KI Media: “Tribunal Case Applicant Names Three More Suspects” plus 21 more |
- Tribunal Case Applicant Names Three More Suspects
- Vietnam’s fishermen on front line in China clash [-The Viet gov't has been pushing its fishermen to venture farther offshore, that's why they are fishing inside Cambodia territories!!!]
- Delay temple plan or we walk: Abhist's EMPTY threat?
- Postcard from Cambodia: How a new law threatens Canada’s aid to millions
- Silence of the Lambs: For do-gooder NGOs in Cambodia, accommodation with the regime is very profitable
- Cambodia and the Pitfalls of Political Justice
- Press Release on MP Mu Sokhua's visit to Norway on July 03, 2011
- Ieng Sary demands for a Court explanation as to why it did not summon Hun Xen and Ranaridh to provide testimonials in his case
- Liberal International Calls For The Implementation of The 1991 Paris Agreements on Cambodia
- Protesters block road with house
- Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos speed up border demarcation to create a "triangle economic zone"
- Cheap Labor in China Coming to an End
- Trial Chamber Announces Agenda For Case 002 Initial Hearing
- KRT urged to act on Khmer Krom
- Open Letter to Victims and Civil Party Lawyers: Crime Sites of Case 004
- The Hottest Picture and Debate on Facebook "ជីវិតគ្មានមេបា"
- AKRVC Open Letter to Victims (of Meas Mut, Sou Met, Im Chaem, Ta Tith, Ta An) and Civil Party Lawyers - Crime Sites of Case 004
- The Opening of Vipassana Learning Program at Wat Kirivongsa Bopharam
- OCEC's Bon Phka
- Sva Bet Micro - "The monkey shut the speaker": Poem in Khmer by Kaun Neak Sre
- Cambodia launches campaign to mark national day against dengue
- Judges accused as Pol Pot aides face trial
| Tribunal Case Applicant Names Three More Suspects Posted: 20 Jun 2011 04:30 PM PDT
Monday, 20 June 2011 Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh
Cambodian-American lawyer Seng Theary announced Monday she plans to apply as a civil party for the Khmer Rouge tribunal's Case 004, the second of two controversial cases at the UN-backed court. In so doing, she named three high-level Khmer Rouge cadres, Im Chaem, Ta Tith and Ta Tha, for crimes related to two security centers where up to 30,000 people died. Seng Theary, who is the head of the Association of Khmer Rouge Victims in Cambodia, said she would file her complaint to push the case through the court, which has been accused of dragging its feet on two cases, Nos. 003 and 004. Prime Minister Hun Sen and other Cambodian officials oppose both cases going forward, because they say they could stir up surviving Khmer Rouge members. Court officials have repeatedly denied any political interference. However, investigating judges have come under increased criticism for their handling of cases 003 and 004, even as the court prepares for its first hearing in Case 002, to try four jailed leaders for atrocity crimes. That hearing is scheduled to open June 27. "As you are and will be already congregating in Phnom Penh in the coming days for the opening hearings of Case 002, I request that you take this opportunity also to complete the application for Cases 003 and 004," Seng Theary wrote in an open letter to victims and civil party lawyers. Seng Theary said she was requesting the investigating judges to look into the security centers of Wat Tlork and Boeung Rai, among others. She said her mother had been killed at Boeung Rai, a security center that was "overlooked" by court investigators along with other sites in the Eastern Zone, where "many senior officials of the current Cambodian People's Party were former KR cadres." She also accused the court of failing to investigate the areas because they are "politically sensitive with the current ruling party." Her filing for Case 004 follows a rejection from investigating judges for her application as a participant in Case 003, which she is appealing. Seng Theary incurred a sharp rebuke from the court over that filing, when she named as suspects Khmer Rouge commanders Sou Met and Meas Muth. On Monday, tribunal spokesman Dim Sovannarom said her open letter abused confidentiality principles of the court by naming suspects the tribunal has so far kept anonymous. However, Latt Ky, a tribunal monitor for the rights group Adhoc, said the letter should not be a problem for her and that it served to move the case forward.  | ||||
| Posted: 20 Jun 2011 04:23 PM PDT
 June 20 2011 By Ben Bland in Ly Son island Financial Times When Tran Hien, the 31-year-old captain of a Vietnamese fishing boat, saw a large Chinese vessel while sailing near the disputed Paracel Islands, he knew exactly what was about to happen. Officers from China's fisheries agency boarded his 15m boat and, with neither party able to understand the other's language, confiscated nearly $3,000 worth of fish and equipment. "We were in Vietnamese waters and had every right to be there but there was no way we could outrun them," says Mr Hien of the incident, which took place at about 9am on June 14. Mr Hien is one of dozens of Vietnamese fishermen who have had their equipment, fish or even boats seized by Chinese patrol vessels this year, as tension between the two neighbours over contested waters in the South China Sea boiled over. Hanoi claims that some of its fishermen have been shot at by Chinese patrols and that this harassment of its fishermen is in violation of international law. Beijing maintains that it apprehends only those who have violated its sovereignty or lack the correct licence. ALL AT SEA From the Malvinas to Macedonia, disagreements over geographical names can be the symptom or cause of wider disputes, writes Ben Bland in Ly Son island. The South China Sea is no different. The mere mention of the internationally accepted name for this body of water can rouse the anger of diplomats in Vietnam and the Philippines. Hanoi prefers "East Sea" while Manila calls it the "West Philippine Sea". Ironically, China does not use the term "South China Sea" domestically, dubbing it merely the "South Sea". Further muddying the waters, more than 40,000 people have signed an online petition to change the name to the "South-east Asia Sea". "People may ask 'what's in a name?' " a spokesman for the Philippine armed forces was quoted as saying recently. But, he explained, "when people keep saying that it is the South China Sea, there is a subliminal message" that it belongs to China. This is one of several long-running disputes over fishing grounds in Asia, where freewheeling fishermen with large investments to recoup do not always respect the "exclusive economic zones" laid down in international maritime law. Relations between China and Vietnam, which purport to be "good friends, good neighbours, good comrades", have sunk to their lowest level in recent times following allegations by Vietnam that China has been sabotaging its oil exploration vessels, sparking rare anti-China protests on the streets of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. The disputes in the South China Sea – parts or all of which are also claimed by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Taiwan – may be driven by a variety of factors, including a general disagreement over boundaries and the need to maintain access to commercial sea lanes. Some also believe that the contested Spratly and Paracel islands sit on vast oil and gas reserves, a claim yet unproven. But one big source of tension is the area's status as one of the world's best sources of another key natural resource: fish. About 10 per cent of the global supply of fish comes from these waters, according to the UN Environment Programme, while as many as 1.9m boats regularly fish there, according to Simon Funge-Smith, senior fishery officer at the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation in Bangkok. While China is the world's biggest consumer and exporter of fish, the Vietnamese economy is far more reliant on the industry as a source of revenue. Seafood was the country's second biggest foreign exchange earner last year, accounting for 7 per cent of its $71.6bn of exports. Despite the risks posed by Chinese patrols – not to mention the challenge of sailing the often stormy seas – Mr Hien and his fellow captain, Le Tan, who had his $20,000 boat seized in 2006, have good reasons to keep fishing. They can make decent profits when they bring in good catches of popular export fish such as tuna, grouper and snapper, and they lack options in an area where agriculture is already at full capacity. There is another crucial factor. The Vietnamese government, like others around the region, has been pushing its fishermen to venture farther offshore, to ease the pressure on heavily overexploited coastal fisheries and to back up their territorial claims. If Vietnam acquiesces in the face of Chinese claims, it will be "considered as implicitly recognising China's sovereignty in the disputed areas", Nguyen Dang Thang, a Vietnamese expert in maritime law, wrote in a recent paper for Singapore's S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. Vietnam, like other countries, has provided fuel subsidies to offshore vessels, as well as soft loans and other financial support to boat owners who upgrade their engines. The agriculture ministry is also working on a programme to equip 3,000 of Vietnam's offshore fishing boats with a satellite positioning system. Some analysts have even suggested that the government might be providing direct financial incentives to fishermen who venture into the areas where they are most at risk of being detained by Chinese patrols. Fishermen and local government officials deny that claim. Mr Hien says: "Our life is very difficult and we wish we had more help from the government." "China will keep catching fishermen until it runs out of money, which is never."  | ||||
| Delay temple plan or we walk: Abhist's EMPTY threat? Posted: 20 Jun 2011 02:34 PM PDT Abhisit: Delay temple plan or we walk 21/06/2011 Thanida Tansubhapol Bangkok Post Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva is confident that the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation will postpone consideration of Cambodia's management plan for the disputed border area around the Preah Vihear temple ruins. "We keep talking with Unesco. If they don't postpone it [as we have proposed], they should know that we can no longer work with them," Mr Abhisit said. The premier's remarks came as the Thai delegation, headed by Natural Resources and Environment Minister Suwit Khunkitti, takes part in the annual Unesco meeting in France which began on Sunday and lasts until June 29. Mr Abhisit said Cambodia was the only country that had opposed Thailand's proposal to delay consideration of the management plan. Cambodia's proposed plan, which sets measures to manage the 11th-century Hindu ruins and nearby disputed area of 4.6 sq km, is opposed by Thailand. Bangkok wants the WHC to delay consideration of the plan until border demarcation work is completed. Mr Suwit also expressed confidence that the World Heritage Committee would agree to postpone the plan. Unesco director-general Irina Bokova understands the problem and wants Thailand and Cambodia to jointly seek a solution before seeking consensus from the committee, he said. Thailand yesterday hosted a dinner for the WHC members to seek support to become the host of the annual meeting next year. Cambodia and Russia are also competing to be the host.  | ||||
| Postcard from Cambodia: How a new law threatens Canada’s aid to millions Posted: 20 Jun 2011 02:20 PM PDT
June 20, 2011 By Guest blogger: Siena Anstis "this" Magazine A new law will impair Canadian development investments in Cambodia and tighten its government's grip on civil society. More than two months have passed since the Cambodian government released the second draft of the controversial Law on Associations and Non-Governmental Organizations (known colloquially as the NGO law),and the country's civil society organizations are still holding their collective breath. The government has long called for an NGO law, though no one seems able to articulate exactly why it is needed. Official statements have been all over the map — some say it's needed to control "illegal activities" among NGOs; other say it's to increase transparency; some even say it's necessary to combat terrorism. But the release of the second draft of the law dramatically exposed the government's phony rationalizations. The law, as highlighted in this analysis, is simply a transparent attempt to control independent civil society and stifle dissent. It's also a blatant violation of domestic and international protections on association, assembly and speech. Besides affecting local groups, the passage of this law would significantly undermine the efforts of international donors and NGOs working in Cambodia, including the Canadian International Development Agency. CIDA invested a projected $17.03 million into development programs in the country between 2009-2010. Among other things, the proposed law imposes a burdensome and mandatory registration process onall NGOs and associations working in Cambodia, and outlaws those that don't comply. Meanwhile, it gives authorities unbounded discretion to approve registration applications, with few substantive guidelines to steer their decisions. There is no appeals process if registration is denied. In this way, the new law takes government confrontation of NGOs and associations behind the scenes, out of public view. One paperwork error, real or imagined, and the organization will cease to exist. The proposed law is also sloppy — one example being its apparently unlimited scope. It's unclear whether this aspect was intentional, but the International Centre for Not-for-Profit Law (ICNL) concluded that the law would require "every group of individuals who gather together with a differing level of frequency and perform the broadest variety of imaginable activities, from trekking and football fans, to chess and silk weaving groups," to register. Failing to do so would be a violation of the law. (So would, apparently, founding an NGO or association without the required number of Cambodian citizen "founding members" required by the law — three and 11, respectively). By impairing and even closing down local groups, the law will stifle information needed by funding bodies like CIDA, and make it more difficult to design, implement and monitor development programs. Local groups including informal networks and associations are often the best source for information on the human rights and development landscape. For example, one of CIDA's main development goals in Cambodia is to help increase access to legal land titles, which would strengthen communities' ability to fight land grabbing. Land grabbing is closely tied to government action and without politically independent partners, CIDA's goals will be compromised. Moreover, CIDA endorses the idea that the promotion of civil society is vital in fostering respect for human rights and encouraging development in Cambodia. Canada-registered NGOs working in Cambodia are also concerned. LICADHO Canada, an organization that combats land evictions in Cambodia, says that the draft law, in its current form, would mean that many of the community groups LICADHO Canada works with would be deemed illegal entities and their activities outlawed if the groups refuse to conform to registration requirements. LICADHO Canada is one of several NGOs in the region working to protect communities from land grabbing. It may seem incongruous that the Cambodian government feels compelled to pass a specific law in order to strengthen its grip on civil society. This is a country, after all, where an activist was recently shot dead after helping his community protest a military land grab. Nearly 40 human rights defenders were imprisoned as of November 2010. The authorities are shameless in persecuting those who pose a threat to their grip on power and resources, even in the most minor cases. But the fact that the government feels the need for new legislation indicates that they do indeed have an Achilles heel. Under current law, confronting NGOs is a messy and embarrassing business that often requires trumped-up charges. This tarnishes Cambodia's reputation and threatens the two things that the government really cares about: Western aid money and the international legitimacy that comes with it. Cambodia's leaders don't want the country to become another Burma. (They also need the money; foreign aid still represents half of the national budget). The government's release of the second draft of the law on March 24, 2011, produced an uncharacteristically vocal and unified outcry from local and international civil society organizations. The draft law was universally condemned as the most significant threat to the country's civil society in years. Even Cambodia's major foreign donors chimed in, most notably the United States, which publicly stated that passage of the law in its current state could threaten aid money. While it is too early to tell whether the outcry will ultimately impact the law, there is some reason for optimism. Many expected that the government would push the law through the Council of Ministers and National Assembly immediately after the release of the second draft, as has been done in the past with other controversial legislation. That has yet to happen. It appears now that the backers of this law are regrouping. It is unclear what their next step will be, but this much is certain: continued opposition from Western donors, including CIDA, and international NGOs is key to preserving Cambodia's independent civil society. Canadian taxpayers should also be concerned: if the law passes, the effectiveness of CIDA's $17.03 million investment will be compromised by the Cambodian government's total discretion over the operation of CIDA's local partners. The Cambodian government has played chicken with Western donors before, cynically manipulating their fears — China's growing influence, the prospect of abandoning ordinary Cambodians, and the need to "engage" at all costs — in order to keep the money flowing. Too often it's the donors who flinch. This time should be different. Civil society teeters on the brink, and all of the proverbial chips are on the table. This is not the time to be timid; it's time to call their bluff.  | ||||
| Posted: 20 Jun 2011 01:43 PM PDT For do-gooder NGOs in Cambodia, accommodation with the regime is very profitable. Monday, June 20, 2011 By Ken Silverstein Slate On a typically warm, muggy evening in Phnom Penh earlier this year, I asked a twentysomething British woman for directions to Titanic, a restaurant overlooking the Tonle Sap River. "Why?" she asked. "Because I heard the food was good," I said, somewhat confused. "Oh, because there's a massive party there tonight for the Westerners!" she breathlessly replied. Yes, it's always a fine time to be an expatriate aid worker in Cambodia, where several thousand NGOs and aid organizations operate. By day, swarms of foreign do-gooders clog the streets of Phnom Penh in their company-provided SUVs, and by night they fill bars, restaurants, and nightclubs. Collectively, NGO workers represent a privileged caste, isolated and detached from the people who serve as the objects of their benevolence. It's all reminiscent of those clueless young GOP zealots sent to staff the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq, except the NGO workers in Cambodia aren't peddling Republican philosophy and the American way, but rather the ideology of altruism. Scan the world's hot spots and disaster areas, and you'll invariably find NGOs and advocacy groups living high off the hog from donor money and hyping their causes with artfully presented information designed to prompt people to reach for their checkbooks. Nonprofits rushed in after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, but one survey of 60 U.S. relief organizations found that they had spent less than 40 percent of the $1.4 billion they raised during the first year. Many major projects are still stalled, and around 1 million Haitians live in squalid tent settlements. Many of the billions of dollars allocated to USAID to rebuild Afghanistan never made it to the country, because about half of all funds were handed out to U.S. companies. Meanwhile, USA Today reported that four chief executives of nonprofit corporations delivering U.S. foreign assistance to Afghanistan earned more than $500,000 in 2007. A few years back, a charity called Christian Solidarity International raised huge sums of money (from American schoolchildren, among others) by allegedly freeing Christians in Sudan who were "trafficked" by Arab slavers. The story was largely a fiction. A former CSI staffer told 60 Minutes that a rebel group working closely with the charity rounded up ordinary village children ("instant slaves," he dubbed them) who CSI then bought at mass "redemptions." The Save Darfur movement exaggerated the already egregious crimes of the Sudanese government in the hopes of prompting an international military intervention that would have made the current Libyan quagmire look like a picnic. The point here is not that every seemingly good cause is a fraud and that all international aid groups are poverty pimps (though some certainly are). It's that people should bring the same degree of scrutiny to NGOs as they do to corporations and governments (and the media for that matter). And nowhere is a jaundiced eye more warranted than in examining the do-gooder community of Cambodia. Many billions of dollars of international aid have flowed into Cambodia since the U.N.-organized elections held in 1993, after a long civil war that followed the fall of the Khmer Rouge. The large sums provided by the United States and other Western donors is delivered through and controlled by international aid agencies and NGOs. Over the years, NGOs in Cambodia have cleared landmines and implemented programs to prevent the transmission of HIV/AIDS. There are many excellent international and local NGOs working in Cambodia, among them LICADHO, a civil and political rights group, the Worker Rights Consortium, and Human Rights Watch. London-based Global Witness got kicked out of Cambodia for issuing a series of reports exposing governmental corruption. (Disclosure: I've written investigative reports for two of these groups, on topics unrelated to Cambodia, and am friends with people at all four.) Prime Minister Hun Sen's regime has put forth a draft law that would require NGOs working in Cambodia to complete a complex registration process and "gives authorities unbounded discretion to approve or deny registration applications," according to Jeff Vize of LICADHO. Human rights groups and Western governments are up in arms about the law, as they should be. Hun Sen has said it is needed to keep terrorists from setting up shop in Cambodia "under the guise of NGOs," but his government clearly wants to use it against the relatively small number of groups that criticize his government. But a terrible draft law doesn't turn charity workers into saints. Many Cambodian NGOs have followed a path familiar to observers in other parts of the world. After arriving to provide immediate relief, they gradually transform themselves into survival-focused grant-proposal-writing shops chasing dollars and holding PowerPoint-heavy workshops on "empowerment," "governance," "capacity-building," and other empty buzz phrases. Meanwhile, a 2006 story in the Australian charged that a great deal of Australia's aid to Cambodia was wasted, because as much as 80 percent of it "goes straight out again in the form of high expatriate salary packages and running costs." The story said that country directors of prominent international charities in Cambodia received compensation packages worth as much as $250,000, which included large villas in Phnom Penh's upscale "NGO-ville" area, four-wheel-drive vehicles, and an assortment of other perks. A 2005 report by Action Aid said that in a single year, 700 top international consultants in Cambodia were paid an average of around $100,000. Their combined haul was roughly as much as the entire annual wage bill for 160,000 Cambodian civil servants. "Instead of transferring skills to Cambodian staff, their time is spent writing reports or doing jobs which they should be training local staff to carry out," the report said. Lower-level NGO staffers, who often rotate through on short postings and spend a good chunk of their time partying, also do reasonably well. "Aid work is often much less about noble self-sacrifice and much more about getting hooked up with a dank salary and some pretty sweet perks," says a post at a website called Stuff Expat Aid Workers Like. "By 'dank salary,' we are talking by Western standards. By local standards, we might just call that a 'small fortune.' " Among the more prominent (and best-paying) NGOs in Cambodia are the mainstream green organizations. They are also among the most powerful because government ministries dealing with environmental issues are typically underbudgeted and understaffed, so NGOs effectively fund and manage key agencies. During recent years, the Cambodian government has sold off vast swaths of land, some publicly owned, including protected areas, and some seized from the urban and rural poor. In the process, hundreds of thousands of people have been forcibly evicted from their homes. These deals have been a goldmine for Cambodian oligarchs and foreign investors, who have bought up some of the country's most beautiful areas and prime urban real estate. You'd expect that international green groups might have a lot to say about this tragedy. You'd be wrong. "The major environmental organizations have kept a near absolute silence over the ongoing land crisis, both in terms of human impact and impact on the protected areas they are working in," says a longtime consultant in Cambodia. Conservation International lauds the Cambodian government on its website for "invest[ing] in research and monitoring of protected areas." The site also highlights a 2007 mission during which CI helicoptered a team of scientists into Virachey National Park, where they spent 15 days merrily traipsing about while cataloging species of ants and katydids. This was about the same time that Hun Sen's regime was awarding an Australian mining company exploratory rights to more than half of the park, one of Cambodia's two ASEAN Heritage Parks. Earlier this year, the government awarded another chunk of the park to a private company for a rubber plantation. In February, the government awarded a big concession in an environmentally sensitive area of Koh Kong province to a private company exploring for titanium. "Realistically, if it's economically really valuable, we should support it and make it happen in the best way possible," David Emmett, CI's regional director, told the local press about the deal. Wildlife Alliance also works closely with the government. In 2004, Hun Sen bestowed a gold medal on its CEO, Suwanna Gauntlett, for her devotion to endangered species and biodiversity. WA says on its website that it works with villagers who "once were forced to roam the forest as hunters and loggers, diminishing Cambodia's environmental heritage, [and who] now have legal jobs as guides and operators of sustainable trekking, mountain-biking, and river boat tours." In other words, people who once lived in the forest now hold low-paid jobs serving at the beck and call of foreign tourists who float down waterways and hike in woods that the villagers have long called home. "The wholesale destruction of Cambodia's environment is an important issue, but hunting and poaching by people eking out an existence in the forest isn't the problem," says a Western expatriate with extensive experience in land issues. "The primary causes are the government issuing massive land concessions to developers and wide-scale logging." (According to Global Witness, the country's most powerful logging syndicate is led by relatives of Hun Sen and other senior officials.) Another WA mission involves protecting the rain forest of the Southern Cardamom Mountain Range. As part of that effort, the group's staffers have swooped in by helicopter with Forestry Administration officials who kick out destitute peasants living in the woods and in some cases dismantle and burn their homes, according to the Phnom Penh Post. "They are not people-friendly," the longtime consultant says of WA, "but the trees and animals are all safe." WA has herded peasants into community agriculture projects linked to its ecotourism ventures. Peasants at one community called Sovanna Baitong benefited with access to education and health care, but some told the Post they felt "trapped in a state of indentured servitude" and had been threatened with expulsion if they refused to work on plots they had been allocated. "I experienced three years and eight months of the Khmer Rouge regime, and this is similar because they ordered us to work like we are in a totalitarian state," said one. "It is really miserable to live there." "There is a percentage of families that are not very keen on agriculture," Gauntlett acknowledged to the Post. "You can bring the cow to water, but you can't drink for it." WA has protested development projects that have had a direct impact on its programs in Cambodia, including the above-mentioned titanium project in Koh Kong, which Hun Sen canceled two months ago. Gauntlett issued a statement hailing the prime minister for having "looked so deeply into this proposed titanium mine and taken the effort to weigh the consequences that this project would have on the rainforest and the local people." Gauntlett declined to comment for this story, but WA provided a general response: "The blame game doesn't work for groups like us inside Cambodia. We have to be careful and build alliances that are sometimes uncomfortable. It's delicate because the government can shut down an NGO whenever it wants. But we work on the inside, quietly, and get things done. We've been able to get things done and reverse concessions by working quietly inside the government and reminding it of its own legal obligations." I spent two days in Sihanoukville, a seedy but gorgeous coastal town whose beaches and islands have been sold off by the government to developers allegedly planning eco-friendly luxury hotel and condominium projects. "Those who lived or worked there were turfed out—some jailed, others beaten, virtually all denied meaningful compensation," said a 2008 story in the Guardian. The newspaper quoted a British property developer, Marty Kaye, who said, "Nowhere else in the world could you create your own kingdom from scratch. … It's fantastically exciting, the opportunity to zone [a] whole island, to see where the luxury exclusive villa plots will be, for the Brad Pitts, etc." The developers need green consultants to navigate the local scene and to write environmental-impact assessments that are supposed to ensure that their projects are eco-friendly. International NGOs have been happy to oblige, among them Fauna and Flora International, which has "built strong relationships" with the Cambodian government. FFI's website says that its activities have served to protect the environment "whilst building good governance and alleviating poverty." In 2008, a Hong Kong-based investment company called Lime Tree Capital was awarded a 99-year lease on an island near Sihanoukville called Koh Rung Sangleum, which it plans to fully develop with resorts and hotels. The only problem was that the island was home to a fishing village with 92 families, which was a nuisance for Lime Tree. Lime Tree hired FFI as its eco-consultant, and the NGO dispatched several staffers to the island (where they spent a large part of their time snorkeling with a local diving company, sources told me). FFI apparently provided Lime Tree with a development-friendly report, because the company subsequently filed a master plan saying there was little biodiversity on the island and hence not much to conserve. According to a story in the Phnom Penh Post, FFI staffers made a later trip to the island and told villagers they would be restricted to a tiny 12.3-hectare piece of land and ordered them to immediately stop cutting down trees and constructing any new buildings. Villagers complained to the local government about Lime Tree's plans, leading the company to rethink its initial proposal and offer a better deal to local people. Eighty villagers signed a document (with their thumbprints) demanding the removal of FFI's lead staffer on the project, saying he had lied to them about how much forest and village land would be conserved under Lime Tree's proposal. Ally Catterick of FFI said in an email that her group takes "a practical approach to engagement and work with a diverse range of organisations, including some sectors and companies that have traditionally had a significant impact on biodiversity but have committed to improving." She said FFI's objective in the island project was "to conserve the biodiversity" and "assist local communities to use the natural resources of the ecosystems sustainably." Catterick declined to disclose how much FFI was paid by Lime Tree, saying it "cannot disclose contractual remuneration for our services without the agreement of the contractor." The complicity of the greens is matched by NGOs operating in other areas, including anti-poverty outfits. "The NGOs desperately want access and the basic equation is that the government grants it to them in exchange for their silence about corruption or anything else remotely controversial," says the Western expatriate who has worked on land issues. "At a certain point you have to ask yourself, 'Where is this going, and what are we accomplishing?' "  | ||||
| Cambodia and the Pitfalls of Political Justice Posted: 20 Jun 2011 01:25 PM PDT June 20, 2011 By PETER MAGUIRE International Herald Tribune Op-Ed Contributor The New York Times If Cambodia's E.C.C.C. cannot try the surviving Khmer Rouge leaders before they die, the "mixed tribunal" should be considered an expensive farce never to be tried again. WILMINGTON, NORTH CAROLINA — The trial of surviving leaders of the Khmer Rouge will begin in Phnom Penh on Monday. The fact that the case has even made it this far is a minor miracle to those of us who were in Cambodia during the 1990s, when the defendants' amnesties seemed secure. The court — the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (E.C.C.C.), better known as the "mixed tribunal" — has charged, with various counts of war crimes, the former head of state, Khieu Samphan; Nuon Chea, described as the movement's ideologue; Ieng Sary, the foreign minister; and his wife, Ieng Thirith, who was minister of social affairs. Even a longtime critic like myself must give credit to the court and the devoted investigators who worked for decades to bring the Khmer Rouge leaders to justice. But a conflict between an E.C.C.C. prosecutor and the investigative judges over another possible trial is undermining the case. This is the court's second case — and the most significant it will ever try. After Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia announced that this trial would be the E.C.C.C.'s last, U.N. investigative judges seemed to lose interest in a third case against other high-ranking Khmer Rouge members. Internal strife ensued and some foreign members of the legal staff resigned. Next week's trial, known as Case Two, will now take place amid accusations of political interference and of U.N. incompetence. In the wake of Hun Sen's declaration it was the British prosecutor Andrew Cayley who challenged the U.N.'s investigative judges to be more aggressive in pursing a third trial, and the fallout led to the resignation of the staff members. Although the U.N. denies that politics played any role in their decision, no amount of procedural correctness can spare the Cambodian court from the inevitable pitfalls of political justice. Many in the United Nations and the human-rights industry would like us to believe that a war crimes trial is a simple application of laws to facts, but nothing could be further from the truth. From Nuremberg to Tokyo to The Hague to Arusha to East Timor, political justice was and will always be a strange admixture of law and politics that is in a constant state of flux. Anyone with even a passing knowledge of Cambodia knows that thousands of the Khmer Rouge's killers will never be brought to justice. Neither the E.C.C.C. nor the U.N. has earned the right to act with anything but humility, given their performances to date. Not only did the U.N. allow the Khmer Rouge to hold Cambodia's General Assembly seat after it was ousted in 1979, during the 1992-3 occupation of the country by the U.N. Transitional Authority in Cambodia, the organization failed to end the civil war, capture the Khmer Rouge leaders, hold a credible election or even mention war crimes in the final treaty restoring Cambodian sovereignty. The E.C.C.C. has not done much better: It has spent five years and approximately $100 million to convict a single death camp commandant named Kaing Guek Eav, better known as Brother Duch, in the simplest war crimes trial since Einsatzgruppen leader Otto Ohlendorf was tried at Nuremberg in 1947-8. Although Duch freely admitted his guilt and there was a paper trail linking him to the killings at Tuol Sleng prison, the trial still took eight months and was grossly overcomplicated by a distraction called "the victims unit." In a country where thieves are routinely beaten to death by angry mobs, many Cambodians were baffled when Duch's sentence was reduced to 19 years. Because the E.C.C.C. and its many boosters promised things that no trial could deliver and oversold the therapeutic benefits of war crimes trials, they have run head on into the limits of the possible. There is no empirical evidence to support the idea that trials lead to "truth," "reconciliation" and "healing." In the end, the most anyone can expect from a war crimes trial is that the guilty will be punished and the innocent exonerated. As Otto Kirchheimer pointed out in his classic study "Political Justice," "Circumstantial and contradictory, the linkage of politics and justice is characterized by both promise and blasphemy" — precisely the place where the E.C.C.C. stands today. Even if the there is no third case, a credible trial of Khieu Samphan, Ieng Sary, Noun Chea and Ieng Thirith, would make it possible to overlook the court's many failings. If Cambodia's E.C.C.C. cannot try the surviving Khmer Rouge leaders before they die, the "mixed tribunal" should be considered an expensive farce never to be tried again. Peter Maguire is the author of "Facing Death in Cambodia" and "Law and War: International Law and American History." He has taught the law and theory of war at Bard College and Columbia University.  | ||||
| Press Release on MP Mu Sokhua's visit to Norway on July 03, 2011 Posted: 20 Jun 2011 09:58 AM PDT Dear colleagues and friends, On Sunday evening, July 03, 2011, SRP Norway will organize a Welcome Party for MP Mu Sokhua during her planned visit Kristiansand City, South of Norway. She will also visit Latvia and SRP activists in Finland before arriving in Norway. Please refer to the attached Press Release release dated June 19, 2011 (in Khmer) Best, SRP Norway   | ||||
| Posted: 20 Jun 2011 09:44 AM PDT
The Free Press Magazine Online Translated from Khmer by Soy Click here to read the original article in Khmer At a time when the preliminary hearing for Case 002 is approaching during next week, lawyers representing Ieng Sary, the former minister of Foreign Affairs of the KR regime, sent a request to the KR Tribunal (KRT) demanding that it provides an explanation as to why it did not summon Hun Xen and Ranariddh to provide testimonials in the upcoming hearing. Ieng Sary's lawyers raised in their letter that the KRT judges should confirmed the timing for all witnesses to provide their testimonials, and that it should explain the reason why theses witnesses were not summoned to the court for next week. Last month, Ieng Sary's lawyers asked the court to summon Hun Xen, Ranariddh, former King Norodom Sihanouk and Chea Xim to provide their testimonials during next week's hearing about the government goal in providing amnesty to him. Starting since 2008, Ieng Sary's defense lawyers have argued that their client cannot be at fault because he received an amnesty in 1996 from the government in which Ranariddh was the first prime minister and Hun Xen, the second prime minister. The amnesty was granted after the KR soldiers surrendered themselves. Nevertheless, the KR co-prosecutors opposed Ieng Sary's lawyers' claim, stating that his amnesty does not protect him from International criminal law and that amnesty for crimes such as genocide is not recognized by the International law.  | ||||
| Liberal International Calls For The Implementation of The 1991 Paris Agreements on Cambodia Posted: 20 Jun 2011 09:19 AM PDT 20 June 2011 LIBERAL INTERNATIONAL CALLS FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE 1991 PARIS AGREEMENTS ON CAMBODIA A SRP delegation composed of elected Members of Parliament Sam Rainsy, Yim Sovann, Son Chhay, Kuoy Bunroeun and Tioulong Saumura, is currently in Manila, The Philippines, to attend the 57th Congress of Liberal International (LI) from 16 to 20 June 2011. http://www.liberal-international.org/ On 18 June, opposition leader Sam Rainsy was received at the Malacanang presidential palace by President Benigno Simeon Aquino III for a face to face meeting on the sidelines of a reception in honor of the LI delegates from all over the world. MPs Sam Rainsy, Son Chhay and Tioulong Saumura took the floor several times during the Congress to speak about the Congress theme "Human Rights and Trade," but also about the Arab spring, People Power and other topics related to freedom, democracy and development. On 19 June, saying "the worst regimes in terms of crimes and impunity are those whose autocratic leaders have been in power for the longest period of time," Sam Rainsy called for the formation of a "Peoples' alliance for the removal of multi-decade dictators." He associated Cambodia's Hun Sen (32 years in power) with Tunisia's Ben Ali (removed after 24 years in power), Egypt's Hosni Mubarak (removed after 30 years in power), Libya's Muammar Gaddafi (to be removed after 42 years in power), Yemen's Ali Abdullah Saleh (to be removed after 33 years in power) and Syria's Bashar al-Assad (to be removed after 40 years of dictatorship including his father Hafez al-Assad's 29-year reign). In the presidential speech and closing remarks, LI President and Member of the European Parliament Hans van Baalen mentioned the case of Cambodia by saying, "As President of Liberal International, I ask that the international community observes its obligation that derives from the 1991 Paris Peace Agreement on Cambodia of which they are the signatories, in particular in ensuring the safe return to his country of Opposition Leader Sam Rainsy before the 2012 election and the effective implementation of reforms to the election system as recommended by the UN, the European Union and civil society groups." SRP Cabinet  | ||||
| Protesters block road with house Posted: 20 Jun 2011 09:12 AM PDT Monday, 20 June 2011 May Titthara The Phnom Penh Post More than 1,000 villagers from Kratie and Mondulkiri provinces blocked National Road 76 with a house yesterday in protest over a land dispute. Villagers from Pi Thnou commune in Kratie province's Snuol district and Mondulkiri province's Keo Seima district – who joined the protest to support Kratie villagers – demonstrated in Pi Thnou commune yesterday morning to request that the Sovann Vuthy Company stop clearing land in the commune. The residents transported a house into the road but agreed to re-open the throughfare about midday after company representatives removed machinery from the village. Snuol district governor Ie Sovann said yesterday the Sovann Vuthy Company had received a 7,250-hectare economic land concession from the government in 2009 to grow rubber trees. He added that the firm was only attempting to clear land for villagers in accordance with a government policy that awarded 2,250 hectares of the concession to affected residents, but it had sparked community concern. Mam Hai, 26, a villager from Pi Thnou commune, said yesterday the company had not listened to the villagers' request to remove the machinery until demonstrators blocked the road. "They said they had received an economic land concession from the government, but they don't have any documentation to show us, so the vill-agers tried to protest," Mam Hai said. Since the beginning of last year, there had been 15 cases of villagers blocking roads in nine provinces in an attempt to resolve land disputes, Ouch Leng, head of the land programme at rights group Adhoc, said yesterday. "Even though they know the road closure affects travellers and they face legal action, they still do it, because they have no hope in a government that does not tackle land disputes on time," he said. Contact details for the Sovann Vuthy Company were not available.  | ||||
| Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos speed up border demarcation to create a "triangle economic zone" Posted: 20 Jun 2011 08:55 AM PDT
Monday, 20 June 2011 By Khmerization Source: FPMOnline Click here to read the original article in Khmer The Cambodian, Vietnamese and Laotian governments are speeding up border demarcations between the three countries in order to create a "triangle economic zone" on the border in Cambodia's Ratanakiri province. The agreement draws strong criticism from the Cambodian oppositions as they think that to demarcate the borders in such a hurry, without proper consultation and studies, would cause Cambodia to lose territory. Last Thursday, 16th June, the Cambodian parliament voted to support the agreement with 83 MPs out of 100 MPs attended supporting it. Mr. Var Kimhong, Cambodian chairman of Border Committee, said this is a historic agreement. "This convention is the fairest basis for the three countries to create a peaceful and cooperative triangle economic zone", he said. Mr. Var Kimhong said Cambodia had already planted 229 border posts out of 272 posts to be planted along the Cambodian-Vietnamese border. He also said that Cambodia had already planted 121 border posts out of 148 posts to be planted along the Cambodian-Laotian border. Mrs. Ke Sovannaroth, Secretary General of the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, said the party opposed the agreement because it has received reports from border villagers who had complained of losing their lands to Vietnam due to the demarcations. "We cannot spend only one hour to decide on the future of our country. We don't support it. We want to ask His Excellency Var Kimhong to show how many square kilometres of territory Cambodia still has", she said. In the past, the ruling Cambodian People's Party, which holds the majority in the parliament, had voted to ratify the controversial 1985 supplemental treaty in 2005 which the oppositions and critics said had ceded large territory to Vietnam because the 1985 treaty was signed at a time when Cambodia was under the occupation of the Vietnamese forces and as such it was signed under duress.  | ||||
| Cheap Labor in China Coming to an End Posted: 20 Jun 2011 08:49 AM PDT June 20, 2011 Tiffany Kaiser DailyTech.com Years ago, several U.S. manufacturers moved production plants to China in an effort to cut labor costs. However, the age of cheap labor in China is ending as annual wages for manufacturing workers continue to grow, and now, some of the larger plants in China are looking for a new home. Originally, toys, footwear, and textiles were among the first to go to China decades ago. With 1.3 billion people, cheap labor in China seemed unlimited at the time. But in the last two decades, this began to change as a "frenzied" infrastructure and housing build-out caused a flourishing economy that has grown nearly 12 percent per year. In addition, the Chinese government raised the minimum wage 14 percent to 21 percent this year alone in the five largest manufacturing provinces. "We've seen our wage costs in China go up nearly 50 percent in the last two years alone," said Charles Hubbs of Guangzhou Fortunique, which is a medical supply company for some of the United States' largest health care companies. "It's harder to keep workers on now, and it's more expensive to attract new ones. It's gotten to the point where I'm actively looking for alternatives. I think I'll be out of here entirely in a couple of years." But where will plants go to next? Countries like India, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam are a few options for cheap labor. Also, some companies like Wham-O, a toy company, are returning to the U.S. Last year, Wham-O moved 50 percent of its Frisbee and Hula Hoop production to the U.S. According to a study by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), China's average wage rate was 36 percent of the United States' in 2000, and by the end of 2010, this "gap" shrunk to 48 percent. By 2015, BCG predicts it will be 69 percent. "So while the discussion in the short term favors China, the spread is getting down to a smaller and smaller number," said Hal Sirkin, leader of the study and senior partner at BCG. "Increasingly, what you're seeing [in corporate boardrooms] is a discussion not necessarily about closing production in China but about 'Where I will locate my next plant?'" Production in China will not close entirely for most companies because even though labor costs have increased, they're still cheaper than most other places. Right now, the average manufacturing wage in China is about $3.10 an hour, while it is $22.30 in the United States. In the eastern part of China, it is about 50 percent more than the average $3.10 wage elsewhere. China sees this new shift as a good thing. After the Foxconn suicides and high-profile labor protests last year, wages were increased. Also, many multinational and Chinese companies have relocated or even expanded inland for cheap labor, meaning that people in Henan or Sichuan can find jobs closer to home and do not have to live in a company dormitory. Manufacturing workers, like 24-year-old Wu Dingli, say they prefer working closer to home, even if it means making a bit less money than jobs further away. "Life is much easier for me here because I'm closer to home," said Dingli, who left an electronics factory job in Dongguan for a electric cable supply job in Chongqing. "I much prefer this job to the old one." In addition to making life easier for employees, rising wages will give more money to the people, which will in turn increase Chinese consumption. This will benefit Beijing's major trading partners, who can then decrease "drastic imbalances" in global trade. While exporters like Hubbs will feel the effect of higher wages, the bottom line is that China is becoming wealthier with a stronger currency, and the time of cheap labor is coming to an end.  | ||||
| Trial Chamber Announces Agenda For Case 002 Initial Hearing Posted: 20 Jun 2011 08:35 AM PDT  TRIAL CHAMBER ANNOUNCES AGENDA FOR CASE 002 INITIAL HEARING The Trial Chamber of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia has announced that the Initial Hearing in the court's second case scheduled for 27th - 30th June will begin at 9 am and close 4 pm every day and will hear oral argument on preliminary objections among others. Mo. 27 June 9:00 – 16:00
Tu. 28 June 9:00 – 16:00
W. 29 June 9:00 – 16:00
Th. 30 June 9:00 – 16:00
For more details of the agenda, please see the Agenda for Initial Hearing: Following the Initial Hearing, the Trial Chamber will determine the final list of witnesses and experts for the early phases of the trial, and will schedule the commencement of the hearing of the substance at a later date. In addition, the Trial Chamber may schedule further hearings in August 2011 prior to the commencement of the hearing of the substance. Further details regarding these hearings will follow in due course. Guidance for Visitors The Initial Hearing in June is open to the public. In order to ensure order in the court during the hearing, the court has made tentative seating arrangements for the 482-seat public gallery. Forty seats are reserved for individual members of the public while 100 seats are booked for Civil Parties and another 220 seats for groups of ordinary Cambodians as arranged and escorted by the ECCC. A number of seats are also reserved for NGO partners, diplomats, government officials and distinguished scholars. Advance registration is required for all except individual members of the public. Please contact: pas@eccc.gov.com. The deadline for registration is Monday 20 June. The ECCC recommends visitors arrive at the security gate between 7:30 and 8:00 am in order to leave enough time for security checking and issuance of tickets. Doors to the courtroom will close by 8:45 am or when all seats in the public gallery are fully occupied. Please kindly be advised that all visitors are required to present an ID (including a photo) at the gate. No persons under 16 years of age will be admitted to the court and persons 16 – 18 years will be admitted only with the guardian ship of an adult. Visitors shall maintain dignity and proper behaviour at all times and shall wear appropriate clothing. No mobile phones, large bags, food or drink are permitted in the public gallery. The ECCC is located in Chaom Chau, Phnom Penh, 16 km away from the downtown on National Road 4 toward Sihanoukville. Public and media, please enter from the Visitors Gate at the eastern end of the compound. Parking will be provided for visitors with their own vehicles. Media Advisory Advance registration and accreditation is required for all media representatives who wish to be granted access to the ECCC on 27-30 June 2011. The following procedure will apply for media representatives seeking access to the ECCC for the initial hearing:
Media Accreditation Form, a jpg portrait photo and a copy of passport together with their request for registration to pas@eccc.gov.kh The media accreditation form can be downloaded from the ECCC website: Up to 30 seats in the public gallery of the courtroom have been reserved for representatives of the media. Priority will be given to print media. The remaining media representatives will be accommodated in the media room on the ground floor. Media representatives who wish to be allocated a seat in the public gallery should submit a request for seat reservation by 20 June. Deadline for media registration and accreditation requests: Wednesday 22 June 2011 For information on services and facility for the media, please go to: The ECCC will open the facility for the media who wish to set up equipment on the weekend of 25-26 June and hold a pre-hearing briefing at 2 pm on Sunday 26 June.  | ||||
| KRT urged to act on Khmer Krom Posted: 20 Jun 2011 08:18 AM PDT
Monday, 20 June 2011 James O'Toole The Phnom Penh Post Lawers representing Khmer Krom civil parties at Cambodia's war crimes tribunal have praised Andrew Cayley, the court's international co-prosecutor, for making a submission in relation to their clients in the tribunal's controversial fourth case. The lawyers cautioned, however, that Case 004 appeared in danger of being scuttled under pressure from the Cambodian government, and urged the court's investigating judges to follow through on the investigation. In a statement issued on Thursday, Cayley announced he had filed a "supplementary submission" in Case 004, expanding on the alleged crimes initially submitted to the judges for investigation. This supplementary submission, Cayley said, included "crimes committed against the Khmer Krom population in Takeo and Pursat provinces, based primarily on civil party applications, complaints and other new evidence". In their own statement on Friday, a group of lawyers led by Mahdev Mohan of Singapore Management University said Cayley had "lived up to his word" in bringing evidence about their clients' suffering before the court. They urged co-investigating judges Siegfried Blunk of Germany and You Bunleng of Cambodia to "thoroughly examine the considerable evidence that has been put before them". "Our clients' evidence bridges a missing link in the evidence that the court currently has and sheds light on why the Pol Pot regime killed Khmers," Mohan said in the statement. "After all they have endured, the Khmer Krom's evidence should be presented, not swept under the carpet." "Khmer Krom" is a term for ethnic Khmer with roots in Southern Vietnam. Genocide charges have been brought in the court's upcoming second case in relation to the regime's treatment of Cham Muslims and ethnic Vietnamese, though not the Khmer Krom. There remains considerable doubt, however, about whether Case 004, involving a trio of mid-level Khmer Rouge cadres, will ever make it to trial. The Cambodian government has long been against prosecutions beyond Case 002, and in April, the co-investigating judges announced the conclusion of their Case 003 investigation despite not having questioned the suspects involved. This has fuelled allegations that the judges deliberately botched their investigation as part of a pre-planned dismissal of the case, and that Case 004 may be headed for the same fate. Staff from the investigating judges' office have begun resigning in protest in recent weeks over the judges' apparent inaction in Case 003. In a resignation letter last month, noted Khmer Rouge-era historian Stephen Heder, formerly a consultant to the investigating judges, spoke of the "toxic atmosphere" in their office, saying it had become "professionally dysfunctional". He said the judges had closed Case 003 "effectively without investigating it".  | ||||
| Open Letter to Victims and Civil Party Lawyers: Crime Sites of Case 004 Posted: 20 Jun 2011 07:54 AM PDT | ||||
| The Hottest Picture and Debate on Facebook "ជីវិតគ្មានមេបា" Posted: 20 Jun 2011 12:59 AM PDT  Facebook: Khmer Sovannaphumi 1. កើតមកជាមនុស្ស ប្រាថ្នាសូមរស់ មានសុខសេរី មានលំនៅដ្ឋាន សិទ្ធិបាយឆី កិត្តិយសថ្លាថ្លៃ កូនបានសិក្សា។ 2. តែសែនតូចចិត្ត បំណងជីវិត រលាយអស់រ៉ា ខ្ញុំរស់កំសត់ ព្រាត់ក្រុមគ្រួសារ ជីវិតវេទនា ដើរសុំទានគេ។ 3. ជីវិតសែងត្រែង កណ្តោចកណ្តែង រស់ដូចគ្មានមេ គ្មានស្រុកគ្មានទេស គ្មានអ្នកមើលថែ ដូចសត្វរំពេ ហោះហើររាល់ថ្ងៃ។ 5. ពេលឃ្លានដើរសុំ មិនថាតូចធំ ក្រែងគេប្រណី ក្រែងបានចំអែត ក្រពះរីងរៃ បន្តសង្ខ័យ ទៅថ្ងៃស្អែកទៀត។ 6. ដើរសុំមិនឈប់ ទោះថ្ងៃទោះយប់ ជីវិតត្រូវឆ្លៀត ទោះភ្លៀងទោះផ្គរ ត្រូវតែខ្មីឃ្មាត ព្រោះជាលទ្ធភាព ដែលខ្ញុំធ្វើបាន។ 7. មេឃដីជាផ្ទះ ដាក់ខ្លួនដេកប្រាស់ ប្រៀបលំនៅដ្ឋាន មិនខ្វល់លោកា អ្នកណារំខាន សុបិន្តបានទាន បាយហូបស្កប់ស្កល់។ 8. ឳ!អ្នកដឹកនាំ កាលណាឃើញខ្ញុំ រងទុក្ខអំពល់ ឲ្យផ្ទះឲ្យដី លោកប្លន់គ្មានសល់ ជួយផ្គត់ផ្គង់ផ្តល់ ឲ្យខ្ញុំសុខវិញ។ ដោយ៖ខ្មែរ សុវណ្ណភូមិ (កុលបុត្រ) ថ្ងៃទី១៨ខែមិថុនាឆ្នាំ២០១១ The debate is still going on, spreading to many others, and get the reaction from Mr. Khiev Kanharith, Minister of Information, on his Faceook page  | ||||
| Posted: 20 Jun 2011 12:02 AM PDT  20 June 2011, Phnom Penh Open Letter to Victims (of Meas Mut, Sou Met, Im Chaem, Ta Tith, Ta An) and Civil Party Lawyers Crime Sites of Case 004 for Civil Party Applications Dear Concerned KR Victims and Civil Party Lawyers: We need to hear your voices and testimonies in Case 003 against Khmer Rouge Military Commanders Meas Mut and Sou Met and Case 004 against KR district chief Im Chaem, KR Zone Deputy Secretaries Ta An and Ta Tith. My Application against Im Chaem, Ta Tith, Ta An As I am awaiting the appeal decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber regarding my application against Meas Mut and Sou Met, I am submitting another application against Im Chaem, Ta Tith and Ta An later today or tomorrow to the Co-Investigating Judges of the Extraordinary Chambers (ECCC) for the mass crimes during the capture and exodus of Phnom Penh in 1975, and of the East Zone purges in 1977-78 and during their forays into Vietnam across the East Zone. In particular, I am requesting that the Co-Investigating Judges investigate these Charged Persons' (especially Ta Tith and Ta An) culpability in relation to the crime sites of Wat Tlork Security Center (a crime site of Case 002) and Boeung Rai Security Center (where 20,000-30,000 were believed to be killed but only cursorily mentioned with a sentence or two in the Closing Order of Case 002). The East Zone because of its proximity to Vietnam is notorious for the internal wholesale purges of villages as well as for the war crimes waged against Khmer Kampuchea Krom in southern Vietnam. These purges and war crimes were conducted by Ta Mok and his military clan, e.g. Ta An, Ta Tith, Meas Mut etc. The fact that many senior officials of the current Cambodian People's Party were former KR cadres of the East Zone (particularly Svay Rieng and Prey Veng) should not keep the ECCC from investigating the countless execution sites and security centers located there. One ECCC official confirmed my suspicion that one reason for the very few crime sites in Svay Rieng and Prey Veng (only 2-3!) within the scope of investigations for all four Cases is because the ECCC did not want to venture into areas which are politically sensitive with the current ruling party. The fact that Boeung Rai Security Center, where 20,000-30,000 people were killed, including my mother, was overlooked in the investigation and only mentioned marginally as a result of my public request substantiates this view. Additionally, as close associates and family members with high military ranking of the butcher Ta Mok, these Charged Persons in Case 004 most likely played an active role and bear highest responsibility in the capture and exodus of Phnom Penh in 1975. Genocide and Crimes against Humanity Offend the Moral Intuition of EVERYONE Overall, they are charged with "Crimes against Humanity" – crimes not only against tens of thousands perished within their physical environs and family members like myself, crimes not only against Cambodians generally, but crimes against HUMANITY! In this sense, every human being (an American, a French, an Indian, a Filipino, etc.) who is deeply offended by the assault on their humanity and dignity arguable is a direct legal victim and should retain a very proactive lawyer also to file on his/her behalf. Opportune Time to File Cases 003/004 Applications on the Advent of Case 002 As you are and will be already congregating in Phnom Penh in the coming days for the opening hearings of Case 002, I request that you take this opportunity also to complete the application for Cases 003 and 004. In light of the information provided by the International Co-Prosecutor, by KI-Media and other press coverage, by my own inquiries (in particular the below list of crime sites implicating Im Chaem, Ta Tith, Ta An), the conditions are prime and favorable for the filing of applications for both Cases 003 and 004. Case 003 Filing The conditions are more restrictive now to file in Case 003 but the window of opportunity is still there, even if narrow. The Pre-Trial Chamber has yet to decide on the appeals of my and Rob Hamill's applications; the Co-Investigating Judges have yet to reject the other hundred-plus civil party applications; the CIJs have been discredited and publicly marginalized whereby with your growing voice and advocacy, the space and time for filing could be greatly expanded, etc. The list of crime sites are found in the International Co-Prosecutor public announcement supplemented more completely by excerpts of the actual Case 003 Introductory Submission posted by KI-Media. Case 004 Filing Through my own research and conversations, I have come into this very trusted information which should assist you greatly in filing against Im Chaem, Ta Tith and Ta An: Central Zone (Ta An) - Purge of the Central Zone - Wat O Trau Kuon Security Center - Wat Batheay Security Center - Met Kor (Sop) Security Center - Wat Phnom Pros Security Center - Kok Pring Execution Site - Chamkar Svay Chanty Security Center - Anglong Chrey Dam Forced Labor Site - Genocide in Kampong Cham Province - Wat Srange Security Center - Tuol Ta Phlong Prison and Execution Site - Wat Kandal Security Center - Wat Baray Chan Dek Security Center Northwest Zone (Ta Tith, Im Chaem) - Purge of the Northwest Zone - Wat Kirirum - Banteay O Ta Krey Execution Site - Banteay Treng Security Center - Wat Thoamayutt Security Center - Wat Kandal Security Center - Wat Samdech Security Center - Wat Po Laingka Security Center - Wat Banteay Neang Security Center - La-Ang Phnom Kuoy Yum Execution Site - Wat Chamka Khnol Security Center - Prison No. 8 - Tuol Purchrey Execution Site - Phnom Trayoung Security Center - Phum Chakrey Security Center - Wat Preah Neth Preah & Chamkar T Ling - Trapeang Thma Dam - Spean Spreng & Prey Roneam Dam Southwest Zone (all three came out of Ta Mok's clan of the SW, but mainly Ta Tith) Wat Pratheat Security Center - Tram Kak East Zone Purges and War with Vietnam - Purge of Svay Rieng - Purge of Prey Veng - Genocide of Kampuchea Krom and of April 17 New People - War with Vietnam Time is of the essence. So, FILE NOW! Fight the "Crimes of Idiocy" of political interference, impunity, and UN complicity with our collective, strong voices as victims and civil party applicants. With peace and my highest regards, Theary C. SENG Representative of Civil Parties of Orphans Class Association of Khmer Rouge Victims in Cambodia ____________________________________________ The Association of Khmer Rouge Victims in Cambodia—the first association based in Cambodia to be registered with the Ministry of Interior and the first to be recognized by the ECCC Victims Support Section and independent of any political or religious affiliation—is a network of survivors of the 1975-79 killing fields who are joined in the fellowship of suffering, in the demand for justice, and in the work for a just peace. The members of the Victims Association are from overseas and spread across the provinces and capital of Cambodia, coming together as a result of the public forums conducted by its Founder, and now its president Ms. Theary C. SENG and Victims Outreach Manager Mr. SOK Leang since 2007. They include widows and orphans; former child soldiers and former prisoners; hard-working farmers and middle-class city-dwellers; well-known actresses playwrights, authors and journalists; as well as teachers, translators, security guards, taxi drivers, inter alia. Among the other members of the Victims Association is the Civil Parties of Orphans Class, a special grouping pre-dating the AKRVC founding when introduced officially in the Pre-Trial Chamber hearing of Nuon Chea in Feb. 2008, and since officially recognized by the ECCC Victims Support Section and a party to the Extraordinary Chambers Case File No. 002 against the senior Khmer Rouge leaders.  | ||||
| The Opening of Vipassana Learning Program at Wat Kirivongsa Bopharam Posted: 19 Jun 2011 09:46 PM PDT  The Opening of Vipassana Learning Program Wat Kirivongsa Bopharam Leverett, Massachusetts United States of America Saturday the 2nd Waning Moon of Jeṭṭh B.E.2555, June 18, A.D.2011 Year of the Rabbit    | ||||
| Posted: 19 Jun 2011 09:37 PM PDT To all, On behalf of OCEC, I would like to inform all Khmers abroad and inside the country about School, Dam and Canal Projects in Malai, Banteay Meanchey. Please kindly visit OCEC's website: www.apsarakhmer.org. Best regards, Bunthan Eang President of OCEC  | ||||
| Sva Bet Micro - "The monkey shut the speaker": Poem in Khmer by Kaun Neak Sre Posted: 19 Jun 2011 09:33 PM PDT   | ||||
| Cambodia launches campaign to mark national day against dengue Posted: 19 Jun 2011 09:30 PM PDT June 20, 2011 PHNOM PENH (Xinhua) – Cambodia launched a large-scale campaign here on Monday to mark the national day against dengue fever as the country's annual rainy season came. The event was jointly launched by Minister of Health Mam Bunheng and Minister of Education Im Sithy, and participated by government officials, representatives of World Health Organization, relevant stakeholders and some 500 students. Speaking during the launching, Mam Bunheng said that the celebration was to promote awareness among the public and to encourage them to join together to prevent dengue fever. "Dengue is caused by mosquitoes, so to prevent the disease, I'd like to appeal to all parents, guardians and students to kill larvae by using the chemical substance known as Abate in water pots and other still water sources," he said. "Moreover, we have to fill in puddles around houses, which are sources of mosquitoes." The minister also encouraged people to sleep under mosquito nets and to raise "seven-colored" fish in their water pots to eat larva. The outbreak of dengue fever usually begins at the onset of the rainy season from May to October in Cambodia. The disease causes an acute illness of sudden onset that usually follows symptoms such as headache, fever, exhaustion, severe muscle and joint pain, swollen glands and rash. At least 11 Cambodian children have died from the disease so far this year with other 1,924 infected, said Ngan Chantha, Director of Dengue Control at the Ministry of Health. It is "a sharp increase" from last year's 7 deaths with 1,395 infected cases.  | ||||
| Judges accused as Pol Pot aides face trial Posted: 19 Jun 2011 09:21 PM PDT
By Tim Johnston in Bangkok Financial Times The four most senior surviving members of the Khmer Rouge regime that devastated Cambodia more than three decades ago will finally face their accusers in court next Monday. But the trial comes as the international justice system hearing the case is also in the dock. A dispute over alleged government interference has divided the court and created what one official describes as a "toxic atmosphere of mutual mistrust". More than 30 years after the Khmer Rouge led by Pol Pot was driven from Phnom Penh, leaving tens of thousands dead in the city and a nation in ruins, Nuon Chea, known as "brother number two"; Khieu Samphan, formerly president of the then Democratic Republic of Kampuchea; Ieng Sary, the regime's foreign minister; and Ieng Tirith, his wife and minister of social welfare, face charges of crimes against humanity, genocide, murder and torture. Some 1.7m Cambodians were killed or died through overwork, starvation or disease during Pol Pot's attempt to create an agrarian utopia between 1975 and 1979. After years of inaction following the fall of the regime, the UN and the Cambodian authorities agreed in 2006 to set up a hybrid court staffed by local and international judges and lawyers to try the leaders. But the process, which has so far cost $110m, has been controversial. There have been allegations of corruption and government interference in the past. But in the past few weeks a new row has broken out, with accusations that key members of the court are trying to limit to five the number of people who face justice in an effort to prevent efforts by international officials to widen the net. The court has so far convicted just one person. Kaing Guek Eav, the commandant of Tuol Sleng torture centre, who is better known by his nom de guerre Duch, was sentenced to 35 years in prison after being convicted last year on similar charges. The new case will be substantially more complicated: not only are there four defendants but, unlike Duch, they have also indicated their intention to plead not guilty. Andrew Cayley, the British co-prosecutor, said he remained confident. "I think the evidence is very strong in this case," said Mr Cayley, who has worked on the international prosecutions of Ratko Mladic, the Serbian military commander, and of crimes in Darfur, Sudan. But the international judicial process in Cambodia is being called into question. At issue is a request by Mr Cayley for the court's two investigating judges to examine two further cases, known as cases 003 and 004, involving five other defendants. The move has divided the court, with the co-investigating judges – one from Cambodia and one from Germany – rejecting his request in the third case, which is believed to involve Meas Muth, a former commander of the Khmer Rouge navy, and Sou Met, the air force commander. The decision has sparked allegations that the investigating judges have given in to political pressure. "The failure to conduct a full investigation raises clear questions of political interference, since senior Cambodian government officials, including the prime minister, have publicly opposed cases 003 and 004," the Open Society Foundation, a think-tank, said in a recent report. Mr Cayley has filed an appeal against the judges' decision, prompting a public row.He declined to comment directly on the dispute but said he had never come under pressure. "I am applying every rule, all of the law of the court, to push these cases along." However, at least four staff members and a consultant have resigned from the office of the investigating judges in the past seven weeks, alleging bad faith. Stephen Heder, a British historian and expert on the Khmer Rouge who serves as the court consultant, said the judges' decision was "unreasonable". In his resignation letter, he cited a lack of confidence in their leadership and condemned "the toxic atmosphere of mutual mistrust generated by your management of what is now a professionally dysfunctional office".  |
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