DAP: The breaking news in Cambodia: “Death toll of flooding reaches 247, as Royal Water Festival Suspends” plus 9 more

CAMBODIA, PHNOM PENH, Oct 13, 2011-The death toll from the flooding reaches 247 and royal water festival this year was suspended after the flood disaster inundated 17 provinces of the country, Samdech PM Hun Sen declared to his people.

The water level is higher than the emergency situation at the main water management station along Mekong River and Tonle Sap, Tonle Bassac," he announced in his statement.

The flooding inundated 390,000 hectares of rice paddies about 16 percent of total rice paddies as 190,000 hectares of rice paddies damages, samdech PM Hun Sen said at the peace palace. The economic growth of Cambodia expects 6 per cent this year after the flood is hitting agricultural crops in the country.

"We suspended royal water festival due to flood disaster but local people and authorities can do at provinces if they prefer, he said, adding that we need the forces to help victims and work after the flood like growing agricultural crops.

We also drop our economic growth from 7-8 per cent to about 6 per cent this year due to the flooding is hitting physical infrastructure.

We also have $100 million for dealing the national work this year and now we used it. But we also added over 200, 000, million riels to restore physical infrastructure. The flooding inundated 4,900 km and 187 km damaged.

He also appealed to local resident to be careful because the water level in emergency situation even in Phnom Penh.

 

BEIJING, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Canadian trade minister Ed Fast said on Thursday that Canada and China are negotiating on a foreign investment and protection agreement to boost bilateral investment.

Ed Fast, Canadian Minister of International Trade and minister for the Asia-Pacific Gateway, said the agreement aims to set a clear set of rules under which Canadian investors can invest in China and vice versa.

"The agreement will also set a clear set of rules under which disputes will be resolved. The agreement will enable both Canadian and Chinese investors be more confident that when they make investments they will be treated fairly. If there is a dispute, there will be an internationally recognized process for resolving it,"  he added.

He noted that once achieved, the agreement will send a clear signal to Canadian investors that China wants Canadian investment.

Fast said Canada is anxious to build a deeper investment and trade relationship with China.

A stronger bilateral trade relationship will help the world economy recover from recession, as both countries are focusing on eliminating trade barriers, which is also one of the key messages Canadian government is communicating around the world, he said.

"China is a very significant investor in Canada," Fast said. "I passed on the message to my Chinese counterpart of welcoming Chinese investors to Canada during our meeting on Oct. 12."

Fast is in his week-long trip to China from October 7 to 14 to strengthen Canada-China trade and investment ties.

During his trip, China Petrochemical Corporation signed a deal to buy Canadian oil and gas explorer Daylight Energy for 2.2 bln Canadian dollars, which Fast said showcased the increasing cooperation between Canada and China.

While in China, Fast will visit Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Shanghai, Suzhou, Beijing and Qingdao, promoting Canadian capabilities in target sectors such as aerospace, financial and engineering services, high-value-added manufacturing, agri-food, lumber and energy.

BANGKOK, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul on Thursday announced that Thailand would stay as a party to UNESCO's World Heritage Convention.

The decision came after a meeting of the government's committee on the World Heritage Convention on Thursday.

According to the FM, Thailand will ask the World Heritage Committee to wait for the ruling from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) before considering Phnom Penh's management plan of the World Heritage-listed Preah Vihear temple.

Surapong said Thailand would benefit by retaining membership of the World Heritage Committee. The Thai government would write to UNESCO, asking that the World Heritage Committee also wait for the ruling of the international court before considering Cambodia's management plan for Preah Vihear, he added.

The UNESCO earlier offered assistance for the restoration of historical sites in flood-stricken Ayutthaya province.

On Oct. 18, the national committee on the World Heritage Convention will report its decision to the cabinet meeting.

During the 35 session of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)'s World Heritage Committee in France in June, Suwit Khunkitti, the former Natural Resources and Environment Minister, announced Thailand's withdrawal from the World Heritage Convention to protest against the World Heritage Committee's decision to consider Cambodia's management plan for the ancient temple despite the ongoing border dispute. However, it was not made official yet.

DHAKA, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Bangladeshi Railway will acquire 11 narrow-gauge diesel-electric locomotives at a cost of 4.39 billion taka (about 62.71 million U.S. dollars) from a Japanese supplier with a view to improving the train services in the country.

The state-owned rail transport agency and the Marubeni Corporation of Japan signed a contract to this end on Thursday in capital Dhaka.

Marubeni Corporation within two years will deliver the locomotives which will be manufactured by Hyundai Rotem, a South Korea-based company.

But Bangladesh's Communications Minister, who attended the contract signing ceremony, expressed the hope that it might be completed within 18 months.

Bangladeshi Railway covers a length of 2,855 km and employs 34, 168 people. It operates international, inter-city and suburban rail systems on its multi-gauge network. The transport agency now has a fleet of 295 locomotives, of which 217 are narrow-gauge and 78 broad-gauge.

HANOI -- Vietnam's stock market index, VN-Index, closed at 412. 59 points on Thursday, up 1.68 points, or 0.41 percent, against the previous trading day.

A total of 28.424 million shares worth 431.152 billion Vietnamese dong (VND) (20.64 million U.S. dollars) changed hands at the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange.

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SEOUL -- South Korean shares ended higher Thursday. The main Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 13.6 points, or 0.75 percent, to 1,823.1.

Trading volume stood at 425.4 million shares worth 6.5 trillion won (5.7 billion U.S. dollars).

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WELLINGTON -- New Zealand's sharemarket closed 0.6 percent lower on Thursday with the benchmark NZX-50 index fell 18.44 points at 3306.67 and a turnover of 88.8 million NZ dollars (70.42 million U.S. dollars).

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TOKYO -- The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended up 84.35 points, or 0.97 percent, from Wednesday to 8,823.25.

The turnover was about 1,005.3 billion yen (about 13.05 billion U.S. dollars).

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HONG KONG -- Hong Kong stocks rose 428.35 points or 2.34 percent, to close at 18,757.81 on Thursday.

Turnover totaled 88.39 billion HK dollars (about 11.36 billion U.S. dollars).

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TAIPEI -- Taiwan's share prices rose 45.98 points, or 0.62 percent to close at 7,428.33 on Thursday.

The benchmark weighted index traded between 7,372.41 and 7,444. 33 on a turnover of 106.87 billion new Taiwan dollars (about 3.53 billion U.S. dollars).

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KUALA LUMPUR -- The Malaysia stock market ended higher here on Thursday.

The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) was at 1,444.87 up 16. 37 points or 1.13 percent.

Turnover increased to 1.51 billion shares valued at 1.96 billion ringgit Malaysia (624.30 million U.S. dollars).

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BANGKOK -- The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) index on Thursday moved down 15.95 points, or 1.67 percent to close at 936. 82 points.

Some 5.49 billion shares worth 25.72 billion baht (about 834.25 million U.S. dollars) changed hands.

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SINGAPORE -- The Singapore stock market finished slightly lower on Thursday, with the benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) down 3. 78 points, or 0.14 percent, to close at 2,733.97.

A total of 1.69 billion shares changed hands with turnover of 1. 56 billion Singapore dollars (1.22 billion U.S. dollars).

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MANILA -- Philippine stocks closed 0.35 percent higher Thursday.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index increased by 14. 77 points to 4,134.48.

The trade volume reached 5.55 billion shares worth 4.91 billion pesos (112.87 million U.S. dollars).

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SHENZHEN -- The Shenzhen Component Index on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange gained 55.91 points, or 0.54 percent, on Thursday to close at 10,481.84.

Total turnover was 70.43 billion yuan (about 11.05 billion U.S. dollars).

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SHANGHAI -- China's benchmark Shanghai Composite Index on the Shanghai Stock Exchange closed at 2,438.79 points on Thursday, up 18.79 points, or 0.78 percent, from the previous close.

Total turnover was 82.19 billion yuan (about 12.9 billion U.S. dollars).

JAKARTA, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) - Judges in Indonesia's West Jakarta court issued an 8-year sentence against Abu Tholut, a terrorist suspect on Thursday, lower than 12 years imprisonment asked by the prosecutors in earlier trials.

The sentence was based on the fact that the crime committed by Abu Tholut has fulfilled all the charges addressed against him. Besides that, he was charged of breaching the law for possessing illegal firearms, Musa Arif Aini, chief judge in the court said.

Abu Tholut led a paramilitary camp for a terrorist group in Aceh, arrested on Dec. 10 last year in city of Kudus, Central Java. He was considered one of notorious leaders in terror groups operating in Indonesia.

Reports said that Abu Tholut has profound skill to assemble bombs as he had undergone bomb making training in Afghanistan from 1987 to 1992. He was also served in Muslim militant group in South Philippines from 1999 to 2000.

His terror organization was related to Abu Bakar Baasir, an embattled Indonesian cleric who was sentenced 15 years imprisonment earlier in the same case. Abu Tholut reported the paramilitary training for terrorists in Aceh directly to Baasyir.

ANKARA, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan said that the priority of Turkey was to maintain stable growth, increase employment and cut down current deficit, Turkish Anatolia news agency reported Thursday.

The priority of Turkish medium-term economic program, valid between 2012 and 2014, is to "maintain stable growth, increase employment, go on with fiscal discipline, raise domestic savings, and cut down current deficit," Babacan said during a press conference in Ankara.

"Thus, macro-economic stability will be strengthened," he added.

Babacan said Turkey would closely monitor developments in global economy and implement policies in line with its medium-term economic program, according to the report.

The Turkish government will continue to increase private sector investments, direct international investments and exports, the official said, adding that efforts will be intensified to make Istanbul, Turkey's largest city, an international finance center, and to reduce energy dependence.

"We will go on to rehabilitate investment medium and submit a related legal arrangement to parliament as soon as possible," Babacan said.

Turkey will be determined to diversify export markets and give priority to infrastructure public investments including education, technological research, transportation, potable water, and information and communication technologies, he said.

BRUSSESLS, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu on Thursday said a Ukraine court's decision on Tuesday to jail former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko was "disappointing," and that it could hamper Ukraine's ties with the military alliance.

"This is a disappointing decision. As President Yanukovych has stated this is not the end of the process, so we hope that solution can be found on the basis of the rule of law," Lungescu told reporters in Brussels.

"You can expect that allies will be looking very closely at the verdict and will take it into account when they start their assessment of Ukraine's national annual program towards the end of this month. They will be looking at the state of reforms in Ukraine, including at justice reforms," she said.

In December 2008, NATO decided to work out an annual program for Ukraine that were yearning for NATO membership, to help the country implement required reforms.

However, Ukraine's bid for NATO membership was suspended following Viktor Yanukovych won the 2010 Ukrainian presidential election. Yanukovych opted to keep Ukraine a non-aligned state.

Tymoshenko was the central figure in the 2004 mass protests, or the so-called Orange Revolution, during which current President Viktor Yanukovich was forced to give up the post of president.

A Ukrainian court on Tuesday sentenced Tymoshenko to seven years in prison after convicting her of abuse of power for signing a 2009 gas deal with Russia, which according to the judge, caused Ukraine to lose 190 million U.S. dollars.

According to the court, Tymoshenko can appeal the sentence in the country's Court of Appeals within 15 days.

PHNOM PENH, Oct. 12 -- Cambodia's consumer price index (CPI) inflation rate has gradually increased to 6.7 percent in September, up from 6.4 percent in August and 6.2 percent in July, showed the latest statistics of the National Institute of Statistics (NIS) on Wednesday.

"The main increase for all index group 6.7 percent rate of inflation in September this year was due to the group of food and non-alcoholic beverage, clothing and footwear, housing, electricity, gas, other fuels, transport, and miscellaneous goods and services," the report highlighted.

It said from August to September this year, the prices for food continued to increase by 1.5 percent, the price of meat increased by 2.5 percent, the price of fish and seafood increased by 1.1 percent, the price of vegetables rose five percent, the price for fruits up 4.8 percent.

Also, the prices for transport and petroleum had increased by one percent and 1.9 percent respectively.

Gasoline is the main item fueling month-on-month rise in inflation in Cambodia, a liter of gasoline in Cambodia costs 1.34 U.S. dollars on Wednesday, seven percent rise from 1.25 U.S. dollars in January.

Cambodia's Deputy Prime Minister Keat Chhon, minister of finance, said Tuesday at the 2011 Trade and Investment Conference that the annual inflation in 2011 would be maintained at around 5. 5 percent.

In April, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank forecast the country's inflation rate this year could be at 6.5 percent, five percent and 5.5 percent respectively.​ (Xinhua)

HANOI, Oct. 13 -- Floods in Vietnam's southern Mekong delta provinces killed at least 35 people and inundated about 60, 000 houses, plus 6,000 hectares of paddy fields submerged as of Thursday, reported the local online VNExpress.

According to the report, Dong Thap, An Giang and Long An are the most flood-hit provinces.

Local hydrographic experts said this year's floods reached the record high level over the past nine years partly due to the dykes built to protect rice fields. Upstream water from the neighboring country of Cambodia running downstream was hampered by those dykes, leading to their erosion and breaking, and flooding the fields.

According to the Vietnam Climate Change Institute, the total volume of water from the Mekong River spilling downstream is estimated at 490 billion cubic meters, of which 70-80 percent pouring into Vietnam's Cuu Long river delta. In dry season, the water volume running is about 1,700-2,500 cubic meters per second, but in flood season it is 39,000-40,000 cubic meters per second.

An Giang province alone has a system of dykes of nearly 3,800 km long that protects over 240,000 ha of rice fields. Authorities are trying their utmost to reinforce the dykes, but that costs much higher than the local budget's spending, which requires assistance from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung during his inspection tour to flood-hit provinces on Wednesday instructed local authorities to try to minimize the effects of the floods on people and their property.

Meanwhile, the National Committee for Storm and Flood Control on Thursday warned about the coming Banyan storm, which is heading closer to the South China Sea.​ (Xinhua)