Cambodia Home Heart & Soul: “Sacravatoons no 1948 : " The Doctors "” plus 1 more |
| Sacravatoons no 1948 : " The Doctors " Posted: 05 Mar 2011 06:29 PM PST   |
| Sinatoons no 22 : " Pol Pot II " Posted: 04 Mar 2011 08:53 PM PST   |
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KI Media: “Super Doctor in the Banana Kingdoom” plus 24 more |
| Super Doctor in the Banana Kingdoom Posted: 05 Mar 2011 03:53 PM PST  A doctor from Israel says: "In Israel the medicine is so advanced that we cut off a man's testicles; we put them into another man, and in 6 weeks he is looking for work." The German doctor comments: "That's nothing, in Germany we take part of the brain out of a person; we put it into another person's head, and in 4 weeks he is looking for work." A Russian doctor says: "That's nothing either. In Russia we take out half of the heart from a person; we put it into another person's chest, and in 2 weeks he is looking for work." The Cambodian doctor answers immediately: "That's nothing my colleagues, you are way behind us....in Cambodia (about 25 years ago) we grabbed a person From the jungle with no brains, no heart, and no balls....we made him Prime Minister of the country, and now........ The whole country is poor and looking for work!!!!!!" GOD BLESS YOU & GOD BLESS CAMBODIA  | ||
| "Samraek Prei Lang" a Poem in Khmer by Lim Chamroeun Posted: 05 Mar 2011 01:50 PM PST   | ||
| Posted: 05 Mar 2011 10:51 AM PST | ||
| ASEAN chair to set up meetings for Cambodian-Thai border dispute Posted: 05 Mar 2011 10:26 AM PST PHNOM PENH, March 5 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia, in the status of ASEAN chair, is arranging meetings for Cambodian-Thai defense ministers and border chiefs in Jakarta, said Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Saturday. "Indonesian foreign minister (Marty M. Natalegawa) is preparing to have the meetings of Cambodia-Thai General Border Committee and Joint Border Committee on Demarcation for Land Boundary (JBC) in Jakarta, Indonesia," Hun Sen said during a visit to about 500 disabled soldiers and their families in Chhouk district of Kampot province. "Cambodia welcomes Indonesian foreign minister to set the dates for the meetings of the two countries' defense ministers and border chiefs," he said. "And Indonesia, the host, will be the referee, and whatever points Cambodia and Thailand agree, Indonesia has to take a note of every agreement between us." Hun Sen said that Indonesia foreign minister Marty M. Natalegawa has sent a letter to Cambodian and Thai foreign ministers and other foreign ministers of ASEAN members on Friday. The letter mentioned Cambodia's absolute acceptance of the terms of reference for the Indonesian observers to the border disputed areas. Also, in the letter, the foreign minister wrote, "I am aware that Thai side does not oppose to the observers, but it is taking it into consideration," Hun Sen said. Cambodia has arranged 14 places for the observers and for the period of 12 months, and it said the time could be extended and the 14 points could be added further. "Nothing is mysterious for Cambodia," said Hun Sen. Cambodia and Thailand on Feb. 22 agreed to receive Indonesian observers to monitor the border disputed areas near the 11th century Preah Vihear temple in order to ensure a permanent ceasefire The border between Thailand and Cambodia has never been completely demarcated. Although the International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that the Temple of Preah Vihear belonged to Cambodia, the row over the 4.6-square-km territory around the temple has never been resolved. The conflict has occurred just a week after Cambodia's Preah Vihear temple was enlisted as World Heritage Site on July 7, 2008, since then both sides have built up military forces along the border, and periodic clashes happened, resulted in deaths of troops on both sides. The latest clashes on Feb. 4-7, unleashed a barrage of artillery shells on both sides of the border, had killed and wounded many soldiers and citizens of both sides, and caused tens of thousands of the two countries' villagers nearby the disputed areas fleeing for safe shelters. ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.  | ||
| Cambodia appeals Hindus for help to safeguard landmark Preah Vihear Shiva temple Posted: 05 Mar 2011 09:54 AM PST 2011-03-05 ANI (India) Cambodia has sought the help of the Hindus worldwide to help safeguard the landmark Preah Vihear Shiva temple, which was reportedly damaged recently due to Thai-Cambodia border clashes. Ros Borath, President of Cambodia's National Committee for the World Heritage, in a emailed letter to distinguished Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, wrote with the hope that "Hindu world will soon take notice of this place, most sacred to Shiva, and help people of Cambodia to safeguard this world heritage monument with universal spiritual value as propounded by Lord Shiva". "Preah Vihear is Mount Kailash of South East Asia in the Dangrek range. Bhadreshvara-Shiva arrived here from Vat Phu via India to radiate his Shiva Teja over people of South East Asia flourishing under the Angkor kingdom. Preah Vihear is the open air theatre for the cosmic dance of Shiva. The colossal dancing image of Shiva is sculpted on the door frame (Pediment) of the mandapa of the main temple", Borath argued. Describing the Temple, Committee President Borath further wrote: "Besides the central temple where this dancing image of Shiva is sculpted, there are four other temples at the four levels of the plateau (gopura II-IV). These gopuras are in reality mandapas where the gods of the family of Shiva (parivara devata) are depicted. Images of Brahma, Vishnu, Krishna and Shvia are all carved in bas-reliefs on the lintels and pediments over the doors of these five temples. Sanskrit and Khmer inscriptions found from Preah Vihear inform us that this temple complex was a great hermitage center for meditation, following the path of Shiva. There were a number of hermitages at the foothills of Dangrek, and the networking of these ashramas was done from Mount Preah Vihear, Kailash of mainland Southeast Asia." "Since the sculpture of Shiva is above the door of the mandapa of the main temple, its safety is in great danger. All the images of parivara devata of Shiva, as they are sculpted out side the structure on the doorframes, are in great danger", he added. Pictures of the Preah Vihear Shiva temple were also attached, indicating damages to Gopura (towered gateway found at the entrances to temples) I, II, III, IV, and V resulting from Thai-Cambodia border clashes. Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, urged various Hindu organizations world over to raise public opinion about this Shiva (Bhadreshvara) Temple, claimed to be one of the world's biggest temple complex dedicated to Shiva. Expressing serious concern at the reported damage, Rajan Zed said that international community, UNESCO, and ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) should immediately provide funding to bring back this Lord Shiva temple to its original shape as it was before Thai-Cambodia clashes began February four. These organizations should not shy away to shoulder their responsibility of saving the important heritage of the world and respecting the feelings of Hindus worldwide, Rajan Zed said and added that besides temple repairs, some infrastructure in the area should also be provided for devotees and other visitors. Zed stressed that this landmark age-old and revered Preah Vihear Hindu Shiva temple complex was important to Hindu heritage and must be preserved to pass it on to the future generations. Damage to 11th century Shiva temple was shocking and hurtful to the Hindu community world over. Lord Shiva, one of the major deities in Hinduism forming great triad with Brahma and Vishnu, was focus of worship of the Hindus, and it was important for them that Preah Vihear Hindu Shiva temple be protected. It was a world heritage and it was moral duty of the world to keep it intact for the coming generations. Known as Preah Vihear in Cambodia and Khao Phra Viharn in Thailand, this remote temple at the border between Thailand and Cambodia, which had reportedly not been clearly demarcated, had been a source of tension for generations. Preah Vihear was said to even predate Cambodia's Angkor Wat temple complex by about 100 years and its stunning setting made it finest of all the ruins left from the mighty Khmer civilization, Rajan Zed stated. Zed pointed out that world should not let this sacred site dedicated to Lord Shiva (situated where Preah Vihear province of northern Cambodia touched Sisaket province of eastern Thailand) be further damaged to advance political agendas of some as there appeared to be a no clear solution to settle the long-standing territorial dispute surrounding the temple, which was already a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and whose history could be traced to 9th century when the hermitage was founded. Moreover, Temple of Preah Vihear, an outstanding masterpiece of Khmer architecture mostly created by Suryavarman I and Suryavarman II, was a unique architectural complex of a series of sanctuaries and was said to be exceptional for the quality of its architecture and carved stone ornamentation. It was reportedly dedicated to the Hindu deity Shiva in his manifestations as Sikharesvara and Bhadresvara. It was also said to be marking representation of sacred Mount Meru, the abode of the gods, and showing a depiction of Churning of the Ocean, a Hindu scriptural episode, Rajan Zed said. Cambodian Government's Committee describes Preah Vihear as: The site serves as a sacred place worshipping to the Hindu god Shiva manifesting as Sikharesvara (the Lord of Peak) and his figures are depicted on pediments and lintels.  | ||
| Welcome Dr. Ervin and Laurie Staub to Cambodia! Posted: 05 Mar 2011 09:48 AM PST A dear friend of mine, retired professor Dr. Ervin Staub, is here in Cambodia, with his wife Laurie for the first time! He has generously offered to meet with interested individuals for conversations, a small intimate gathering which will be hosted by CIVICUS: Center for Cambodian Civic Education later this week before March 11, exact day and time to be announced. I first met Ervin in Stellenbosch, South Africa in December 2009 at a Reconciliation Workshop organized by Folke Bernadotte Academy of the Swedish government and then again this October 2010 in Sando, Sweden. I have read and re-read and underlined/made copious notes in the book which he gave and signed me for me, The Roots of Evil (with a chapter on Cambodia), and look forward to reading his current release Overcoming Evil, which he says features conversations with me from our time in South Africa. - Theary C. Seng, Phnom Penh, Sunday, 6 March 2011  Ervin Staub (back row, 4th from left) with reconciliation experts and practitioners from around the world in Stellenbosch, South Africa, Dec. 2009.  Theary Seng with Dr. Ervin Staub in Sando, Sweden, Oct. 2010. More photos: I am Professor of Psychology Emeritus at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and Founding Director of its Ph.D. concentration in the Psychology of Peace and Violence. I was born in Hungary, where as a young child I lived through Nazism, and then communism. I escaped from there when I was 18 years old, lived in Vienna for two years, and then came to the U.S. I finished my undergraduate education at the University of Minnesota and received my Ph.D. at Stanford. I taught at Harvard and was visiting professor at Stanford, the University of Hawaii and the London School of Economic and Political Science. I have studied the influences that lead to caring, helpful, altruistic behavior in children and adults, and the development of caring and helping in children. Having studied both "active bystandership," and passivity in the face of people in need, I turned to a focus on perpetration. I studied the social conditions, culture, psychology of individuals and groups, and social processes that lead to mass violence, especially genocide and mass killing, but also violent conflict, terrorism and torture. I studied the role of passive bystanders in allowing the unfolding of violence. Increasingly I focused on understanding how violence between groups can be prevented, as well as how hostile groups can reconcile, especially in post-conflict settings after violence between them, as well as how positive group relations can be facilitated. I have been concerned with how active bystandership in the service of prevention and reconciliation can be promoted. - Dr. Ervin Staub  How can human beings kill or brutalize multitudes of other human beings? Focusing particularly on genocide, but also on other forms of mass killing, torture, and war, Ervin Staub explores the psychological, cultural, and societal roots of group aggression. He sketches a conceptual framework for the many influences on one group's desire to harm another: cultural and social patterns predisposing to violence, historical circumstances resulting in persistent life problems, and needs and modes of adaptation arising from the interaction of these influences. Such notions as cultural stereotyping and devaluation, societal self-concept, moral exclusion, the need for connection, authority orientation, personal and group goals, "better world" ideologies, justification, and moral equilibrium find a place in his analysis, and he addresses the relevant evidence from the behavioral sciences. Within this conceptual framework, Staub then considers the behavior of perpetrators and bystanders in four historical situations: the Holocaust (his primary example), the genocide of Armenians in Turkey, the "autogenocide" in Cambodia, and the "disappearances" in Argentina. Throughout, he is concerned with the roots of caring and the psychology of heroic helpers. In his concluding chapters, he reflects on the socialization of children at home and in schools, and on the societal practices and processes that facilitate the development of caring persons, and of care and cooperation among groups. A wide audience will find The Roots of Evil thought-provoking reading.  Overcoming Evil describes the origins or influences leading to genocide, violent conflict and terrorism. It identifies principles and practices of prevention, and of reconciliation between groups after violence, or before violence thereby to prevent violence. It uses both past cases such as the Holocaust, and contemporary ones such as Rwanda, the Congo, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, contemporary terrorism, and the relations between the Dutch and Muslim minorities, which also has relevance to other European countries, as examples. The book draws on the author's previous work on all these issues, as well as on research in genocide studies, the study of conflict and of terrorism, and psychological research on group relations. It also describes the work of the author and his associates in real world settings, such as promoting reconciliation in Rwanda, Burundi and the Congo. The book considers what needs to be done to prevent impending or stop ongoing violence. It emphasizes early prevention, when violence generating conditions are present and a psychological and social evolution toward violence has begun, but not yet immediate danger of intense violence. The book considers the role of difficult social or life conditions, repression, culture, the institutions or structure of society, the psychology of individuals and groups, and the behavior of witnesses or bystanders within and outside societies. It emphasizes psychological processes, such as differentiation between us and them and devaluation of the "other," past victimization and psychological woundedness, the power of ideas and people's commitment to destructive ideologies. It considers humanizing the other, healing from past victimization, the creation of constructive ideologies and groups and how these help people develop cultures and institutions that make violence less likely. The book asks what needs to be accomplished to prevent violence, how it can be done, and who can do it. It aims to promote knowledge, understanding, and "active bystandership" by leaders and government officials, members of the media and citizens to prevent violence and create harmonious societies.  | ||
| SRP Women's Wing's Appeal Letter on International Women's Day Posted: 05 Mar 2011 09:34 AM PST
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| Letter calling for the removal of Hun Xen from power Posted: 05 Mar 2011 09:27 AM PST
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| China paper blasts Middle East protest movements [-Beijing dreaming?] Posted: 05 Mar 2011 09:15 AM PST Saturday, March 05, 2011 BEIJING (AP) — A Chinese Communist Party-run newspaper on Saturday attacked anti-government protest movements in the Middle East and dismissed the possibility of something similar happening in China. Such movements have brought nothing but chaos and misery to their countries' citizens and are engineered by a small number of people using the Internet to organize illegal meetings, the Beijing Daily, published by the city's party committee, said in a front-page editorial. "The vast majority of the people are strongly dissatisfied (with the protests), so the performance by the minority becomes a self-delusional ruckus," the newspaper said. The editorial appeared amid anonymous calls posted on the Internet for Middle East-inspired protests in dozens of Chinese cities the past two Sunday afternoons. While drawing few outright demonstrators, the appeals have deeply unnerved authorities constantly on guard for any sign of challenges to Communist rule. Police and security agents shooed away onlookers and assaulted and detained journalists who turned up at the designated protest sites in Beijing and Shanghai. Foreign reporters have been repeatedly warned to stay away from the sites this weekend and threatened with unspecified consequences if they disobey. China's censors have carefully shaped local coverage of the protests in the Middle East to discourage Chinese citizens from drawing inspiration from them. State media emphasize the protests' negative effects on the societies and economies of the countries involved and give prominent coverage to the woes of Chinese workers evacuated from Libya and elsewhere. In its editorial, the Beijing Daily attempted to draw a sharp distinction between China and the Middle Eastern countries roiled by unrest, where disdain for long-serving autocratic rulers has frequently been fueled by high unemployment and economic woes. Chinese people, it said, support their nation's political stability, economic development, and favorable government policies. Those looking to create or discover news of Middle East-style protests in China will come up empty, it said. "However, we must clearly recognize that there are always people inside and outside the country with ulterior motives who want to seize on the problems we have encountered over the course of development in order to incite unrest," the newspaper said.  | ||
| Posted: 05 Mar 2011 02:02 AM PST | ||
| Make way ... for the Morality Squad Dance Posted: 05 Mar 2011 01:51 AM PST
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| China internal security spending jumps past army budget Posted: 05 Mar 2011 01:27 AM PST By Chris Buckley BEIJING, March 5 (Reuters) - China's spending on police and domestic surveillance will hit new heights this year, with "public security" outlays unveiled on Saturday outstripping the defence budget for the first time as Beijing cracks down on protest calls. China's ruling Communist Party also issued its loudest warning yet against recent Internet-spread calls for "Jasmine Revolution" protest gatherings inspired by popular uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East. The 13.8 percent jump in China's planned budget for police, state security, armed civil militia, courts and jails was unveiled at the start of the annual parliamentary session, and brought planned spending on law and order items to 624.4 billion yuan ($95.0 billion). By contrast, China's People's Liberation Army budget is set to rise 12.7 percent to 601.1 billion yuan ($91.5 billion). "This would be the first time that the openly announced domestic security budget has surpassed military spending", said Xie Yue, a political scientist at Tongji University in Shanghai. He called the figure a gauge of China's spending on what officials call "stability protection." "This shows the rising costs of maintaining internal control," said Xie, who studies China's domestic security policies and spending. "This system is very sensitive to any instability or contention." THE BLESSINGS OF STABILITY The Beijing Daily, a Party mouthpiece, signalled that China would not relax its crackdown against Internet-spread calls for pro-democracy protests inspired by Middle Eastern uprisings. "Everyone knows that stability is a blessing and chaos is a calamity," said the newspaper, which is the mouthpiece of the Communist Party administration for China's capital. The budget figures and protest warning show how jumpy China's leaders are about potential unrest, despite robust economic growth and powerful security forces. The forces were on show in Beijing on Saturday, with police and troops stationed at nearly every major street corner. Last year, central and local agencies spent 548.6 billion yuan on public security, more than the 514.0 billion yuan the government initially budgeted. As a result, actual spending on internal order last year was slightly higher than spending on national defence, which hit 532.1 billion yuan. Chinese scholars have said spending on enforcing domestic security is diverting money from welfare spending and other initiatives that could ease causes of social unrest. "When a goal as vast and vague as 'stability maintenance' becomes an obvious leadership priority, and there is money about, people will come rushing out of the woodwork arguing that the thing they want to do is critical to stability maintenance," said Murray Scot Tanner, a researcher who studies China's domestic security policies for CNA, a private research group in the United States. Many foreign experts believe China's real military budget is much bigger. Xie, the Shanghai professor, said spending on "stability maintenance" was also far higher than official data. China's most immediate security fear is the online move for "Jasmine Revolution" protest gatherings inspired by the political flux across the Middle East and North Africa, but protest calls in China have little chance of taking off. Police have rounded up dozens of dissidents. Internet censorship also means that few Chinese residents are aware of the calls for protests spread by an overseas Chinese website. "Those people intent on concocting and finding Middle East-style news in China will find their plans come to nothing," said the Beijing Daily commentary. ($1=6.571 Yuan) (Reporting by Chris Buckley, Editing by Don Durfee and Daniel Magnowski)  | ||
| Cambodia Waiting for Thai Parliament's Endorsement Posted: 05 Mar 2011 01:05 AM PST 2011-03-05 Xinhua Phnom Penh will wait until Thailand's parliament ratifies the previous memos of Joint- Boundary Commission (JBC) meetings before it will accept Bangkok' s proposal on the next JBC meeting, Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman said Saturday. Thailand has proposed to hold the next JBC on March 7-8 with its neighboring Cambodia in order to discuss border demarcation. The issue so far has not yet been submitted for approval of Thai parliament; therefore, it is uncertain the next JBC would be held in Indonesia during March 7-8, Thani Thongpakdi, FM spokesman said. The Article190 of Thailand's 2007 Constitution regulates that any treaty to be signed with other foreign countries and may bring about territorial changes requires parliament's ratification before it will be implemented. The spokesman insisted that the meeting would be carried out bilaterally not multilaterally as Cambodian preferred. There might be the third country to facilitate talks but only Thailand and Cambodia would be at negotiating table, he added. The two neighboring countries share a common border approximately 800 kilometers (500 miles) long but demarcation has never been fully completed. The 11th-century Preah Vihear temple has been the subject of age-old border dispute for decades. Although the International Court of Justice awarded the Hindu temple to Cambodia in 1962, the dispute over area adjacent to the temple has never been solved. Listing of the temple to Unesco's World Heritage Site in 2008 fueled tensions between the two countries, resulting in military build-up with sporadic skirmishes. The latest deadly clashes on Feb 4-7, when both countries exchanged small arms firing and shelling, caused loss of lives of civilian population and soldiers on both sides as well as massive evacuation of residents along the border.  | ||
| Thai PM Insists On Bilateral Talks On Border Issues With Cambodia Posted: 05 Mar 2011 01:01 AM PST BANGKOK, March 5 (Bernama) -- Thai Prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has insisted that negotiations on Thai-Cambodian border issues are to be held bilaterally, Thai News Agency (TNA) reported. The Thai premier was responding to his Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen's recent remarks that Phnom Penh did not support bilateral negotiations and had called for participation in the talks by Indonesia or a neutral party. Abhisit said everyone at a recent Asean foreign ministers' meeting supported bilateral negotiations between Thailand and Cambodia; while Indonesia would facilitate the bilateral talks, noting that bilateral negotiations between Bangkok and Phnom Penh can be under existing bilateral mechanisms, including the Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Commission, the General Border Committee or the Regional Border Committee. The Thai Democrat premier also denied Hun Sen's recent remarks, quoting the special envoy of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as saying that Thailand sought the revocation of the World Heritage listing for the ancient Preah Vihear Temple along the Thai-Cambodian border. Abhisit insisted that Thailand did not mention any delisting of the 11th century Hindu temple but had had told the UNESCO special envoy that attempts to proceed with a world heritage management plan by Cambodia unilaterally could cause more problems.  | ||
| Cambodia's Isolated Villagers Change Their Lives With Lower-Cost Solar Posted: 05 Mar 2011 12:54 AM PST March 4, 2011 By COCO LIU of ClimateWire The New York Times ROU HAL, Cambodia -- With a desire to one day become a doctor and save lives, 12-year-old Phat Sopwa devotes most of his time to study. After dark, though, his dream grew dim. Living in this typical Cambodian village without electricity, Phat used to do homework by a kerosene lamp that emits no more light than a cigarette lighter. The dim ray hurt his eyes, made him drowsy and forced the boy to quickly give up his tasks. That dark homework time ended in February with a gift from his aunt. What Phat received is a small solar array, which powers three light bulbs and made his wooden hut fill with bright light for the first time. "Solar is much better [than the kerosene lamp]. I can now see characters in my textbooks clearly," said Phat, while happily flipping on and off the light switch. Phat isn't the only Cambodian who is excited about solar. In a nation deprived of electricity infrastructure, yet rich in sunlight, rural families are increasingly adding solar products to their shopping lists. What's driving the trend, according to solar companies, is that Cambodia's rising economy has coincided with a continuing drop in the cost of solar energy. Meanwhile, financial incentives have been rolled out to help the rural poor harness the sun. Although electricity grids from dams, neighboring countries and fossil fuel power plants are expected to reach more than two-thirds of Cambodia's households by 2030, some villagers don't want to wait for another two decades. Last month, three families in Phat's village already switched on solar energy. "Many other villages around here are also using solar," said Phoeuy Phen, a tourist driver on his way to Angkor Wat, a centuries-old temple complex where Angelina Jolie filmed the movie "Tomb Raider." Where the grid peters out in the coconut trees Modern energy is a luxury in Cambodia, where millions of rural residents live beyond the reach of the nation's power grid. Outside Siem Reap, one of Cambodia's more developed cities, electric lines are tangled like giant spaghetti on wooden poles -- sometimes on coconut trees -- to reach scattered villages. After a few miles, the lines peter out. Then, a vast kingdom running on kerosene and batteries begins. There, roughly half of the people spend their nighttime with smoky kerosene lamps, a fire hazard to their wooden huts. Most can name a neighbor who lost a house and even children because of one careless moment. This risk led some to a second popular solution. Richer Cambodians get access to electricity by using automobile storage batteries. Those batteries can do the job for a few days, and then it's time to take a bumpy journey. In early morning, villagers load these batteries on bicycles and ply the rocky roads to diesel-powered charging stations, where they drop their empty battery off for a refill. At twilight, they come again, leave about 50 cents and take the recharged battery back home. An Oach, who runs such a charging station, greets dozens of customers every day. Although the charging fee has gone up by 25 percent over the last six months, along with rising diesel prices, An says she believes villagers are likely to stay with her, rather than be lured away by some solar salesmen. "For now, the price of solar is still too high, and not many know what solar is," An said, almost shouting in an attempt to be heard over the rat-a-tat-tat of her sputtering generator. Solar isn't chicken feed to a farmer It turns out that she isn't entirely right. A dozen miles up the road, in a small farming village called Chouk Saw, a chicken grower tells the story the other way around. Three years ago, Bum Ma Sarith got convinced by a solar salesman and risked $1,500 from his savings to buy an Italian-made solar power system. Although his hope was simply to end tedious recharging journeys, Bum found out solar energy did more than that. Unlike batteries, the solar power system never runs down, providing reliable and long-lasting light to his chicken farm, said Bum. Thus he was able to increase the farm's annual output by 30 percent. And every year, Bum also saves at least $500 on battery costs and enjoys an extra bonus: powering a small television and watching movies with his family. The result whetted Bum's appetite for the technology. He now plans to buy a solar-powered pump that will fetch water from his backyard well. Surprisingly, the popularity of solar energy is also emerging among the poorer families who can't even afford batteries. Nouk Sarou, a 39-year-old mother of two, recently took a relative's advice and cut off her dangerous relationship with kerosene lamps. She bought a solar lantern equipped with a high-efficiency LED light. Charged by a palm-size solar panel, the lantern provides safe light while it costs one-third of what Nouk spent on kerosene. Moreover, it also changed other aspects of her life, including the experience of going to the toilet. Like most villagers in Cambodia, Nouk uses the forest for her private needs. But that is a scary thing to do at night, she said, adding that she used to pick up a burning branch from her cookstove and brave into the dark woods with it. Today, however, "with [bright light from] the solar lantern, there is no worries about going to the toilet," said Nouk, laughing and blushing. A rent-a-lamp scares away the ghosts Nouk said she is saving money for a solar power system that can operate a television -- a key channel for her to gain knowledge. Decades of war in Cambodia meant she never had a chance to go to school. Luckily for Nouk, she might not need to wait too long. Kamworks, a solar startup in Cambodia, is making it easier for the rural poor to afford solar energy. Under its recently launched lending scheme, families can use solar products first, and gradually pay back with what they save on batteries or kerosene expenditures. So far, more than 20 families have benefited from the pilot service, according to Jeroen Verschelling, a director at Kamworks. And the company is in talks with local banks, aiming to expand the reach of the scheme to cover half of the country, he added. Still, despite Kamworks' efforts and complementing services from its peers and the government, the mission to power rural Cambodia with solar energy is eclipsed by three missing links. It is hard to grow distribution networks in the remote lands, industry players noted. And investors show little interest in expansion plans, as they view solar energy and rural Cambodians a poor mix. Other than that, generating electricity from the sun sounds too good to be real, making solar energy a hard sell to 4 out of 5 villagers who have never heard of such technology, according to Anthony Jude, an energy expert from the Asian Development Bank. Solar entrepreneurs have been scrambling for ways to close the knowledge gap. They let solar energy be heard on radios, seen on handed-out T-shirts and also taken home without buying it. Last year, Kamworks began renting out solar lanterns at a daily price of 8 cents -- roughly what villagers spend on kerosene. The rental business became so popular that the company plans to increase its rental outlets to 80, up from three right now, said Verschelling. Designed by Dutch college students, the solar lantern is a favorite among rural families. According to its product leaflet, its functions include providing light to cook, study and scare ghosts -- a major need here after dark.  | ||
| In Cambodia, Koh Kong Emerges as an Eco-Tourism Destination Posted: 05 Mar 2011 12:49 AM PST
By NAOMI LINDT The New York Times INSIDE a breezy bamboo structure in Chi Phat, a village in the remote province of Koh Kong, near the Thai border in southwestern Cambodia, a dozen or so foreigners sat down to a communal dinner of chicken curry and Angkor Beer. Cinnamon-hued cattle and elderly women wearing ikat sarongs and checkered scarves ambled along the dusty road outside. Eating by the light given off by fishing cages doubling as lamps, the group recounted the day's activities: bird-watching at sunrise, mountain biking across rocky streams, swimming in waterfalls. And fending off rain forest leeches. "The bite is no worse than a large mosquito's," said David Lambert, a strapping Englishman. Katrin van Camp, from Belgium, had returned from a guided overnight jungle trek, then spent the afternoon in a hammock and playing with local children eager to improve their English. "When I go home, this is the Cambodia I'm going to remember," she said. For decades, Koh Kong villages like Chi Phat had little contact with the outside world. Marginalized by a lack of infrastructure, a Khmer Rouge presence that endured into the late 1990s, and some of Southeast Asia's wildest, least-explored terrain, the region remained virtually forbidden to outsiders. But new roads now penetrate the jungle and scale the hills; new bridges traverse the area's numerous rivers. And as Cambodia has achieved a level of political stability, a small but diverse array of Western-run accommodations — including the makeshift restaurant in Chi Phat, part of a project called Community-Based Eco-tourism — has opened in the last few years, catering to both backpackers and the well-heeled. Thanks to this new accessibility, travelers are now discovering the area's awe-inspiring biodiversity, which includes one of Southeast Asia's largest tracts of virgin rain forest; some 60 threatened species, including the endangered Asian elephants, tigers, Siamese crocodiles and pileated gibbons; and a virtually untouched 12-island archipelago in the Gulf of Thailand, with sand beaches and crystal-clear aquamarine waters. The Koh Kong region spans 4,300 square miles, about the size of the Everglades National Park. But the charms of Cambodian rural life are readily apparent in Chi Phat, home to about 2,500 people. The village sits at the foot of the Southern Cardamom Mountains, about 10 miles inland, up the mangrove- and bamboo-lined Preak Piphot River. Wooden houses on stilts, painted mint green and baby blue and shaded by towering palms, line the main dirt road. Children wearing navy blue and white uniforms and broad smiles cycle to school on adult-size bikes, passing by toothpick-legged white egrets hanging out on the backs of water buffalo in neon green rice fields. It wasn't always this peaceful. Chi Phat was once infamous for its abundant poachers, loggers and slash-and-burn farmers, who were forced to turn to illegal practices to make a living. That began to change in 2007, when the conservation group Wildlife Alliance started to work with the community on a project that would turn hunters — who knew the forest's hidden gems better than anyone — into tour guides, and local families into guesthouse owners. "Chi Phat was home to the most destructive inhabitants in the whole of Koh Kong province," said John Maloy, a spokesman for Wildlife Alliance. "By participating in the eco-tourism project, community members would not only receive income that would greatly improve their situation, they would be provided with incentives to protect the forest rather than exploit it in an unsustainable manner." So far, the initiatives seem to be working. Last year, Chi Phat welcomed 1,228 visitors, according to the alliance, an increase of nearly 50 percent from 2009. Residents are receiving much-needed income that allows them to reside year-round in the village, allowing their children to go to school and get to health care. (When locals relied on logging and hunting, they had to spend long stretches in the forest.) Travelers, meanwhile, can leave the pressures of the developed world behind. Days begin with the rooster's crow and end when the village's generator goes silent at midnight. On trips organized by the Community-Based Eco-tourism office, visitors can trek through fields filled with canary yellow and electric blue butterflies to reach bat caves hidden behind curved waterfalls, or plant a tree at a reforestation nursery. Recent visitors reportedly caught a glimpse of a few of the area's roughly 175 endangered elephants. Janet Newman, originally from England, fell for Koh Kong while documenting the province's wildlife in 2005. Within three years, she had decided to stay for good, and opened the eco-friendly Rainbow Lodge. "I looked at many parts of the country but always had a big smile on my face when I went to Koh Kong," Ms. Newman said. "It was just the sheer unspoiled beauty of the area." The lodge, on 12 acres along the Tatai River about 50 miles northwest of Chi Phat, is thick with palms and brightly colored flowering bushes. The seven wooden thatched-roof bungalows have hammock-strung terraces that overlook the trees. Guests at the lodge — who recently ranged from a young Australian family of five to adventure-ready couples from Europe — can kayak to the nearby Tatai waterfall, a wide expanse that creates small bathing pools and pummeling massage spots between black rocks; head into the jungle on guided hikes, spotting and identifying birds and insects as they go; or just lounge in the wicker sofas in the open-air restaurant, whose thatched roof features a nightly display by limb-size polka-dotted geckos. If you are lucky, the spot might just live up to its name: three rainbows streaked the sky during a November visit. Ms. Newman and her boyfriend and co-manager, Gee Cartier, go to great lengths to minimize the property's environmental impact, sourcing about 95 percent of Rainbow Lodge's power from solar panels and supporting Cambodian-made products like biodegradable handmade soaps and locally harvested honey. Cozy as Rainbow might be, some travelers may prefer the creature comforts available at 4 Rivers Floating Lodge, which opened in November 2009 three miles downstream on a bend in the river. Bringing luxury to the untamed wilderness is the focus here, with 12 rooms housed in elaborately built tents that float on interconnected decks made of recycled wood. With perks like king beds, air-conditioning, hot water and three-course dinners, 4 Rivers caters to European honeymooners and expatriates in Phnom Penh seeking a refuge from the city. But just as eco-tourism is taking off, businesses may soon have to deal with major threats from a different sort of development. Like much of Cambodia, Koh Kong faces serious challenges as the government sells off land, including parcels of national parks, to private developers. Several Chinese-built dams have been proposed or are under construction along Koh Kong's rivers. And given the recent government approval to build a titanium mine nearby, Chi Phat itself faces the possible loss of 11,000 acres of rain forest and and additional challenges to its eco-tourism efforts. Last year, ground was broken on a $5 billion, 25-year Chinese-financed tourism project that includes an airport, a sea port, a golf course and a large commercial development along a stretch of Koh Kong's southern coast, now accessible only by boat. Although the roads and airport might be good for the eco-tourism efforts, the additional developments might not. The archipelago consists of a dozen islands with few inhabitants, aside from the main fishing island of Koh Sdach. A few places to stay already operate on the islands. December 2009 saw the opening of hippie-friendly Nomads Land on Koh Totang, a rugged island, and Belinda Beach Resort, opened in October on Koh Sdach, which easily qualifies as Koh Kong's fanciest digs, with stone bungalows surrounded by bougainvilleas and plumeria trees, an infinity pool and a terrace. As in Chi Phat, positive, symbiotic relationships between businesses and residents are forming on the islands — which may be a bulwark against overdevelopment. Nomads and Belinda Beach employ islanders at their properties; tourists hire fishermen, intimately familiar with the area's secret beaches and best swimming spots, as day-trip guides. "We felt such positive energy from the locals when we arrived," said Benoit Trigaux, the owner of Belinda Beach. "Everything you can dream of is here." HOW TO GET THERE Koh Kong province is roughly a five-hour drive from Phnom Penh. Public buses ($10) leave from Phnom Penh throughout the day, but hiring a private car ($70 each way; arrange through your hotel) will save time. (U.S. dollars are widely accepted in Cambodia.) Koh Sdach is best reached by a two-hour ferry ($25) from Sihanoukville that runs every other day (returning the next day); a Chinese-built road is expected to be finished this year. WHERE TO STAY There are currently 11 guesthouses and 8 homestays in Chi Phat (855-92-720-925; ecoadventurecambodia.com). Accommodations are simple: foam mattress, mosquito net, shared toilets. You might have a farm animal or two under your room. Take it all in stride. Daily rates are $3 to $5 a person. The seven bungalows at family-friendly Rainbow Lodge (855-99-744-321; rainbowlodgecambodia.com) feature log-frame beds, a silk bedside lamp, fans and private balconies. Doubles, including all meals, are $65. Rooms at the 4 Rivers Floating Lodge (Tatai River; 855-97-64-34-032; ecolodges.asia) are spacious and furnished with beds and settees made of woven water hyacinth; the private verandas are lovely. Doubles, $139. At Nomads Land (Koh Totang; 855-11-91-61-71; nomadslandcambodia.com), you can stay in anything from a single room made of thatched bamboo to a two-story bungalow with stunning ocean views. There are plans to introduce yoga and meditation retreats. From $8 per person. Belinda Beach Resort (Koh Sdach; 855-17-517-517; belindabeach.com) is the first luxury hotel to come to the Koh Kong coast. Doubles, $120. ACTIVITIES Day treks from Chi Phat start at $8, overnight trips into the jungle from $20. At Rainbow Lodge, kayaks are free; full-day treks start at $15. You can charter a basic fisherman's boat at Koh Sdach for $25 for a long half-day; more comfortable is a day trip snorkeling and kayaking with Koh Kong Divers (855-17-502-784; kohkongdivers.com), which is $40 a person. Dives from $55.  | ||
| Veera stuck between the proverbial Posted: 05 Mar 2011 12:36 AM PST 5/03/2011 Bangkok Post In our lives we surely must have come across one of those unfortunates - the short-sighted girl who loses her spectacles on a camping trip; the nice boy who makes one simple mistake and his life spirals downhill to that miserable place of what-could-have-been; the person who seems to stumble just a little but falls all the way into the deep, dark abyss... I often think of Veera Somkhwamkid as one such unfortunate soul. For some inexplicable reason, Mr Veera finds himself in a corner so painfully tight that no choice seems available to him that will not entail his ending up in utmost misery. I will never know what prompted Mr Veera to "cross the line" and walk across that uncertain borderline on that sunny day right before New Year's. In the video taken by one of his 6 companions (which ironically ended up as evidence against him in the Cambodian court) Mr Veera appeared energetic and confident, a man fully assured of the path he'd chosen and the righteousness of his cause. The footage, which showed a clear sky and a golden-brown, just-harvested field with the soft tinkling sound of buffalo bells in the background, lets us see Mr Veera guiding his companions along. He tells them about the borderline, about Thai and Cambodian communities, even about what he made sound was the sure-fire possibility of them getting apprehended by Cambodian soldiers if they continued their walk... which they did. In that video, Mr Veera showed no fear or hesitation, unlike his travel mate Democrat MP Panich Vikitsreth who, despite trying to keep his outward cool, often looked back to where he came from and who made an attempt to inform his secretary and Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva of where he was going. In my opinion, Mr Veera even looked casual, as if he were walking in his own backyard, which, come to think of it, was probably what he thought he was doing. We know where that casual walkabout has led him. Mr Veera and his secretary Ratree Pipatanapaiboon have been behind bars in Cambodia's Prey Sar prison for more than two months now. Unless they seek a royal pardon, it is likely they will have to stay in there for eight and six years, respectively, as per their sentences. Even with a pardon, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen once said they would have to serve two-thirds of their jail term. When Mr Veera was last seen in public in February when he was brought to hear his verdict before the court, the trauma of prison time was evident in his thinner body, careworn expression and seemingly haunted eyes. What's worse is what options does he have now? His case has been so politicised that his life no longer seems to be his. The Thai Patriots Network, the ultra-nationalist group which he served as coordinator, has remained adamant that it will not see Mr Veera "bow" to the Cambodians by seeking a royal pardon. Evidently, such an act by Mr Veera - the TPN's poster boy - would be tantamount to him conceding that he had committed wrong and did indeed "trespass" into Cambodian territory, a concession that would go against everything the nationalist group has campaigned on. The same burden must be heavy on Mr Veera's mind. The man really is left with no choice. If he holds on to his conviction _ his insistence that the land he trod on Dec 29 belongs to Thailand _ he will literally be left to rot in prison. His TPN may continue to make noise but very few people in Thailand will remember him or care much about the nobility of his suffering. The other road left to him is no less grievous. If Mr Veera chooses to try to live to fight another day and submits a plea for royal pardon, what would be left of him? Even if he regains his freedom, he would become a man with no convictions. His friends and fellow nationalists could look down on him or turn their backs on him. Who would listen to him the next time he goes out to campaign? Who would follow him if he leads another march into uncertain areas? Who would respect him? And the worst question of all: will he, who has built such a strong faith in his nationalist cause, still find respect for himself? It may have seemed innocuous at the time, but that casual walkabout at the border has led Mr Veera into a truly difficult dilemma. Atiya Achakulwisut is Deputy Editor, Bangkok Post.  | ||
| Posted: 05 Mar 2011 12:30 AM PST 5/03/2011 Bangkok Post Soldiers at the border have learned there are times when their gentlemanly ways will not win the day. Playing hardball may be necessary when either party in a dispute resorts to all ways imaginable to get what it wants. The clashes between Thai and Cambodian troops last month in Si Sa Ket highlighted the critically precarious state of the border situation between the two countries. The tension was brought to the boil after Cambodia built two roads through the disputed area with Thailand near the ancient Preah Vihear temple early this year. One road leads to the Hindu temple and the other to the old patrol base where Thai soldiers used to be stationed close to the Keo Sikha Kiri Savara pagoda built by Cambodia. The building of the roads was a blatant breach of the memorandum of under standing (MoU) banning any physical construction in the disputed area. Honouring the agreement, Thai troops withdrew from the outpost near the pagoda. However, Cambodian soldiers did not follow suit and retained a military presence there. After a briefing about the security development, army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha gave the Suranaree Task Force the go-ahead to pave a road in the disputed land too. The road was intended to be a supply route for troops in case the border confrontation degenerated into skirmishes, which it later did. The soldiers responsible for the road construction that began on Jan 27 were a 40-strong team comprising engineers, infantry troops and those from a security protection unit. The Cambodian army kept watch on the road being paved while hurrying the construction of its own roads. The 2-kilometre road went from Pha Mor I Dang cliff to a spot near the Preah Vihear temple. As construction was in progress, Cambodian troops launched heavy shelling targeting the tractors used to build the road on Feb 4. The firing of weapons including rocket-propelled grenades and AK-47 rifles continued for three hours. The military offensive then carried on sporadically over the course of the next three days. Over to the top-level security meeting, Gen Prayuth admitted it was his fault that he had ordered the road construction. He said he did not anticipate that Cambodian troops would open fire without prior warning or protest, according to an army source. Security officials have pointed out that Cambodia has consistently ignored the MoU by building roads and refusing to stop the work despite formal protests from Thailand. When Thailand paved its road, Cambodia began its assault. After the clashes, the Cambodian troops moved in and occupied the 4.6-square-kilometre disputed area. When Thai soldiers tried to enter the area, the Cambodian troops fired upon them. Gen Prayuth said the government has ordered Thai troops to maintain their positions, guard the border and not attack Cambodia. But some observers feel the Thai soldiers should not sit back and let Cambodia establish a military presence in the disputed area. They should also gain access to the area to assert Thailand's territorial claims.  | ||
| Posted: 05 Mar 2011 12:04 AM PST
2011-03-04 Radio Free Asia A leading opposition figure calls for the defense of women's rights ahead of International Women's Day. Mu Sochua, president of the opposition Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) Women's Wing, spent 18 years in exile from her homeland after she was forced to flee war and genocide during the Khmer Rouge era. After earning degrees in the United States, she returned to Cambodia in 1989 to work as an advocate for human rights. She won a seat to parliament in 1998 and soon afterward was asked to take over the Ministry of Women's and Veteran's Affairs. She stepped down from her cabinet post in 2004, citing corruption as a major obstacle to her work, but has continued to represent Cambodia's women as a member of parliament. Founded in 1995, the Sam Rainsy Party Women's Wing works to mobilize women on issues that are crucial to women's lives, train and prepare SRP women leaders at all levels, and provide women candidates with winning positions on the SRP lists of candidates. Ahead of International Women's Day, Sochua and her group underlined the need for reforms in various fields to better protect women in Cambodia. "On March 8, 2011 the world celebrates the 100-year anniversary of International Women's Day. Today we must honor the vital role that women play in the development of our country. It is a day for us to stand together, raise our voices and defend women's human rights. Women's rights whether economic, social, cultural, civil or political—have equal status. The state is obligated to create and enforce adequate standards that recognize this equality. The SRP believes that existing national policies tied with community action and the protection and recognition of the most basic human rights should align to establish a foundation for the protection of women's rights. Gender empowerment exists through strengthening and promoting increased political participation, equal access to economic opportunities, increased access to health care and stronger enforcement of policies on prevention of violence against women. Cambodia must adopt economic policy tools that embrace promotion and realization of equitable access to land, employment and equal standards of living. The SRP strives to establish a national action plan that would incorporate existing international laws and in-country policies to end violence against women. This would include new legal reforms, monitoring systems and improved access to information. It is not only the responsibility of the State, but of the whole community to ensure the protection of women against all forms of violence. International Women's Day is not only a day to reflect on the progress that has been made around the world, but to recognize all the work that remains. The SRP Women's Wing believes that developing women's leadership is essential in order to achieve its goal that all Cambodians have access to equal economic, political and human rights—including personal security, financial independence, health care, and education. We must ensure that enough women have support in their own lives to turn the tides of unawareness and both empower women into positions of leadership to make change, and build grassroots support for protection of women's human rights and dignity."  | ||
| Thailand principally agrees on observation TOR over dispute with Cambodia: minister Posted: 04 Mar 2011 11:57 PM PST March 05, 2011 Xinhua Thailand has principally agreed on terms of reference (TOR) on observation related to its dispute with Cambodia over border issue, an Indonesian minister said here on Friday. Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa told reporters that as observing party in the issue, Indonesia has sent the terms of reference that was responded positively by Cambodia. "Cambodia has agreed and yesterday I heard Thailand has principally agreed but details will be submitted in the near term, " he said. Natalegawa stressed that the part should be immediately completed as the momentum must be maintained. "(The momentum of) decision by both foreign ministers and both countries on Feb. 22 should be maintained and we must move fast," he said. According to him, Indonesia has established two teams consisting of 30 officials to Thailand and Cambodia. He said that it is expected that there will be a review on the observation every three months. "But, related to how long they must stay there, we must decide together as there should be agreement from related countries. This is important as we don't want to enforce peace between them. We are just observers," he said. Another thing, he said, is security of the observers. "They are unarmed. So, there must be a safety guarantee," he said. Natalegawa added that all political processes must be informed to other ASEAN countries. Thailand and Cambodia have the border conflict just a week after Cambodia's Preah Vihear temple was enlisted as World Heritage Site on July 7, 2008, since then periodic clashes between both sides' troops happened, resulted in the deaths of troops on both sides. The latest clashes, on Feb. 4-7, killed and wounded many soldiers and citizens of both sides, and caused tens of thousands of the two countries' villagers nearby the disputed areas fleeing for safe shelters.  | ||
| STRONG MAN OF CAMBODIA always finds himself hard to walk and stand up on his own feet! Posted: 04 Mar 2011 11:10 PM PST Hoon Xen (C) is assisted as he walks down a steps during a visit to the Preah Vihear temple in Preah Vihear province, 500kms north of Phnom Penh, near the disputed border with Thailand, on February 6, 2010. Hun Sen visited a disputed border area with Thailand, angering the neighbouring nation amid an ongoing diplomatic spat. The Cambodian prime minister began a tour of the area close to the ancient Preah Vihear temple at the centre of the land dispute by opening a school and giving supplies to villagers caught up in violence last year between the two countries' troops. AFP PHOTO/TANG CHHIN SOTHY (Photo credit should read TANG CHHIN SOTHY/AFP/Getty Images)  | ||
| No GBC talks with Thailand this month: Cambodian Defense Spokesman Posted: 04 Mar 2011 11:03 PM PST March 05, 2011 Xinhua Cambodia sticks to its stance on Friday that there will be no bilateral meeting of Cambodia- Thailand General Border Committee (GBC) this month as requested by Thailand, Lt. Gen. Chhum Socheat, spokesman for Cambodian Ministry of Defense, said Friday. "His Excellency Tea Banh (Cambodian Defense Minister) has already replied the Thai request, saying that it's not appropriate time to hold the meeting and there will be no bilateral talks without the presence of ASEAN chair," he said by telephone. "If Thailand wants to propose meeting with Cambodia, it can ask ASEAN chair to convene," he said. The Bangkok Post quoted Thai Defense Minister Prawit Wongsuwon on March 3 as saying that Thailand has requested Cambodia to hold the 8th GBC meeting in March, instead of its usual meeting in April, so the two countries can hold bilateral talks sooner to solve problems and to talk over arrangements for Indonesian observers to visit the border area. "It is just Thai's excuse to delay its acceptance of Indonesian observers," said Chhum Socheat. Usually, the GBC is co-chaired by the two countries' defense ministers, aiming at strengthening and expanding cooperation on the armies of the two countries and to control security along the border. Cambodia and Thailand on Feb. 22 agreed to receive Indonesian observers to monitor the border disputed areas near the 11th century Preah Vihear temple in order to ensure a permanent ceasefire; however, so far Thailand has not approved the terms of reference to receive the observers. Preah Vihear Temple was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2008. The conflict has occurred just a week after the inscription due to Thai claim of the ownership of 1.8 square miles (4.6 sq km) of scrub next to the temple, since then periodic clashes have happened between the two nations' troops, resulted in the deaths of troops on both sides.  | ||
| Repeat sex offender nabbed in Cambodia Posted: 04 Mar 2011 10:57 PM PST  A 72-year-old man is one of several Minnesota sex criminals believed to have fled the country. March 4, 2011 By JAMES WALSH Star Tribune (Minneapolis-St Paul, Minnesota, USA) Loren Clayton Oulman was like many American expatriates looking for a fresh start in Asia. He ran website ads in Korea and China, offering his services as a teacher or consultant. He lived in Cambodia and traveled to India, Bangkok and Myanmar, searching for opportunities. But he is also a convicted sex offender who'd fled Minnesota. Thanks to his Internet ads and a new international initiative, the U.S. Marshals Service captured Oulman in January and, last week, returned him to a cell in Minnesota. He had spent more than a year abroad and been featured on "America's Most Wanted." Oulman, 72, is one of a several known sex offenders who have fled Minnesota for other countries, according to the Marshals Service -- just some of the thousands across the country who evade monitoring. Investigators hope a new initiative, dubbed "Project Sentinel/Operation Guardian," helps make foreign soil less of a haven for U.S. sex criminals. "It's about child safety," said Deputy U.S. Marshal Matt Moran, who coordinates sex offender investigations for the Minnesota office. "Here, and in other countries." Of the estimated 750,000 convicted sex offenders in the United States, as many as 125,000 have failed to register, Moran said. The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 makes failure to register a federal crime. Operation Guardian targets the five most dangerous "noncompliant" sex offenders in each Marshals Service district, as identified by state and local officials. Oulman had been on the run for nearly two years -- and spent at least a year in Southeast Asia. "There is quite the trend of these guys fleeing the country," Moran said, adding that two known Minnesota offenders are in Mexico, one is in Canada, another is in Cambodia and one man is believed to have fled to Sweden. Oulman was particularly brazen about it. He was first convicted of sexually molesting a juvenile in Anoka County in 1982, officials say. His most recent crime involved using the free Wi-fi at a Roseville Dunn Bros. coffee shop to look at child pornography on his laptop computer. "I have a tendency to look at inappropriate things," he told the Dunn Bros. manager when confronted, the criminal complaint said. In April 2008, he pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography and was sentenced to four months in jail. By September 2008, Oulman was telling his probation officer that he "had no intention of contacting probation," said Bob Pavlak, commander of the Ramsey County Sheriff Apprehension Unit. And then he was gone. 'He didn't hide very well' In February 2010, the Marshals Service learned that Oulman was traveling all over Asia. How? His Web postings were one clue. One ran on a website in Korea: "I CAN TEACH ENGLISH -- DO CONSULTANT WORK -- OR EDUCATE EMPLOYEES IN THE THREE MOST IMPORTANT ISSUES FOR BUSINESS SUCCESS. Professionalism -- Positive Attitude -- Problem Solving. My name is Loren Oulman." Another ad was posted in China. "He didn't hide very well -- or try to hide at all for that matter," Moran said. Oulman had even adopted children in Asia, officials said. "They call me Dad," he told them later. In October 2010, U.S. officials went to Phnom Penh and worked with their Cambodian counterparts to pinpoint Oulman's location. In November, "America's Most Wanted" featured him. On Jan. 14, Cambodian police arrested Oulman at a casino in the seaside town of Sihanoukville. Cambodian officials said his sex offenses invalidated his travel documents. "I think he is a dangerous man who threatens the safety of our children," Samleang Seila, an official with an anti-pedophile organization, told the Phnom Penh Post. Oulman was extradited and taken to the Los Angeles County jail, where he was locked up for a month before being returned to Minnesota. On Feb. 23, he was incarcerated at the St. Cloud prison. According to Ramsey County Community Corrections spokesman Christopher Crutchfield, Oulman is scheduled to be released in March 2012. He will then be on supervised release for 10 more years. Moran said Marshals Service sex offender investigators tracked down approximately 20,000 fugitive sex offenders in the past year, criminals wanted for sexual assaults, sex offender registration violations and other crimes. Tracking sex offenders who flee overseas "is a real focus for us," Moran said. "We have the resources. And, more and more, we have the cooperation of other countries."  | ||
| Southeast Asia’s Sometimes Association Posted: 04 Mar 2011 10:49 PM PST March 05, 2011 Yohanes Sulaiman The Jakarta Globe Right from the beginning of its Asean chairmanship this year, Indonesia seemed to try to use its position effectively, notably by sending observers to the disputed area of the Preah Vihear temple on the Thai-Cambodian border. While the action was admirable and some proof that Asean is able to address issues of regional security, the bigger question remains: Is it possible to strengthen the role of the association considering its many structural weaknesses? Established in 1967 in order to promote peace and stability in the region by fostering regional integration, cooperation and development, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations has a fairly successful record in increasing economic cooperation and trade among its member states. Between 1993 and 2009, shares of intra-Asean trade increased from 19.2 percent of total trade to 24.5 percent due to the reduction of tariffs and intra-Asean investment. As a political entity, however, the 10-member grouping has a mixed record. On one hand, it appears to be able to promote peace and stability in the region, reducing friction among member states through its ability to gather leaders to discuss policies and reach agreements on various economic, social and cultural matters. On the other hand, it failed to create a common Asean foreign policy, uniting all 10 states in their response to international developments. Unlike the European Union, Asean is lacking a strong formal institutional mechanism to force compliance from its member states. There is no integrative mechanism, a binding agreement that will require each member to follow a policy set by Asean. In the end, Asean is simply a place to associate, to draft politically non-controversial agreements that will not directly threaten states' sovereignty, such as in matters of trade and social and cultural exchanges. The lack of a common foreign policy is due to the fact that the only common denominator among all member states is their location in Southeast Asia. Each member state is generally ready to give lip service to the necessity and the importance of Asean. But at the same time, each state also tries to make sure that Asean will not have the ability to impose its will upon individual states, especially in matters considered to be of national interest. In other words, national interests still trump regional interests. Add the principle of non-interference among member states to the mix, and you have the perfect ingredients for a very weak common foreign policy. In the end, Asean members only agree on statements of concern, which actually borders on inaction. This system works fine during times when there is a clear, easily identifiable and constant enemy (e.g. Communism during the Cold War). But it struggles in tackling issues that require a quick and coordinated response, like terrorism, the current upheaval in the Middle East and security problems in Asean's own backyard, such as the Thailand-Cambodia border disputes and the Indonesia-Malaysian disputes over the Ambalat sea block. Witness the impotence of Asean in addressing human rights abuses and electoral manipulation in Burma. While it is true that dialogue can solve problems, the problem is that, without the threat of punishment, there is simply no incentive for the Burmese government to stop the abuses. What would Asean do should if the junta refused to honor an agreement? There are fears that this policy of relative inaction will backfire, since the record of Asean states on human rights issues is less than stellar. Look at Malaysia's horrid treatment of Indonesian migrant workers and the persecution of followers of Ahmadiyah in Indonesia. But the problem is, there is simply insufficient political will among member states to strengthen Asean to the degree of the European Union, lest it threaten the states' sovereignty and cause embarrassment for their respective governments. Consequently, Asean is virtually ineffective in settling bilateral disputes among its member states, let alone trying to tackle important global issues that require commitment from its members. This is a pity, considering the fact that Asean is perfectly situated to help tackle international problems. As a region bordering the rising powers of China and India, Asean actually could play a major role in defusing potential conflicts between them. Being located in a multi-ethnic region, Asean can also play a role in mediating disputes between Western powers and China. Having a huge Muslim population can also help bridging the chasm between the strategically important Middle East and Western states concerned about the rise of radical Islam. Basically, Asean has a critical role to play in managing international conflict. The problem is that the lack of a formal structure to force compliance and commitment from its member states creates a huge credibility problem. Of course, the biggest question that each member state of Asean should ask is whether it wants Asean to be strong enough to withstand the challenges of an uncertain world — or whether it is content with the current loose-knit association. As the Asean chair in 2011, Indonesia should try to answer this question, lest Asean continue to fade into increasing irrelevance. Yohanes Sulaiman is a lecturer at the Indonesian National Defense University and a researcher at the Global Nexus Institute.  | ||
| "The God in You": A Song for Women Posted: 04 Mar 2011 10:39 PM PST http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ISSvgOlMIU  |
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