Goals galore in CPL's first stanza

The Phnom Penh Post
Friday, 10 July 2009
Ken Gadaffi

A half-dozen front-runners emerge to vie for the league’s 1-million-riel top-scorer prize, along with the sides likely to be competing in the Super Four tournament at season’s end

Photo by: NICK SELLS
Kirivong Sok Sen Chey’s top scorer, Julius Chukwumeka (right), tries an audacious curled effort at the Spark FC goal during their Cambodian Premier League match at Olympic Stadium on May 20.

Goals light up CPL first chapter
The first half of the Cambodian Premier League season witnessed plenty of goals, with no fewer than 59 players able to find the back of the net. The FFC has created a prize of 1 million riels (US$240) for the season's top scorer as an incentive for players.

Nigerian born Prince "Uche" Justine of Spark FC presently leads the pack with a sublime nine from nine games, while homegrown hero and current Hun Sen Cup golden boot holder, Kouch Sokumpheak of Khemara Keila closely trails with seven. Also in the running is Olisa Emeka Onyemerea of Preah Khan Reach with six goals to his name, while boy wonder Keo Sokgnorn of Phnom Penh Crown and Nigerian Julius Chukwumeka of Kirivong Sok Sen Chey keep sight of the leaders with five each.

A total of 137 goals were scored in the first stanza of the CPL, with Naga Corp providing the top offensive stat of 26 goals. Naga have the distinction of scoring five in a single game twice already. Unsurprisingly, early relegation candidates Post Tel Club and Phouchung Neak have the worst attacking record with 6 goals apiece.

Photo by: NICK SELLS
Khemara Keila’s gifted striker Kuoch Sokumpheak celebrates scoring against Post Tel Club on June 7.

On the other hand, league leaders Preah Khan Reach have the tightest defense, conceding just six goals compared to the woeful 23 let in by Post Tel.

With hostilities set to resume this weekend, the battle for the top scorers' award will be fierce, with frontmen vying for the top prize. If Uche Justine's purported move to Phnom Penh Crown transpires, who can predict what tally he will end the season with after playing with some of the league's best providers.

With clubs pursuing a top-four finish to qualify for the Super Four post-season competition and lower sides looking to claw their way out of the relegation zone, the second half of the CPL season promises to provide many more exciting goals.

CPL Mid-season Roundup

THE CONTENDERS:
Preah Khan Reach (PKR)
The military police side have outdone themselves in the race for this year's Cambodian Premier League (CPL). With reigning champions Crown snapping at their heels just 3 points back, they will look to continue their fine form in the second half. The team has been a little quiet during the mid-season transfer window, but if they succeed with the signing of former Nigerian youth international Michael Ekene and Cameroon-born Allen Njoh Njoh to add to an impressive squad that includes Olisa Onyemerea, Sam El Nasa and Khoun Laboravy, they look unlikely to relinquish their top position. (BPL equivalent: Liverpool)

Phnom Penh Crown
Old soldiers never die, as they say and Crown have proved it again. Barely four weeks ago, the league champions and Cup holders were down in seventh position, but three consecutive wins have seen them lifted up to second. They are the team most likely to dethrone PKR from the top spot, with manager Makara Be looking set to add the league's top scorer Prince Uche Justine and former Naga striker Usman to replace loaned-out striker Jean-Roger Lappe Lappe and Tunji Ayoyinka, who is set to leave for Turkey soon. The double champions will surely be firing on all cylinders when the league resumes this weekend. (BPL equivalent: Manchester United)

Photo by: NICK SELLS
Phnom Penh Crown’s talented young forward Keo Sokngorn (right) bursts through the Naga Corp defence during their Samdech Hun Sen Cup final March 28.

Naga Corp
The 2007 champions have continued to falter when it matters most. With an glittering array of stars like Meas Channa, Sunday Okonkwo, Chhim Sambo, Teab Vathanak and Yemi Oyewole, and the amount of support the team gets from its wealthy sponsors, Naga should be winning nearly everything. They churned out some good result towards the end of the first stanza but will have to work hard in the second to guarantee the other two heavyweights don't run away with it. (BPL equivalent: Chelsea)

Khemara Keila
Khemara started the season with a gut-wrenching loss to Kirivong Sok Sen after taking a two-goal lead, only to fall 2-4. The team stuttered in the early rounds but found their feet towards the mid-season break. Manager Salang Kang believes his modest and young side can go all the way to qualify for the super four, after which anything could happen. With international star striker Kouch Sokumpheak staying fit and remaining in cracking form, his goals and buildup play will go a long way to help the 2006 champions realizing their dreams. (BPL equivalent: Arsenal)

THE PRETENDERS:
Kirivong Sok Sen Chey
The Team from Takeo surprised everyone by heading the table for the better part of the first rounds. However, the past three games have seen the team run out of steam with only one point from a possible nine. It seems inevitable that they are on a downwards trajectory, and the incessant change of technical crew has done little to help their cause. Even with the club's top scorer, Julius Chukwumeka, netting regularly, the defense continue to let in late goals, not indicative of a team aspiring for a top finish. The club has been busy in the mid-season and has reportedly snapped up a pair of players from struggling side Phouchung Neak. (BPL equivalent: Wigan)

National Defense Ministry (MND)
The team more popularly known as the "Army" by locals have endeared themselves to the hearts of many neutrals. MND are the only side without a foreign player in their team, and are thus lacking in the physicality and football knowledge required at the top level. However, the youthful side make up for that deficiency with their pace and passing game. They have failed to live up to expectation in the first round, and despite losing the same number of games as Crown, they have drawn nearly half of their games in the first round. If MND can turn their draws to wins in the second half of the season, they will surely be able to break into the top four. (BPL equivalent: Fulham)

Spark Fc
The Spark Entertainment Centre team has been entertaining the fans this year. After going three games without a loss, they fell in three straight and drew three more. The team lies in the seventh position, and with a financial crisis threatening to disband the recently promoted side, one only hopes that the team can avoid relegation and attract new sponsors for the next campaign. (BPL equivalent: Hull City)

Build Bright United (BBU)
Meas Samoeurn of BBU has been modest about his team's achievement when the team was flying high at the beginning of the season. Aside from the revelation of Spark, BBU is the team that has finally given the big teams a run for their money. With a stunning victory against Crown earlier in the season, the team has never really looked back. Unfortunately, BBU were distracted by university league games, and lost the coveted top-four spot to Khemara Keila. With the signing of former PKR striker Augustine Ogbemi, the team is set to reclaim their elite position, despite their lowly current placing of eighth. (BPL equivalent: Tottenham)

THE IN AT THE DEEP-ENDERS:
Post Tel and Phouchung Neak
Barring a miracle, both clubs seem doomed for relegation with a collective effort of just four points. The transfer window saw the Navy side loose some of their best local legs, while Post Tel's gloomy financial situation didn't allow any star signings either. With 9 points separating Post Tel from relegation zone, a string of good results and loss of form by other teams might see a turnaround for the team. (BPL equivalents: Middlesbrough and Newcastle of last year)

University students show fair play

Photo by: NICK SELLS
A student volleyball player from Norton University (yellow vest) springs to spike through the guards of Build Bright University students during their University Championship game inside Olympic Stadum on Thursday.

The Phnom Penh Post
Friday, 10 July 2009
DENE MULLEN

National University Championships conclude Thursday with a well-attended volleyball final at Olympic Stadium, wrapping up along with tournaments in basketball, football and athletics

ONCE per year, university students across Cambodia are given respite from their studies for a two-week period in July. The sporting elite from the academic world swap textbooks for trainers and seminars for stadiums to take part in the University Championships.

The competition has a 10-year history, with both competitors and supporters eagerly anticipating the opportunity to compete against their peers. Each university provides teams to participate in four different disciplines: football, basketball, volleyball and athletics, with the events mainly played in Phnom Penh's Olympic Stadium.

This year, five institutions took part in the event: Build Bright University, Norton University, University of Technology, Human Resource University and Mekong University. Despite the fact that there were 50 percent fewer teams competing than the previous year, the standard of play remained high.

With the court still looking dangerously wet just minutes before the final day of the basketball tournament, a number of cleaners tried their best to soak up puddles with the limited tools available.

Going into Wednesday's game, Human Resource University had already clinched the crown, meaning their game against Mekong University was academic.

The champions, playing in red jerseys, put on a basketballing master class against Mekong University and raced into a 34-22 lead by half-time. Their most effective work was done off the boards, with Touch Sothearith often gathering crucial rebounds and launching swift counterattacks that the Mekong defence was powerless to prevent.

There was a brief rally from Mekong after the interval, inspired by Phat Sarum, as they scored eight unanswered points to close the gap to just four. Their respite was short-lived, however, and despite barely budging from second gear, Human Resource soon regained their dominance and ran out a comfortable 15 points ahead, 56-41.

It was a hugely enjoyable occasion, with one of the most striking aspects being the exceptionally high level of sportsmanship on display. Players always helped one another up, apologised to one another after fouls and respected the referee's decisions.

Mak Chanphirun, General Secretary of the Cambodian Basketball Federation, was clearly delighted with the way the tournament had gone: "Human Resource University certainly deserved their title, but this year was one of the most competitive we have had, with all the teams quite evenly matched," he said. "There were a lot of games decided by just two or three balls, which made it very exciting, and I think this is a good thing for the competitiveness of the championship and for the game as a spectacle."

Photo by: NICK SELLS
Cambodian Basketball Federation General Secretary Mak Chanphirun.

However, despite paying huge testament to the players' efforts and to the friendly-yet-competitive nature of the event, Mak Chanphirun voiced concerns over Cambodia's ability to take the game to the next level.

"It is difficult for the players to improve because there aren't many tournaments, which means there isn't much opportunity for them to train," he remarked. "When the University Championship is coming, they will usually train for two or three months beforehand. If we had more competitions in Cambodia, the players would train more, and the standard would improve; that is where we would like to get to eventually."

It was a sentiment echoed by Lor Syngharith, Assistant Coach of Cambodia's national team, who stated that basketball is still not popular in Cambodia compared to other sports. "This is largely down to the fact that the equipment needed to play it is expensive," he noted. "Especially when compared to football or volleyball, and this makes it less accessible for the people. These other sports are already played everywhere and it is easier for the public to do so, so it will be difficult for basketball to catch up."

Following what was a hugely enjoyable occasion for all concerned, such comments, if realistic, seemed to be overly negative. Thankfully, there were no such downbeat ruminations Thursday, despite the fact that players and fans alike had to assemble at the ungodly hour of 7:30am for the volleyball final.

With a packed arena to entertain, the players of Build Bright and Norton Universities soon set about putting on a most intoxicating show of sporting prowess and drama. With the final played in a best-of-five series, it all seemed set for a whitewash when Build Bright took a two sets to zero lead, winning the first 25-23 and the second 25-20.

The Build Bright supporters were in full voice, exchanging good-natured songs and cheers with their opponents on the other side of the arena. Out of nowhere though, Norton turned their game around in the third encounter and had two match points at 24-22, only for Build Bright to pull it back to 24 apiece.

The noise was incessant, and when Norton deservedly took the set 27-25, the joy and celebrations were a sight to behold. A fourth set ensued, and with the score at 24-23, there was a net battle Build Bright thought they had won only for the referee to intervene and controversially give the point to Norton.

The game then see-sawed dramatically, with both teams throwing away match points before Norton took the series to a fifth and final set, in which they eventually triumphed 31-29. It seemed, however, that their heroics had taken the wind out of them, and when Build Bright triumphed by five clear points in the final set, the mixture of excitement and exasperation was tangible.

Smiles, though, were a permanent fixture on the faces of both sets of players and on the thousands of supporters who had added so much to the spectacle. It had been a thrilling morning of sport, at times exhausting just to watch, and this is something to be cherished.

There is a preoccupation here with how Cambodian sport measures up against that of other countries, a constant worry and dissatisfaction about the quality on display. At the moment though, most sports are in their infancy, and there is none of the pressure involved in most Western countries, where footballers are millionaires in their teens and entire futures can depend on how a basketball player performs in a single college game.

If there was an overriding emotion which prevailed at the University Championship, if one adjective could be used to describe it, it would be fun. And in the end, isn't that what sport is meant to be all about?

NOCC hold seminar to promote national sporting talent

Photo by: HENG CHIVOAN
National Sports Foundation General Secretary Vath Chamroeun speaks during the seminar Wednesday.

Photo by: HENG CHIVOAN
48-year-old Keo La shows off her Petanque medals won in previous SEA Games and competitons.

The Phnom Penh Post
Friday, 10 July 2009
DAN RILEY

THE National Olympic Committee of Cambodia (NOCC) held a seminar at the Sunway hotel in Phnom Penh on Wednesday to help promote their activities and attract sponsors and funding for the development of sport in the Kingdom.

According to a handout from the NOCC, a master plan has been drawn up to improve the talent of local athletes for international tournaments.

"We understand right now that sport [has] become more and more popular in Cambodia," reads the NOCC's glossy pamphlet. "People are proud when our athletes win the international tournaments."

NOCC's stated objectives include developing talent through modern training and coaching, identifying and nurturing future athletes, improving the living conditions of athletes, training in sports ethics and the providing of legal assistance to athletes for the management of their image.

The National Sport Foundation, an industry and marketing department of the NOCC, is responsibility of attracting and managing funds for the development of Cambodian athletes. General Secretary of the Foundation Vath Chamroeun said they will be looking in many different areas, both in the private and public sectors, for investment and sponsorship to help raise capital to be directed to athletes and sports federations. "Now we are just starting to promote [our cause]," said Vath Chamroeun Thursday. "If we have sufficient [support] we will look to help federations' administration. Athletes are the same as soldiers - they represent our country. So, everybody must support them."

The NOCC's new Web site www.camnoc.org was officially presented at the seminar by NOCC President Thong Khon and technical advisor Chriv Kosona, with Vath Chamroeun calling it "an important tool in Cambodian sports promotion".

Sporting achievers receive plaudits
SEA Games medallists were also honoured in a presentation by NOCC General Secretary Meas Sarin, with the tracksuit-clad athletes proudly showing off their gleaming decorations.

The FOCC claimed they currently organise national championships in tennis, tae-kwondo, wrestling, boxing, athletics, beach volleyball, petanque (which they call simply petan) and 25 other sports, as well as frequent international friendly matches.

Thong Khon said Thursday that they were looking to send over 100 delegates to the upcoming 25th SEA Games in Vientiane, Laos, this December, although over 200 were sent to the previous Games in Thailand 2007. Cambodia's most successful discipline during those games was petanque, with the team finishing second overall to Thailand, capturing two golds, three silvers and two bronzes.

This year, the NOCC will be organising delegates for the seven events named above, with more sports welcome to join providing their fund themsleves.

Thong Khon said the NOCC trains around 340 athletes in their sports training centre, located in the grounds of Olympic Stadium, but called on all public to provide support for their drive for greater Cambodian sporting achievements.

Swiss delegation visits

The Phnom Penh Post
Friday, 10 July 2009
STEVE FINCH

The International Business Club (IBC) will host a Swiss delegation of government officials and businesspeople in Phnom Penh, it said Thursday. The meeting today – which is to include Minister of Commerce Cham Prasidh – forms part of a two-day visit by the group, which will “investigate the business environment and assess investment opportunity in Cambodia”, an IBC statement said.

Senior Chinese legislator meets Cambodian guest

www.chinaview.cn

2009-07-10

BEIJING, July 10 (Xinhua) -- Chen Zhili, vice chairwoman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, China's top legislative body, met Friday with a delegation from the Cambodian National Assembly.

The delegation is headed by Chheang Vun, chairman of the committee for foreign relations, international cooperation and media.

The delegation arrived in China Thursday for an eight-day tour. After Beijing, they will visit east China's Dalian City and Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province.

Editor: Wang Hongjiang

Cambodia’s poorest the target of new food security and social safety net program

http://www.webnewswire.com

Submitted by Business Desk on July 10, 2009

When high food prices hit Cambodia in 2008, the country’s poorest and most vulnerable people were hit hard – highlighting weaknesses in existing smallholder agricultural production systems and throwing an estimated 100,000 families back into poverty. Then, the financial crisis saw around 200,000 garment, construction and tourism workers lose their jobs, bringing into focus the need for stronger social protection mechanisms across Cambodia.

To complement the country’s efforts to address Cambodia’s food security and social protection needs, the World Bank today approved a US$13 million Smallholder Agriculture and Social Protection Support Development Policy Operation (DPO). The program – which builds on recent efforts by Australia, Japan, Germany, ADB, the Food and Agricultural Organization and the World Food Programme – aims to boost food security for poor households and expand safety net support.

“High food prices and the global economic crisis have threatened to undermine Cambodia’s decade-long economic growth and poverty reduction,” said Qimiao Fan, World Bank Country Manager for Cambodia. “This operation will help to improve social safety nets and agricultural production systems through better policies, strengthened institutional frameworks and improved transparency and governance.”

In particular, the program sets out to ensure better oversight and regulation of agricultural inputs such as fertilizer and seeds to improve food productivity at the small farm level. It will also accelerate the registration of farmers’ groups so that individual famers can better access credit and marketing opportunities for their crops. At the same time, the program will improve targeting of the country’s social protection systems to reach the country’s neediest people.

The US$13 million DPO is made up of an $8 million grant from the Global Food Crisis Response Program (GFRP) and a $5 million credit from IDA, the World Bank’s fund for low income countries. The Australian Government, through AusAID, is contributing $AUD2.8 million for technical assistance to support the program.

The GFRP is a multi-donor financing facility administered by the World Bank that provides financial and technical support to countries affected by the food crisis.

Restrictions on the Freedom of Expression in Cambodia's Media 2008

LICADHO

http://www.licadho-cambodia.org

This briefing paper updates the LICADHO report published in May 2008, Reading Between the Lines: How Politics, Money & Fear Control Cambodia’s Media . It highlights the ongoing restrictions to Cambodia’s media, providing an updated listing of Cambodia’s news media covering newspapers, radio, television and internet sites, and also has a table highlighting reported attacks and threats made against the media during the period 1 January 2008 to 31 March 2009.

Released in May 2009

View this document (PDF, 652.21 KBs)

View this document in Khmer / មើលឯកសារនេះជាភាសាខ្មែរ (PDF, 1.63 MBs)

CAMBODIA Missioner priests face heavy workload

Bishop Emile Destombes, (second from right), praying in front of an image of Saint John Mary Vianney at the St. John Mary Vianney Major Seminary on June 19

http://www.ucanews.com
July 9, 2009

PHNOM PENH (UCAN) -- In Cambodia, where religious freedom revived only during the 1990s, most Catholic priests are still foreigners and feeling the strain resulting from many responsibilities.

"In Cambodia right now, we only have five local priests. So missioners like me must work in the parishes too," said Father Paul Roeung Chatchai of the Thai Missionary Society. There are a total of 62 priests in the country.

He admitted it is a challenge to juggle his many responsibilities. The Thai priest is pastor of three parishes. "Every Sunday I have to go around Phnom Penh to celebrate Mass and meet Catholics," he said.

Apart from his parish work, he is also the deputy director of the Phnom Penh vicariate's catechetical committee and a member of its health committee. Moreover, he is also working to produce a liturgy book in the Khmer language. Only a few months ago, he was made a coordinator of the Church's mass media office and the Cambodia Catholic Cultural Center.

One layperson who appreciates the work of priests is Hom Toeur, a member of the youth committee of Phnom Penh apostolic vicariate.

"They help the poor and sick, support poor children with their education, and conduct many activities. I know a priest who has responsibilities in three or four parishes. We are really in need of more local priests," the 28-year-old told UCA News.

The shortage of priests, especially local ones, has prompted at least one person, Moung Ros to enter the major seminary. "Although we have many missioners, we need more local priests to serve the Church. We must make the Cambodian Church our own," he told UCA News.

To help seminarians appreciate the mission of the priesthood more, Father Bruno Cosme, rector of St. John Mary Vianney Major Seminary, said he is planning monthly sharing sessions on the lives of priests at the seminary starting from September. He is also planning to promote vocations to the priesthood in parishes.

Father Cosme said the Year for Priests is an occasion for all priests to reflect deeply on their mission and responsibilities. "There are many things we have to learn such as loyalty, faithfulness, love, living a simple life, and serving the poor."

Pope Benedict XVI proclaimed a special Year for Priests starting on June 19, the feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the death of Saint John Mary Vianney, patron of parish priests.

Sister Gertrude Ditching, in charge of the Don Bosco Vocational Training Center for girls, said the special year is a call for the renewal of all priests, "who are very important for the Church." The nun also sees the Year for Priests as an occasion for promoting local vocations.

The local Church celebrated the Year for Priests at St. John Mary Vianney Major Seminary on June 19.

Bishop Emile Destombes, apostolic vicar of Phnom Penh, celebrated Mass with eight other priests. He said that "Jesus Christ is a great priest" and the "Church today needs truly loyal priests to continue the mission of Christ."

RIGHTS-CAMBODIA: Decades Later, S-21 Survivors Recall Ordeal

Australia.TO
http://www.australia.to

Written by Robert Carmichael

PHNOM PENH, Jul 9 (IPS) - ”They cuffed me and told me to lie on the floor with my face facing down,” the old man told the judges.

”They had a bunch of sticks and dropped it on the floor and it made a noise. I was asked to choose the stick I preferred. I said: ‘Whichever one I choose you will still beat me with it, so it is up to you, Brother, which one to use.'”

Those words comprise less than a minute of a full day of harrowing testimony delivered in Phnom Penh last week by Khmer Rouge survivor Bou Meng at the ongoing U.N.-backed tribunal, known as the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC).

Bou Meng was describing his experiences of torture at the security prison called S-21. Perceived enemies of the Khmer Rouge state known as Democratic Kampuchea were imprisoned, tortured and murdered at S-21 between 1975 and 1979, when the Khmer Rouge regime was overthrown.

More than 15,000 people were sent to the prison. Just a handful survived.

A famous photograph taken in the early 1980s shows the seven known survivors standing outside S-21, their arms around each other. Four of the seven men have since died.

The men survived solely because they had skills that the prison commandant, Comrade Duch, found useful.

Last week represented the chance for the three survivors in that photograph to tell the court of their experiences at the trial of Duch, whose real name is Kaing Guek Eav, for crimes against humanity. Duch faces life in jail if convicted.

Their testimony brought to life the horrors of the period between 1975 and 1979, during which two million Cambodians died.

The three men were just ordinary people, caught up in a terrifying time: Cambodia in the 1970s as the Khmer Rouge regime began to consume itself. At the time of his arrest, Bou Meng was making agricultural tools at a cooperative, and his wife worked in the rice fields.

He told the court that the couple were arrested in mid-1977 and transported to S-21. They were separated on entering the prison, and he never saw his wife again. Bou Meng was photographed, stripped, and shackled with other prisoners to a metal bar in what had been a classroom at the former school.

”In that room there were about 30 to 40 of us. In one corner I saw a tall, white foreigner who was detained there as well near me. He received the same thin gruel ration as the rest of us. We had very little rice. I was so skinny. I had no strength,” he said.

All three men spoke of an unbearable lack of food and water, and of being treated worse than animals. Prisoners at S-21 were tortured as a matter of course û they suffered beatings, whippings and electric shocks.

The point of the torture was purely to get them to confess to their supposed crimes. The three survivors, who arrested separately between mid-1977 and late 1978, were accused of having joined the CIA and the KGB in a supposed bid to bring down the government.

In Orwellian style, to be at S-21 was to be guilty. So there was no chance of proving your innocence. The only option was to confess, after which you would be killed û or ‘smashed' in the language of the time.

And as Bou Meng told the court, querying why you had been arrested was pointless. The state û known as Angkar û was regarded as unerring, all-seeing and all-knowing.

”I said (to the guards): ‘My wife and I are orphans. What mistakes have we made?'” Bou Meng told the court. ”They replied: ‘You, you contemptible. You don't have to ask. You know that Angkar has many eyes like a pineapple. If you hadn't made a mistake, Angkar would not have arrested you.'”

Bou Meng, who survived an extraordinary 18 months at S-21, was falsely accused, as were many of S-21's inmates including the other two witnesses who spoke last week.

Vann Nath, who is today one of Cambodia's most famous artists, told the court that the Democratic Kampuchea regime had robbed him of his dignity.

He explained how 60 prisoners were shackled in a large room at S-21. Inmates died regularly, and would remain shackled to the living until late evening when their corpses were removed. After a month of surviving eating just three teaspoons of rice gruel a day, a guard came for him. Vann Nath gave up hope, knowing he would be killed.

But he wasn't û Duch had heard of Vann Nath's skills as a painter. Angkar needed people to paint portraits of its leaders, and so Vann Nath was put to work alongside Bou Meng, painting giant canvases. Vann Nath survived for a year.

The third witness, a mechanic called Chum Mey who is now 79, told the court how he was arrested and taken to S-21. He eventually broke under torture and confessed to being part of a non-existent KGB/CIA plot.

But instead of being killed, he was allowed to live because his skill û fixing sewing machines û was useful to Duch, who needed someone who could mend machinery. Chum Mey was put to work fixing sewing machines, a water pump and even typewriters.

The three men eventually got their freedom after the Vietnamese-backed liberation army invaded Cambodia, capturing Phnom Penh on Jan. 7, 1979.

The losses suffered by the three survivors represent a microcosm of the larger catastrophe wrought upon Cambodia: Bou Meng's wife was almost certainly murdered on Duch's command at S-21. Chum Mey's wife and four children died at the hands of the Khmer Rouge. Vann Nath's wife survived the Khmer Rouge years, but their two children died.

And although none of them will forget their experiences, testifying did bring some relief. Bou Meng told the court: ”Now finally I am before the ECCC, and the ECCC can find justice for me. I feel so happy, even if 100 percent justice cannot be provided. Fifty or 60 percent justice is fine.”

Vann Nath too spoke of his hopes.

”I never imagined that I would be able to sit in this courtroom today to describe my plight and experience to the younger generation,” Vann Nath said. ”This is my privilege and my honour. I don't want more than that. I want something intangible û justice for those who died. That is my only hope of what can be achieved by this chamber.”

Still, many survivors of the Khmer Rouge regime will never receive a satisfactory answer to perhaps the most important question û why did these terrible things happen to me?

As the former painter Bou Meng said: ”In our cooperative, my wife and I worked hard every day. Even today I cannot think what mistake I made.”

Tension Rising along Thai-Cambodia Border

2009-07-10
Xinhua
Web Editor: Xu Leiying

Thai villagers, who live in Sao- Thong-Chai sub-district at Gan-ta-ra-lak district of the northeastern province of Sri-sa-ged, next to the Thai-Cambodian border, on Friday have been warned of a possible military clash between the two neighboring countries.

"Thais have been told of getting away from the Thai-Cambodian border as they might be injured from the possible fight and trap mine," the Thai language news agency Matichon Online quoted Boonmi Bua-dton, head of the Sao-Thong-Chai administrative organization as saying.

He said though the border situation is now still normal, he has already contacted with involved parties in a bid to get prepared for the possible evacuation if the border clash occurs.

It is reportedly said that Cambodia has deployed six tanks with a large number of soldiers at Go-moon village next to the historical Preah Vihear temple.

The Cambodian reinforcement of the tanks and military forces has suggested they are ready to fight against the Thai army.

Meanwhile, it is reportedly said Thailand's Second Army Region spent some 20 million baht (586,860 U.S. dollars) for building 20 large-scaled bunkers at the boarder stronghold near the ancient temple in preparation for the possible intrusion.

The border tension has renewed from June 25 when both sides have started the military reinforcement at the disputed border after the Thai government said it would ask the UNESCO to review a World Heritage status given to the Hindu Temple of Preah Vihear.

UNESCO's inscription of the temple announced in July last year is against the UNESCO's regulations and spirit since it has created dispute between Thailand and Cambodia, the Thai government said.

Thailand and Cambodia have historically laid claim to the site, which is located on a mountain top on the Thai-Cambodia border, but can only be easily accessed from Thailand.

The disputed area of 4.6 square kilometers along the Thai- Cambodian border has not been demarcated.

The International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that the Preah Vihear temple belonged to Cambodia.

Cambodia deploys tanks at border

By: BangkokPost.com
Published: 10/07/2009

Cambodia is reported to have deployed six tanks and a large number of troops along its border with Thailand near Preah Vihear temple on Friday morning.

It was also reported that Thai troops have built 20 large bunkers to strengthen their positions on the border against any Cambodian troop incursions.

Chief of the Sao Thong Chai Tambon Administrative Organisation in Si Sa Ket’s Kantharaluck district, Boonmee Buatan, said he had warned people to refrain from traveling to border area near the ancient Khmer temple.

He was also in touch with state agencies in case people needed evacuating if there was any fighting.

Large Floral Basket Sent to DPRK Embassy by Cambodian King

KOREA NEWS SERVICE
http://www.kcna.co.jp

Pyongyang, July 9 (KCNA) -- Norodom Sihamoni, King of Cambodia, sent a large floral basket to the DPRK embassy in Phnom Penh on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of demise of President Kim Il Sung.

Written on the ribbon of the large floral basket were letters "We pay the highest tribute to HE Generalissimo Kim Il Sung, the eternal president of the DPRK. Norodom Sihamoni, king of Cambodia".

The delegation of the Royal Palace of Cambodia led by Kong Sam Ol, deputy prime minister in charge of the Royal Palace, visited the DPRK embassy on July 7 to lay the large floral basket before the portrait of the President upon the authorization of the king of Cambodia.

Domestic banks eye Indochina

http://vietnamnews.vnagency.com.vn

09-07-2009

HA NOI — Several domestic banks are moving into international markets, especially less developed markets in the Indochina region.

After launching a branch in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, late last month, Sacombank completed its plan to break into the Lao and Cambodian markets.

At the branch inauguration, chairman of Sacombank’s executive board Dang Van Thanh said he expected Sacombank’s Phnom Penh branch to become a major player in Cambodia’s banking system.

Thanh said Sacombank would open more branches and transaction agents in Laos and Cambodia in a move to target the countries’ small- and medium-sized enterprises as well as local and Vietnamese residents.

Preparing to make its own breakthrough in the international market, Techcombank in April signed a payment agreement on border areas with the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.

The Bank for Investment and Development of Viet Nam (BIDV) also mapped out plans to exploit the Lao market by calling for more investment in five provinces in northern Laos.

Tran Bac Ha, BIDV executive board chairman, said that in addition to promoting trade and investment with Vietnamese businesses in northern Laos, the bank would also act as a financial intermediary between businesses in the two countries.

Though it already has a representative office in the US, Vietcombank deputy general director Nguyen Thu Ha said the bank planned to set up a remittance company to make sending payment between the two countries easier.

However, Ha recommended domestic banks target less developed markets like Laos and Cambodia because they would be less competitive.

Though Viet Nam’s banking system has made great strides in recent years, there were still concerns about shortcomings in experience, risky management, technology and human resources.

A bank’s general director, who declined to be named, said if Vietnamese banks failed to deal with their shortcomings, they could face major risks operating in international markets.

Ha also said that banks must carefully select and study international markets to see whether expansion plans were suitable. — VNS

Do we need religion?

http://www2.theclarionnews.com

By the Rev. Gary Hilfiger

This is a hot question at the moment. We are shocked by radical Islam and a bit annoyed by activities of other religious groups (read that as conservative Christians or progressive Christians). Hypocrisy is a word that is thrown around frequently.

As we enter the debate we may be wise to begin with Paul Tillich, a famous twentieth century theologian, who observed that religion is the expression of our “ultimate concern.” Ultimate concern deals with the ideas we value most, these are the lenses through which we see the world.

We are often struck by the fact that other people do not see the world in the same way we do, because we differ in our ultimate concern. So to follow this line of thought, we may eliminate Islam or Christianity from the world, but people being people will continue to have ultimate concern.

Human beings will always be religious even if they do not identify themselves with one of the world religions. A man can be an atheistic Communist religiously, that is to live the ideals of Communism with passion and zeal even to the point of killing those who disagree with him.

So, although in a nutshell, I have begun a line of thought that seeks to change the question. Religion, as explained above, is inevitable. People will act with passion according to their ultimate concern.

We need to see the good in this, animal lovers support humane animal shelters, others give to hospitals, social service agencies, orchestras, museums, etc. We all benefit.

The other side of the coin is that passionate people can turn their ultimate concern into hatred for people not like themselves. Racism cannot be identified with any religion, although much religious language has been used to justify racial feelings.

But if Christianity had never come into existence, would there still be racism? Certainly so. The killing fields of Cambodia had nothing to do with Christianity.

Because religion has been considered good, people have used its language and customs to cover their evil. But religions do not create evil, all religions are a response to evil, an attempt to understand and assist us through the upheavals in life.

This brings us back to the idea of ultimate concern. Organized religion or traditional religion handed down from generation to generation intends to help the individual form and shape his/her ultimate concern.

I fear that left to ourselves we will fall back on selfishness. This would be to make ourselves—our wants, needs—ultimate. Doing this would destroy society.

We need not look very far to see the social cost of selfishness, to items like the Madoff scandal. Indeed, how much of our present economic problems can be traced back to selfishness?

Adam Smith, the great Scottish thinker on Capitalism, knew that markets would only work if gentlemen (men of Christian character) ran them. So ultimate concern must be shaped and nurtured, historically this has been done through a very general religiosity held by a society.

We push back religion at our peril.

(Hilfiger is the pastor of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church , Shippenville.)

Japanese Official Promises to Help Cambodia Use Renewable Energy – Thursday, 9.7.2009

Posted on 10 July 2009
The Mirror, Vol. 13, No. 620
http://cambodiamirror.wordpress.com/

“Kandal: An assistant of the prime minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia Samdech Akkak Moha Senapadei Dekchor Hun Sen, Mr. Eang Sophalet, said that former Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs [1993] and former parliamentarian, Mr. Muto Kabun [武藤 嘉文 - Mutō Kabun], told Prime Minister Samdech Dekchor [Hun Sen] that he had heard the fame of the prime minister since Samdech was 30 years old through Mr. Watanas [?] who had told him that there was a young, clever, and good leader in Cambodia. Since then, he wanted to meet Prime Minister Samdech Hun Sen.

“Mr. Eang Sophalet said that on 8 July 2009, at the residence of Prime Minister Samdech Hun Sen in Takhmao, Mr. Muto Kabun went to greet the Prime Minister, as this former minister of foreign affairs visits the Kingdom of Cambodia with an intention to help Cambodia use renewable energy.

“He added that now, he met Prime Minister Samdech Hun Sen and is so pleased with the Kingdom of Cambodia, and he intends to help Cambodia, as he knew that Samdech Dekchor is strongly interested in using renewable energy. He had discussed it with leaders of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, in order to use additional Official Development Assistance (ODA) of Japan to establish renewable energy in the Kingdom of Cambodia.

“Prime Minister Samdech Dekchor expressed deep gratitude towards Mr. Muto for his intention to help Cambodia in this field. In the meantime, Samdech Dekchor would like to request Mr. Muto to consider where renewable energy should be set up and to check to establish it at remote and rural areas of Cambodia, especially at health centers where energy is needed to maintain vaccines in refrigerators and to treat patients as most of those areas do not have access to electricity.

“Finally, Samdech Dekchor expressed appreciation again for the good intentions of Mr. Muto towards Cambodia.”

Koh Santepheap, Vol.42, #6697, 9.7.2009
Newspapers Appearing on the Newsstand:
Thursday, 9 July 2009

Interventions needed in Cambodia to reduce HIV transmission from wealthier urban men to wives

http://www.aidsmap.com

Roger Pebody, Wednesday, July 08, 2009

A household survey in Cambodia found an HIV prevalence of 0.6%, and found that infection was more common in urban areas and in wealthier households, researchers report in the July 17th edition of AIDS. A number of the findings support the hypothesis that the majority of infections in men are related to buying sex and that most women are infected by their husbands. Previous monitoring of the HIV epidemic in Cambodia relied on surveys in specific groups, and suggested that prevalence was as high as 24% in injecting drug users, 21% in brothel-based sex workers, 5% in men who have sex with men, 2.5% in policemen, and 2.2% in pregnant women. These surveys did suggest that prevalence had been declining since 1998, but given weaknesses in the methodology, there was an urgent need to validate the estimates of the prevalence in the general population with a different approach. The Cambodia Demography and Health Survey recruited a national representative sample of people aged 15-49 years from all parts of the country. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with 6,514 men and 8,188 women. (More women than men were interviewed in order to collect more reliable data on other topics such as fertility and infant mortality). Interviewees also gave fingerprick blood samples for HIV antibody testing. They did not receive their test results, but were given information about free local HIV testing services. HIV prevalence in the general population was lower than expected, at 0.6% for both men and women. However it was considerably higher in urban areas than in rural areas: 1.6% in urban men, but 0.4% in rural men, with similar figures for women. (Approximately 15% of the Cambodian population live in urban areas.) HIV infection was largely limited to people who were married or had previously been married. Even adjusting for age, the highest rates were in people who were divorced, separated or widowed (women in this group were 23 times more likely to be HIV positive than single women). Moreover, because women tended to marry younger than men, infection was more common in women under the age of 29 than in men of the same age group. Thirty per cent of women were at least five years younger than their spouses, and HIV prevalence depended on the age-gap. Women who were at least ten years younger than their spouse were five times as likely to have HIV as women whose spouse was the same age. While 0.3% of sexually active women reported having more than one partner in the past year, 17% of urban men and 8% of rural men did so. Around two thirds of these men’s partners were sex workers. Men with multiple partners were four times as likely to have HIV as men who only had one partner. Both men and women who scored high on a wealth index were more likely to have HIV than poorer people, with the relationship being strongest for men. Moreover, in urban areas, men with some education had higher HIV prevalence than those with no schooling, but the opposite relationship was seen for women. The authors note that some other studies have identified links between HIV and wealth, rather than poverty. However they argue that the relationship can differ by sex. In Cambodia, the HIV epidemic is largely driven by sex work and male clients, and the survey confirmed that paid and extramarital sex are more common in men with higher socio-economic status. However, HIV in wealthier women is likely to be linked to the behaviour of husbands rather than women themselves. Nonetheless, the authors do also suggest that educated women may have greater independence, economic power and ability to negotiate with their partners. For at least ten years, prevention activities in Cambodia have intensively targeted sex workers and their clients with a focus on 100% condom use and treatment of sexually transmitted infections. The authors believe these programmes should be sustained, but call for additional interventions to reduce HIV transmission from husbands to wives. “Efforts to empower women for better access to information, education and care seem critically important,” they suggest. References Sopheab H et al. Distribution of HIV in Cambodia: findings from the first national population survey. AIDS 23:1389-1395, 2009.

KRouge victim says brother forced to kill father

A livefeed video grab shows Chin Meth, a Khmer Rouge survivor, speaking in the courtroom as a journalist listens at the Extraodinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) in Phnom Penh. A woman who said she survived the Khmer Rouge's main torture centre told Cambodia's UN-backed war crimes court that one of her brothers was forced to kill their father at the prison.
(AFP/Tang Chhin Sothy)

by Patrick Falby Patrick Falby – Thu Jul 9

PHNOM PENH (AFP) – A woman who said she survived the Khmer Rouge's main torture centre told Cambodia's UN-backed war crimes court Thursday that one of her brothers was forced to kill their father at the prison.

Nam Mon, 48, was testifying at the trial of prison chief Duch, who is accused of overseeing the torture and execution of around 15,000 people who passed through Tuol Sleng prison during the regime's terrifying 1975-1979 rule.

Nam Mon told the court her two elder brothers were guards at the notorious jail, while she initially lived and worked there as a medic before being interrogated herself.

"My first brother, Nuon, killed my father and later on he was executed," Nam Mon said. "They accused him of hesitating to kill my father."

Recognised as a civil claimant in the case against Duch, Nam Mon was revealing her story in public for the first time, said her lawyer Silke Studzinsky.

However, judges have cast doubt on the authenticity of several civil claimants who have this week testified that they were at Tuol Sleng, castigating their lawyers for not being sufficiently prepared.

Nam Mon described to the court how her father was brought into the prison blindfolded, before being stripped, tortured and killed, and said the rest of her family was later rounded up and executed.

"My mother also died at Tuol Sleng with my younger brother but they died at different times," she said, adding she was then interrogated there for three months in 1978.

"During my interrogations I was not beaten with a stick, but they tightened the shackles on my ankles," Nam Mon told the court.

She then described being transferred to the nearby S-24 "re-education centre" where she was forced to dig graves for the corpses of children, adding she was freed by invading Vietnamese troops after being sent to another jail.

She told the court that she had not been able to find her prison mugshot, but had discovered all the photos of her family members who were executed at Tuol Sleng.

The 66-year-old Duch, real name Kaing Guek Eav, begged for forgiveness from victims near the start of his trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity after accepting responsibility for his role overseeing the jail.

But he has consistently rejected claims by prosecutors that he held a central leadership role in the Khmer Rouge, and says he never personally executed anyone.

Led by Pol Pot, who died in 1998, the Khmer Rouge emptied Cambodia's cities in a bid to forge a communist utopia. Up to two million people were executed or died of starvation, overwork or torture.

Four other former Khmer Rouge leaders are currently in detention and are expected to face trial next year.

Court Calls in Another Editor for Questions

By Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
09 July 2009

A second opposition newspaper editor was issued a subpoena Wednesday, to answer questions on a number of criminal charges, just one week after the jailing of his colleague.

The subpoena calls for Dam Sith, editor of Moneaksekar Khmer, to appear in court July 14, for questioning in a government lawsuit for defamation, insult, disinformation, incitement and a “breaking of solidarity.”

Dam Sith was briefly jailed in a lawsuit brought by Foreign Minister Hor Namhong last year, after publishing remarks by opposition leader Sam Rainsy implicating the minister in the Khmer Rouge.

Dam Sith told VOA Khmer Wednesday he received the summons June 29.

“Until this time, I did not know that government sued me for any articles, and I am looking for lawyer to defend my case,” he said.

Long Dara, a government lawyer, said Dam Sith was being sued for 18 articles written between February and May, “published to incite a conflict among senior government officials without fact.”

The articles were over the appointment of Gen. Pol Saroeun to commander-in-chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces, as he replaced Gen. Ke Kim Yan.

“We have much evidence to sue Dam Sith in these cases,” Long Dara said.

“These articles attacked the government and incited to have conflict and a break-up of internal government solidarity,” he said. “In the lawsuit, we site penal charges relating to articles 60, 61, 62, and 63 in the 1992 penal code.”

The case comes in the wake of a yearlong prison sentence for another opposition journalist.

Hang Chakra, chief of the Khmer Mchas Srok newspaper, was imprisoned and fined after publishing reports in April and May that implicated Council Minister Sok An in corrupt practices.

“I would like to call for the court to seriously investigate and to request the court use the media law to sentence or to have a hearing for Dam Sith’s case,” Um Sarin, president of the Cambodian Association for Protection of Journalists, said Wednesday.

Laid-Off Workers Look Overseas for Jobs

By Ros Sothea, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
09 July 2009

In an apartment in central Phnom Penh, a group of 20 Cambodian women, many of whom have lost their jobs in Cambodia’s flagging garment sector, gathered recently to discuss finding work abroad.

Among them was Kong Soviet, who suddenly smiled when she considered her prospects of work in an electronics company in Malaysia.

“I hope I can save some money during these two years in Malaysia, so that I can make a better living,” said the 29-year-old, who was laid off at a Takeo province factory two months ago and has been applying for jobs elsewhere ever since.

Like tens of thousands of factory workers, Kong Soviet lost her job in the wake of the global economic crisis, as orders from buyers in the US and other countries dropped off.

Since August, some 70 garment factories have closed shop, leaving around 60,000 workers unemployed.

Thousands of construction workers have lost their jobs, too, as projects shut down or were delayed. Residential construction has declined up to 40 percent since the global financial crisis began.

That has meant an increase in the number of workers looking for jobs in other countries.

Since mid-April, the number of Cambodians applying for overseas jobs, including in Thailand and Malaysia, has jumped 30 percent, according to On Bun Hak, chairman of the Association for Cambodian Recruitment Agencies.

“Most of them are workers who lost their jobs from the construction sector,” he said.

Oung Chan Rithy, who runs a recruitment agency, said her company had not in the past received applications from garment factory workers, but that has changed.

“Those who lost their job from factories and want to get a job overseas have increased around 5 percent,” she said. “That number will sharply increased in the coming months after the season for rice seedlings has passed.”

Cambodia sends some 7,000 to 8,000 legal workers to Thailand, Malaysia and South Korea, each year, according to the Association for Cambodian Recruitment Agencies.

Meanwhile, an estimated 20,000 people work in Thailand illegally, in construction, tourism and services like domestic help.

Remittances from these workers is $200 million to $300 million per year.

At the onset of the financial crisis last year, demand for employment fell, as neighboring countries felt the contraction of the markets, but in the past few months, labor demands from Malaysia have increased, On Bun Hak said.

That has been due to stricter laws of emigration in Indonesia, which feeds much of the Malaysian demand, he said.

South Korea has halved its own foreign labor quota, but around 2,000 workers have managed to find work there, said Heng Sur, chief of administration for the Ministry of Labor.

Ya Navuth, president of an immigration agency watchdog called Kharam, said limited job opportunities in Cambodia will now lead to an increase in both legal and illegal work abroad.

Former Khmer Rouge Testifies in Duch Case

By Chiep Mony, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
09 July 2009

A former Khmer Rouge fighter who was later arrested and forced to work among the regime’s victims testified in the UN-backed court Wednesday, saying she was held briefly in a second prison administered by Duch.

Duch, whose real name is Kaing Kek Iev, was the chief of Tuol Sleng prison, where prosecutors say 12,380 people were killed, as well as Prey Sar prison, a second facility in Phnom Penh.

Duch is facing atrocity crimes charges for his role at both prisons, as well as administration of Choeung Ek, the site of executions and mass graves on the outskirts of the capital.

Chin Met, 51, said she had been a guerrilla fighter for the Khmer Rouge before it came to power in 1975, but in November 1977, she was arrested, bound and blindfolded. She was detained for 15 days in a Khmer Rouge prison, where she was beaten during questioning and locked in a cell.

She did not know at the time whether she was in Prey Sar or Tuol Sleng.

In response to her testimony, Duch said she must have been held at Prey Sar, because no one who was kept in Tuol Sleng was ever released. Nearly all of the prisons inmates were killed under his supervision, he said, echoing statements made Tuesday.

After her release, Chin Met told the court, she was sent to work in the fields of Kandal province, where she and other women were forced to pull plows as though they were cows.

Chin Met wept as she recalled falling down with fatigue and seeing her friends beaten unconscious by the plowman, who was also a Khmer Rouge soldier.

“When they ordered us to pull the plow, we were discouraged,” she said.

Cambodia Rings In 1st Anniversary of ‘Heritage’ Temple

By Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
09 July 2009

Cambodia celebrated the World Heritage status of Preah Vihear temple Tuesday, as bells rang in temples across the country and local television ran stories about the difficulties faced by the government as it fought to have the temple listed against the objections of Thailand.

Unesco announced the listing of Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage on July 7, 2008, sparking nationalist protests in Thailand that led to a military crisis on the border.

Hundreds of troops from both sides remain entrenched along contested border areas near the temple, with sporadic skirmishes killing at least seven so far.

Bells in pagodas and schools rang out at noon, and Cambodia’s national flag could be seen hanging from nearly all the homes in Phnom Penh.

Council Miniser Sok An said in a ceremony July 7 would be remembered as a day of success for the nation, “in the domains of culture, national heritage and world heritage.”

Meanwhile, neither side has been able to resolve the military standoff, which began days after the World Heritage listing.

Each side adheres to a different map delineating the borders, and Cambodian military officials say Thai troops have continued to amass on the border and in disputed areas.

“We will continue to fight against the invasion of Thai troops,” said Srey Deuk, commander of Division 3, which is responsible for Preah Vihear province.

Council To Decide on Prosecutor Allegations

By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
Original report from Washington
09 July 2009

The Supreme Council of Magistracy is scheduled to make a July 15 decision on a case alleging corruption and extortion by court prosecutor Kong Seth, officials said Wednesday.

Kong Seth has been suspended from his duties at Kampong Speu provincial court, pending the decision of legal or ethical wrongdoing by the Disciplinary Council, court and Ministry of Justice officials said.

Kong Seth has denied the allegations, and his wife, Lim Nei, told VOA Khmer recently she would seek the intervention of Prime Minister Hun Sen.

Officials say the prime minister has already approved the investigation.

The government has said it is committed to judicial reform, a major concern of international donors, who provide millions of dollars in aid to the country each year.

Legal experts say such reform has lacked transparency and accountability, claiming that many judges and prosecutors, for example, are beyond retirement age and continue to work, despite a growing number of young legal professionals.

More Khmer Rouge horror

iafrica
http://news.iafrica.com

Thu, 09 Jul 2009

A woman who said she survived the Khmer Rouge's main torture centre told Cambodia's UN-backed war crimes court on Thursday that one of her brothers was forced to kill their father at the prison.

Nam Mon (48) was testifying at the trial of prison chief Duch, who is accused of overseeing the torture and execution of around 15 000 people who passed through Tuol Sleng prison during the regime's terrifying 1975-1979 rule.

Nam Mon told the court her two elder brothers were guards at the notorious Tuol Sleng, while she initially lived and worked there as a medic before being interrogated herself.

"My first brother, Nuon, killed my father and later on he was executed," Nam Mon said. "They accused him of hesitating to kill my father."

Recognised as a civil claimant in the case against Duch, Nam Mon was revealing her story in public for the first time, said her lawyer Silke Studzinsky.

However, judges have cast doubt on the authenticity of several civil claimants who have this week testified that they were at Tuol Sleng, castigating their lawyers for not being sufficiently prepared.

Nam Mon described to the court how her father was brought into the prison blindfolded before being stripped, tortured and killed, and said the rest of her family was later rounded up and executed.

"My mother also died at Tuol Sleng with my younger brother but they died at different times," she said, adding she was then interrogated there for three months in 1978.

The 66-year-old Duch, real name Kaing Guek Eav, begged for forgiveness from the victims near the start of his trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity after accepting responsibility for his role overseeing the jail.

But he has consistently rejected claims by prosecutors that he held a central leadership role in the Khmer Rouge, and says he never personally executed anyone.

Led by Pol Pot, who died in 1998, the Khmer Rouge emptied Cambodia's cities in a bid to forge a communist utopia. Up to two million people died of starvation, overwork, torture and execution.

Duch sheds light on one testimony, while his lawyers discredit another

Kambol (Phnom Penh, Cambodia). 17/02/2009: Phork Khan and lawyer Martine Jacquin, at the opening of Duch’s trial at the ECCC
©John Vink/ Magnum (file picture)

Ka-set
http://cambodia.ka-set.info

By Stéphanie Gée
10-07-2009

Wednesday July 8th, the hearing opened with a twist in the case of witness Norng Chanphal, aged 8 when he was taken to S-21 with his mother. Phork Khan, another civil party, then finished testifying, after other contradictions were highlighted in his statement. He was then succeeded by a survivor of re-education centre Prey Sar (S-24), whose insufficiently focused examination lost sight of the facts being judged. The tribunal’s public gallery, which contains 500 seats, has continued to be filled with visitors. Last week, 2,078 people made the trip to the court to attend Duch’s trial.

Witness Chanphal’s mother was killed in S-21
The co-Prosecutors did not wait to announce the “good news:” the Documentation Centre of Cambodia (DC-Cam) had just found the biography of Norng Chanphal’s mother, established in S-21. In the absence of such a document, the accused had said, during the survivor’s testimony on Thursday July 2nd, that the woman had not been imprisoned in the detention centre – nor had her son, as a consequence. After the new document was shown on the screen, the defence bowed while the accused recognised its authenticity and offered his apologies, through the intermediary of the judges, to Norng Chanphal. “The document is new. I was not aware of it at the time he testified, but I accept it.” As no parties raised any objection, the document was considered as added to the file and presented to the court.

An inaccurate written statement
The hearing of civil party Phork Khan, started on the previous day, resumed with questions from the office of the co-Prosecutors. He said he had not returned to the place he believed to be Choeung Ek, where he miraculously escaped certain death. With help from local human rights NGO Adhoc, Phork Khan filed an application to join Duch’s trial as a civil party in 2008. The application file contained his story, as recorded by the organisation. In light of the many contradictions that appeared on the previous day between his written and oral statements, the co-Prosecutors proceeded to some checking: “Were you read the document?” “I read it briefly [when it was communicated to me by the NGO],” the witness answered. “I did not read everything very carefully. I was told it was very urgent to send the document back quickly, so I hastily thumbprinted it.” And it was obvious he did not have a chance to proofread or update the statement before he appeared in court.

Duch not clearly seen
Kim Mengkhy, one of Phork Khan’s lawyers, invited his client to clarify his various identities. “When I joined the revolutionary forces [in 1971], I took the name of Phork Sakoeun. Then, after the liberation [in 1975], I changed my name to Phork Saroeun.” He added “Phork Khan” was his real name, the one written on his identity card. Shortly afterwards, the civil party acknowledged he did not know at the time that “Brother of the East” was actually the chief of S-21 prison, Duch. When “Brother of the East” came to watch one of his interrogations, he “did not see him clearly” because, he explained, he was lying down, face against the floor and hands tied in his back, which prevented him from turning to look at the visitor.

One name, three names
The defence was intent on not letting Phork Khan get away with anything, whilst his testimony seemed to struggle to settle. Kar Savuth: “Yesterday, the president asked you what your name was – you replied it was Phork Khan – and whether you had other names. You said you didn’t. Yet today, your lawyer asks you the same question and you acknowledge you had three names. So, I would like to ask why you told the president you did not have any other names?”, Duch’s co-lawyer insisted. “When the president asked me that question,” the civil party said, “I didn’t know he meant the names I had before 1975… I am sorry for the mistake. I probably misunderstood the president’s question.” The lawyer lectured him, implying that the president’s question was clear…

Do you have any evidence of your detention?
“Do you have any evidence you can show the Chamber to prove that you and your wife were actually detained in S-21? You have survived, you managed to climb out of the pit, but your name must have been on a list of [S-21] prisoners destined to be smashed. And obviously, nobody knew you were going to survive. […] You said yourself you went to S-21 and did not find your biography or photography. Also, the two interrogations you mentioned did not produce any confession. […] So, do you have any evidence to support your claim that you were detained [in S-21]?”

At last, one of his lawyers came to his rescue. Kim Mengkhy observed that Duch declared to the Chamber that the two documents concerning Phork Saroeun and Phork Sakoeun, and added to the civil party application file, were indeed established in S-21 (Duch confirmed it). He added that his client “was not able to provide documentary evidence of his or his wife’s detention.” The president brushed aside the lawyer’s argument: even if the accused recognised the origin of these documents – Tuol Sleng –, they related to the period going from late 1975 to early 1976, yet “the civil party and his wife were arrested and sent to their prison in 1978.” Nil Nonn noted, “There is therefore a problem with the dates.”

A civil party that does not get unsettled
Floor to Marie-Paule Canizarès, Duch’s international co-lawyer: “Sir, we could note significant contradictions between the written statement, collected on March 12th 2009 by the organisation Adhoc, and your oral statement. The written testimony gives extremely specific details which you today contest. You told us yesterday that we should only take into account what you declared orally and not the information contained in the written statement of March 12th 2008. How can you explain the scope of these contradictions?”

Response of the civil party: “The information in the complaint and the civil party application is different from what I said during the large meeting [organised by Adhoc in his province in late 2007]. There have been some confusion, I recognise it. […] I realised it afterwards, but it was too late to change my statement.” Phork Kahn still did not get unsettled, although he was rather alone in that stance.

“What should one believe?”
The lawyer went into detail and returned to a major discrepancy. “Yesterday, at the start of the hearing, the president asked you to confirm you only had one name: Phork Khan. You said you did. But just now, in response to a question from my colleague, you indicated that actually, you hadn’t understood that the president referred to the possibility you had, before or after 1979, different names. I return to a question you were asked by judge Lavergne regarding your name. He asked you if the name of Phork Sakoeun meant anything to you. He referred to a document mentioning such a name. You said, I quote: ‘I believe that the document contains the same family name as mine, but a different first name. My lawyer showed me this document several times. It is not my name.’ But today, when asked if you used the name of Phork Sakoeun, you said ‘yes’ whereas yesterday, when you were shown documents featuring that name, you were entirely positive to say it was not your name. Here again, what should one believe?”

Phork Khan reiterated the chronology of his name changes. “Yesterday, most probably, I did not understand the question I was asked correctly and that is why I answered the way I did.” Finally, Marie-Paule Canizarès asked Phork Khan whether, before he came to testify, he attended the testimonies of other survivors before the court, which his civil party statute allows him to do. Then, as if defensive, he retorted: “I have not learned this from anyone. No NGO or no one else has helped me make my story” before admitting he was present all last week to listen to Vann Nath, Chum Mey, Bou Meng and Norng Chanphal.

His testimony ended, leaving one to wonder why his lawyers let him go to predictable disaster.

A civil party detained in 1977, but where?
Khoeum Meth, also known as Chim Meth, 51 years old, followed him at the stand. She had also joined the Khmer Rouge revolutionary forces before they took power. In her native village, in late 1974, she was mobilised like the other teenage girls under 18 to serve the revolution. Her female unit was then assigned to rice growing in Phnom Penh. She also joined Duch’s trial as a civil party, in her own name and in the name of five female cadres of her division. Arrested on November 10th 1977, she was detained for 15 days in a prison, but did not know which one, she announced from the outset. Interrogated, she was suspected of participating to CIA or KGB trainings. She felt “deceived,” as she had always done her best on the frontline, she said, before letting out her tears. After the imprisonment and three tough interrogations, she was still alive and was taken elsewhere, where she was put on forced labour.

The public called to order
Before lunch break, president Nil Nonn pointed his finger at “some unacceptable behaviour from the audience, that is some people going in and out of the public gallery during the hearing.” He called for the “disorder” to stop, the public to regain their seats before the hearing resumed and, slightly condescending, lectured the villagers who had come in mass. The words he chose were not very fortunate when the tribunal can rejoice over record attendance, in comparison to other international criminal trials organised in in the world.

The trial resumed and Khoeum Meth pursued her story. In 1978, her unit 17 was assigned to the rice fields.

Out of focus…
Constant exhaustion – “to survive, you had to work hard” –, hunger, ill-health, humiliations, insults, lack of freedom, permanent suspicion, disappearances, fear. Mrs. Meth narrated at length, inexhaustible, losing herself in details. Then, by the end of the regime, early 1979, she and her comrades refused to go meet the Vietnamese troops, whose cruelty they feared. The Khmer Rouge took the women with them as they fled, from camp to camp, until Mrs. Meth, weakened, decided to hide in a village. She was arrested by Vietnamese soldiers who first accused her of being a Khmer Rouge soldier, before releasing her and giving her a laissez-passer...

The civil party attempted to convey the images she retained of the prison where she was locked. “I remember there were other buildings and a surrounding wall;” “I heard children sobbing and pigs squealing. It smelled very bad…” Nil Nonn later noted another detail while listening to Khoeum Meth recount the discussions she had with her co-detainees: “Wasn’t it forbidden to talk amongst yourselves, between you and your colleagues in the cell? But it seems that you were able to talk a little?” “Yes. We could talk but not openly and loud,” she confirmed. “We would whisper very quietly.”

Later, her black and white photograph taken in Prey Sar was shown on the screen – at 19, she still looked like a child – as well as her biography, established in late 1977 at her former division, the 450. The picture prompted the following comment from the president: “You told us that in unit 17, you were very thin and had a skin problem. But you don’t seem so thin on the picture! That’s a picture of you ‘thin’?”

Kambol (Phnom Penh, Cambodia). 08/07/2009: Portrait of Khoeum Meth, taken during her imprisonment in Prey Sar, shown on the ECCC screens
©Stéphanie Gée

Two hours later, it was still difficult to connect the civil party’s story to the facts Duch was accused of. Also, it was still not clear where the woman had been detained and beaten. She specified that during her imprisonment, “I was thrown fish sauce and soapy water at me during the interrogations.” Seeking information, the president asked her to cite place names close to where she was then assigned to heavy farming tasks, within “unit 17,” if there were also children (“yes”), and armed guards (“no”).

“I did not want to remember”
“After the liberation [on January 7th 1979], did you go to Tuol Sleng prison?”, Nil Nonn asked her. “No, I did not go back. […] I was told to go, but I refused because when I hear the word ‘prison,’ all the pain comes back. I was told it was interesting, but I did not go, except when DC-Cam looked for survivors.” Her parents had been invited to go there, a visit organised by DC-Cam, and they discovered on a wall the photograph of their daughter, which they immediately informed the NGO about. “They [DC-Cam representatives] came to see me and showed me two photographs, on which I identified myself. But I didn’t want to do anything else. I didn’t want to remember all that I had been through. […] But in November 2007, I went back to Tuol Sleng for the first time.”

Duch dispels the mystery: a civil party imprisoned in Prey Sar
Judge Lavergne took the initiative to get the civil party’s photograph and biography authenticated. Once again, all turned to the accused for confirmation. Duch wore many hats: accused, lawyer and prosecutor… With an expert glance, he established that the two documents originated from the re-education camp of Prey Sar, which was under S-21’s authority. “You can read the mention of the former unit, which was division 450, and the then current unit, unit 17,” Duch described, before doing what no one had done until then – he read the imprisonment date indicated on the biography: “Meth arrived there on October 12th 1977.” The date did not match with the one she gave. Professional as ever, he declared: “I fully accept this document.”

Called for further comments on the detention of Mrs. Khoeum Meth, which she alleged was in S-21, the accused observed she “was detained in a place that was under the authority of division 450” and said he had in his possession a document showing that “each division had its own detention centre back then.” Duch concluded: “As far as I’m concerned, I believe that comrade Meth indeed suffered and was detained, but at the detention centre of division 450. […] If she had been transferred to S-21, she would have been killed and would not be with us today.” Finally, things became clearer.

Khoeum Meth’s testimony is to continue on the next day.

(translated from French by Ji-Sook Lee)

Cambodian former King Norodom Sihanouk arrives home from China

People's Daily Online
http://english.people.com.cn

July 09, 2009

Cambodia's former King Norodom Sihanouk and his wife Queen Monineath Sihanouk arrived home Thursday afternoon after they had spent almost a year in China for medical treatment.

Soon after arrival at Siem Reap International Airport, the former King Norodom Sihanouk and his wife proceeded straight to his royal residence in Siem Reap town where he will stay there for a while.

Norodom Sihanouk and his wife left for China on Aug. 1, 2008 and he had stayed there for medical treatment as advised by his Chinese doctors.

The ex-King Norodom Sihanouk, 86, has said that he had suffered a number of illnesses including diabetes and cancer.

But two weeks ago, he said his third cancer of its kind was fully treated and recovered by his eminent Chinese doctors.

On June 27, Sihanouk issued a statement saying his doctors had informed him of being able to return home, but suggested him to fly back to China in September and will have to stay there at least until the end of the year.

Welcoming the King's arrival from China were Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sar Kheng, the country's police chief Neth Saveoun, royal family members and other government officials.

Source:Xinhua

Cambodian Vessel Stopped for Poaching Off Sakhalin

http://www.turkishweekly.net/

Thursday, 9 July 2009

Security officers have stopped a vessel flying the Cambodian flag with 7 metric tons of crab onboard off Sakhalin in the Russian Far East, a security service spokeswoman said on Thursday.

"The Nadzomi fishing vessel was stopped southeast of Sakhalin. Fishing equipment and some 7 metric tons of live crab caught without permission were found onboard," Maria Goncharova said.

The ship is registered in Phnom Penh and has a Russian crew. It is currently being escorted to the port of Korsakov on the eastern coast of Sakhalin.

The exact size of the illegal catch has yet to be established, and criminal charges could be brought against the crew.

Russia's border service is actively involved in tackling poachers in its territorial waters. Last year at least 20 boats, including many foreign vessels, were detained by Russian border guards.

Thursday, 9 July 2009

Ria Novosti

Court video brings back horrors to thousands of Cambodians

http://www.bnd.com/

Thursday, Jul. 09, 2009

By JOEL BRINKLEY - McClatchy-Tribune News Service

KAMPONG SPEU, Cambodia -- They started arriving before 8 a.m., middle-age men and women, poor rice farmers mostly - damaged survivors of the Khmer Rouge regime.

The Documentation Center of Cambodia, a private research organization that collects evidence of the Khmer Rouge regime that ruled Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, was bringing to this small provincial town a video projector and a DVD. It shows highlights of the current defendant's testimony in the Khmer Rouge trial under way in Phnom Penh.

"I want to contribute to engaging the victims in the court process," explained Youk Chhang, the center's director. "Some Cambodians have moved on. But there are others who still suffer, and these are the ones we are targeting."

That's just who he got.

For an hour, about 75 people watched transfixed as Kaing Khek lev, commander of S-21, the notorious prison/torture chamber where thousands of Cambodians died, described his crimes. He is better known as Duch, and he told how he supervised as his soldiers executed victims by whacking them on the back of the head with a hoe.

Duch is 66 now and looked directly at the judges with a calm and confident gaze, seeming to be the commander still, as he confessed to his terrible crimes, apologized and asked for forgiveness.

"I was given a directive to use a plastic bag to suffocate prisoners," he acknowledged.

When the video excerpts ended, the room sat silent - stunned, it seemed. A documentation center official asked audience members to talk about what they had seen. The DVD was paused on a scene in which Duch seemed to be staring directly at the crowd with a stern, almost threatening, gaze.

The first woman who raised her hand took the microphone and promptly broke into tears.

"Forgiveness is not acceptable," she declared, wiping her eyes. "They killed my father and two older brothers."

Next a middle-age man told of how six of his relatives died, and as he spoke his large brown eyes grew red and filled with tears. Still another man was choking up so that his words were hard to understand.

"I was a child, and I was starving," he stammered. "They gave us no food, and sometimes I would fall down and pass out and then wake up again." And so it went.

Cathartic? Perhaps. Injurious? Maybe.

The problem is, almost half the adult population of Cambodia, those over 35 or 40 years of age, shows symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, a severe psychological condition that typically afflicts soldiers, but also civilians who live through trauma - like the horror here 30 years ago. And for them, psychiatric experts say, watching a video like the one these people saw is like poking a stick in a hornet's nest. It triggers all of the symptoms: pain, rage - even violence.

One medical study of Cambodian refugees in Long Beach, Calif. - the nation's largest concentration of Cambodians - found that 62 percent of the adults had P.T.S.D. That and other studies found a generally dysfunctional population with high levels of alcoholism, drug use - and terrible violence.

Daryn Reicherter, a psychiatrist at Stanford University, served as a consultant to the Documentation Center here in the spring and came back concerned. "There needs to be some medical follow-up with these people" after the show has ended, he insisted.

So far, the Documentation Center has trucked more than 10,000 villagers to Phnom Penh to see the trial - or brought DVD excerpts to show in their own villages. Youk Chhang understands the doctors' concerns but points out that he is a researcher, not a treatment specialist. The government, he says, should provide any needed psychiatric services. But then, Cambodia has only about 26 psychiatrists in the entire nation.

Yim Choy, a 44-year-old farmer, shouted at the crowd, saying that he had been conscribed to a child-labor team. "I cannot forgive Duch," he declared, his voice laced with bitter anger. "How can I when I saw him throw little boys against a tree?"

Afterward, he told me that, even now, he cannot talk about those times without growing angry. And yet he has a hard time keeping the thoughts out of his mind. He even dreams of the horrors - a hallmark of P.T.S.D.

"I see myself with my hands tied behind me." All of that makes him angrier still.

After watching scenes like this, Reicherter posed a rhetorical question: "Why is this important?"

"Children are growing up," he explained, "with violent, P.T.S.D. parents who are drunk and beat them. That's the generation that is coming."

ABOUT THE WRITER

Joel Brinkley is a former Pulitzer Prize-winning foreign correspondent for The New York Times and now a professor of journalism at Stanford University. Readers may send him e-mail at: brinkley@foreign-matters.com

CAMBODIAN PM LEAVES FOR FRANCE VISIT

Tocqueville Connection
http://www.adetocqueville.com

This visit is to strengthen cooperation between Cambodia and France, said foreign ministry spokesman Koy Kuong.

PHNOM PENH, July 9, 2009 (AFP) - Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Thursday left for a five-day official visit to France at the invitation ofPresident Nicolas Sarkozy, aimed at boosting ties between the two countries.

During his visit, Hun Sen was scheduled to hold talks with Sarkozy, French Prime Minister Francois Fillon and Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, Cambodia's foreign ministry said in a statement.

"This visit is to strengthen cooperation between Cambodia and France," said foreign ministry spokesman Koy Kuong.

The Cambodian premier, who is accompanied by Foreign Minister Hor Namhong and a number of senior government officials, would also attend a French military marching ceremony on Sunday, he said.

UEM Group mulls jobs in Vietnam, Cambodia

Business Times
http://www.btimes.com.my/

Friday, July 10, 2009

By Mustapha Kamil and Shahriman Johari

UEM Group Bhd has been offered huge projects in Vietnam and is also mulling whether to accept a contract to build a bridge in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

The projects in Vietnam are worth a "few billion US dollars", chairman Tan Sri Dr Ahmad Tajuddin Ali said in an interview in Kuala Lumpur recently.

They are in Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City, and work includes building an airport and a port.

"It's so big that we may have to rope in other Malaysian contractors," Tajuddin said.

The bridge project in Cambodia is worth about US$100 million (RM356 million) and UEM is in the final stages of evaluating the job.

Vietnam has been a favourite destination for Malaysian builders, with companies like SP Setia Bhd and Gamuda Bhd already having a presence as they seek to grow profits amid a slowing home market.

UEM Group has ventured abroad through its construction arm UEM Builders Bhd, mainly to countries like India and Qatar.

Tajuddin also said that UEM was confident of defending itself against a legal suit from the Qatar Public Works Organisation.

"We have received from the Qatari authorities the certificate of completion for the entire Salwa Road project. We have also got the extension of time for the job to January 31 2009," he said.

Because of this, UEM Group will not make provisions for the suit. At the same time, it also has a RM1 billion claim for work already done for the same project.

It is understood that the Qatar Public Works Organisation is seeking damages, reportedly about 878.3 million Qatari riyal (RM880 million), against design consulting engineer Parsons International Ltd, UEM and Qatar Insurance Co over work on the Salwa International Road.

UEM has been named as the second defendant in the suit, Tajuddin said.

'Son Forced To Killed Dad' For Khmer Rouge

'Son Forced To Killed Dad' For Khmer Rouge

Sky News
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/

A brother of a Khmer Rouge torture camp survivor was forced to kill their father before being shot himself for hesitating, a Cambodian war crimes court has heard. Skip related content

Nam Mon, 48, was testifying at the trial of prison chief Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch.

He is accused of overseeing the execution of about 15,000 people at Tuol Sleng prison during the regime's terrifying 1975-1979 rule.

Nam Mon told the court her two older brothers were guards at the notorious Tuol Sleng, while she initially lived and worked there as a medic before being interrogated herself.

"My first brother Nuon killed my father and later on he was executed," Nam Mon said. "They accused him of hesitating to kill my father."

Recognised as a civil claimant in the case against Duch, Nam Mon was revealing her story in public for the first time, her lawyer Silke Studzinsky said.

But judges have cast doubt on the authenticity of several civil claimants who alllege they were at Tuol Sleng, castigating their lawyers for not being sufficiently prepared.

Nam Mon also described how her father was brought into the prison blindfolded before being stripped, tortured and killed.

She said the rest of her family was later rounded up and executed.

"My mother also died at Tuol Sleng with my younger brother, but they died at different times," she said, adding she was then interrogated there for three months in 1978.

Duch, 66, has begged for forgiveness from the victims near the start of his trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

But he has consistently rejected claims by prosecutors that he held a central leadership role in the Khmer Rouge, and says he never personally executed anyone.

Led by Pol Pot, who died in 1998, the Khmer Rouge emptied Cambodia's cities in a bid to forge a communist utopia.

Up to two million people died of starvation, overwork, torture and execution.

Lara an avid traveller

IndiaGlitz
http://www.indiaglitz.com

Thursday, July 09, 2009

Lara had recently returned home from a refreshing trip to Cambodia. The dusky beauty found the trip to be very exciting and great change, for she had waited long to visit this beautiful place. The Cambodian sunrise has left her with an impressive memory.

She said, “In Cambodia, I would actually cycle to watch the sunrise.” She was awe struck with the beauty of the ancient temples and was pleased with the humble courtesy of the local people there. She further revealed, “People there are from the nicest eastern culture natives I have ever interacted with. They’re simple, honest and hard working with great regard for tourists. The most beautiful sights are the temples dating back to as late as the 9th century – a timeless wonder to behold. A sense of awe and smallness looking up starring at such incredible beauty is absolutely indescribable. I loved the Angor Temple, also the Bayon and Banteay Srei temples. Most beautiful sight was the Ta Phron temple which was swallowed by the forest.”

She used to climb up and down the steep temples which gave her good exercise. With her Nikon D 50 digital camera, she captured all the scenic locales of Cambodia and looking forward to visit the place again.

To sit in the shade on a fine day and look upon verdure is the most perfect refreshment. Isn't it Lara?