KI Media: “Press Release: New Website on Khmer America Launches” plus 24 more |
- Press Release: New Website on Khmer America Launches
- ឳនថ្ពាល់មកអូន ដោយ កូនអ្នកស្រែ (Give Me Your Cheek by Koun Neak Srae)
- Khmer Norway and Sweden Join Mourning Evening in Kristiansand, Norway
- Vietnam announces new president as country wrangles with economy, China
- Vietnam – Cambodia railroad to be built
- Vietnam expands electricity equipment investment in Cambodia [-Cambodia's dependence on foreign energy]
- Lower Mekong Nations, Donors To Strengthen Cooperation
- Plan to resume tourism at P.Vihear [on Thai side]
- Media critic: Hun Sen blasts VOA, RFA 'insults'
- Concern over maid’s death
- 2011-07-24 Interview #WikiLeaks Cambodian Cables and Politics
- Abhisit blames Noppadol for on-going border conflicts with Cambodia
- Vietnam Set to Approve New Leadership
- Unheard off ... at the Kingdoom’s Royal Academy
- Four protesting Beer Girls injured in front of the company’s office
- Another view of the Kingdom of Wonders ... from an alien on the Captain's ship
- Follow up protest to demand an information on spraying the house red code number on the resident of Group 10 & 11 of Tra Paeng Chhouk Village, Toeuk Thlar
- Tale from the Banana Kingdoom of Wonders ... by Lucky Unlucky
- Sacrava's Political Cartoon: Indra Prophecy
- Cambodia's flag of "convenient SHAME"
- Trial of Khmer Rouge leaders underway in Cambodia
- Japan Pledges Over US$5 Billion To Mekong Nations
- Interview between Soy Assopheap and Dechor Hun Xen: A political satire by Anonymous
- Cambodian children lose confidence in themselves - Op-Ed by James Sok
- Boeung Kak Lake gathering and prayer to the BKL god before lost of the Lake
| Press Release: New Website on Khmer America Launches Posted: 27 Jul 2011 07:24 AM PDT FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CHILDHOOD FRIENDS LAUNCH PREVIEW OF NEW WEBSITE ON KHMER AMERICA JULY 25, 2011  NEW YORK, NY – Phatry Derek Pan and Sophath Oun, long time childhood friends, joined together today to debut Faces of Khmerican, a publicity initiative to introduce Khmerican – a public web portal created to centralize resources on Khmer America. The preview page is found at www.khmerican.com. "The Cambodian diaspora in the US is approximately 225,000 based on the latest national census statistics," said Pan, Co-Founder and CEO. "The majority arrived in the early to mid-1980s as refugees fleeing the 'killing fields.' And in three decades we have witnessed their struggles and their successes - from the deportation of family members to the recent inauguration of Little Cambodia in Long Beach, California, America's highest populated Cambodian community. But for students, activists, and young professionals alike, the information is immensely scattered. With Khmerican, people can follow the progress of the diaspora in one place and use the information to empower themselves and their community." Khmerican will be the first comprehensive and up-to-date online repository of its kind. Visitors will have access to content that includes original news stories, photo galleries, reviews, community calendar and announcements. Registered members will have exclusive entry to various online databases to foster their interest and causes. "With Khmerican, I can rally with other like-minded people on issues that matters to me most," said Many Uch, an immigration activist from Seattle, Washington and a featured member in Faces. (Click to view full version screen caps: http://bit.ly/khmrcn-caps) "We are not creating a Cambodian Facebook," said American born Oun, Co-Founder and Webmaster. "We will stay current with social media trends and emerging web technologies, but we are attempting to create something different - an army of well-informed, proactive netizens passionate about community building." Faces will run for approximately one month leading to the full version release. Visitors in the meantime can sign up to receive regular updates through the official blog at http://blog.khmerican.com. Media Contact: Phatry Derek Pan Co-Founder and CEO Khmerican 206-599-9444  | ||
| ឳនថ្ពាល់មកអូន ដោយ កូនអ្នកស្រែ (Give Me Your Cheek by Koun Neak Srae) Posted: 25 Jul 2011 02:52 PM PDT   | ||
| Khmer Norway and Sweden Join Mourning Evening in Kristiansand, Norway Posted: 25 Jul 2011 02:03 PM PDT On 25 July 2011, Khmer people in Norway and Sweden joined the Mourning Evening in Kristiansand City in order to express their sadness and share the sincere condolence of last Friday`s bombing and mass shooting in Norway carried out by Anders Behring Breivik which resulted 76 people death.    (Photo: KBF) | ||
| Vietnam announces new president as country wrangles with economy, China Posted: 25 Jul 2011 08:24 AM PDT
Monday, July 25, 2011 Associated Press HANOI, Vietnam — Vietnam's lawmaking National Assembly appointed Truong Tan Sang as the communist country's new president Monday amid challenges at home with the economy and abroad with China over disputed territory in the South China Sea. Sang, 62, a southerner who was a former mayor and party chief in Ho Chi Minh City, had most recently served as the de facto No. 2 in charge of the Communist Party, running the day-to-day affairs. His appointment, receiving more than 97 percent of the vote as the sole candidate, was widely anticipated. Monday's announcement was largely ceremonial since the position was already decided by the party's elite in January during the secretive Party Congress held every five years. Sang, from the southern province of Long An, replaces retiring President Nguyen Minh Triet. The presidential role is mostly ceremonial, while the prime minister runs the country's day-to-day operations. After giving his acceptance speech, Sang nominated current Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, 61, for a second term, expected to be announced Tuesday. Sang was said to have challenged Dung for the premiership, but he lost out when the leaders were picked in January. Vietnam is a one-party system that does not tolerate any challenge to its rule, and publicly calling for a multiparty system can result in long prison sentences. The appointment comes a day after Vietnamese protesters demonstrated against China for the eighth straight week as tensions between the communist neighbors continue to simmer over disputed territory claimed by both countries in the South China Sea. Sang vowed to "firmly defend the country's independence, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity" while also trying to settle territorial border disputes through peaceful means. Last week, China and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations agreed to a preliminary plan to work together to resolve disputes in the potentially resource-rich South China Sea that's home to vital shipping lanes. Vietnam, one of Asia's fastest-growing countries, also faces domestic pressure as it struggles with wide-ranging economic woes. It is battling huge trade and current account deficits, a weak currency and double-digit inflation that's squeezing the country's poor by driving up food prices. Sang was imprisoned from 1971-73 by the U.S.-backed South Vietnamese government when he served as a communist fighter for the north during the Vietnam War. It ended in 1975 when the north seized control of the former southern capital, Saigon, reunifying the country.  | ||
| Vietnam – Cambodia railroad to be built Posted: 25 Jul 2011 08:17 AM PDT Monday ,Jul 25,2011 Saigon Gia Phong (Vietcong Communist Party) It is part of the Singapore-Kunming railroad project, so it will be a key railroad for Cambodia to transport commodities to regional and global markets, especially in the framework of ASEAN-China Free Trade Area. The feasibility study for the construction was implemented by the Chinese Railway Ministry's Third Railway Survey and Design Institute since July 2009 with a cost about 3 million USD funded by China. As planned, the railroad is 257 kilometers in length, starting in Kampong Speu Province's Oudong district, pass by Kratie province's Snuol district and end at Vietnam's Loc Ninh district in the southern border province of Binh Phuoc. Experts have finalized the total cost for the construction of the Vietnam – Cambodia is about 686 million USD, according to a feasibility study for the construction begining from Kampong Speu province (Cambodia) to the southern border province of Binh Phuoc (Vietnam). However, this money is not including the settlement compensations for residents affected by the project. "The project will provide huge economic benefits to Cambodia, especially on the development of agriculture and mineral resources, as well as tourism sector", experts said. The study result will be submitted to Prime Minister Hun Sen to make decision. The railway will be part of an intra-Asian railway that runs from Singapore to China via Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. It is expected to be complete within 30 months.  | ||
| Posted: 25 Jul 2011 08:10 AM PDT 25/07/2011 (VOV) - The Vietnam Electrical Equipment Corporation began construction of a transformer factory in the Phnom Penh Special Economic Zone in Cambodia on July 25. Covering an area of two hectares, the factory has a total investment capital of US$2.5 million. After completion, it will produce about 4,000 transformers every year. Addressing the event, Nguyen Van Cuong, CEO of the corporation, said this construction is the corporation's first investment project in a foreign country and it expects to build good neighbourly relations, friendship, solidarity and contribute to long-term, sustainable and comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Cambodia. The factory is scheduled to be put into operation later this year and employ about 150 technical workers, half of whom will be Cambodians.  | ||
| Lower Mekong Nations, Donors To Strengthen Cooperation Posted: 25 Jul 2011 08:01 AM PDT 7/25/2011 (RTTNews) - The Ministerial Meeting of the Friends of the Lower Mekong has agreed on the importance of close cooperation among donors and the lower Mekong countries to enhance effectiveness, mobilize resources, and promote synergy of regional assistance programs aimed at supporting inclusive, sustainable, and environmentally-responsible growth. Foreign Ministers and senior representatives of Australia, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Viet Nam, European Union, Asian Development Bank, and World Bank met in the Indonesian resort island of Bali at the weekend for the first Friends of the Lower Mekong (FLM) Ministerial Meeting. They noted the importance of effectively managing sustainable and equitable development in the lower Mekong sub-region. They discussed challenges affecting the Mekong River and the region in a variety of sectors, including the environment, public health, social development, livelihood, food security, education, and infrastructure. They also affirmed the importance of conducting assistance programs in the Mekong region in a transparent manner. The Ministers and senior representatives recognized the importance of improving coordination of assistance through initial steps such as sharing information on ongoing and future projects and identifying possible channels for future collaboration, underlining the importance of local ownership in this coordination. They also agreed to continue discussion to develop a sustainable and effective cooperation mechanism among parties. They recognized the need to closely coordinate the FLM initiative with the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) through the GMS secretariat, recognizing different mandates and areas of responsibility.  | ||
| Plan to resume tourism at P.Vihear [on Thai side] Posted: 25 Jul 2011 07:58 AM PDT 25/07/2011 Bangkok Post The governor of Si Sa Ket province says he plans to approach his Cambodian counterpart for talks on reopening the Preah Vihear temple site to tourists, a Thai news report said. Governor Somsak Suwansucharit said he plans to discuss the matter with the governor of Cambodia's adjoining Preah Vihear province, which encompasses the ancient ruins, the report said. The only normal tourist access is through Thailand. Since July 23, Si Sa Ket provincial authorities have allowed tourists to visit the Pha Mor I Daeng cliff, close to the Preah Vihear temple, and Thai tourists are arriving at the cliff observation point to admire the carvings there as well as the twin pagodas on Khao Phra Viharn mountain, he said. The attractions had been closed for over five months becausder of the border clashes between Thai and Cambodian troops. Visitors can enter the cliff area, which is part of the Khao Phra Viharn National Park, free of charge for the time being. Their presence is under heavy protection by Thai soldiers. Visitors must leave their ID cards at the gate of the national park. Motorists must park their vehicles, including motorcycles, at the entrance of the park. Administrators of Kantharalak district, which directly connects with the disputed area, had talks with officials of the Khao Phra Viharn National Park on Monday afternoon about measures to supervise local operators and attract more visitors to the Pha Mor I Daeng cliff.  | ||
| Media critic: Hun Sen blasts VOA, RFA 'insults' Posted: 25 Jul 2011 07:52 AM PDT Monday, 25 July 2011 Uong Ratana The Phnom Penh Post Prime Minister Hun Sen lashed out at Voice of America and Radio Free Asia at a press conference on Friday, saying the news programmes were "inferior", inaccurate and unfair. In response to a question about allegations that he has interfered in the Khmer Rouge tribunal's work and halted its third case, the premier said VOA and RFA reporters needed to "insult" the ruling Cambodian People's Party in order to draw salaries. "If [VOA and RFA] did not insult the CPP, they wouldn't have a salary ... If [you have] no salary, come to work for the local radio and I will pay the salary," Hun Sen said. "You are Khmer, you speak Khmer, you should do something according to Khmer values." Hun Sen also said that he would rather see the court fail than its trials cause war. "I used to speak out that the trial against the former Khmer Rouge leaders must ensure peace and national reconciliation," he said. VOA responded to Hun Sen's comments in a statement by saying that its journalists "adhere to the highest journalistic standards of accuracy and objectivity, standards mandated by US law".  | ||
| Posted: 25 Jul 2011 07:48 AM PDT Monday, 25 July 2011 Mom Kunthear and David Boyle The Phnom Penh Post Opposition parliamentarian Mu Sochua and rights groups are investigating the death of a teenage Cambodian domestic worker in Malaysia, amid allegations she was abused by her employer. Concerns over the girl's death were raised after the news-agg-regating website Khmerization received an email from a person identified as Yip Soon Yew, who alleged Khor Phaik, a 15-year-old maid brought to Malaysia by a company called TSE, had been found dead on July 17. Seng Sithichey, the director of recruitment firm AP TSE & C Cambodia Resources Co, said yesterday one of its dom-estic workers had died on that date, but could not confirm her name. Yip Soon Yew claimed people in the maid's neighbourhood in Penang had seen her being "beaten up" and "abused". A day before her death, she allegedly passed on a note asking that if she died for no valid reason, her uncle in Cambodia be contacted, the writer added. Seng Sithichey, however, disputed the worker's age, saying she was 21. He said the comp-any had received a medical certificate showing she had died from pneumonia. "We co-operated with the police and health officials to check what happened to her,'' Seng Sithichey said. "I have to find justice for my worker if she died because of her employer, but she died because of disease." The woman's family had been notified, as had the Cambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Seng Sithichey said. The family had not filed a complaint, he said. Mu Sochua, of the Sam Rainsy Party, said yesterday Khmerization had previously reported the abuse of a domestic worker in Malaysia that had turned out to be true. She vowed to investigate Khor Phaik's case with Malaysian government officials and rights groups, saying: "It is of grave concern to me." Huy Pich Sovann, an officer at the Community Legal Education Center, said yesterday he was also investigating the case and mechanisms needed to be put in place to stop the systematic abuse of Cambodian domestic workers in Malaysia. Aegile Fernandez, of the Malaysian rights group Tenaganita, said Ung Vantha, a Cambodian embassy official in Malaysia, had mentioned the case but not given details. Ung Vantha and other offic-ials could not be reached for comment yesterday.  | ||
| 2011-07-24 Interview #WikiLeaks Cambodian Cables and Politics Posted: 25 Jul 2011 07:44 AM PDT Submitted by Alexa O'Brien on Mon, 07/25/2011 - 02:00 Originally posted at WL Central: http://wlcentral.org/node/2074  The interviewee has seen two Cambodian wars in the 1970s and 1980s, and the 1997 coup, and returned to Cambodia to help it transition under UN led elections in the mid 1990s. *Image Angkor Wat by the author Alexa O'Brien: For purpose of our discussion I would like for you to paint a broad stroke on Cambodia politics over the course the cable release, between 1994 to 2010. It covers a lot of ground, which of course we cannot completely cover. Source: Okay. Perhaps you could start off by giving me a general picture of the structure and climate right now in present day Cambodia. What I can tell right you now about Cambodia is that the country, under the current leadership...the current ruling party hasn't changed as much, compared to what you and I saw, what we knew way back ten or fifteen years ago... What I am trying to say is that when Westerners think of Cambodia is a more developing country, perhaps they look at what they see in the city. But if you go out ten or fifteen kilometers away from the city life is totally different for average Cambodians... …and the political structure is the same and elections are just a way of telling the world that Cambodia is open...because we have regularly scheduled elections...it doesn't matter whether the elections are free and fair... So, they have to show the world that they are making progress, but in fact the substantive change is not there to be found. How would you characterize the development of US foreign policy toward Cambodia between 94 through 2011? The US Policy so far has been to befriend the Cambodian government with the same prime minister [ Hun Sen ] since the 1980s actually, because Cambodia has somewhat proved to the US that it is helping the US fight against a possible perceived terrorist threat... …because Cambodia has a very tiny population of Muslims, the Cham. So, because of that sense of cooperation, the US seems to allow the current leader [ Hun Sen ] to do whatever he wants to do.... …and since 1994, we know that the current prime minister has been trying to grab power, but the US didn't do anything until 1997, then there was a coup d'état. Prior to the war on terror there was the war on drugs...and you can see this in the cables, which reference the exchange of training between the US government, or the DEA, and the Cambodia task forces around the war on drugs…similarly also with the war on terror…is their a similarity between these two approaches on the part of the US in terms of foreign policy? The war on drugs started off when Cambodia was considered a transit point, and perhaps the US just wanted the Cambodia government to do something to stop the flow of drugs to other parts of the world. And, in fact prior to the coup in 1997...there were two factions at the time...the first prime minister was headed by the royalist party [FUNCINPEC] and the second prime minister…who is the current prime minister now…belongs to the CPP party. The general…who was at that time a two star general of the police force at the interior ministry…is reported to be a close associate of the prime minister, Hun Sen, was involved in growing marijuana in the southern part of the country...and then the government was trying to show the US that it was doing something. So the prime minister took a helicopter to the ceremony to burn…to destroy the cannabis. In fact, they did not allow journalists to go deep inside the fields...the farm...to witness the whole burning ceremony. So...there is no way we can confirm that the farm still existed…and you know the smaller portion of the marijuana was destroyed. And, there were some efforts to show the West that Cambodia was doing something about drugs, but at the same time there were been reports of high level officials involvement in drug facilitation trafficking...several. So what did they do about it? Nothing. And, we have reports by the State Department of human trafficking as well that have occurred at the same time. Have you read the cables? I have read some parts about what happened...Hun Sen reportedly says the faction rumors about the... ...assassination attempt? Assassination attempt…yes. He didn't ask the CPP minister of interior to investigate...instead he asked the royalist aligned minister to investigate the rumors. So there is a distrust within the CPP party…and then you have this Senate President, Chea Sim, who is also the CPP president, the Cambodia People's Party president, asked the foreign minister, Hor Namhong, to try to persuade Hun Sen to not go after or punish the coup plotters... …then the minister didn't deliver the message. So, you have everything in the making that the CPP is not really a one block..one voice… …there are some officials within the party who are not happy with the way Hun Sen deals with the affairs of the state...or runs the country… …but, there is nothing they can do, and the US doesn't bother to do anything because...all right as long as it poses no direct threat to national interest here then we haven't done anything. Would it be fair to say that the US's policy towards Cambodia is shaped by Chinese relationship with Cambodia and the fact that there is another superpower in the region that has a very strong relationship with Cambodia? I don't see it the Chinese factor has anything to do with our policy. If our policy is shaped by national interest...strategic interest or such then it doesn't matter whether it's the Chinese or the Soviet Union... We witnessed way back in the eighties, when the Soviet Union was trying to expand its sphere of influence…the US did support the guerilla movement to fight back.. against the proxy war...I mean the Soviet proxy war using Vietnam to invade Cambodia in the name...to get rid of the Khmer rouge...the killing fields....Pol Pot. We did that way back in the eighties. Why? At the time the Chinese did help the Khmer Rouge of course and we didn't do anything...went along, because we viewed that the Soviet Union was a bigger threat to the US allies there in the region. Now there is no...there is no war in that part of the world...so the Chinese came into Cambodia to business just like any other corporations…but the businesses in Cambodia from China are state owned...it is different from businesses from the West. Cambodia…it is not the that the US knows that the Chinese presence is there...but what can they do...what are they doing...nothing. Lets talk about influence in terms of China vis a vis the United States. You just said that the fiscal relationships between China and Cambodia create state owned businesses...what kind of US corporate interests are predominately in Cambodia? Right now we have Chevron Oil company that acquired the exploration rights in the Gulf of Thailand. I don't remember exactly what blocks the Cambodia government signed the agreement with Chevron. We have another perhaps US based company as well...I believe, Conocophillips , is signed to get into that too... …and Mobil...but I don't know how much shares they own there...but Chevron is more predominant there in terms of oil business in term of oil exploration. Other than that...I haven't seen any major US corporations coming into Cambodia to set up more of long term business relationship or business operations there. The Cambodian judicial system has always seemed to struggle with corruption. The land right issues for rural populations, who after Khmer Rouge were ousted from parts of the Cambodia countryside, and legislation in name only set up to allow Cambodians who had essentially inhabited certain pieces of land to actually claim it as their own...but corruption within the judicial system prevents many average Khmer from possessing an actual title. Currently there are some skirmishes or protests in rural areas of Cambodia over the forced eviction. Can you tell me more about that...? Forced eviction is almost a common occurrence. There have been reports by local human rights organizations, and also overseas-based human rights groups trying to protests the government's actions. Yes. The Khmer Rouge destroyed everything. There is no proof to show who owns what in Cambodia…but again it is the duty of the Cambodian government to try to make sure that its people...its indigenous people have a place to live and a means to make a living... The problems is that they try to use the term 'national development' at the expense of their own people, they give economic land concession to foreign companies. So many of these businesses are from China, South Korea, Vietnam, Japan, and even Australia. They try to occupy some parts of Cambodia…where they have I believe…I suspect that they believe there is some mining potential...like in the north-eastern part of the county...the northern part of the country where gold is spotted...and in the eastern part of the country where bauxite is reportedly discover there. [See also invenstincambodia.com/mining] So what happened is the people...the indigenous people cannot have a place there to even have a small house to live...because they have to make room for these foreign companies to do business… …and when you talk about investment you think that...ok well that should bring jobs and everything else to local people...not really...not really. They destroy 100 year and 200 year old trees to make room for their mining operations and if they can't find anything...the land is deforested and they pull out… …and the local people have no place to live on, because these people…eighty percent of the population are farmers and they live on what they can find from forest products like tree sap…and things like that. Now they cannot go into those forests anymore...because the government has given land concession including the forests to foreign owned companies. When the people try to rise up with the help of some local human rights groups to petition the government, then they are met with police force trying to disperse them. So they cannot even reach to the court in some cases. How can Cambodia overcome the corruption within the judicial system? The only person who can change things in Cambodia right now is the prime minister himself. He controls everything or at least...he has all the power. He can do anything he wants to, if he has the will to do that. But the thing is that these corrupt institutions are there to support him as well...because it is more like mutualism. You blink and make some money and I'll share with you. I support you. So no matter what…indirectly or directly the prime minster benefits from this corrupt system. Everybody knows...the prime minister knows…that the judges takes bribes before ruling on any particular case...let alone a petition from the people who face eviction. He knows that...but what did we do. He says, "Okay, we will try to get rid of this corruption in the judicial system." Yet what he says is one thing, and what he does is different thing, because these people [judges] support him. This seems to also spill into another institutions...the press...and the cables do cover quite clearly the defamation and libel cases. Can you tell me more about the situation and circumstances around the defamation and libel cases around against the press? Back in the eighties and nineties and early 2000...the government…the authorities dealt with the press in a very brutal way. If anyone wrote an article that was critical of the government, or an individual, or a public servant or official...he or she was going to face death threat. Now...journalists who are critical of the government perhaps face sanctions of some kind… So today it is a matter of form, "Okay this is the rule of law. Everything has to go through the legal process," but these people...corrupt officials with blood on their hands...they have made the law and they said, "If you criticized we are not going to shoot you anymore." Of course, I am not quoting them. What I am trying to present to you is that if you criticize, "We will take you to court." And believe me if you are going to go to court, you are going to lose. Because the courts...the judge listens to somebody, who is going to telephone him or call him, "Look you have to decide the way I want you to decide." And, it is a fact...and almost everybody knows in Cambodia that the judge takes direction and bribes. [NB See in particular 01PHNOMPENH1740] Lets talk about the Khmer Rough as it relates to the current situation in Cambodia. Mainly officials like Hun Sen were former Khmer Rouge, and the situation, from an outsiders perspective, seems a delicate and complicated one...since many Cambodians are responsible for the acts of genocide against their own countrymen in Cambodia's not to distant past. I will go over the history a little bit and the background of the Khmer Rouge rise to power and the demise of the US backed republican government…then also the Vietnamese invasion in 1979 and of course the Peace Accord in Paris in 1991 that gave rise to what we see today. The Khmer Rouge in the 1970s fought along side the Vietcong. The Vietnamese communist guerillas fought against the US presence in South Vietnam, and the Vietnamese trained the Khmer Rouge to fight against the US backed Khmer republican under General Lon Nol. You can play the blame again, you know, "The war started because Lol Nol lost a coup d'état to depose Prince Sihanouk, the popular prince of Cambodia…or the other side can say the reason Lon Nol overthrew Prince Sihanouk then was because his close alliance relationship with the North Vietnamese guerillas, the Vietcong, fighting against the Americans troops in South Vietnam. But the fact is that the Vietcong had its presence in Cambodia helping the Khmer Rogue until it got to power in 1975. Hun Sen and others were part of that war against the West and also the government of Cambodia, the pro West-pro American government in Cambodia. The US backed government regime lost. The Khmer Rouge took power. Then, within the Khmer faction you have pro Chinese elements and also pro Vietnamese elements. The pro Chinese headed by Pol Pot was not happy with the way the Vietnamese dealt with the border issues, territorial disputes, and things like that. So, Pol Pot in an interview said that he wanted North Vietnam to work closely to solve the border issue once and for all. The Vietnamese insisted that, "We are winners in this part of the world, so lets be friends and brothers, comrades as we used to be. Why start talking about this border issue and things like that, right now? Lets focus on rebuilding the reconstruction after the war. " But, the Pol Pot camp or the pro American camp - pro republican Cambodia, anti communist Cambodian…they were suspicious of the Vietnamese. This is more like their historical enemy. So, when the Khmer leaders (Cambodian leaders) kept talking about border issues…the territorial issues, which irritate the Vietnamese leaders... …that got them into intense disputes and at the end they split into two camps, and then they start purging the pro - Chinese...the Pol Pot camp suspecting there fellow comrade and they started purging people and that is why Hun Sen and others fled to Vietnam. And then they asked the Vietnamese to return and get rid of the Khmer Rouge. The Vietnamese installed a government, the Peoples Republic of Kampuchea, later known as the State of Cambodia, and also its political party CPP, the Cambodian peoples party. Its original name was the Cambodian People's Revolutionary Party, something like that. So they got rid of the word revolutionary. They just kept CPP, Cambodian People's Party. So many of them who are in power right now are former Khmer Rouge period. And, the international community got together in 1991, on October 23, 1991 to sign the Paris Peace Accord hoping to bring peace to end the war in Cambodia... …but they did not get further as to how to keep Cambodia safe from its neighbors, giant neighbors…that is why we have problems right now with Thailand. But again I can tell you that the problem with Thailand right now is just one way of diverting attention away from the more critical problems of eastern borders...Vietnam. Some people have characterize the Thai motivation as being a way of sort of nationalizing the Thai people around a common enemy who are facing their own internal struggles. How would you characterize the Cambodian strategy for diversion that you mentioned? Well the Cambodians, as a rule have more to worry about in terms of losing their identity, their land, their ethnicity, then just losing the temple on the border. Cambodia has more to worry than just the temple alone. We have how many miles of borders with Vietnam, and a lot of Cambodian people…including the opposition are more concerned about a secret deal made between the current government, the CPP, with Vietnam concerning the territorial boundary [web page cache]. They fear that they are going to lose more territory to Vietnam than just Thailand. Each country has its own interest to look after, and for Cambodia, the Cambodians also have to look after...the supreme interest is the border with its historical enemies, and Cambodians fear greater danger of losing the land to Vietnam than it does to Thailand. So, whatever we see happening in Thailand...internal problems and they try to use the border issue with Cambodia to perhaps raise popularity. But it is not just part of Thailand. Cambodia under Hun Sen had made a deal in 2005, 2006...if you look at the document with the former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra…so these two guys are business oriented. They would have a lot at stake in terms of profit sharing, so they negotiated something: "You give me the temple…don't make any claim to that temple and I will concede some part of the overlapping areas under the sea, so you can explore for oil so these kinds of things," or something like that. These deals should not have been made in the first place...but somehow because of the relationship between these business oriented prime ministers and their cronies, they got into a deal. There was a deal signed memorandum of some sort between the two prime ministers on both sides. Some Cambodians say, "This is not right. Why do we have to give away like this part of our land to somebody else?" But the Thai do the same thing, "Why do we have to concede the Preah Vihear Temple." This started with the two prime ministers in the first place…that got all the Cambodians into this situation. A lot of people don't know about that. What is the source? I have different documents. It's memorandum between the two prime ministers. I got it from my sources in France, who follow the border issues closely, and they have almost just about any discussion minutes between Cambodia and Vietnam, and Cambodia and Thailand. Also, regarding corruption in the judicial system that we began to speak about before: everybody knows it. The US and other countries, and especially donor countries from the European Union and Canada. They know that the judicial system doesn't work. It is corrupt. There is no way you can have a fair hearing of any kind. We keep demanding, but every year donors gather in Phnom Penh and ask the government, "We need you to do this, and we need you to do that." And, the government says, "Yeah we will do it." But after they leave, just like one American author Joel Brinkley stated in his book, Cambodia's Curse. After donors leave, everything going back the same way. The children that grew under the Khmer Rouge are middle aged now. Do you think that their experience has an effect on the potentiality of civic society in Cambodia? In terms of...? In terms of the expectations as to what they are entitled to…the capabilities of civic and civil society...I am not being disrespectful or disparaging...it just seems to my mind that a whole generation of children and now middle aged adults have grown up under a very oppressive system...I wonder if it adds an element of challenge to creating the kind of civic society that can speak to corruption, and engenders one which perhaps lessens people's expectations about what is even possible. The Khmer Rouge children...we have to maybe separate them into two separate groups: the Khmer Rouge children whose parents were Khmer Rouge cadres soldiers…perhaps they wouldn't go back to where their parents were…but still they are struggling to make ends meet... Perhaps they do see the society right now...well way back in their days they didn't have electricity...but now they have electricity...so they might think, "Okay, life is so much better now"...but still they have to compete with the city life, the city people, because most of them grew up in the agrarian part of society way out in the countryside…so its hard for them to get integrated, assimilated so easily. But when they see corruption, injustice in society they would perhaps want to do something but they cannot. They cannot...because right now it is as oppressive as it was. It is just taking a different form. You mentioned to me the other day that it seems that Cambodia has had such a tragic history in the seventies, that when outsiders see events unfolding in Cambodia, where people may be murdered or oppressed, no one blinks an eye… I think that what you remember is me trying to paraphrase Joel Brinkley, the author of Cambodia's Curse and New York Times award winning journalist, who said in an interview with an Australian Radio host Stephen Long, on Thursday, July the 14th…he said that if the world set the standard…when it comes to Cambodia...if the world knows only the Khmer Rouge, lets put it that way, and whatever else happens is nothing because the Khmer Rouge is so bad. The Khmer Rouge killed a quarter of a million of its own people, so if it is just a few hundred here and there starve to death by the current government, by Hun Sen, like for example in land eviction…no place to live…they are homeless...what is wrong with that. Just a couple of hundreds. Half a million. This is the standard that the world has set for Cambodia. Compared to what happened to the Khmer rouge...so whatever happened today is nothing. Right. It's awful. Tell me about Hor Nam Hong. Hor Nam Hong, right now is foreign minister. His full title is deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation. Hor Nam Hong was a diplomat under different regimes and under Pol Pot's regime he returned and he was made a re-education camp leader in Phnom Penh…a former English School Does he dispute that? [This interview took place prior to the July 22, 2011 article Cambodia protests over US cable's Khmer Rouge claim ] He doesn't really dispute that. In fact, he simply says, "Okay he was simply forced to do what he did. If he didn't, he would have been killed." So, that is an excuse, but a lot of people who happened to be there at that camp under his leadership there, complained that he reported to a higher authority about whatever the inmate was doing in that camp, and a lot of people died under his watch. There is a cable from 2002, Reference ID 02PHNOMPENH1361. I actually want to quote from it. It says here:
On Hor Nam Hong. He won a case in a French court against Prince Sihanouk. He won the first round on the opposition party leader's claim that Hor Nam Hong was a former Khmer Rouge camp chief. And then the French appeals court ruled that the opposition party leader had a case. It was simply stating the case... it was simply stating the fact that Hor Nam Hong was in fact, camp chief. I am not familiar with the details of the cable you cite. What I do know is that according to reports, Cheng Snguon, is a justice minister and he died. His son Chem Widhya, was appointed to the UN Ambassador for a while, and now I think he works somewhere else. So, we have heard that Cheng Snguon, the late minister of justice did resent Hor Nam Hong for his action at that camp. There are so many people we could cover in the cables, there is King Sihanouk, and there is Rainsy... Yes, Prince Sihanouk he was head of state in the 1950s and 1960s. He abdicated in 1955 during the First Kingdom, and in 1970 he was deposed by the pro American republican group of Generals actually, and he was made prisoner during the Khmer Rouge years in his own palace, and according to authors like Dr. Stephen Morris in his book, Why Vietnam Invaded Cambodia: Political Culture and the Causes of War, the Vietnamese sent a commando to try to take him from the royal palace, but the Khmer Rouge dispatched their own commando strike force to get rid of the Vietnamese commando. So, finally the Chinese sent a plane to take him out of Phnom Penh within, I think , the last day of two the Vietnamese forces actually entered the capital city. So, yeah, then in the early 1980s he was again invited to head the resistance movement. He has had multiple titles in his… And he retired in 2006? Yes. He retired and he wanted his son to be the next King. And Sam Rainsy? Yes. Sam Rainsy is the son of a renowned, though perhaps not well liked by the royal family back then...a politician actually...his name was Sam Sary. So, Sam Rainsy was educated in France. he joined the FUNCIPEC, the royalist movement back in the 1980s. After the 1993, general UN sponsored election, he was appointed minister of finance. And, he was trying to deal with the massive illegal loggings by Hun Sen's cronies, business affiliates, but he almost got killed by the anarchic groups operating the illegal logging in some parts of the country. So, I think his relentless effort to tackle corruption, loss of national state revenue, made him somebody disliked by a lot of people, because it hurt other people's business, personal interests, and things like that, so they demoted him. The royalist party working unison with the CPP party to fire him. Cable 09PHNOMPENH270, is entitled "ENGAGING CAMBODIA'S MUSLIM MINORITY THROUGH DIALOG AND DIPLOMACY" Actually so far the US approach to the Muslim community in Cambodia has been successful, and some US officials have asked me, "Is there anything that we should do more to perhaps do more?" I said, "Do not abandon them." Muslims are abandoned by the central government in a lot of places: in the Philippines…in Thailand. When you are disconnected, then anybody can come in and persuade you to do whatever they want you to do. So, I would say, with them, just don't make them hopeless. They have programs to give some sewing machines, and vocational training...things like that. It works fine. Thank you very much for your time today. Of course, anytime, Alexa. Nice talking to you.  | ||
| Abhisit blames Noppadol for on-going border conflicts with Cambodia Posted: 25 Jul 2011 02:08 AM PDT
The Nation Outgoing Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva Monday blamed former foreign minister Noppadon Pattama for conflicts between Thailand and Cambodia over the 4.6-kilometre plot near the Preah Vihear Temple. Abhisit was responding to Noppadon's comment that the Abhisit government should have approached the border conflicts based on the measure agreed upon by the Samak Sundaravej Cabinet. But Abhisit said Noppadon and the Samak Cabinet instead caused the current trouble having issuing a Cabinet resolution to allow Noppadon as the foreign minister to endorse Cambodia's unilateral registration of Preah Vihear as a world heritage site. Abhisit said the endorsement would allow Cambodia to come in to mange the 4.6 km plot around the temple as well so the current government had to rescind the resolution. Abhisit said Noppadon's action prompted the Army to deploy troops to the area to try to defend Thai territory. He said the troops were deployed there since the term of the Samak government. Abhisit said the Democrat-led government would never allow Thai territory to fall to Cambodia.  | ||
| Vietnam Set to Approve New Leadership Posted: 25 Jul 2011 02:02 AM PDT
By NGUYEN PHAM MUOI The Wall Street Journal HANOI—Vietnamese lawmakers said they were likely to approve Truong Tan Sang as the next president Monday, as the communist country moves to cement its leadership for the next five years at a time of major economic challenges. Mr. Sang, 62 years old, will move to the largely ceremonial role from his current position as a Standing Member of the Central Party Committee, the second-most powerful post behind the general secretary of the Communist Party. He will succeed Nguyen Minh Triet, 70, who is set to retire. Mr. Sang's likely confirmation by the National Assembly, Vietnam's most powerful lawmaking body, comes ahead of the expected official approval on Tuesday of Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung for a second five-year term, after Mr. Dung survived a potential revolt over his perceived mishandling of the economy and the debt woes of state-run Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Group, also known as Vinashin. Vinashin was on the brink of bankruptcy last summer after amassing $4.4 billion in debt, damaging the government's efforts to build up large, state-run conglomerates. The new government and the cabinet, which is expected to be unveiled next week, will be confronted by an economy that was once one of the most promising among emerging markets but still needs a desperate shake-up. Carlyle Thayer, a professor at Australian Defence Force Academy at the University of New South Wales and an expert on Vietnam, said the promotions more likely signaled a continuation of the status quo rather than a meaningful shift in policy. The officials set to be promoted are "known quantities; they're technocrats" from within the system, he said. "So there's continuity." "There is no sign of massive reform," he added. Battered by spiraling inflation and rising trade deficits, the Vietnam government was pressured earlier this year into shifting away from its long-standing policy of focusing on growth, and under the so-called Resolution 11 will trim credit growth, ban the use of foreign currencies in the market, limit the use of gold, trim public investment and boost domestic production. The policy changes appear to have had little impact so far. Data released on Saturday showed that inflation rose 22.16% in July from a year earlier, the fastest increase since December 2008, and quicker than the 20.82% year-on-year increase in June. For the January-July period, the country had a trade deficit of $6.639 billion. The markets have also shown little confidence, with the main index falling 15.5% year-to-date. "People's tolerance of inflation is getting less and less. Pressure on the new cabinet on this front is naturally overwhelming," said Vuong Quan Hoang from Hanoi-based DHVP Research & Consultancy, adding that the country's large trade deficit won't be fixed in the short term, while unemployment could also emerge as a major problem. "The chances of economic turmoil are likely over [Mr. Dung's] term since these problems have not been addressed adequately, and have not even appeared clearly on the new agenda." Meanwhile, lawmakers voted Saturday to appoint Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung as chairman of the National Assembly, the assembly said in a statement. Mr. Hung recommended Mr. Sang as the sole candidate for the position of the state president. They also chose Vietnamese central bank Gov. Nguyen Van Giau as chairman of the National Assembly's economic committee. Mr. Giau is expected to leave his post at the bank later this week. He will be succeeded by Nguyen Van Binh, who is expected to be appointed by the government early next week.  | ||
| Unheard off ... at the Kingdoom’s Royal Academy Posted: 25 Jul 2011 01:43 AM PDT Excerpt from CEN During a speech given at the nomination ceremony for Dr. Dr. Dr. Bun Rany Hun Xen on 25 July 2011, Mrs. Khlot Thida, the dean of the Cambodian Royal Academy and its President said that: "During the Nokor Phnom (Funan) period, Princess Liv Yi was the most famous woman of Cambodia. Later on, during the Angkor period, it was Princess Indradevi (King Jayavarman VII's wife) who was the most famous woman in Cambodia. Much later on, it was the turn of Queen Sisowath Kosamak Nearyroth (Sihanouk's mother) who was the most famous of Cambodia. Currently, during the 21st century, we have Lok Chumtith Bun Rany Hun Xen who is the most famous woman of Cambodia." (sic!)  | ||
| Four protesting Beer Girls injured in front of the company’s office Posted: 25 Jul 2011 01:33 AM PDT
By Chan Free Press Magazine Online Translated from Khmer by Soch Click here to read the article in Khmer At least 4 Beer Girls were injured when a beer company's vehicle rammed into them when these women were standing in front the beer company's office located north of the Kbak Thnol sky bridge on Monday. The Beer Girls were demanding that the beer company follows the labor arbitration committee's order to double the salary of Beer Girls who work on Sundays to $4 per day. About 40 demonstrators who work for the Angkor beer company held banners and shouted their demand for the beer company to provide them with long term contract rather the short term contract they now have. They also demanded the freedom to join labor unions as well. Ms. Tan Chamrong, a representative of the Beer Girls, told reporters that this strike takes place after the labor arbitration committee issued its decision for Beer Girls working on Sundays to receive double [daily] wage at $4 per day. However, the beer company rejected this decision. Ms. Tan Chamrong added: "The (beer) company owner warned us not to join labor unions, otherwise he will fire us."  | ||
| Another view of the Kingdom of Wonders ... from an alien on the Captain's ship Posted: 25 Jul 2011 01:15 AM PDT Stardate 20110725 ... Dr. Bun Rany had to sit in the corner all by herself after failing to answer the qualification question: "Who's your daddy?". She answered: "Hero-King Sihanouk" instead of "Hun Neng".
Pale like a ghost, she accepted her honorific title of Dr. Academician bestowed upon her by the other tail wagging academicians. (Well, maybe she's Spock's sister after all)  Even the blush after that smacking kiss did not erase the white-like-ghost look. Talking about looky loo: Sister Khlot Thida (background) will be fined 500 riels by the morality squad for stealing a peek at that stolen kiss  Live long and prosper, folks!  ...Spocky & Eery, isn't it?  | ||
| Posted: 25 Jul 2011 12:46 AM PDT Dear Media and Human Rights NGO Friends Tomorrow morning (26 July 2011 from 8.00AM) the residents of the Group 10 and 11 of Tra Paeng Chhouk Village, Sangkat Toeuk Thlar, Khan Sen Sok is going to follow up the protest at the Sangkat Toeuk Thlar, Khan Sen Sok with purpose to get an information of the spraying the house red code number on their house wall since 15 July 2011. For more information please contact: 011428567; 012754233; 012 433 088;  | ||
| Tale from the Banana Kingdoom of Wonders ... by Lucky Unlucky Posted: 25 Jul 2011 12:33 AM PDT Once upon a time, a monkey saw the golden costume worn by another monkey. She thought: "How nice to see this costume on me?"  Later on, other monkeys jumped on the bandwagon and made the dream come true for her, thus the Engliss-Xmer-Viet saying: "Monkey ស៊ី, Monkey đụ"  Sadly, the tale did not end there, here are the other tail wagging monkeys:      That's all folks, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E12ykihvCHk&feature=related ... Lucky Unlucky  | ||
| Sacrava's Political Cartoon: Indra Prophecy Posted: 25 Jul 2011 12:02 AM PDT
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| Cambodia's flag of "convenient SHAME" Posted: 24 Jul 2011 11:58 PM PDT Cambodian vessel detained in Russia for poaching Moscow, July 25 (IANS/RIA Novosti) Russian border guards have detained a Cambodia-flagged vessel suspected of poaching crab in Russian waters, officials said Monday. A border guards spokesman said the vessel was detained in the Sea of Okhotsk. The fishing vessel Nardin with 18 Russian crew members onboard attempted to escape after it was discovered by the border guards. After a six-hour pursuit, a Federal Security Service aircraft joined in and forced the suspected poachers to stop. The ship carried equipment for catching live crab, but did not have any documents that permitting fishing. Russia banned exports of live crab in May 2007, but large volumes are still smuggled out of the country every year.  | ||
| Trial of Khmer Rouge leaders underway in Cambodia Posted: 24 Jul 2011 11:56 PM PDT 25 July 2011 By John Roberts World Socialist Web Site The trial of four senior former Khmer Rouge officials opened with an initial session at the Extraordinary Chambers of the Courts of Cambodia in Phnom Penh on June 27. Nuon Chea, regarded as the Khmer Rouge's chief ideologue; Khieu Samphan, the former head of state; Ieng Sary, the ex-foreign minister; and Sary's wife and former social action minister, Ieng Thirith, are charged with various offences, including genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and murder, committed between 1975 and 1979. The trial is expected to last months or even years. It is already clear from the investigative phase of the cases which began in 2007 that the main aim of the process is to not to bring justice for the survivors. Rather it is a show trial designed to close the book on the Khmer Rouge genocide while covering up the responsibility of others, inside Cambodia and internationally. The Khmer Rouge, which was based on a form of Maoism, was profoundly hostile to urban workers and intellectuals and was undoubtedly guilty of mass murder during its reign of terror. However, those implicated in these crimes also include members of the present Cambodian government and the major powers, such as China and the US, that in one way or another supported the Khmer Rouge. The present Cambodian premier Hun Sen was himself a district deputy leader for the Khmer Rouge government until he fled to Vietnam to avoid being purged. He returned in January 1979 to lead the new regime set up after Vietnamese troops invaded the country. US President Richard Nixon was directly responsible for destabilising Cambodia as part of the neo-colonial war in Vietnam, leading to the rise of the Khmer Rouge. Washington organised the coup that ousted Prince Norodom Sihanouk in 1970 and installed General Lon Nol, triggering a civil war. A massive bombing campaign, illegal even under US law, from 1969 to 1973 killed an estimated 700,000 Cambodians and wrecked the economy. The US, China and the European powers recognised the Khmer Rouge as the legitimate government of Cambodia until 1991. With the end of the Cold War, the major powers struck a deal with the Hun Sen government to open up Cambodia as a cheap labour platform. Under the 1991 Paris Peace Agreement, Vietnam withdrew its military, paving the way for elections and an influx of foreign investment. However, the crimes of the Khmer Rouge were too enormous to be ignored. They had to be addressed, but without opening up a historical can of worms. As a result, the formation of the Extraordinary Chambers of the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) has been a lengthy and tortuous process aimed at protecting the interests of all countries involved. The first trial, which concluded last July, resulted in the conviction of Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, who was in charge of the notorious S-21 prison in Phnom Penh where 12,272 people were murdered. Duch, a relatively low-level Khmer Rouge functionary, cooperated with the ECCC proceedings, admitted his crimes, expressed remorse and based his defence on the fact that he was obeying orders. Duch's case was designed to prepare the ground for the current trial, formally known as "Case Number 2." It is likely to be far more complex, not least because the defendants have denied the charges. The prosecution alleges that the four defendants, along with Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot, who died in 1998, were responsible for bloody purges and forcing the urban population into the countryside. The Documentation Centre of Cambodia estimates that some two million people were executed and another million died from starvation, overwork and disease. The prosecution claims to have ample evidence of communications between the Khmer Rouge government and the killers in the countryside. It alleges that by virtue of their leadership positions the accused are guilty of a "joint criminal enterprise." The four have, however, pleaded not guilty and might well try to implicate others in the crimes. Commenting on the opening session, the New York Times noted: "The trial is confined to the years of Khmer Rouge rule, with minimal reference to historical context, and the defence lawyers' demands to broaden testimony appeared to be a foretaste of vigorous legal wrangling that is expected to last for years." On the first day in court, defence lawyer Michiel Pestman told the five-judge panel that a fair trial was not possible. Pestman addressed the court after his client, 84-year-old Nuon Chea, was allowed to leave the court room to watch the trial from his cell. "Our main objections", Pestman told the court, "were against the judicial investigation carried out by the investigative judges that was so unfair and so harmful to the rights of our client, Nuon Chea, that we think these proceedings should be terminated." In the intricate ECCC system, drawn up in 2006 after more than a decade of haggling between the Hun Sen regime and the UN, the investigative phase is quite important. The report by the investigative judges set the parameters for the trial: the charges, the list of witnesses and the evidence that can be presented. The trial judges can overrule the investigative judges and even order a new investigative phase but it is already clear that this will not happen. Pestman protested that 300 witnesses whom Nuon had wanted to call had been ruled out by the court. In addition, the investigative judges had rejected every defence argument. Some of the accused had reportedly called for Sihanouk, senior Cambodian government ministers and officials, and witnesses to the role of Vietnam and the US, to testify. In October 2009, a scandal erupted over the bias of investigative judge Marcel Lemonde. A senior member of the French judge's investigative team, Wayne Bastin, signed a statement at an Australian police station that month saying that Lemonde had shocked his staff by telling them: "I would prefer that we find more inculpatory evidence than exculpatory evidence." In plain language, Lemonde was only interested in evidence that might prove the guilt of the four, not their innocence. Michael Karnavas and Ang Udom, counsel for Ieng Sary, applied to the ECCC to have Lemonde removed as he was "giving instructions to his investigators to game the process. In other words, to look primarily for evidence that supports the prosecution." The job of the investigative judges, according to the ECCC rules, is to consider all evidence regardless of which side it favours. In October 2010, the ECCC Pre-Trial Chamber dismissed the request for annulment of all investigations and brushed aside claims of bias. It ruled that there was a presumption of the judge's impartiality and that, notwithstanding Lemonde's comment, the defence had not met its burden of proof to prove bias. The Pre-Trial Chamber similarly overruled defence objections that a French television crew had been allowed to interview a witness contrary to the ECCC rules establishing the confidentiality of all investigations. These rulings point to the manner in which the trial will be conducted. Any attempt by the defence to point to the broader political context, especially to the crimes of US imperialism in Indochina during the 1960s and 1970s, will be summarily ruled out of order. The judges are clearly determined to find the accused guilty and suppress any evidence that might embarrass or incriminate the major powers.  | ||
| Japan Pledges Over US$5 Billion To Mekong Nations Posted: 24 Jul 2011 11:50 PM PDT VIENTIANE (Laos), July 25 (Bernama)-- Japan pledged to provide 500 billion JPY (over US$5 billion) to Mekong nations over three years in implementing projects in all fields within the Mekong-Japan cooperation framework, Lao news agency (KPL), reported. This announcement was made at the 4 th Meeting of Mekong-Japan Foreign Ministers in Bali, Indonesia on July 21. At the meeting, Japan also pledged to give about US$20 million to assist the Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam Development Triangle. Mekong and Japanese FMs discussed a plan to boost cooperation between the two sides and some regional and international issues of mutual concerns. They agreed to approve the Chairman's Declaration on the spirit of "New Partnership for a Future of Common Prosperity" and committed to boosting cooperation and multifaceted relations, not only in the economic sector, but also in politics, culture and other fields, with a final target to build fine relations among nations. The third Mekong-Japan Summit will be organised on the sidelines of the Asean Summit, scheduled for November in Indonesia. The Meeting of Mekong-Japan Foreign Ministers was attended by the FMs from Vietnam, Japan, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand under the Chair of Japanese FM Takeaki Matsumoto.  | ||
| Interview between Soy Assopheap and Dechor Hun Xen: A political satire by Anonymous Posted: 24 Jul 2011 10:57 PM PDT   | ||
| Cambodian children lose confidence in themselves - Op-Ed by James Sok Posted: 24 Jul 2011 10:41 PM PDT    | ||
| Boeung Kak Lake gathering and prayer to the BKL god before lost of the Lake Posted: 24 Jul 2011 10:29 PM PDT Dear Boeung Kak Lake Comunity Friends Today, (25 July 2011, from 3.00PM) the residents of the BKL is going to gathering and float the 7 paper boats that it is presented of the 7 villages with food for praying to the Boeung kak lake's god who always maintaining the lake for offering security to the residents of BKL, as in a very soon later, the lake will finish by the private company to fill it by sand. The god also will lost their settlement as the residents who evicted with small compensation. The celebration will hosting in village 22 of Boeung Kak Lake. For more information please contact: Mrs. Tep Vanny: 012604648 Mr. Chan Puthi Sak: 012910023 Mrs.Nun Sok Kheng: 012396579 Mrs. Tol Srey Pao: 0977968536  |
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