The Phnom Penh Post - ENGLISH: “if we used fraud” plus 9 more

If we used fraud in the election, the CNRP would have won fewer seats.

A 23-year-old migrant worker was unable to find her way back home, reportedly suffering from memory loss, when she returned to Cambodia last week after working in Malaysia for two years, according to Adhoc.

Mao Ri was repatriated from Malaysia and arrived at the Phnom Penh airport last Wednesday, wandering aimlessly for a few days until someone spotted her and enlisted a taxi to take her home. But when the driver asked her where she wanted to go, she could not remember her hometown or even her parents' names.

Lai Im, Adhoc officer in charge of women's issues in Kampong Chhnang province, said the taxi driver called ABC Cambodia Radio asking them to announce he was trying to help Ri find her way home. Adhoc responded, requesting that Ri be brought to Kampong Chhnang so a report could be filed to the police in search of Ri's parents.

"She did not remember where she lived or her parents' names. We called the taxi driver and asked him to drive her to Adhoc in Kampong Chhnang to find her family by asking help from the provincial police," Im said.

Prak Soany, provincial deputy police chief, said with the help of police from other provinces, they finally found Ri's parents in Kampong Speu. The parents were contacted and asked to come to Kampong Chhnang to retrieve their daughter, and were urged to file a complaint against recruitment agency Top Manpower Co, Ltd saying their daughter lost her memory while working in Malaysia.

"We did not know what happened to her in Malaysia while working, because she seems to be panicked and couldn't remember where she lives,"Soany said.

China on Tuesday officially handed over 1,000 handguns and 50,000 bullets to Cambodia at the General Commissariat of National Police at the Ministry of Interior, police said, while maintaining the aid had nothing to do with tightening post-election security.

A National Police press officer said, on condition of anonymity, that the donation of weapons was a bilateral cooperation deal that had long been in the works, and that the timing of the donation was purely coincidental, though analysts remained sceptical.

"It was an old deal for cooperation and strengthening security and public order between Cambodia and China, and the handover just coincided with the post-election [period]," he said. "It is not a secret, because the deal was posted on our website today."

He said that a memorandum of understanding had been signed between National Police chief Neth Savoeun and Li Zhuqun, the deputy chief of China's General Department for International Cooperation.

"Senior Chinese authorities said Cambodia and China are always united, and China has always helped Cambodia with both aid and diplomatic ties," Savoeun was quoted as saying on the National Police website.

In response, the website quoted Li Zhuqun as saying that "China would like to praise the [good] relationship about social order" it enjoys with Cambodia.

National Police spokesman Kirth Chantharith could not be reached for comment.

Analyst Kem Ley maintained that it was "not the right time" for the handover, coming as it does on widely circulating rumours of political unrest, and went on to lay part of the blame at China's feet.

"It's not the time to show publicly about the military and all that," he said. "The communist countries try not to find peaceful solutions; they always try to force things."

China has a long history of giving military aid to Cambodia. They delivered 12 military helicopters to the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces last month and paid for a new military institute in Kampong Speu province earlier this year.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY STUART WHITE

Approximately 40 workers fainted at the TMI garment factory in Svay Rieng yesterday, police and workers said.

Workers at the factory began feeling sick and fainting when a heavy air of glue fumes wafted into the factory as workers returned from lunch, So Navy, 23, a TMI employee, said yesterday.

"I saw many workers in the workplace fall down and some vomited," Navy added.

Workers were treated at a nearby health clinic and Chi Phou hospital, said Kao Horn, deputy police chief of Bavet. Their conditions were not serious, he said.

Glue fumes from the same adjacent factory caused more than 100 TMI workers to faint in May, Navy said.

Pok Vanthat, deputy director of the health department at the Ministry of Labour, confirmed the fainting but said the figure was closed to 28.

The factory is located inside the Manhattan Special Economic Zone where, last year, three women were shot by Bavet town governor Chhouk Bandith while protesting working conditions.

Officials from TMI could not be reached yesterday.

After two months without receiving their salaries, the national staff at the Khmer Rouge tribunal is again threatening to go on strike, court spokesman Neth Pheaktra said yesterday, adding that the pay freeze since May had affected everyone "from drivers to judges".

Pheaktra went on to say, via email, that there had been no new promised donations to the court's national side.

"It is a new challenge for [the] national side. All national staff continues to work for two more weeks.... if no solution, some of them may decide to take temporary leave until ... a solution [is reached]," he said.

"The court will face the new boycott from the staff and of course, it will affect to the ECCC'[s] work ... on legal affairs, IT and especially [the Interpretation and Translation Unit]."

The court's national side has long been chronically under-funded, and an earlier strike in March severely hampered court proceedings for two weeks, but ended when a portion of workers' back salaries were finally paid.

Chanting campaign slogans and political messages, tens of thousands of Cambodians buzzed through city and provincial streets in July showing support for their chosen party. Almost all of them were wearing T-shirts, caps or stickers with party logos – a windfall for print shops in town that took the orders.

Now, however, the campaigns are over, leaving behind piles of unsold merchandise. No problem, sellers say, there's always 2018.

"We will sell them the next election," said Vath Neari Roath, pointing at the mound of folded campaign shirts sitting in the corner of her Piseth T-Shirt Printing and Computerised Embroidery shop on Norodom Boulevard.

Merchandise at the store was mostly made to order. But Roath, who started the shop about 10 years ago with her sister, said they printed an additional 5,000 T-shirts bearing the ruling Cambodian People's Party devada logo in anticipation of high demand during the last few days of the campaign.

The CPP shirts and caps, priced at about $2 each, will be in storage with about 100 banners.

Since the election on Sunday, in which the opposition Cambodia National Rescue party nearly doubled the number of its National Assembly seats, no one has ordered or bought any campaign merchandise, said Roath, and business in general has quietened down.

Print shops like Piseth experienced a surge in business during campaign rallies, which often slowed traffic in the area around the Independence Monument.

Roath sold thousands of T-shirts and caps bearing the CPP logo during the month leading up to the election.

Like most of the shops selling merchandise, opposition items were hard to find, and Roath, who slapped a CPP sticker next to the entrance, provided them only on request. As a result, about 1,000 CNRP caps were sold.

While opposition labels were limited at Piseth, CNRP supporters could move down the street to Angkortip Printing and Embroidery, where the owners seemed to have more of a market-driven attitude toward sales.

"We sell both CPP and CNRP because to us, it's just business," said Khin Samphors, whose brother owns the print shop.

Angkortip's batch of leftover CPP and CNRP T-shirts, banners and caps is much smaller than Piseth's, and will also collect dust until 2018.

No merchandise had been sold since the elections, Khin said. But the store moved more than 1,000 T-shirts, hats and banners in July.

Owners of the nearby Nitarya Printing and 5 Star Printing House said they are holding out and still trying to sell leftover merchandise before restocking.

Print stores weren't willing to introduce discounts to unload the dated gear, apparently willing to stow it away for five years instead of lose out on the investment. Unless, owners said, customers want to buy in bulk.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY RANN REUY

Sambo Norn and Sambo Nan have been intensifying their private training in eager anticipation of Cambodia's inaugural appearance at the SEA Games bodybuilding competition in Myanmar this December.

Despite being based out of Bangkok for the past four years and competing regularly in bodybuilding tournament in Thailand, the beefcake brothers have sworn allegiance to the Kingdom's flag, which they will proudly fly for the first time in the event.

"We used to be porters [at a shop on the Thai-Cambodian border] earning little in the way of wages. Then one of our friends asked us to train for bodybuilding," Sambo Norn told the Post.

"Fortunately, we were given the chance to show our talent on stage in Thailand, and after that, we joined competitions very often as a part-time job.

"We got invitations from many countries to join their federation, but we always remembered who we are and where we're from. So we applied for permission from the Cambodian Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation [CBFF] and the National Olympic Committee of Cambodia, and eventually were accepted to represent the Kingdom in this sport at the 2013 SEA Games."

Sambo Nan also noted they had been approached by a Thai club to become naturalised Thai bodybuilders but had turned down the offer. "We're Cambodian, so I'd rather represent our nation," he said.

CBFF President Raksmey Sokmongkol told the Post the federation and the NOCC had supported the Sambo siblings for the past four years with an eye on SEA Games participation.

"I believe they'll get a positive result at this major event as they have experience performing in China and some other countries in Asia," he said.

NOCC Secretary General Vath Chamroeun added that the CBFF had yet to unify its national clubs and associations, so it was helpful that the brothers' were training abroad.

"[Cambodia] is looking for more than 10 gold medals from SEA Games," he said, adding that the NOCC had decided to send a delegation of bodybuilders to Myanmar even before the Sambos have submitted their request.

According to the NOCC official, Cambodia expect to grab podium places in vovinam, taekwondo, English boxing, wrestling, kempo, petanque, tennis, wushu and bodybuilding.

After a week's break in the wake of the national general elections, teams are back to the grindstone at the Beeline Arena on Saturday in the Cambodian Basketball League sponsored by Western Union and Coca-Cola.

The three-match program excludes the top three ranked teams – Alaxan FR Patriots, IRB The Lord and Extra Joss Warriors – with the day thrown open for lower-ranked ones to make some gains as the race for play-off places takes a serious turn.

The highest ranked at five among the teams rolling into action during Week 8 of the competition will be the all-Cambodian Sela Meas, who despite winning two of their four games so far are still struggling to touch their known best.

Yet their all round strength could prove decisive against the ranking table trailers Galaxy, who have alarmingly faded out after a prominent start.

With an average scoring advantage of six points per game over opposition, which is quite close to the top four, Sela Meas may find the going to their liking against a side which has a lowly median of negative 12.75 points per game.

The most interesting match-up of the day will be between Phnom Penh Dragons and Pate 310. There is little to choose between the two sides if their previous scoring progression is used as a yardstick to measure their chances.

While the Dragons found Sela Meas too hot to handle, going down by a widening 20 points in their previous outing, Pate's fate was sealed in the dying minute of the game by Ganzberg, who made acres of ground to get up to that vital winning basket. Both Dragons and Pate relish fast pace and the key could well be which of the two can maintain a steady tempo.

Both Ganzberg and Post Buffaloes will be coming off their first wins of the seasons looking for some positive bounce from those efforts.

The Buffaloes' thrilling win over CCPL Heat decidedly had greater merit than Ganzberg's scramble past Pate.

After three defeats and that narrow squeak against Heat, the Buffaloes are beginning to grate the grooves and should they reproduce their winning form, Ganzberg may have to deal with a tough call.

A notable footnote in their record so far is that Buffaloes had managed to even outscore the top ranked Patriots in the second quarter of their game, though they were squarely beaten in the end.

Ganzberg may look back with some pride on the performance of Sergio Rodriguez, who inspired that late rush against Pate and if he gets going, Ganzberg could well match Buffaloes stride for stride.

Saturday's Schedule
Phnom Penh Dragons v Pate 310 – 2pm
Sela Meas v Galaxy – 4pm
Ganzberg v Post Buffaloes 6pm

Analysis

Whilst reigning English Premier League champions Manchester United have had their pre-season tour of Asia constantly interrupted by the nagging irritation of the Wayne Rooney saga, that has seemingly followed them around the continent like a hungry mosquito, there is perhaps another more searching bug that may find them out when they begin the defence of their crown in a little over two weeks from now that will not be so easy to swat away with spin.

United's relentless pursuit of Barcelona's Cesc Fabregas is surely testimony to the hole that needs to be filled in central midfield, vacated by the retirement of the outstanding Paul Scholes.

Scholes became the butt of many a joke with relation to precisely what time in a game that he was going to get booked. However, very few players could deliver a deft pass so frequently as Scholes could in his heyday.

Two seasons ago when the noisy neighbours of Manchester City pipped their more illustrious rivals to the title, it was the shy ginger haired lad from Langley who was the linchpin in keeping tabs on City.

The acquisition of Robin van Persie last year alleviated some of the pressure on United's midfielders and Rooney often slipped back into the pocket behind the regular Dutch goalscorer.

However, should Rooney depart to Chelsea or elsewhere and Fabregas stays as expected at his boyhood club in Catalanio, then unless they fill the void quickly United may well find themselves reliant solely on the skills of the outstanding Shinji Kagawa.

Will that be enough though? With Giggs turning 40 in November and nobody in the mould of Keane about to protect the heart of their defence anymore, the Red Devils could once again find themselves chasing a City side, that has been spending more money in the summer window than is handed out to a retiring BBC executive.

Manchester City's spending has already topped the £90 million (US$136.9 million) mark in the past few months, with the smart looking investments of Jesus Navas, Fernandinho, Jovetic and Alvaro Negredo. United on the other hand have only so far bought the Uruguayan fullback Guillermo Varela.

Fernandinho is considered good enough to feature for Brazil, and Navas and Negredo have played a combined 42 times for World and European champions Spain. There will be no African Cup of Nations this coming season to deprive City of Yaya Toure for an entire month, and with Sergio Aguero, David Silva and Edin Dzeko to call on, Man City look stronger than ever.

David Moyes needs a miracle midfield makeover and fast, or else the sounds of Blue Moon and the rhythmic sways of The Poznan will be ringing and lingering in the ears and eyes of United.

However, a certain man from Portugal might just poke his way into the fray, or may be it is time for the Wenger Boys to finally deliver. Whatever happens, it should be another season to savour.

A Kampong Cham inmate's wife filed complaints with the government and NGOs against the provincial prison after he fell ill and died shortly after the prosecutor allegedly denied permission for him to seek treatment in Phnom Penh.

Meach Sokhoeun, 35, died July 14, a month after he fell seriously ill with hepatitis and fluid in his lungs, his wife, Kun Seang Oun, said yesterday.

Sokhoeun, who was serving a 12-year sentence for intentional murder, was referred to Kampong Cham's provincial hospital on June 13, Seang Oun said.

As his condition deteriorated, she appealed to prosecutor Huot Vuthy to allow him to be treated at Phnom Penh hospital, Seang Oun said.

"The prosecutor is guilty for his lack of professionalism," Seang Oun said. Vuthy refused to provide Seang Oun with her husband's medical records, and denied his transfer because he was a flight risk, she said.

Since Sokhoeun's death, Seang Oun has filed complaints with the Ministry of Justice, the Anti-Corruption Unit, as well as rights groups Licadho and Adhoc, among other organisations.

Doctors provided their best possible treatment for Sokhoeun's fatal ailments, Vuthy insisted, adding that he never received a request for him to receive treatment in Phnom Penh.