Tuesday, 10 June 2008
Japan: Dispatch of a Governmental Election Observation Mission for the General Election in Cambodia
1- The Government of Japan has decided to dispatch a governmental election observation mission, comprising about 25 members, for the General Election (National Assembly Election) in Cambodia to be held on July 27 (Sun), 2008.
2- Of the 25, approximately ten personnel will be recruited from among the public through such media as the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
3- This mission will be dispatched to Cambodia late in July for about ten days to observe election campaigns and the voting.
4- It will be the fourth general election since the first one held by the United Nations since the Paris Peace Agreements of 1991. The upcoming election is noteworthy as its fair conduct will demonstrate the development of the democracy in Cambodia.
5- As a "peace fostering nation" which comprehensively contributes to peace and development in the international community, Japan has proactively supported peace process in Cambodia and its reconstruction thereafter. Therefore, Japan's participation in the observation activities of this general election and providing necessary assistance are expected to promote democracy in the country.
6- The Government of Japan contributed about three million US dollars as assistance for the general election of the counterpart funds of the Japanese non-project grant aid, and about 148,000 US dollars for a grass-roots grant aid scheme to train the electorate.
2- Of the 25, approximately ten personnel will be recruited from among the public through such media as the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
3- This mission will be dispatched to Cambodia late in July for about ten days to observe election campaigns and the voting.
4- It will be the fourth general election since the first one held by the United Nations since the Paris Peace Agreements of 1991. The upcoming election is noteworthy as its fair conduct will demonstrate the development of the democracy in Cambodia.
5- As a "peace fostering nation" which comprehensively contributes to peace and development in the international community, Japan has proactively supported peace process in Cambodia and its reconstruction thereafter. Therefore, Japan's participation in the observation activities of this general election and providing necessary assistance are expected to promote democracy in the country.
6- The Government of Japan contributed about three million US dollars as assistance for the general election of the counterpart funds of the Japanese non-project grant aid, and about 148,000 US dollars for a grass-roots grant aid scheme to train the electorate.
Cambodian groups decry arrest of editor, closure of radio station, in run-up to elections
10 June 2008
Source: Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA)
Cambodian rights and free expression advocates are anxious and concerned in the run up to general elections in late July, sounding the alarm over recent attacks on the media that threaten the press and the open conduct of campaigns.
The Cambodian Association for the Protection of Journalists (CAPJ), a partner of the Southeast Asian Press Alliance, this week expressed grave concern over reports that the Cambodian Ministry of Information (MOI) last week shut down a newly-established private radio station in Kratie province, 315 Kilometers northeast of Phnom Penh, on grounds that the radio owner had not complied with its operating contract with the ministry.
After securing permission from the MOI, Radio Angkor Ratha FM 105.25 went on air on May 15, 2008, and opened its airtime to the full range of Cambodia's political parties, including the Samrainsy Party, the Human Rights Party, the Norodom Ranariddh Party, FUNCINPEC and the League for Democracy Party.
Barely two weeks later, on May 28, the station was ordered to halt its broadcasts, allegedly for violating provisions in its operating contract with the Ministry.
Ten days later, on June 8, human rights groups reported the arrest of Dam Sith, editor-in-chief of the Phnom Penh newspaper, "Moneaksekar Khmer".
In a joint statement, the Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC), the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR), and the Cambodian League for the Defense and Promotion of Human Rights (LICADHO) denounced the arrest as "politically motivated".
Dam Sith has been charged with defamation and disinformation. CCHR says he has been "sent to Prey Sar prison for pre-trial detention".
The ADHOC-CCHR-LICADHO statement says "Dam Sith was charged following a complaint against him by Minister of Foreign Affairs Hor Namhong, regarding an article published in Moneaksekar Khmer on April 18. The article reported on a speech made by Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) president Sam Rainsy, at a Khmer Rouge victims' commemoration on April 17, in which he made comments about several government ministers. Hor Namhong subsequently filed a court complaint against both Sam Rainsy and Dam Sith." The rights groups say that the arrest of Dam Sith betrays the Cambodian judiciary's "continued disregard for the civil provisions of the 1995 Press Law, in favor of using the older UNTAC Criminal Code of 1992".
CAPJ, CCHR, LICADHO, and ADHOC all linked the closure of the Angkor Ratha 105.25 and the arrest of Dam Sith to general elections scheduled for July 27. All the groups warned that the recent developments could have a chilling effect on Cambodia's free press, and restrict the free and fair conduct of party campaigns and the overall elections.
The Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA), a coalition of free press advocacy groups from the Philippines, Thailand, and Indonesia, joins the Cambodian groups in calling for the release of Dam Sith, the lifting of the closure order on Angkor Ratha, and the Cambodian government's assurance for free expression and press freedom in Cambodia. Such freedom is crucial to the credible conduct of elections, and must be assured even beyond the heated political season.
Source: Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA)
Cambodian rights and free expression advocates are anxious and concerned in the run up to general elections in late July, sounding the alarm over recent attacks on the media that threaten the press and the open conduct of campaigns.
The Cambodian Association for the Protection of Journalists (CAPJ), a partner of the Southeast Asian Press Alliance, this week expressed grave concern over reports that the Cambodian Ministry of Information (MOI) last week shut down a newly-established private radio station in Kratie province, 315 Kilometers northeast of Phnom Penh, on grounds that the radio owner had not complied with its operating contract with the ministry.
After securing permission from the MOI, Radio Angkor Ratha FM 105.25 went on air on May 15, 2008, and opened its airtime to the full range of Cambodia's political parties, including the Samrainsy Party, the Human Rights Party, the Norodom Ranariddh Party, FUNCINPEC and the League for Democracy Party.
Barely two weeks later, on May 28, the station was ordered to halt its broadcasts, allegedly for violating provisions in its operating contract with the Ministry.
Ten days later, on June 8, human rights groups reported the arrest of Dam Sith, editor-in-chief of the Phnom Penh newspaper, "Moneaksekar Khmer".
In a joint statement, the Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC), the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR), and the Cambodian League for the Defense and Promotion of Human Rights (LICADHO) denounced the arrest as "politically motivated".
Dam Sith has been charged with defamation and disinformation. CCHR says he has been "sent to Prey Sar prison for pre-trial detention".
The ADHOC-CCHR-LICADHO statement says "Dam Sith was charged following a complaint against him by Minister of Foreign Affairs Hor Namhong, regarding an article published in Moneaksekar Khmer on April 18. The article reported on a speech made by Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) president Sam Rainsy, at a Khmer Rouge victims' commemoration on April 17, in which he made comments about several government ministers. Hor Namhong subsequently filed a court complaint against both Sam Rainsy and Dam Sith." The rights groups say that the arrest of Dam Sith betrays the Cambodian judiciary's "continued disregard for the civil provisions of the 1995 Press Law, in favor of using the older UNTAC Criminal Code of 1992".
CAPJ, CCHR, LICADHO, and ADHOC all linked the closure of the Angkor Ratha 105.25 and the arrest of Dam Sith to general elections scheduled for July 27. All the groups warned that the recent developments could have a chilling effect on Cambodia's free press, and restrict the free and fair conduct of party campaigns and the overall elections.
The Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA), a coalition of free press advocacy groups from the Philippines, Thailand, and Indonesia, joins the Cambodian groups in calling for the release of Dam Sith, the lifting of the closure order on Angkor Ratha, and the Cambodian government's assurance for free expression and press freedom in Cambodia. Such freedom is crucial to the credible conduct of elections, and must be assured even beyond the heated political season.
Memorandum of Understanding between UNODC and the Ministry of Health on Drug Issues Follow-Up
Posted on 10 June 2008.
The Mirror, Vol. 12, No. 564
Development of Community-Based Drug Abuse Counseling, Treatment and Rehabilitation Services in Cambodia
“Phnom Penh: The workshop based on the Memorandum of Understanding between the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime [UNODC] in the Asia Pacific region and the Ministry of Health on Development of Community-Based Drug Abuse, Counseling, Treatment and Rehabilitation Services in Cambodia for five cities and provinces seriously affected by drug use is very important. This was stated by Lieutenant-General Lour Ramin, the secretary-general of the National Authority for Combating Drugs, during the workshop at the Cambodiana Hotel on the morning of 6 June 2008.
“The secretary-general added that the Project TD/CMB/04/H83 “Development of Community-Based Drug Abuse Counseling, Treatment and Rehabilitation Services in Cambodia” [as part of the Asia & Pacific Amphetamine-Type Stimulants Information Center] had been implemented in the 2005 to 2010 national planning of the National Authority for Combating Drugs. The H83 project agreement had been signed by Deputy Prime Minister Sar Kheng, head of the National .
Authority for Combating Drugs, and UNODC, and its implementation is administered and monitored by the general-secretariat of the National Authority for Combating Drugs. This project has started to create groups engaged in counseling, treatment and rehabilitation services, and the members of these groups come from government institutions and non-government organizations that support these polices and anti-drug programs, including concerns for health, HIV, AIDS, education, social affairs, human rights, justice, and good governance. Based on the results of the survey on drug addicts in 60 communes of twelve cities and towns badly affected by drugs, there is hope that state institutions and non-government organizations, that have the ability and have the necessary human resources, will initiate community based counseling, treatment, and rehabilitation services for drug addicts. At the same time while the program is implemented in selected places, there will also be training about treatment and rehabilitation services, and methods to protect persons who get easily involved in drug use.
“At the workshop following from the Memorandum of Understanding of 29 May 2008, members from twelve cities and provinces which are seriously affected by drugs, formulated the following recommendations: 1. Publish the results of the surveys in the cities and provinces. 2. Evaluate the needs for training and for the strengthening of the capacities on the provincial and city levels, in order to intervene at the communities. 3. Plan training and strengthen capacities based on the evaluation of the needs. 4. Link health centers, referral hospitals, and drug addicts’ treating centers to reduce the need for many drug related actions on the commune level; and 5. Collect and organize documents providing multi-sector solutions for counseling and community based treatment for drug addicts, which include drug addicts’ treating centers at the localities of the rehabilitation services, including education, preventive education, creation of supporting groups, the control of problems etc.
“Lieutenant-General Lour Ramin pointed out that documents of the project, signed by Deputy Prime Minister Sar Kheng, president of the National Authority for Combating Drugs, on behalf of the Royal Government of the Kingdom of Cambodia, agreed to the following points:
The funds will be managed on an annual basis by the Ministry of Health for expenses of salaries and of other expenses related to medicines for the centers selected, and for centers created by the royal government countrywide in the future.
Staff of the Ministry of Health will continue to train different skills such as psychology to doctors and medics through the International Organization for Migration [IOM] and other relevant programs.Asia & Pacific Amphetamine-Type Stimulants Information Center]
Continue training of different skills for staff of the Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation, regarding rehabilitation and other relevant programs. Be prepared to accept new good methods when projects finish, and include new methods to the learning programs of the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation.Train law enforcement officials to use drug control laws which consider the situation of drug users who are victims, and allow those who voluntarily receive treatment, to have the right to get treatment. Create more centers for counseling on treatment and on rehabilitation at cities and provinces, such as Sihanoukville, Siem Reap, and Kompong Cham.
“This program provides very important solutions to reduce drug use in Cambodia, and it is expected to be highly efficient for the rehabilitation of drug addicts in different localities, with the involvement of the National Authority for Combating Drugs to fight drugs as well as the Royal Government, to prevent drug use and to reduce different problems which might happen because of the spread of illegal drug use.”
Koh Santepheap, Vol.41, #6366, 9.6.2008
The Mirror, Vol. 12, No. 564
Development of Community-Based Drug Abuse Counseling, Treatment and Rehabilitation Services in Cambodia
“Phnom Penh: The workshop based on the Memorandum of Understanding between the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime [UNODC] in the Asia Pacific region and the Ministry of Health on Development of Community-Based Drug Abuse, Counseling, Treatment and Rehabilitation Services in Cambodia for five cities and provinces seriously affected by drug use is very important. This was stated by Lieutenant-General Lour Ramin, the secretary-general of the National Authority for Combating Drugs, during the workshop at the Cambodiana Hotel on the morning of 6 June 2008.
“The secretary-general added that the Project TD/CMB/04/H83 “Development of Community-Based Drug Abuse Counseling, Treatment and Rehabilitation Services in Cambodia” [as part of the Asia & Pacific Amphetamine-Type Stimulants Information Center] had been implemented in the 2005 to 2010 national planning of the National Authority for Combating Drugs. The H83 project agreement had been signed by Deputy Prime Minister Sar Kheng, head of the National .
Authority for Combating Drugs, and UNODC, and its implementation is administered and monitored by the general-secretariat of the National Authority for Combating Drugs. This project has started to create groups engaged in counseling, treatment and rehabilitation services, and the members of these groups come from government institutions and non-government organizations that support these polices and anti-drug programs, including concerns for health, HIV, AIDS, education, social affairs, human rights, justice, and good governance. Based on the results of the survey on drug addicts in 60 communes of twelve cities and towns badly affected by drugs, there is hope that state institutions and non-government organizations, that have the ability and have the necessary human resources, will initiate community based counseling, treatment, and rehabilitation services for drug addicts. At the same time while the program is implemented in selected places, there will also be training about treatment and rehabilitation services, and methods to protect persons who get easily involved in drug use.
“At the workshop following from the Memorandum of Understanding of 29 May 2008, members from twelve cities and provinces which are seriously affected by drugs, formulated the following recommendations: 1. Publish the results of the surveys in the cities and provinces. 2. Evaluate the needs for training and for the strengthening of the capacities on the provincial and city levels, in order to intervene at the communities. 3. Plan training and strengthen capacities based on the evaluation of the needs. 4. Link health centers, referral hospitals, and drug addicts’ treating centers to reduce the need for many drug related actions on the commune level; and 5. Collect and organize documents providing multi-sector solutions for counseling and community based treatment for drug addicts, which include drug addicts’ treating centers at the localities of the rehabilitation services, including education, preventive education, creation of supporting groups, the control of problems etc.
“Lieutenant-General Lour Ramin pointed out that documents of the project, signed by Deputy Prime Minister Sar Kheng, president of the National Authority for Combating Drugs, on behalf of the Royal Government of the Kingdom of Cambodia, agreed to the following points:
The funds will be managed on an annual basis by the Ministry of Health for expenses of salaries and of other expenses related to medicines for the centers selected, and for centers created by the royal government countrywide in the future.
Staff of the Ministry of Health will continue to train different skills such as psychology to doctors and medics through the International Organization for Migration [IOM] and other relevant programs.Asia & Pacific Amphetamine-Type Stimulants Information Center]
Continue training of different skills for staff of the Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation, regarding rehabilitation and other relevant programs. Be prepared to accept new good methods when projects finish, and include new methods to the learning programs of the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation.Train law enforcement officials to use drug control laws which consider the situation of drug users who are victims, and allow those who voluntarily receive treatment, to have the right to get treatment. Create more centers for counseling on treatment and on rehabilitation at cities and provinces, such as Sihanoukville, Siem Reap, and Kompong Cham.
“This program provides very important solutions to reduce drug use in Cambodia, and it is expected to be highly efficient for the rehabilitation of drug addicts in different localities, with the involvement of the National Authority for Combating Drugs to fight drugs as well as the Royal Government, to prevent drug use and to reduce different problems which might happen because of the spread of illegal drug use.”
Koh Santepheap, Vol.41, #6366, 9.6.2008
PREAH VIHEAR TEMPLE, NSC satisfied with new map
The Bangkok Post
Tuesday June 10, 2008
WASSANA NANUAM
The National Security Council (NSC) is satisfied with the new version of the border map of the Preah Vihear temple site re-drawn by Cambodia, but says a field survey is still needed to verify all the details.
Experts from the Royal Thai Survey Department will conduct a joint survey with Cambodian officials to make sure the new map does not include the overlapping areas, the source of the long-running dispute between the two countries since the International Court of Justice's ruling that the ancient temple belonged to Cambodia.
The NSC's decision was announced following its meeting yesterday. After the completion of the survey, the matter will be forwarded for cabinet consideration before Thailand replies to Cambodia whether it agrees with the new map, said Tharit Jarungwat, chief of the Department of Information under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The map was re-drawn and handed to Thailand last Thursday following an agreement between the two countries to do so during a Unesco-brokered meeting in Paris late last month.
If Thailand approves it, Cambodia will use the map in applying with Unesco _ the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation _ for registration of the temple as a World Heritage site early next month in Canada.
Supreme Commander Gen Boonsrang Niempradit said in most part the redrawn map by Cambodia was in line with what Thailand wanted, and the disagreements that still remained only involved some minute details.
''The Ministry of Foreign Affairs should be handling the remaining problems [the disagreed part] so that relations between the two countries are not affected,'' Gen Boonsang said.
He expects the two countries to soon reach a deal on the issue.
But an agreement on the joint development and management of the area could be signed in future, he said.
Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama earlier said that according to the new map only the temple and 30 metres of its adjacent areas would be put up for listing.
Cambodia's previous proposal to Unesco also included the disputed 4.6-square-kilometre border between Si Sa Ket's Kantharalak district and Preah Vihear province for listing.
Tuesday June 10, 2008
WASSANA NANUAM
The National Security Council (NSC) is satisfied with the new version of the border map of the Preah Vihear temple site re-drawn by Cambodia, but says a field survey is still needed to verify all the details.
Experts from the Royal Thai Survey Department will conduct a joint survey with Cambodian officials to make sure the new map does not include the overlapping areas, the source of the long-running dispute between the two countries since the International Court of Justice's ruling that the ancient temple belonged to Cambodia.
The NSC's decision was announced following its meeting yesterday. After the completion of the survey, the matter will be forwarded for cabinet consideration before Thailand replies to Cambodia whether it agrees with the new map, said Tharit Jarungwat, chief of the Department of Information under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The map was re-drawn and handed to Thailand last Thursday following an agreement between the two countries to do so during a Unesco-brokered meeting in Paris late last month.
If Thailand approves it, Cambodia will use the map in applying with Unesco _ the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation _ for registration of the temple as a World Heritage site early next month in Canada.
Supreme Commander Gen Boonsrang Niempradit said in most part the redrawn map by Cambodia was in line with what Thailand wanted, and the disagreements that still remained only involved some minute details.
''The Ministry of Foreign Affairs should be handling the remaining problems [the disagreed part] so that relations between the two countries are not affected,'' Gen Boonsang said.
He expects the two countries to soon reach a deal on the issue.
But an agreement on the joint development and management of the area could be signed in future, he said.
Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama earlier said that according to the new map only the temple and 30 metres of its adjacent areas would be put up for listing.
Cambodia's previous proposal to Unesco also included the disputed 4.6-square-kilometre border between Si Sa Ket's Kantharalak district and Preah Vihear province for listing.
OMD makes foray into Cambodia and Laos via tie-up
The Edge Daily
by Kathleen Tan
Email us your feedback at fd@bizedge.com
by Kathleen Tan
Email us your feedback at fd@bizedge.com
Omnicom Media Group (OMD) has made further inroads into the Indochina market with its entry into Cambodia and Laos via a Cambodian advertising agency, Red Dot (Cambodia) Co Ltd.
The move expands OMD’s network in the region’s developing markets. OMD entered Vietnam eight years ago via a Vietnamese partner, VAC Media.
Omnicom Media Group Southeast Asia regional managing director Jim Goh told The Edge Financial Daily in a telephone interview from Singapore yesterday that its business in Cambodia and Laos would consist of more full-service offerings than specialised ones at the moment.
Goh said the advertising market in both countries was relatively small compared with neighbouring Vietnam. He estimated Cambodia’s adex to be around US$60 million to US$70 million per annum, which he described as “really, really small”, with Laos’ adex to be significantly less.
However, he foresees that Cambodia’s ad industry would reach the specialisation level in two to three years’ time, depending on the state of the economy. “With WTO (World Trade Organisation) opening Vietnam up further to foreign investments, it has changed how the advertising industry works in this market. Likewise, when Cambodia opens up, there’ll be more competition, efficiency and expectations,” he said.
“Some clients are looking to deal with media on its own. Five to six years ago, when clients talked about Vietnam, they preferred full service but now they’d rather have specialised service offerings as international, global and regional clients start looking at media separately from the creative,” he said.
“Even in Malaysia, eight years ago (the trend was) full-service, but now, there are all sorts of specialisations — CRM, digital, creative, media, events and activation… likewise in Cambodia, eventually,” he said.
Asked about the state of the advertising industry in Cambodia, Goh said it was “very basic” as the industry was very dependent on the economic development of the country.
He said OMD had put plans in place four to five years ago but it was only three years ago that the company “went through a number of agencies before settling for Red Dot”. Goh said Red Dot was chosen based on its business philosophy and the way it worked, which complemented that of OMD. The deal was signed in December last year but was only announced last week.
Goh added that under the tie-up, Red Dot would handle “the full works” with mostly below-the-line (which includes direct mail, public relations and sales promotions) and activation (events, promotions, retail display, outdoor, digital, and customer relationship management) accounts, with broadcast being the main medium of choice.
“Print media is marginal due to its low cost of entry point,” he said.
OMD and Red Dot share some common clients in Cambodia, among them Visa International and Fonterra.
Goh added that OMD was not targeting specific sectors as it had a wide clientele, from private sector to government. “It depends on opportunities in the market as they come along,” he said.
Goh said OMD had spoken to some clients in Malaysia and Singapore about representing them in Cambodia. Clients like consistency in account handling, he said.
Red Dot was started in 2001 by John Seow, a Singaporean who is currently its managing director. The company gretw from a workforce of three to 50 over the last eight years, expanding its reach to Laos early last year. Aside from Visa International and Fonterra, Red Dot’s clientele in Cambodia include Sony-Ericsson, Dumex, Seiko, Rado, Duracell, World Vision, Khmer Airlines and the Cambodian Ministry of Tourism.
Seow, in a statement last week, said the tie-up with OMD would propel Red Dot to a new level, enabling it to take more aggressive steps toward media campaigns. “With OMD’s resources behind us, we will be able to offer our clients a whole new level of brand-building and media communications capabilities,” he said.
Aside from the three Indochina countries, OMDs’ regional network covers Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka via its partners. One of the world’s largest media agencies, OMD operates in more than 80 countries, servicing clients such as Visa International, McDonald’s, Johnson & Johnson, and Standard Chartered Bank. It was recently awarded the global media planning and buying business for Intel Corp.
The move expands OMD’s network in the region’s developing markets. OMD entered Vietnam eight years ago via a Vietnamese partner, VAC Media.
Omnicom Media Group Southeast Asia regional managing director Jim Goh told The Edge Financial Daily in a telephone interview from Singapore yesterday that its business in Cambodia and Laos would consist of more full-service offerings than specialised ones at the moment.
Goh said the advertising market in both countries was relatively small compared with neighbouring Vietnam. He estimated Cambodia’s adex to be around US$60 million to US$70 million per annum, which he described as “really, really small”, with Laos’ adex to be significantly less.
However, he foresees that Cambodia’s ad industry would reach the specialisation level in two to three years’ time, depending on the state of the economy. “With WTO (World Trade Organisation) opening Vietnam up further to foreign investments, it has changed how the advertising industry works in this market. Likewise, when Cambodia opens up, there’ll be more competition, efficiency and expectations,” he said.
“Some clients are looking to deal with media on its own. Five to six years ago, when clients talked about Vietnam, they preferred full service but now they’d rather have specialised service offerings as international, global and regional clients start looking at media separately from the creative,” he said.
“Even in Malaysia, eight years ago (the trend was) full-service, but now, there are all sorts of specialisations — CRM, digital, creative, media, events and activation… likewise in Cambodia, eventually,” he said.
Asked about the state of the advertising industry in Cambodia, Goh said it was “very basic” as the industry was very dependent on the economic development of the country.
He said OMD had put plans in place four to five years ago but it was only three years ago that the company “went through a number of agencies before settling for Red Dot”. Goh said Red Dot was chosen based on its business philosophy and the way it worked, which complemented that of OMD. The deal was signed in December last year but was only announced last week.
Goh added that under the tie-up, Red Dot would handle “the full works” with mostly below-the-line (which includes direct mail, public relations and sales promotions) and activation (events, promotions, retail display, outdoor, digital, and customer relationship management) accounts, with broadcast being the main medium of choice.
“Print media is marginal due to its low cost of entry point,” he said.
OMD and Red Dot share some common clients in Cambodia, among them Visa International and Fonterra.
Goh added that OMD was not targeting specific sectors as it had a wide clientele, from private sector to government. “It depends on opportunities in the market as they come along,” he said.
Goh said OMD had spoken to some clients in Malaysia and Singapore about representing them in Cambodia. Clients like consistency in account handling, he said.
Red Dot was started in 2001 by John Seow, a Singaporean who is currently its managing director. The company gretw from a workforce of three to 50 over the last eight years, expanding its reach to Laos early last year. Aside from Visa International and Fonterra, Red Dot’s clientele in Cambodia include Sony-Ericsson, Dumex, Seiko, Rado, Duracell, World Vision, Khmer Airlines and the Cambodian Ministry of Tourism.
Seow, in a statement last week, said the tie-up with OMD would propel Red Dot to a new level, enabling it to take more aggressive steps toward media campaigns. “With OMD’s resources behind us, we will be able to offer our clients a whole new level of brand-building and media communications capabilities,” he said.
Aside from the three Indochina countries, OMDs’ regional network covers Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka via its partners. One of the world’s largest media agencies, OMD operates in more than 80 countries, servicing clients such as Visa International, McDonald’s, Johnson & Johnson, and Standard Chartered Bank. It was recently awarded the global media planning and buying business for Intel Corp.
Journalists, rights groups condemn Cambodian jailing
Radio Australia
A Cambodian rights group says the imprisonment of a newspaper publisher affiliated with the opposition Sam Rainsy Party is creating a climate of fear in the run up to next month's general election.
The president of LICADHO - the Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights - Kek Galabru, says the arrest of Dam Sith jeopardises free and fair elections.
The International Federation of Journalists has also condemned the arrest, saying "democracy cannot prevail where the media is hampered in its efforts to report on politics and the election campaign".
Mr Dam was arrested and charged for printing allegations that Cambodia's foreign minister, Hor Namhong, had ties to the genocidal Khmer Rouge regime.
He will run for a parliamentary seat as a candidate of the Sam Rainsy Party.
A Cambodian rights group says the imprisonment of a newspaper publisher affiliated with the opposition Sam Rainsy Party is creating a climate of fear in the run up to next month's general election.
The president of LICADHO - the Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights - Kek Galabru, says the arrest of Dam Sith jeopardises free and fair elections.
The International Federation of Journalists has also condemned the arrest, saying "democracy cannot prevail where the media is hampered in its efforts to report on politics and the election campaign".
Mr Dam was arrested and charged for printing allegations that Cambodia's foreign minister, Hor Namhong, had ties to the genocidal Khmer Rouge regime.
He will run for a parliamentary seat as a candidate of the Sam Rainsy Party.
Newspaper publisher arrested in Cambodia
Radio Australia
Cambodia's human rights group Licadho says the publisher of a newspaper known to support the main opposition Sam Rainsy Party is in custody after his surprise arrest on Sunday.
Dam Sith publishes the newspaper Moneakseka Khmer, or Khmer Conscience. He's been charged with printing allegations that Cambodia's foreign minister had ties to the Khmer Rouge regime.
Cambodia watchers say Prime Minister Hun Sen's used a mix of guile and threat to turn the July 27 polls into an undemocratic one horse race.
Presenter: Corinne Podger
Speaker: Licadho spokeswoman Kek Galabru
Cambodia's human rights group Licadho says the publisher of a newspaper known to support the main opposition Sam Rainsy Party is in custody after his surprise arrest on Sunday.
Dam Sith publishes the newspaper Moneakseka Khmer, or Khmer Conscience. He's been charged with printing allegations that Cambodia's foreign minister had ties to the Khmer Rouge regime.
Cambodia watchers say Prime Minister Hun Sen's used a mix of guile and threat to turn the July 27 polls into an undemocratic one horse race.
Presenter: Corinne Podger
Speaker: Licadho spokeswoman Kek Galabru
Cambodian PM blasts alleged drug use comment by opposition party
June 10, 2008
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun has strongly refuted alleged accusations by the opposition Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) that he had used drugs, English-Khmer language newspaper the Cambodian Daily said Tuesday.
SRP defectors told him that party president Sam Rainsy had said that the premier's cigarettes were laced with drugs, the paper quoted Hun Sen as telling recent ceremonies.
"If I smoked drugs, they would have already died. If I used drugs, I would have ordered tanks to destroy them. I could order the military to kill them because I would have a mental problem if I were drug-addicted," he said.
"Drug-addicted people, they even attack their parents," he said.
Meanwhile, Sam Rainsy denied that he had made such remarks.
Both Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party (CPP) and SRP have been approved to join the general election in July, which will establish the kingdom's fourth government.
Hun Sen said that CPP will score landslide victory, while SRP vowed that it can win premiership.
Source:Xinhua
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun has strongly refuted alleged accusations by the opposition Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) that he had used drugs, English-Khmer language newspaper the Cambodian Daily said Tuesday.
SRP defectors told him that party president Sam Rainsy had said that the premier's cigarettes were laced with drugs, the paper quoted Hun Sen as telling recent ceremonies.
"If I smoked drugs, they would have already died. If I used drugs, I would have ordered tanks to destroy them. I could order the military to kill them because I would have a mental problem if I were drug-addicted," he said.
"Drug-addicted people, they even attack their parents," he said.
Meanwhile, Sam Rainsy denied that he had made such remarks.
Both Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party (CPP) and SRP have been approved to join the general election in July, which will establish the kingdom's fourth government.
Hun Sen said that CPP will score landslide victory, while SRP vowed that it can win premiership.
Source:Xinhua
Cambodian garment exports to U.S. decline seriously
June 10, 2008
Apparel exports to the United States, Cambodia's largest market, have been on serious decline since last October, national media Tuesday quoted the Cambodian Ministry of Commerce as saying.
Officials attribute the decline to increasing competition from Vietnam, which joined the World Trade Organization in January 2007,and the brewing U.S. economic slowdown, said English-Khmer language newspaper the Cambodian Daily.
Nevertheless, exports to Canada and the European Union have grown marginally, mitigating the effects on the country's garment industry, it added.
In the last three months of 2007, apparel exports to U.S. were 352 million U.S. dollars, 30 percent below the 2006 level, according to the ministry.
In the first three months of this year, exports to U.S. slipped1.44 percent compared with the same period last year, to some 500 million U.S. dollars, it said.
But overall, Cambodian apparel exports have increased slightly,4.78 percent in the first three months of this year over the same period last year, because of rising demand in Europe and Canada, it added.
Exports to EU have been on the rise since 2003, a trend that has been bolstered by the falling dollar, said Kaing Monika, external affairs manager for the Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia.
Rising production costs in China have worked in Cambodia's favor, as buyers search for alternative sources of clothing, he added.
In the past decade, garment has been the kingdom's foremost pillar industry and largest foreign currency generator, whose export volumes used to account for some 75 percent of the country's total during its peak years.
Source: Xinhua
Apparel exports to the United States, Cambodia's largest market, have been on serious decline since last October, national media Tuesday quoted the Cambodian Ministry of Commerce as saying.
Officials attribute the decline to increasing competition from Vietnam, which joined the World Trade Organization in January 2007,and the brewing U.S. economic slowdown, said English-Khmer language newspaper the Cambodian Daily.
Nevertheless, exports to Canada and the European Union have grown marginally, mitigating the effects on the country's garment industry, it added.
In the last three months of 2007, apparel exports to U.S. were 352 million U.S. dollars, 30 percent below the 2006 level, according to the ministry.
In the first three months of this year, exports to U.S. slipped1.44 percent compared with the same period last year, to some 500 million U.S. dollars, it said.
But overall, Cambodian apparel exports have increased slightly,4.78 percent in the first three months of this year over the same period last year, because of rising demand in Europe and Canada, it added.
Exports to EU have been on the rise since 2003, a trend that has been bolstered by the falling dollar, said Kaing Monika, external affairs manager for the Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia.
Rising production costs in China have worked in Cambodia's favor, as buyers search for alternative sources of clothing, he added.
In the past decade, garment has been the kingdom's foremost pillar industry and largest foreign currency generator, whose export volumes used to account for some 75 percent of the country's total during its peak years.
Source: Xinhua
No chance to claim temple
By Supalak G Khundee
The Nation
Published on June 10, 2008
Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama has ruled out any move to try to reclaim sovereignty over the Hindu temple of Preah Vihear. That right, he said yesterday, was lost 30 years ago.
Noppadon was dismissing calls by the Democrat Party to lay claim to the temple before Cambodia sought World Heritage listing.
He said the International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that the temple belonged to Cambodia. It allowed Thailand to refile its claim within 10 years if it found some new evidence. There is no appeal procedure.
Democrat deputy leader Alongkorn Pollabutr had called for Thailand to oppose Cambodia's plan to list the temple as a United Nations' World Heritage site. He rejected joint management of the temple and urged a delay to the listing decision.
"Khun Alongkorn has poor knowledge of the matter since it is a legal technicality. He should not raise the point to confuse society," said Noppadon, a highly regarded lawyer who acted as a representative of Thaksin Shinawatra when he was in exile.
The Nation
Published on June 10, 2008
Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama has ruled out any move to try to reclaim sovereignty over the Hindu temple of Preah Vihear. That right, he said yesterday, was lost 30 years ago.
Noppadon was dismissing calls by the Democrat Party to lay claim to the temple before Cambodia sought World Heritage listing.
He said the International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that the temple belonged to Cambodia. It allowed Thailand to refile its claim within 10 years if it found some new evidence. There is no appeal procedure.
Democrat deputy leader Alongkorn Pollabutr had called for Thailand to oppose Cambodia's plan to list the temple as a United Nations' World Heritage site. He rejected joint management of the temple and urged a delay to the listing decision.
"Khun Alongkorn has poor knowledge of the matter since it is a legal technicality. He should not raise the point to confuse society," said Noppadon, a highly regarded lawyer who acted as a representative of Thaksin Shinawatra when he was in exile.
2nd batch of Cambodian deminers return from UN peacekeeping missions in Sudan
June 10, 2008
The second batch of Cambodian deminers, 135 officers and soldiers in all, returned to the Bochentong Air Base here Tuesday, after accomplishing their year-long UN peacekeeping tasks in Sudan.
"Now, they come back, safe, healthy and in due numbers, after earning honor for our country," Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Tea Banh told the deminers' family members, government officials, UN representatives and diplomats at the welcome ceremony.
Before their departure from the African country, they had handed over the UN mission to the third batch of 139 Cambodian demining officers and soldiers who left the kingdom Sunday at the base, according to a military press release.
So far, Cambodian deminers have cleared 57,542,488 square meters of areas in Sudan, Ke Kim Yan, Commander in Chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF), told Sunday's send-off ceremony.
Cambodia has taken part in UN peacekeeping operations on humanitarian mine clearance in Sudan for the third consecutive year, he said.
Along with consistent economic growth, Cambodia has been seeking to gain international military presence.
The second batch of Cambodian deminers, 135 officers and soldiers in all, returned to the Bochentong Air Base here Tuesday, after accomplishing their year-long UN peacekeeping tasks in Sudan.
"Now, they come back, safe, healthy and in due numbers, after earning honor for our country," Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Tea Banh told the deminers' family members, government officials, UN representatives and diplomats at the welcome ceremony.
Before their departure from the African country, they had handed over the UN mission to the third batch of 139 Cambodian demining officers and soldiers who left the kingdom Sunday at the base, according to a military press release.
So far, Cambodian deminers have cleared 57,542,488 square meters of areas in Sudan, Ke Kim Yan, Commander in Chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF), told Sunday's send-off ceremony.
Cambodia has taken part in UN peacekeeping operations on humanitarian mine clearance in Sudan for the third consecutive year, he said.
Along with consistent economic growth, Cambodia has been seeking to gain international military presence.
Cambodia sent its first batch of over 130 deminers to Sudan in April 2006 under the UN umbrella, the first time that the kingdom participated in the world body's global peacekeeping efforts.
It has also joined two multinational military exercises respectively in Mongolia and Bangladesh, since peace was established in the kingdom in 1997.
Source:Xinhua
Greater Public-Private Collaboration Required to Combat Human Trafficking
Mon, 09 Jun 2008
Author : Vital Voices Global Partnership
WASHINGTON, June 9 HumanTraffic-combat
WASHINGTON, June 9 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Vital Voices commends the 2008 Annual Trafficking in Persons Report released by the State Department this week for its emphasis on forced labor in the global economy and the need to step up human trafficking prosecutions and convictions.
This year's report highlights the increased use of slave labor to drive economic growth in the developing world. "It is incumbent on all sectors of society - governments, NGOs and business -- to redouble their efforts to address this ugly underbelly of globalization," said Melanne Verveer, Co-founder and Chair of Vital Voices. "Greater efforts must be made to eradicate slave labor in economic production." The report's detailed focus on global and regional law enforcement is a useful tool in the targeting of labor trafficking offences worldwide.
Vital Voices is pleased to see the report's coverage of the dire situation confronting stateless people in northern Thailand. In July 2007, Vital Voices released a report, "Stateless and Vulnerable to Human Trafficking in Thailand," detailing the legal and practical barriers to the tribal people in northern Thailand and their vulnerability to human trafficking. Due to their lack of citizenship, the stateless often fall victim to trafficking and receive little to no assistance or protection.
Vital Voices also applauds the report's focus on those who recruit migrant laborers. The preventative steps that can be taken by both source and destination countries should be adopted more broadly, including the United States.
The advocacy of individuals and NGOs is critical to the fight against human trafficking. We wish to congratulate the heroes profiled in the report, especially those with whom Vital Voices has been privileged to work.
Vital Voices has been proud to work with Cecilia Flores-Oebanda of the Philippines to promote public-private partnerships. We believe that she and her organization, the Visayan Forum Foundation, are examples to all who are working to combat human trafficking of the progress that can be made when NGO's and government work collaboratively. Cecilia was a distinguished speaker at the Vital Voices Conference: Public-Private Partnerships to End Human Trafficking and Forced Labor, which was held in Hong Kong in 2007.
We are also pleased that the TIP report showcased the importance of film in combating human trafficking, particularly the work of Guy Jacobson and Adi Ezroni, with whom Vital Voices has also been honored to work. Often at great personal risk, they have captured the extraordinary anti-trafficking efforts of Somaly Mam and Mu Sochua of Cambodia in their works and have made an enormous contribution to raising awareness about modern-day slavery among the general public and decision-makers.
We salute Cecilia, Guy and Adi, as well as the many heroes who are working to end trafficking around the world.
In coming months Vital Voices will focus on critical areas outlined in the State Department Report. We will continue to work with the global business community to encourage enhanced corporate responsibility, call on businesses to examine their supply chains and adopt standards to ensure that their operations in no way contribute to human trafficking. We will also highlight exemplary corporate leaders in the fight against human trafficking. Latin America and India will be the focus for targeted programs, and we will be working closely with the Council of Women Leaders which Vital Voices helped to establish, in conjunction with UNODC, in February of this year during the launch of the UN's Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking (UN.GIFT). Under the auspices of the Council, we are collaborating on a program to support a greater commitment and leadership to combat human trafficking in the Middle East, particularly in the Persian Gulf states.
CONTACT: Kalpana Simhan
202-861-2625 x 3010
Author : Vital Voices Global Partnership
WASHINGTON, June 9 HumanTraffic-combat
WASHINGTON, June 9 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Vital Voices commends the 2008 Annual Trafficking in Persons Report released by the State Department this week for its emphasis on forced labor in the global economy and the need to step up human trafficking prosecutions and convictions.
This year's report highlights the increased use of slave labor to drive economic growth in the developing world. "It is incumbent on all sectors of society - governments, NGOs and business -- to redouble their efforts to address this ugly underbelly of globalization," said Melanne Verveer, Co-founder and Chair of Vital Voices. "Greater efforts must be made to eradicate slave labor in economic production." The report's detailed focus on global and regional law enforcement is a useful tool in the targeting of labor trafficking offences worldwide.
Vital Voices is pleased to see the report's coverage of the dire situation confronting stateless people in northern Thailand. In July 2007, Vital Voices released a report, "Stateless and Vulnerable to Human Trafficking in Thailand," detailing the legal and practical barriers to the tribal people in northern Thailand and their vulnerability to human trafficking. Due to their lack of citizenship, the stateless often fall victim to trafficking and receive little to no assistance or protection.
Vital Voices also applauds the report's focus on those who recruit migrant laborers. The preventative steps that can be taken by both source and destination countries should be adopted more broadly, including the United States.
The advocacy of individuals and NGOs is critical to the fight against human trafficking. We wish to congratulate the heroes profiled in the report, especially those with whom Vital Voices has been privileged to work.
Vital Voices has been proud to work with Cecilia Flores-Oebanda of the Philippines to promote public-private partnerships. We believe that she and her organization, the Visayan Forum Foundation, are examples to all who are working to combat human trafficking of the progress that can be made when NGO's and government work collaboratively. Cecilia was a distinguished speaker at the Vital Voices Conference: Public-Private Partnerships to End Human Trafficking and Forced Labor, which was held in Hong Kong in 2007.
We are also pleased that the TIP report showcased the importance of film in combating human trafficking, particularly the work of Guy Jacobson and Adi Ezroni, with whom Vital Voices has also been honored to work. Often at great personal risk, they have captured the extraordinary anti-trafficking efforts of Somaly Mam and Mu Sochua of Cambodia in their works and have made an enormous contribution to raising awareness about modern-day slavery among the general public and decision-makers.
We salute Cecilia, Guy and Adi, as well as the many heroes who are working to end trafficking around the world.
In coming months Vital Voices will focus on critical areas outlined in the State Department Report. We will continue to work with the global business community to encourage enhanced corporate responsibility, call on businesses to examine their supply chains and adopt standards to ensure that their operations in no way contribute to human trafficking. We will also highlight exemplary corporate leaders in the fight against human trafficking. Latin America and India will be the focus for targeted programs, and we will be working closely with the Council of Women Leaders which Vital Voices helped to establish, in conjunction with UNODC, in February of this year during the launch of the UN's Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking (UN.GIFT). Under the auspices of the Council, we are collaborating on a program to support a greater commitment and leadership to combat human trafficking in the Middle East, particularly in the Persian Gulf states.
CONTACT: Kalpana Simhan
202-861-2625 x 3010
Sam Rainsy Party newspaper editor arrested
The Phnom Penh Post
Written by Vong Sokheng
Monday, 09 June 2008
A pro-Sam Rainsy Party newspaper editor has been arrested for defamation over reports tying powerful Cambodian People's Party members, including Foreign Minister Hor Namhong, to Khmer Rouge atrocities.
Dam Sith, editor-in-chief of Moneaksekar Khmer, was detained on June 8, but some government officials are questioning his arrest, including Information Minister Khieu Kanharith, who told the Post on June 9 that authorities had "no clear reason to detain him."
“I signed a letter asking that Dam Sith be freed as soon as possible," Kanharith said, adding that the government had no role in the arrest.
The matter was “a personal lawsuit between Hor Namhong and Dam Sith,” he said.
Sith has been charged with "defamation" and "disinformation" over an April 18 article in which he quoted opposition leader Sam Rainsy as linking CPP members to the Khmer Rouge, whose 1975-79 regime resulted in the deaths of 1.7 million people and the devastation of Cambodia.
Hor Namhong has denied any ties, and has filed lawsuits against both Rainsy and Sith, who was questioned in Municipal Court earlier this month.
Sith's attorney, Kong Sam On, said that the court has yet to reply to Kanharith's request, while Ke Sakhorn, deputy chief of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court, and investigating judge Chhay Kong declined to comment.
Human rights monitors and free press advocates say the arrest is a threat to journalism in Cambodia, and question why Sith can be detained for the alleged defamation.
In May 2006, the National Assembly decriminalized defamation and mandated that all disputes related to the charge be settled through civil lawsuits, not imprisonment.
“The arrest of Dam Sith is a threat to the free press in Cambodia. Dam Sith does not deserve to be arrested because he can publish a correction in his newspaper,” said Chan Saveth of the Cambodian rights organization Adhoc.
“This case clearly shows that the politicians have influence over the courts," he said, adding that Sith was seized by about 10 uniformed and plainclothes military policemen in a Phnom Penh car wash and was being detained at Prey Sar prison.
The International Federation of Journalists and the Cambodian Association for the Protection of Journalists have also called for the immediate release of their colleague.
The IFJ condemned the charges as unlawful and raised concerns over the effect “such harassment of journalists” might have on elections.
“Democracy cannot prevail where the media is hampered in its efforts to report on politics and the election campaign. Journalists must be able to report freely without fear of arrest or harassment,” an IFJ statement read.
Sith is also an SRP parliamentary candidate standing in the July 27 elections with hopes of representing Phnom Penh.
Written by Vong Sokheng
Monday, 09 June 2008
A pro-Sam Rainsy Party newspaper editor has been arrested for defamation over reports tying powerful Cambodian People's Party members, including Foreign Minister Hor Namhong, to Khmer Rouge atrocities.
Dam Sith, editor-in-chief of Moneaksekar Khmer, was detained on June 8, but some government officials are questioning his arrest, including Information Minister Khieu Kanharith, who told the Post on June 9 that authorities had "no clear reason to detain him."
“I signed a letter asking that Dam Sith be freed as soon as possible," Kanharith said, adding that the government had no role in the arrest.
The matter was “a personal lawsuit between Hor Namhong and Dam Sith,” he said.
Sith has been charged with "defamation" and "disinformation" over an April 18 article in which he quoted opposition leader Sam Rainsy as linking CPP members to the Khmer Rouge, whose 1975-79 regime resulted in the deaths of 1.7 million people and the devastation of Cambodia.
Hor Namhong has denied any ties, and has filed lawsuits against both Rainsy and Sith, who was questioned in Municipal Court earlier this month.
Sith's attorney, Kong Sam On, said that the court has yet to reply to Kanharith's request, while Ke Sakhorn, deputy chief of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court, and investigating judge Chhay Kong declined to comment.
Human rights monitors and free press advocates say the arrest is a threat to journalism in Cambodia, and question why Sith can be detained for the alleged defamation.
In May 2006, the National Assembly decriminalized defamation and mandated that all disputes related to the charge be settled through civil lawsuits, not imprisonment.
“The arrest of Dam Sith is a threat to the free press in Cambodia. Dam Sith does not deserve to be arrested because he can publish a correction in his newspaper,” said Chan Saveth of the Cambodian rights organization Adhoc.
“This case clearly shows that the politicians have influence over the courts," he said, adding that Sith was seized by about 10 uniformed and plainclothes military policemen in a Phnom Penh car wash and was being detained at Prey Sar prison.
The International Federation of Journalists and the Cambodian Association for the Protection of Journalists have also called for the immediate release of their colleague.
The IFJ condemned the charges as unlawful and raised concerns over the effect “such harassment of journalists” might have on elections.
“Democracy cannot prevail where the media is hampered in its efforts to report on politics and the election campaign. Journalists must be able to report freely without fear of arrest or harassment,” an IFJ statement read.
Sith is also an SRP parliamentary candidate standing in the July 27 elections with hopes of representing Phnom Penh.
Climate change threatens food security, warns UNDP
The Phnom Penh Post
Written by Brendan Brady
Monday, 09 June 2008
ncreasingly unpredictable weather caused by global warming poses a major threat to the Cambodia's already imperiled food supplies, says the UN Development Program.
The kingdom also needed to invest in environmentally-friendly energy sources like solar or wind power to help stave off the impacts of global warming, the agency said.
Agriculture-dependent Cambodia was especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change which have already triggered a damaging cycle of flooding and drought, said UNDP country director Jo Scheuer at a June 5 conference marking the UN's World Environment Day.
“When droughts, floods or storms strike, vulnerable people are forced to sell off productive assets, withdraw children from school and cut back on spending for nutrition and health,” added UN resident coordinator Douglas Broderick.
The conference, entitled “Kick the habit! Towards a low-carbon economy,” aimed at outlining ways for Cambodia to fight or adapt to climate change.
As Cambodia’s energy consumption increases, eventually making the country a net carbon emitter, it was becoming necessary to explore energy efficient technologies used in developed countries which have legal obligations to offset their carbon emissions, Scheuer said.
Solar and wind power projects in particular could be recipients of international funding, he said, adding that the UNDP and the Ministry of Environment had signed a memorandum of understanding to jointly attract such projects.
Prach Sun, secretary of state with the Ministry of Environment, said the government would also seek funds to plant trees to absorb greenhouse gases and would call on local businesses to reduce carbon emissions.
Tim Ponlock, national project coordinator for climate change at the Ministry of Environment, said Cambodia should also prioritize developing its bio-diesel technology to utilize the country’s substantial supply of discarded rice stalks and corn husks for fuel production.
Nop Polin, coordinator of the Climate Change Unit of the NGO Geres Cambodia, pointed to his agency’s energy-efficient stoves, which purportedly use just 25 percent of the wood or charcoal consumed by a traditional stove, to show that cleaner energy doesn’t have to be high-tech or expensive.
Written by Brendan Brady
Monday, 09 June 2008
ncreasingly unpredictable weather caused by global warming poses a major threat to the Cambodia's already imperiled food supplies, says the UN Development Program.
The kingdom also needed to invest in environmentally-friendly energy sources like solar or wind power to help stave off the impacts of global warming, the agency said.
Agriculture-dependent Cambodia was especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change which have already triggered a damaging cycle of flooding and drought, said UNDP country director Jo Scheuer at a June 5 conference marking the UN's World Environment Day.
“When droughts, floods or storms strike, vulnerable people are forced to sell off productive assets, withdraw children from school and cut back on spending for nutrition and health,” added UN resident coordinator Douglas Broderick.
The conference, entitled “Kick the habit! Towards a low-carbon economy,” aimed at outlining ways for Cambodia to fight or adapt to climate change.
As Cambodia’s energy consumption increases, eventually making the country a net carbon emitter, it was becoming necessary to explore energy efficient technologies used in developed countries which have legal obligations to offset their carbon emissions, Scheuer said.
Solar and wind power projects in particular could be recipients of international funding, he said, adding that the UNDP and the Ministry of Environment had signed a memorandum of understanding to jointly attract such projects.
Prach Sun, secretary of state with the Ministry of Environment, said the government would also seek funds to plant trees to absorb greenhouse gases and would call on local businesses to reduce carbon emissions.
Tim Ponlock, national project coordinator for climate change at the Ministry of Environment, said Cambodia should also prioritize developing its bio-diesel technology to utilize the country’s substantial supply of discarded rice stalks and corn husks for fuel production.
Nop Polin, coordinator of the Climate Change Unit of the NGO Geres Cambodia, pointed to his agency’s energy-efficient stoves, which purportedly use just 25 percent of the wood or charcoal consumed by a traditional stove, to show that cleaner energy doesn’t have to be high-tech or expensive.
UN extends breakfast program for poor Cambodian schoolchildren after cash injection
In this April 29, 2008 file photo, a Cambodian boy eats rice in his classroom during a school breakfast, supported by the World Food Program, at Sangkum Seksa elementary school in Udong district, Kampong Speu province, about 70 kilometers (43 miles), west of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Last minute funding to buy rice has allowed the World Food Program to continue offering free breakfast to hundreds of thousands of Cambodian children, the agency said Monday, June 9, 2008.(AP Photo/Heng Sinith, File) 
In this April 29 008 file photo, Cambodian students serve rice in their classroom during a school breakfast, supported by the World Food Program, at Sangkum Seksa elementary school in Udong district, Kampong Speu province, about 70 kilometers (43 miles), west of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Last minute funding to buy rice has allowed the World Food Program to continue offering free breakfast to hundreds of thousands of Cambodian children, the agency said Monday, June 9, 2008.(AP Photo/Heng Sinith, File)By KER MUNTHIT
2008-06-09
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) - Last minute funding to buy rice has allowed the U.N. World Food Program to resume free breakfast for hundreds of thousands of Cambodian children, the agency said Monday.
The program ended this month because of rising rice prices. But a US$5.4 million infusion from WFP headquarters in Rome meant an extension through the end of the school year on July 5, said Paul Risley, a spokesman for the WFP in Bangkok.
Thomas Keusters, the WFP's program director for Cambodia, said he was «delighted» after receiving the news.
«We're going to deliver food to all 1,344 schools so that the school-feeding program can continue until the 5th of July,» he said Monday.
Classes will resume in October and Keusters said the fate of the meal program «will very much depend on the donations we will receive in the coming weeks and months.
Facing a budget shortfall because of the rising cost of food, the U.N.'s food agency said three months ago that breakfast stocks at Cambodian schools would run out before mid-June. Five local suppliers defaulted on contracts to provide rice because they could get higher prices elsewhere, program officials said.
It was just one of many WFP programs facing cuts amid a US$755 million shortfall in the U.N. agency's budget. But in recent days, the WFP received a US$500 million donation from Saudi Arabia along with a total of US$300 million from the United States, Australia and Europe.
Cambodian school officials, some of whom ended their program and others who were about to, expressed joy about the latest news.
«I am very happy if that is true,» said Nheng Vorn, principal of Choumpou Proek school, about 43 miles (70 kilometers) west of the capital Phnom Penh.
His school's rice supply ran out May 27, and the staff cooked the last 64 pounds (29 kilograms) of peas on Friday for the students.About six miles (10 kilometers) from Nheng Vorn's school, the Sangkum Seksa school was set to end its meal program this week.
«But maybe there will be no need to close it if we will really get more rice,» the school's principal Tan Sak said.
2008-06-09
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) - Last minute funding to buy rice has allowed the U.N. World Food Program to resume free breakfast for hundreds of thousands of Cambodian children, the agency said Monday.
The program ended this month because of rising rice prices. But a US$5.4 million infusion from WFP headquarters in Rome meant an extension through the end of the school year on July 5, said Paul Risley, a spokesman for the WFP in Bangkok.
Thomas Keusters, the WFP's program director for Cambodia, said he was «delighted» after receiving the news.
«We're going to deliver food to all 1,344 schools so that the school-feeding program can continue until the 5th of July,» he said Monday.
Classes will resume in October and Keusters said the fate of the meal program «will very much depend on the donations we will receive in the coming weeks and months.
Facing a budget shortfall because of the rising cost of food, the U.N.'s food agency said three months ago that breakfast stocks at Cambodian schools would run out before mid-June. Five local suppliers defaulted on contracts to provide rice because they could get higher prices elsewhere, program officials said.
It was just one of many WFP programs facing cuts amid a US$755 million shortfall in the U.N. agency's budget. But in recent days, the WFP received a US$500 million donation from Saudi Arabia along with a total of US$300 million from the United States, Australia and Europe.
Cambodian school officials, some of whom ended their program and others who were about to, expressed joy about the latest news.
«I am very happy if that is true,» said Nheng Vorn, principal of Choumpou Proek school, about 43 miles (70 kilometers) west of the capital Phnom Penh.
His school's rice supply ran out May 27, and the staff cooked the last 64 pounds (29 kilograms) of peas on Friday for the students.About six miles (10 kilometers) from Nheng Vorn's school, the Sangkum Seksa school was set to end its meal program this week.
«But maybe there will be no need to close it if we will really get more rice,» the school's principal Tan Sak said.
Russians to build $US472 MLN Cambodian resort
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Artist rendering of the development on Koh Puos Island (Drawing by KPIG)Russia Today
June 9, 2008
Russian company the Koh Puos Investment Group has begun construction work on a $US472 million island resort off Cambodia's south-west coast. The plans have gone ahead despite the company’s director currently being in prison.
The project will see a 900 metre bridge built on the island of Koh Puos, referred to as Snake island, with a coastal beach in the port city of Sihanoukville.
The bridge, worth $US 31.3 million, is to be finished by 2010, according to Cambodian transport minister Sun Chantol.
In 2006 Cambodia's government signed a deal with the Koh Puos Investment Group allowing the Russian firm to develop and manage resorts on the Island for 99 years.
The director of the Koh Puos Investment Group, Alexandr Trofimov, has been sentenced for alleged sex crimes in Cambodia.
June 9, 2008
Russian company the Koh Puos Investment Group has begun construction work on a $US472 million island resort off Cambodia's south-west coast. The plans have gone ahead despite the company’s director currently being in prison.
The project will see a 900 metre bridge built on the island of Koh Puos, referred to as Snake island, with a coastal beach in the port city of Sihanoukville.
The bridge, worth $US 31.3 million, is to be finished by 2010, according to Cambodian transport minister Sun Chantol.
In 2006 Cambodia's government signed a deal with the Koh Puos Investment Group allowing the Russian firm to develop and manage resorts on the Island for 99 years.
The director of the Koh Puos Investment Group, Alexandr Trofimov, has been sentenced for alleged sex crimes in Cambodia.
No Abdication for King: Sihanouk
By Win Thida, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
09 June 2008
Former king Norodom Sihanouk said Monday there was no plan for his son, King Norodom Sihamoni, to abdicate the throne, but he said the royal family does have a plan if ever the monarchy is abolished.
"This is not an abdication, but an exile without protestation, if Phnom Penh would abolish the monarchy," Sihanouk wrote in a letter issued Monday by the Royal Palace.
Sihanouk said in a letter Friday the monarchy had a chance of being deposed, but in that case his son would return to France and he would live in another country. He asked that his name not be used in association with the founding of the coalition party, Funcinpec, and that politics put the throne "under risk."
"In waiting for this abolition, we thought a long time ago about following a plan," Sihanouk wrote Monday.
In the meantime, the royal family would remain in Cambodia through the election period, leaving Aug. 1 to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics.
"After that King Sihamoni will have a general check-up at the central hospital of the state in Beijing," Sihanouk wrote. "After the check-up he will return to Cambodia. My wife and I will continue to stay for some period in Beijing to have general check-ups and medical treatment."
Government spokesman Khieu Kanharith declined to comment on the message.
Court Mulls Bail for Opposition Editor
Dam Sith, the edotor of Monesekar KhmerBy Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer
Orignal report from Phnom Penh
09 June 2008
Phnom Penh Municipal Court is considering a request from the government that a jailed opposition newspaper editor be released on bail, officials said Monday.
Minister of Information Khieu Kanharith said Monday the ministry sent an official letter to Phnom Penh Municipal Court Monday morning requesting the courts release on bail Dam Sith, the editor of Moneasekar Khmer, a daily newspaper aligned with the opposition Sam Rainsy Party.
Dam Sith, a parliamentary candidate for July's election for Phnom Penh, was arrested Sunday and charged with defamation and disinformation for publishing an article that quoted Sam Rainsy implicating Foreign Minsiter Hor Namhong with the Khmer Rogue regime.
Hor Namhong has denied in the past any involvement with the regime during his time as a prisoner at the Boeung Trabek camp in Phnom Penh, which operated between 1975 and 1979.
Dam Sith is currently being held in the capital's Prey Sar prison.
Lao Mong Hay, a researcher at the Hong Kong-based Asian Human Rights Commission, said the arrest was a violation of press law, and he appealed to the courts to drop the charges against him. Dam Sith had only quoted the words of Sam Rainsy, Lao Mong Hay said.
Phnom Penh Judge Chhay Kong said Monday he had received the ministry letter this morning and was considering a release on bail.
Dam Sith's attorney, Choung Choungy, said Monday he was surprised that the ministry had sent a letter to the court and said his client was clear of any wrongdoing. He had only quoted from Sam Rainsy's speech, the attorney said.
Groups Press Parties on Corruption Law
By Mean Veasna, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
09 June 2008
Rights groups with more than a million signatures demanding anti-corruption legislation are now pushing competing political parties for July's election on their positions.
The Coalition of Civil Society Organizations Against Corruption will ask each party for a commitment on passing an anti-corruption law that has been stalled in the draft process for years.
"Corruption in Cambodia is serious, and we note that up to now, there has been no reduction of corruption," Sek Borisoth, program officer of Pact Cambodia, told reporters Monday morning.
"At the time of the election period, we take this opportunity to call for the political parties to make their promise to voters on how they will fight against corruption."
Corruption costs Cambodia an estimated $300 million and $500 million per year. Cambodia has enjoyed an economic growth rate of around 10 percent per year, but it still required $600 million from donors each year.
The Coalition said in a statement Monday that even though there is economic growth, corruption ensures only a select group benefit.
The government has promised for more than a decade to draft and pass an anti-corruption law, but it has so far failed. Donors urged the government in 2006 to adopt the law.
The draft law should only apply to the current status of members of government, Sok Samoeun, director of the Cambodian Defenders Project, told reporters Monday.
"If we had a perfect law to review the property, maybe this drafting of the law would be blocked," he said.
Government spokesman Khieu Kanharith said Prime Minister Hun Sen had mentioned several times the importance of the law, and this is one of the political platform points of the Cambodian People's Party.
Sin Vannarith, secretary-general of the Khmer Anti-Poverty Party, said his party, if elected, would require government members to declare their assets and would push for the adoption of the anti-corruption law.
Original report from Phnom Penh
09 June 2008
Rights groups with more than a million signatures demanding anti-corruption legislation are now pushing competing political parties for July's election on their positions.
The Coalition of Civil Society Organizations Against Corruption will ask each party for a commitment on passing an anti-corruption law that has been stalled in the draft process for years.
"Corruption in Cambodia is serious, and we note that up to now, there has been no reduction of corruption," Sek Borisoth, program officer of Pact Cambodia, told reporters Monday morning.
"At the time of the election period, we take this opportunity to call for the political parties to make their promise to voters on how they will fight against corruption."
Corruption costs Cambodia an estimated $300 million and $500 million per year. Cambodia has enjoyed an economic growth rate of around 10 percent per year, but it still required $600 million from donors each year.
The Coalition said in a statement Monday that even though there is economic growth, corruption ensures only a select group benefit.
The government has promised for more than a decade to draft and pass an anti-corruption law, but it has so far failed. Donors urged the government in 2006 to adopt the law.
The draft law should only apply to the current status of members of government, Sok Samoeun, director of the Cambodian Defenders Project, told reporters Monday.
"If we had a perfect law to review the property, maybe this drafting of the law would be blocked," he said.
Government spokesman Khieu Kanharith said Prime Minister Hun Sen had mentioned several times the importance of the law, and this is one of the political platform points of the Cambodian People's Party.
Sin Vannarith, secretary-general of the Khmer Anti-Poverty Party, said his party, if elected, would require government members to declare their assets and would push for the adoption of the anti-corruption law.
Trafficking a Global Threat: US
By Taing Sarada, VOA Khmer
Original report from Washington
09 June 2008
Cambodia may have moved out of US "watch list" status for its efforts to combat human trafficking, but it still must improve its efforts, US officials said.
The US moved Cambodia onto its list of "tier 2" nations last week, saying it had improved its efforts but still fell short of US standards for combating trafficking.
“Globally, human trafficking is a multi-dimensional threat," US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in the State Department's annual Trafficking in Persons report. "It deprives people of their human rights and dignity. It increases global health risks. It bankrolls the growth of organized crime and it undermines the rule of law. In recent years we’ve witnessed a hopeful global movement uniting civil society, governments, and international organizations-not just to confront this crime, but to abolish it.”
Ambassador to Cambodia Joseph Mussomeli, who is currently in the US, said Cambodia had shown a clear commitment over the last two years to fight trafficking, though the government does acknowledge it has a "serious problem."
Original report from Washington
09 June 2008
Cambodia may have moved out of US "watch list" status for its efforts to combat human trafficking, but it still must improve its efforts, US officials said.
The US moved Cambodia onto its list of "tier 2" nations last week, saying it had improved its efforts but still fell short of US standards for combating trafficking.
“Globally, human trafficking is a multi-dimensional threat," US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in the State Department's annual Trafficking in Persons report. "It deprives people of their human rights and dignity. It increases global health risks. It bankrolls the growth of organized crime and it undermines the rule of law. In recent years we’ve witnessed a hopeful global movement uniting civil society, governments, and international organizations-not just to confront this crime, but to abolish it.”
Ambassador to Cambodia Joseph Mussomeli, who is currently in the US, said Cambodia had shown a clear commitment over the last two years to fight trafficking, though the government does acknowledge it has a "serious problem."
Monday, 9 June 2008
World Bank supports Cambodia's education sector
MENAFN
09/06/2008
(MENAFN) The World Bank (WB) has announced a grant of $57.4 million for Cambodia to help the country's Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports carry out an education project during 2008-2010, Vietnam News reported.
The WB-financed (Sector Support Scale Up Action Program) comprises of three components to assist Cambodia expand early childhood education, improve primary education access and quality, and promote institutional development and capacity building.
It is expected that over 3 years, about 650 existing incomplete schools will be completed and about 25 new buildings for pre-schools, 25 new buildings for primary schools and 60 new district office of education (DOE) facilities will be built.
09/06/2008
(MENAFN) The World Bank (WB) has announced a grant of $57.4 million for Cambodia to help the country's Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports carry out an education project during 2008-2010, Vietnam News reported.
The WB-financed (Sector Support Scale Up Action Program) comprises of three components to assist Cambodia expand early childhood education, improve primary education access and quality, and promote institutional development and capacity building.
It is expected that over 3 years, about 650 existing incomplete schools will be completed and about 25 new buildings for pre-schools, 25 new buildings for primary schools and 60 new district office of education (DOE) facilities will be built.
Australian company cements a place in Cambodia's island resort boom
The Earth Times
Mon, 09 Jun 2008
Author : DPA
Phnom Penh - Australia's Brocon Group Ltd cemented its place in the island development boom off Cambodia's coast, earning formal government approval for its planned 35-million dollar luxury resort, CEO Rory Hunter said Monday. "From July 2007 we had an in-principle agreement, but we have now received official approval on a 99-year non-renewable lease from Prime Minister Hun Sen and the Council for Development of Cambodia so we can go full steam ahead," Hunter said by telephone.
He said the company hopes to break ground this year, although it may be early next year, and completion is scheduled for 2010.
The development on the twin Song Saa, or Sweetheart Islands, 29 kilometres off the south-west coast of Cambodia, is being billed as a place for "well-heeled adventure travelers" and will feature a spa, restaurant, pool and luxury accommodation.
"We have interests in a few other areas, but this is our labour of love at the moment," Hunter said. Brocon also renovates French colonial era apartments in the capital, 240 kilometres away, for sale and rent.
Established in 2005, Brocon is a small company with just nine full-time staff in its Phnom Penh office but has been a success story in Cambodia's rapidly expanding real estate market.
Hunter said the coastal islands off Sihanoukville show tremendous tourism potential, claiming the atmosphere is reminiscent of Thailand's now world famous beach resorts 30 years ago.
Mon, 09 Jun 2008
Author : DPA
Phnom Penh - Australia's Brocon Group Ltd cemented its place in the island development boom off Cambodia's coast, earning formal government approval for its planned 35-million dollar luxury resort, CEO Rory Hunter said Monday. "From July 2007 we had an in-principle agreement, but we have now received official approval on a 99-year non-renewable lease from Prime Minister Hun Sen and the Council for Development of Cambodia so we can go full steam ahead," Hunter said by telephone.
He said the company hopes to break ground this year, although it may be early next year, and completion is scheduled for 2010.
The development on the twin Song Saa, or Sweetheart Islands, 29 kilometres off the south-west coast of Cambodia, is being billed as a place for "well-heeled adventure travelers" and will feature a spa, restaurant, pool and luxury accommodation.
"We have interests in a few other areas, but this is our labour of love at the moment," Hunter said. Brocon also renovates French colonial era apartments in the capital, 240 kilometres away, for sale and rent.
Established in 2005, Brocon is a small company with just nine full-time staff in its Phnom Penh office but has been a success story in Cambodia's rapidly expanding real estate market.
Hunter said the coastal islands off Sihanoukville show tremendous tourism potential, claiming the atmosphere is reminiscent of Thailand's now world famous beach resorts 30 years ago.
Private Equity Funds Turn Toward Cambodia
June 9, 2008
Posted by Deal Journal
As Vietnam’s overheated economy teeters on the brink of crisis, its neighbor Cambodia is being labeled the next frontier market for private equity.
That should be good news for a country that’s normally only in the headlines for its bloody past, but it also raises an important question: Can foreign investment flourish in a state notorious for corruption, weak laws and business secrecy?
While finding suitable targets in Cambodia may be difficult enough, private equity buyers are also certain to face challenges when they try to exit years from now. “This really is a frontier market,” said Chris Leahy, a Singapore-based managing director at risk consultant Kroll Inc.
In a sure sign Cambodia has arrived on the global investment map, finance luminaries Marc Faber and Jim Rogers have poured praise on the country’s investment prospects. “Cambodia offers an enormous potential for future capital gains,” Mr. Faber wrote in a recent newsletter for acolyte investors. Messrs. Faber and Rogers are advising some of the private equity firms that will pour upwards of $500 million into Cambodia from already completed and continuing fund raising.
Last month, 22 mainly U.S. fund managers met in Siem Reap, Cambodia’s base for temple tourism, to assess the opportunities.
They aren’t the first. Malaysian interests have been active in the country for years and South Koreans are already investing in banking and property, including a $2 billion satellite city on the outskirts of the capital Phnom Penh.
The expatriate business community in Cambodia has long railed against negative perceptions of the country. One refrain: ‘Cambodia is more than a pile of skulls’ - a reference to Phnom Penh’s gut-wrenching “killing fields” museum. Some 1.7 million people, a fifth of the population, were killed during the communist Khmer Rouge’s reign of terror from 1975 to 1979. Special attention was paid to exterminating the educated. Three decades later, the consequences continue to ripple through the country; a lack of skilled people hampers efforts to lift millions out of grinding poverty.
Another legacy of that era, corruption, is well documented. Berlin-based Transparency International ranked Cambodia the 14th most corrupt out of 179 nations in its 2007 study.
It is also difficult to enforce legal rights and business contracts. “There are issues in Indonesia or Philippines enforcing rights but it’s much harder in Cambodia,” said Kroll’s Mr. Leahy. “A creditor needs more than 400 days to get a claim enforced, and that’s assuming the court decides to side with a foreign creditor’s claim,” he said, citing a World Bank report.
Given the perception that large-scale business activities require an unsavory accommodation with powerful figures in the government, staying small may be the key to success for private equity investors.
“We want the small- and medium-sized investments below the political radar screen,” said Douglas Clayton, a managing partner of Leopard Asia, which is raising $100 million for its Cambodia fund. Leopard’s fund opened for subscription in April and has so far raised $11 million. It’s targeting investments between $5 million and $15 million, with a preference for minority stakes and a willingness to start businesses from scratch.
Mr. Douglas said the group sees opportunities in food processing, the garments industry, agribusiness and property. Its first deal is a minority stake in a 250-unit condominium in Siem Reap. The projected return for the fund’s $2.5 million investment in the condo is 60%, well above its target for returns of 25%.
But finding enough suitable opportunities to absorb several hundred million dollars of private equity capital is another issue facing investors. The challenge is finding companies with accounting and management standards that approach international norms, said Peter Brimble, managing director of the Cambodia Emerald Fund, which is aiming to raise $100 million after splitting from Leopard late last year.
The money can be absorbed if the economy continues to grow strongly and the government continues to improve transparency and legal standards, Mr. Brimble said. “As we dig deeper into this country and connect with the entrepreneurial class we are finding a lot of opportunities,” he said.
“Five hundred million dollars is really just a few golf courses and hotels. A lot more could be absorbed,” said Douglas Broderick, the U.N. Development Program’s resident representative in Cambodia.
–Stephen Wright in Bangkok
Posted by Deal Journal
As Vietnam’s overheated economy teeters on the brink of crisis, its neighbor Cambodia is being labeled the next frontier market for private equity.
That should be good news for a country that’s normally only in the headlines for its bloody past, but it also raises an important question: Can foreign investment flourish in a state notorious for corruption, weak laws and business secrecy?
While finding suitable targets in Cambodia may be difficult enough, private equity buyers are also certain to face challenges when they try to exit years from now. “This really is a frontier market,” said Chris Leahy, a Singapore-based managing director at risk consultant Kroll Inc.
In a sure sign Cambodia has arrived on the global investment map, finance luminaries Marc Faber and Jim Rogers have poured praise on the country’s investment prospects. “Cambodia offers an enormous potential for future capital gains,” Mr. Faber wrote in a recent newsletter for acolyte investors. Messrs. Faber and Rogers are advising some of the private equity firms that will pour upwards of $500 million into Cambodia from already completed and continuing fund raising.
Last month, 22 mainly U.S. fund managers met in Siem Reap, Cambodia’s base for temple tourism, to assess the opportunities.
They aren’t the first. Malaysian interests have been active in the country for years and South Koreans are already investing in banking and property, including a $2 billion satellite city on the outskirts of the capital Phnom Penh.
The expatriate business community in Cambodia has long railed against negative perceptions of the country. One refrain: ‘Cambodia is more than a pile of skulls’ - a reference to Phnom Penh’s gut-wrenching “killing fields” museum. Some 1.7 million people, a fifth of the population, were killed during the communist Khmer Rouge’s reign of terror from 1975 to 1979. Special attention was paid to exterminating the educated. Three decades later, the consequences continue to ripple through the country; a lack of skilled people hampers efforts to lift millions out of grinding poverty.
Another legacy of that era, corruption, is well documented. Berlin-based Transparency International ranked Cambodia the 14th most corrupt out of 179 nations in its 2007 study.
It is also difficult to enforce legal rights and business contracts. “There are issues in Indonesia or Philippines enforcing rights but it’s much harder in Cambodia,” said Kroll’s Mr. Leahy. “A creditor needs more than 400 days to get a claim enforced, and that’s assuming the court decides to side with a foreign creditor’s claim,” he said, citing a World Bank report.
Given the perception that large-scale business activities require an unsavory accommodation with powerful figures in the government, staying small may be the key to success for private equity investors.
“We want the small- and medium-sized investments below the political radar screen,” said Douglas Clayton, a managing partner of Leopard Asia, which is raising $100 million for its Cambodia fund. Leopard’s fund opened for subscription in April and has so far raised $11 million. It’s targeting investments between $5 million and $15 million, with a preference for minority stakes and a willingness to start businesses from scratch.
Mr. Douglas said the group sees opportunities in food processing, the garments industry, agribusiness and property. Its first deal is a minority stake in a 250-unit condominium in Siem Reap. The projected return for the fund’s $2.5 million investment in the condo is 60%, well above its target for returns of 25%.
But finding enough suitable opportunities to absorb several hundred million dollars of private equity capital is another issue facing investors. The challenge is finding companies with accounting and management standards that approach international norms, said Peter Brimble, managing director of the Cambodia Emerald Fund, which is aiming to raise $100 million after splitting from Leopard late last year.
The money can be absorbed if the economy continues to grow strongly and the government continues to improve transparency and legal standards, Mr. Brimble said. “As we dig deeper into this country and connect with the entrepreneurial class we are finding a lot of opportunities,” he said.
“Five hundred million dollars is really just a few golf courses and hotels. A lot more could be absorbed,” said Douglas Broderick, the U.N. Development Program’s resident representative in Cambodia.
–Stephen Wright in Bangkok
THAI MUST BE BACK OFF!!
THE PREAH VIHEAR TEMPLE IS BUILDED BY KHMER PEOPLE AND BELONG TO KHMER PEOPLE. PREAH VIHEAR IS NOTHING TO DO WITH THAI AT ALL SO THAI MUST BE SHAME AND SHOULD BE BACK OFF
Vietnam detains, releases 5 Thai fishing boats
The Bangkok Post
09-06-2008
Hanoi (dpa) - Vietnamese authorities have released five Thai fishing boats they had detained late last week for violating the country's territorial waters, an official said Monday.
Coast Guard vessels from Kien Giang province in southern Vietnam escorted the five boats with 58 fishermen aboard, including 24 Thai nationals and 34 Cambodian nationals, to international waters and released them there on Saturday, according to Tran Xuan Nghiem, director of the Foreign Affairs Department of Kien Giang province.
"Vietnam and Thailand have friendly relations, so we just released the boats without punishing them," Nghiem said.
The boats were detained last Thursday while fishing in an area about 32 kilometres from Hon Khoai Island off Vietnam's southernmost province of Ca Mau, according to the official.
"They admitted to violating Vietnamese waters and promised not to do it again," Nghiem said.
09-06-2008
Hanoi (dpa) - Vietnamese authorities have released five Thai fishing boats they had detained late last week for violating the country's territorial waters, an official said Monday.
Coast Guard vessels from Kien Giang province in southern Vietnam escorted the five boats with 58 fishermen aboard, including 24 Thai nationals and 34 Cambodian nationals, to international waters and released them there on Saturday, according to Tran Xuan Nghiem, director of the Foreign Affairs Department of Kien Giang province.
"Vietnam and Thailand have friendly relations, so we just released the boats without punishing them," Nghiem said.
The boats were detained last Thursday while fishing in an area about 32 kilometres from Hon Khoai Island off Vietnam's southernmost province of Ca Mau, according to the official.
"They admitted to violating Vietnamese waters and promised not to do it again," Nghiem said.
The Khmer Rouge Tribunal's Rebirth
By JOHN A. HALL
FROM TODAY'S WALL STREET JOURNAL ASIA
June 9, 2008
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia
Eight months ago the United Nations-sponsored Khmer Rouge tribunal in Phnom Penh didn't look like it was worth funding. The United Nations Development Program, which distributes donor funds to the Cambodian side of the tribunal, had tried and failed to suppress an embarrassing audit, first revealed on these pages. The Open Society Justice Initiative's Phnom Penh office brought to light various irregularities at the tribunal, including damning allegations that Cambodian tribunal staff and judges were required to kickback part of their salaries to keep their jobs.
Now the cash is running out. This week, the tribunal is expected to ask donor nations for around $100 million to fund its activities for the next three years. Given the advanced age and poor health of the surviving leaders of the Khmer Rouge, the stakes are high. But the tribunal's progress over the past few months has been marked. It is now is worth funding.
Last year's audit noted grievous mismanagement, fiscal irregularities and grossly deficient staffing at the tribunal. In response to those complaints, hiring procedures have been improved and made more transparent. International managers now participate in evaluating Khmer staff; Cambodian appointees must meet the advertised minimum qualifications required for their positions, and the unqualified have been eased out. True, some reforms are more dubious, like the requirement that Cambodian staff sign a pledge stating their opposition to corruption at the tribunal. And the comical suggestion box set up for whistleblowers to report dereliction of duty remains unused. But the trend is generally in the right direction.
New senior managers show promise. Take Knut Rosandhaug, who last week took over as coordinator of U.N. assistance to the Khmer Rouge trials and deputy director of the tribunal administration. The pragmatic Norwegian lawyer boasts 20 years of experience in policy making, negotiation, program management, human rights and conflict negotiation. As a director at the U.N. mission in Kosovo, he won a reputation for knocking heads and getting results. He promises the same in Phnom Penh, where five senior Khmer Rouge leaders are – some 30 years after their alleged crimes – finally in the dock.
The tribunal's newly appointed "Special Expert," ex-Yugoslavia tribunal prosecutor David Tolbert, has also won plaudits – especially when it comes to the tribunal's much-maligned budget process. Having exhausted its woefully inadequate initial budget of $56 million, the tribunal submitted a new budget in January asking for an additional $114 million. Donor nations, reluctant to keep funding such a corrupted enterprise, tied their pledges to clear proof that their checks would not be squandered or stolen.
Mr. Tolbert has carved out better lines of communication between donors and the tribunal, after years of distrust and suspicion between them. He has also encouraged tribunal staff to adopt plans for increased fiscal and managerial transparency in order to keep cash pipelines flowing. The new budget, revised since January, will be formally proposed this week.
There remain good reasons to be skeptical of both the Cambodian government and the U.N. No investigation has ever been undertaken, for example, to address the kickback allegations. The Cambodians have insisted auditors found no such evidence. In fact the auditors did not investigate that issue, as it fell outside their mandate. Privately, international observers acknowledge that the Cambodian government will simply refuse to undertake such an investigation. One solution may be to ignore past allegations of corruption, while making clear that any future wrongdoing will not be tolerated. That's not a perfect solution, but it would allow the tribunal to move ahead and perform its work.
The greatest fear, of course, is "slippage"; the idea that the Cambodian side of the tribunal is on its best behavior because the donors are so focused on the issues of corruption and mismanagement, and will return to business as usual as soon as the magnifying glass is removed. The trick, then, will be to ensure that the good behavior is not fleeting, requiring airtight checks and balances to fend off the bad habits of old.
Despite these doubts, there is a growing sense in Phnom Penh that an important corner has been turned and that we may be witnessing the rebirth of a tribunal that deserves support.
Mr. Hall is an associate professor of law and director of the Center for Global Trade and Development at Chapman University School of Law in Orange, California.
FROM TODAY'S WALL STREET JOURNAL ASIA
June 9, 2008
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia
Eight months ago the United Nations-sponsored Khmer Rouge tribunal in Phnom Penh didn't look like it was worth funding. The United Nations Development Program, which distributes donor funds to the Cambodian side of the tribunal, had tried and failed to suppress an embarrassing audit, first revealed on these pages. The Open Society Justice Initiative's Phnom Penh office brought to light various irregularities at the tribunal, including damning allegations that Cambodian tribunal staff and judges were required to kickback part of their salaries to keep their jobs.
Now the cash is running out. This week, the tribunal is expected to ask donor nations for around $100 million to fund its activities for the next three years. Given the advanced age and poor health of the surviving leaders of the Khmer Rouge, the stakes are high. But the tribunal's progress over the past few months has been marked. It is now is worth funding.
Last year's audit noted grievous mismanagement, fiscal irregularities and grossly deficient staffing at the tribunal. In response to those complaints, hiring procedures have been improved and made more transparent. International managers now participate in evaluating Khmer staff; Cambodian appointees must meet the advertised minimum qualifications required for their positions, and the unqualified have been eased out. True, some reforms are more dubious, like the requirement that Cambodian staff sign a pledge stating their opposition to corruption at the tribunal. And the comical suggestion box set up for whistleblowers to report dereliction of duty remains unused. But the trend is generally in the right direction.
New senior managers show promise. Take Knut Rosandhaug, who last week took over as coordinator of U.N. assistance to the Khmer Rouge trials and deputy director of the tribunal administration. The pragmatic Norwegian lawyer boasts 20 years of experience in policy making, negotiation, program management, human rights and conflict negotiation. As a director at the U.N. mission in Kosovo, he won a reputation for knocking heads and getting results. He promises the same in Phnom Penh, where five senior Khmer Rouge leaders are – some 30 years after their alleged crimes – finally in the dock.
The tribunal's newly appointed "Special Expert," ex-Yugoslavia tribunal prosecutor David Tolbert, has also won plaudits – especially when it comes to the tribunal's much-maligned budget process. Having exhausted its woefully inadequate initial budget of $56 million, the tribunal submitted a new budget in January asking for an additional $114 million. Donor nations, reluctant to keep funding such a corrupted enterprise, tied their pledges to clear proof that their checks would not be squandered or stolen.
Mr. Tolbert has carved out better lines of communication between donors and the tribunal, after years of distrust and suspicion between them. He has also encouraged tribunal staff to adopt plans for increased fiscal and managerial transparency in order to keep cash pipelines flowing. The new budget, revised since January, will be formally proposed this week.
There remain good reasons to be skeptical of both the Cambodian government and the U.N. No investigation has ever been undertaken, for example, to address the kickback allegations. The Cambodians have insisted auditors found no such evidence. In fact the auditors did not investigate that issue, as it fell outside their mandate. Privately, international observers acknowledge that the Cambodian government will simply refuse to undertake such an investigation. One solution may be to ignore past allegations of corruption, while making clear that any future wrongdoing will not be tolerated. That's not a perfect solution, but it would allow the tribunal to move ahead and perform its work.
The greatest fear, of course, is "slippage"; the idea that the Cambodian side of the tribunal is on its best behavior because the donors are so focused on the issues of corruption and mismanagement, and will return to business as usual as soon as the magnifying glass is removed. The trick, then, will be to ensure that the good behavior is not fleeting, requiring airtight checks and balances to fend off the bad habits of old.
Despite these doubts, there is a growing sense in Phnom Penh that an important corner has been turned and that we may be witnessing the rebirth of a tribunal that deserves support.
Mr. Hall is an associate professor of law and director of the Center for Global Trade and Development at Chapman University School of Law in Orange, California.
Thai efforts to combat human trafficking recognised
Radio Australia
Efforts in Thailand and Cambodia to combat human trafficking has been recognised in the US State Department's Trafficking in Persons Report released this week.
Cambodia has even moved from a watch list to a Tier 2 alongside Thailand.
Presenter: Bo Hill
Speakers: David Feingold, International Coordinator for HIV/AIDS and Trafficking, Office of the Regional Advisor for Culture, UNESCO Bangkok; Andrew Hunter, Asia Pacific Network of Sex Workers
HILL: Mark Lagon, the man in charge of the US State Department's Anti-trafficking unit, describes human trafficking as widespread, modern day slavery and says about 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders each year. This year, Ambassador Lagon singled out the Thai shrimp processing industry for harsh criticism. Ambassador Lagon tells one Burmese woman's story, recruited to work in Thailand's shrimp industry.
LAGON: Desperate to leave her country, Aye Aye Wynn described her horror to me at finding herself locked in a factory compound in the middle of a jungle, prevented from leaving or calling family by phone, or even eating decently. She and her Burmese brethren weren't even paid.
HILL: He goes on to tell of how Aye Aye Wynn was beaten and chained up. David Feingold is international director for UNESCO's AIDS and Trafficking Project in Bangkok. He says most people who become victims of trafficking into Thailand are from Burma, coming across Thailand highly porous border. He says the government in Bangkok has made two major recent steps forward, however, to combat human trafficking. A nationality law now recognises a large number of formerly stateless people as Thai citizens, providing control and protection. The other new legislation is a recognition that men, like women and children, can also be victims of trafficking and will no longer be treated as illegal immigrants and charged. David Feingold says this corrects a major error in previous anti-trafficking law in Thailand.
FEINGOLD: It's particularly an important change when addressing issues of labour trafficking which have received far more attention in the US report this year then they had in previous years. Previously the nearly sole focus of the report was sexual trafficking which in fact is not the majority of trafficking in the world.
HILL: In neighbouring Cambodia, a national anti-trafficking task force was formed last year. New legislation governing the taskforce coordinates agencies, oversees a wide prevention program and gives police and law enforcement agencies greater powers. The US State Department has recognised the success, moving Cambodia off a watch list to Tier 2 on its global trafficking report. What the US State Department report fails to mention, however, is those who claim they have become victims of the new initiatives. The legislation has changed the legal definition of what is prostitution in Cambodia and now describes all sex work as trafficking or sexual exploitation. An industry which was once described as "a fixture of urban life in Cambodia" is now fighting forced detention, the mass closure of brothels and draconian police intervention such as using the possession of condoms as evidence of sex work. Phuong, a Phnom Penh sex worker, was interviewed for a video report produced by the Asia-Pacific Network of Sex Workers. APNSW says she is just one of a number of victims of the new police powers.
VO: I got arrested in the park in front of the railway station. They took my watch and money. They took me to the station and they didn't beat me but they gang raped me, one after the other."
HILL: Andrew Hunter is from APNSW. He says the law is a violation of sex workers human rights, where even peer educators and union organisers can be arrested for human trafficking offences.
HUNTER: What's happened is there's been a mass closure of brothels across Cambodia which has led to huge numbers of sex workers being put out of work and large numbers of sex workers being sent to government and NGO rehabilitation centres against their choice. And large numbers of HIV positive sex workers are being sent to those centres where there's no medical care. In a lot of the centres there's massive human rights abuses - the guards are raping, and gang raping the women on arrival and in some cases regularly and daily.
HILL: Andrew Hunter says it is the US State Department's Anti-Trafficking report that lead to the persecution of sex workers in Cambodia.
HUNTER: Three years ago the draft legislation was tabled in Parliament, and the Women's Network for Unity here, the sex workers union, lead a campaign and met with the Prime Minister and got the legislation stopped. That lead to Cambodia being put on the US government watchlist in their Trafficking in Persons Report and since then there's been huge pressure from the US government under the threat of sanctions to actually pass this law.
Efforts in Thailand and Cambodia to combat human trafficking has been recognised in the US State Department's Trafficking in Persons Report released this week.
Cambodia has even moved from a watch list to a Tier 2 alongside Thailand.
Presenter: Bo Hill
Speakers: David Feingold, International Coordinator for HIV/AIDS and Trafficking, Office of the Regional Advisor for Culture, UNESCO Bangkok; Andrew Hunter, Asia Pacific Network of Sex Workers
HILL: Mark Lagon, the man in charge of the US State Department's Anti-trafficking unit, describes human trafficking as widespread, modern day slavery and says about 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders each year. This year, Ambassador Lagon singled out the Thai shrimp processing industry for harsh criticism. Ambassador Lagon tells one Burmese woman's story, recruited to work in Thailand's shrimp industry.
LAGON: Desperate to leave her country, Aye Aye Wynn described her horror to me at finding herself locked in a factory compound in the middle of a jungle, prevented from leaving or calling family by phone, or even eating decently. She and her Burmese brethren weren't even paid.
HILL: He goes on to tell of how Aye Aye Wynn was beaten and chained up. David Feingold is international director for UNESCO's AIDS and Trafficking Project in Bangkok. He says most people who become victims of trafficking into Thailand are from Burma, coming across Thailand highly porous border. He says the government in Bangkok has made two major recent steps forward, however, to combat human trafficking. A nationality law now recognises a large number of formerly stateless people as Thai citizens, providing control and protection. The other new legislation is a recognition that men, like women and children, can also be victims of trafficking and will no longer be treated as illegal immigrants and charged. David Feingold says this corrects a major error in previous anti-trafficking law in Thailand.
FEINGOLD: It's particularly an important change when addressing issues of labour trafficking which have received far more attention in the US report this year then they had in previous years. Previously the nearly sole focus of the report was sexual trafficking which in fact is not the majority of trafficking in the world.
HILL: In neighbouring Cambodia, a national anti-trafficking task force was formed last year. New legislation governing the taskforce coordinates agencies, oversees a wide prevention program and gives police and law enforcement agencies greater powers. The US State Department has recognised the success, moving Cambodia off a watch list to Tier 2 on its global trafficking report. What the US State Department report fails to mention, however, is those who claim they have become victims of the new initiatives. The legislation has changed the legal definition of what is prostitution in Cambodia and now describes all sex work as trafficking or sexual exploitation. An industry which was once described as "a fixture of urban life in Cambodia" is now fighting forced detention, the mass closure of brothels and draconian police intervention such as using the possession of condoms as evidence of sex work. Phuong, a Phnom Penh sex worker, was interviewed for a video report produced by the Asia-Pacific Network of Sex Workers. APNSW says she is just one of a number of victims of the new police powers.
VO: I got arrested in the park in front of the railway station. They took my watch and money. They took me to the station and they didn't beat me but they gang raped me, one after the other."
HILL: Andrew Hunter is from APNSW. He says the law is a violation of sex workers human rights, where even peer educators and union organisers can be arrested for human trafficking offences.
HUNTER: What's happened is there's been a mass closure of brothels across Cambodia which has led to huge numbers of sex workers being put out of work and large numbers of sex workers being sent to government and NGO rehabilitation centres against their choice. And large numbers of HIV positive sex workers are being sent to those centres where there's no medical care. In a lot of the centres there's massive human rights abuses - the guards are raping, and gang raping the women on arrival and in some cases regularly and daily.
HILL: Andrew Hunter says it is the US State Department's Anti-Trafficking report that lead to the persecution of sex workers in Cambodia.
HUNTER: Three years ago the draft legislation was tabled in Parliament, and the Women's Network for Unity here, the sex workers union, lead a campaign and met with the Prime Minister and got the legislation stopped. That lead to Cambodia being put on the US government watchlist in their Trafficking in Persons Report and since then there's been huge pressure from the US government under the threat of sanctions to actually pass this law.
Tribunal views from Khmer Rouge town
Moung Seng joined the Khmer Rouge because he had nowhere else to go
Ven Dara says local people want the five former leaders to be cleared
Sak Sokhum says he does not know why so much killing took placeBy Philippa Fogarty
BBC News, Pailin, Cambodia
Monday, 9 June 2008
Sak Sokhum does not know who to blame for the estimated 1.7 million people who died under the Khmer Rouge.
He was only 15 when he joined the Maoist movement in 1974.
Everyone had to, he says. They were going to save Cambodia from capitalists and the mounting threat from the Vietnamese.
First he was a driver. Later, when the Khmer Rouge had emptied cities and sent millions of people to work in the fields, he became a bodyguard for a mid-ranking commander.
When the regime fell in 1979, he and many thousands of fighters fled northwest to continue the battle.
For years he was a signals operator, relaying information between base commanders and guerrillas in the jungle along the Thai border.
Then he worked in a medical corps. In 1995 his leg was blown off by a landmine laid by another Khmer Rouge unit.
When the fighting finally ended in the mid-1990s, Sak Sokhum settled down with his family to work as a welder.
He has regrets about the past, but says it was a war and he had to follow orders. He was happy when fighting ended, he says, because he always expected to die.
Now a UN-backed genocide court is preparing to try five of the most senior Khmer Rouge leaders for crimes against humanity.
"The trials are good for Cambodia, because we are all victims of the Khmer Rouge," he says. "It is a good example for the children - it shows that if you do wrong, you must face trial."
But he does not know who should take responsibility for the 20% of the population who died - from starvation, disease, execution and torture - under the Khmer Rouge.
Former head of state Khieu Samphan was a good guy, he says, as was Nuon Chea, deputy to the now deceased Pol Pot.
"At that time, there was killing everywhere. It is hard to say who specifically killed who and where," he says.
Potential witnesses
Sak Sokhum is among thousands of former fighters living in Pailin, a dusty, ramshackle town on Cambodia's border with Thailand.
The Khmer Rouge controlled Pailin for decades, using its gem fields and hardwood forests as a key source of funding.
After the fighting ended, top leaders lived freely in the town until their arrest by the tribunal last year.
Former fighters dominate the local administration. Governor Y Chhean was an ally of Pol Pot. His deputy is the son of former Khmer Rouge foreign minister Ieng Sary.
As victims of Khmer Rouge rule line up to testify before the Phnom Penh-based genocide court, tribunal spokesman Reach Sambath says getting the people of Pailin involved in the process is vital to its success.
They can be witnesses, he says, and whether it is for the prosecution or the defence is up to them. "In order to have a fair and credible trial, we need cooperation from all sides."
Earlier this year, about 200 local residents met visiting tribunal officials. Many were apprehensive, the spokesman said.
"They thought that one day they could become targets of the tribunal. So we explained to them that this trial is not about everyone - only the senior and most responsible people."
"We told them that their cooperation was very important."
'Look elsewhere'
One local resident with strong views on the tribunal is Ven Dara, a politician who lives near the main market.
A picture of her uncle hangs on the wall. It is Ta Mok, the Khmer Rouge regional commander whose extreme brutality earned him the nickname "The Butcher".
She wants the tribunal to determine responsibility for what happened - but she wants it to look overseas, at the politics driving events in the region at the time.
"If the five leaders are held responsible, it is not fair. We need to look at the international factors - the role of the US, China, Russia, the French, the Vietnamese," she says.
"The Khmer Rouge thought that they were saving the people, but instead they are accused of being murderers and traitors. This is a regret."
She wants the court to move forward so that the five leaders can be cleared and the "real murderers" uncovered.
She is reluctant to acknowledge wrongdoing by the Khmer Rouge. Asked about killings under the regime, she talks in vague terms of direct and indirect responsibility - but does not answer the question.
'Move forwards'
Other residents, though, are more reflective.
O Lan is the deputy director of tourism. He fought for the Khmer Rouge, but his father and sister died under its rule.
"People who joined the Khmer Rouge when they were young, they have regrets," he says. "They don't know how it turned out like it did."
He thinks the tribunal will be good for victims' families, to help them find out the facts. As for blame, that is a matter for the government.
"Rather than looking backwards, we should keep moving forwards and develop the country," he says.
Moung Seng, a corn farmer, also thinks the past should remain the past.
He was orphaned by the regime, but then found shelter at a Khmer Rouge-run camp in the early 1980s and fought for the movement until the war ended.
He thinks the five leaders should be punished, because "they are responsible for killing their own people".
But five is enough, he says.
And he does not talk about the past with his children.
"We told them that there was not enough food and that people had to work hard," he said. "But no more."
BBC News, Pailin, Cambodia
Monday, 9 June 2008
Sak Sokhum does not know who to blame for the estimated 1.7 million people who died under the Khmer Rouge.
He was only 15 when he joined the Maoist movement in 1974.
Everyone had to, he says. They were going to save Cambodia from capitalists and the mounting threat from the Vietnamese.
First he was a driver. Later, when the Khmer Rouge had emptied cities and sent millions of people to work in the fields, he became a bodyguard for a mid-ranking commander.
When the regime fell in 1979, he and many thousands of fighters fled northwest to continue the battle.
For years he was a signals operator, relaying information between base commanders and guerrillas in the jungle along the Thai border.
Then he worked in a medical corps. In 1995 his leg was blown off by a landmine laid by another Khmer Rouge unit.
When the fighting finally ended in the mid-1990s, Sak Sokhum settled down with his family to work as a welder.
He has regrets about the past, but says it was a war and he had to follow orders. He was happy when fighting ended, he says, because he always expected to die.
Now a UN-backed genocide court is preparing to try five of the most senior Khmer Rouge leaders for crimes against humanity.
"The trials are good for Cambodia, because we are all victims of the Khmer Rouge," he says. "It is a good example for the children - it shows that if you do wrong, you must face trial."
But he does not know who should take responsibility for the 20% of the population who died - from starvation, disease, execution and torture - under the Khmer Rouge.
Former head of state Khieu Samphan was a good guy, he says, as was Nuon Chea, deputy to the now deceased Pol Pot.
"At that time, there was killing everywhere. It is hard to say who specifically killed who and where," he says.
Potential witnesses
Sak Sokhum is among thousands of former fighters living in Pailin, a dusty, ramshackle town on Cambodia's border with Thailand.
The Khmer Rouge controlled Pailin for decades, using its gem fields and hardwood forests as a key source of funding.
After the fighting ended, top leaders lived freely in the town until their arrest by the tribunal last year.
Former fighters dominate the local administration. Governor Y Chhean was an ally of Pol Pot. His deputy is the son of former Khmer Rouge foreign minister Ieng Sary.
As victims of Khmer Rouge rule line up to testify before the Phnom Penh-based genocide court, tribunal spokesman Reach Sambath says getting the people of Pailin involved in the process is vital to its success.
They can be witnesses, he says, and whether it is for the prosecution or the defence is up to them. "In order to have a fair and credible trial, we need cooperation from all sides."
Earlier this year, about 200 local residents met visiting tribunal officials. Many were apprehensive, the spokesman said.
"They thought that one day they could become targets of the tribunal. So we explained to them that this trial is not about everyone - only the senior and most responsible people."
"We told them that their cooperation was very important."
'Look elsewhere'
One local resident with strong views on the tribunal is Ven Dara, a politician who lives near the main market.
A picture of her uncle hangs on the wall. It is Ta Mok, the Khmer Rouge regional commander whose extreme brutality earned him the nickname "The Butcher".
She wants the tribunal to determine responsibility for what happened - but she wants it to look overseas, at the politics driving events in the region at the time.
"If the five leaders are held responsible, it is not fair. We need to look at the international factors - the role of the US, China, Russia, the French, the Vietnamese," she says.
"The Khmer Rouge thought that they were saving the people, but instead they are accused of being murderers and traitors. This is a regret."
She wants the court to move forward so that the five leaders can be cleared and the "real murderers" uncovered.
She is reluctant to acknowledge wrongdoing by the Khmer Rouge. Asked about killings under the regime, she talks in vague terms of direct and indirect responsibility - but does not answer the question.
'Move forwards'
Other residents, though, are more reflective.
O Lan is the deputy director of tourism. He fought for the Khmer Rouge, but his father and sister died under its rule.
"People who joined the Khmer Rouge when they were young, they have regrets," he says. "They don't know how it turned out like it did."
He thinks the tribunal will be good for victims' families, to help them find out the facts. As for blame, that is a matter for the government.
"Rather than looking backwards, we should keep moving forwards and develop the country," he says.
Moung Seng, a corn farmer, also thinks the past should remain the past.
He was orphaned by the regime, but then found shelter at a Khmer Rouge-run camp in the early 1980s and fought for the movement until the war ended.
He thinks the five leaders should be punished, because "they are responsible for killing their own people".
But five is enough, he says.
And he does not talk about the past with his children.
"We told them that there was not enough food and that people had to work hard," he said. "But no more."
Cambodian economic growth to drop to 7% in 2008
www.chinaview.cn
2008-06-09
PHNOM PENH, June 9 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian economic performance remains robust though the pace of growth is expected to ease to around seven percent in 2008, down from over 10 percent last year, local media reported Monday.
According to an International Monetary Fund (IMF) statement released recently, the drop in economic growth to around seven percent this year mirrors slowing growth in the garment sector, the Mekong Times newspaper quoted the IMF as saying.
Garment exports are under pressure because of a decrease in international demand and intensified regional competition, the IMF said.
Cambodia's garment industry is a major contributor to the gross domestic product (GDP) with 301 factories and over 340,000 workers exporting 2.9 billion U.S. dollars worth of garments last year.
"Tourism continues to expand at a healthy pace," the IMF stated, adding that with the Tourism Ministry reporting around two million tourists visiting Cambodia last year generating a total revenue of 1.4 billion U.S. dollars.
Cambodia's tourism industry accounts for 15 percent of GDP and employs tens of thousands, indirectly benefiting many more.
Cambodia, as a net rice exporter, should benefit from higher rice prices, the IMF said, but it warned higher food prices will adversely affect the most vulnerable, particularly the urban poor and the landless.
An IMF staff mission led by Luis Valdivieso, visited Cambodia from May 28 to June 5, to hold discussions with senior officials of the Cambodian government on macroeconomic developments and policies.
PHNOM PENH, June 9 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian economic performance remains robust though the pace of growth is expected to ease to around seven percent in 2008, down from over 10 percent last year, local media reported Monday.
According to an International Monetary Fund (IMF) statement released recently, the drop in economic growth to around seven percent this year mirrors slowing growth in the garment sector, the Mekong Times newspaper quoted the IMF as saying.
Garment exports are under pressure because of a decrease in international demand and intensified regional competition, the IMF said.
Cambodia's garment industry is a major contributor to the gross domestic product (GDP) with 301 factories and over 340,000 workers exporting 2.9 billion U.S. dollars worth of garments last year.
"Tourism continues to expand at a healthy pace," the IMF stated, adding that with the Tourism Ministry reporting around two million tourists visiting Cambodia last year generating a total revenue of 1.4 billion U.S. dollars.
Cambodia's tourism industry accounts for 15 percent of GDP and employs tens of thousands, indirectly benefiting many more.
Cambodia, as a net rice exporter, should benefit from higher rice prices, the IMF said, but it warned higher food prices will adversely affect the most vulnerable, particularly the urban poor and the landless.
An IMF staff mission led by Luis Valdivieso, visited Cambodia from May 28 to June 5, to hold discussions with senior officials of the Cambodian government on macroeconomic developments and policies.
Agriculture hampered by lack of funds in Cambodia
www.chinaview.cn
2008-06-09
PHNOM PENH, June 9 (Xinhua) -- The Rural Development Ministry of Cambodia has announced that many Cambodian farmers are struggling with a lack of capital for land, fertilizer and insecticide, local media reported Monday.
A lack of investment in the agricultural sector and a land shortage is apparently compounding the situation, Sao Chivoan, the ministry's undersecretary of state, was quoted as saying by the Mekong Times newspaper.
Speaking at a round-table meeting organized by the Club of Cambodian Journalists (CCJ) on the development of Cambodia, Sao Chivoan said that agricultural development could be a sustainable way to develop the Kingdom.
"However, our country is still working on it ... so the 85 percent of Cambodia's population that live in rural areas continue to face challenges," he added.
Yang Saing Koma, executive director of the Center for Studies and Development of Cambodian Agriculture (CEDAC), said better irrigation and education in modern techniques would boost agricultural output.
He warned that sale of farming land could affect productivity.
Sao Chivoan also highlighted the uneven development currently taking place.
Most of development gathers around the Tonle Sap Lake where many people are living, he said, so development projects are not fully carried into more rural areas, especially border regions.
There are many barriers, including a lack of road infrastructure, budget and especially the NGOs' funds for development projects that are in the hands of donors, he added.
However, the government's rural development policies are beginning to bear fruit, with roads and schools becoming more common in remote areas, he said.
Editor: Du Guodong
PHNOM PENH, June 9 (Xinhua) -- The Rural Development Ministry of Cambodia has announced that many Cambodian farmers are struggling with a lack of capital for land, fertilizer and insecticide, local media reported Monday.
A lack of investment in the agricultural sector and a land shortage is apparently compounding the situation, Sao Chivoan, the ministry's undersecretary of state, was quoted as saying by the Mekong Times newspaper.
Speaking at a round-table meeting organized by the Club of Cambodian Journalists (CCJ) on the development of Cambodia, Sao Chivoan said that agricultural development could be a sustainable way to develop the Kingdom.
"However, our country is still working on it ... so the 85 percent of Cambodia's population that live in rural areas continue to face challenges," he added.
Yang Saing Koma, executive director of the Center for Studies and Development of Cambodian Agriculture (CEDAC), said better irrigation and education in modern techniques would boost agricultural output.
He warned that sale of farming land could affect productivity.
Sao Chivoan also highlighted the uneven development currently taking place.
Most of development gathers around the Tonle Sap Lake where many people are living, he said, so development projects are not fully carried into more rural areas, especially border regions.
There are many barriers, including a lack of road infrastructure, budget and especially the NGOs' funds for development projects that are in the hands of donors, he added.
However, the government's rural development policies are beginning to bear fruit, with roads and schools becoming more common in remote areas, he said.
Editor: Du Guodong
Wat a controversy!
The Bangkok Post
09-06-2008
By Post Reporters
The Democrat party has urged the government not to rush to support Cambodia's attempt to register Preah Vihear temple as a new World Heritage Site.
Democrat deputy leader Alongkorn Ponlaboot said on Sunday that the government should think carefully before backing the Cambodian effort.
He was speaking after Phnom Penh redrew the boundaries of the ancient temple site to convince the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) that it now deserved to be put on the World Heritage list. The old map, which was opposed by Thailand, included overlapping areas.
Mr Alongkorn said that by supporting Cambodia on the issue, Thailand would automatically lose its right to reclaim sovereignty over Preah Vihear in the future.
On June 15, 1962, the International Court of Justice ruled the ancient temple belonged to Cambodia. Mr Alongkorn said the ruling was unfair and not based on law.
The Treaty of Versailles stipulated later that the demarcation of the disputed areas was questionable, and that was why Thailand wrote to the United Nations secretary-general on July 3, 1962, saying it reserves the right to reclaim the ancient temple in the future, he said.
"The present government has no right to either sell or reclaim Thai sovereignty in this case.
Next week, I hope, the National Security Council (NSC) and cabinet will review the issue.
Otherwise, it would be a shame and tantamount to betraying the nation and selling Thai sovereignty to another country," Mr Alongkorn said.
He suspects vested interests are behind the move to support Cambodia on the listing.
Mr Alongkorn suggested the government oppose the listing and ask Unesco's World Heritage Committee to drop the issue from the agenda of its July 2-10 meeting in Quebec.
The new Cambodian map will be discussed at the NSC's weekly meeting today. If the NSC approves the map, cabinet is likely to endorse the map tomorrow.
09-06-2008
By Post Reporters
The Democrat party has urged the government not to rush to support Cambodia's attempt to register Preah Vihear temple as a new World Heritage Site.
Democrat deputy leader Alongkorn Ponlaboot said on Sunday that the government should think carefully before backing the Cambodian effort.
He was speaking after Phnom Penh redrew the boundaries of the ancient temple site to convince the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) that it now deserved to be put on the World Heritage list. The old map, which was opposed by Thailand, included overlapping areas.
Mr Alongkorn said that by supporting Cambodia on the issue, Thailand would automatically lose its right to reclaim sovereignty over Preah Vihear in the future.
On June 15, 1962, the International Court of Justice ruled the ancient temple belonged to Cambodia. Mr Alongkorn said the ruling was unfair and not based on law.
The Treaty of Versailles stipulated later that the demarcation of the disputed areas was questionable, and that was why Thailand wrote to the United Nations secretary-general on July 3, 1962, saying it reserves the right to reclaim the ancient temple in the future, he said.
"The present government has no right to either sell or reclaim Thai sovereignty in this case.
Next week, I hope, the National Security Council (NSC) and cabinet will review the issue.
Otherwise, it would be a shame and tantamount to betraying the nation and selling Thai sovereignty to another country," Mr Alongkorn said.
He suspects vested interests are behind the move to support Cambodia on the listing.
Mr Alongkorn suggested the government oppose the listing and ask Unesco's World Heritage Committee to drop the issue from the agenda of its July 2-10 meeting in Quebec.
The new Cambodian map will be discussed at the NSC's weekly meeting today. If the NSC approves the map, cabinet is likely to endorse the map tomorrow.
Cambodian perplexed by enigmatic letter from King Sihamoni's father
The Earth TimesSun, 08 Jun 2008
Author : DPA
Phnom Penh - Cambodia's royal palace officials on Sunday strongly denied an enigmatic letter distributed to the press by former king Norodom Sihanouk indicated that his son, King Norodom Sihamoni, might abdicate. But the palace did not say what the letter actually meant, while Sihanouk himself remained silent. The letter and its possible interpretations has caused a stir in some quarters with a national election looming in July.
In copies of the letter, handwritten in French and distributed Friday, Sihanouk speaks of a looming crisis for the Cambodian monarchy "in the near or far future", using the French words "chances" and "deposee."
He also speaks of a "simple life" abroad in Paris.
The monarchy is a pillar of the Cambodian constitution, and the king, seen as a demi-god by many ordinary people, is widely recognized as a symbol of stability.
Sihamoni took the throne in 2004 after his octogenarian father abdicated, citing old age and ill health.
Sihanouk may be the only monarch in the world to abdicate twice - once in favour of his own father so he could take a political role in the 1950's, and again, after many hints and false alarms, four years ago.
Sihamoni, 55, is popular with the public and politicians alike for his quiet manner and stately bearing. Unlike his father, he rarely makes public speeches or statements.
Random Cambodian Facts
TravelPodSunday, Jun 08, 2008
Here are a couple random facts from Cambodia that you might be surprised to learn:
1) Cambodians do not know their birthday. Due to the turmoil and poverty caused by the Cambodian revolution, individual birthday celebrations do not exist in Cambodia. As a result, I have not met a single Cambodian that knows what day or even what month they were born. Instead, to keep track of their age, Cambodians coincide their birthday with the Asian New Year which occurs every April and designates the start of rainy season. So, on Asian New Year, everyone turns one year older and celebrates together!
2) Cambodia uses American dollars as their currency. American dollars are accepted around the world, but this is the first place I have been where dollars are the main currency. ATMs dispense American dollars, prices are quoted in American dollars and it is definitely the preferred currency. Cambodia does have its own currency, the Rhiel, but this is only used to make change (in place of American coins); for example if something costs less than a dollar change is given in Rhiel. Right now it is 4,000 Rhiel to one USD, so 50 cents is 2,000 Rhiel. I doubt this practice will continue if the dollar continues to fall. Maybe euros are the new dollar...
Cambodia opposition candidate faces defamation charge
Radio Australia
A Cambodian newspaper publisher who is an opposition candidate in next month's elections has been charged with defaming Cambodia's foreign minister.
Dam Sith is a candidate for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party.
He's been charged with defaming Hor Namhong in an article about the Khmer Rouge.
Human rights activists have accused the government of Prime Minister Hun Sen of using the courts to intimidate the opposition ahead of the general election.
Hun Sen is widely expected to win the parliamentary election, possibly with a clear majority of seats.
A Cambodian newspaper publisher who is an opposition candidate in next month's elections has been charged with defaming Cambodia's foreign minister.
Dam Sith is a candidate for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party.
He's been charged with defaming Hor Namhong in an article about the Khmer Rouge.
Human rights activists have accused the government of Prime Minister Hun Sen of using the courts to intimidate the opposition ahead of the general election.
Hun Sen is widely expected to win the parliamentary election, possibly with a clear majority of seats.
From peas and salt to nothing for breakfast
Cambodian children eat rice in their classroom during a school breakfast, supported by the World Food Programme.gulfnews.com
AP
June 08, 2008
Students at a rural elementary school in Cambodia enjoyed their last free breakfasts in class after the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP ) stopped supplying rice and other food because of soaring global prices.
Besides directly providing nutrition for children, the WFP breakfasts have provided an incentive for parents to send their children to school rather than sending them to work in the fields or stay home to look after younger siblings.
WFP said last week that the programme will be resumed later, probably around October, as the agency provides $1.2 billion (Dh4.4 million) in new assistance to help tens of millions of people in 62 nations hardest hit by the food crisis.
Meanwhile, though, Cambodia educators must convince parents to keep their children in the classroom.
The principal of Choumpou Proek school, about 70km west of the capital Phnom Penh, said he has been meeting with village leaders and families to encourage children to keep going to school, even without the benefit of extra nourishment.
The free breakfast programme in Cambodia began in 2000 and has recently been benefiting about 450,000 rural students. The World Food Program feeds almost 89 million people worldwide, including 58.8 million children.
No rice
Choumpou Proek principal Nheng Vorn - who did not know the programme is supposed to be restarted - said his 612 students enjoyed a final free breakfast of steamed yellow split peas with salt - but no rice.
The school's rice supply ran out May 27, so staff cooked the last 29kg of peas for the students, Nheng Vorn said by telephone from the school in a village in Kampong Speu province. The WFP also provided soybeans and cooking oil.
Even though the school is in a rice-growing area, the farms cannot produce enough of the staple to feed the entire community. WFP selected schools in poorest communities for the breakfast programme.
The UN's food agency said three months ago that breakfast stocks at the 1,344 rural schools under its programme would run out before mid-June, and stopped sending rice supplies in March.
The cutoff began after five local suppliers defaulted on contracts to provide rice because they could get a higher price elsewhere, programme officials said.
The price of rice tripled in the first four months of the year as the world food crisis deepened.
Soaring fuel prices have driven up the costs of fertilisers, farm vehicle use and transporting food to markets. Speculation and increased consumption of meat and dairy goods in China, India and other booming developing nations are also considered major factors in the food price hikes.
Global crisis
About 10km from Nheng Vorn's school, Sangkum Seksa school principal Tan Sak said his students have been eating breakfasts of steamed peas with salt since their WFP rice ran out two weeks ago.
The school's kitchen will shut down next week when the peas run out, he said.
Similar situations were occurring around the country and all over the developing world.
In Burundi, Kenya and Zambia, hundreds of thousands of people face cuts in food rations after June. In Iraq, 500,000 recipients will likely lose food aid. In Yemen, it's 320,000 households, including children and the sick.
Most, if not all, will now benefit from WFP's newly announced commitment to renew aid.
Coco Ushiyama, WFP's acting director for Cambodia, said in an interview last month that it was "really a tough decision" to end school food aid in favour of continuing programmes benefiting orphans of HIV/Aids and tuberculosis, who are in "more desperate need" of food aid.
AP
June 08, 2008
Students at a rural elementary school in Cambodia enjoyed their last free breakfasts in class after the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP ) stopped supplying rice and other food because of soaring global prices.
Besides directly providing nutrition for children, the WFP breakfasts have provided an incentive for parents to send their children to school rather than sending them to work in the fields or stay home to look after younger siblings.
WFP said last week that the programme will be resumed later, probably around October, as the agency provides $1.2 billion (Dh4.4 million) in new assistance to help tens of millions of people in 62 nations hardest hit by the food crisis.
Meanwhile, though, Cambodia educators must convince parents to keep their children in the classroom.
The principal of Choumpou Proek school, about 70km west of the capital Phnom Penh, said he has been meeting with village leaders and families to encourage children to keep going to school, even without the benefit of extra nourishment.
The free breakfast programme in Cambodia began in 2000 and has recently been benefiting about 450,000 rural students. The World Food Program feeds almost 89 million people worldwide, including 58.8 million children.
No rice
Choumpou Proek principal Nheng Vorn - who did not know the programme is supposed to be restarted - said his 612 students enjoyed a final free breakfast of steamed yellow split peas with salt - but no rice.
The school's rice supply ran out May 27, so staff cooked the last 29kg of peas for the students, Nheng Vorn said by telephone from the school in a village in Kampong Speu province. The WFP also provided soybeans and cooking oil.
Even though the school is in a rice-growing area, the farms cannot produce enough of the staple to feed the entire community. WFP selected schools in poorest communities for the breakfast programme.
The UN's food agency said three months ago that breakfast stocks at the 1,344 rural schools under its programme would run out before mid-June, and stopped sending rice supplies in March.
The cutoff began after five local suppliers defaulted on contracts to provide rice because they could get a higher price elsewhere, programme officials said.
The price of rice tripled in the first four months of the year as the world food crisis deepened.
Soaring fuel prices have driven up the costs of fertilisers, farm vehicle use and transporting food to markets. Speculation and increased consumption of meat and dairy goods in China, India and other booming developing nations are also considered major factors in the food price hikes.
Global crisis
About 10km from Nheng Vorn's school, Sangkum Seksa school principal Tan Sak said his students have been eating breakfasts of steamed peas with salt since their WFP rice ran out two weeks ago.
The school's kitchen will shut down next week when the peas run out, he said.
Similar situations were occurring around the country and all over the developing world.
In Burundi, Kenya and Zambia, hundreds of thousands of people face cuts in food rations after June. In Iraq, 500,000 recipients will likely lose food aid. In Yemen, it's 320,000 households, including children and the sick.
Most, if not all, will now benefit from WFP's newly announced commitment to renew aid.
Coco Ushiyama, WFP's acting director for Cambodia, said in an interview last month that it was "really a tough decision" to end school food aid in favour of continuing programmes benefiting orphans of HIV/Aids and tuberculosis, who are in "more desperate need" of food aid.
US provides nearly $1 million for Bakheng temple restoration
Photo courtesy of WMF/Glenn BoornazianThousands of tourists descend on Phnom Bakheng each afternoon toenjoy the sunset over nearby Angkor Wat temple. Courtesy of Phnom Penh Post
Written by Peter Olszewski
Sunday, 08 June 2008
The United States will provide almost a million dollars for continued preservation and conservation work on the Phnom Bakheng temple at the Angkor Archaeological Zone in Siem Reap, the US embassy said in a statement.
The $978,705, provided through the US Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation to the World Monuments Fund, will allow work to be done on the 9th century Hindu temple's most visible, but heavily-damaged portion.
“The historic city of Angkor is one of the world’s cultural and architectural wonders. Conserving its monuments, which are a crucial part of Cambodian history, is one way to promote peace and prosperity in the country," said US Embassy Charge d'Affaires Piper Campbell.
"This grant is therefore a significant diplomatic gesture, and it is important to note that it was made possible by strong Congressional interest," she added, speaking in Siem Reap on June 4.
Phase One of World Monuments Fund’s work at the temple was conducted between 2004 and 2007 with a separate $550,000 grant from the US State Department.
This work included archaeological research, conservation assessments, the creation of a plan for the management of tourism at the site and emergency conservation measures.
Phase Two will address some of the most urgent challenges at Phnom Bakheng –- protecting the temple structure from further deterioration through stabilization, waterproofing, repairs and partial reconstruction.
Located on a hilltop, Bakheng is a popular tourist spot to see sunset views of the nearby Angkor Wat temple, the most famous of the monuments in the Angkor complex.
But the large numbers of visitors who scramble each day up Bakheng's worn stairways makes it one of the most threatened temples in the park.
Written by Peter Olszewski
Sunday, 08 June 2008
The United States will provide almost a million dollars for continued preservation and conservation work on the Phnom Bakheng temple at the Angkor Archaeological Zone in Siem Reap, the US embassy said in a statement.
The $978,705, provided through the US Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation to the World Monuments Fund, will allow work to be done on the 9th century Hindu temple's most visible, but heavily-damaged portion.
“The historic city of Angkor is one of the world’s cultural and architectural wonders. Conserving its monuments, which are a crucial part of Cambodian history, is one way to promote peace and prosperity in the country," said US Embassy Charge d'Affaires Piper Campbell.
"This grant is therefore a significant diplomatic gesture, and it is important to note that it was made possible by strong Congressional interest," she added, speaking in Siem Reap on June 4.
Phase One of World Monuments Fund’s work at the temple was conducted between 2004 and 2007 with a separate $550,000 grant from the US State Department.
This work included archaeological research, conservation assessments, the creation of a plan for the management of tourism at the site and emergency conservation measures.
Phase Two will address some of the most urgent challenges at Phnom Bakheng –- protecting the temple structure from further deterioration through stabilization, waterproofing, repairs and partial reconstruction.
Located on a hilltop, Bakheng is a popular tourist spot to see sunset views of the nearby Angkor Wat temple, the most famous of the monuments in the Angkor complex.
But the large numbers of visitors who scramble each day up Bakheng's worn stairways makes it one of the most threatened temples in the park.
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