KI Media: “Clothing chiefs to look at Cambodia workplaces” plus 23 more

More than two dozen global clothing brands have said they will investigate mass faintings among Cambodian garment workers.

The International Labour Organisation says the retailers have agreed to provide resources and international expertise to find out why hundreds of their suppliers' employees have collapsed recently.

The mass fainting episodes are often blamed on workers' poor health, bad workplace ventilation or exposure to dangerous chemicals.

The ILO estimates there have been around 10 mass fainting incidents so far this year in Cambodia which has nearly 300 factories making clothing for export.

BANGKOK, Sep 05, 2011 (The Straits Times) -- Gamblers fearful of a crackdown on illegal gambling dens in Bangkok have been making their way to Cambodian casinos over the past two days, the Bangkok Post reported yesterday.

The exodus of gamblers comes on the heels of an announcement by Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yubamrung last week that he would get tough on more than 40 illicit casinos operating in central Bangkok.

Mr Chalerm's announcement in turn followed Rak Prathet Thai leader Chuwit Kamolvisit's revelation that senior police officers owned gambling dens in Bangkok. The lawmaker had showed a video clip in Parliament purportedly recorded at an illegal casino in the heart of the capital.

Announcing the clampdown last week, Mr Chalerm said he had spent more than a year gathering information on casinos while his party was in the opposition until its election win last month.

"Not only the casino on Rama IX Road, but also other casinos in other areas will no longer exist," he was quoted as telling reporters by the Agence France-Presse.

He said two senior officers had been assigned to oversee the crackdown but if the metropolitan police would not close the casinos, then he would ask other agencies, such as the border patrol police, to do the job.

A source at the border told the Bangkok Post that the announced crackdown in Bangkok had resulted in a windfall for Cambodian casinos.

The source said large border casinos generate between 13 billion baht (US$434 million) and 15 billion baht a year in revenue and smaller ones about 500 million baht to 700 million baht a year.

Meanwhile, 62 per cent of respondents across the country surveyed by the National Institute of Development Administration said the police in respective jurisdictions must face the music for allowing the illegal casinos to operate, the Post reported.

About 23 per cent said they had known of gambling dens operating near their homes, while 61 per cent said they disagreed with legalising gambling in Thailand.

Most forms of gambling are outlawed in the kingdom but it remains popular in a country where corruption is rife.

Former deputy prime minister Surakiart Sathirathai said yesterday that the 2001 memorandum of understanding on maritime borders between Thailand and Cambodia had been beneficial to the kingdom.

The ex-minister who served in the Thaksin Shinawatra government came out in defence of the deal after the Democrat Party on Monday questioned the merits of the MoU.

Democrat spokesman Chavanond Intarakomalyasut told reporters on Monday that the Thaksin government had signed the deal with Cambodia in haste after having been in office only a few months. He also dismissed Mr Surakiart's earlier claim that the MoU compels Phnom Penh to accept that Koh Kut, which is located in the Gulf of Thailand, belongs to Thailand.

Mr Surakiart insisted yesterday the MoU did compel the Cambodian government to recognise Koh Kut as being in Thai territorial waters, although it had tried to say in 1972 that the island and the disputed area near the Preah Vihear temple belonged to Cambodia.

He also rejected Mr Chavanond's comments that the MoU had been signed too quickly. He said the government spent several decades holding talks with Cambodia to settle maritime conflicts before signing the MoU. The talks had been carried out by civil servants, not politicians, Mr Surakiart said.

As for the disputed areas near the temple, Thai and Cambodian government officials had also held several rounds of negotiations over many decades before agreeing to sign an MoU in 2000 during the Chuan Leekpai administration. This was followed by the signing in 2001 of the MoU over the disputed maritime area during the Thaksin administration.

Cambodia agreed to drop its sovereignty claim over Koh Kut after the 2001 agreement was inked, said Mr Surakiart.

The 2001 MoU did not include sharing interests in natural resources in the disputed maritime area as alleged by Mr Chavanond, he said.

The seabed of the overlapping 27,000 square kilometres of waters in the Gulf of Thailand is believed to be rich in oil and gas.

Mr Surakiart said the 2001 MoU included a framework for further negotiations over the disputed maritime area and areas that both governments agreed to jointly develop. It also included a clause that Koh Kut had belonged to Thailand since 1907.

He added that negotiations took quite a long time due to political instability in both countries prior to the Chuan Leekpai administration.Mr Surakiart said instead of criticising people who signed the two MoUs, the public should closely watch negotiations between the Yingluck Shinawatra administration and Cambodia.

Energy Minister Pichai Naripthaphan will be responsible for negotiating on behalf of Thailand about the joint development area.

A Thai provincial court has sentenced a Thai, a Cambodian and a Vietnamese to two years in jail for espionage along the Thai-Cambodian border in June.

The court in Kantharalak district of Si Sa Ket province yesterday announced the sentences of Suchart Muhammad, a 32-year-old Thai, Cambodian citizen Ung Kimtai, 43, and Nguyen Teng Dang, 37, a Vietnamese national.

Suchart, who drove a pickup for the alleged spies, and Ung also received additional jail terms of four months and three months respectively because they had drugs in their possession.

The jail sentences were halved from eight months and six months, respectively, due to their confessions.

The three men were arrested in the border district of Kantharalak, Si Sa Ket, on the evening of June 7. Their alleged Cambodian spymaster, identified as Wichai or Ya Pao, 48, managed to flee.

Man Wanna, Cambodian consul in Thailand, and Pham Minh Tuan, secretary to the Vietnamese ambassador to Thailand, were present at the ruling along with Thai soldiers and police.

Relatives of the three men also were also present. Some of them burst into tears after the ruling. They saw off the three men from the court as they were escorted to a prison in Kantharalak district.

The Cambodian and Vietnamese authorities will appeal against the verdict.

Meanwhile, Thai Defence Minister Yutthasak Sasiprapa said he planned to visit Cambodia on Sept 23 and 24 and has asked if his Cambodian counterpart Tea Banh would be available for a meeting.

The minister said he had to inform his Cambodian counterpart that the Thai cabinet and parliament had to approve in advance the framework for negotiations for the next meeting of the Thai-Cambodian General Border Committee.

ជំរាបសួរ,

យើងខ្ញុំសូមគោរព អញ្ជើញបងប្អូន ជនរួមជាតិ ទាំងអស់ មេត្តាចូលរួម មហាបាតុកម្ម នេះកុំបី អាក់ខានឡើយ។ ថ្ងៃចុះ សន្ធិសញ្ញា សន្តិភាព ២៣​ តុលា ១៩៩១ គឺជាថ្ងៃនិមិត្តរូបតែមួយគត់ សំរាប់ ការស្រោង ស្រង់ ពូជពង្ស ខ្មែរយើង ។

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

Bonjour,

Réunissons tous à la manifestion pour changer le sort de notre Cher Pays. L'Accord de Paix du 23 octobre 1991 est le seule symbole pour la sauvegarde de la Nation Khmère.

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

Dear all,

Joint hand all at this rally for changing the bad fate of our Lovely Homeland. Paris Peace Accord on October 23th, 1991 is a unique symbol for saving the Khmer Nation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=gq9C36tFdjA

This year, six awardees from different parts of Asia take center stage in the annual Ramon Magsaysay Awards, the Asian equivalent of the Nobel Peace Prize, to serve as models of leadership and service. In this series, GMA News Online asks each awardee: What can the Philippines learn from your story?

The father of Koul Panha, a Ramon Magsaysay awardee from Cambodia, was killed by the authoritarian regime in his country when he was eight, in a political environment not unlike the previous dictatorship in the Philippines.

Koul's father was killed in 1976, along with over one-fifth of Cambodia's population, under the oppressive Khmer Rouge regime. That was also around the time the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos placed the Philippines under martial law, resulting in widespread human rights violations.

The trauma of losing his father at a tender age drove Koul to work for change in his country. Ever since Cambodia gained its democracy and held its first free elections in 1993, Koul has worked to protect his country's democracy before, during, and after elections.

He received the Ramon Magsaysay Award this year for his work in the Committee for Free and Fair Elections (Comfrel), the Cambodian counterpart of the Philippines' National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel). He has led Comfrel as its executive director since 1998. (Read his story in the document below)

"In a young democracy, people easily lose motivation to vote, so in elections, sometimes people feel that it only produces the elite class, not really benefiting people. So we think that we should activate citizens, especially the voters, to remain active in between elections," Koul tells GMA News Online.

Although electoral problems in Cambodia, such as fraud and violence, also prevail here, Koul believes the Philippines is in a much better position than his country in working for electoral reform as it has "a very strong political dynamic that contributes to improve the system."

On June 21, Slate Magazine's Ken Silverstein's article, "NGOs in Cambodia: Accommodation with the regime can be very profitable," examined non-governmental organizations in general, and in Cambodia in particular. The findings were not flattering to NGOs. But I took away more than one lesson.

When I was with the Khmer People's National Liberation Front, a Khmer nationalist resistance, at the Khmer-Thai border, I became familiar with some of what Silverstein and others have described as NGOs' general "path." Silverstein wrote: "After arriving to provide immediate relief, (NGOs) gradually transform themselves into survival-focused, grant-proposal-writing shops, chasing dollars and holding PowerPoint-heavy workshops on 'empowerment,' 'governance,' 'capacity-building,' and other empty buzz phrases."

His assertion mirrors my own experience in the 1980s. Here was what Silverstein wrote: When the earthquake hit Haiti in 2010, nonprofits rushed in -- but a survey revealed that the 60 U.S. relief organizations on site "had spent less than 40 percent of the $1.4 billion they raised" for the first year. Many projects are still stalled and 1 million Haitians continue to shelter in squalid tent settlements.

Silverstein says many of the billions of dollars spent by USAID to rebuild Afghanistan "never made it to the country, because about half of all funds were handed out to U.S. companies."

On Cambodia, Silverstein wrote, "billions of dollars of international aid" following the UN-organized elections in 1993 -- largely provided by the U.S. and Western donors -- were "delivered through and controlled by international aid agencies and NGOs."

Silverstein cautioned: "The point here is not that every seemingly good cause is a fraud and that all international aid groups are poverty pimps (though some certainly are)," and suggested, "people should bring the same scrutiny to NGOs as they do to corporations and governments (and the media, for that matter)."

Further, he wrote: "Over the years, NGOs in Cambodia have cleared landmines and implemented programs to prevent the transmission of HIV/AIDS. There are many excellent international and local NGOs working in Cambodia, among them LICADHO, a civil and political rights group, the Worker Rights Consortium, and Human Rights Watch." He mentioned the London-based Global Witness that "got kicked out of Cambodia" for reports exposing governmental corruption.

Yet the negative view of NGOs is pervasive in the article. Even "a terrible draft law" -- requiring NGOs in Cambodia to complete "a complex registration process," giving the government authority to approve or deny registration applications --"doesn't turn charity workers into saints," he wrote.

About the 3,000-plus NGOs and aid organizations in Cambodia, Silverstein wrote, "By day, swarms of foreign do-gooders clog the streets of Phnom Penh in their company-provided SUVs, and by night they fill bars, restaurants, and nightclubs. Collectively, NGO workers represent a privileged caste, isolated and detached from the people who serve as the objects of their benevolence."

He referenced a 2006 story in the Australian that denounced Australia's aid to Cambodia as wasted, asserting that 80 percent of it "goes straight out in the form of high expatriate salary packages and running costs." A 2005 Action Aid report of 700 top consultants in Cambodia found they average $100,000 in salary in a year, roughly equivalent to "the entire annual wage bill for 160,000 Cambodian civil servants."

The "terrible draft law" -- "Hun Sen has said it is needed to keep terrorists from setting up shop in Cambodia 'under the guise of NGOs,' but his government clearly wants to use it against the relatively small number of groups that criticizes his government," said Silverstein -- catalyzed Cambodia's major rights groups and NGOs to issue a joint statement: "The draft law we now see before us is unacceptable" as it "grants far-reaching power to government authorities to control the rights of citizens to organize and express themselves."

On Aug. 23, 10 international organizations -- including Freedom House, Global Witness, Human Rights Watch, International Federation for Human Rights -- sent a letter to 36 foreign governments: "As written, it will allow the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) to intimidate and potentially shut down local, national and foreign NGOs, associations, and informal groups that criticize the government or government officials."

The letter urges aid donors to "Make it clear to the RGC that if the law is adopted in its current form, your government will reassess your bilateral assistance and will also urge all agencies providing multilateral assistance, including the United Nations and international financial institutions, to reassess their assistance."

By the end of August, the draft law was before the Council of Ministers, and would be forwarded to the National Assembly for approval. The council's spokesman said, "We just want to have a proper law to regulate their operations."

But "new laws must not infringe upon the fundamental rights of the people, including their rights to freedom of association and freedom of expression," said the joint statement.

The law favored by the Hun Sen government is consistent with its customary disregard for fundamental rights and freedoms.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsTp___xw5M

Sunday is a day of rest – however only for some, especially in Cambodia. The supporting youths of the Sam Rainsy Party in Battambang take this as an advantage, take to the streets the message they would like to share; "Youth – register to vote for a bright future".

The head of youth movement at the provincial level for SRP Battambang is Suon Chamroeun; he has been involved with the party since 2005. When asked what he studied at University he replies, "a completely different field from politics – marketing, it's complicated why I got involved, [partly] because I could not see the logic of using my potential for the gains of the businessman in a [corporate job]". I ask what constitutes a youth; his reply is anyone between 16 years old to 30 years old. Youth involvement within the party increases during the one month campaign period however diminishes once this is over; Chamroeun says there must be a strategy to keep them involved for the long run. Chamroeun reveals to me research that has shown youths within Cambodia to have significantly lower interests in politics than across other countries; just 4% and less than half of these are actively involved.

Youths have the power to make a change, to voice their opinions on political issues in order to secure their future wellbeing. The Sam Rainsy Party defend the rights of freedom of speech and strongly support youth involvement.

On Sunday morning, 29 SRP youth supporters gathered at a house in Toul Ta Ek, Battambang where they joyfully received their shirts displaying the message – youth register to vote for a bright future. They are extremely happy to be here, to be part of something they believe in. They understand that they have the right to make choices, to be involved in making a change; and the efforts of walking the streets door-to-door allow us to spread awareness to others about voter registration.

The efforts from the door-to-door voter registration campaign rewarded us with two new youth supporters – brother's Sophal and Chandous. Chanroth Bith, a volunteer from Phnom Penh inspired a family the previous day to come and show their support, to become involved in shaping their future. Sophal is a 26 year old student from Kamakor Village, Battambang. Chanroth explained to them that everyone should be respected of their human rights and freedom to an adequate way of life. However they do not believe this because they are labelled 'poor' and people have discriminated and looked down on them – even from the Village Chief. Sophal opens up and says, "We are treated like we are from another world". Chanroth explains that no matter if someone is poor or rich, everyone should be treated equally. She invited them to the Sunday youth walk and to become involved with the other SRP youths. Here, they can learn more about other people and their experiences, human rights and it is also a great way to socialize because everyone is treated as equals.

Rosette is another significant figure within the group, a youth herself and is a prominent member in the SRP youth movement in Battambang. She has a strong determination and drive for youth involvement in politics. Rosette has mapped out the route in which the youth will walk; spreading awareness in markets, shops and any place we see as possible targets to voice our message. She makes certain that we are all aware not to mention that we belong to the Sam Rainsy Party as it is not yet campaign period and we could in trouble with the local authorities; we are just there to spread the message on voter registration – for them to check their details, what documentations to bring if they still need to register and if any of their family members are eligible to vote for the 2012 elections.

Before we head off on the walk we sing a motivational Khmer song – 'Happy Sunday'. The youths take to the streets of Battambang with high enthusiasm.

On 5 September 2011, in response to media enquiries regarding Koh Kut, Mr. Thani Thongphakdi, Director-General of the Department of Information and Foreign Ministry Spokesperson, made the following statement:

1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reaffirms that Koh Kut is under Thai sovereignty. The 1907 Treaty between Siam and France clearly stated that the French government ceded to Thailand the territories of Trat and all the islands situated to the south of cape of Laem Sing, up until and including Koh Kut; in exchange, Thailand ceded to France the territories of Siem Reap, Battambang, and Sisophon.

2. The Memorandum of Understanding between the Royal Thai Government and the Royal Government of Cambodia regarding the Area of their Overlapping Maritime Claims to the Continental Shelf, signed on 18 June 2001, also clearly indicates that Koh Kut is under the sovereignty of Thailand, which Cambodia has accepted and never challenged this fact. This is reflected in the map attached to the said 2001 Memorandum of Understanding showing that the upper line of the overlapping claims area was drawn southwardly surrounding Koh Kut instead of crossing over it.

3. Thailand and Cambodia will have to continue negotiations to delimit the exact maritime boundary in accordance with international law.

PHNOM PENH - Cambodia has received $8.8 billion of investments from China from 1994 to July 2011, making China the leading country in the investments in the country, according to the reports from the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC) on Sept 6.

The report showed that besides China, South Korea, Europe, Malaysia and China's Taiwan are also leading investors in Cambodia.

From 1994 to July 2011, South Korea's investment in Cambodia was rated at second with $4 billion, European countries at third with $3.6 billion.

Also, Malaysia and China's Taiwan are at fourth and fifth places with $2.6 billion and $823 million respectively.

"China is the largest investor in Cambodia," Sok Chenda Sophea, the CDC's Secretary General, said on Sept 6. "Also, it' s the leading donor for infrastructure development in Cambodia."

China's investments in Cambodia are mainly in hydro-power dams, mineral resources, garment industry, banking and finance, tourism and agriculture.

The report also recorded that during the last 17 years, the United States' and Japan's investments in the country have been ranked 10th and 11th with $282 million and $148 million respectively.

PHNOM PENH (AFP) - More than two dozen global clothing brands on Tuesday pledged to investigate a spate of mass faintings among Cambodian garment workers, the UN's labour agency said.

The retailers said they would provide resources and international expertise to find out why hundreds of their suppliers' employees have collapsed recently, the International Labour Organisation said after a meeting in Phnom Penh.

Among the retailers who supported the initiative were Gap, H&M, Walmart and Target, a source who attended the gathering but wished to remain anonymous told AFP.

'More research is urgently needed to identify possible new causes that will explain the fainting phenomenon, as well as eliminate ones we know about, in areas such as occupational safety, health and nutrition,' said Tuomo Poutiainen of the ILO's Better Factories Cambodia Programme.

SI SA KET, Sept 6 (MCOT online news) -- Kantharalak Court in Si Sa Ket province on Tuesday sentenced three men --Thai, Cambodian, and Vietnamese nationals -- to two years in prison for spying on Thai military facilities along the Thai-Cambodian border, but the defendants' lawyers said they would appeal the verdict.

Suchart Muhammad, a 32-year-old Thai, Ung Kimtai, a 43-year-old Cambodian and Nguyen Tengyang, 37, a Vietnamese, were apprehended June 7 at the Thai border village of Phum Srol in the northeastern province of Si Sa Ket for alleged spying on Thai military facilities and bunkers built to shelter Thai villagers in the event of cross-border attacks or shelling.

A fourth man, a Khmer believed to be working for the Cambodian army, escaped across the border during the arrest.

The court ruled that the trio were guilty of spying and sentenced them each to two years in jail.

Mr Suchart was also found guilty for using drugs while driving, and the court therefore sentenced him for an additional eight-month jail term which was commuted to four months due to his confession.

Ung Kimtai was also given an additional six-month sentence for drug abuse but it was commuted to three months for his confession.

Pham Minh Tuan, first secretary of the Vietnamese embassy in Thailand, attended the trial. He said he would report the verdict to the ministry and would seek to help his compatriot.

Weerawat Thongsut, the lawyer representing the three defendants, said he would file an appeal on their behalf within 30 days.

In a related development, Thai Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul said Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra would visit Cambodia on Sept 15, her first foreign visit after taking office last month.

Mr Surapong said he was unable to confirm whether Ms Yingluck would meet with Cambodian authorities to help secure the release of two Thai activists of Thailand's Patriot Network, Veera Somkwamkid and his secretary Ratree Pipattanapaiboon, now detained in a Khmer jail for illegal entry and spying charges.

It depended on the opportunity, he said, adding that the Thai embassy staff provided good care for the pair.

A Cambodian court on Feb 1 ruled that Mr Veera, a key network activist and his secretary Ms Ratree were guilty of espionage, illegal entry, and trespassing in a military zone. Mr Veera was sentenced to an eight-year jail term and a 1.8 million riel (US$450) fine while Ms Ratree was handed a six-year jail term and a 1.2 million riel ($300) fine.

Officials say Thailand's newly installed prime minister, Yingluck Shinawatra, will visit Cambodia next week.

Cambodian Foreign Ministry spokesman Koy Kyuong told VOA he expects the September 15 visit to produce a major improvement in relations between the two countries, which fought a series of border skirmishes earlier this year.

The spokesman said relations with Thailand have been getting "better and better" since Ms. Yingluck took office in early August.

The countries announced a month ago that they will convene a committee to discuss the border dispute, which claimed 18 lives and displaced thousands of villagers.

The Ratanakkiri provincial court issued summonses to two staff from a rights group and one journalist for allegedly inciting villagers to protest against a company involved in a long running land dispute in the province, rights workers said yesterday.

Ratanakkiri provincial court prosecutor Luch Lao issued the summonses to Pen Bunna, provincial coordinator of Adhoc, Chay Thy, an Adhoc monitor, and Ratha Visal, a reporter for Radio Free Asia, they said. They were ordered to appear in the court on September 19 to answer questions over comments they made in a news broadcast in 2009.

"I respect the court's procedures and will show up. I have no fear because I have done nothing wrong," Pen Bunna said. His colleague Chay Thy echoed his sentiments, saying he had nothing to fear because he had done nothing wrong.

Both Adhoc workers had left the province after facing similar charges in July of 2009, but they returned last year. Ratha Visal declined to comment.

In 2008, residents of communities opposing the company's rubber plantation had marched to the court to demand the release of 12 villagers who had been arrested on charges related to the land dispute. 

Rights workers say the court has targeted them and accused them of inciting villagers to protest.

The land dispute is over 260 hectares of land. About 100 families in a village in Lumphat district claim the company has encroached on their land.

Luch Lao could not be reached for comment.