estimates the royal succession at stake, that may or may not be the case. While Abhisit's early elections have raised hopes democracy can solve the country's deep-seated political problems, it seems just as likely the polls backfire in a decidedly anti-democratic direction. Shawn W Crispin is Asia Times Online's Southeast Asia Editor.  | |||
| Khmer Grammar - Op-Ed by B. Boy Posted: 12 Apr 2011 12:54 PM PDT Khmer Grammar - Op-Ed by B. Boy http://www.scribd.com/full/52867885?access_key=key-26ljpelxp65rlcyqmewp  | |||
| Thai rice exporters eye investments in Cambodia-INTERVIEW Posted: 12 Apr 2011 08:41 AM PDT By Apornrath Phoonphongphiphat BANGKOK, April 12 (Reuters) - Thai exporters plan to invest in Cambodia's fledgling rice sector, lured by low production costs and tariff-free exports to the European Union, an industry official said on Tuesday. Cambodia, the world's 15th-largest rice producer caught the attention of Thai exporters because of its growth potential and access to special EU privileges for poor countries, Korbsook Iamsuree, president of the Thai Rice Exporters Association, told Reuters. "Cambodia is an interesting country to invest in. The rice quality is OK and there is plenty of land to grow more rice at cheaper costs," she said. Thailand, the world's biggest rice exporter, is facing higher production costs and uncompetitive export prices. The country has shipped less rice because Vietnam, the second-largest exporter, is boosting its market share with cheaper rice. Korbsook said Thailand needed to find ways to cut production costs by looking for cheaper rice from neighbouring countries. Thai exporters met last week with Cambodia's Commerce Minister Cham Prasidh, who is keen to attract foreign investment in the country's rice industry and boost exports this year. Korbsook said Thai exporters would be interested in milling rice and exporting them via a Cambodian port in a bid to get tax privileges from the EU rather than investing in rice planting. But the actual value of investments would depend on the development of Cambodia's logistical infrastructure. Thai exporters had also sought to invest in Myanmar, but abandoned the idea due to the political uncertainty and unconducive investment climate in the neighbouring country. Cambodia is targeting annual rice exports of 1 million tonnes of milled rice this year, dramatically up from the current volume of about 20,000 tonnes. However, the goal was still small compared to Thailand, which ships around 10 million tonnes and Vietnam, which exports about 6 million tonnes. INVESTMENTS SOUGHT To achieve the 1 million-tonne mark, Cambodia needed foreign investment in milling technology and government support by providing soft loan. After years of political turbulence, including civil war and the deadly Khmer Rouge era, Cambodia's economy was in tatters by the end of the 1980s, when it produced around 7 million tonnes of rice, most of which was milled and re-exported by Vietnam. Korbsook said producing and exporting rice from Cambodia would help expand sales in the Euro zone, with firms capitalising on the EU's zero-tariff "Everything but Arms" privileges, which it offers to less developed nations. Cambodia is looking for foreign investors to boost its milling sector and it has allocated a budget of $23 million to the Ministry of Agriculture this year, up from $3 million in 2010. However, Korbsook said investment in Cambodia by Thai exporters is not expected to be substantial over the next couple of years, as there were still some obstacles that could push up costs. "The logistics system is still not ready for exports and that would result in higher costs," she said. "We expect the Cambodian government to overcome this problem very soon and by that time, investing in Cambodia would be more interesting." (Editing by Martin Petty and Ramthan Hussain)  | |||
| Posted: 12 Apr 2011 08:36 AM PDT 12/04/2011 Bangkok Post The cabinet on Tuesday resolved to withdraw the minutes of three Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) meetings from the parliament, an informed Government House source said. The government forwarded the minutes of the three JBC meetings to parliament, believing that they needed to be approved by a joint sitting of the House of Representatives and the Senate under Section 190 of the constitution. Parliament held several meetings - amid protests by the People's Alliance for Democracy - to consider the JBC minutes but the lawmakers were reluctant to endorse them for fear that they might be seens as paving the way for loss of sovereignty over disputed territory on the border with Cambodia. A number of government MPs sought a ruling from the Constitution Court on the status of the JBC minutes. The Constitution Court, however, threw out their request, reasoning that the submission of the petition was outside the regulations governing the petitioning of the court to give a final ruling on a particular dispute under Sections 190 and 154 of the constitution. The court said more steps were needed in parliament before a request could be made for the court to give a final ruling on the JBC minutes. Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva consulted the cabinet over this matter. Tourism and Sports Minister Chumpol Silpa-archa of the Chart Thai Pattana Party proposed that the three JBC minutes be withdrawn from parliament. He said that in doing this only two people stood to lose face - the prime minister and Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya. The sources said the cabinet took a long time to debate this matter. The cabinet resolved that the government whips should withdraw the JBC minutes from parliament and inform the Foreign Ministry of the resolution, even though this could put the govenrment in an awkward position. Thailand and Cambodia have been at loggerheads over their boundary dispute, notably around the Preah Vihear Temple where the area has not yet been demarcated.  | |||
| Cambodia's inflation to hit 6.5 pct in 2011: IMF Posted: 12 Apr 2011 08:32 AM PDT PHNOM PENH, Apr. 12, 2011 (Xinhua News Agency) -- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecast the inflation rate in Cambodia for 2011 could stand at 6.5 percent, more than double from 3.1 percent last year, according to the Fund's World Economic Outlook 2011 on Tuesday. The Fund's forecast is the highest of all predictors. The World Bank forecast the country's inflation rate at 5 percent, the Asian Development Bank at 5.5 percent and the government of Cambodia at below 5 percent. Cambodian economists have agreed with the forecast by the IMF. "It could be reached that level as now we have observed that petroleum and food prices in Cambodia have been skyrocketing," president of Cambodia Institute for Development Study Kang Chandararot said, adding "moreover, the greenback has been depreciating against riel currency." "However, the rate is still low and manageable," he said. Petroleum prices in Cambodia have increased by 6 percent since the start of the year. Now a liter of Gold gasoline goes for 1.33 U.S. dollars, up from 1.25 U.S. dollars in January, while the U.S. dollar currency has depreciated about 2 percent to 3,982 riels a U. S. dollar now from 4,060 riels a U.S. dollar earlier this year. The IMF predicts that Cambodia's gross domestic product growth (GDP) in 2011 is 6.5 percent -- the same rate of the predictions by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, and at a similar rate forecast by the government of Cambodia between 6 and 7 percent.  | |||
| "What Is CPP?" a Poem in English by Sék Serei Posted: 12 Apr 2011 08:31 AM PDT   | |||
| Costello linked to Cambodian banana project opposed by NGOs Posted: 12 Apr 2011 08:30 AM PDT Tuesday, April 12, 2011 Zoe Daniel reported this story PM, ABC News (Australia) MARK COLVIN: Environmental activists in Cambodia are opposing a multi-million dollar agribusiness proposal by a company associated with the former treasurer Peter Costello. They say the project will close off an internationally significant wildlife corridor. The company behind the banana plantation and reforestation project in Cambodia's Cardamom Mountains says it will be sustainable while providing jobs and export income. South East Asia correspondent Zoe Daniel reports. (Helicopter) ZOE DANIEL: A journey that would take almost a day by road takes about one hour by chopper from the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh to the Cardamom Mountains. Formerly selectively logged, the mountain forests have been regenerating for the last 10 to 15 years. For the last decade, with its own rangers and government backing, NGO (non government organisation) Wildlife Alliance has been protecting the area from poachers, illegal settling and logging. Now the NGO's founder Suwanna Gauntlett is opposing the Australian proposal for a 5,000 hectare banana plantation and 20,000 hectare reforestation project. The issue is the location. SUWANNA GAUNTLETT: As you can see it is a forest with grassland and bushland. It was indeed a former logging concession. ZOE DANIEL: The company planning the development says there's no forest of value on the site but the unbroken tree link between the two mountain ridges is clearly visible from the air. The area is said to be one of only seven unbroken elephant corridors in Asia and the planned plantation is right on it. Plans for a high tech, drip irrigated plantation to export bananas as well as a replanting project to give migrating elephants a new pathway have so far failed to win support from critics. SUWANNA GAUNTLETT: That reforestation that they're talking about doing alongside the banana plantation is also where the company says the elephant corridor will be moved to. So my first answer is no because that is a populated area and elephants will not migrate and move through a populated area. They won't. ZOE DANIEL: Would it be fair to say that it's the location that you have a problem with? So no matter what safeguards the company put in place, you still won't be happy with the location that they've picked? SUWANNA GAUNTLETT: I think you've summarised it exactly. ZOE DANIEL: Australian company BKK Partners is a corporate and financial advisory service. Former treasurer Peter Costello is listed as managing director and partner. The company has an office in Phnom Penh where it's advising Indochina Gateway Capital on developing the $600 million agribusiness investment fund planning the plantation. Our requests for an interview were declined. The company also denied that Mr Costello's involved in the project, although he was in Cambodia promoting it last year. PETER COSTELLO (archival audio): One of the things that BKK does is it's managing an investment by Indochina Capital Gateway which is raising funds for a very major agricultural investment here in Cambodia. ZOE DANIEL: He gave this interview to the Phnom Penh Post which is still on the newspaper's website. PETER COSTELLO (archival audio): BKK has established a presence here in Phnom Penh. We have a full time resident director. ZOE DANIEL: Cambodia desperately needs economic development to increase the standard of living. The company says the banana project will generate up to 7,500 jobs. But when we visited local villages they were still unsure whether the impact will be positive. Village chief Chan Sao told me they hunt and forage in the forest to survive. (Chan Sao talking in Cambodian) "Also we can't raise animals in the forest like cows and buffalo if we lose our land," he says. "This is our big concern." The villagers say that no-one from an Australian company has been to see them. Indochina Gateway submitted a formal application to develop the banana plantation in December and is now awaiting a permit. In Cambodia this is Zoe Daniel reporting for PM.  | |||
| Teacher's terror as 'booze cruise' party boat capsizes Posted: 12 Apr 2011 08:06 AM PDT
12 April 2011 By GEMMA FRASER Edinburgh Evening News (UK) A TEACHER from Edinburgh has spoken of her terror after the "booze cruise" boat she was on capsized and sank. Marianne Kelly was on the overcrowded party boat - which only had two life jackets - when it sank in the sea off Cambodia with around 120 tourists on board. The group, who were mostly Europeans, were rescued by local fishermen after half an hour of clinging to the upturned boat. Incredibly, no-one was seriously hurt. Local police later blamed drunken tourists dancing for causing the pleasure craft to overturn. Ms Kelly, who lived in Merchiston and worked at Buckstone Primary before leaving to teach abroad, described it as the most terrifying experience of her life. The 28-year-old said she was making her way to the top deck of the "dilapidated" two-storey boat when it started swaying, but did not think anything of it until a moment later when suddenly she was under the water. Ms Kelly said: "There were loads of people and everyone was kicking and trying to get up. I can't really remember what happened or how I got up to the surface - I just remember it being dark, thinking I was under the boat and had to get out, and then it being light and then getting to the surface. It was very surreal." The primary teacher, who is now working in Thailand, then searched for her friends until she found them and helped pull others up as the passengers tried to get the boat upright again. She said: "It was clear the boat was definitely going to sink so we just decided to stay there as long as possible. After a while, lots of Cambodian fishermen came to get us on their little boats. "The first one that came nearly went over as well because people were obviously panicking and were all trying to get on the same boat. "I waited with one guy till the last boat and he brought us back to the shore. "It was very, very scary." The trip last Thursday was supposed to be a pleasure cruise around nearby islands. Ms Kelly, who completed her teacher training at Moray House School of Education, said all the passengers managed to escape the boat wi ADVERTISEMENT thout serious injury, but criticised the lack of health and safety procedures on board. She added that the organisers of the trip, which left from Serendipity Beach in the resort town of Sihanoukville, failed to check on her and her friends to see how they were, and said that because they had decided to take the trip at the last minute, they were not listed as official passengers. Ms Kelly said: "There was no compensation, no-one came to speak to us to check we were OK. "It was pretty much the most terrifying thing to happen to me. "I'm just glad to be alive and still able to enjoy the rest of my trip here - some people were booking flights home early because they were so freaked out by it." Cambodian police reports of the incident said there were 92 tourists on board the boat, but those who were there claimed the figure was much higher because of the unlisted people who turned up without pre-booking. The police said the boat capsized after drunken passengers started dancing and made it unstable, but those who were there strongly dispute this version of events. One person wrote on an online discussion board: "Three friends of mine that were on the boat did not report any unruly behaviour or crazy dancing that capsized the boat. "If the correct number of people were on the boat it would not have happened. The boat was clearly overpacked. The safety certificate for that boat was 45 people, not the 110 people that were on board." Another wrote: "It is an absolute lie to say that the dancers caused the boat to overturn."  | |||
| Watkinson School Presents The Children of Bassac, A Traditional Cambodian Dance Group Posted: 12 Apr 2011 07:57 AM PDT  2011-04-11On Campus Submitted by Stacy Routhier, Watkinson School Hartford Courant Watkinson School in Hartford presents The Children of Bassac, led by Master Artist Ieng Sithul for one show only on April 17. The performance of traditional Cambodian dance will start at 7 p.m. and will be held at Watkinson School The Children of Bassac are an emerging traditional Cambodian Dance group that has been supported by Cambodian Living Arts (CLA) since 2003. This tour features ten highly talented young Cambodian dancers who perform a combination of ancient classical and lively folk dances. Tickets are also available to a preconcert reception that features Khmer cuisine, a chance to meet both the Cambodian dancers and CLA Founder Arn Chorn-Pond, as well as purchase some lovely Cambodian textiles and products. The pre-reception starts at 5:00pm at Watkinson School followed by the show at 7 p.m. While in Hartford, the dancers will stay with Watkinson families. The day after the benefit, they'll perform for the school, and also lead a participatory dance workshop for Watkinson's Creative Arts Program and Global Studies Program students. All funds raised will benefit Cambodian Living Arts and its important work of restoring Cambodia's folk arts following their decimaton by the Khmer Rouge. Watkinson School is located at 180 Bloomfield Ave. Hartford. Tickets: are $30 for the performance only; $75 includes admission to the performance and a pre-reception with Khmer cuisine, a chance to meet the Cambodian dancers, CLA Founder Arn Chorn-Pond, and purchase some lovely Cambodian textiles and products. The pre-reception starts at 5 p.m. followed by the show at 7 p.m. at Watkinson School. To purchase tickets: michelle@cambodianlivingarts.org or 508-748-0816  | |||
| Posted: 12 Apr 2011 07:31 AM PDT Tuesday, Apr. 12, 2011 NewsChannel 36 SHELBY The family of a woman who has not been seen since walking away from a Cleveland County nursing facility 2 1/2 years ago are suing the man and company who operated the facility. A judge hearing the case on Monday asked the attorney representing the family of Mouy Tang to submit a claim for pain and suffering in the case. Tang's family, represented by attorney Neal Rodgers of Charlotte, is asking at least $750,000 in compensatory damages from Gary Jacobs and Jacob Enterprises LLC, which operated Unique Living in Lawndale. That center was closed by state officials a week after Tang disappeared, on Sept. 3, 2008. Jacobs did not appear in the Cleveland County courtroom Monday. Mouy Tang was a refugee from Cambodia who escaped violence and starvation along with her brother Tong, who lives in Hendersonville. Mouy Tang, who battled severe schizophrenia and diabetes, went to live at Unique Living, where a fee of $1,000 a month was supposed to buy her healthcare and safety. But she walked away from the facility and hasn't been seen since. Given her diabetic problem, her doctor says Tang would have gone into diabetic shock within hours after disappearing. Rodgers said he thinks Tang might have walked into the woods near Unique Living and died. Rodgers said operators of the facility were negligent. "They didn't care about supervision," he said. "They cared about earning the money, and once they earned the money, they allowed these mentally impaired patients to basically fend for themselves." Rodgers acknowledged that Unique Living allowed residents some movement around the facility, but he added, "She should not have been leaving the facility, opening the doors and walking out without supervision." The doors Rodgers refers to are doors that Jacobs had promised to repair, according to testimony Monday from Cleveland County DSS employees. They say Rodgers promised a state-of-the-art facility. Instead, patients and employees got one problem after another. The water and electricity were shut off, and a refrigerator was repossessed. "We were there at least a couple times a week," said Rebecca Johnson of Cleveland County DSS. She says she pushed for the state to close the facility, but it didn't happen until after Tang disappeared. Tang's family said Jacobs should pay for damages, emotional distress, and unfair trade practices.  | |||
| Khmer Student Association keeps Cambodian culture alive Posted: 12 Apr 2011 07:29 AM PDT Tuesday, 12 April 2011 Written by Richard Grunert The Western Front (Western Washington U., USA) For some young Cambodian Americans, staying in touch with their culture is hard in a place so radically different from their homeland. At Western, some of these students have formed a place where they can celebrate their culture. For Channy Kong, a sophomore born in Cambodia, the Khmer Students Association is a place to keep her traditions alive. "It helps me keep my culture on my mind," Kong said. "It's important to stay in touch with your roots and to really care for your culture because it's the responsibility of the individual to carry on the culture, the culture isn't going to carry on itself." On April 9, the first annual Cambodian New Year's dinner was held in the Viking Union Multi-Purpose Room. The dinner, an event put on by the recently revived Khmer (pronounced "k-mai") Student Association, was a celebration of Cambodian heritage and culture. It included traditional dances, songs, a martial arts demonstration and a speech by a Cambodian genocide survivor. The group had been inactive for five years until vice president and founder, Vidal Men, brought it back in spring 2010. They seek to raise awareness about Cambodian culture and bring ethnic Khmer and other students together. The Khmer people are the ethnic majority in Cambodia, accounting for about 90 percent of the country's 14.8 million people, according to the CIA World Factbook. Men came to Western expecting there already to be a club for Cambodian students already in place but was saddened to find that it had dissolved years before his arrival. "Going throughout the year I saw other clubs meet and build that sort of community, have their dinner, have their culture represented, and I felt like mine wasn't," he said. The new club is comprised of mostly non-Khmer students who participate in the group's meetings and learn about the culture, Men said. Kim-Chau Huynh, a junior who is Vietnamese, said she feels the club has taught her a lot about Cambodian culture and at the same time made her appreciate her own more deeply. "The different foods and language reminds me of my own language," she said. "It makes me appreciate their culture." Men said the reaction from Khmer students has been positive and they say their college experience is better because of it. "They talk about how it's a world of difference from previous years when they didn't have a student association that belonged to them," he said. The old Khmer Student Association would put on statewide conferences at Western that attracted Cambodians from all over the Northwest. The group became too big to handle, and the members felt the club was too focused on big events rather than Cambodian culture. So the club dissolved, Men said. This time around, the club is more focused on community-building activities. The group has quarterly outings and plans for many picnics and barbecues at parks around Bellingham this spring. They also plan on going on a trip to Canada to have a large picnic in Vancouver's Stanley Park with Cambodia native foods, Men said. Kong said she feels here in the United States, it's easy to lose sight of what is going on in her homeland. For her, the club has helped her stay on top of what's happening back in the country where she was born. "The club has opened my eyes to issues in my country," Kong said. "People are only focused on America. Young Cambodian individuals aren't really paying attention to what's going on over there." The Khmer Student Association meets from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Tuesdays, in the Academic Instructional Center, Room 303.  | |||
| The Eccentricity of Evil: Khmer Rouge Leader Goes on Trial Posted: 12 Apr 2011 07:25 AM PDT
Apr 12 2011 By Julia Wallace The Atlantic How did a math teacher come to help orchestrate one of the worst genocides since the Holocaust? If a courtroom is a theater, the star of the show at Cambodia's Khmer Rouge tribunal for the past two years has been a gaunt and balding former math teacher whose favorite word to describe himself is "meticulous." Kaing Guek Eav, best known by the revolutionary alias Duch, is also a war criminal and mass killer. He has freely admitted he was responsible for the murder of over 12,000 people as head of the Khmer Rouge secret police and commandant of the S-21 security center, where perceived enemies of the regime were sent to be tortured into submission and "smashed." Over two years and ten months at the helm of the notorious prison, Comrade Duch ordered his captives to be waterboarded, their genitals electrocuted, and their toenails pulled out before sending nearly all of them, blindfolded, to be stabbed in the neck or clubbed to death in a field outside of Phnom Penh. The case initially looked like a slam dunk -- a simple trial that could be wrapped up fast, initiating a cathartic national discussion in a country that was mired in civil war with the Khmer Rouge until 1998. The evidence against Duch, after all, was overwhelming: when the Khmer Rouge fled Phnom Penh in January 1979, Duch--a compulsive record-keeper -- left behind thousands of forced confessions that he had annotated in red ink: "beat her 40 times with the rattan stick," "medical experiment," "smash them to pieces." In the confessions, known as "autobiographies," Duch's prisoners inevitably admit to being agents of the KGB, CIA or the Vietnamese government and to having undermined the regime's radical plans for agricultural productivity and social harmony. The documents are mesmerizing today for their utter implausibility (one 19-year-old nurse, after being tortured, claimed the CIA had sent her on a mission to defecate in the operating theater of a Phnom Penh military hospital). It was partly because of this extensive evidence that the UN-backed Khmer Rouge tribunal--established in 2006 to try senior leaders of the Khmer Rouge regime and "those most responsible" for crimes committed under it--decided to prosecute Duch first. The regime's four top living leaders--including "Brother Number 2" Nuon Chea and Foreign Minister Ieng Sary--remain in jail awaiting the beginning of their own trial this summer. They are all older and frailer than Duch, further removed from the killings, and far less contrite, having largely denied the accusations against them. Duch's trial, which unfolded over the course of nine months in 2009, at first proceeded smoothly. Following a strategy devised by Francois Roux, his French defense lawyer and an experienced practitioner of judicial stagecraft, Duch apologized to his victims dozens of times, sometimes in dramatically self-lacerating fashion. Under Roux's tutelage, Duch cried in court, made a tearful pilgrimage to the Killing Fields, and even--after an extended and theatrical courtroom dialogue with his lawyer--invited victims to visit him in his jail cell. It was an elaborate defense modeled on the precedent of Albert Speer--the Nazi architect who escaped a death sentence at Nuremberg because of his acceptance of moral responsibility. Throughout the trial, Duch systematically upstaged everyone with his extraordinarily active participation in his own defense, and his odd zeal for setting the record straight, even at his own expense. Never deviating from a math-teacherish uniform of slacks and button-down shirts, he offered the court extensive commentary and analysis on his own life and character, and at times made helpful corrections -- serving variously as historian, analyst, mathematician, expert witness, character witness and trial monitor. Nearly every day he would rise, clutching a binder full of the court documents and mimeographed S-21 confessions he had been poring over, to highlight inaccuracies in witness testimony, correct the courtroom translators, or admonish lawyers for repetitive questioning. He frequently recited eight-digit documentation ID numbers from memory, while some lawyers struggled to produce the numbers at all. Inexact figures seemed to irk him in particular. When a prosecutor referred to a length of time as "26 or 27 years," Duch retorted, "Could you please make a proper mathematical calculation?" Earlier, he told judges that had selected his revolutionary name from a children's book about a very obedient child called Duch. "I liked the name Duch because I wanted to be a well-disciplined boy who respected the teachers, who wanted to do good deeds," he said. He was in his mid-20s at the time. Duch explained to the court that he was chosen to be a prison chief because of his ability "to pay attention to whatever I was assigned to do meticulously." "In my entire life, if I do something I'll do it properly," he said. The Open Society Justice Initiative wrote in a report on the trial, "Duch's behavior at trial again displayed a desire to be seen as exceedingly cooperative with the court, as if he were attempting to exchange his old role with that of the perfect defendant." A particularly telling moment, the report continued, "occurred when Duch thanked expert David Chandler for praising his professionalism in running S-21, seemingly still believing that professionalism in the running of a torture and execution camp was a high compliment." Out of hundreds of hours of testimony from prison survivors, experts, and Duch himself, a clear and unnerving portrait of him emerged: this killer of thousands was, above all else, a good student. It seems to have been this quality, rather than greed or blood lust or even pure revolutionary fervor, that drove him to manage operations at S-21 so carefully, so meticulously, that only a handful of prisoners survived. That's why everyone was stunned when, on the 77th and last day of his trial, Duch took on the most unlikely role of all: the bad student. When called upon to give a final statement, he abruptly abandoned Roux's strategy of remorse and, and instead demanded that the court release and acquit him. Duch's behavior and public statements up to this point had been as good as a guilty plea, and his trial had seemed to be headed toward a predictable ending: a commuted sentence in exchange for cooperation, contrition and conversation. But instead of apologizing once again to his victims, he launched into a dry, technical discourse on the history of the Communist Party in Cambodia and its leaders--which did not include him. He said that as he was not a senior leader he could not have been "most responsible" for crimes committed at S-21. He asked to be acquitted in the name of national reconciliation--the favored buzzword here for the process of integrating former Khmer Rouge cadres into Cambodian society. Stunned judges asked him to clarify his statement. He obeyed: "I would like the chamber to release me." Duch subsequently fired Roux and tried to replace him with a Chinese lawyer who understood Communism (Defendants at the tribunal, which is jointly administered by the Cambodian government and the UN, have the right to one local and one international lawyer). When a Chinese defender could not be procured, he engaged a second Cambodian. Together, the new defense team has pursued a one-note legal strategy: insisting over and over again that Duch was a mid-level cadre and therefore should not be prosecuted. In July 2010, the tribunal found Duch guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity, sentencing him to 35 years in prison. (Due to mitigating circumstances and time served, he will spend less than 19 years in jail; prosecutors have called this figure "manifestly inadequate.") Late last month, appeal hearings were held, bringing Duch before the court once again. Reading from copious handwritten notes and once again deftly reciting long strings of document ID numbers, he argued on his behalf better than his own bumbling lawyers, urging judges to release him "for the sake of national reconciliation among my people." "You must...seek justice and truth for the Cambodian people as well as for the former Khmer Rouge soldiers and cadres, especially the middle class who do not fall within the jurisdiction of this tribunal," he concluded. It was a poor legal argument, but one that was cleverly phrased to echo the government's stance on the tribunal: that, in the name of national reconciliation, no further prosecutions will be allowed to take place, period. Hun Sen, Cambodia's strongman prime minister, who was himself a Khmer Rouge cadre before internal purges prompted him to flee to Vietnam in 1977, announced in 2009 that more trials could revive the civil war and kill "200,000 to 300,000 people." Although United Nations prosecutors have identified five additional suspects they would like to see tried for genocide and war crimes, those cases have been stalled in the tribunal's investigation chamber, hindered by the fact that Cambodian staff refuse to participate in them. Court observers say the cases are likely to be dismissed soon. Out of paranoia or pride, the government has also refused to allow several top officials who are former mid-ranking members of the Khmer Rouge to give evidence before the tribunal, although none of them has been implicated in crimes. Hun Sen flatly told visiting UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in October that no new trials would be permitted. Neither Mr Ban nor the international community, which funds the court's multi-million dollar budget, seemed to particularly care. Because of all this behind-the-scenes political wrangling, Duch's dramatic change of stance has raised persistent whispers that he may now be taking orders from someone else--especially since his lead Cambodian counsel, Kar Savuth, also happens to be Hun Sen's family lawyer. But a large part of his turnabout can likely be attributed to his idiosyncratic personality. With his penchant for calculation, astonishing head for detail, and incapacity to process human emotion, he often comes across as mildly autistic. Decades after he committed his crimes, Duch is still unable to understand how the behaviors he values most--dedication to a higher cause, unfailing obedience to superiors, and pride in a job well done--can be entirely wrong. Given his defiant new stance, his victims are unlikely to get the contrition they seek. But thanks to Duch¹s loquacity throughout the trial, and his obsession with getting the facts right, Cambodia and the world have gleaned not just a fuller understanding of the machinery of death he headed, but also a portrait of one brutal regime's slavishly obedient, ferociously meticulous executioner.  | |||
| $96m suit over mine [-Who will win? The Chinese or the crony?] Posted: 12 Apr 2011 06:47 AM PDT Tuesday, 12 April 2011 Buth Reaksmey Kongkea The Phnom Penh Post AN adviser to the head of Prime Minister Hun Sen's bodyguard unit faces a US$96 million lawsuit for allegedly defrauding a Chinese mining company in a joint venture project, a lawyer for the Chinese firm said. Officials from China's Hong Tung Resource plan to submit an official complaint to the Phnom Penh Municipal Court this week against owners of the Nim Meng Group Company Limited, said Kouy Thunna, lawyer for Hong Tung Resource head Cheng Tung Ko. Among the targets of the complaint is Nim Meng, a general in the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces and adviser to Him Bun Heang, the head of Hun Sen's bodyguard unit, Kouy Thunna said. "I will file a complaint to the Phnom Penh Municipal Court against Nim Meng and his wife, Mrs Lay Sineang, who are members of the Board of Directors of Nim Meng Sinohope Group Company, and also Director of the Nim Meng Group, which has broke its agreement with my client's company," Kouy Thunna said. Hong Tung Resource plans to seek some $87 million in damages in relation to imported mining equipment seized by Nim Meng Group, $6 million in compensation, and $3 million in loans that were never repaid, he added. The case highlights concerns over what rights groups say is the loosely regulated nature of extractive industries in the Kingdom, where well-connected political and military officials often control lucrative concessions. "Over many years, we've documented how both political but also military elites have been involved in the exploitation of natural resources," said George Boden, a campaigner with the watchdog group Global Witness. "In an environment where there are other players who need to be brought into the process, as it were, and where there is a lack of clarity over contracts and terms or whatever, I think it's fair to say that it can be a problematic business environment." Hong Tung and Nim Meng Group began working together in July last year and have since exported nearly 3,500 tonnes of copper though the Ream military port using Cambodian naval vessels, Kouy Thunna said. The firms formalised their joint venture partnership in January this year, he added, before Nim Meng Group abruptly cancelled the partnership on February 23. Nim Meng could not be reached for comment, though Nim Meng Group general manager Nim Thy said yesterday that the partnership had in fact been cancelled because Hong Tung Resource and Cheng Tung Ko, a Taiwanese national, had not respected the agreement. "We decided to cancel an agreement with this [firm] because the Taiwanese businessman has attempted to defraud us," he said. "This Chinese company has cheated us for the mining business in Cambodia. After they received a business license from Nim Meng Group, they tried to sell it to other Chinese business companies in China." Hong Tung Resource also failed to provide loans for the project that it had originally promised, Nim Thy added. A draft copy of the complaint obtained by The Post alleges that following the cancellation of the joint venture partnership in February, the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy transferred the licence for the concession from Nim Meng Sinohope Company, the joint venture, to Nim Meng Group. In addition to providing equipment for the project, Hong Tung Resource contributed a $10 million cash investment to develop the venture, Kouy Thunna added. Officials from the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy could not be reached for comment. The webpage for the ministry's General Department of Mineral Resources lists Nim Meng Group Company as holder of a concession in Chi Kraeng district of Siem Reap province. Boden said the widespread involvement of senior officials in the extractive industries would continue to pose a hurdle to the imposition of a clear legal framework within the sector. "What we've seen is senior senators and senior government officials and senior military figures … appear to be getting concessions, and not in transparent ways," he said. "There is a very fragmented, unclear, and untransparent process." ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY JAMES O'TOOLE  | |||
| Sinatoons: Cambodia 17 April 1975 Posted: 12 Apr 2011 06:31 AM PDT
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| Caroline Casey: Looking past limits Posted: 12 Apr 2011 03:39 AM PDT By Khmer Democrat, Phnom Penh Expanding our Mind Series BELIEVE ! INSPIRATIONAL ! Activist Caroline Casey tells the story of her extraordinary life, starting with a revelation (no spoilers). In a talk that challenges perceptions, Casey asks us all to move beyond the limits we may think we have. Why you should listen to her:Caroline Casey has dedicated the past decade of her life to changing how global society views people with disabilities. In 2000, she rode 1,000 kilometers across India on an elephant to raise funds for Sight Savers. Then, as founding CEO of Kanchi in Dublin, she developed a set of best practices (based on ISO 9000 quality standards) for businesses, to help them see "disabled" workers as an asset as opposed to a liability. Hundreds of companies have adopted the standards, changing their policies and attitudes. In 2004, Casey started the O2 Ability Awards to recognize Irish businesses for their inclusion of people with disabilities, both as employees and customers. The initiative has received international praise and, in 2010, a parallel program was launched in Spain. "She is one of those people who, instead of just talking about changing the world, gets up and actually does it however tough the doing of it turns out to be. " The Irish Times  | |||
| Thaksin pushes Yingluck for PM Posted: 12 Apr 2011 01:48 AM PDT
12/04/2011 Bangkok Post Yingluck Shinawatra is expected to be named the Puea Thai Party's No.1 party-list candidate, giving her an opportunity to become the country's first female prime minister. A Puea Thai source yesterday said the party's key figures had travelled to meet former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, the party's main supporter and de facto leader, in Dubai and they had agreed to put Ms Yingluck, Thaksin's youngest sister, as No.1 on the party list and name her as a candidate for the premiership. The source said Thaksin was pushing for Ms Yingluck as Puea Thai's prime ministerial candidate. However, the source said the candidacy for prime minister is not limited to Ms Yingluck. Candidate numbers 2-10 on the party list also stand an equal chance of being nominated for the premiership if they prove more qualified than Ms Yingluck, the source said. Key figures expected to be placed highly on Puea Thai's party list include Bannapot Damapong, an adopted brother of Thaksin's ex-wife Potjaman na Pombejra, and Boonklee Plangsiri, the group chairman of Shin Corporation, the source said. However, the source said the party has to wait for confirmation from Mr Boonklee. If Mr Boonklee refuses to run in the election, the party may approach Niwatthamrong Bunsongphaisarn, vice chairman of Shin Corporation, to stand as party list candidate. The two are considered right-hand men to Thaksin in terms of business. The source said the party's financiers were also sending their representatives to register as party-list candidates. The names of all party-list candidates will be finalised after House dissolution. The source said Thaksin had not yet decided who would be named as party list candidates 2-5. Those qualified for positions 2-5 on the party list are equally important, the source said, adding that Thaksin suggested they be chosen by drawing lots. However, the source said the party will use the principle of political seniority to decide who will get which position in the party list. The source said Puea Thai has also prepared a separate list of MPs from both the constituency system and the list system who will be named as cabinet ministers and cabinet secretary if the party wins the election. They include Wiroon Techapaiboon, Santi Prompat, Apiwan Wiriyachai, Witthaya Buranasiri, Wicharn Meechainant, Surapong Towijakchaikul, Worawat Uea-apinyakul and Supol Fong-ngam. There are also non-MPs on the list of cabinet ministers. These include Olarn Chaipravat, Pichai Naripthaphan and Pol Lt-Gen Chat Kuldilok. The source said almost 100 members of the red shirt United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship had been named as party candidates to run in the election. But after checking their qualifications, the party had found many of them had been disenfranchised and were not eligible to run in the election because they had failed to exercise their voting rights in the most recent local government elections. Key red shirts such as Jatuporn Prompan and Nattawut Saikua are expected to be ranked between 11 and 20 on the list system, while Korkaew Pikulthong, another key red shirt figure, is expected to be ranked lower than No.20, the source said. The source said while Thaksin was pushing for Ms Yingluck to be Puea Thai's prime ministerial candidate, the former premier was concerned that some MPs, particularly those in a faction led by list MP Mingkwan Saengsuwan - another possibility for prime minister - might not support Ms Yingluck. Thaksin, therefore, had ordered Puea Thai MPs who will run in the election to sign resignation letters in advance as a bargaining chip to ensure they will vote for Ms Yingluck to be prime minister after the election, the source said.  |
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