The Phnom Penh Post - ENGLISH: “Predict the reaction” plus 9 more

In Cambodia, we cannot fine people as some countries do. We cannot predict the reaction.

Parties to the Khmer Rouge tribunal met yesterday to further deliberate the framework of the next phase of Case 002, submitting specific crimes to be heard and even debating whether the case can be heard at all before a final judgement in the first phase is rendered.

At the heart of much of the debate was a February 7 filing by the court's trial chamber confirming that all evidence heard in Case 002/01 will automatically be part of Case 002/02, a position that the
Khieu Samphan defence called "objectionable", unless a final verdict in Case 002/01 had already concretely established the facts of the case.

"How do you intend to use the first trial as a foundation unless you have ascertained exactly what it is all about?" Samphan defender Arthur Vercken asked. "This opens the door to all kinds of risks
. . . risks of breaching Mr Khieu Samphan's rights."

However, prosecutor William Smith argued that since the evidence from Case 002/01 wouldn't necessarily be stipulated as fact in 002/02 then "no prejudice can be claimed by the accused".
The scope of Case 002/02 also prompted disagreement.

The prosecution has proposed that the coming trial would be thelast in Case 002. It would include all the remaining criminal charges in the Case 002 indictment, while limiting a certain number of redundant crime scenes to save time.

The Khieu Samphan defence, however, insisted yesterday that the court was obligated to hear every single crime site included in indictment.

Nuon Chea defender Victor Koppe, on the other hand, declined to make specific recommendations on scope, instead insisting on a framework that would allow for a broader exploration of facts rather than "focusing on the body of the crocodile while refusing to consider its head and tail".

Koppe argued for a framework that would allow the defence to explore its contention that the Khmer Rouge faced a "legitimate" security threat, and that rather than a monolithic organisation, the regime comprised opposing factions.

"Some of those [factions] ultimately triumphed, and are the ones who now lead the prosecution against Nuon Chea," he added, in an apparent nod to the current government's ex-Khmer Rouge roots.

Koppe also repeated his assertion that the combination of the trial chamber's decision in Case 001 and their anticipated decision in 002/01 made the upcoming case's outcome a foregone conclusion, an assertion Koumjian took issue with.

"Because there were findings made about the role of the accused, it does not mean in any way that there is a bias on the part of your honours," Koumjian said. "If in fact the [prosecution's] case is so strong that there is no defence, then, well, justice will be done."

Build Bright United, Ministry of National Defence and National Police Commissary will all look to seal berths in the last 16 of the Samdech Hun Sen Cup today by claiming second successive victories in their group stage matches.

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Two-time winners Phnom Penh Crown and newly formed TriAsia Phnom Penh, who are currently top of the Metfone C-League, will seek wins to move closer to advancing following their 1-1 draw two weeks ago.

TriAsia take on National Police in a Group C clash from 1:30pm at Old Stadium. Crown then come up against Kampong Chhnang at 3:45pm.

Over at Olympic Stadium, last year's runners-up and 2010 champions MND face Oddar Meanchey in a Group D tie at 3:30pm, with Western University meeting BBU in a floodlit fixture from 6pm.

Cup holders Naga Corp and Boeung Ket Rubber Field booked their places in the knockout phase last week after Group B wins, while 2011 and 2012 winners Svay Rieng and Kirivong Sok Sen Chey also confirmed progression from Group A.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CHHORN NORN, TRANSLATED BY CHENG SERYRITH

Cambodia suffers from severe annual flooding, and many people who can't swim die every year as a result. An innovative solution to the generations-old problem may have been found, not by policy hacks or scientists, but by children.

A group of 11-year-olds from Cambodia's one-of-a-kind Liger Learning Centre were recognised for their achievement at a robotics and problem-solving competition in Singapore over the weekend.

At the regional First Lego League competition – a global program designed to get children excited about science and technology – the team of six walked away with second place in the research innovations category.

They also scored a "rising stars" nod from the judges, who rewarded the creative thinking behind their solution, which was thought up during a special robotics project.

"In 2013, 188 people died from drowning and 88 of them were children, so our mission was to make natural swimming pools to teach people how to swim," 11-year-old Ketya said.

The problem is that swimming pools are very expensive, his team realised. A cheap solution had to be found.

"[Our idea] is to plant water hyacinth plants [around it] because it is free and there is a lot in Cambodia.… It's safe because it won't be chlorinated and the plants will [naturally] filter and clean the water," Ketya added.

The competition's theme this year was natural disasters and involved programming and navigating robots around a model "disaster" table to simulate recovery efforts.

While the Liger team did not win a medal in this section, the students said they were not disappointed. The opportunity to travel to Singapore, work together and compete with much more experienced students was the real draw.

Ketya said: "I feel very excited and very happy. Because [there are] many other teams [and] some are 15 years old and I am 11 so I [did not] think I would not get any award because they are very big."

The Liger school, whose latest batch of 50 students enrolled last year and has been awarded full scholarships for a unique education after being selected from around the country, aims to mould the next generation of Cambodian business leaders and entrepreneurs.

"The competition is about actually looking at real world problems, and at Liger our main goal is to teach kids how to problem solve and come up with creative solutions . . . [so] we couldn't be happier to have won a prize for innovative solutions," said Maxwell Cady, the teacher who runs the robotics project.

The group of pre-teens, who returned triumphantly to their peers on Monday, will be bringing home ideas more befitting of scientists or engineers than primary school students. And one or two simpler stories to share.

"[The trip] is very good but when [we] fly on the plane it was a little bit scary because the plane was flying up and down!" Srey Nith, 11, said with a giggle.

Dear Editor,

This letter is in response to the article written by Emily Wight titled "The invisible Cambodians who went uncredited for the Angkor excavation" published last Friday.

In the article, the writer quoted University of Hawaii PhD candidate Heng Piphal, who stated "you're always seeing Cambodians, either coolies, paid labourers or assistants to the conservators, but most of their names have never been mentioned".

What Heng Piphal said is absolutely correct. For decades, Cambodians have played very important roles and greatly contributed to the research done by foreigners in Cambodia. Yet, they are seldom remembered or credited in any way.

Foreigners have often taken advantage of the politics of Cambodia and of Cambodians, viewing Cambodians as no more than simple labourers only interested in money, uneducated, and unworthy of credit.

The fact is that most of the archaeological work in Cambodia was not solely done by foreigners. Actually, local Cambodians contributed significantly to all research. France once ruled over Cambodia and studied Cambodian history and archaeology extensively.

Even considering the special relationship between France and Cambodia and the length and extent of the archaeological work, the French ignored Cambodian participation.

There are numerous cases which illustrate how the French ignored the participation of local Cambodians while they were colonising Cambodia.

Let's highlight one of the cases – Angkor Wat temple. Numerous publications indicate that Angkor Wat was discovered by the explorer Henri Mouhot. This claim is wrong.

Angkor Wat had never been abandoned by Cambodians. Cambodians had always lived adjacent to the temple and attached themselves to it.

Angkor Wat temple had always been part of their daily life. Historical evidence shows that Cambodians continued to conduct religious ceremonies there after the capital city of Cambodia was moved from Angkor in the 15th century.

The administration was moved, but the hearts of the Cambodian people and their culture was not and has never been removed. Local Cambodians have always worshiped at Angkor Wat and the surrounding temples, thus preserving their way of life as well as the temples themselves.

Moreover, before Henri Mouhot visited Angkor Wat, other foreign explorers also visited the temple because Angkor Wat had been the religious center not only for Cambodians, but for the world.

History shows that several foreign explorers visited Cambodia. Zhou Daguon visited Angkor in the 13th century, followed by the Portuguese, the Spanish, the Burmese and the Japanese in the 16th and 17th centuries.

It was not unusual for a marvelous building such as Angkor Wat to receive foreign visits, but none of these visitors ever claimed to have discovered it. It is odd then that Henri Mouhot, unlike those previous visitors, overcome by his ego and hubris, claimed that he had discovered something which was in fact never lost.

The fact that thousands of Cambodians never received credit for helping in the scientific archeological work done in our country illustrates one of the troubling issues of colonisation.

The French had more power than we had, said and did whatever they wanted, and all too often there was no reply or rebuttal from Cambodians. But now, Cambodia has its own sovereignty and territorial integrity.

We have our own team of archaeologists and researchers who were trained locally by Cambodians and also trained abroad. In several cases in the last few decades, significant research and archaeological work has been done by Cambodians.

However, one thing we must note is that France is still influencing Cambodian culture and the property of Cambodian ancestors.

The International Coordinating Committee for the Safeguarding and Development of the Historic Site of Angkor (ICC-Angkor) seems to have higher authority and control in the Angkor area than the owner of the cultural property – Cambodians.

That authority and control over Cambodians seems to be permanent. If Cambodians want to develop or conduct extensive research in the Angkor Area, their own home, they must secure permission from the foreigner-led ICC Angkor first.

Cambodia does not have completely independent authority over its own property. Cambodians should have complete access to research and conduct archaeological work on their own property independently. The APSARA Authority has plenty of accredited experts in archaeology, anthropology, history and other areas.

It would be fair to say that no other institution knows more about the Angkor area than the APSARA Authority.

Therefore, the authority should assume a more active role and greater authority over what is in fact Cambodian property without dependence on foreigners. The Royal Academy of Cambodia also has experts to conduct archeological and historical research in the country which they have already begun to do.

By expanding the authority and activities of these two organisations, Cambodians can reclaim their proper place in the scientific study and understanding of our history and in so doing recognise the contributions of our fellow Cambodians to such endeavours in our past.

Nhean Socheat
Faculty of Archaeology,
graduated from Royal University of Fine Arts

Wing, a growing Cambodian mobile payment and money transfer company, had a better-than-expected 2013.

In May, Wing's CEO Anthony Perkins estimated that the company would reach transaction volumes totaling $1 billion by the end of the year, including domestic remittances, mobile phone top ups, bills and payroll disbursements.

But an increase in domestic remittances – transferring money to someone inside the country for a small fee via mobile phone or by visiting one of the company's Wing Cash Xpress outlets – drove transaction volumes to $1.5 billion last year. At least $1 billion of the total came from remittances.

"That, far and away is our biggest and most successful product. It has taken off," he said, adding that while mobile money transfer technology is the future, face-to-face banking is still the most favoured means of transferring funds in Cambodia.

In December alone, Wing's product usage increased four-fold when compared to the same month of 2012, reaching $240 million.

Transaction volumes only account for the amount of money used in the company's various exchanges. Perkins said the company was profitable before taxes in 2013, and that 2014 "will undoubtedly be net profit positive for the year with a great starting position and at the current rate of growth."

The company's mobile phone top-up service, however, continues to struggle against traditional scratch cards, attracting about $4 million, or 10 per cent, of the total market every month. Perkins said the point of sale service, which issues a printed paper receipt for phone credit, sometimes fails to attract shop owners who would rather just hawk the scratch cards, since telecommunications companies offer higher commissions for the sales.

Still, Wing plans to boost its total number of mobile top-up vendors from 6,000 to 10,000 by the end of 2014, and increase the number of Wing Cash Xpress outlets from 1,000 to 2,000 in a bid to achieve 100 per cent district coverage nationwide.

Teang Vannaroth is one of Wing's many street vendors. She opened her small stand in Phnom Penh's Chamkarmon district, outside a local market, about a year ago.

"Over the first couple of months, I only had a few clients. Gladly, now it is increasing," she said, adding that about 100 people use Wing products on an average day. "Most clients, especially those who moved from the country to Phnom Penh to work, come here to send money to their parents, relatives or friends back home," she said.

Heng Rattanak, a second year university student in Phnom Penh, was waiting at Vannaroth's shop yesterday to withdraw $20. His parents, who live in Kandal province, send Rattanak some money every month to help pay for food and bills.

"It is a good system for me as a university student. It's easy to use and not costly," he said.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY HOR KIMSAY

Workers at Dongdu Textile in Phnom Penh's Dangkor district ended a two-week strike yesterday after their bosses agreed to reinstate 11 union leaders and activists fired in January.

Chhin Sony, president of the government-aligned Union of Cambodia, said more than 2,000 workers returned to the factory at Vattanac II Industrial Park in the morning.

"The workers agreed to go back to work from today after we signed an agreement to finish the dispute and the company accepted those 11 unionists back," he said.

Workers had been striking in front of the factory since January 25, without the presence of authorities. This was despite a ban on public gatherings plus police crackdowns on protesters elsewhere in the capital in recent weeks.

"The factory's bosses filed a complaint against us to the union federation, accusing us of inciting a strike, but decided to drop the case after the owner of Vattanac II intervened to end the dispute," Sony said.
The company had not docked the workers' salaries for going on strike, he added.

An official from Dongdu, who declined to be named, confirmed that all strikers had returned to work.

In a separate strike, about 200 workers from the GCC factory in Preah Sihanouk province's Prey Nop district took to the streets yesterday, demanding their administrative manager be sacked and compensation and seniority bonuses be paid to two workers fired late last month.

"The company fired me and another worker after we worked here for three years, but did not pay us what we are owed," Sam Vanna said.

The workers, who are not members of a union, claim the administrative manager is abusing the labour law.

Officials at the factory could not be reached for comment yesterday.

A Taiwanese woman appeared in court yesterday, accused of being one of six people to sell 128 Cambodian labourers as slaves in the fishing trade between 2010 and 2012.

Kor Vandy, presiding judge at Phnom Penh Municipal Court, said the six accused, among them the general manager and the president of the Giant Ocean International Fishery Co, "persuaded and illegally recruited Cambodian labourers to work as fishermen in Malaysia and Japan".

"When the victims had signed the contract with their company, they sold them to work in Malaysia, the Philippines, China, Hong Kong, India, South Africa and Australia," Vandy said.

Lin Li-chen, Giant Ocean's general manager, 44, was arrested by Cambodian authorities based on the victims' complaints in Siem Reap province in March 2013. However, the others, five men also from Taiwan, escaped and were tried yesterday in absentia.

Taking the stand yesterday, victim Kong Rith, 32, said he had applied for work in Japan. He was recruited and promised a salary of $150 per month, plus bonuses. After arriving in South Africa instead, he was immediately sent to work on a large fishing ship, he told the court.

"I was always beaten by the Chinese boss and his people, who forced us to work 24-hour shifts. I managed to escape from the ship when it landed at the harbour."

During 18 months of work, Rith received only $38. He now demands his full salary and an additional $5,000 as compensation for his ordeal.

Yeng Choeun, 29, said he was recruited for work in Malaysia but sent to Hong Kong instead, where he worked under equally cruel conditions as Rith.

During yesterday's hearing, the only culprit present denied the accusations, claiming she did not know that the men were sent to the mentioned countries, while confirming that they applied for work at her company and were sent overseas.

"The company did not pay my salary either," Lin told the court, and asked for the charges against her to be dropped.

If found guilty, the six accused face up to 15 years in prison. The trial will continue on February 28.

The Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a joint memo yesterday advising recipients to take measures to ban smoking in public places.

The "circular" is the first of its kind in Cambodia, and is to be distributed by all government ministries in the coming weeks.

It comes in lieu of a law drafted in January that would have banned public smoking.

That law was rejected by the Council of Ministers, which balked at the idea of fining people who breached the sub-decree rather than offering them "education".

Mam Bunheng, minister of health, said yesterday that fines would not work in Cambodia, adding that two anti-smoking laws – banning tobacco companies from advertising and obliging them to publish health warnings on their packaging – had already been passed.

"In Cambodia, we cannot fine people as some countries do," he said.

"We cannot predict the reaction, that's why we will educate people instead. We hope that smokers will understand and join with us to protect their health, the environment, and reduce smoking."

The memo, which is not legally enforceable, suggests that organisations serve the public ban smoking, including in government buildings, restaurants and bars – even petrol stations.

Hok Khiev, a director of the legal department at the Ministry of Health, yesterday urged those in charge of public places to sign up to the "ban".

"If they still smoke despite the ban, the owners must order them to smoke outside, and if they still do not obey, the owner must call the police to educate them to smoke outside," he said. He added that the airport should add a new smoking room, which a report released last week by the Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance said was due to be built by British-American Tobacco using their brand colours, despite a sub-decree being in place banning tobacco firms from advertising.

Dr Yel Daravuth of the WHO said all ministries have agreed to review the circular.

"So I think it's the first step, and we will need to see how it can be implemented."

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY DANIEL PYE

In 2009, a railway project official arrived at 45-year-old Ry Preng's home in Por Sen Chey district and spray-painted "1.042" in red on the side of his house. He wasn't sure what it meant, but was told that at some point he would need to pack up and leave to make way for a freight facility alongside the national railroad.

"They just came to study, they did not tell us anything," he said, referring to the 230 families living or owning land in Samrong Estate, a 100-hectare stretch of mostly agricultural plots on the capital's outskirts.
Now, close to five years on, little has changed.

Samrong Estate's limbo status emerged last week in a large-scale report by the ADB's internal watchdog, the Compliance Review Panel, which detailed the mass failings of the bank to ensure the just relocation of families resettled as part of the $143 million railway development.

Samrong Estate, however, stands out because the families have not moved and don't appear to be going anywhere. The other difference is the extent to which the ADB went to find out whether the land was state-owned, an effort that included hiring two law firms, one of which had government ties.

"We have decided to deal with some aspects of Samrong Estate separately because it presents a set of facts and issues that stand apart from the main project," the report released last week says. In 2009, the government offered Samrong Estate to Toll Royal Railway, a joint venture between Australian company Toll Holdings and Cambodia's Royal Group, as a condition of the concession to operate the revived transport network.

From the outset, according to the ADB watchdog's report, the government claimed that Samrong was state land, something rebutted by rights groups and occupants, who said properties were privately owned or at least open to registration under Cambodian law. The complexities around the ownership led the ADB to request a legal opinion from the government, but none was forthcoming. Instead, in 2010 the ADB, according to the watchdog's report, commissioned regional legal firm DFDL to complete an investigation.

After 18 months, in 2012, DFDL found in support of the government's position that the land was state owned. By this time, however, rights groups had gathered more documentation to support their claim of household ownership.

Documents were passed back to DFDL who then issued a report with "a significant number of caveats", according to the ADB watchdog, one of which was that its findings should not be shared outside of the ADB.

DFDL, unable to make public its conclusion, recommended to the ADB a Cambodian legal firm called Honest and Balanced Services (HBS). The bank then published the HBS opinion affirming that Samrong was owned by the government on its website in August of 2012.

Rights groups have questioned whether HBS is independent enough to issue such a ruling.

According to the HBS website, the firm's chairman is Hong Panharith, who, among other positions at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is also listed as a personal assistant to Deputy Prime Minister Sok An.

The online bio of another partner and managing director Ly Tayseng includes a research role with the General Secretariat of the Supreme National Economic Council (SNEC) from 2005 to 2012. Tayseng, reached yesterday, said he could not discuss the matter, citing confidentiality privileges.

The watchdog's report critiqued the ADB for hiring firms without first assessing their background as independent and said it wasn't the ADB's job to get to the bottom of a land dispute.

Eric Sidgwick, ADB country director for Cambodia, said via email yesterday that the bank deemed procuring independent legal advice "the most appropriate method pending a final resolution of the matter under local law".

But like the rest of the vast resettlement project, for which the ADB may end up loaning the government millions to make right, the fate of Samrong is far from clear.

The ADB said on Friday that the government has requested the freight facility planned for Samrong be removed from the project's scope without elaborating on what that means for residents. An official at the Ministry of Transport could not be reached for comment.

At Samrong, the same train tracks run between houses and rice paddies, just as they did years ago. Preng, the homeowner, is none the wiser. The same paint is above his doorway. He still doesn't know what's going to happen at number 1.042.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY SUM MANET