Business laws in pipeline

Photo by: Heng Chivoan
Booksellers hawk photocopied works outside the Royal Palace yesterday. The government is preparing to create a commercial court to help resolve cases such as intellectual property disputes.

via Khmer NZ

Wednesday, 21 July 2010 15:01 May Kunmakara

DRAFT laws governing commercial contracts and a new commercial court, set to launch in 2011, are months away from being submitted to the Council of Ministers.

Var Roth San, director of the Department of Intellectual Property Rights at the Ministry of Commerce, said yesterday the laws were likely to be approved by the National Assembly in 2011 once they had been checked by the Council of Ministers – a move expected in “ two or three months”.

“Once they are passed, a commercial court will probably be established sometime in late 2011 or early 2012,” he told reporters yesterday at an advanced workshop on civil adjudication of commercial, intellectual property and international trade cases, held in Phnom Penh.

The two laws were being drafted under “technical assistance” from development partners and have already undergone multiple drafts and revisions to prepare them for the final approval, he said.

Ten judges, selected by the Minister of Justice from Phnom Penh’s municipal court and the provincial courts of Takeo and Kampong Chnang, were attending the four-day session at the InterContinental Hotel this week to gain advice from commercial judges from ASEAN-member countries.

“This workshop is timely for our country as the government reforms the judicial system and prepares to establish the commercial court,” Var Roth San said.

“It benefits our judges, whose experiences and knowledge [in commercial law] is low because normally they are working on the general [case disputes].”

Chhorn Ravuth, manager of Confirel Co Ltd (Cambodia) which makes sugar, wine and vinegar, welcomed the news and said it would give local producers more confidence in protecting product brand names and business-dispute resolution.

“This will be good for us as we will have a place where we can deal with disputes,” he said. “Now when we have problems, we don’t know where we can go so we just try to resolve by ourselves.”

Var Roth San said the government would also set up a sub-committee for Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement and a sub-committee for Education and Public Awareness.

Rents plunge as demand dries up

via Khmer NZ

Wednesday, 21 July 2010 15:01 Soeun Say

APARTMENT rental prices fell up to 25 percent in the second quarter of 2010, compared to the first quarter, after the number of home seekers declined and new vacancies increased.

Keuk Narin, general manager of Bonna Realty Group and Secretary of the National Valuers Association of Cambodia, said yesterday prices in Phnom Penh have fallen between 15 and 25 percent in the second quarter.

“Demand is slipping because of the ongoing impact of the global financial crisis,” he said.

“In my view, I think the price might continue to drop because there will be increasing supply in third and fourth quarter this year.”

The cost of renting an apartment increased 25 percent to 35 percent from 2005 to mid-2008, according to NVAC statistics. But it has since dropped about 5 to 15 percent from mid-2008, the onset of the financial crisis, until the first quarter of 2010.

Figures released by NVAC yesterday show rentals are continuing to fall in the second quarter.

Average rent on a three-bedroom A-grade apartment in central Phnom Penh was US$2,500 to $2,800 per month on average in the first quarter. This dropped to $2,200 to $2,300 per month in the second quarter.

Compared to the second quarter last year, two-bedroom apartments are now $1,200 to $1,500, down from $1,700 to $1,800 last year.

Meanwhile, one-bedroom class-A units are $400 to $1,000, down from $500 to $1,300.

Mang Sovandara, property manager of Cambodia Property Ltd Co, with some 70 apartments and 500 villas for rent in the capital, said he expects the falling price trend to continue.

“Our company research shows the price for residential rent continuing to fall in the second quarter, and I think that it will continue to drop next year,” he said.

He said that the asking price across all grades of apartment – A, B and C – had dropped by $200 to $300 per unit, compared to the second quarter last year.

Ouk Vanna, the owner of a three-bedroom furnished apartment in Boeung Keng Kang II, said the world economic crisis had hit every business and likewise drove him to decrease his rental price.

Leading edge: Premium opportunity for growth

Photo by: Pha Lina
Cao Minh Son is chief executive officer of Cambodia Vietnam Insurance, which insures Cambodia Angkor Air.

via Khmer NZ

Wednesday, 21 July 2010 15:01 Nguon Sovan

Cao Minh Son is chief executive officer of Cambodia Vietnam Insurance, which has operated in Cambodia since November last year.

After almost a year in Cambodia’s market, what do you think about the insurance industry here?

From CVI’s point of view, Cambodia’s insurance market has a great deal of potential for growth.

When you look at the revenue statistics over recent years, it has increased every year, except in 2009 due to the global financial crisis which delayed several large construction projects. The Cambodian market is very competitive, even when compared with Vietnam.

Could you compare the insurance markets in Cambodia and Vietnam?

One of the most noticeable differences is that in Vietnam insurance companies look to co-insure and spread risks amongst each other, whereas in Cambodia it rarely happens. In Vietnam, sometimes insurers fight for customers, but sometimes they sit down together to provide co-insurance to big projects.

For example, if I insured a building for US$30 million, but I didn’t have enough ability to insure it alone, I could insure only a part of it for $1 million.

In the future, we should have greater co-operation with each other in order to build the local industry and keep premiums in country.

Cambodia has six insurers and one re-insurer, how does this compare to Vietnam?

Six players in this industry is reasonable at the moment with the population [of Cambodia] at 14 million.

In Vietnam, there are up to 29 insurers, however the population is also large – up to 86 million.

In terms of registered capital and premium revenues, it’s also far different. Cambodian premiums were just $20 million last year, but in Vietnam it was up to $870 million.

For registered capital, to open a insurance company here it’s required by the finance ministry to have the registered capital of $7 million, but it’s $16 million in Vietnam, and it is now going to increase to $27 million.

What do you think about the perceptions of Cambodians towards buying insurance?

Generally speaking, the concept of insurance is fairly new, and it will require the public several more years to become more acquainted with the concept of insurance as part of their everyday life.

What are the benefits?

Quite simply it provides a certain level of protection for either a family or individual or business from financial problems if something unforeseen should happen.

In addition, the insurance company is someone you can depend upon.

Some Cambodians earn a very low income; sometimes it is not enough to support their daily needs, do you think they have money to buy insurance?

Of course most people don’t buy insurance, but in the city and for companies’ staff [it is different]. Normally, companies provide benefits for staff by buying accident insurance and health insurance for them, so we focus on them.

Now, we are focusing on selling insurance to workers at Vietnamese-run rubber plantations.

What are premium insurance revenues and claims for CVI up of the end of June?

As of June, CVI’s revenue for 2010 to date is $508,000, which equates to 50 percent of the target we set ourselves for this year.

The majority of our revenue has come from aviation insurance to Cambodia Angkor Air, followed by fire and automobile insurance. So far, everything is very good, claims which have come up so far at CVI are not more than $1,000, just small personal accidents and auto-claims. We gained a profit from the first year of operations.

What types of insurance does CVI offer?

In our first few years of operation, CVI will focus primarily on property and engineering.

We will pay particular attention to the large number of local and foreign investment-driven infrastructure projects being undertaken, especially those from Vietnam.

We have become the leading provider of aviation insurance of late, so we will look to maintain and develop this niche, too. Also, we’re looking at the sectors of energy, mining, oil and gas.

What is CVI’s strategy to gain market share in this industry?

We will look to take advantage of our inherent strengths and continue to support the interests of our shareholders. We are looking to develop the market to its full potential rather than compete for existing business.

We will expand our operations to some key provinces such as Siem Reap, Preah Sihanouk, and Kampong Cham.

Award-winning film on KR screened at Meta House

via Khmer NZ

Wednesday, 21 July 2010 15:00 Roth Meas

AN award-winning documentary about the Khmer Rouge, Enemies of the People, will be screened at Meta House in Phnom Penh for three nights starting tonight, marking the first time the film has been shown in Cambodia.

Rob Lemkin – who co-produced the film along with Thet Sambath, a senior reporter at The Phnom Penh Post, said Enemies of the People had been shown in other countries but it was important that it be screened in Cambodia where the story took place.

“This film has never angered any Cambodian people who saw it when we screened it in other countries, but it helped them understand more about the story of the Khmer Rouge,” he said.

Lemkin, who works for the United Kingdom-based independent film company Old Street Films, had long planned to produce a film about the Khmer Rouge but did not know how to go about contacting people who had supported the regime, especially the senior leaders.

His break came in 2006 when he met Thet Sambath, who had been interviewing Khmer Rouge supporters since 1998, and even had film footage of his interviews with Khmer Rouge leader Nuon Chea, alias Brother Number 2.

For years Thet Sambath had spent his weekends visiting areas in northwest Cambodia, where many former regime supporters lived, seeking answers about why his father and brother had been executed by the Khmer Rouge.

“It took me seven years to talk to Nuon Chea,” Thet Sambath said. “He finally agreed, saying that he could see that I was an honest person. He said he would tell me everything I wanted to know.”

Even so, Nuon Chea was reluctant to reveal his whole story, and for a long time rejected the idea that the interviews should be documented on film.

“At first Nuon Chea didn’t want anybody to know the truth. He said that if he didn’t say anything, nobody would know,” Thet Sambath said.

“I finally convinced him by telling him, ‘You’re old. Many Cambodian people died during your regime. If you don’t tell the truth, the next generations will have doubts forever, and they will say that other countries such as Vietnam, China or the United States had killed the Cambodians.”

Nuon Chea eventually did agree to talk on film, and the footage is included in Enemies of the People, along with interviews with former Khmer Rouge cadre and militia members.

“This film reveals the politics and decisions made by top Khmer Rouge leaders about how to run the country and how to deal with cadres who were allegedly against the party,” Thet Sambath said. “It also shows how cadres and militias were ordered to ‘smash’ people who were accused of being traitors.”

Enemies of the People, which runs 93 minutes, was first screened in Amsterdam in 2009. It has won numerous awards at international film festivals, including the Special Jury Prize for World Cinema Documentary at Sundance 2010, the Charles E Guggenheim Emerging Artist Award at Full Frame 2010, the Best Documentary and Social Justice awards at Santa Barbara 2010, and the Outstanding Documentary Award at Hong Kong 2010.

Enemies of the People will be shown at Meta House (#37 Sothearos Boulevard) tonight, tomorrow and Friday at 6:30pm and 8:30pm. Admission is US$5 ($2.50 with student ID), which includes one drink. The filmmakers will be present at all screenings.

Grassroots project set to blossom

Photo by: Sreng Meng Srun
FIFA marketing consultant Stuart Ramalingham (left) and FFC general secretary Ouk Sethycheat give a presentation at the stakeholders meeting in the Sunway Hotel conference room yesterday.

via Khmer NZ

Wednesday, 21 July 2010 15:00 H S Manjunath

THE Ministry of Health has pledged its support of the Football Federation of Cambodia’s grassroots programme, backed by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), revealed marketing consultant Stuart Ramalingham to a gathering of prospective sponsors yesterday.

Addressing the stakeholders meeting at Phnom Penh’s Sunway hotel, attended by a group of enterpreneurs, NGOs and media personnel, Ramalingham laid out a detailed plan for the implementation of the FIFA initiative and called on both the government and private organisations to cooperate in a football-inspired social charm offensive.

Referring to his meeting on Monday with Health Minister Mom Bunheng, the FIFA representative revealed the ministry was keen on associating with the programme and willing to promote sanity and hygiene as its operational theme.

“Several countries have linked health issues with this promotion and have met with a good measure of success in creating awareness among the population, particularly the younger generation,” he said.

Ramalingham added that he was also encouraged by the response to the programme by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports involving children aged 6 to 12 years old.

Making out a strong case for the inclusion of football as part of the national school curriculum, the FIFA consultant said “the game is the best teacher and its appeal goes beyond the touch lines.”

Photo by: Sreng Meng Srun
Stakeholders meeting attendees watch a projector presentation on the Grassroots and Youth Football development programme.

In a detailed video presentation, he drew the attention to the guaranteed benefits of implementing grassroots development, warning that “if grassroots is not cultivated, football at a higher level will suffer.”

The scheme formally launches in the next few weeks and will start to spreads its wings next year. Ramalingham noted the development “depends on a partnership approach from all sectors, and the sponsors’ contribution to a structured platform would be as invaluable to the game as it would be beneficial to your own business profiles.”

Quoting New Zealand and the Solomon Islands as two perfect examples for “great success” from the grassroots programme, he urged the FFC to pursue the same business philosophy and model. “FIFA can assure you commercial returns for your investment in human resources,” he said.

FFC general secretary Ouk Sethycheat said this national outreach programme “will be grown from and within schools,” adding the promotional plan included a certification course for coaches from August 24-27 and a two-day grassroots festival after that.

The FFC official stated the objectives for this year included development of a strong long-term structure and spreading key messages of national interest at the junior level.

Deputy Secretary May Tola, who shared the stage with Ramalingham, acted as Cambodian translator for the nearly two-hour long presentation.

Spirit of Soccer Team Cambodia captures festival fair play award

Spirit of Soccer Team Cambodia celebrate winning the Fairplay award at the 2010 Football For Hope Festival in Johannesburg.

STEVEN SONDERMAN/SOS

via Khmer NZ

Wednesday, 21 July 2010 15:00 H S Manjunath

THE Spirit of Soccer Cambodia team captured the hearts and minds of a global audience, not with their mastery of the Jabulani ball, but with their exemplary behaviour on and off the pitch. When the curtain came down on the Football for Hope Festival in one of the poorest slums in Johannesburg’s Alexandra township, the loudest cheers were reserved for the Kingdom’s squad, who claimed the coveted Fairplay award at the 2010 World Cup sideshow.

The festival, which is a strategic alliance between the world football governing body International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) and the streetfootballworld network.

Spirit of Soccer Team Cambodia goalkeeper Rydam Sengvy rejoices after his side’s victory over Team England.

STEVEN SONDERMAN/SOS

Thirty two teams drawn from disadvantaged communities around the world took part in the week-long event played from July 4-10, which uses the profile of football to help achieve sustainable social development.

The event was kicked off with two powerful messages from leading dignitaries of the 2010 World Cup. FIFA president Sepp Blatter and South African premier Jacob Zuma both attended the opening ceremony, and emphasised the significance of the festival which was running alongside the biggest sports show on Earth.

“We aim to leave a legacy in Africa that will last long after the final whistle of the 2010 World Cup is blown,” declared Sepp Blatter, while Jacob Zuma’s said “football is more than football; it is something far beyond.”

Spirit of Soccer defender Yem Vith battles with a Team England player during their Football for Hope Festival match at the Alexandra township pitch near Johanessburg.

STEVEN SONDERMAN/SOS

The most poignant observation came from Jurgen Griesbeck, Managing Director of Streetworldfootball. “From the minefields of Cambodia to the slums of Nairobi, football can bring hope to the lives of young people,” he stated.

For the eight Cambodian participants who went on the unforgettable South African excursion, life has seemingly turned a full circle.

“It was meant to be a game changer, and it has indeed changed their lives and their attitudes towards it,” said Stephen Sonderman, director of local NGO Spirit of Soccer, which gave the team, moral, material, logistical and financial support for the trip.

With the Cambodian flag painted on her face, Spirit of Soccer striker Keng Channou sounds her vuvuzela in the stands during the 2010 World Cup quarterfinal between Spain and Paraguay. STEVEN SONDERMAN/SOS

In terms of results, Cambodia ended in the less illustrious second tier having won two games and drawn two from their ten fixtures.

“The result simply did not matter, though some of the girls broke into tears and long spells of sadness after every defeat,” said Sonderman, who accompanied the team along with colleague Rachel Haig.

However, a hearty consolation was their promising performance against Brazil. “Our team was no match to the powerfully built Brazilians; the physicality was so glaring,” said Sonderman. “They went down 0-2, but that day Cambodia earned a lot of friends.”

The NGO director also noted the significant language barrier met by the Cambodian players, most of whom had never even left their provinces let alone fly abroad.

“We worked around this language problem by encouraging the players to learn to say hello in as many languages as possible. By the end of the trip some of them could say hello in 8 to 10. They were improving one hello at a time.”

With a complete absence of referees, the teams were made to agree on the rules in a pre-match meeting, and then assess each other at the end of the game, awarding a point for fair play.

To their amazement, Team Cambodia received a fairplay point from each and every one of their rivals, a record that was unmatched by any other team. The closest to the Kingdom’s tally came interestingly from Asia’s only other participant Magic Bus from India.

In the days leading up to the tournament, Cambodia also excelled along with India in the cultural exchanges, with an Apsara dance routine earning accolades. The two Asian nations agreed to exchange cultural and football visits over the next few months.

“It is a different world for us,” was the overall report from Cambodian team members after arriving back in Phnom Penh. Each player was gifted a Jabulani ball from the organisers, and many purchased an ear-splitting vuvuzela as a souvenir.

Major issues arising from the 2010 festival were the ethnic violence in Israel and Palestine, environmental pollution in slums of Kenya, HIV and AIDS awareness in South Africa, the impact of landmines on lives in Cambodia and gang culture in Equador.

“The social evils are at your feet and you can kick them away,” read a message at the newly built stadium in Alexandra township, scene of unprecedented xenophobic attacks in 2008. The hope is that the message will continue to be spread around the world, as the young footballers revel in memories of their South African experience.

The Phnom Penh Post News in Brief

via Khmer NZ

Mak Brandon advances

Wednesday, 21 July 2010 15:00 H S Manjunath

AN early exit from the men’s singles did not deter Mak Brandon from making steady headway in the Junior U14 singles event at the Cham Prasidh Tennis Cup, played at the National Training Centre. After breezing through the first set yesterday, Mak Brandon had to work hard in the second before wrapping up a 6-1, 6-4 victory over Touch Sophearoth. The tournament’s top seed Bun Kenny and the in-from Long Samneang joined forces to pull off a 6-2, 7-6 victory over Yi Keavirak and Chhay Panhavuti in the men’s doubles, while another strong pair Ek Chamroeun and Orn Sambath got the better of Sok Samath and Kan Sophon 6-0, 6-4.

Former Mobitel owner reports profit up 14pc

Wednesday, 21 July 2010 15:00 Jeremy Mullins

MILLICOM International Cellular, former owner of Cambodia’s largest mobile provider Mobitel, reported a second-quarter profit of US$929 million, a 14 percent growth year on year. Strong revenues from the Luxembourg-based provider’s South American units contributed to profit growth, it said in a press release. Last year, the firm planned to sell its 78 percent stake in Laotian mobile provider Tigo to Vimpelcom, the owner of Cambodia’s Beeline.

UN hails Viet Nam’s moves to end statelessness of Cambodian refugees

Former refugees get Viet Nam citizenship document

via Khmer NZ

20 July 2010 – Viet Nam’s steps towards granting citizenship to thousands of former Cambodian refugees makes the country a global leader in ending and preventing statelessness, the United Nations refugee agency said today.

A legacy of the regime of the notorious Cambodian dictator Pol Pot, nearly 2,400 Cambodians are set to receive their citizenship this year, a culmination of five years of cooperation between the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Vietnamese Government.

Most of the former refugees have lived in Viet Nam since 1975, and all speak Vietnamese and have integrated fully.

At a ceremony at the Department of Justice in Ho Chi Minh City last Friday, 287 former refugees living in two former camps run by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) received their citizenship certificates.

These documents entitle the Cambodians to all rights of citizenship, including a family registration book that governs all citizens’ interactions with the Government, as well as a Government identification card.

These two documents allow the new citizens to purchases houses, attend universities and get health insurance and pensions. The documents also allow them to do simple things they could not do before, such as owning motorbikes.

Last year, the country passed a law to rectify the situations of thousands of Vietnamese women who married and divorced foreign men and became stateless, with most of them – and their children – attaining citizenship.

“Viet Nam has taken important strides in ending and preventing statelessness,” UNHCR spokesperson Adrian Edwards told reporters in Geneva.

“For people all over the world who have citizenship, it is difficult to understand what it means to exist in the twilight of statelessness, deprived of the very right to have rights,” Mr. Edwards said.

UNHCR estimates that 12 million people around the world are currently stateless.

The agency expressed hope today that Viet Nam’s actions “will serve as an example to other countries that these issues can be successfully tackled and solved,” its spokesperson said.

Stateless Cambodians Become Vietnamese Citizens

VOA, Lisa Schlein | Geneva

20 July 2010

via Khmer NZ

The U.N. refugee agency said Tuesday that the Vietnamese government has taken groundbreaking steps to end statelessness for thousands of former Cambodian refugees. The UNHCR said more than 2,000 refugees will receive Vietnamese citizenship by the end of the year.

The U.N. refugee agency says 2,357 victims of Cambodia's Pol Pot dictatorship have been living in limbo in Vietnam for more than three decades.

UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards says this situation of uncertainty now is over for 287 former refugees. Last Friday, he says, they received their citizenship certificates at a ceremony at the Department of Justice in Ho Chi Minh City.

Edwards says it was the culmination of five years of work between the UNHCR and the Vietnamese government. He says all of the Cambodians speak Vietnamese and that they are fully integrated in the society.

"They now acquire all rights of citizenship. In Vietnam, this means an all-important family registration book that governs citizens' interactions with the government, as well as a government I.D. card. With these two documents, the new citizens can buy houses, attend universities, get health and pension insurance, and do other simple things they were not able to do before such as have ownership of a motorbike," he said.

Edwards notes that by the end of the year, the remaining 2,070 former Cambodian refugees also will have their Vietnamese citizenship.

He praises other important steps Vietnam has taken in ending and preventing statelessness. "Last year, it enacted a law to plug gaps that caused thousands of Vietnamese women who married and then divorced foreign men to become stateless. This situation has now been largely rectified, and most of the women and their children are getting citizenship," he said.

Combating statelessness is one of the UNHCR's top priorities. The agency says the 12 million people who are stateless worldwide have no rights. They live in a virtual twilight zone, stripped of the ability to move freely or to participate in the normal social benefits citizens of a country take for granted.

Somchai launches a stinging attack

Wasp project 'funded entirely by Thailand'

Published: 21/07/2010 at 12:00 AM

Newspaper section: News

The Department of Agriculture has slammed a Colombia-based agricultural research centre for taking credit for the biological pest control project in the Northeast of Thailand.

The International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) on Saturday posted a statement on its website to promote the pest control project in which more than 10,000 wasps were unleashed in Khon Kaen province to fight against pink mealybugs.

DOA director-general Somchai Charnnarongkul yesterday dismissed the report and lashed out at the CIAT for proclaiming their role in the biocontrol project.

"We would like to make it clear that the import of wasps is only done by the department. The Thai government is the sole sponsor of the project. Not a single baht comes from international agencies," said Somchai Charnnarongkul, the DOA's director-general.

"The Thai research team has started an initiative to test whether the wasps are able to live and control the pink mealybugs in the region."

The CIAT statement has been reported by several news agencies.

Rod Lefroy, the CIAT's regional coordinator for Asia, was quoted as saying that the Consultative Group of International Agricultural Research, which is a parent organisation of the CIAT, initiated the wasp project after Thai farmers noticed bugs clinging to withered cassava plants in large numbers last year.

The CIAT team, in collaboration with the DOA, imported the biocontrol wasps from Benin in Africa, and began a massive breeding and testing programme prior to Saturday's release, news reports said.

Mr Somchai said the CIAT's publicising of the biocontrol research done by the Thai scientist team without prior notice was "inappropriate".

"If the project is successful, Thailand should be the first country to get the benefit," Mr Somchai said. "Introduction of the project to neighbouring countries affected by similar infestation will be done through the government-to-government system, not through a certain agency," Mr Somchai said.

The CIAT said in its statement that their scientists are investigating reports that the cassava mealybug has already spread to Cambodia, Burma, Laos and Vietnam.

The outbreak of mealybugs in Thailand was confirmed last year. The bugs have destroyed at least 600,000 rai of cassava in 30 northeastern and eastern provinces, leading to a drop of cassava produce of between 20 to 29 million tonnes, a DOA report said.

Ampan Winotai, the DOA's senior entomologist and head of the wasp research project, said her team brought about 500 pairs of wasps from Benin in Africa seven months ago.

The trial release of the bugs was conducted in Rayong province under strict ecological impact control.

"Based on our trial, we have found that the wasps do not harm native insect species, such as lacewing bug, lady bird beetle, and 10 other species. The wasps eat pink mealybugs only," she said.

The wasps are not only a main predator for pink mealybugs, but the female wasps also inject their eggs into the mealybugs and feed on them, gradually reducing their population.

Unleashing 200 wasps in one rai of cassava plantation will help control the mealybugs population for six months, the entomologist said.

The DOA expects to release at least one million wasps to the cassava farms over the next two months.

Why is US funding Sen's troops?

A. Gaffar Peang-Meth

By A. Gaffar Peang-Meth • July 21, 2010

via Khmer NZ

Two weeks ago, I wrote about the Obama national security strategy "to achieve the world that we seek" through pursuing "four enduring national interests" -- security, prosperity, values, international order -- that are "inextricably linked. ... No single interest can be pursued in isolation."

Critics find the strategy weak on human rights.

Yet, the NSS paper says in a section on values (Page 35), "The U.S. believes certain values are universal" -- peoples' "freedom to speak their minds, assemble without fear, worship as they please, and choose their own leaders" -- and the U.S. "will work to promote them worldwide."

It admits that autocratic rulers "have repressed basic human rights and democratic principles," but declares, "The U.S. supports those who seek to exercise universal rights around the world."

To many international rights reformers, U.S. words and actions don't jibe.

Some critics say there are rights and policies the U.S. should support unconditionally, regardless of how many other nations in the world oppose them. Some Obama supporters say that condemning every rights violator would leave the U.S. with few to work with; U.S. national interests are better served through "international engagement."

Yet, the "inextricably linked" four enduring national interests mean unless the U.S. upholds "respect for universal values at home and around the world," it can't "achieve the world that we seek."

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's U.S. leadership consists of "providing incentives for states who are part of the solution, ... and disincentives for those who do not ... live up to responsibilities."

On July 8, Human Rights Watch called on the U.S. to halt aid to Premier Hun Sen's "abusive military units." It criticized Washington for selecting Cambodian military units with a record of human rights abuses to be host of the largest multinational peacekeeping military exercise in Asia July 12-30, co-hosted by the U.S. Pacific Command.

HRW's deputy Asia director Phil Robertson chastised the Pentagon and the State Department: to "permit abusive Cambodian military units to host a high-profile regional peacekeeping exercise is outrageous." It "undermines (U.S.) protests against the (Sen) government for rampant rights abuses like forced evictions when it showers international attention and funds on military units involved in land grabbing and other human rights violations."

HRW charges that the U.S has provided more than $4.5 million worth of military equipment and training to Cambodia since 2006. "Some of that aid has gone to units and individuals within the Cambodian military with records of serious human rights violations."

It linked Premier Sen's personal bodyguards and Brigade 70 to the 1997 grenade attack on the political opposition; Airborne Brigade 911 to arbitrary detentions, political violence, torture and summary executions; Brigade 31 to forced evictions of Kampot villagers, illegal logging, land grabbing, intimidation of opposition party activists during the 2008 national elections and to summary executions of captured soldiers loyal to the royalist FUNCINPEC party during Sen's 1997 coup.

On July 13, the Cambodian Center for Human Rights's legal analysis shows the Cambodian judicial system is "broken" and is used as a tool to intimidate opposition voices, including the Supreme Court's conviction of lawmaker Mu Sochua for defaming Sen.

Sochua sued premier Sen for the equivalent of 12 cents for calling her "cheung klang," or "strong legs," a derogatory term, in a public address, saying she unbuttoned her blouse in front of an officer. Sen counter-sued Sochua for defaming him. Sen's Municipal Court dismissed Sochua's suit for lack of evidence, but upheld Sen's. It ordered Sochua to pay approximately $4,000 in fines by July 15 or go to prison.

On June 2, as Sen's Supreme Court upheld the verdict and ordered Sochua to pay fines or go to prison, foreign donors awarded $1.1 billion in development aid to the Sen regime.

So, what were Clinton's incentives and disincentives?

Cambodia may yet experience Malcolm Gladwell's "Tipping Point" -- "that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire" -- as Sochua stands her ground. She would rather go to prison than pay fines for a crime she never committed.

"It is my conscience that tells me that we have to stop living in fear, and fear of one man who has ruled Cambodia for over 30 years. ... And for me, it's a gender issue as well. Because if I allow it to happen, if I pay the fine, what does it mean to the value of women who represent more than half of the people of Cambodia?" Sochua told Voice of America.

Gladwell suggested that the world "may seem like an immovable, implacable place. It is not. With the slightest push -- in just the right place -- it can be tipped." But, there must be "a bedrock belief that change is possible."

Sochua, a 56-year-old mother of three daughters, a nominee for the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize, may well provide Gladwell's "right kind of impetus" to the tipping point.

The Sen regime was not so foolish as not to see the trap, however. By the weekend, the regime backtracked. It no longer seeks a jail term for Sochua, but will impound Sochua's parliamentary salary for the fines.

The Sen regime has initiated a new round of political Ramvong -- a circle dance in which participants go around and around as long as the drumbeats continue. It has averted international embarrassment for now.

A. Gaffar Peang-Meth, Ph.D., is retired from the University of Guam, where he taught political science for 13 years. Write him at peangmeth@yahoo.com.

Cambodia's ministry officials trained for media, public relations and spokesperson

via Khmer NZ

July 20, 2010

A professional training course on "Media, Public Relations and Spokesperson" was given here to 44 trainers from the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction, official news agency AKP reported on Tuesday.

The opening of the course was presided over by Senior Minister Im Chhun Lim, Minister of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction, and Information Minister Khieu Kanharith.

The five-day course, co-organized by the two ministries under the auspices of German organization of GTZ and started on Monday, focused on basic writing, spokesperson, public relations skills and communication skills, according to AKP.

In his remarks at the opening ceremony, Im Chhun Lim said it was important for the role of media works, and the providers of information and message in response to the demand for the listeners everywhere who wish to know.

He also said the news information could be a two-blade weapon to be harmful to the political situation and social security if it is released with being insensitive or inconsiderate.

Meanwhile, Information Minister Khieu Kanharith gave some recommendations to the trainees on what they gained from the course, saying that the spokesperson should have media skills and know how to keep the file because it was important, AKP said.

He said the spokesperson should know what happened in the institution and should respond to the reporters on the ministry leaders' behalf.

Source: Xinhua

ASEAN meets in shadow of Korea tensions

A Myanmar citizen joins a protest calling for the release of detained democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi in Bangkok

Motorcyclists ride past the flags of countries participating in the Hanoi ASEAN summit

The sunken South Korean warship Cheonan is placed on a barge after being salvaged from the disputed Yellow Sea border

via Khmer NZ

By Ian Timberlake (AFP)

HANOI — Southeast Asian foreign ministers met in Vietnam on Tuesday for discussions dominated by concerns over the sinking of a South Korean warship and elections in military-ruled Myanmar.

Ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are meeting in Hanoi ahead of the region's main security forum Friday, which also gathers major powers including China, the United States and the European Union.

A draft statement prepared ahead of Tuesday's talks said the 10 ASEAN member states supported a nuclear-free Korean peninsula and urged a resumption of six-party disarmament talks "as soon as possible".

"We deplored the incident of the Cheonan ship sinking and the rising tension on the Korean peninsula," the draft statement said, referring to an explosion that ripped apart a South Korean warship in March, killing 46 sailors.

"We urge all parties concerned to exercise the utmost restraint, enhance confidence and trust, settle disputes by peaceful means through dialogue, and promote long-lasting peace and security in the region."

It said the six-party talks involving North and South Korea, the United States, China, Japan and Russia were still the "main platform to achieve long-lasting peace and stability".

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui-Chun will attend the 27-member ARF meeting alongside their counterparts from the six-party process.

It will be the first time the top diplomats from the disarmament dialogue will be in the same room since the Cheonan incident dramatically raised tensions on the Korean peninsula.

ASEAN chief Surin Pitsuwan said it was an opportunity to "engage in a discussion to see if the six-party talks can be given a new life".

Clinton will arrive in Vietnam after visits this week to Pakistan and South Korea, where she is due to attend a memorial for the dead sailors.

South Korea, the United States and other nations, citing the findings of a multinational investigation, accuse the North of firing a torpedo that sank the warship.

The North vehemently denies the allegations and has threatened a military response to any attempts to punish it.

But it has also said it is willing to return to the multilateral disarmament talks, which it abandoned last year, after the United Nations Security Council condemned the sinking but did not assign blame.

The US and South Korea have expressed skepticism about the North's sincerity and responded by announcing plans to hold war games this month, details of which will be announced Wednesday when Clinton visits Seoul alongside US Defence Secretary Robert Gates.

A US aircraft carrier, the 97,000-tonne USS George Washington, and three destroyers will visit South Korea this week ahead of the naval exercise.

A draft ARF chairman's statement suggests the ARF is likely to follow ASEAN's lead by expressing concern about the situation on the Korean peninsula without explicitly condemning North Korea for the Cheonan incident.

The draft ASEAN statement also calls for free and fair elections in military-ruled Myanmar and the involvement of "all parties" in the polls, which have been widely criticised as an attempt to cement the military's power.

Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's opposition party has opted to boycott the vote -- due some time this year -- because of rules laid down by the junta that would have forced it to expel its leader.

Surin said Myanmar Foreign Minister Nyan Win "got an earful" from his Southeast Asian colleagues on the need for fair and credible elections.

Myanmar's top diplomat "listened very, very attentively" during the discussions late Monday, Surin added.

The bloc of almost 600 million people -- grouping Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam -- maintains a policy of non-interference in members' affairs.

ASEAN Foreign Ministers Open Regional Security Meeting

VOA, Daniel Schearf | Hanoi
20 July 2010

via Khmer NZ

Photo: AP
Foreign Ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) pose for a group picture at the opening of their 43rd annual meeting in Hanoi, 20 Jul 2010. From left to right: Lao FM Thongloun Sisoulith, Malaysian FM Anifah Aman, Philippines' Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Policy Erlineda Basilio, Singaporean FM George Yeo, Thai FM Kasit Piromya, Vietnamese PM Nguyen Tan Dung, Vietnamese FM Pham Gia Khiem, Indonesian FM Marty Natalegawa, Myanmar FM U Nyan Win, Brunei FM Prince Mohamed Bolkiah, Cambodian FM Hor Namhong and ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan.

Foreign Ministers from ten Southeast Asian nations began a week of security meetings in Vietnam today. The regional leaders will be joined by counterparts from Asia Pacific and Western nations and concerns are expected to be raised about North Korea and Burma.

During four days of meetings, foreign ministers will discuss improving regional security and other forms of cooperation among themselves, as well as with other Asian and Western nations.

The ASEAN forum is viewed as a confidence-building mechanism that makes few, if any, binding decisions.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung gave the opening address. He said ASEAN has a crucial role to play in maintaining peace in the Asia Pacific.

"Maintaining peace and security in Southeast Asia and Asia Pacific is the oldest desire and strident determination of all ASEAN members states, as well as other countries in the Asia Pacific region ASEAN should demonstrate its stability and role as a leading force for the promotion of dialogue and cooperation on the political and security issues for the sake of peace, prosperity and security in the region," he said.

The ten ASEAN members are Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

The Southeast Asian nations will hold bilateral meetings throughout the week.

On Friday, ASEAN ministers will meet with counterparts from 17 other nations, including China, Japan, and South Korea, as well as Australia, Canada, the European Union, India, New Zealand and the United States.

During the meetings, concerns are expected to be raised about tensions with North Korea and Burma, who also have representatives attending.

South Korea blames the North for the sinking of a navy ship in March.

An international investigation concluded a North Korean torpedo struck the ship, killing 46 sailors on board. North Korea denies it was responsible and continues to defy international demands to stop its nuclear program.

ASEAN is opposed to North Korea's nuclear development. But ministers are not expected to make any strong statements directed at Pyongyang about the ship sinking.

Concerns about Burma, another authoritarian country suspected of having nuclear ambitions, are also expected to be discussed.

Burma's plans for elections sometime this year, the first in two decades, have been heavily criticized as a sham designed to keep the military in power.

Rights groups have urged ASEAN to condemn the election preparations and refuse to recognize their results. But ASEAN maintains a policy of non-interference and has been reluctant to criticize Burma.

Vietnamese trade union helps Cambodian counterpart with training

via Khmer NZ

07/20/2010

The Vietnamese and Cambodian trade union organizations will step up cooperation and information sharing in the time to come under an agreement signed in Hanoi on July 20.

A delegation from the Federation of National Unions of Cambodia, headed by its president Vong Sovann, is visiting Vietnam and the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL), headed by Dang Ngoc Tung, from July 18-21.

During their meeting, the two sides briefed each other on their socio-economic situation and discussed measures to strengthen friendship between the two organizations.

Under the agreement, the VGCL will help train Cambodian trade unionists at its Trade Union College and Ton Duc Thang University.

New drive to promote darker side to Cambodia gap year adventure

via Khmer NZ

Posted 20 Jul 2010

Adventurous travellers spending a gap year in Cambodia are to be encouraged to get off the beaten track and see a different side to the country.

Presently, the vast majority of backpackers and gap year travellers heading to the south-east Asian country are likely to stick to the beaches, bars and Angkor temples that have been attracting visitors for years.

However, the Cambodian government is now encouraging tourists to see a darker side to this paradise, with the last stronghold of the Khmer Rouge being promoted as an unlikely tourist attraction, Time magazine reported.

Located less than two hours from the world-famous Angkor Wat temple complex, Anlong Veng served as a base for the movement back in the 1990s, though the surrounding area is still home to numerous supporters and ‘fanatics’.

According to the magazine, the Cambodian government has now stepped up its efforts to allow "national and international guests to visit to understand the last political leadership of the genocidal regime", with hopes high that the site could soon be a major stopping-off point on the backpacker trail.

The website of the Cambodian tourist board has a special page aimed at teaching prospective visitors to the country some basic sayings in the national language, Khmer.

HRW Says Cambodian Officials Abuse Sex Workers

Robert Carmichael | Phnom Penh
20 July 2010

via Khmer NZ

Photo: AFP
Cambodian sex workers sit on a sidewalk in a street of Phnom Penh (2008 file photo)

Human Rights Watch said Tuesday that the Cambodian government must act to end police abuse against sex workers. A new report by the organization found prostitutes in the country suffer arbitrary arrest, unlawful detention, beatings and rape by authorities.

Human Rights says its research was based on interviews with 90 sex workers, in the past year and reveals the problem is particularly acute in the capital, Phnom Penh.

Elaine Pearson is Human Rights Watch's acting Asia director. She says several factors lie behind the unlawful arrest and detention of sex workers and the further abuses that follow detention.

"We found that the 2008 anti-trafficking law somewhat contributes to these abuses because it can provide a pretext for arresting sex workers," she said. "However, we found it can also happen simply because governors order crackdowns against vice and prostitution, periodic efforts to clean up the streets and maintain public order and so on."

Pearson says the government should suspend the provisions in the anti-trafficking law that some police use to arrest sex workers.

Human Rights Watch says the government must distinguish between sex workers and trafficking victims.

It also wants those detention centers where abuses are taking place to be shut down and says sex workers would be better off in facilities run by non-governmental organizations, which it says are better-run than those controlled by the Ministry of Social Affairs.

"We don't think that sex workers should be sent to a detention center, where they're at risk of violence, of further abuse. And, really those detention centers are not providing any rehabilitative function at all," said Pearson. "There are plenty of other ways of providing services to sex workers and there are plenty of NGOs and groups that are able to provide that support. So we call on the government to work together with those groups to address these issues."

Human Rights Watch also wants a full investigation into the allegations of abuse by police and other government officials. Pearson says donors - who have provided funding to combat trafficking and to train the police - must play their part, too.

"So we're calling on donors to support these recommendations and to review their funding to the Ministry of Social Affairs and to police until their efforts to investigate these abuses and close the centers," she said.

For its part the government denies that it is unfairly targeting sex workers and says it will investigate allegations of abuse that are submitted to it.

Chou Bun Leng is the secretary of state at the Ministry of Interior, in charge of combating trafficking. She says the government wants to hear of such abuses, but it needs complainants to name those deemed guilty, to ensure an effective investigation.

She says the police are subject to the law and will be prosecuted if abuse allegations are substantiated in a court of law.

Tribunal Investigators Issue Closing Order for Second Trial

Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh
Tuesday, 20 July 2010

via Khmer NZ

Photo: AP
All five of the detained leaders—Nuon Chea, Khieu Samphan, Ieng Sary, Ieng Thirith and Duch—were under investigation for crimes including genocide.

“The prosecutors will make their recommendations to the judges as to whether or not to indict any or some of the charged persons.”

Investigating judges for the Khmer Rouge tribunal have submitted their final order in the case of five detained regime leaders, signaling a close to the investigation.

Prosecutors now have 45 days to issue their own recommendations as the second trial for the UN-backed court moves forward.

“It basically means that now the investigating judges have finished all the investigation in Case No. 002,” tribunal spokesman Lars Olsen said Tuesday. “The prosecutors will make their recommendations to the judges as to whether or not to indict any or some of the charged persons.”

All five of the detained leaders—Nuon Chea, Khieu Samphan, Ieng Sary, Ieng Thirith and Duch—were under investigation for crimes including genocide. A trial is expected in March 2011.

Latt Ky, a tribunal monitor for the rights group Adhoc, called the closing a “positive step” toward the trial.

Abuse, Rape Await Sex Workers in Detention: Human Rights Watch

Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh
Tuesday, 20 July 2010

via Khmer NZ

Photo: AP
The 76-page report, “Off the Streets: Arbitrary Detention and Other Abuses Against Sex Workers in Cambodia,” is based on interviews with women and transgendered prostitutes in Phnom Penh and the provinces of Battambang, Banteay Meanchey and Siem Reap.

“In several instances, police officers raped sex workers while they were in police detention."

Sex workers are facing unlawful arrests and abuse by police and other authorities in government detention, Human Rights Watch reported Tuesday.

Citing interviews with 90 different sex workers, the international organization said the women face rape, physical abuse and robbery at the hands of authorities—charges a government spokesman denied.

“The Cambodian government should order a prompt and thorough investigation into these systematic violations of sex workers' human rights and shut down the centers where these people have been abused,” Elaine Pearson, acting Asia director of Human Rights Watch, said.

The 76-page report, “Off the Streets: Arbitrary Detention and Other Abuses Against Sex Workers in Cambodia,” is based on interviews with women and transgendered prostitutes in Phnom Penh and the provinces of Battambang, Banteay Meanchey and Siem Reap.

Sex workers are regularly arrested in sweeps of streets and parks and other sites under a 2008 anti-trafficking law that ill-defines crimes and allows the abuses to occur, the group said. Human Rights Watch found that even members of the anti-trafficking unit were culpable in some abuses.

“Sex workers told Human Rights Watch that police officers beat them with their fists, sticks, wooden handles and electric shock batons,” the group said in a statement. “In several instances, police officers raped sex workers while they were in police detention. Every sex worker that Human Rights Watch spoke to had to pay bribes or had money stolen from them by police officers.”

The group also pointed to “abysmal” conditions in the government center called Prey Speu, where it says at least three people were beaten to death between 2006 and 2008 and where a few sex workers have been detained this year. The center is a collecting point for marginalized groups such as street children, homeless and sex workers.

“The Cambodian government should immediately and permanently close down detention centers such as Prey Speu, where people are being unlawfully detained, beaten up and abused,” Pearson said in a statement. “Prosecuting those who commit these crimes will send a strong message that abuses against sex workers are not tolerated.”

Khieu Sopheak, a spokesman for the Ministry of Interior, denied the reports' findings.

“The sex trade is an illegal business in Cambodia, but our authorities do not use violence to suppress the sex trade,” he said.

Detained sex workers are kept in “social affairs centers” run by the government, where they are trained for “proper professions,” he said.

“If Human Rights Watch directly raises the names of police who committed crimes against sex workers, we will be happy to receive it,” he said. “But we regard the Human Rights Watch report as an accusation against the police that is not factual nor constructive criticism.”

He called the report an act of “defamation” against the government.

Tribunal Bridging Gaps for Cambodians: Monitor

Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer | Washington, DC
Tuesday, 20 July 2010

via Khmer NZ

Photo: AP
The Khmer Rouge tribunal verdict for Kaing Kek Iev, the torture chief better known as Duch, will be announced July 26.

“We want a court that is transparent and fair, so that it leaves a good mark on history."

With a verdict expected for the Khmer Rouge torture chief Duch expected next week, a tribunal monitor said Monday his trial has brought Cambodia's closer to sentiments of justice for the regime's atrocities.

The UN-backed court is expected to release the verdict on July 26, following court proceedings that began in March 2009. Duch, whose real name is Kaing Kek Iev, oversaw the torture center of Tuol Sleng and the deaths of more than 12,000 people. He could receive up to life in prison, though some of his defense have argued for leniency.

No matter the outcome, the case itself has brought more attention to the Khmer Rouge tribunal, which foundered in the beginning and was subject to wrangling between UN and Cambodian officials.

The tribunal is now at work on its second case, which could include more atrocity crimes charges for Duch and four senior leaders of the regime.

“The Duch trial has brought more support to the Khmer Rouge tribunal, especially in relation to Case 002,” Long Panhavuth, who oversees the tribunal for the Cambodia Justice Initiative, told “Hello VOA.”

The tribunal overall has benefited Cambodia, he said, especially in bridging a gap between the older generation of survivors and the newer generation who don't have a clear picture of the Khmer Rouge or its history, he said.

Tribunal spokesman Reach Sambath said Monday it was better to have trials that are not quick and do not underperform.

“We want a court that is transparent and fair, so that it leaves a good mark on history,” he said.