DAP: The breaking news in Cambodia: “Cambodian PM blasts UN human rights rapporteur for 2 reports” plus 1 more

PHNOM PENH, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Thursday lashed out at the United Nations Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Cambodia, Surya P. Subedi for his two reports criticizing the country's elections and land concessions.

"You came to (Cambodia) to meet this person and that person; then, wrote reports falsely. As a sovereign state, Cambodia cannot accept your individual recommendations," the premier said during a graduation ceremony of students at the Human Resources University.

"You are a law professor. Law professor, why don't you go to help your country to write the constitution law? Should not write stupidly about Cambodia," he said. "Your country has not had the Constitution yet, so it's better that you should help your country rather than Cambodia."

A Nepalese, Surya P. Subedi is a professor of international law in the University of Leeds in England. He was appointed by the UN Human Rights Council as the UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Cambodia in March 2009.

Hun Sen made the response after Subedi presented two reports to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva last Wednesday, urging the Cambodian authorities to implement reforms to ensure that next year's general elections are free and fair, and he also called for greater transparency and adherence to the law for granting and management of economic and other land concessions.

The reports are the results of his last two fact-finding missions to Cambodia in December last year and in May this year.

Hun Sen has been in power for 27 years. Political analysts predict that his Cambodian People's Party will dominantly win the general elections in July next year.

PHNOM PENH, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia will restart its annual Water Festival celebration on Nov. 27-29 after last year's cancellation due to flood devastation, Prime Minister Hun Sen said Thursday. "This year's Water Festival will be celebrated on schedule at any cost after last year's halt,"he said during a graduation ceremony of students at the Human Resources University.

Last year's festival was canceled due to flood devastation that killed at least 250 Cambodian people and affected some 1.4 million across the country.

Water Festival is the largest annual festival in the Southeast Asian nation. Around 3 million Cambodians, especially those from rural areas, converge in Phnom Penh, capital of Cambodia, to enjoy the regatta.

Meanwhile, the premier also appealed to people to continue to be on high alert to avoid dangers and property damage due to floods.

Cambodia's eight provinces have been hitting by flash floods since early last month. According to a report of Cambodian Red Cross, the floods had killed at least 14 Cambodian people so far, and some 14,100 families have been affected.

In addition, about 140 schools have been submerged, affecting some 49,000 students, Sam Sereiroth, secretary-general of the education secretariat at the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, said Wednesday.