KI Media: “Lucky The Dancing Elephant: Orphaned Animal Dances Without Training Or Coercion (VIDEO) [-At least she is not faking her dance!]” plus 24 more

Lucky The Dancing Elephant: Orphaned Animal Dances Without Training Or Coercion (VIDEO) [-At least she is not faking her dance!]

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 05:45 PM PDT

06/7/11
The Huffington Post

Lucky hasn't been trained, coerced, or even bribed -- she's simply got happy feet.

Lucky, who's a rescue at the Phnom Tamao Rescue Center in Cambodia, is a particularly expressive creature. Orphaned at 8 months old, she would likely have been killed had she not been rescued.

Apparently she's a pretty happy elephant, and according to the Wildlife Alliance, Lucky has even developed an interest in painting in addition to dancing!

From the Wildlife Alliance's post:

Lucky walks with an almost constant smile on her face. She is so relaxed, in fact, that her eyes are almost closed when she's around us. Of course, a very long time ago, she experienced the trauma of losing her mother, but she now is a typically happy elephant, raised with so much love, walking and swimming everyday in the same places and enjoying the constant closeness of her familiar elephant ("ellie") friends. She is charming and could win anyone over through her affectionate ways -- her mouth opens so wide that when she smiles, you can see her tongue!

Check out her dance in this video from the Wildlife Alliance:

Bun Rany does not even have the decency to reveal that she is not author of this article

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 05:14 PM PDT

KI-Media Note: On 07 June 2011, The Phnom Penh Post published the following article which was attributed by Lok Chumteav Thom Bun Rany Hun Xen. Even with her many acquired "faked" PhDs and her hesitant English, one has a very hard time imagining that she is the author of the flawless article below. One is left to wonder if she has the decency to reveal who is the real author of this article? But, maybe we are asking too much: Piseth Pilika would turn in her grave!

Bun Rany Hun Xen (Photo: The Phnom Penh Post)

A new era for HIV/AIDS victims

Tuesday, 07 June 2011

Bun Rany Hun Sen

Analysis

Cambodia is on the brink of a new HIV success story. Linking of services for the prevention of mother-to-child transmission, or PMTCT, of HIV with those focusing on maternal and child health services is putting Cambodia on track to ending the HIV epidemic amongst children.

From June 8-10, world leaders convene in New York City at the United Nations General Assembly High Level Meeting on AIDS. The gathering of heads of state and other leaders from government, the scientific community, civil society and the private sector offers a unique opportunity to review progress, share lessons learned and chart the future course of the global AIDS response.

The High Level Meeting will review six targets set by the Secretary-General for the global community to adopt and achieve by 2015, one of which is to eliminate HIV transmission from mother to child, keep mothers alive and improve the health of women, children and families.

I will join First Ladies from around the world in New York to specifically discuss avenues to advance the agenda of prevention of mother to child transmission, to ensure no infant is born with HIV.

The HIV response in Cambodia has been acknowledged as a global success by the international community, receiving the Millennium Development Goal Award for achievements in halting and reversing the spread of HIV. Prevalence amongst adults aged 15-49 years continues to decline from an estimated 2 percent in 1998 to 0.7 percent in 2010. Coverage of access to treatment and care has dramatically improved with 90 percent of people living with HIV now receiving antiretroviral treatment.

However, challenges must be addressed to build on the gains made and prevent a resurge in infections. There is certainly no room for complacency in Cambodia given the persistently high infection rates amongst key affected populations; injecting drug users, sex workers and men who have sex with men (24.4 percent, 14.7 percent and 5.1 percent respectively). These are worrisome figures.

Moreover, women aged 15-49 years living with HIV now outnumber men. Not enough women are getting access to the services they need, particularly when they are pregnant.

In 2009, only 32.3 percent of HIV-infected pregnant women received antiretroviral prophylaxis to protect their babies, substantially short of the 2010 target. The care and treatment needs of HIV positive babies are not being met. By the end of 2009, only an estimated 68.2 percent of children with advanced HIV infection were receiving antiretroviral treatment, while early infant diagnosis testing covered only 15 percent of HIV exposed infants.

Efforts are being made already to address this. The effective implementation of the "linked response", a strategy that integrates HIV with maternal and child health, is responsible for an increase in the number of women being tested for HIV.

Recent expansion of antenatal care services provides an important opportunity for the same expansion of PMTCT services for pregnant women, particularly those from affected populations. Priorities must focus on raising community awareness to services, expanding HIV testing for adults and children, integrating PMTCT with maternal and child health services and integrating HIV and sexual and reproductive health services.

I am passionate about this issue and have made my commitment clear on improving the health of women and children, and combating HIV. As National Champion for the UN Secretary-General's Action Plan for Women and Children's Health and the National Champion for HIV and AIDS, I will endeavour to advocate for the prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV, elimination of HIV-related stigma and discrimination and increased access to HIV prevention, care and treatment for most-at-risk populations.

By strengthening the "linked response" to address maternal and child health and HIV, I believe Cambodia has a significant chance of eliminating mother to child transmission and thereby improving the health of women, children and families.

Virtual elimination of mother to child transmission is in sight. However, it must be placed high on Cambodia's agenda and met with political commitment and evidence-based policy and interventions.

As the UN Secretary-General said, the AIDS response is facing "a moment of truth". Bold decisions are needed to dramatically reshape the response and achieve the UNAIDS vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths.

Cambodia is committed to play its part in a global movement that can and will make AIDS a thing of the past.

-----------------------------------------

Her Excellency Bun Rany Hun Sen, is the President of the Cambodian Red Cross, National Champion for the UN Secretary-General's Action Plan for Women's and Children's Health and the National Champion of the Asian Pacific Leadership Forum on HIV and Development in Cambodia.

Training course on “Logical Framework Approach (LFA)”

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 04:52 PM PDT

Dear Sir/Madame,

I have the great honor to inform you that People Living in Unified Society (PLUS) to organize the training course on "Logical Framework Approach (LFA)" on June 20-24, 2011 at the Cambodia-Japan Cooperation Center (CJCC), at RUPP-CJCC, Russian Confederation Blvd., Khan Toul Kork, Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Please kindly find herewith the attached training announcement and application form.

This training course targets existing middle and top managers working in NGOs or donor communities, especially those who are involved in developing proposals to donors or managing programs on a daily basis such as executive directors, program/project managers, grants managers/officers, fundraising managers/officers, monitoring and evaluation managers/officers.

Anyone with ambitions to become program/project managers or grants officers in the future within NGOs setting or donor communities are strongly recommended to attend.

Should you have further information, please feel free to make contact me directly.

With best regards,

Miss. Chea Sokhom
Training Assistant
PLUS Cambodia
Tel: 023-699-9624
Mobile: 089-350-567
E-mail: training@pluscambodia.org


http://www.box.net/shared/fic27zrzt8


http://www.box.net/shared/6p92rv4jud

Comfrel's press release on the result of Voters’ scoring for Takeo’s elected officials’ fulfillment

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 04:39 PM PDT

Dear All,

COMFREL is please to release its press release on the result of Voters' scoring for Takeo's elected officials' fulfillment toward the Benchmark of Priority Sectors in Takeo province.

Please see the attached file for the release in Khmer.

Thank you for your cooperation and attention.

COMFREL

**************************
The Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia (COMFREL),
# 138, St. 122, Teuk Laak I, Tuol Kork, Phnom Penh, Cambodia,
Tel: +855 23 88 41 50/12 942 017-9, Fax: +855 23 88 37 50
E-mail: COMFREL@online.com.kh Web Site: www.COMFREL.org


http://www.box.net/shared/3klxs2yp83

Hey, Kha! Bat, bat, Samd-ach! - "Hey, Kha! Yes, yes, Samd-ach!": Poem in Khmer by Kaun Neak Sre

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 04:05 PM PDT

Preah Vihear on a knife-edge

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 04:01 PM PDT

ANALYSIS: Thailand, Cambodia maintain an uneasy peace as court weighs case.

08/06/2011
Bangkok Post

With the crucial ruling by the International Court of Justice on the horizon, Thailand hopes there will be no further violent clashes on the disputed border with Cambodia.

Bangkok's worries are justified, as Cambodia's Foreign Ministry lodged a complaint with the Thai embassy in Phnom Penh on Saturday, listing allegations including a Thai military aircraft violating its airspace near the border.

The Thai Foreign Ministry immediately rebutted the allegations, saying Thailand has fully adhered to the code of conduct governing the border dispute by not flying its aircraft near the border. Bangkok also sent a letter to Phnom Penh to clarify its position.

The disputed border area near Preah Vihear Temple has been relatively calm since the last armed conflicts on April 28 in Surin's Kap Choeng district.

The clashes peaked on Feb 4-7 when soldiers exchanged gun and rocket fire at Phu Makhua in Kantharalak district in neighbouring Si Sa Ket.

Another clash in the sensitive area could affect the world court's decision on the Preah Vihear issue, which now rests with the ICJ judges in The Hague.

On April 28, Cambodia sought a reinterpretation by the ICJ of the court's border verdict in 1962.

Back then, it ruled that Preah Vihear was on Cambodian soil, so Phnom Penh now wants to clarify whether the ruling also included the land surrounding the 11th century Hindu temple. The process would likely take up to two years if the court decides to take up the case.

The Cambodian government also requested the court to issue urgent provisional measures, calling for Thailand to withdraw troops from the disputed territory, to cease military manoeuvres in the area and other activities which could affect Cambodia or the court process.

This led to the oral hearing by the two countries in The Hague on May 30-31.

One issue which the judges could take into account before coming up with the ruling on the injunction is the current level of safety at the border.

A judge sitting on the world court has sought additional information about the border situation during and in the wake of the clashes to aid his decision. That reflects his concern about the situation on the ground.

Thailand believes the airspace intrusion allegations were a tactical ploy by Phnom Penh to create a tense atmosphere and give weight to its injunction request in the court.

"This is a sensitive period for the court," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Thani Thongpakdi.

"[Any further border violence] might influence the court while the judges are considering the provisional measures."

Thailand is confident it can fend off Cambodia's bid to have provisional measures put in place by stressing its sincerity by fully and unconditionally cooperating with the court on the 1962 verdict, and also emphasising consistency in trying to solve the land border issue with Cambodia through negotiations in the Joint Boundary Commission, which is shaped by the memorandum of understanding signed by both countries in 2000.

Director-general of the Legal and Treaties Affairs Department Ittiporn Boonpracong said the evidence presented by the Thai team at the oral hearing last month was solid, although Thailand would never underestimate the Cambodian side.

"Now everything is up to the court and Thailand is ready to cooperate fully," Mr Ittiporn said.

Cambodia's decision to take the Preah Vihear issue to the ICJ underlined its determination to cease bilateral talks.

Phnom Penh's patience is running thin after attempts to conclude the management plan surrounding the temple became bogged down.

Preah Vihear was awarded world heritage status in 2008 but the process cannot be completed until the management plan is approved.

Thailand insists on demarcating the land boundary in the area first before moving to discuss how the two countries will manage the area.

But Cambodia's bet is not totally safe. If the court refuses to take up the request for reinterpretation of the 1962 verdict, it could force Cambodia back to the bilateral table, as it will have nowhere else to go.

Cambodian activist to visit Mercer Island | The might of the many

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 03:58 PM PDT

Tun Channareth, a co-recipient of the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize, is in Seattle to receive an honorary doctorate at Seattle University and gather support for his cause. (Chad Coleman/Staff Photo)

Wednesday, June 08, 2011
By MARY L. GRADY
Mercer Island Reporter Editor

The man in the handcrafted wheelchair does not have legs to speak of. They were blown off when he stepped on a land mine in 1982 when he was a young soldier on patrol searching for signs of the Khmer Rouge.

But he is not visiting Seattle University or Mercer Island Presbyterian Church to talk of himself, or his long painful journey from that day. No. He is here to talk about Cambodia and how the stifling presence of perhaps millions of land mines, most set more than 30 years ago, still haunt his country and hold it back.

Channareth is in Seattle to accept a honorary doctorate degree this weekend from Seattle University for his 14 years as a volunteer at the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL). ICBL won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997. Channareth was chosen to accept the award in Oslo on behalf of the organization along with the ICBL founder, Jody Williams.

The Cambodian man, 50, has a grade school education. He is thrilled by the honorary degree, he said, but wants the attention to be focused on the on-going effort by the ICBL to collect more signatures by individuals world wide to pressure world leaders including President Obama, who have yet to sign the treaty to do so.

"When you see the new buildings and big construction in the cities of my country, do not be confused," he told students on campus last Friday. "To know what real life is in my country, go to Cambodia outside cities to see the real life of now," he told them. "There you will see poor, poor people, people living day to day. Look at them to find out, he continued, or look at me," he said, pointing to his legs.

The Cambodian's long journey to Seattle started in 2007, when he met professor Le Xuan Hy of Seattle University who is an Island resident. Hy, a native of Vietnam, who held the Pigott-McCone endowed chair at that time, has championed the Cambodian and his mission.

He met Channareth in the workshop where he works when he is not campaigning or gathering signatures for the ICBL.

There he saw a man who was able to straddle both worlds — that of his simple beginnings and the complexities of bringing global pressure to bear on the practice of war that involved land mines, he said.

Hy came back to Seattle University to tell Channareth's story. As a part of its commitment to promoting and championing of social justice, the university later sent students to see the Jesuit Refugee Center where Channareth worked in Siem Reap on a service learning trip.

Channareth has spoken to kings, presidents and prime ministers all over the world for ICBL. The organization has gotten more than 150 countries to sign the agreement to ban land mines; and to end manufacture and ensure their disposal. But there is so much more to do.

Neither the United States nor China have yet to sign the treaty.

His mission here is to obtain signatures of as many people as possible to demonstrate the depth of opposition to land mines to convince world leaders to sign the land mine treaty. He asks each and everyone he meets to show support.

"Mr. Channareth has reached out with compassion in service to other land mine victims, while working tirelessly to rid the world of these insidious weapons," said Seattle University President Stephen Sundborg, S.J.

"He is an inspiring example to our students of our mission as a university that empowers leaders for a just and humane world."

Channareth greets each visitor with a humble greeting, pressing his palms together with a bow of his head. His gaze is serene but unblinking. What remains of his wrecked legs are uncovered. He does not have prosthetics. He is speaks quietly yet is animated. Despite his many years in a wheelchair, his spine is straight, his body lean.

His English is remarkably good, despite learning the language by standing outside an open classroom window to listen to a teacher.

Channareth did not have a baht (a few cents) to pay to attend class each day. A friend who did would open the window for him to hear.

Channareth's personal story mirrors the story of thousands if not millions of Cambodian people whose lives coincided with the Vietnam conflict and the civil wars in Cambodia that followed.

He was perhaps 20 years old when his parents were murdered by the Pol Pot regime. His father burned to death. His mother, Chinese, simply disappeared. His remaining family struggled.

Feeling there was not other choice, he left his home and walked for a week to find work at what turned out to be refugee camps at the Thai-Cambodia border. He found that there was no aid for men, only women. Men could only join the military to live, he explained. They would be fed but not paid.

After his injury, Channareth received training in both engine repair, typing and welding. After years in the camps, he and the family he had begun there, left to return to Cambodia and what he hoped was a brighter future.

They made their way to capitol city of Phnom Phen where there was no work for a disabled man, only begging.

He was devastated. "How will I be responsible for my family," he said.

Instead of rebuilding their country after the Vietnam war, opposing regimes fought with each other. The result was the slaughter and suffering imposed on millions. Left behind are an equal number of hidden explosives everywhere, he said.

After the fighting stopped, people left the rural areas and went to the city, he explained. The rural lands were all but abandoned because of the land mines. The cities were full of their victims.

After many months in Phnom Phen, Channareth found work through the Jesuit Refugee Mission. There he applied the training he had obtained in the camps to building wheelchairs. A religious sister at the camp noticed his English and he found himself interpreting for the visitors that came to the mission. That lead to his work with the ICBL.

At one point he personally delivered a paper bundle of 400,000 signatures neatly balanced on his wheelchair to government officials.

"'They said thank you, we will keep them for you,'" he remembered with a smile. "I took them back with me."

To learn more and to sign the electronic petition visit the Seattle University commencement ceremony at www.seattleu.edu/commencement.

See more photos by photographer Chad Coleman on his Focus Northwest blog.

Mercer Island Reporter Editor Mary L. Grady can be reached at editor@mi-reporter.com or (206) 232-1215 ext. 1050.

HRP's appeals

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 03:52 PM PDT

Land victims ask for help from Hoon Xhen

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 03:42 PM PDT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLcFy497J9U&feature=player_embedded

Tribunal Judges Refuse To Re-Investigate Case 003 [-Injustice in Cambodia ... What else is new?]

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 12:56 PM PDT

Clowns In Justice robe: Bandit You Bunleng (L) and Herr Doktor Siegfried Blunk (R)

Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer
Phnom Penh Tuesday, 07 June 2011

Investigating judges at the Khmer Rouge tribunal on Tuesday rejected an appeal from the UN prosecutor, who had requested they continue investigating a controversial third case at the court.

The prosecutor, Andrew Cayley, said in an earlier submission to the investigating judges that they had failed to investigate key crime sites and had not interviewed the two suspects of the case, No. 003.

The judges, Siegfried Blunk and You Bunleng, said in a public statement Tuesday that Cayley's requests were "invalid."

The rejection was one in a line of contentious statements shared between the two parts of the court, following the two judges' announcement in April they had concluded their investigation. The judges have also ordered Cayley to retract portions of a public statement involving Case 003, claiming he had divulged confidential court information.

Cayley has refused to retract his statements in a formal appeal to the court, and he told VOA Khmer by e-mail on Tuesday he plans to appeal the judges' latest decision not to further investigate Case 003.

The UN-backed court has come under increased scrutiny over that case and another, No. 004, because Prime Minister Hun Sen and a number of Cambodian judges have publicly objected to them.

Meanwhile, observers say the two cases could go far in fulfilling the court's mandate to try as many Khmer Rouge leaders as possible, bringing to 10 the total number prosecuted under the court.

So far the court has only managed to conclude one trial, the relatively simple case against Kaing Kek Iev, the chief of Tuol Sleng prison. A trial against four more Khmer Rouge leaders is expected later this year.

Cambodians need to help themselves

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 12:24 PM PDT

Jun. 7, 2011
A. Gaffar Peang-Meth
Pacific Daily News (Guam)

Cambodians must help themselves more for others to help them. Their journey to rights, freedom and the rule of law is a human rights issue that deserves more international help. Still, the democratic opposition must focus its energy and activity on the problem they all hope to solve, not on each other's shortcomings.

Many Cambodians fear the Khmer race and culture will be usurped if Vietnamese are permitted to migrate to Cambodia unchecked, and Thailand continues to threaten Cambodia's border in a contentious, long-running dispute over an historic site.

Yet Cambodians, in general, are not united or unified; democrats have difficulties finding a common voice, conflicts of personality and among groups are commonplace.

To save Cambodia, Cambodians call for "reactivation" -- implementation -- of the 20-year-old Paris Peace Accord, signed by 18 governments and the four warring Cambodian factions, with the United Nations bearing witness.

But the accord is a dead paper. The best stipulations are only as good as the effectiveness with which they are implemented. There's no world guardian of individual rights, freedom and the rule of law coming to the rescue.

Foreign governments watch the Hun Sen regime violate rights, freedom and the rule of law; the neighbors to the east and the west encroach on Khmer territory. Aid donors even provide annual funds to keep the regime afloat.

Let's face reality: Democrats are on their own. National interest dictates the actions of foreign governments, who deal with Hun Sen, as they needed a sense of stability and security (through oppression) to produce other activities, political and economic. They aren't blind to Hun Sen's autocracy or ignorant of what it does to Cambodia.

But they don't see a credible alternative.

Frustrated Cambodians say they don't need preachers behind a keyboard; they need people who can make things happen. But if each Khmer does something, things will happen.

Hun Sen loves the situation. With the help of his "willing executioners" and his party machine, he perpetuates it. Sadly, some regime opponents fall for his invite to be distracted from fighting autocracy and involve themselves in wasteful infighting. Doubts and suspicions are sown, gossip and rumors spread to stir and divide opponents.

A week ago, a tape-recorded message of a 2007 telephone conversation between Kem Sokha, head of the Human Rights Party, and Hun Sen created an uproar amongst democrats. Radio Free Asia's May 29 report quoted Sokha's allegation that Hun Sen's ruling Cambodian People's Party destroyed the royalist FUNCINPEC party and the Sam Rainsy Party, and "now they want to destroy the Human Rights Party." Sokha denied he was ever a CPP puppet.

The conversation lent credibility to the assertion that the HRP was created by Hun Sen to undermine the SRP. On the recording, Hun Sen praised the HRP's success through his financial support and by allowing it to use the Olympic stadium to hold its congress.

In yet another illustration of the self-destructive tendencies of the democratic opposition parties, the Khmer People's Power Movement chairman, Serey Ratha Sourn, circulated a letter SRP president Sam Rainsy wrote to present his "utmost sincere greetings" to the new General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Nguyen Phu Trong, with the wishes for "friendship and brotherhood" between Cambodia and Vietnam "based on mutual aid and mutual respects."

Reaction to more critical matters was eclipsed. For example, in April, leading international human rights groups urged foreign governments to oppose the Hun Sen regime's proposed law that would allow it to shut down any group considered opposed to the regime.

In early May, Christophe Peschoux, head of the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, was forced to leave Cambodia: "When there is no more limit to executive power ... it becomes arbitrary and abusive," he said. "This is what is happening today."

A May 25 demonstration appealed to the regime to save the Prey Lang forest, home to fruit trees, wild animals and considerable biodiversity. It's a green space that covers about 3,600 square kilometers cross four provinces and the traditional home of members of the Kuoy ethnic minority. Some 700,000 people rely on the forest for survival.

In September 2009, Hun Sen approved a 70-year lease on the land to Vietnamese-owned CRCK Rubber Development Co. Ltd., which began land clearing early this year for a rubber plantation. On May 30, SRP lawmakers asked Hun Sen to cancel all economic land concessions in Prey Lang. A CPP governor blasted SRP lawmakers for playing politics while the concessions bring development.

Of no less importance was a Khmer poem on the Internet about Khmer soldiers at the Khmer-Thai border. It asked why the soldiers are being abandoned with insufficient food, water, medicine, clothing, blankets and mosquito nets while Hun Sen's security guards are well taken care of.

At the same time, the Bangkok Post ran a story about Thai soldiers, whose "effective weapon" is the "Fresh meals, better living conditions and support from locals (that) are all part of the psychological war. ... During a break in the clashes, Thai troops often invite Cambodian soldiers for a meal." What's wrong with this picture?

Lost in cyberspace was the story of SRP lawmaker Mu Sochua and her team on the "campaign trail" in northwestern Cambodia, visiting one village at a time. In the May 31 posting, Sochua and her team were "surrounded, harassed and threatened" by village authorities and CPP youth members as she told villagers of their rights to free public health care and education.

Cambodians must help themselves more for others to help them. Their journey to rights, freedom and the rule of law is a human rights issue that deserves more international help. Still, the democratic opposition must focus its energy and activity on the problem they all hope to solve, not on each other's shortcomings.

A. Gaffar Peang-Meth, Ph.D.,is retired from the University of Guam. Write him at

peangmeth@yahoo.com.

Opposition Leader Prepares Suits Against Hun Sen

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 12:11 PM PDT

Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer
Washington, DC Tuesday, 07 June 2011

"I have met my lawyer to prepare lawsuits against Hun Sen for killing many people on several occasions."

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy says he is preparing to file more complaints against Prime Minister Hun Sen, similar to allegations he has already made in a New York court.

"I have met my lawyer to prepare lawsuits against Hun Sen for killing many people on several occasions," Sam Rainsy told VOA Khmer in an interview last week, without elaborating. "He was involved in these crimes, including crimes against humanity."

Sam Rainsy alleges Hun Sen was responsible for the deaths of people sent to clear forests along the Thai border in the 1980s, where they met with malaria and other diseases and land mines.

"I would like to appeal to all people in Cambodia or overseas who lived through K5, who witnessed the events, or who fell victims themselves, to come together now," he said.

There are no official figures on how many people died curing the K5 campaign. Sam Rainsy's complaints follow victory for him in a French court in a defamation case brought by Foreign Minister Hor Namhong, who had alleged Sam Rainsy had unfairly claimed he had led a Khmer Rouge camp.

Sam Rainsy said his victory in that case "opens the way for me to file more complaints. This time not against Hor Namhong, but Hun Sen."

Sam Rainsy said he plans to file his first complaint in a court in Geneva later this month.

The opposition leader remains in self-imposed exile and faces a raft of criminal prison sentences related to demonstrations on the Vietnamese border in 2009. With elections approaching in 2012 and 2013, Hun Sen has said there will be no political settlement of those cases.

Sam Rainsy said "modern technology" allows him to maintain daily contact with his supporters. But he added that his party was working to pressure the current government to secure his return ahead of elections.

Observers have noted that without the presence of the main opposition leader, the upcoming elections may not be perceived as free or fair.

Judges dismiss call to probe new KRouge case [-Everything is done to deny justice in Cambodia!]

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 12:04 PM PDT

Wednesday, June 08, 2011
AFP

PHNOM PENH — Cambodia's UN-backed war crimes tribunal on Tuesday rejected demands to pursue a politically-sensitive new Khmer Rouge case that has divided the court.

The investigating judges said the prosecution failed to follow procedure when filing a request for unnamed suspects to be interviewed for their alleged crimes as members of the brutal 1975-79 regime to be prosecuted.

In a written statement, the judges said international co-prosecutor Andrew Cayley's request was invalid because he hadn't done the necessary paperwork to file the requests without the backing of his national counterpart.

Cayley and his Cambodian colleague Chea Leang are openly at odds over how to proceed with the case, with Leang saying the suspects, thought to be two ex-Khmer Rouge commanders, are outside the court's jurisdiction.

Cayley can appeal the judges' decision not to pursue an investigation but the announcement appears to signal their willingness to close the tribunal's controversial third case, prompting fears the court is caving to government pressure.

"The judges are using questionable legal technicalities to try to avoid the very important substantive issues raised by Cayley," said Anne Heindel, a legal adviser at the Documentation Centre of Cambodia, which researches Khmer Rouge atrocities.

"It's the continuation of their attempts to kill case three."

In its landmark first trial, the tribunal sentenced former prison chief Kaing Guek Eav, better known as Duch, to 30 years in jail in July for overseeing the deaths of 15,000 people.

That case is now under appeal, while a second trial involving four of the regime's most senior surviving leaders is due to start later this month.

The court is still investigating a fourth case against three more suspects, believed to be mid-level cadres. But it too is shrouded in secrecy and faces stiff government opposition.

Prime Minister Hun Sen has repeatedly voiced his objection to further trials, saying they could plunge the country into civil war, and observers widely expect the third and fourth cases to be dropped.

Led by "Brother Number One" Pol Pot, who died in 1998, the Marxist Khmer Rouge regime emptied cities in the late 1970s in a bid to create an agrarian utopia, executing and killing through starvation and overwork up to two million.

Brain Food for ECCC Co-Investigating Judges

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 10:10 AM PDT

No extension of deadline for civil party applicants in Case 003: CIJs

Closing Order of Case 002 against Nuon Chea, Khieu Samphan, Ieng Sary, Ieng Thirith

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 10:01 AM PDT

In preparation for the start of trial hearings beginning on 27 June 2011 of Case 002 against the surviving Khmer Rouge senior leaders Nuon Chea, Khieu Samphan, Ieng Sary and Ieng Thirith, KI Media is starting a new series in posting installations of the public document of the Closing Order of Case 002.  The Closing Order of the Co-Investigating Judges forms the basic document from which all the parties (Co-Prosecutors, Co-Lead Lawyers for all civil parties, Defense Lawyers) will be making their arguments before the Trial Chamber judges (one Cambodian President, 2 Cambodian Judges, 2 UN judges).  Up until now, the hearings involving these four surviving senior Khmer Rouge leaders have been in the Pre-Trial Chamber over issues of pre-trial detention and jurisdictional issues.  Beginning in June 2011, the Trial Chamber will hear the substantive arguments over the criminal charges (e.g. genocide, crimes against humanity, penal code of 1956).  Available in Khmer and French.  Contact the ECCC for a free copy.

CLOSING ORDER

of Co-Investigating Judges You Bunleng and Marcel Lemonde, 15 September 2010

A. MOVEMENT OF THE POPULATION

158.           One of the five policies was to implement and defend the CPK socialist revolution through the movement of the population from towns and cities to rural areas, as well as from one rural area to another, by whatever means necessary. The movement by the CPK of people began prior to 17 April 1975 and continued until at least 6 January 1979. The Co-Investigating Judges were specifically seized of three major phases of movement: the movement of people out of Phnom Penh (Phase 1); the Central (Old North), Southwest, West and East Zones (Phase 2); and the East Zone (Phase 3).

159.           One of the objectives of the population movements was to fulfil the labour requirements of the cooperatives and worksites.⁴⁶⁸ The CPK declared that it also had the objectives of providing food supplies to the population and protecting it from security threats. A CPK Party document dated September 1975 reflects another major objective: to deprive city dwellers and former civil servants of their economic and political status and transform them into peasants,⁴⁶⁹ thus "preserving the revolutionary achievements" ⁴⁷⁰ Population movements

were therefore a key means used by the CPK to achieve "whatever can be done that is a gain for the revolution". ⁴⁷¹

Dates and Participation

162. Prior to 1975, the CPK had implemented a policy of removing people from the towns and cities that came under their control: people were moved totally or partially from urban areas in Steung Treng, Kratie, Banam and Udong in the Northeast, North and East Zones and Sector 5 05.⁴⁷² Publications of the Revolutionary Flag reflect that the CPK deliberately moved the population from urban to rural areas.⁴⁷³

163. This policy was implemented, in particular, on or around 17 April 1975 (Phase 1); from the latter part of 1975 until some time in 1977 (Phase 2); and from late 1977 throughout 1978 (Phase 3).

164. With respect to Phase 1, Pol Pot played a key role in the decision to move the entire population out of Phnom Penh.⁴⁷⁴ The plans to prepare the reception of the residents of Phnom Penh were disseminated before its implementation.⁴⁷⁵ There was further involvement of members of the Party Centre⁴⁷⁶ in the development of this plan during meetings in late March or early April 1975.⁴⁷⁷ These were followed by meetings during which lower level cadre were informed of the decision.⁴⁷⁸ Some CPK soldiers were informed of the attack on Phnom Penh in advance, generally via their military superiors in accordance with the command structure,⁴⁷⁹ however others only received the order to remove people from the capital shortly after their arrival.⁴⁸⁰⁴⁸¹ The evacuation of the population of Phnom Penh was not a singular phenomenon but constituted part of a wider pattern of population movements from cities after 17 April 1975.

165. With respect to Phase 2, the plan to send people to the North and North West Zones is evidenced from a visit of the CPK Standing Committee to that area before or around August 1975.⁴⁸² This visit gave rise to the following report: "the labour force must be increased. Three or four hundred thousand more would not be enough. The current strength of one million persons can only work 50 per cent. It's imperative to add four or five hundred thousand more".⁴⁸³ A September 1975 Party document stated that "new people" needed to be relocated out of areas where temporary over-concentrations of them had resulted in food shortages. The document specifies that a permanent solution to this problem had to be effected starting in November 1975 and adjusted to production requirements.⁴⁸⁴ Witnesses⁴⁸⁵ and documents⁴⁸⁶⁴⁸⁷ describes a decision of the CPK Centre regarding Phase 2 of the movement of population.⁴⁸⁸ The former head of the Central Zone Telegram Unit (formerly the North Zone) explains that the East Zone "had to send the report from the Zone to Pol Pot of the Centre level first, and then waited for Pol Pot instruction. KE Pauk [Secretary of the Central Zone (formerly the North Zone)] received this telegram from the Centre, not directly from the East Zone".⁴⁸⁹ provide further evidence as to how the CPK Centre was involved in these movements. Telegram #15 dated November 1975 sent to Pol Pot

166. With respect to Phase 3, although the CPK may have displaced part of the population of the East Zone within the zone or to other zones for reasons relating to food production⁴⁹⁰ or the conflict with Vietnam,⁴⁹¹ there is also evidence of massive displacements during the East Zone purge, as set out below.⁴⁹²

167. Between 1976 and 1978, following the phases 2 and 3 of the movement of population, the Northwest Zone had problems of overpopulation and famine, as set out in the section of this Closing Order regarding Factual Findings of Crimes. The Centre was informed of this situation by visits to the field of its representatives⁴⁹³ and by reports from the secretaries of the zone in which this problem was discussed. ⁴⁹⁴

B. COOPERATIVES AND WORKSITES

168. One of the five policies was to implement and defend the socialist revolution through the establishment and operation of cooperatives and worksites by whatever means necessary. Cooperatives and worksites were set up throughout Cambodia before 1975, from the early stages of the CPK control over certain parts of the territory. These cooperatives and worksites continued until at least 6 January 1979. The Co-Investigating Judges were specifically seized of six worksites and cooperatives: Trapeang Thma Dam worksite, Kampong Chhang Airport construction site, 1^st January Dam worksite, Srae Ambel government worksite, the Tram Kok Cooperatives and Prey Sar worksite (S-24).

169. One of the objectives in establishing cooperatives and worksites was to put the population to work in order to provide food for internal consumption and for export.⁴⁹⁵ This involved, amongst other activities: rapidly increasing the production of paddy to three tons per hectare per crop;⁴⁹⁶ creating a country-wide irrigation network;⁴⁹⁷ increasing production of other products such as rubber⁴⁹⁸ and salt;⁴⁹⁹⁵⁰⁰ These matters were to be achieved regardless of their impact on the population; in some cases, such as where the land was not able to support the three tons per hectare target for rice production, it was physically impossible to implement the CPK objectives.⁵⁰¹ Another objective of this policy was to further the policy relating to detecting, defending against, reeducating and "smashing" the enemy as set out below.⁵⁰² For example, a February 1976 broadcast cited military functions as one of the six tasks of cooperatives.⁵⁰³ The January 1976 DK Constitution formally established that the populations in cooperatives were duty-bound to defend the country.⁵⁰⁴ From 1978, cooperatives were increasingly tasked with smashing the "enemies", whom the CPK believed to be hidden within them.⁵⁰⁵ A further objective of the cooperatives and worksites was to eliminate the private sphere,⁵⁰⁶ thus destroying the existing social structure and replacing it with a collectivism regime⁵⁰⁷ in which there was no allowance for individual or family interests.⁵⁰⁸ Cooperatives and worksites were therefore a key means used by the CPK to achieve and to do "whatever must be done to serve production" ⁵⁹ and building infrastructure such as airfields or dams.

Dates and Participation

170. The establishment of collective agricultural production by the CPK began around 1970, expanding as the CPK strengthened its control over Cambodian territory.⁵¹⁰ By 1973 a number of cooperatives had been established.⁵¹¹ In May 1975, a conference was held with CPK representatives from throughout the country, at which Pol Pot and other senior leaders decided that the establishment of socialist revolution in Cambodia required a focus on agriculture and industry, which was to be achieved through continued establishment of cooperatives and the construction of canals and dams. The latter project was to be launched in 1976.⁵¹²

171. The Standing Committee formulated this policy, as reflected in a series of meetings at which they gave instructions on matters such as rice rations,⁵¹³ targets for production of rice and other products⁵¹⁴ or the construction of water systems.⁵¹⁵ On 26 August 1975, the CPK Standing Committee reported on a visit to the Northwest Zone where it became aware of the poor living and working conditions, including food shortages, starvation,⁵¹⁶ and lack of medicine,⁵¹⁷ concluding that "it's imperative to strengthen and expand the cooperatives"⁵¹¹⁸ and that the Southwest had "little hope (little land, little water, no good paddy)"⁵¹⁹ On 2 November 1975, the Standing Committee considered training for agricultural machinery⁵²⁰ and salt production.⁵²¹ On 22 February 1976, the Standing Committee gave instructions relating to the transport and distribution of rice, increasing salt production, the construction of railroads and hydroelectric facilities⁵²² and the building of Kampong Chhnang Airport.⁵²³ During a meeting from 19 to 21 April 1976, the Standing Committee stated that it would go down to the bases in May 1976,⁵²⁴ and stressed that the Standing Committee must work with the ministries to "explain about the general stances of the Party and to provide timely instructions".⁵²⁵ At the same meeting, the Standing Committee established a number of committees surrounding Office 870,⁵²⁶ with responsibilities in relation to agriculture, commerce and economics,⁵²⁷ and gave instructions on matters such as foreign trade negotiations with North Korea and China,⁵²⁸ the expansion of rubber production and early season rice yields, and building and distributing water pumps. On 30 May 1976, the Standing Committee established guidelines for the agricultural production action of the army, which was considered as having the "joint duty to build the country".⁵³¹ Finally, in August 1976, the Standing Committee developed a four-year plan to build socialism in all fields including rapid agricultural development.⁵³²

172. The Council of Ministers also affirmed the need to "do whatever we possibly could to produce 3 tons of crops per hectare",⁵³³ which required that "the Standing Committee must make sure it goes down to the rice fields frequently, at least 15 days each month" ⁵³⁴ At a Council of Ministers meeting on 22 April 1976, it was noted that the task of the Cambodian government was to "build the country in every sector, economics, agriculture, industry, communication, social affairs, health, etc ... in concert, according to Party objectives. Do whatever is necessary so that each ministry, each office, each unit makes sure it fulfils its tasks well, in quantity, in the momentum of the great miraculous leap". ⁵³⁵ At a meeting on 31 May 1976, details from visits to "many bases" were reported, including progress on dike systems,⁵³⁶ rice production from specific districts,⁵³⁷ and matters relating to canals and fertilizer.⁵³⁸ At this meeting, the Council of Ministers noted a shortage of rice rations and "human diseases", but stated that they would be able to resolve the issue.⁵³⁹

173. The People's Representative Assembly similarly endorsed this policy on 11-13 April 1976, which called for "the entire people to be on the offensive on every battlefield of production in every sector, especially in agriculture, aiming to produce the maximum amount of rice... to push the building of our country even faster in a great and miraculous leap" ⁵⁴⁰ Purported representatives of the workers,⁵⁴¹ peasants,⁵⁴² and army⁵⁴³ expressed their resolve to support this policy. A major Party gathering elaborated the three tons per hectare objective in early November 1975 and, thereafter, it became "the common resolution for the entire Party, the whole population and the whole Revolutionary Army" ⁵⁴⁴ Army units regularly held meetings at which this policy was discussed and details of its implementation were reported.⁵⁴⁵

174. CPK directives⁵⁴⁶ and CPK meetings also addressed this policy.⁵⁴⁷ For example, minutes from a meeting on 8 March 1976 note that instructions were issued regarding the agricultural situation in Sectors 106 and 103, and the goal of exporting rice from Sector 106 by 1977,⁵⁴⁸ requiring regular reporting on all details of its implementation.⁵⁴⁹ Rice shortages and disease, and the serious adverse effects on the working strength of people in worksites, were also reported at this meeting.⁵⁵⁰ "at the end of the season when there are many shortages, those shortages will impact their health and labour strength".⁵⁵¹ Telegrams were also sent to the Centre reporting on the policy relating to cooperatives and worksites, including the working conditions such as food shortages and starvation.⁵⁵² Instructions were issued that people were to be issued a ration of two cans of rice per day, but it was noted that,

175.           A number of specific problems related to health and their adverse effect on this policy were discussed at an ad hoc CPK meeting dated 10 June 1976. People's living standards, resulting diseases, significant shortfalls of medicine throughout the country were noted; the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs was reminded of its duties with respect to this policy; and instructions were issued to address these problems.⁵⁵³⁵⁵⁴ Health issues were further discussed by Pol Pot with medical workers from the zone, sectors and military gathered at the first National Medical Conference held in October 197 8.

176.           The policy of forming cooperatives and worksites was also disseminated through radio broadcasts⁵⁵⁵ and the Revolutionary Flag magazines.⁵⁵⁶ A 1975 issue of Revolutionary Flag stated that "the Party has to rebuild a new economy in the most rapid manner that is mainly depending on agriculture"⁵⁵¹ and that "the labour forces shall be organized for consecutive projects"⁵⁵ In 1976, Revolutionary Flag magazines stated that the Party assessed the economic situation monthly⁵⁵⁹ and that food shortages and diseases had persisted during that year, but that problems had been resolved and "the majority of districts" had enough to eat.⁵⁶⁰ Later in 1978, however, it was recorded that the previous assertions of agricultural success had been exaggerated, the failures being blamed on internal enemies.⁵⁶¹

177.           Although serious health⁵⁶² and food problems⁵⁶³ arose following the establishment of the CPK regime, the CPK leaders had not provided for adequate systems to respond to these problems⁵⁶⁴ and did not accept international aid,⁵⁶⁵ except for the limited support primarily available from China.⁵⁶⁶ On the contrary, the CPK policies were focused on isolation and the self-sufficiency of the national economy.⁵⁶⁷

UN Cambodia war crimes court rejects call to probe Case 3 further [-Travesty of justice at the ECCC]

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 09:19 AM PDT

Clowns In Justice robe: Bandit You Bunleng (L) and Herr Doktor Siegfried Blunk (R)

Jun 7, 2011
DPA

This means victims have just one day to file applications and follows accusations the investigating judges are attempting to bring Case Three to a rapid conclusion.

Phnom Penh - The investigating judges at the UN-backed Cambodian war crimes tribunal in Phnom Pennh Tuesday rejected further investigation into a controversial case known as Case Three concerning former Khmer Rouge blamed for tens of thousands of deaths.

The decision, which is subject to appeal, came a month after international prosecutor Andrew Cayley said the investigation into Case Three was deficient and called for further steps, including questioning the suspects and visiting crime scenes.

The call came in the face of fears that pressure has been applied to shut down Case Three and Case Four as a result of opposition from the Cambodian government and donor fatigue.

The two cases involve five former Khmer Rouge held responsible for tens of thousands of deaths during the movement's rule of Cambodia between 1975 and 1979, when more than 2 million people are thought to have died.

The investigating judges - Germany's Siegfried Blunk and Cambodia's You Bunleng - rejected Cayley's request, saying he did not have the right to make the request as his Cambodian counterpart at the tribunal did not agree more work was needed.

The tribunal is a hybrid UN-Cambodian structure, with local and international staff in equivalent positions throughout.

Anne Heindel, a legal adviser at Phnom Penh's genocide research organization DC-Cam, said the judges had chosen to rule not on the merits of Cayley's request, but on his authority to make the request.

'(Case Three) will always dog the legacy of this court,' she said.

The investigating judges also extended by three weeks a May 18 deadline for potential victims of Case Three crimes to come forward. Cayley had requested a six-week extension.

This means victims have just one day to file applications and follows accusations the investigating judges are attempting to bring Case Three to a rapid conclusion.

Heindel described this as 'the clearest violation of civil party rights we have seen at this tribunal.'

In late May the UN rejected allegations it had interfered with investigations or put pressure on the court regarding Cases Three and Four.

Case Two against four senior surviving leaders of the movement is scheduled to begin June 27.

No extension of deadline for civil party applicants in Case 003: CIJs

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 08:51 AM PDT

http://www.box.net/shared/tstqisi87f


http://www.box.net/shared/uds8icv3o2

Theary Seng's (Crimson) Response to CIJs

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 08:50 AM PDT

Theary Seng's (Crimson) Response to the Endless Inanity in the Surreal Kafkaesque, Farcical (Shakespearean) Comedy, Twilight Zone Tragedy Extraordinary Universe of the Co-Investigating Judges

7 June 2011

STRESS INCREASE

STATEMENT FROM THE CO-INVESTIGATING JUDGES RELATED TO CASE 003 REQUESTS FROM THE INTERNATIONAL CO-PROSECUTOR

In a [politically] reasoned [Cambodians do live in an upside-down world!] decision issued on 7 June 2011, the Co-Investigating Judges of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) have rejected a request for an extension of the deadline for filing Civil Party Applications in Case 003 [because we want to silence voices and extinguish rights of all KR victims] and three investigative requests [or else we actually would have to work, like do investigations and fulfill our responsibilities to the victims] then filed by the International Co-Prosecutor alone as invalid [Kafka: Good one, CIJs, good one!].

Having examined the applicable legal framework and the Internal Rules governing the ECCC proceedings [because we have so much time on our hand], the Co-Investigating Judges concluded that the Internal Rules leave no room for (a) solitary action by one Co- Prosecutor [who is right], unless either a delegation of [political] power had taken place according to Internal Rule 13 (3), or a Disagreement between the Co- Prosecutors had been recorded pursuant to Rule Internal 71 (1). [What was that saying by MLK, Jr., something like everything Hitler did was "legal"... Here, CIJs, you're "legal" Hooray!]

As both the National and the International Co-Prosecutor have confirmed that neither a delegation of power had taken place nor a disagreement had been recorded, the Co-Investigating Judges consequently rejected the requests from the International Co-Prosecutor on the basis that they were invalid. [Wow!  We are blown away by the force of your arguments!  Brilliant!  Absolutely brilliant!!]

However, the Co-Investigating Judges have on their own motion, pursuant to Internal Rule 39 (4) (b), decided to recognise the validity of any Civil Party Application received within three weeks after the original deadline on 18 May 2011. [CIJs, that's tomorrow!  You may think we are fools; we think you are  !@##$%%^^&&*!@#$%_+(*&%#@!%*!@@#$%^&*()&^$#^(&*^%$#(!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! INANITY

Definition of INANITY

1

: the quality or state of being inane: as a : lack of substance : emptiness b : vapid, pointless, or fatuous character : shallowness

2

: something that is inane

See inanity defined for kids »

Hun Sen... NOT a hero

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 08:34 AM PDT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmH9L4UfToI&feature=player_embedded#at=118

Preah Vihear – Faith-based justice

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 08:29 AM PDT

Judges at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) are deliberating whether to wade into a bloody border conflict, after Cambodia asked that it order Thailand to withdraw troops from positions near an 11th century Hindu temple.

7 June 2011

By Jared Ferrie

International Justice Desk (RNW)

Public hearings were conducted May 30 and 31 in response to a request from Cambodia that the Court interpret a 1962 judgment that placed the Preah Vihear temple inside Cambodian territory. Although the judgement also supported a map demarcating the border, Thailand argues that the ICJ did not have jurisdiction to rule on the border.

A disputed 4.6 square kilometre section of land at the foot of the temple has become a flashpoint for military clashes, including those that claimed at least 10 lives in February.

Cambodia hopes an ICJ clarification will effectively demarcate the border. Thailand wants the Court to dismiss Cambodia's application, arguing that it has complied with the 1962 ruling, which required it to withdraw its forces from the temple and Cambodian territory in the vicinity.

"The point is that it's unreasonable that the ICJ should grant an injunction as requested by Cambodia when Thailand had abided by the court's ruling issued in 1962," Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva told the Bangkok Post the day before hearings began.

Thai officials have made that argument repeatedly in public statements and in a February 5 letter to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).

But in its own letters to the UNSC, including one dating back to 1966, Cambodia has claimed that Thailand repeatedly violated the ruling, not only stationing troops nearby, but on one occasion invading the temple complex itself.

The April 23 1966 letter, which was provided to the International Justice Tribune by the Documentation Centre of Cambodia, describes an alleged sequence of clashes in and around the temple.

"On 3 April 1966 at about 7:30 p.m., a unit of Thai Armed Forces about 100 strong attacked and burned the Cambodian post held by nine guards appointed to watch over the temple of Preah Vihear," wrote Norodom Kantol, who was Cambodia's foreign minister.

"The aggressors captured five of these guards and occupied the temple."

The letter goes on to claim that Cambodian troops took back the temple from the Thais who allegedly executed the five prisoners as they were withdrawing.

It also claims that the Thai military used the confrontation to expand into Cambodian territory. Quoting a statement made by Prince Norodom Sihanouk, Cambodia's head of state at the time, the letter claims:

"They have drawn a new frontier line, to our disadvantage, in the neighbourhood of Preah Vihear itself. In particular, they have laid barbed wire and set up military or police posts which in certain places encroach to a considerable depth on our territory, thus scorning the judgment of the International Court of Justice."

Thailand has maintained that it accepted the section of the 1962 judgment that placed Preah Vihear within Cambodia. But both the section referring to the borderline and Thailand's interpretation of it, is less clear.

1962 judgment

In its summary of the 1962 judgement, the Court explained that various maps had been produced that demarcated the border according to the different designations of the watershed line at the foot of the hill upon which Preah Vihear stands. However, the Court found evidence that Thailand accepted a map it referred to as Annex 1.

"The Court therefore felt bound to pronounce in favour of the frontier indicated on the Annex I map in the disputed area and it became unnecessary to consider whether the line as mapped did in fact correspond to the true watershed line," said the summary.

Thus, the Court appears to have ruled already on the border demarcation issue. But the 1962 judgement also admits that the Thai government never officially endorsed the Annex I map. And over decades the issue has only become more opaque.

Cambodia says it wants a speedy decision by the ICJ in the hopes it will help resolve the border crisis. Authorities have warned of the potential for further clashes, as both countries continue to maintain a heavy military presence in the area.

The ICJ has not determined when it will decide whether or not to examine and interpret the 1962 judgement, saying only that the date "will be determined in due course."

Thailand Will Fight For National Sovereignty In All Stages (sic!)

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 08:04 AM PDT

BANGKOK, June 7 (Bernama) -- Thai caretaker prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva vowed on Tuesday that his ruling Democrat Party would fight in all stages to protect national sovereignty regarding border cases related to the ancient Preah Vihear Temple filed by neighbouring Cambodia, Thai News Agency (TNA) reported.

Abhisit insisted that his caretaker administration would continue upholding national sovereignty even during the sensitive period of ongoing vote campaigning in the run-up to Thailand's forthcoming general election on July 3, which could probably sway his Democrat Party's popularity among some groups of people.

Abhisit said his caretaker government, through the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is, for instance, preparing additional documents to be soon presented to the Hague-based International Court of Justice (ICJ) to fight a case filed by Cambodia seeking the World Court's order on Thailand's withdrawal of troops from an unsettled area surrounding the Preah Vihear Temple along the common border pending the ICJ's decision on whether it will review its 1962 verdict on the 11th century Hindu temple case, also requested by Phnom Penh.

The Thai caretaker premier also affirmed his Democrat Party's strong position on promoting sound relations with all neighbouring countries but staunchly defending national sovereignty, calling for other Thai political parties to explicitly demonstrate their stances as well.

Abhisit's comments followed Cambodian Premier Hun Sen's recent remarks that Phnom Penh was not ready to hold bilateral talks with Thailand regarding the pending case at the World Court and he would not order any withdrawal of Cambodian troops from the contentious area surrounding the Preah Vihear Temple either.

The Thai caretaker prime minister dismissed, however, any possibility of renewed clashes along the Thai-Cambodian border in the wake of Hun Sen's remarks.

Villagers’ long march for land rights protest

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 07:58 AM PDT

A group of more than 100 villagers from Kampong Svay district's Sankoa commune protest outside Kampong Thom provincial court. (Photo by: Photo Supplied)

Tuesday, 07 June 2011
May Titthara
The Phnom Penh Post

I would meet with [representatives] but if a throng of villagers comes, I will not find a resolution

More than 100 residents from four villages in Kampong Thom province marched around 30 kilometres from their commune to the provincial court and governor's office yesterday to request the release of a community representative who was arrested in connection with a land dispute, villagers said yesterday.

Ear Sovanna, a resident of Krasainng Khor village in Kampong Svay district's Sankoa commune, said yesterday that 53-year-old Khean Soeun, of Brasat village, was arrested under a court order from provincial prosecutor Pen Sarath for allegedly cursing staff from private company Doung Heng Sengsuna and destroying private property on May 28.

"The villagers just protected plantation land from being cleared, but the court issued an arrest warrant for [Khean Soeun] to be put in prison," he said, adding that residents from Krasainng Khor, Brasat, Sleng Khpors and Chey villages had been affected by the dispute.

Ear Sovanna said that villagers had travelled on foot from their commune and if the court did not release Khean Soeun, they would continue to protest. Demonstrators carried photographs of Prime Minster Hun Sen and banners.

"The law is fair for those who have money, but for the poor, the law does not care or take action," he said.

Choem Sunly, a commune council member who attended the procession, said yesterday that about 225 families had been affected after the company attempted to seize around 1,000 hectares of land this year, but the dispute had been ongoing since 2004.

"The arrest of the villagers' representative is a threat to stop the protests against the company," he said, adding that villagers would not return home unless Khean Soeun was released.

Representatives from Doung Heng Sengsuna Company could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Prosecutor Pen Sarath said yesterday that villagers had protested in front of the provincial governor's office, not in front of the provincial court. "I don't know about the arrest of the villager because another person did it," he said.

Provincial governor Chhun Chhorn said yesterday that he had no power to release Khean Soeun.

"I have settled the problem for 30 families [in the area] already and now others have said that they are affected," he said. "I told two village representatives that I would meet with them, but if a throng of villagers comes, I will not find a resolution for them."

He added that villagers may have taken the company's land and the company may have filed a complaint to apprehend them.

According to figures recorded by local rights group Adhoc and released on Thursday, at least 124 villagers involved in land disputes were summoned to court in the first five months of this year. Of those, 36 were arrested – of whom 18 remain in prison – while 88 escaped arrest.

Hun Sen warns SRP over potential leaks

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 07:53 AM PDT

Comrade Hun Xen (Photo:RFI)

Tuesday, 07 June 2011
Cheang Sokha and Vong Sokheng
The Phnom Penh Post

Ou Virak, president of the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights, said the comments [by Hun Xen] seemed to be a political ''game'' that would "not make [for] strong development of the nation".

Prime Minister Hun Sen has warned the leader of the Sam Rainsy Party that documents relating to secret talks held between the premier and its leader after 2003 are in existence.

The disclosure, made at a graduation ceremony at the Royal School of Administration in Phnom Penh yesterday, follows a leak of a recording late last month of a 2007 discussion involving Human Rights Party. On the recording, its president Ken Sokha can be heard asking Hun Sen for assistance in securing use of the Olympic Stadium for a party conference.

The SRP, the Kingdom's largest opposition party, seized on the recording as evidence of alleged collusion between the two parties and said that flagging negotiations on an SRP-HRP merger would be halted as a result.

Yesterday, Hun Sen insinuated that evidence of a three-hour talk conducted after 2003 with Sam Rainsy was also in existence.

Hun Sen said Sam Rainsy met him at his Takhmao home, in Kandal province, to talk over a potential amendment to the constitution.

The amendment to reduce the required parliamentary majority needed to govern outright from two thirds to 50 percent plus one was passed in 2006 – effectively reducing the CPP's need for a coalition partner.

"With Sam Rainsy [there are] plenty [of documents]. If they were leaked, there would be a bunch," Hun Sen said yesterday, adding he had held many "secret conversations" with Sam Rainsy and Kem Sokha in the past.

"Sam Rainsy – don't forget what you have talked with me [about]," he said.

SRP spokesman Yim Sovann yesterday dismissed any talk of "secret deals" between the SRP and the CPP stating that he was "not interested" in the Prime Minister's statement.

He claimed that the premier was attempting to create an atmosphere of suspicion around the SRP, but party supporters would see through it.

Ou Virak, president of the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights, said the comments seemed to be a political ''game'' that would "not make [for] strong development of the nation".

CAMBODIA-THAILAND: Border dispute hits de-mining efforts

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 07:49 AM PDT

Cambodia is littered with landmines (Photo: Sean Sutton/MAG)

BANGKOK, 7 June 2011 (IRIN) - Cambodia's ongoing border dispute with Thailand is undermining mine-clearance activities inside the country, specialists say.

"The lack of clearance along parts of the border stops the removal of mines, leading to more casualties," Cameron Imber, programme manager for the British demining NGO Halo Trust, told IRIN from the northwestern town of Siem Reap.

The heavily mined border area in the country's northwest includes a 1,065km long minefield known as "K5", which runs along the 798km Thai-Cambodian border. Laid by the north Vietnamese in the mid-1980s, K5 runs all the way from Koh Kong Province in the southwest up to Preah Vihear in the northwest.

Packed with up to 2,400 mines per linear km, K5 remains excluded from mine-removal programmes because the two countries have been at loggerheads over ownership of an ancient Hindu temple and UN World Heritage site on the Cambodian side of the border. Thousands were displaced on both sides earlier this year.

"The suspension of operations on K5 stems from the beginning of hostilities over the Preah Vihear temple dating back to the summer of 2009," Imber said.

Heavy contamination

Since 2007, almost 6,500 landmine casualties have been reported nationwide, 90 percent of which occurred in the border areas. Nearly half, 2,925 casualties, were in the untouched K5 minefield, according to the Landmine Cluster Munition Monitor, an initiative providing research for the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) and the Cluster Munition Coalition.

"K5 is the most densely mine-contaminated area in Cambodia, and one of the most [contaminated] in the world," said Yeshua Moser-Pangsuwan, research coordinator for ICBL, an advocacy network for the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty.

Mined areas within, and directly adjacent to, the disputed border areas are not being cleared because the two countries have been unable to agree where the border is located, Moser-Pangsuwan noted.

"Proposals for joint demining cannot commence until Thailand and Cambodia reach a mutual understanding of the border demarcation," he said.

Delay hinders farming

While in recent years landmine deaths have fallen from more than 1,000 in the early 1990s to 141 in 2010, the delay in mine clearance in the northwest, including K5, continues to hinder access to badly needed farmland.

"Land mine contamination is a huge obstacle for people's livelihoods and their ability to work themselves out of poverty," Jamie Franklin, the Cambodia coordinator for Mines Advisory Group, an international organization dedicated to mine clearance and post-conflict recovery, explained.

In recent years, there has been an increase in impoverished farmers encroaching on mine-infested land. "The people who expand farming to contaminated areas do it out of economic necessity," Imber said.

According to a report by the Cambodia Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority earlier this year, nearly half - 45 percent - of all mine accidents occur during livelihood activities, with 62 percent of those affected men.

"People know the dangers but not having enough to eat will [outweigh] the risk of mines," Franklin said.

Cambodia says troops to remain on border

Posted: 07 Jun 2011 07:43 AM PDT

(UPI NewsTrack) — BANGKOK, June 7 — Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has denied reports that he had agreed to a troop withdrawal from the disputed border with Thailand near the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple.

Thai media reported that Thailand Gen. Wichit Yathip and Sen met before hostilities broke out in February. They agreed both countries should withdraw troops from the disputed area and jointly manage the 1.7-square-mile overlapping border area.

Sen acknowledged that he met with Wichit while the Thai general was visiting Cambodia, attending the wedding of the son of a Cambodian defense minister in Phnom Penh. But Sen said no agreement was made, a report by China's Xinhua news agency said.

"Wichit Yathip just paid a short courtesy call on me and we had not discussed anything concerning the Thai-claimed overlapping area near the temple because Cambodia has never known where the (1.7-square-mile) area is," Sen said.

"Wichit should clarify his remarks."

Sen's remarks come after Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said Cambodia should return to the negotiating table to settle their ongoing border dispute in which a dozen soldiers and civilians on both sides have been killed over the past three months.

Last weekend Abhisit also said Cambodia should withdraw its application for a judicial ruling on ownership.

Cambodia has taken its claim to the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands. It wants the ICJ to rule — again — on the dispute which focuses on access and ownership of land around the 900-year-old Preah Vihear, since 2008 a World Heritage site, in the Dangrek Mountains on the Thai-Cambodia border.

The International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that the temple was on Cambodian land but some access to the mountaintop site passes through Thai territory, a route that Thai troops occasionally seal off.

Fighting has flared in the area within the past several years, notably in October 2008 when two Cambodian troops died and seven Thai troops were wounded in an hourlong gun battle.

The latest series of clashes has been condemned by the United Nations and the regional Association of South East Asian Nations, to which Thailand and Cambodia belong.

Thai and Cambodian field commanders have agreed from time to time on cease-fires but which have usually broken down within hours.

Abhisit said Sen should show good will by withdrawing his country's request that the ICJ reinterpret its 1962 ruling on Preah Vihear temple. "If Cambodia agrees and returns to talks with Thailand, both countries will benefit."

Thailand's Defense Minister Prawit Wongsuwon reiterated his position that the Thai army would withdraw troops from the disputed area if the ICJ orders Cambodia to do the same.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Thani Thongpakdi said Thailand would cooperate fully with the ICJ on any decision it makes.