KI Media: “Cambodia invites Thailand's new foreign, defense ministers to visit” plus 23 more |
- Cambodia invites Thailand's new foreign, defense ministers to visit
- Interview between Soy Sopheap and De-Chor
- Influence of Communism - By Anonynmous
- Mu Sochua to attend press conference on "Increased Abuse and Exploitation Reflecting Slavery like Practices of Cambodian Domestic Workers in Malaysia" in Malaysia
- Sophiline Cheam Shapiro's Cambodia's Khmer Arts Ensemble will be performing at Cal Performances in Berkeley
- Speak Truth To Power (Courage Without Borders) Series in KI-Media - Van Jones (US) "Police Brutality"
- Free To Choose 1990 Vol. 1 - The Power of the Market
- World Bank halt irks officials
- Nagacorp announced 118% increase in net profit in Cambodia ... how much does Cambodia pocket from this?
- Carlsberg Beer Girls Won Their Battle
- CPP-Thief Ly Yong Phat defies Hun Xen's order to halt sand dredging on the Tatai River in Koh Kong
- Youth Representatives Debate Migrant Labor Policies
- Yutthasak: Yingluck should ask Hun Sen to resume border talks
- Yutthasak urges Yingluck-Hun Sen talk
- Back 2 School Family & Community Picinic at the Park in Fresno, California
- In Land Disputes, Put People Over Development
- World Bank Freezes Loans to Cambodia
- "Woven in traffic" - Poem by Peauladd Huy
- "Toun Bang-krap Reung - The soft tame the hard": Story by Chhaya Khemarak
- The Viets pay back their interest to Hun Xen
- Sacrava's Political Cartoon: Professor Hon. Gareth Evans
- Media Alert: Police Attempted to Disperse Community Assembly
- "ស្រុកខ្មែរកំពុងរីកចំរើន" a Poem in Khmer by Sam Vichea
- Brain Food for all the Do-Gooders
| Cambodia invites Thailand's new foreign, defense ministers to visit Posted: 10 Aug 2011 05:02 PM PDT PHNOM PENH, Aug. 10 Kyodo - Cambodia extended an olive branch to the new Thai government Wednesday by inviting its foreign and defense ministers to visit, with a view to improving bilateral ties that were severely strained under Thailand's previous government over a border dispute that erupted into clashes. On the diplomatic front, Foreign Minister Hor Namhong invited Thailand's new foreign minister, Surapong Tovichakchaikul, to pay an official visit to Cambodia in the near future. ''I have full confidence that with our joint endeavor, you and I will be able to fulfill the aspiration of our two peoples to live in harmony and shared prosperity,'' he said in his invitation. Meanwhile, Defense Minister Gen. Tea Banh invited his Thai counterpart Gen. Yuthasak Sasiprapha to visit ''in order to strengthen and promote bilateral relations between our two defense forces.'' Over the last three years, Cambodia and Thailand have been at loggerheads, particularly over a 4.6 square kilometer area in the vicinity of the ancient Hindu temple of Preah Vihear, which the International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 belongs to Cambodia. Indonesia, under an initiative of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, has offered to send observers to the tense border area to monitor a ceasefire, after Cambodian and Thai troops are withdrawn from a designated provisional demilitarized zone. Yuthasak has said since being given the defense portfolio in Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra's Cabinet that he would give priority to solving the Thai-Cambodian border problem that worsened under the previous government of Prime Minister Abihisit Vejjajiva. Speaking Wednesday, he said that since Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen appears to be on good terms with Yingluck, he hopes they can meet to pave the way for resumption of long-stalled General Border Committee meetings. ''Without holding a GBC meeting, we will not be able to talk about the withdrawal of troops and allowing the Indonesian observers into the area,'' Yuthasak was quoted by the Bangkok Post as saying. ''We have to abide by the International Court of Justice's ruling. However, we have to make sure that both sides are in a win-win situation. To be in a win-win situation, we have to be friends,'' he added. Yuthasak also said that if Hun Sen gives a green light, he would invite Tea Banh dinner in Bangkok, and after that he would go to Cambodia to visit him in return, according to the Bangkok Post. ''Gen. Tea Banh and I are old friends. We frequently met at meetings abroad when I was permanent secretary for defense and deputy defense minister,'' he said.  | ||
| Interview between Soy Sopheap and De-Chor Posted: 10 Aug 2011 04:58 PM PDT   | ||
| Influence of Communism - By Anonynmous Posted: 10 Aug 2011 04:37 PM PDT   | ||
| Posted: 10 Aug 2011 04:31 PM PDT Email message from SRP MP Mu Sochua:
I will be attending the press conference. As additional information, my 2 letters to the Malaysian ambassador in Cambodia have not been addressed and my attempts to get an official meeting with the embassy have failed so far. I have written an official letter to the Ministry of Labor, cc'd to the Ministries of Women's Afffairs and Foreign Affairs, last week. No replies, so far. ----- PRESS CONFERENCE. Dear Editor/Chief Reporter, You are invited to a Press Conference at Tenaganita's office. Increased Abuse and Exploitation Reflecting Slavery like Practices of Cambodian Domestic Workers in Malaysia. More than 400,000, foreign domestic workers mainly from Cambodia, Indonesia ,Philippines, Sri Lanka and India work with Malaysian families under inhumane conditions where their rights as workers are not recognized. In the past one month, an underage Cambodian domestic worker was found dead in Penang. Then a few days ago, another Cambodian domestic worker from Segambut, Kuala Lumpur was found to be severely abused including shaving her bald, by her employer and his two adult children. The rise in abuse and high or even extreme exploitation of Cambodian domestic workers is a major concern now. Tenaganita together with MP Mu Sochua,a leading member of the opposition party Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) and former Minister of Women's Affairs of will hold a joint Press Conference. MP Mu Sochua is here to find out more the conditions and experiences of Cambodian domestic workers. Date: August 11, 2011 Time: 4.30pm. Venue: Tenaganita 38, Jalan Gasing, 46000 Petaling Jaya. Telephone Contact: 77703671/91 Please call Glorene Dass /Liva Sreedharan for further clarifications and thanks for your support. Yours sincerely, Irene Fernandez Executive Director. TENAGANITA SDN BHD 38, Jalan Gasing, 46000, Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia Tel: +603 7770 3691 / 7770 3671 Fax: +603 7770 3681 Email: general@tenaganita.net General Enquiries: enquiry@tenaganita.net Website: under construction  | ||
| Posted: 10 Aug 2011 04:19 PM PDT  Sophiline Cheam Shapiro's Cambodia's Khmer Arts Ensemble will be performing at Cal Performances in Berkeley on Sunday, October 2nd (3 pm). Ticket prices range from $20 - $52 and tickets are 1/2 price for youth under the age of 16. I am asking for your assistance with information on how to inform the Cambodian community in Northern California about this event. Here is a link to our event web page: Please feel free to email or call using the contact information listed below. Thank you, Susan -- Susan Pfeifer Advertising/Promotions Manager Cal Performances UC Berkeley 101 Zellerbach Hall #4800 Berkeley, CA 94720-4800 Ph: 510.642.3499 Fax: 510.643.6715 Email: susanp@calperfs.berkeley.edu Visit us on the web at: www.calperformances.net  | ||
| Posted: 10 Aug 2011 02:23 PM PDT | ||
| Free To Choose 1990 Vol. 1 - The Power of the Market Posted: 10 Aug 2011 12:19 PM PDT | ||
| World Bank halt irks officials Posted: 10 Aug 2011 09:53 AM PDT
Wednesday, 10 August 2011 Don Weinland and Kouth Sophak Chakrya The Phnom Penh Post Representatives from the Embassy of Japan reportedly met with Phnom Penh municipal government officials yesterday to discuss the Boeung Kak lake debacle, a government source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said. City Hall records show a representative from the Japanese Embassy was scheduled to meet with Governor Kep Chuktema yesterday at 2 pm, but Japanese Ambassador Masafumi Kuroki said the embassy had no scheduled meetings with the local government. The government expressed disappointment yesterday with the World Bank's announcement that it had halted new country loans due to the ongoing land dispute at Boeung Kak lake in Phnom Penh and vowed to raise the issue with the bank's executive board. "We are very dissatisfied with the World Bank's decision because we are partners on several projects," Phay Siphan, spokesman for the Council of Ministers, said yesterday, referring to the 21 projects the bank now funds in the country. "Each programme is an agreement the two parties have made with each other. No one has a right to breach these contracts." Annette Dixon, World Bank country director, said in a statement sent yesterday to The Post that the bank's last loan to Cambodia was in December 2010. "Until an agreement is reached with the residents of Boeung Kak lake we do not expect to provide any new lending to Cambodia," she said. Dixon said the World Bank would continue to work with the government to ensure that legal obligations concerning existing projects are met. Three proposed projects, worth US$128 million, are still awaiting approval from the World Bank, according its website. Phay Siphan said the government plans to address the issue with the World Bank's central management and executive board, but no timeline has been set for talks. Rights groups and a spokeswoman for lakeside residents facing eviction lauded the World Bank's announcement yesterday, saying the freeze may push more organizations to discontinue aid until land disputes are resolved. Land disputes at Boeung Kak Lake drew national attention in 2008 when construction for an upscale housing development flooded surrounding villages. More than 20,000 people in total face relocation according to rights groups. Sia Phearum, secretariat of the Human Rights Task Force, called the World Bank decision a "good model" for other organizations that provide Cambodia with aid and cheap loans. "The World Bank has found human rights violations here. So if others still support the county with aid, that means they are supporting human rights violations," Sia Phearum said. "I think other aid agencies will do the same thing." Representatives from the Embassy of Japan reportedly met with Phnom Penh municipal government officials yesterday to discuss the Boeung Kak lake debacle, a government source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said. City Hall records show a representative from the Japanese Embassy was scheduled to meet with Governor Kep Chuktema yesterday at 2 pm, but Japanese Ambassador Masafumi Kuroki said the embassy had no scheduled meetings with the local government. Tep Vanny, a representative for lakeside residents facing eviction, said villagers had heard about the meeting with the Japanese embassy and were pleased that Japan, a major aid contributor to the Kingdom, was engaging the government on the issue. Representatives from the community have petitioned – to no avail – for involvement from the Chinese embassy in the past. Sia Phearum said that the Cambodian government, as a member of the UN, will eventually need to mend relations with the World Bank, and expressed hope that the discontinuation of new loans would bring about an agreement at the lakeside. "This could change the directions of the talks in the future," he said. Erdos Hong Jun Investment Company, a Chinese construction firm, holds a 51 percent stake in the Boeung Kak lake development, according to Chinese governmental documents obtained by The Post. Shukaku Inc, a company tied to Senator Lao Meng Khin, reportedly made 49 percent of the investment. In the first quarter of 2012, Erdos plans to break ground on some $2 billion in investments in the Kingdom. The company plans to build a power plant in Sihanoukville and an alumina mine in Mondulkiri province, according to the documents. approval from the World Bank, according its website. Phay Siphan said the government plans to address the bank's suspension of funds with the World Bank central management and executive board, but said no timeline has been set for talks. Rights groups and a spokeswoman for lakeside residents facing eviction lauded the World Bank's announcement yesterday, saying the freeze may push more organisations to discontinue aid until land disputes and human rights abuses are addressed. Land disputes at Boeung Kak lake drew national attention in 2008 when construction for an upscale housing development flooded surrounding villages. More than 20,000 people in total face relocation, according to rights groups. Sia Phearum, secretariat of the Human Rights Task Force, called the World Bank decision a "good model" for other organisations that provide Cambodia with aid and cheap loans. "The World Bank has found human rights violations here. So if others still support the county with aid, that means they are supporting human rights violations," Sia Phearum said. "I think other aid agencies will do the same thing." Sia Phearum said the Cambodian government, as a member of the UN, will eventually need to mend relations with the World Bank, and expressed hope that the discontinuation of new loans would bring about an agreement at the lakeside. "This could change the directions of the talks in the future," he said. Representatives from the Embassy of Japan reportedly met with Phnom Penh municipal government officials yesterday to discuss the Boeung Kak lake debacle, according to a government source who spoke on condition of anonymity. City Hall records show a representative from the Japanese embassy was scheduled to meet with Governor Kep Chuktema yesterday at 2:00pm, but Japanese Ambassador Masafumi Kuroki said the embassy did not meet, and had no scheduled meetings with local government officials. Tep Vanny, a representative for lakeside residents, said villagers had heard about the meeting with the Japanese embassy and were pleased that Japan, a major aid contributor to the Kingdom, was engaging the government on the issue. Representatives from the community have petitioned – to no avail – for involvement from the Chinese embassy in the past. Erdos Hong Jun Investment Company, a Chinese construction firm, holds a 51 percent stake in the Boeung Kak lake development, according to Chinese governmental documents obtained by The Post. Shukaku Inc, a company tied to Senator Lao Meng Khin, reportedly made 49 percent of the investment. In the first quarter of 2012, Erdos plans to break ground on some $2 billion in investments in the Kingdom. The company plans to build a power plant in Sihanoukville and an alumina mine in Mondulkiri province, according to the documents.  | ||
| Posted: 10 Aug 2011 09:40 AM PDT NagaCorp Announces 2011 Interim Results * * * * * 118% Surge in Net Profit to US$45.9 Million Source: Nagacorp Ltd. Hong Kong, August 9, 2011 - NagaCorp Ltd. ("NagaCorp" or the "Group", SEHK stock code: 3918), the largest integrated entertainment hotel complex in Cambodia, announced today that it achieved a record-breaking 118% increase in net profit for the six months ended June 30, 2011. 65% increase in revenue: Revenue increased 65% to approximately US$111.8 million for the six months ended 30 June 2011, from approximately US$67.8 million for the same period in 2010. Gross profit increased by 59%: The Group increased gross profit by 59% to approximately US$79.9 million. Gross profit margins were 71.5% for the first six months of 2011, and 74.2% for the first six months of 2010. EBITDA reached US$55.5 million, an increase of 84%: EBITDA increased by 84% to US$55.5 million, from US$30.1 million for the same period in 2010. EBITDA margin for the first six months of 2011 was 50%, the highest level since the Group's IPO in 2006, and higher than some key casinos in Macau. A record-breaking 118% increase in net profit and 41.1% net profit margin: During the period under review, the Group achieved a 118% increase in net profit to US$45.9 million. The Group attained these results by maintaining a conservative gaming policy, devising an ever-improving gaming strategy, and operational efficiency. 114% Increase in non-gaming revenue: Hotel and entertainment operations represent NagaWorld's non-gaming revenue. Non-gaming revenue increased by 114% to US$9.4 million for the first six months of 2011 from US$4.4 million for the first six months of 2010. Throughout the first half of 2011, NagaWorld's room occupancy rate averaged 75.2%; this figure continues to rise. 70% Dividend Payout Ratio: The Board has resolved to declare an interim dividend of US cents 1.54 per share (equivalent to HK cents 12.01 per share), representing a dividend payout ratio of approximately 70% based on the net profit generated for the period. Since the Group's IPO, it has maintained an average payout ratio of 65%.  | ||
| Carlsberg Beer Girls Won Their Battle Posted: 10 Aug 2011 09:33 AM PDT
ScandAsia.com ANGKOR Beer promoters, who had been striking against Cambrew for unpaid overtime and respect, have won their battle. Each will receive retroactive overtime pay totalling as much as US$320, following intervention by city officials, the president of the union representing them said yesterday, writes Phnom Penh Post. Phnom Penh deputy governor Pa Socheatvong reached an agreement with the women about half way through a two-hour meeting yesterday afternoon, said Mora Sar, president of the Cambodia Food Workers' Federation. The deputy governor will now urge the company to honour a July ruling by the Arbitration Council that called on Cambrew to adhere to labour laws and pay its beer promoters US$2 overtime on Sundays, Mora Sar said. The council's ruling was retroactive for three years. The city will pay the beer promoters for the overtime they are owed if Cambrew is slow to pay, Mora Sar added. He said city officials said they intervened in the strike because it was affecting public order and also said that the deputy governor told the women yesterday that "the company needs to follow the law". Beer promoter Oum Thavy said she was happy with the city's offer, but added that the payment was not the issue. "The money is not important for the company and it is not important to me. I want the company to respect the law and the women who promote its brands. Even though we work for the company we have rights," she said. Mora Sar said yesterday's agreement opened the door for the estimated 1,000 beer promoters who work for Cambrew to file complaints for unpaid overtime. "In fact, the company owes them money back to 1997 when the labour law required double pay for overtime," he said. The strike began on July 25 when 34 beer promoters began protesting in front of Cambrew's headquarters on Norodom Boulevard. The women suspended their strike for one week last Thursday after Pa Socheatvong agreed to mediate. Their strike drew support from Cambodian unions who threatened to boycott Angkor Beer. They were followed by Danish and international unions, who pressured Carlsberg, which owns half of Cambrew, to settle the strike over $2 of daily overtime. The boycott of Cambrew products saw some bars in Phnom Penh stop serving its products. Garage bar, which is located along the riverside, stopped serving Cambrew products to support the strike. "Beer girls are among the most exploited workers in Cambodia," its owner explained. "My staff and I wanted to show our support." Mora Sar said yesterday's victory would boost the confidence of the Kingdom's estimated 4,000 beer promoters. "It's only the second time they won," he said, referring to a strike last year when they protested to have fired colleagues reinstated. Cambrew and Carlsberg declined to comment.  | ||
| CPP-Thief Ly Yong Phat defies Hun Xen's order to halt sand dredging on the Tatai River in Koh Kong Posted: 10 Aug 2011 09:24 AM PDT
Aug 10th, 2011 David Boyle The Phnom Penh Post Ruling party senator Ly Yong Phat has defied an order endorsed by the Prime Minster to halt his controversial sand dredging activities on the Tatai river in Koh Kong, prompting authorities to request intervention, documents obtained by The Post reveal. The dredging operation on the Tatai river has stirred up serious concern from tourism operators and villagers in the area, who have said it is destroying the local environment and driving customers away. Government officials appear at loggerheads over the tycoon's operations. The Water Resources Minister has insisted in a letter that the so-called "King of Koh Kong" cease violating the ban, but provincial authorities have denied that dredging was even taking place. The Ministry of Industry, Mining and Energy, meanwhile, has extended the LYP Group's dredging licence by a year. A blunt letter written by Minister for Water Resources Lim Kean Hor, dated August 4, called for the intervention of provincial governor Bun Leut to enforce a July 15 temporary ban on LYP Group dredging. "The Sand Resource Management Committee already informed the company on July 15, 2011, to postpone the business activity so a study could be re-conducted. But up until now, the company has not yet postponed its business activities," the letter reads. The tycoon's company had been found to be dredging beyond authorised boundaries and using too much equipment, it added. Just days before the letter was sent, however, the Ministry of Industry, Mining and Energy issued LYP Group with a 12-month permit extension on July 28. The renewed license, also obtained by The Post, shows that Ly Yong Phat will now be allowed to continue dredging at seven locations until September 2012, though the total area of the permit will be reduced from 3,229 hectares to 1,241 hectares. At that point LYP Group will have been dredging in the area for five years, the licence signed by industry minister Suy Sem stated. Ly Yong Phat, Suy Sem, Lim Kean Hor and Bun Leut could not be reached for comment yesterday. But Phay Siphan, spokesman for the Council of Ministers, said yesterday he had visited the upper Tatai river last week and observed dredging near eco-resorts in the area, which he believes should be stopped immediately. "All the companies shall listen to critical agencies that are involved there like the [Ministry of] Environment. All the businessmen that are involved in dredging in that area shall be stopped immediately," he said. He emphasised any halt would be temporary to allow further inspection of impacts from the dredging. Pech Siyon, Koh Kong provincial director department of Industry, Mines and Energy, denied yesterday dredging was taking place in the banned area and said he was not aware of any new licence granted to LYP Group either. "LYP is still sand dredging in the lower Tatai, but operations at the upper Tatai have remained postponed as normal since the ban by Prime Minister Hun Sen," he said, adding the sand was destined for export to Singapore. Political wrangling has done nothing to ease the minds of affected residents. Dredging operations are now taking place about 30 metres off the shore of the river's Andaet island, resident Vora Huy Kanthoul said on Monday, raising his concern the entire land mass would collapse into the river. "We have a problem, nobody can sleep at night, they do it at night and they've been doing that for about 10 days," he said. Villagers who had agreed to embrace ecotourism instead of traditional forms of income had been sold short by dredging, while crab yields had reportedly dropped by 90 percent. "They used to hunt illegal game and the local NGOs and the environmental NGOs have been very successful in changing their way of living from poaching to ecotourism, but now they say [dredging is] going to affect them so in the long run and that will really affect the economy," he said. Pech Siyon said his department wasn't worried about public concern surrounding the impact of LYP Group's operations on tourism investment and local livelihoods, but was focused on closely monitoring the company to ensure they respected regulations. The Singapore Ministry of National Development has repeatedly failed to reply to inquiries.  | ||
| Youth Representatives Debate Migrant Labor Policies Posted: 10 Aug 2011 09:15 AM PDT
Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh
The Cambodian government came under criticism Wednesday for failing to create jobs for an influx of workers entering the market and instead sending too many workers abroad. Speaking at a forum to discuss the government's migrant worker policies, In Sam Ol, a youth representative for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, said authorities had failed to develop an economy that could absorb some 137,000 workers this year alone. "The flow of laborers to foreign countries is a sign that shows Cambodia lacks jobs," he said, speaking at a forum for youth political representatives of the Sam Rainsy Party and ruling Cambodian People's Party. "The countries receiving our laborers look down on our country. For this reason, we must prevent the flow of Cambodian laborers to foreign countries." The forum, sponsored by the US-based International Republican Institute, was held to address an increase of workers to foreign markets, amid increasing allegations of abuse, especially of workers who wind up in Malaysia. The forum was held to prepare young voters for the upcoming commune elections next year and national elections scheduled for 2013. Cambodia exports labor to Japan, Malaysia, South Korea and Thailand especially. The World Bank estimates there are some 350,000 Cambodian workers abroad, while the International Labor Organization says up to 300,000 young workers into the market each year. Official government figures estimate some 126,000 workers are abroad legally, sending remittances of $180 million a year. Sar Soputra, a CPP youth supporter, said the flow of Cambodian labor to foreign countries helped them earn incomes for the families. Legal migrant workers are well paid for their work, he said. "But the negative [problem] is because of some companies or middlemen who lobby them to work illegally outside Cambodia," he said.  | ||
| Yutthasak: Yingluck should ask Hun Sen to resume border talks Posted: 10 Aug 2011 12:55 AM PDT
The Nation Newly-appointed Defence Minister Gen Gen Yuthasak Sasiprapha said Wednesday that Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra should hold a talk with her Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen to resume border talks. Yutthasak said Hun Sen has friendly stand toward Yingluck so she could talk to him to seek a green light for Cambodian Defence Minister Tea Banh to hold a meeting of the Thai-Cambodian General border Committee. Yutthasak said if Hun Sen gives a green light, he will invite Tea Banh to have a dinner in Bangkok and he will later travel to hold a GBC talk in Cambodia. Yutthasak said he known Tea Banh since he was the permanent secretary for Defence.  | ||
| Yutthasak urges Yingluck-Hun Sen talk Posted: 10 Aug 2011 12:49 AM PDT 10/08/2011 Wassana Nanuam Bangkok Post A talk between Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen would likely make way for a General Border Committee (GBC) meeting which has long been stalled, Defence Minister Yutthasak Sasiprapa said on Wednesday. The newly-appointed defence minister said he would give priority to solving the Thai-Cambodian border problem, adding that he would next week make an inspection trip to the border in Si Sa Ket province. "I would like the army chief (Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha) to know that I will next week make a private trip to visit the three southern border provinces. "After that I will go to Si Sa Ket in the Army Region 2 to see the Thai-Cambodian border situation at Preah Vihear temple to get first-hand information so that I can discuss the matter with commanders of the armed forces. "My priority is to solve the border problem," Gen Yutthasak said. Gen Yutthasak said since Hun Sen had appeared on good terms with Ms Yingluck, he would like the two to meet so that the Cambodian prime minister would give the green light for Gen Tea Banh, the Cambodian defence minister, to agree to holding a GBC meeting. "Without holding a GBC meeting, we would not be able to talk over withdrawing troops (from the designated provisional demilitarised zone) and allowing the Indonesian observers into the area," he said. "We have to abide by the International Court of Justice's ruling. However, we have to make sure that both sides are in a win-win situation. To be in a win-win situation, we have to be friends," he added. Once Hun Sen gives the green light, he would invite Gen Tea Banh for dinner in Bangkok and after that he would go to visit him in return, Gen Yutthasak said. "I and Gen Tea Banh are old friends. We frequently met in several meetings abroad when I was permanent secretary for defence and deputy defence minister. "Gen Tea Banh also wants to come to Bangkok, but Hun Sen must first give him the permission," he said. An army source said Lt-Gen Tawatchai Samutsakhon, the 2nd Army commander, will host a Regional Border Committee (RBC) meeting on Aug 23-24 at the 2nd Army headquarters in Nakhon Ratchasima to discuss about the withdrawal of troops. The meeting results could be used by the defence minister when he goes for the GBC meeting to be hosted by Cambodia, the source said.  | ||
| Back 2 School Family & Community Picinic at the Park in Fresno, California Posted: 10 Aug 2011 12:44 AM PDT   | ||
| In Land Disputes, Put People Over Development Posted: 10 Aug 2011 12:40 AM PDT
Tuesday, 09 August 2011 Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer | Washington, DC
Cambodia's widespread land dispute woes can be better addressed if the government adheres closely to the constitution and begins putting people above development needs, a leading researcher says. Lao Monghay, the host of a new monthly call-in show called "Freedom of Expression" on VOA Khmer, said Thursday that people's wellbeing "must be ensured." "If there is a relocation, there should be a betterment, or at least maintain the same standard [of living], not deterioration, as we have seen in the past," he said. The root causes of the land dispute problem stem from a lack of legal enforcement, especially the denial of justice through the courts to local residents, he said. Meanwhile, land disputes continue to be an ongoing problem for many Cambodians, who settled on land after the Khmer Rouge only to lose it to development concessions and other projects. This has led to numerous mass protests in urban and rural areas, oft times leading to clashes between demonstrators and police. However, Lao Monghay said he did not believe in violent uprising as a means to resolving the disputes. "If there are people who are not happy with the way the government addresses the land issue and want to topple the government, they should do this through elections," he said.  | ||
| World Bank Freezes Loans to Cambodia Posted: 10 Aug 2011 12:26 AM PDT
 Tuesday, 09 August 2011 Robert Carmichael, VOA | Phnom Penh
The World Bank said Tuesday it will stop loaning money to Cambodia until the government reaches a deal with thousands of residents who are under threat of eviction in a huge development project. Country director Annette Dixon says the World Bank has not made any loans since December and will not approve any more until Phnom Penh agrees on compensation with lakeside residents. Dixon says the bank continues to encourage the Cambodia government to reach an agreement to provide on-site housing for the remaining residents of Boeung Kak Lake. Nobody at the bank was available for further comment. Two years ago, the Boeung Kak lake area in central Phnom Penh was home to 4,000 families. Now just 1,000 are left and workers have nearly finished filling the lake with sand. Rights groups say the development has proceeded illegally from the start. They say people have been evicted without proper compensation and the threat of violence by the authorities has seldom been far away. For years, lakeside residents tried to get land title documents from the local authorities in a program funded by the World Bank. While hundreds of thousands of other Cambodians obtained land titles, residents at the lake did not. Earlier this year the bank admitted it had let down the residents and quietly informed Phnom Penh to resolve the issue. If not, the bank said it would reconsider its programs in Cambodia. Today's statement indicates the bank has stuck by that pledge. Sia Phearum, secretariat director of the Housing Rights Task Force a local organization that advises lakeside residents of their rights, says local officials started meeting with residents, earlier this year, and the sides have made some progress. "We found that some parts, some points are moving forward and some parts are not moving forward," Phearnum says. "It seems to be like slowly and people still fear concern about the forced eviction, because during the land survey also the company, they trying to lobby or threaten people to move out with the small compensation. This is the way that some part is a good result and some part is not a good result. But the community they have strong solidarity." Cambodia is developing fast and land prices have sharply risen in recent years. Critics say that has caused a wave of land grabbing, driving tens of thousands from their homes. The capital has changed fast, too. In the past decade, slums have been cleared and their residents relocated outside the city limits. High-rises and apartment blocks are now common. The companies behind the Boeung Kak development are very well-connected. One is owned by a senator from the ruling Cambodian People's Party; the other is a firm from China, a nation that has pumped billions into Cambodia in recent years. Cambodian officials say they are not concerned by the bank's position. Spokesman Phay Siphan says the World Bank has exceeded its mandate in insisting that Phnom Penh abide by such conditions. Phay Siphan says the government's only responsibility to the World Bank is to repay monies it has borrowed, and that conditions on one loan should not affect any others. Sia Phearum, of the Human Rights Task Force, stresses that lakeside residents want the bank to resume lending, once a solution is found. "I think if everyone talks about the Boeung Kak issue. I think the government at least they will reconsider and work more (for) improving for solving the problem of the people, of their own voters," Phearum says. The coming weeks and months will clarify whether the bank's ultimatum will help with finding a solution.  | ||
| "Woven in traffic" - Poem by Peauladd Huy Posted: 09 Aug 2011 11:49 PM PDT Woven in traffic By Peauladd Huy Rule of this jungle: as in smog-smothered scream trapped alerting a deadly capture the pack has turned stoic like humans still have no one word for. Just listen. The rip in her cry collecting her body afterward. Now she belongs to the broken everything before its time. Too early, too fast to comprehend the first time, after he pried away the soda can. Now it is a signal she knows nothing sweet is to last forever in this new home. After sugar's taken away, the cries dammed by hands, too big for the tiny faces – now found filling up behind hidden doors, like little angels crushed beneath the weight of some drug, no longer know where it really hurt. Everywhere it hurt. All sign of damage ebbs its way to that first wound has yet to heal up before anymore pierces through and through. Any day, it's no easier. This human shape with its make-believe part of a woman: one part is broken, all parts are broken once more wouldn't have made any difference. Once in any girl's lifetime still stretches its heavy hands out toward some master key and, the lock's still knocked open at will.  | ||
| "Toun Bang-krap Reung - The soft tame the hard": Story by Chhaya Khemarak Posted: 09 Aug 2011 11:23 PM PDT    | ||
| The Viets pay back their interest to Hun Xen Posted: 09 Aug 2011 11:15 PM PDT   | ||
| Sacrava's Political Cartoon: Professor Hon. Gareth Evans Posted: 09 Aug 2011 11:13 PM PDT | ||
| Media Alert: Police Attempted to Disperse Community Assembly Posted: 09 Aug 2011 11:04 PM PDT  Media Alert Police Attempted to Disperse Community Assembly In the morning of 10 August 2011, Mr. Chut Wutty, the Director of Natural Resource Protection Group, and communities from three provinces were surrounded by a number of police officers (over 10) armed with AK 47 trying to stop a training session. An intense argument broke out between Mr. Chut Vutty and the police officers, with the police using disrespectful and dirty words and unacceptable behaviors. The Cambodian Center for Human Rights in collaboration with Natural Resource Protection Group on 9 August 2011 conducted a training session on Human Rights in Sre Veal village, Dorng Kambet commune, Sandann district, Kompong Thom province. This training was to provide the communities whose daily lives contingent upon the resources from Prey Lang with the knowledge of various laws, particularly administrative laws and human rights directly related to their lives and issues pertaining to natural resource protection. There were roughly seventy villagers from three provinces—Kompong Thom, Preah Vihear and Steng Treng—attending the training on 9 August 2011. At the start of the training, the commune chief and a number of police officers came in with an attempt to stop the training. After about an hour of arguments between the commune chief and the organizers: Mr Chim Savuth and Mr Chut Wutty, the training proceeded despite the prohibition from the commune chief. However, training was under strict observation from the local authority: a member of the commune council and a police officer. The session on law and human rights ended at around 2:30 p.m and the session on natural resource protection conducted by Mr. Chut Wutty began. As time running short, Mr Chut Wutty was not able to finish so he had to stay overnight in the village for another session in the morning of 10 August 2011. For further information, please contact: Mr. Chhim Savuth, Project Coordinator, +855 12 899858 or savuth@cchrcambodia.org Mr. Chut Wutty, the Director of Natural Resource Protection Group, +85512835353 or nrpgconservation@noline.com.kh Best, --- Suon Bunthoeun, Attorney –at- Law Project Officer, CCHR  | ||
| "ស្រុកខ្មែរកំពុងរីកចំរើន" a Poem in Khmer by Sam Vichea Posted: 09 Aug 2011 08:53 PM PDT   | ||
| Brain Food for all the Do-Gooders Posted: 09 Aug 2011 07:41 PM PDT Let him that would move the world first move himself. - Socrates  |
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