When minimalism was king

Photo by: Mark Roy
Khmer Architecture Tours guide Yam Sokly holds forth on the finer points of the Vann Molyvann-designed Chaktomuk Conference Centre on Sisowath Quay.

The Phnom Penh Post

Written by MARK ROY
Wednesday, 01 April 2009

A popular architectural tour is aiming to bolster interest in Phnom Penh’s rapidly diminishing stocks of the New Khmer modernist architectural style

While Phnom Penh is host to a number of examples of modernist architecture, many city dwellers see these buildings merely in terms of their utility, if they see them at all.

Classic buildings lie in varying stages of decay, while others still are demolished to make way for new constructions in styles that range from Korean nouveau bland through to Chinese baroque.

However, one local tour group is aiming to redefine the way the city's inhabitants view its architectural form.

Khmer Architecture Tours is a not-for-profit organisation that conducts regular walking and cyclo tours of prominent examples of Cambodia's architectural heritage.

The tours feature many buildings by the group's patron, Vann Molyvann, the Kingdom's pre-eminent architect of the post-independence era.

During the Sangkum Reastr Niyum regime (1955-1970) Prince Norodom Sihanouk pushed for the socially enlightened development of Phnom Penh as a capital city of wide boulevards and sublime public buildings.

Under Sihanouk's patronage, Vann Molyvann created many of the city's landmarks, including the National Sports Complex (Olympic Stadium), Independence Monument, the State Palace, the Institute of Foreign Languages, the 100 Houses project, and the Grey and White buildings on Sothearos Boulevard.

Diminishing heritage
The National Sports Complex was sold to a private developer in 2001, who then reneged on renovating the complex as part of the deal.

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Heritage cannot be sold, changed or denied – now they are destroying it.
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In 2007, Vann Molyvann's National Theatre building was torn down, after being sold to a private developer.

"Heritage cannot be sold, changed or denied - now they are destroying it," said an angry Vann Molyvann at the time.

Last Sunday, Khmer Architecture tour guide Yam Sokly met with a group of 20 people outside the Vann Molyvann-designed Chaktomuk Conference Hall for a tour of the Front du Bassac and an introduction to key works by architects such as Vann Molyvann and Henri Chatel.

"Chaktomuk was designed in the shape of a fan, with its structure clearly visible on its outside," Yam Sokly said. "It was built in 1961 with US funding - but is now privately owned."

Planned in the 1960s as a civic and cultural centre, the Front du Bassac included the National Theatre, Cite Nautique, and the Grey and White buildings.

The staggered, open design of the Grey Building was effaced when it was rebuilt as the box-like Phnom Penh Centre, and it is now white.

Meanwhile, in an ironic twist, the White Building has turned grey in its tropical environment and, like so many modernist housing projects of the '60s, will end its days as a slum. Some fear its residents are next in line for eviction after the neighbouring Dey Krahorm was razed two months ago.

Inside the White Building, the tour visited the Cambodia Living Arts project, the Aziza School and the On Photography Cambodia (OPC) project, which is helping the building's occupants document their lives within this decades-old experiment in social housing.

The OPC project will culminate in an exhibition in June 2009 at the Bophana Audiovisual Resource Centre.

"We are not aiming to save the building - its future has already been written," OPC project founder Maria Stott said. "The building was designed in the 1960s as a social housing project - the biggest in South East Asia - but what it has come to represent is the complete opposite.

"On the other hand it can become a vehicle for discussions about future urban planning."

Chinese firm hopes to advise construction ministry

The Phnom Penh Post

Written by Kay Kimsong
Wednesday, 01 April 2009

A delegation from the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction plans to visit Shanghai on the invitation of a major Chinese construction firm to discuss possibilities for cooperation over Cambodia's urban development program.

Im Chamrong, director general of the ministry's construction department, said the visit was part of ongoing discussions on cooperation with Shanghai Construction Group, which has offered to assist the ministry in matters of planning and quality control.

"We are designing a draft MoU [memorandum of understanding] on cooperation that we hope to sign with the vastly experienced construction company," he said.

Phoeung Sophoan, secretary of state for the ministry, is understood to be leading the delegation, but no date has been set for the visit. He was in meetings Tuesday and was not available for comment.

Big player
Shanghai Construction Group, one of the leading developers in China, has played a leading role in the development of Shanghai and had much to offer the ministry in terms of experience in architecture, urban planning and construction, Im Chamrong said.

"There are many construction projects in Cambodia now, but we have no national standards and our experience is limited," he said. "They have higher quality in terms of design, planning, execution and management."

The terms of the deal had not been finalised, but the ministry would maintain control over the monitoring of construction activity in Cambodia, Im Chamrong said.

However, the firm's input would be sought into a planned law to regulate construction quality of tall buildings, he said.

The construction group's major projects in Shanghai included Pudong International Airport and the Zhonghuanxian Expressway,. It also began construction in May on a US$292 million gymnasium for the city called the "water cube".

The company already has a presence in Cambodia. It built the 186-kilometre National Road 7, which links northeastern Cambodia to Laos, and is now building the Prek Tamak Bridge over the Mekong River. The 1,060-metre bridge is expected to cost $43.5 million and be completed in 2011.

The company's Shanghai-listed unit, Shanghai Construction Co, recorded operating revenues of $4.47 billion in 2008, up 21.24 percent year-on-year. Qien Hei, a spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Cambodia, said the Chinese government was not involved in the arrangement.

Shanghai Construction Group could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Local guide goes bilingual

Photo by: Tracey Shelton

The Cambodia Pocket Guide has now been translated into Khmer.

The Phnom Penh Post

Written by Eleanor Ainge Roy
Wednesday, 01 April 2009

A new Khmer edition of the Cambodia Pocket Guide targets strong growth trend among young Khmer consumers

Cambodia Pocket Guides were launched in 2004 and have since become a staple resource for tourists and expats alike. With their detailed information on drinking, dining, clubs, bars, sights and activities in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, they are a reliable and up-to-date source of information on the ever-evolving social scene.

Last week, after more than a year's planning, Cambodia Pocket Guide launched a Khmer-language edition that directors Tim Gibbons and Dean Lennox hope will offset the potential loss of revenue from the Western guides due to the global economic crisis.

"We expect this year to be pretty neutral or flat as far as the Western guides are concerned, but I think there is still a strong growth trend in the Khmer market, especially in the 25 to 35 age group with expendable income," said Lennox.

Lennox says half of the advertisers for the Khmer edition are new customers for Pocket Guide, though veterans such as Cafe Fresco are also hoping to offset potential loss in revenue by expanding their market.

New content
The guide looks similar to its English counterpart, said Lennox and Gibbons, but its content and construction is very different.

The Khmer guide is about a third longer than the English version due to differences in written text, a new set of symbols used throughout and more landmarks incorporated into the map, as this is often how Cambodians navigate. Many of the places featured are also new.

"Khmers ... generally don't go to places just to drink like Westerners; they tend to like places that are all things for everyone. So places such as Suki Soup are very popular in the guide," said Lennox.

Still in its early days, the Khmer-language Cambodia Pocket Guide has so far received a positive response, said Gibbbons and Lennox.

"As more educated Khmers start to work closely with foreigners, they are socialising together in places like Metro, Riverhouse, Pontoon and Elsewhere bar.... Going out more seems to be a growing trend," said Lennox.

Phnom Penh Aside: The culture of the business card

The Phnom Penh Post

Written by Kevin Britten
Wednesday, 01 April 2009

PITY the man or woman without one in this town, because some days your business card is the clearest sign that you exist.

Probably developed from the eighteenth century "calling card", a business card is today a necessity for anyone whose work brings them into contact with people they haven't met.

Name cards carry much more than merely a name. The design layout and quality of the card convey more than mere information.

Unless you are a designer or creative type, then you should avoid gimmicks such as photographs, rounded corners or small flaps. However, in Asia an exception might be made for a headshot photo of yourself.

Bright colours and supernova sunbursts are acceptable if you run a wild and crazy bar, but keep in mind that a lawyer - the benchmark of business card respectability - shouldn't use them.

Providing the correct information on your card is essential.

If you're not going to put an address on your card, then you should reconsider making the card at all and carry on scribbling your number on Post-It notes and cigarette packets.

Remember that an email address is not a suitable replacement for a street address, and a website is not a place; it's merely a bunch of pictures and text on a screen.

Putting a website on your card only shows that you have a website. It tells the world that you are sophisticated enough to use a commonplace marketing tool. It doesn't tell the world much about where to find you when they need you.

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THE MOMENT YOU EXCHANGE CARDS IS A FORMAL ONE, SO RECOGNISE IT AS SUCH.
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What to do with the back of the card can also be a tricky question.

Some use the space as a piece of marketing that either highlights the list of services provided or illuminates commercial desperation.

The other option is to have all the information on the front printed in another script, Khmer.

It might be cute to have your name printed in another language, but frankly, what is the point?

In Thailand where there is reluctance to learn English, it might be appropriate, but in Cambodia - where everyone in the business community speaks English - it's irrelevant.

The most easily overlooked but, perhaps, the most important part of producing a business card is the actual card itself.

In Phnom Penh, bonded card stock is hard to find, so it is wise to opt for lamination.

Gloss lamination will keep the colours truer to the original but will be shiny and give the message either that you're pretty unsophisticated or that you expect your card will be stored underwater at some point in its life.

When meeting someone and exchanging cards, do not pass the card as if it were nothing. Always try to give a card the correct way up so it can be read immediately.

The moment you exchange cards is a formal one, so recognise it as such.

If you are standing, continue to hold it and don't just stuff it into a pocket - and never put it into the back pocket of your trousers as a thing to be sat upon.

Recognition of business-card etiquette reflects that a business card is not just a way of exchanging contact information; it is an opportunity to build a relationship.

Girls team stretch to grab bronze

PHOTO BY TRACEY SHELTON

The Phnom Penh Post

Written by CALLUM DURWARD
Wednesday, 01 April 2009

(From right to left) Cambodian gymnasts Veas Sophorn, Sau Sokim and Pan Sopheak pose with their bronze medals at Olympic Stadium Tuesday. The Cambodian national team returned home on Monday from the 1st Asian Aerobic Gymnastic Championship in Bangkok after competing over three days against teams from Southeast Asia. The level of competition was extremely high, with several World Championship medalists among the competitors. The Cambodian senior trios placed fifth behind winners China, Korea teams 1 and 2 and Vietnam. Cambodia junior trios category (ages 12-15) grabbed bronze behind Vietnam and winners Thailand, while Sau Sokim from Cambodia placed fourth in the junior individual women category, beating Hong Kong, Mongolia and India (eliminated in the heats).

Police Blotter: 01 Apr 2009

The Phnom Penh Post

Written by Lim phalla
Wednesday, 01 April 2009

THREE DEAD IN HOUSE FIRE
Three young women, Chhay Somine, 16, Kim Dany, 22, and Kim Nae, 17, were killed as a result of a house fire in Prey Krola Khang Lech village, Touk Meas Khang Lech commune, Banteay Meas district, Kampot province on Monday night. Police said the fire was caused by an electrical failure, and total damages were estimated at US $6,000. The victims, two of whom died at the scene, were all relatives of the homeowners.
RASMEY KAMPUCHEA

GAS EXPLOSION DEATH COULD BE SUICIDE
Police in Phnom Penh said the death of a Vietnamese woman in a gas container explosion in Sangkat Tuol Svay Prey 1 commune, Chamkarmon district on Monday was the result of suicide. Witnesses claimed the woman, identified as Ngvean Thaing Yiv, 49, possessed more than US $5,000 and that there were frequent visitors to her house to collect money.
RASMEY KAMPUCHEA

ROBBERS TAKE AX TO STORE OWNER
A robbery at a general goods store in Samraong village, Lvea commune, Preah Sdach district, Prey Veng province on Sunday by six armed men left the owner severely injured. Rim Sovan, male, 52, was struck on the head with an ax before robbers fled the scene with a reported three Damlung (26.67 Damlung equals 1 kilogram) of gold, 1.2 million riels (US$293), three mobile phones and several phone cards.
RASMEY KAMPUCHEA

HUSBAND, WIFE ROBBED AT GUNPOINT
Pich Borin, 27, and his wife Chin Nary, 20, were held up at gunpoint and robbed of their motorbike while riding home along Sihanouk Boulevard in Tuol Svay Prey commune, Chamkarmon district in Phnom Penh on Sunday night. Police said the robbers, allegedly two men both carrying guns, had escaped by the time they arrived at the scene.
RASMEY KAMPUCHEA

WELDERS INJURED BY FALL FROM ROOFTOP
Two welders were seriously injured while working on a rooftop in Phsa Chas village, Memoth commune, Kampong Cham province on Friday. Sein Sin, male, 23, and Uk Ron, 26, plummeted from the 8-metre-high rooftop after being electrocuted while torching a steel bar. The pair were taken to a nearby hospital by a friend.
KOH SANTEPHEAP

The Phnom Penh Post News In Briefs

In Brief: Son of SRP Member Found dead in well

Written by Meas Sokchea
Wednesday, 01 April 2009

The body of 7-year-old Phearom Rattanak, the son of the Kompan commune first deputy chief in Memot district, Kampong Cham, was found in a well on Saturday. Un Phearom, the father of the victim, believes his son was killed by the father of a neighbour who exchanged insults with Phearom Rattanak.


In Brief: Hun sen ‘thanks' Opposition leader

Written by Meas Sokchea
Wednesday, 01 April 2009

Prime Minister Hun Sen facetiously thanked Tuesday opposition leader Sam Rainsy following his letter to the prime minister seeking amnesty for Sam Rainsy Party members accused of being former Cambodian Freedom Fighters. "Thank you so much, Excellency Sam Rainsy.... It may or may not be his intention, but he uses language that treats me as a king to attack me for promoting myself as one."


In Brief: Spat over education survey continues

Written by Khouth Sophak Chakrya
Wednesday, 01 April 2009

The Federation of Cambodian Intellectuals and Students (FCIS) called for the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport to increase the quality of education by considering a controversial teachers union survey. "The [ministry] should look at the [Cambodian Independent Teachers Association] report for solutions to increase the quality of education," Mao Pises, the president of FCIS said on Tueday. CITA's survey claimed about 41 percent of primary students drop out before entering secondary school, but Hun Chan Rith, a deputy director at the Education Ministry, said that number was "not fair" but refused to reveal their dropout numbers, calling them a "secret".


In Brief: Power station to open

Written by Hor Hab
Wednesday, 01 April 2009

A 90 megawatt coal power plant in the Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone (SEZ) will go online in 2010, Prime Minister Hun Sen announced Tuesday. The PM encouraged all SEZs to have their own power plants, saying that when electricity is cut off it affects factory profitability. He said that SEZ power plants should negotiate with Electricite du Cambodge to sell unused power back to the national grid.


In Brief: Land leasing blocked

Written by Chun Sophal
Wednesday, 01 April 2009

MINISTER of Agriculture Chan Sarun instructed landowners near the border not to lease farmland to Vietnam on Tuesday, without explaining the decision behind the policy. "We have advised provincial agriculture offices not to allow farmers to lease land to any Vietnamese," he said. Daon Ngoc Pha, deputy director of the Rural Department in Vietnam's An Giang province, has previously said there were plans to lease farmland in Cambodia, a move designed to stop Cambodian smuggling. Yang Saing Koma, president of the Cambodian Centre for Study and Development in Agriculture, said on Tuesday he supported the policy to block land leasing.

Duch's lawyer argues his client is being made a scapegoat (ABC Radio Australia)

kiletters

Thirty years after the fall of Cambodia's brutal Khmer Rouge regime, the first testimony begins today in the nation's controversial genocide tribunal.

The former commandent of the notorious Tuol Sleng prison, the man known as Brother Duch, will take the stand.

His lawyer says he has conceded responsibility for the torture and execution of more than 12,000 men, women and children.

Cambodia: Killing Fields Trial

NTDTV

Khmer Rouge torturer apologises

VOV News
04/01/2009

Former Khmer Rouge prison chief Duch, admitted responsibility on March 31 for crimes at the notorious jail he ran and begged for forgiveness, but said he had acted to protect his own family.

Duch, who is also known as Kaing Guek Eav, asked during his UN-backed war trial, for the families of the regime’s victims to forgive him.

At the same time, he insisted that he had not held a senior role in the brutal 1975-79 regime blamed for the deaths of up to 2 million Cambodians.

Duch’s defence team demanded that he be allowed to address the court after prosecutors had spent the morning outlining their case against him for war crimes, crimes against humanity, torture and premeditated murder.

But while he expressed his regrets for running the detention centre which killed up to 15,000 people, he insisted that his role was much more minor than that portrayed by prosecutors.

Meanwhile, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on March 31 warned that his country would be plunged back into civil war if the current UN-backed Khmer Rouge genocide court pursued any more suspects.

VNS/VOVNews

Cambodian PM bans cockfighting nationwide

www.chinaview.cn
2009-04-01

PHNOM PENH, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has outlawed cockfighting across the country, in his latest efforts to prohibit various gambling activities, national media said on Wednesday.

"I am announcing today the closure of all cockfighting arenas, including the cockfighting arena of (Deputy Prime Minister) Sok Anin Bati district of Takeo (province)," Chinese-language daily newspaper the Commercial News quoted him as telling a road inauguration ceremony in Sihanouk province on Tuesday.

Sok An, a well-known cockfighting aficionado, used to keep the arena in Takeo for fun and gambling.

"It is said that Sok An opened a cockfighting arena. (If) the deputy prime minister can indulge in cockfighting, they why can't others? Now, I am ordering Sok An, do you hear? I tell (you) to close the Tonle Bati (arena), or I will bring in armed forces to surround it," he added.

The crackdown on cockfighting followed Hun Sen's earlier ban on slot machines, sports betting and all other forms of gambling in a reputed bid to reverse a decline in social morality.

Editor: Zhang Xiang

Torture descriptions stun observers

Editor's note: Greenwich orthodontist Albert Repicci and his daughter Kelly are attending the genocide trial of former Khmer Rouge official Kaing Guek Eav as observers.

Greenwich Time

By Albert J. Repicci and Kelly Repicci

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia -- On the second day of the trial of the former Khmer Rouge prison chief, the courtroom was mesmerized by the gripping description of his alleged crimes against humanity.

Canadian prosecutor Robert Petit elaborated on the extent of the horrors for which Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, is being held responsible, specifically the death by starvation, overwork, torture and execution of more than 16,000 men, women and children.

Petit showed film clips taken at the prison on the day of its liberation showing the bodies of inmates shackled in torture chambers. Several Cambodians witnessing these graphic scenes broke into tears, while others left the courtroom.

Petit regarded any claim that Duch, commander of the prison, was just following orders as implausible and unbelievable given the nature of the annotations Duch had inscribed on documents describing torture and execution techniques.

It was ironic to learn from Petit's description that the Khmer Rouge regime had become so paranoid that it eventually had 190 staff members in the prison executed and tortured as part of a cleansing of enemies of the regime.

The tribunal then called for a recess, at which time Duch, who sat alone in the dock with his back to the courtroom, turned and looked out at the assemblage of Cambodians holding him responsible for the atrocities that had just been described.

After recess, to the shock of all in attendance, Duch asked to take the stand and confess his guilt for the atrocities he was accused of and to offer his apologies to the people of Cambodia. He detailed his greater concern for his own life and that of his family over those of the many Cambodians whom he had sent to their deaths.

He said he had realized that he too was likely to become a victim of his superiors' paranoia and eventually suffer the same fate as his victims.

Petit put the confession in a different perspective. He pointed out that, although the prison had been overrun and evacuated in 1979, Duch remained a loyal member of Khmer Rouge for another 15 years.

Further, Petit said, Duch had ultimate power in the prison and the atrocities were shaped by his own design. Finally, Petit seized on one of the most unique aspects of the trial -- the opportunity for witnesses and victims to question the accused themselves before the court.

Unless that privilege was fulfilled, he said, there would be no closure and no reconciliation for the nation or for the families of those whom Duch had sent to their deaths.

Cambodian New Year falls on early morning of April 14

www.chinaview.cn

2009-04-01

PHNOM PENH, April 1 (Xinhua) -- New Year on the Cambodian calendar will fall at 01:36 local time of April 14 (1836 GMT of April 13), Chinese-language daily newspaper the Commercial News said on Wednesday.

An Apsara, or fairy lady in Cambodian folklore, in black costumes and on a horse, will descend from heaven to the land of the kingdom at that time, to safeguard Cambodia during the New Year season, astrologers told the paper.

Prior to the New Year time, people can set up a table in front of their houses with 11 kinds of fruits and candles on sacrifice to welcome the fairy lady's arrival, they added.

The government has set April 14 to 16 as national holiday to celebrate the New Year.

During the holiday, people usually visit pagodas and pray for peace and prosperity in the coming year.

Editor: Zhang Xiang

Khmer Rouge prison boss admits torture and killings

The Irish Times
Wednesday, April 1, 2009

IAN MacKINNON

THE KHMER Rouge’s chief torturer, who ran the regime’s most feared prison, has admitted murdering thousands of Cambodians and told of his “heartfelt sorrow” for the crimes he committed more than 30 years ago.

Kaing Guek Eav – known as Comrade Duch – read a prepared statement on the second day of the UN-backed war crimes tribunal in Phnom Penh, apologising for the brutal excesses of Pol Pot’s regime that killed 1.7 million Cambodians in its four-year rule.

“I recognise that I am responsible for the crimes committed,” the 66-year-old said, putting down his papers and looking straight at the tribunal’s gallery packed with survivors. “I would like to express my regretfulness and heartfelt sorrow.”

Duch commanded the notorious Tuol Sleng prison – known by the codename S-21 – where at least 14,000 men, women and children were tortured under his supervision before all but a handful were summarily executed.

The former maths teacher and now born-again Christian, who has been in jail for the past decade since he was unmasked by the British journalist Nic Dunlop, is accused of war crimes, crimes against humanity, torture and murder and faces a maximum of life imprisonment.

“I am responsible for the crimes committed at S-21, especially the torture and execution of the people there,” he said. “May I be permitted to apologise and to the survivors and families of the victims who had loved ones who died brutally at S-21. I would like you to forgive me.”

While Duch’s statement is an admission of guilt – the first from a senior Khmer Rouge figure – the defendants do not enter pleas before the genocide tribunal’s investigating judges, whose key aim is to establish the facts of what happened between 1975 and 1979.

But with Duch expected to give evidence against four other Khmer Rouge leaders awaiting trial, including “brother number two” Nuon Chea and the nominal head of state Khieu Samphan, his confession could be a vital in the more challenging prosecutions.

Duch said he feared for the lives of his family if he failed to obey orders. “I am solely responsible for this crime,” he said. “But I am just a scapegoat – a person who played a role in the killings. In those times I regarded the life of my family as more important than those detained at S-21.

Although I knew my orders were criminal, I never dared challenge the top authorities.” Duch was given the opportunity to respond after the prosecutors had outlined the case against him, recalling the grim litany of torture meted out to extract false confessions from mostly innocent victims of the regime.

The Cambodian co-prosecutor Chea Leang recalled the Khmer Rouge’s chilling maxim for those it regarded as its enemies: “To keep you is no gain, to destroy you is no loss.” The tribunal, expected to take at least six months to reach a verdict, will question Duch in greater detail next week about the roles he held under the regime and, uniquely, give the victims and the bereaved a chance to have their voices heard in testimony. – ( Guardian service )

Cambodian war crimes court in corruption probe

Cambodia's Minister of Information Khieu Kanharith says no proof of kickbacks or corruption has been found.

From Dan Rivers

CNN

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (CNN) -- A joint Cambodian-United Nations court, currently trying five former members of the ultra-Maoist Khmer Rouge group on war crimes charges, is itself facing allegations of corruption and bribery.

Two employees of the court's Office of Administration told CNN of an ongoing kickback scheme involving Cambodian staff. The staffers asked their identities be protected out of fear of retribution to themselves and their families.

"We are talking about 30 to 40 or even a little bit more ... a month," said one employee, referring to the total amount allegedly taken from employees. "Thousand dollars. Thirty or 40,000 dollars a month."

Cambodian staff at the office, they say, are forced to hand the money over -- a chunk of their salaries -- and the funds go to an official.

"They are supposed to pay a certain amount (of) money -- a certain percentage," the employee said. "So every month, they have to put it in an envelope -- and give it to ... each section has one person go around to collect it ... the money is in cash, in U.S. dollars."

There is no suggestion that the court's judges or lawyers -- who are hearing and presenting the case against the former Khmer Rouge leaders -- are involved in the alleged corruption.

The Cambodian government told CNN a senior Cambodian court official was investigated for corruption, but was exonerated. "They told me they cannot find any proof of kick-back or corruption," said Khieu Kanharith, government information minister. "If you want the court -- the trial -- to go ahead, separate the two cases."

However, a defense attorney for one of the defendants said the trial and the allegations of corruption are inextricably linked.

"What's really disturbing is that by the time the judges make their decision, every piece of evidence, every bit that they look at and evaluate and deliberate on, will have passed through the office of administration and will have literally passed through the hands of people who we say have dirty hands," said Andrew Ianuzzi, a consultant for defendant Nuon Chea's legal team.

Defense attorneys say they plan to bring up the corruption allegations during the trial in an effort to discredit the court.

The Cambodian government refused United Nations requests for an independent international war crimes trial for the Khmer Rouge defendants, agreeing only to a joint trial where the government participates along with the international judges. Watch a report on the trial a Khmer Rouge torture camp commandant »

Prosecutors are attempting to prove that the five defendants played a significant role in the deaths of as many as two million Cambodians during Khmer Rouge rule of the country from 1975 to 1979. The trial has already cost $56 million, more than $10 million per defendant.

But the court has asked for another $50 million to carry it through the end of 2009. The total could go higher if the trial continues into 2010.

The United Nations says its internal affairs body -- the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) -- is investigating the corruption allegations within the court, but won't elaborate.

"This matter has been under investigation by OIOS, whose work is confidential," the United Nations said in a statement. "The result of the probe will be submitted to the Cambodian government for further action."

In a letter sent to attorneys for the trial defendants, Sean Visoth, the head of the court's Office of Administration, writes that his office has "never tolerated any kind of corruption or malpractice." Visoth says the court now has an anonymous "complaint mechanism" in place.

Meanwhile, however, independent trial monitors say they believe a culture of fear prevents other current and employees from coming forward.

"At the court, I have heard people express concerns about loss of their job, repercussions or retaliations against their families, and also some possibility of physical fears," said Heather Ryan, a Khmer Rouge trial monitor.

The employees spoke out, saying they were fully aware of the risk.

"To me, it is really sick. How can you take money from people each month and look people in the eye and say, 'Oh, I don't know anything about it?'" one employee asked.

Khmer Rouge Leader Admits Crimes against Humanity

Skulls of some of the 2 million Cambodians killed during the Khmer Rouge 70s regime. Photo by nowpublic.net

Novinite.com

A key Khmer Rouge leader has admitted responsibility for crimes committed during the regime's brutal rule in Cambodia.

Speaking at a UN-backed tribunal in Cambodia, Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, expressed "regretfulness and heartfelt sorrow" for his actions, the BBC reported Tuesday.

Duch is accused of torture, crimes against humanity and premeditated murder for his alleged role in the deaths of more than 10 000 people.

"May I be permitted to apologise to the survivors of the regime, and also the loved ones of those who died brutally during the regime," Duch told the court.

"I ask not that you forgive me now, but hope you will later."

Prosecutors opened their case against Duch on Tuesday, the second day of this trial, and vowed to get justice for his many victims.

Duch is the first Khmer Rouge leader to face the tribunal, with four more of the regime's senior figures in custody and awaiting trial.

He ran the Tuol Sleng prison, which, the co-prosecutor said, "formed an integral and indeed vital role in a widespread attack on the population of Cambodia".

Only a few people are known to have survived their time at Tuol Sleng, which is now a genocide museum lined with photographs of the thousands who died there.

Duch has been in detention since he was discovered in the Cambodian countryside in 1999 by British journalist Nic Dunlop.

The Khmer Rouge took over Cambodia in 1975, ousting a US-backed government shortly after the US pulled out of neighbouring Vietnam.

Driven on by Maoist principles, they attempted to create a peasant society by systematically emptying the cities and forcing the population to work in the fields.

By the time the Vietnamese army invaded and overthrew the Khmer Rouge in 1979, the regime had executed, starved or overworked to death up to two million Cambodians.

Cambodia PM fears 'civil war'

Reuters
By EK MADRA

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen warned today that putting more Khmer Rouge cadres on trial for crimes committed during Pol Pot's 1975-79 reign of terror could plunge the country back into civil war.

"I would prefer to see this tribunal fail instead of seeing war return to my country," Hun Sen, himself a former Khmer Rouge commander, said a day after the joint UN-Cambodian court resumed its trial of Pol Pot's chief torturer.

Duch, former head of the S-21 prison where more than 14,000 "enemies" of the ultra-Maoist revolution died, is the first of five ageing senior cadres to face trial 30 years after the end of a regime blamed for 1.7 million deaths in Cambodia. Human rights groups have used this week's trial to push for investigations of more suspects, arguing that would ensure justice is delivered to millions of victims and survivors.

But Hun Sen, speaking at the opening of an industrial zone in the port of Sihanoukville, said the trials should not go beyond the five charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity.

"If as many as 20 Khmer Rouge are indicted to stand trial and war returns to Cambodia, who will be responsible for that?," he told the audience.

After Duch, the others awaiting trial are "Brother Number Two" Nuon Chea, the regime's ex-president Khieu Samphan and Ieng Sary, its foreign minister, and his wife.

They have denied any wrongdoing. Duch has expressed remorse for his victims, but said he was following orders.

The court admitted in January that a bid to go after more suspects was brushed aside by the Cambodian co-prosecutor, who argued it would not be good for national reconciliation.

A final ruling on the additional cases - details of which the court has not disclosed but the number of which has been put at six in media reports - is still pending.

"The issue regarding the jurisdiction of the court and whether or not to have further suspects is complicated," said Helen Jarvis, an Australian working for the tribunal.

The government has denied meddling in the court, but rights activists have long suspected Hun Sen does not want it to dig too deep for fear it will unearth secrets about senior Khmer Rouge figures inside his administration.

Hun Sen, 58, joined the Khmer Rouge during their 1970-75 guerilla war against the US-backed government of General Lon Nol. He rose to be a junior commander and lost an eye in fighting just before the rebels took the capital, Phnom Penh.

He has said he defected to Vietnam in mid-1977 and played no part in Pol Pot's bloody agrarian revolution, in which an estimated 1.7 million people, or a third of the population, died.

Vietnamese troops invaded in late 1978 and installed a communist government made up mostly of former Khmer Rouge cadres including Hun Sen, who became premier in 1985.

Analysts said Hun Sen's opposition to expanding the tribunal's work may reflect his concerns former Khmer Rouge commanders will flee back to the jungle and fight any move to arrest them.
Pol Pot's death in 1998 was followed by a formal Khmer Rouge surrender that helped usher in a decade of peace and stability, threatened now by the global economic downturn.

Khmer Rouge prison chief Duch has admitted responsibility for crimes at the notorious jail he ran and begged for forgiveness

Elderly Cambodians look on as they wait in line outside the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia on the second day of a UN-backed tribunal against former Toul Sleng commander Kaing Guek Eav, also know as 'Duch' Tuesday, March 31, 2009, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. On the first day of the trial prosecutors alleged that the former Khmer Rouge commander oversaw grisly atrocities at the Phnom Penh prison and that all who were imprisoned there were marked for death.(AP Photo/David Longstreath)

Cambodians, from Pursat province, look on as they wait in line outside the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia on the second day of a UN-backed tribunal against former Toul Sleng commander Kaing Guek Eav, also know as 'Duch' Tuesday, March 31, 2009, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. On the first day of the trial prosecutors alleged that the former Khmer Rouge commander oversaw grisly atrocities at the Phnom Penh prison and that all who were imprisoned there were marked for death.(AP Photo/David Longstreath)

A Cambodian Buddhist monk looks on as he and others wait in line outside the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia on the second day of a UN-backed tribunal against former Toul Sleng commander Kaing Guek Eav, also know as 'Duch' Tuesday, March 31, 2009, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. On the first day of the trial prosecutors alleged that the former Khmer Rouge commander oversaw grisly atrocities at the Phnom Penh prison and that all who were imprisoned there were marked for death.(AP Photo/David Longstreath)

A woman and her son look at torture equipment at Tuol Sleng genocide museum in Phnom Penh. Prosecutors Tuesday gave harrowing details of the torture and execution of thousands of Cambodians as they laid their case against the Khmer Rouge regime's prison chief for the first time.(AFP/Tang Chhin Sothy)

A Cambodian man walks into the court room for a trial of a former Khmer Rouge prison chief Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, at a U.N.-backed tribunal Tuesday, March 31, 2009, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Prosecutors vowed Tuesday to get justice for the 1.7 million victims of Cambodia's Khmer Rouge regime, as they opened their case against the man accused of running the communist radicals' torture machine.(AP Photo/Heng Sinith)

Bour Meng, a Khmer Rouge survivor, walks out of the court room during lunch break, during the second day of the trial of chief Khmer Rouge torturer Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, on the outskirts of Phnom Penh March 31, 2009. Duch faces trial for crimes against humanity, the first involving a senior Pol Pot cadre 30 years after the end of a regime blamed for 1.7 million deaths.REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea

Cambodians wait in line to enter the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia on the second day of a UN-backed tribunal against former Toul Sleng commander Kaing Guek Eav, also know as 'Duch' Tuesday, March 31, 2009, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. On the first day of the trial prosecutors alleged that the former Khmer Rouge commander oversaw grisly atrocities at the Phnom Penh prison and that all who were imprisoned there were marked for death.(AP Photo/David Longstreath)

Cambodians walk into the court room for a trial of a former Khmer Rouge prison chief Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, at a U.N.-backed tribunal Tuesday, March 31, 2009, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.(AP Photo/Heng Sinith)

Cambodian Muslim students walk into the court room for a trial of a former Khmer Rouge prison chief Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, at a U.N.-backed tribunal Tuesday, March 31, 2009, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.(AP Photo/Heng Sinith)

Cambodian security force members stand watch outside the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia on the second day of a UN-backed tribunal against former Toul Sleng commander Kaing Guek Eav, also know as 'Duch' Tuesday, March 31, 2009, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. On the first day of the trial prosecutors alleged that the former Khmer Rouge commander oversaw grisly atrocities at the Phnom Penh prison and that all who were imprisoned there were marked for death.(AP Photo/David Longstreath)

Cambodians wait in line to enter the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia on the second day of a UN-backed tribunal against former Toul Sleng commander Kaing Guek Eav, also know as 'Duch' Tuesday, March 31, 2009, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. On the first day of the trial prosecutors alleged that the former Khmer Rouge commander oversaw grisly atrocities at the Phnom Penh prison and that all who were imprisoned there were marked for death.(AP Photo/David Longstreath)

Cambodian Chhim Sarom, right, 57, reads document before she attends a trial of a former Khmer Rouge prison chief Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, at a U.N.-backed tribunal Tuesday, March 31, 2009, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.(AP Photo/Heng Sinith)

Cambodian Chhim Sarom, 57, tears while she describes her biography during the Khmer Rouge regimes before attending a trial of a former Khmer Rouge prison chief Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, at a U.N.-backed tribunal Tuesday, Tuesday, March 31, 2009, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.(AP Photo/Heng Sinith)

Hun Sen talks tough on border dispute

Gulf Times
Tuesday31/3/2009

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen yesterday warned neighbouring Thailand that it would face fighting if its troops again crossed their disputed border.

The premier made the remarks a week after Cambodian officials said some 100 Thai troops briefly entered contested territory near an ancient temple where a deadly gun battle broke out last year.

“I tell you first, if you enter (Cambodian territory) again, we will fight. The troops at the border have already received the order,” Hun Sen said at a ceremony to open a road named after him in the seaside resort of Sihanoukville.

“I am the leader of Cambodia who was elected by the will of the people,not by robbing power,” he added, in an apparent reference to Thailand’s current political instability.

Hun Sen also told his audience that Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva will visit Cambodia on April 18, but blasted the Thai foreign minister Kasit Piromya for allegedly insulting him.

“He insults me — he has called me a gangster,” he said of the foreign minister.

“What if I insult your king? What would you say if insulted your prime minister and your ancestors? I’m not angry with you, but please use dignified words.”

Tensions over the long-disputed territory flared in July last year after the 11th century temple was granted UN world heritage status. Soldiers clashed in the area in October, leaving four troops dead.

Subsequent talks between Cambodia and Thailand have not resolved the dispute. Thai officials denied that any of their troops had crossed the border last week.

A spokesman for the Thai foreign ministry, Tharit Charungwat, said it had not received an official report on Hun Sen’s speech, but added that there had been a “misinterpretation” of earlier comments made by Kasit regarding Hun Sen.

“Thailand wants to avoid using force and supports using border mechanisms to solve problems. The border mechanism is working well,” Tharit said.

The border between the two countries has never been fully demarcated. AFP

Ex-warden says sorry for Khmer Rouge evil

The National

Jared Ferrie, Foreign Correspondent
April 01. 2009

PHNOM PENH // “I would like you to please leave an open window for me to seek forgiveness.”

With those words, the man facing charges for one of the 20th century’s worst mass murders admitted his role in the Khmer Rouge regime, which killed at least 1.7 million Cambodians between 1975 and 1979.

Kaing Guek Eav, better known as “Duch”, said he felt “regretfulness and heartfelt sorrow” for atrocities committed at S21, a prison he ran. As many as 17,000 people were tortured and executed at his command.

Yesterday’s statement at a UN-backed war crimes tribunal was the first time Duch has publicly addressed the families of his victims. He vowed to co-operate fully with the court.

“This is the only remedy that can help me relieve all the sorrow and the crimes I committed,” he said, first reading from a statement and then putting down his papers to continue speaking.

During a break from court proceedings, Bou Meng, one of the few survivors of S21, told reporters he was still angry at Duch, especially when he thought about his wife, who died in the prison.

“I cannot forgive Duch because of my wife’s life,” he said. “I want to beat him to death, but I respect the law and now is the time to use it.”

Dy Roathana, whose husband and father were executed by the regime, said Duch’s words brought only confusion.

“In the past he joined hands with very bad people, but now he confesses. For me now, according to what he said, he could be a good man,” she said. “But Duch did very horrible things in S21, and we still don’t understand why all those people were killed.”

While admitting that he was “responsible for the crimes committed at S21”, Duch said he first tried to turn down the job as security chief at the prison, asking for a different assignment. But the request was denied.

“Although I knew my orders were criminal I never dared to challenge the top authorities,” he said.

Panhavuth Long of the Cambodian Justice Initiative, which is backed by the Open Society Institute of the US billionaire George Soros, said Duch and his lawyers could be using the confession as a strategy to win sympathy from the judges and shift responsibility towards other former Khmer Rouge officials.

“This is very big step forward that Duch publicly said, ‘I am responsible.’ This is very powerful to me,” Mr Long said. “But the problem is whether this is really genuine acknowledgement or whether it is only because he wants to use this as a way to get sentence reduction.”

Duch, a former maths teacher, went into hiding after Vietnamese troops drove the Khmer Rouge from power. He had become a born-again Christian and was living under an assumed name while working for a western aid organisation near the Thai border when he was discovered in 1999 by Nic Dunlop, a British photojournalist.

Dunlop, who attended yesterday’s hearing, said Duch’s confession was “entirely consistent” with what he said a decade ago when the two sat face to face and Duch revealed his true identity.

“I think he’s saying that ‘I was in an impossible position’. And I think it’s up to the court to decide whether he was in an impossible position,” Dunlop said. “But he appears to be sincere in his desire to tell the truth.”

Kar Savuth, a defence lawyer, argued that Duch was being used as a “scapegoat”. Mr Savuth said there were almost 200 similar prisons throughout Cambodia, but that Duch is the only prison chief facing trial.

Prosecutors have said Duch was a high-ranking official in the Khmer Rouge security apparatus, and that S21 played a central role as headquarters of the security network. But nobody has suggested Duch was in the inner circle of Khmer Rouge leaders who orchestrated the regime’s disastrous policies, which included sending most of the population to work camps, where they starved to death or were executed en masse.

Four of the regime’s most senior leaders are awaiting trial, but the Canadian co-prosecutor, Robert Petit, wants to charge at least five more people. His Cambodian counterpart, Chea Leang, disagreed partly on the basis that it could disrupt national security, an argument also made by government officials.

After being driven from power, the Khmer Rouge waged a guerrilla war until the mid-1990s when political parties persuaded them to join the government. Khmer Rouge soldiers were incorporated into the armed forces, and many former Khmer Rouge leaders now hold official positions.

Speaking to reporters in the seaside town of Sihanoukville yesterday, Hun Sen, the prime minister, said pursuing other former Khmer Rouge leaders and forcing them to stand trial could plunge the country back into civil war.

“I would like to say that I prefer for this court to fail,” he said. “I won’t allow war to reoccur in Cambodia.”

Critics dismiss the threat and argue that the court should be free to pursue those who, in the parlance of international law, “bear the most responsibility” for crimes committed by the Khmer Rouge.

“We can see there is political interference into the prosecution,” Mr Long said. He and other observers have urged the court to charge more senior Khmer Rouge leaders for their role in the regime that killed one-quarter of Cambodia’s population.

220 kV transmission line linking Vietnam, Cambodia localities inaugurated

Nhan Dan
March 31, 2009

Nhan Dan – A 220 kV transmission line linking Chau Doc in Vietnam and Takeo in Cambodia was officially launched on March 30 by Electricity of Vietnam Group (EVN) and Electricity of Cambodia (EDC). The inauguration of the line is an essential requirement to enable Vietnam to sell electricity to Cambodia.

The 220kV Chau Doc-Takeo electric line is within the framework of the agreement signed in March 2003 between the governments of Vietnam and Cambodia and an electricity sale contract signed between EVN and EDC.

Under the agreements, EVN is responsible for building the 220 kW Chau Doc power station and a 26.5 kilometres long power line linking the station to the border while EDC will build infrastructure facilities in Cambodia to receive and transmit power from Vietnam.

According to EVN, the line has a maximum transmission capacity of 200MW with an annual power production of 900 million to 1.4 billion kWh.

Tuesday: The day in photos - Cambodia

Los Angeles Times

Cambodian Meo Soknen, 13, stands inside a small shrine full of human bones and skulls from the victims of the Khmer Rouge. The shrine is in the Kandal Steung district of Kandal province, Cambodia. Kaing Guek Eav, also know as "Duch," the commander of the infamous Toul Sleng prison, accepted responsibility today during the second day of a U.N.-backed tribual over the tortures and executions of thousands of inmates at Toul Sleng. The small shrine, 17 miles south of Phnom Penh, is one of many monuments to the "killing fields."
(Heng Sinith / Associated Press) March 31, 2009

Khmer Rouge commander expresses 'heartfelt sorrow'

Kaing Guek Eav reads a statement during his trial. Photo / AP, APTN

New Zealand Herald
Wednesday Apr 01, 2009

Maggie Tait

The Khmer Rouge's torture prison boss today stood up in court to apologise for his actions during Pol Pot's regime.

Survivors, victims families and other Cambodians who lost loved ones under the regime sat in deathly silence as Kaing Guek Eav, or Duch, addressed the Khmer Rouge Tribunal on which New Zealand's Dame Silvia Cartwright is one of five judges hearing the case.

Cambodians living in New Zealand lost relatives at Tuol Sleng or S21 prison where an estimated 17,000 people were detained, tortured and then executed.

Duch told the court he accepted responsibility for his actions and wanted to offer an "heartfelt" apology.

"I would like you to please leave an open window for me to seek forgiveness... when I recall the past I am very shocked."

However Duch emphasised that he was acting on orders and disagreed that it was his decision to order arrests and executions. He claimed he was a scapegoat and admitted having had only minimal involvement in torture.

Duch said he put his own interests first.

"I regarded the lives of my own family (more) than those who were detained at S21."

New Zealander Kerry Hamill, brother of rower Rob Hamill, ended up at S21 when the yacht he and friends were sailing strayed into Cambodian waters in August 1978. One crewman, Canadian Stuart Glass, was shot while Mr Hamill and Briton John Dewhirst were taken for interrogation.

Mr Hamill wrote a 4000 word confession about involvement with the CIA, a typical story for many of the thousands incarcerated then executed.

Rob Hamill told NZPA it was good that Duch admitted what he did was wrong.

"Which is a far cry from what the other four accused are saying at this time. I accept his confession but am reminded of the considerable evidence suggesting that he took pleasure from his work."

"It should be noted that he didn't get that job by accident. It wasn't as if he just turned up one day and started butchering people for a living. He worked himself into the position and proved to the other Khmer Rouge leaders that he was an effective and clinical murderer."

Hamill said Duch may have followed orders; "but it seems he went over and above the call of duty".

"Did he ever consider the people he murdered that they, like him, had mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, or children?"

The Khmer Rouge regime oversaw the deaths of 1.7 million Cambodians. The trial is the first of its senior leaders to be heard before the UN-backed dual international Cambodian Court.

Hamill hoped the Khmer Rouge leaders being tried would get appropriate sentences and believed the trial process was vital if Cambodia was to grow peacefully.

"I would like to emphasise that I am not seeking revenge. I want justice and the truth."

One truth the family would like more than any; "I would like him to tell me where my brother's remains are."

About 10 westerners were held at Tuol Sleng and later executed. The court was told yesterday of two incidents when five foreigners were burned in the streets of Phnom Penh, but the main evidence about the burnings is yet to be presented.

Duch faces charges including crimes against humanity, breaches of the Geneva Convention and violations of the Cambodian penal code including premeditated murder.

*Maggie Tait travelled to Cambodia with the assistance of the Asia New Zealand Foundation.
The hearing continues.
- NZPA

Survivors of the Khmer Rouge: The prince

AlJazeeraEnglish

Most Cambodians alive today lost at least one family member to the Khmer Rouge's brutal rule.

And that includes the royal family, among them Prince Thomico Sisowath, the nephew of former King Sihanouk.

But despite losing his parents to the Khmer Rouge he is not in favour of the tribunals that are now underway.He tells Al Jazeera his story.

Cambodian PM warns Thailand on border dispute

Channel News Asia

01 April 2009

PHNOM PENH: Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Tuesday warned neighbouring Thailand that it would face fighting if its troops again crossed their disputed border.

The premier made the remarks a week after Cambodian officials said some 100 Thai troops briefly entered contested territory near an ancient temple where a deadly gun battle broke out last year.

"I tell you first, if you enter (Cambodian territory) again, we will fight. The troops at the border have already received the order," Hun Sen said at a ceremony to open a road named after him in the seaside resort of Sihanoukville.

"I am the leader of Cambodia who was elected by the will of the people, not by robbing power," he added, in an apparent reference to Thailand's current political instability.

Hun Sen also told his audience that Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva will visit Cambodia on April 18, but blasted the Thai foreign minister Kasit Piromya for allegedly insulting him.

"He insults me - he has called me a gangster," he said of the foreign minister.

"What if I insult your king? What would you say if I insult your prime minister and your ancestors? I'm not angry with you, but please use dignified words."

Tensions over the long-disputed territory flared in July last year after the 11th century temple was granted United Nations world heritage status. Soldiers clashed in the area in October, leaving four troops dead.

Subsequent talks between Cambodia and Thailand have not resolved the dispute. Thai officials denied that any of their troops had crossed the border last week.

A spokesman for the Thai foreign ministry, Tharit Charungwat, said it had not received an official report on Hun Sen's speech, but added that there had been a "misinterpretation" of earlier comments made by Kasit regarding Hun Sen.

"Thailand wants to avoid using force and supports using border mechanisms to solve problems. The border mechanism is working well," Tharit said.

The border between the two countries has never been fully demarcated, in part because it is littered with landmines left over from decades of war in Cambodia.

Around 100 Thai troops briefly entered Cambodian territory on Wednesday near a disputed border temple where a deadly gunbattle broke out last year, Cambodian officials said.

Thailand's military however denied the claim, saying that they only had a few soldiers in a disputed area where troops from both sides have been posted since the clashes in October.

"There are nearly 100 armed Thai troops - fighting troops - who violated about one kilometre into Cambodian territory," Cambodian government cabinet spokesman Phay Siphan told AFP.

The Thai soldiers crossed into Cambodia about two kilometres away from the ancient Preah Vihear temple at about 1:45 pm (0645 GMT), he said.

The spokesman and the Cambodian military later said the Thai troops pulled back from the area after talks between Cambodian and Thai commanders.

"They withdrew from the area at around 5:00 pm (1000 GMT). There was no clash during the confrontation," commander Yim Pim said.

During the brief standoff, a Cambodian soldier stationed at the temple told AFP by telephone that the situation was "hot and all Cambodian troops are fully alert and prepared."

Tensions over the long-disputed territory flared in July last year after the 11th century temple was granted United Nations world heritage status. Soldiers clashed in the area in October, leaving four troops dead.

Subsequent talks between Cambodia and Thailand have not led to a resolution of the dispute.

"Both Thai and Cambodian soldiers are there in the disputed area and we have not crossed into Cambodia," said Lieutenant General Wiboonsak Neeparn, army commander for northeastern Thailand, in response to the Cambodian claims.

"We have not increased our amount of soldiers at all. We have stayed with the same amount for several months," he told AFP.

The border between the two countries has never been fully demarcated, in part because it is littered with landmines left over from decades of war in Cambodia. - AFP/de

Human issues: McMaster Symposium and Collegiate Global Summit open on Thursday

Defiance College student Jennifer Creighton demonstrates cycle beads at the Cambodian Women’s Crisis Center (CWCC) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The beads help poor Cambodian women monitor their menstrual cycles to help avert unwanted pregnancies. DC McMaster scholars and fellows have been actively engaged in research-based projects at the center for five years.

Defiance Crescent News

By JACK PALMER

palmer@crescent-news.com

Whether it's improving economic growth in Belize or sustaining healthy families in rural northwest Ohio, the 2009 McMaster Symposium and Collegiate Global Summit covers a wide range of human issues.

The fifth annual event begins Thursday at 8 a.m. and runs through Saturday.

"This not only highlights the extraordinary work of our McMaster scholars and fellows, it is an opportunity for area residents to come together to share ideas and expertise around a common theme," said Dr. Laurie Worrall, dean of the McMaster School for Advancing Humanity.

This year's theme is "Humanity at the Crossroads: Challenges to Sustainable Community Development."

"We've attempted to define sustainability and community development broadly," said Worrall. "It's tempting to think of sustainability strictly in terms of developing nations where human activities are encroaching on forests and wildlife habitats. Yet is also applies to our own existence in northwest Ohio.

"For example, how do we sustain healthy families? What is sustainable economic growth? Can we sustain the current use of natural resources in our region? How can we create more sustainable lifestyles while also retaining the freedom and liberties we enjoy?"

Worrall cited the current economic crisis as proof that people around the world are more interdependent that they have been willing to admit.

"There is a broader, more inclusive notion of humanity that is emerging that can be uncomfortable," she said. "When the conversation moves toward changing the way we've always done things, it can appear unfamiliar, even threatening. We hope this week's McMaster Symposium and Global Summit presentations begin to provoke critical reflection on the sustainability of the way we live and consume on campus, in our communities and around the world."

The two keynote speakers are Margaret Lowman and Ruby Neil Sales.

Lowman, author of Life in the Treetops and It's a Jungle Up There, has worked extensively in the area of forest canopy research, traveling around the world. She is currently visiting professor of environmental studies at New College in Florida. An avid conservationist, she frequently speaks about her jungle adventures and about rain forest conservation.

Sales is a committed long distance runner for social justice. She is a scholar, public theologian, artistic producer and educator working at the intersection of race, class, gender, violence and sexuality. She is a prolific writer whose sermons and social critiques are widely acclaimed and circulated.

As a student she worked with the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee in Alabama during the Civil Rights Movement. Sales completed her undergraduate education at Manhattanville College and attended Princeton University as a Princeton Scholar where she advanced to PhD candidacy. In 1998, she received a master's of divinity degree from Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge, Mass.

Lowman will speak Thursday at 7 p.m. and Sales will speak Saturday at 9 a.m. Both events are in Schomburg Auditorium.

"We hope the conference allows area residents to reflect on ways in which they can contribute to sustainability in their own communities," said Worrall. "This is a time to share, motivate and educate one another on the challenges we face in sustainability."

Visions of Cuba and Cambodia in Wellesley

By Anne-Marie Smolski, Townsman Staff
Tue Mar 31, 2009

Wellesley - When Nancy Carbonaro hung her photography exhibit in the Wellesley Free Library lobby at the beginning of the month it should have taken her two hours. Instead, because people were so interested in the images, it took five.

“CUBA/CAMBODIA/CARBONARO,” an exhibit of 19 photographs, is still attracting lots of attention. Carbonaro said each time she stops by the library, she has to bring more cards about the show and business cards for her photography studio on Crest Road, since they’ve been flying off the small table in front of the exhibit. As of last week, she had sold 10 photos (they are in editions of 25 per image). Proceeds from the sales will go to nonprofit foundations helping the children of Cambodia.

As the owner of Carbonaro Photography in Wellesley for the past seven years, she has specialized in creating natural, spontaneous portraits of children and families.

What is it that drives her to the slums of Phnom Penh?
“It’s the connection to the people. I use the camera to connect with people and learn who they are,” while always being careful to be respectful, Carbonaro said. That connection builds trust, she said.

In 2005, she had the opportunity to attend a private photography workshop taught by Ernesto Bazan in Cuba. When she was studying with Bazan, who has won international awards for his documentary work, she used the wide-angle lens of 28 mm, to be as close as possible to her subjects. “We had to be in our subjects’ world,” she explained.

For the workshop, she had to shoot in black and white. (The photos in the exhibit are in color. She used a Canon 20-D in Cuba and a Canon 5-D in Cambodia). Part of the workshop involved documenting various elements of life in Cuba, specifically in Vinealas and Havana. Carbonaro visited homes, tobacco farms, and even attended a cock fight. The class visited a tobacco farm, where Bazan had been documenting the family for years. “They’d raise the pig, they’d slaughter the pig. The next day they’d serve it for lunch,” Carbonaro said.

She loves learning about the customs of other countries, she said. For instance, there was the time when she was photographing a young girl who was receiving a scholarship in Cambodia. Carbonaro wanted to photograph the girl with her parents, but was told they wanted to include another person because they believed it was not good to have odd numbers of people in photos. In Cuba, she found when visiting poor families in their homes they would offer her group anything they had. “If it’s offered, it’s like a gift,” she said. How do you turn down a gift?” And although she doesn’t consider herself a “political person,” she finds that once she gets into these countries, she feels compelled to find out what’s going on there.

Inspired by her trip to Cuba, Carbonaro visited Oaxaca, Mexico, in 2006. The experience was memorable in more ways than one — a member of the workshop in which she was participating got run over by a bull. “She was a real trouper,” Carbonaro said. The woman was a little scuffed up, but OK.

In 2007, she had the time and the money to visit Cambodia, where the average family earns $400 a year.

“What I’d like to do is to get back to these countries. I’d really like to set up a project where I could be there for an extended period of time and really get to know the people,” Carbonaro said.

In the meantime, she is thinking of going to Brazil in September, and would really like to go to Appalachia. “They’re the poorest of the Americans,” she said.

Called a humanitarian photographer by Word Press, Carbonaro sees her work as “shedding light on those that live in darkness. These are the people of the world that don’t have a voice. It is her vision to give them a voice, a place to be seen and be heard.

From butter to photos
Born on wheels in an ambulance, Carbonaro is from Minneapolis. She went to college in Wisconsin, at UW-Stout.

She came to Boston when she was 30. She said she thought, “I’ll get a camera and document life in Boston.” She took continuing education classes at Mass. College of Art and New England School of Photography, and recalled that she “really started to fall in love with [photography].”

At the time she was working for Land O’Lakes in consumer product sales. “I sold butter,” she said. She continued working for Land O’Lakes for seven more years, and left as a district sales manager before starting her own photography business.

As for the work she does in Wellesley and nearby towns, she said, it’s a happy job. “I give a product to my clients that they love. It’s going to bring back, hopefully, really good memories. That’s the joy, that it makes people happy.”

Married and living in Newton, she spends her free time renovating her house. She also takes courses, and likes adventure sports, such as hiking, skiing and go-cart racing. She said she enjoys “anything that is on the edge,” anything that pushes her out of her comfort zone.

About the exhibit

CUBA/CAMBODIA/CARBONARO is on view at the Wellesley Free Library, 530 Washington St., through March 31. In April, the exhibit moves to Boston University, at the Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation, 940 Commonwealth Ave. In May, she’ll be showing at Coldwell Banker Hunneman in Jamaica Plain, and in September, the show will go up at the Center for Adult Education in Cambridge. Framed 16x20 prints are available for $295, with profits from the sale going to foundations that help the children of Cambodia. For more information, call 781-237-5990; www.carbonarophotography.com.

How the Khmer Rouge claimed a British victim

John Dewhirst was the only Briton to die at the notorious Tuol Sleng prison

By Jonathan Greenwood
BBC News

Hilary Holland is unimpressed with the news that the Khmer Rouge leader who ordered her brother's execution 30 years ago has admitted responsibility for his crimes.

Kaing Guek Eav - also known as Comrade Duch - expressed "regretfulness and heartfelt sorrow" for his actions at a long-awaited UN-backed tribunal in Cambodia.

"I'm not a vindictive person" she says, "but personally it won't make me feel any different. What happened to my brother can't be undone.

"There has to be accountability, there has to be truth. But sorry is not enough. There's nothing he could say that would make me feel better about what happened."

Duch stands accused of torture, crimes against humanity and premeditated murder on a massive scale. It is alleged that he oversaw the deaths of more than 10,000 people. The Khmer Rouge killed up to two million people in less than four years.

Ms Holland's brother, John Dewhirst, was among the victims. In 1978, the 26-year-old teacher was captured, tortured and killed at the notorious Tuol Sleng prison. He was the only Briton among 17,000 Cambodians to die there.

Taking a holiday from his job as a teacher, he had been sailing through the Gulf of Thailand with two friends, when their boat strayed into Cambodian waters. When it was intercepted by a Khmer Rouge patrol boat, one of the party, Canadian Stuart Glass was killed immediately.

John and the other crew member, New Zealander Kerry Hamil were taken to the now infamous Tuol Sleng prison, also known as S-21. There they were tortured until they confessed to being CIA agents, before being executed.

John's sister Ms Holland, now a solicitor based in Cumbria, learned of his fate by listening to the news. Eventually the Foreign and Commonwealth office confirmed he had been captured by the Khmer Rouge, and that he was probably dead.

More than 30 years on, she is still traumatised by what happened.

Fighting back the tears she says: "I'm a strong person. I've had knocks over the years - I experienced the death of my husband at a young age.

"I imagine the effect it's had on me is similar to all those people in Cambodia - it's permanent. Where there's an ordinary death - you miss the person who was in your life, and it hurts but the pain reduces over the years. Time's a great healer. But this doesn't get any less."
Detailed confessions

She recognises the impact that the brutal reign of the Khmer Rouge must have had on the Cambodian national psyche: "There must be a whole country of traumatised people - because of how they were killed and tortured."

The horrors of what happened inside S-21 are almost unimaginable.

Prisoners were tortured until they wrote detailed confessions - explaining how they'd been disloyal to the regime. Then they were taken to the "killing fields" at Choeung Ek, a few kilometres outside Phnom Penh. There they were executed, often bludgeoned to death with iron bars on the orders of Duch.

Victims were frequently made to dig their own graves.

Duch, who was meticulous in recording those who passed through S-21 described John as a polite young man - but that didn't save him.

His confession - signed and dated the 5th of July 1978 - is entitled "Details of my course at the Annexe CIA college in Loughborough England."

Among the bizarre claims is that Loughborough was one of six CIA colleges in the UK.

Hilary Holland says she had no idea how John was killed until recently. She decided not to attend the trial in person. "It would be too hard, and it wouldn't achieve anything," she says.

But she recognises its importance: "If this trial can in any way help any of those people - then it should happen.

"It's of such historical importance and it's a matter of public record. The more information that can be made available, then the better historically speaking and it might stop these things happening again."