Total agreements to be signed in coming days

The Phnom Penh Post
Thursday, 23 July 2009
Steve Finch

French oil giant says both sides are making final checks on offshore and onshore hydrocarbon concession agreements

FRENCH oil company Total said Wednesday it would sign official agreements on two hydrocarbon concessions with the Cambodia government "in the coming days" following more than three years of discussions.

Jean-Pierre Labbe, Total's senior representative in Cambodia for exploration and production, said both sides were going over the wording of the contracts ahead of an official signing expected before the end of the month.

"It's the final reading [of the agreement] on the Cambodian side [and] on our side," he said.

Total has also sent to Phnom Penh another member of its new ventures team, Jean-Paul Precigout, to help with the process, Labbe added.

A spokesman for Prime Minister Hun Sen announced the deals from Paris on July 14, the French holiday Bastille Day, during an official visit by the Cambodian government.

"When the prime minister left Phnom Penh [for France] his decision was made," Labbe said.

The agreements relate to two blocks: the 2,430-square-kilometre offshore Area III in the Gulf of Thailand, the ownership of which is still under dispute between Bangkok and Phnom Penh, and onshore Block 26, a 22,050 square-kilometre concession that cuts through Phnom Penh as well as Kep, Prey Veng, Svay Rieng, Kandal, Takeo, Kampot, Kampong Speu and Kampong Chnnang provinces.

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When the prime minister left Phnom Penh [For France] his decision was made.
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Labbe said Total would sign a 10-year conditional petroleum agreement (CPA) for Area III, the terms of which prevent the company from undertaking any exploration work until a resolution is reached with Thailand.

Bangkok has already allocated the area - which it calls B10 and B11 - to Chevron of the United States and Japanese company Mitsui. Labbe said that he expected some kind of joint-development agreement would be required between Cambodia and Thailand rather than geographical separation of the total 27,000-square-kilometre offshore area that is still under dispute.

"In the sea it's very difficult [to demarcate]," he said.

In regards to onshore Block 26 - which Labbe acknowledged will be a difficult area to explore - Total will be able to begin work almost immediately, but it will take about 10 years before any oil or gas could be produced, he said, if at all.

"We will start with a two-year programme of geological study," Labbe said, adding that an environmental impact assessment would also be conducted early on.

Few onshore agreements
In a study published in March on Cambodia's oil and gas resources, UBIFRANCE et les Missions Economiques said that Block 26 "may ... have an interesting geology", adding that Block 12 west of Tonle Sap Lake was the only onshore concession thus far granted in Cambodia.

MedcoEnergi of Indonesia signed an agreement with the government in September 2007 for a 52.5 percent stake in the Block 12 concession. The Cambodian National Petroleum Authority controls 40 percent of the concession and JHL - a company registered in the Bahamas on which "little information is available" - holds the remaining 7.5 percent.

Corn price prompts complaint

The Phnom Penh Post
Thursday, 23 July 2009
Ith Sothoeuth

DOZENS of villagers from Phnom Proek district in Battambang province gathered at the district hall Wednesday to complain about falling corn prices.

District Governor Suon Koeun said farmers wanted help to lift the price of corn, much of which goes to Thailand.

"We have agreed to reduce tax by 20 percent," he said, adding that price is dependent on the market in Thailand. "We tried to negotiate there, but the price in Thailand is also down."

Heng Chamnab, a villager from Ou Thom village, who attended the meeting, said prices went down at the same time as Thai tax doubled to 5,000 riels (US$1.19) a truckload.

Another attendee, villager Chan Tha from Samaki village in Pich Chenda commune said prices had fallen, which he blamed on lower demand.

"Yesterday we could sell at 2.7 or 2.8 baht (US$ 0.08) per kilogram, but now I am getting just 2.2 or 2.3 baht," he said. "Last year businessmen came from the east [Vietnam] and bought our corn, but this year no one has come," he said.

Mao Thora, a secretary of state at the Ministry of Commerce, said that the ministry is trying to find other markets for the country's agricultural products.

"Some countries require ... standards, but Thailand doesn't, which is why people like to export there," he said.

Farmers are to blame for failing to research the market, Mao Thora said: "They don't care about where they can sell their products."

Son Kuon Thor, chairman of Rural Development Bank, said he has sent an expert to try to find partners to resolve the problem.

Millicom's profitability hurt

Photo by: SOVANN PHILONG
A vendor offers a variety of mobile cards displayed for sale at a Phnom Penh store. Millicom International on Tuesday said its profitability in Cambodia had been hit by excessive competition.

The Phnom Penh Post
Thursday, 23 July 2009
Steve Finch

Majority shareholder in Mobitel, Cambodia’s leading mobile phone firm, says new market entrants have been ‘disruptive’ as it prepares to sell Asian assets

MILLICOM International SA, the Luxembourg-based company with a 58.4 percent share in Mobitel, the country's leading mobile-phone operator, said late Tuesday that profitability had been affected in Cambodia due to excessive competition.

In a report announcing its second-quarter financial results, Millicom appeared to criticise the tactics of new entrants into Cambodia's increasingly crowded mobile-phone sector, which now has nine operators, referring to the practice of issuing free SIM cards and airtime.

"In Cambodia and Sri Lanka new competitors have entered the market with disruptive market-entrance strategies," the report said. "Profitability is being negatively impacted as a result."

Mark Hanna, chief financial officer of Royal Group, which owns a 38.5 percent stake in Mobitel, denied that margins had become tighter.

"[There are] no concerns on profitability from our side," he said by email Wednesday.

Millicom did not release figures on Cambodia, as it has reclassified its Asian assets as "discontinued operations", having put operations in Cambodia, Laos and Sri Lanka up for sale, a process it said Tuesday was expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2010.

"The disposal of our Asian assets is in progress, and expressions of interest have been received from a number of parties for the three assets," Millicom Chief Executive Officer Mikael Grahne said in the report.

Royal Group; Axiata of Malaysia, which runs Hello; and Vimpelcom, operator of Beeline, have all reportedly made offers for Millicom's stake in Mobitel.

Hanna declined to comment further on the process on Wednesday.

Millicom recorded a 13.64 percent fall in net profit for the second quarter of this year compared to the same period in 2008, Tuesday's financial results showed, from US$132 million down to $114 million. Revenues climbed 5 percent over the same period to $814 million, the report said.

"We have not noticed any improvement in the economic environment in the last three months, but, encouragingly, there has been no further deterioration either," Grahne said.

Reported basic earnings per common share, which included Asian assets, fell to $1.05 in the second quarter from $1.22 for the same period last year, the report said.

Following the release of Millicom's results Tuesday its shares jumped 10.16 percent on the Nasdaq to $68.01, although in Wednesday trading it fell 1.18 percent on the Nordic OMX.

Vietnam's BIDV bank to open in Cambodia

The Phnom Penh Post
Thursday, 23 July 2009
Nguon Sovan

THE Hanoi-based Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) is to open an office in Phnom Penh, having purchased a local commercial bank, the National Bank of Cambodia said Wednesday.

NBC Director General Tal Nay Im told the Post that BIDV had bought Prosperity Investment Bank.

"The NBC has already approved BIDV to open a representative office in Phnom Penh," Tal Nay Im said. "BIDV will open its office soon - perhaps at the end of this month."

Tal Nay Im said she was not aware of the value of the deal, but confirmed that negotiations are complete and BIDV will be recognised as the bank's new owner.

"After the purchase BIDV will invest US$50 million of capital [in Prosperity] for its business operations," she said. "It's very good for Cambodia's economy that large foreign banks are coming to invest ... they bring with them capital and modern banking technology."

Sun Virak, the operations manager of Prosperity Investment Bank, said the bank began operations in August 2007, adding that the sale is not yet official.

"The ownership transfer deal will be signed between the two banks on Sunday July 26," he said, declining to provide further details.

Hanoi-based officials at BIDV, which is the second-largest lender by assets in Vietnam, could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

BIDV's presence in Cambodia comes one month after Vietnam's second-largest listed bank, Saigon Thuong Tin Commercial Joint-Stock Bank (Sacombank), opened a branch in Phnom Penh.

A sporting opportunity to build physical fitness

Photo by: Sovann Philong
The Phnom Penh Sports Club has introdcued lanes in its pool for swimmers doing laps.

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Some say their under-wear is so small that it looks like a swimsuit and, therefore, feel they don’t have to change.
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The Phnom Penh Post
Thursday, 23 July 2009
Lim Seang hang and Vandeth Dararoath

Who says leisure pursuits in the capital have to involve alcohol? Some residents are working off drinking and dining excess at the new Phnom Penh Sport Club

A POPULAR leisure centre located in the centre of the city, the Phnom Penh Sports Club, is aiming to attract more Cambodians to sport and eventually help raise the standard of sport in the Kingdom to an international level.

There is no longer any excuse for sport lovers to simply sit and watch sports on TV; right now, city dwellers are swapping their cramped apartments for facilities including a pool, gym, sauna, steam room, jacuzzi and many others.

Clean and well-equipped
Since the creation of Phnom Penh Sports Club (PPSC) in January 2009, many residents of the capital, such as Khun Chanvoleak, a university student and Japanese translator, have enjoyed making use of the facilities.

''It is not so different from other clubs, but what I like most is the clean water and variety of new equipment. It gives me motivation to come every week, despite the price," says the 21-year-old, who feels a definite improvement in her overall health and believes this has aided her studies.

So Kundawn, the administrative manager and a co-founder of PPSC, agrees, claiming the club is based on the notion that providing access to a healthy lifestyle would help Cambodians perform better at work.

He adds that hygiene is a premier concern at the club but admits this can be a difficult message to relay to customers at times.

"We filter the water every day and run tests to ensure it is clean. Despite this, some customers do not wear proper clothes to swim.

"They say their underwear is so small that it looks like a swimsuit and, therefore, feel they don't have to change. They don't understand that it makes the water dirty.

"Working at the Ministry of Information, I've seen a lot of intelligent people fall ill and become unable to work because of their poor health and ignorance towards exercise. Here, we care for our customers and do our best to satisfy their needs," says Kundawn, who has been a sport fanatic for nearly 10 years.

The PPSC has also identified the youth of the city, who are becoming increasingly obsessed by body image, as potential customers.

Rapid growth
Currently, around 600 customers flood through the doors every day, and at weekends that number can increase to 1,000.

Unfortunately, this rapid growth does have its downside. Some customers, such as I Leok Narom, feel the club is beginning to struggle under the weight of such considerable demand.

"The space was so small, we had to wait for our turn to enter a sauna or steam room," says the 21-year-old Norton University student, a weekly customer of the club.

Lack of privacy
Likewise, Nou Vannsan, an officer from Save the Children Norway, says an overcrowded swimming pool meant she could not enjoy her swim.
"I just felt there was no private space to swim at all," she complained.

However, following such customer comments, Kundawn asserts he has just created a new, bigger sauna and steam room.

Lanes have also been introduced in the pool, enabling customers to enjoy their swim.
Furthermore, in line with the increase in demand, the owner is looking to build another sports club.

He is also looking into buying new equipment in order to give patrons a greater variety of sports and exercises than ever before.

Ping-pong tourney
Perhaps the first step on this ambitious ladder will come sooner than expected, with Kundawn planning to inaugurate a table tennis competition in the upcoming year.

"It is not a big deal but at least it gives people the incentive to continue enjoying themselves through sport," he concluded.

Metfone signs $1.5m deal to sponsor football federation

Photo by: HENG CHIVOAN
FFC President Sao Sokha (left) and Metfone Director Nguyen Duy Tho exchange signed contracts Wednesday morning during the official signing ceremony of their US$1.5 million Cambodian football sponsorship deal at the Hotel InterContinental.

The Phnom Penh Post
Thursday, 23 July 2009
Hor Hab

Telecom company approves three-year deal with the FFC for exclusive rights to the Cambodian Premier League, which will be renamed the Metfone C-League

METFONE, the Cambodian subsidiary of Vietnamese telecom company Viettel, has signed a three-year sponsorship deal worth US$1.5 million with the Football Federation of Cambodia (FFC), officially announced Wednesday morning at a signing ceremony at the Hotel InterContinental.

During his address, FFC President Sao Sokha said that this substantial contribution from Metfone will greatly assist the federation's development of football and its infrastructure in the Kingdom, adding that a portion of the money will be used to relocate the National Football Centre.

According to the president, the existing centre, built in 2003 approximately 14 kilometres outside of Phnom Penh along National Highway 4, was often flooded during the monsoon season and was too small to accommodate more than a single pitch. A 52-hectare site (compared to just 3 hectares at the old location) has been chosen in Takeo's Bati district, around 40 kilometres south of the capital, where a large, modern facility will be constructed accompanied by four football pitches at a cost suggested to be around US$260,000.

"Without a [new] football center, I don't think football in Cambodia can grow," Sao Sokha opined.

The federation president stated that the Metfone sponsorship will also fund the training of the under-19 national team, as well as the U-23 squad, who are in preparation for a match in September in Ho Chi Minh City and the upcoming SEA Games in Laos in December.

CPL to be renamed in 2010
With the sponsorship deal, the FFC has given Metfone exclusive rights to commission the domestic Cambodian Premier League, which will be renamed the Metfone C-League from 2010-12, as well as numerous other football matches during this period.

However, Sao Sokha stated that from 2010, the FFC will allow all football clubs to find their own sponsors, something they have previously been prohibited from doing, which could prove vital for a team's survival in an increasingly competitive league.

It is unclear as to whether clubs with existing branding such as Phnom Penh Crown and Naga Corp will opt for additional shirt sponsorship. The FFC president also confirmed that ticket sales generated from each match at Olympic Stadium will be shared equally between the clubs.

Sao Sokha noted that the amounts presently involved in Cambodian football are significantly less than neighbouring Vietnam.

"The annual budget of the FFC is around $1 million," he said. "[This is] less than the budget of just one football club in Vietnam."

Metfone, launched in February this year, has about 2 million current users. So far, Metfone has provided $5 million for Internet access to over a thousand schools nationwide for the next five years.

Nguyen Duy Tho, director of Metfone, said at the telecom company will also provide free Internet service to the FFC and will contribute to the future construction of a sports training centre for disabled athletes.

"Metfone will continue to sponsor other sports in Cambodia, as well as Cambodian athletes training overseas," said Nguyen Duy Tho.

Downpour quenches action in grudge match

Photo by: NICK SELLS
Phnom Penh Crown's Tul Sothearithy (right) tries to shake off the presence of Naga Corp’s Friday Nwakuna Wednesday at Olympic Stadium.

The Phnom Penh Post
Thursday, 23 July 2009
ANDY BROUWER

Phnom Penh Crown edge out Naga Corp 1-0 Wednesday in what turns out a relatively tame outing for the bitter rivals

THE so-called clash of the Titans at Olympic Stadium turned out to be a bit of a damp squib, especially when the rain joined the party to bring down the curtain on a slender 1-0 victory for Phnom Penh Crown over Naga Corp Wednesday that takes the victors to within one point of CPL leaders Preah Khan Reach. It wasn't the classic everyone was hoping for, and there was a lot of huff and puff, but precious little goalmouth action in the first half in particular.

With Crown missing their top scorer Tunji Ayoyinka who is trying his luck in Turkey, and Naga without their suspended defensive linchpin and hard-man skipper Oum Thavarak, the anticipated matchup between the two never materialised.

Instead it was left to former Naga striker Ousmanou Mohamadou to win the day for his new paymasters Crown, with a goal three minutes after the halftime interval. He was Johnny-on-the-Spot after Tieng Tiny's gallop took him into the Naga penalty area, with Mohamadou happy to receive his short pass and lift it over Naga goalkeeper Oum Chandara before wheeling away in celebration.

Photo by: NICK SELLS
Naga Corp’s Sunday Okonkwo (left) and Phnom Penh Crown’s Chan Rithy chase down a loose ball during their CPL match

Naga fail to convert chances
Up until the halftime break, Naga had shaded the possession but never seriously tested Crown's stopper Peng Bunchhay. Their best chance came in the 10th minute, when Meas Channa's corner found Yemi Oyewole all alone in the six-yard box, but his downward header bounced well over the bar when it seemed easier to score.

With no-nonsense referee Sreng Hao Dy waving away far too much play-acting for his liking, the game flowed much better after the break.

Crown nearly snatched a second goal on the hour mark when substitute Keo Sokngorn rounded the keeper, but took himself too wide, and his follow-up shot struck the foot of the post.

Naga, the league's top scorers, continued to press for the equaliser, but when they lost limping striker Sunday Patrick Okonkwo 20 minutes from time, they were effectively out of the running. Their skipper Kim Chanbunrith saw his curling free kick punched away by Peng Bunchhay, but the failure of Tith Mesa to connect with a free header from 5 yards out with their final chance of the match, sealed their defeat. At the final whistle, the Crown bench jumped for joy, and their drum and horn-blowing supporters in the main stand made sure everyone was aware that they are firmly back in the hunt to retain their CPL title.

Photos by Nick Sells (www.nicksellsphotography.com)

Siem reap Scene: 23 Jul 2009

Photo by: Narisara Murray
John McDermott.

The Phnom Penh Post
Thursday, 23 July 2009
Post Staff

MCDERMOTT BOOKED
John McDermott's big project for this year was fatherhood, and that happened pretty much on schedule. But his second-biggest project, his book, is running slightly behind time. It now looks set to be launched late August.

The book, the quintessential collection of all of McDermott's early and now iconic temple work, was reported in mid- 2007 by The New York Times to be "imminent". In January McDermott told the Post, "That book's been imminent for a long time, and there are lots of reasons behind that which I won't go into. But it's about there now." He said then the self-published book would be printed "hopefully before July". At that stage he wasn't sure if he'd print in Italy or Hong Kong, but Italy won the day.

McDermott travelled to Italy and spent 10 days at the printers just before his baby was born in Bangkok, and the imminently imminent book is being printed right now. McDermott hopes to see advance copies soon.

A launch is planned in Siem Reap for possibly August, and this will also coincide with an exhibition of new Angkor work by the celebrated photographer, who The New York Times said "may be the Ansel Adams of Angkor".

McDermott took a long rest from photography to steer his business interests, but in the past year he bought a couple of new cameras including a panoramic camera. His new work will form the basis of the new exhibition.

PROJECT STALLED
The large residential property project slated to be developed in Siem Reap by Cambo Fund Ltd is still on hold, following several earlier still-on-hold notices during the year.

Douglas Clayton, the CEO of Leopard Capital, which has a 24-percent equity stake in Cambo Fund, said, "We do not yet have shareholder consensus as to what is the best use of this land in the current market environment. So it is on 'on hold' like most projects in Cambodia."

Leopard, in its monthly newsletter for November 2008, reported, "The plan of Angkor Residences is modest in its goal to develop and sell 200-250 units over the next 3-4 years at an average price of US$1,400-$1,600 per square metre. Management informs us that a competing residential project in Siem Reap has been successfully selling units at a significantly higher price."

This reference is to the Butterfly Residences riverside complex, mainly developed by Vietnam expat interests.

Leopard also reported in its November newsletter that Cambo Fund had acquired 2.6 hectares of land (80 percent of the planned total) at an average price of US$167 per square metre. Management is now negotiating for the acquisition of a few adjacent land plots. If successful, these will be incorporated into the design and upcoming pre-sales launch." To date, Leopard has not publicly released further details of land acquisition.

Earlier this year, AltAssets estimated that Cambo Fund was developing the residential property project in Siem Reap "for around $1.8 million".

EXPANDING COCKTAILS
When the going gets tough, the tough get going and open a second business to help prop up the first. At least that's the business model that emerging Khmer restaurant entrepreneur Hang Seak is adopting.

Since 2005 he's been running Home Cocktail restaurant in the Wat Bo precinct, but just over two weeks ago he opened a second Home Cocktail in the usually busy Pub Street Precinct. He's taking a gamble, and therefore it's fitting the new venue is situated in premises hastily vacated by gambling concern Cambo6, which was decommissioned literally overnight by Hun Sen's crackdown on betting outlets.

Despite the grim economic times and loss of revenue from his first restaurant, Hang Seak has sunk $30,000 into his new venture. "The big quiet has descended on my first restaurant, and that's why I've opened this new one,"he said. "At least in this Pub Street area there are more crowds, and I am hoping the business from this new restaurant can support and fix the first business."

WAT BITS TAKEN
A culpable tourist sheepishly admitted to his friends last week that he had pocketed a palm-sized piece of Angkor Wat to take back to Britain as a gift to his mother.

Speculation in Siem Reap denotes that it's not uncommon for tourists to steal a relic for a souvenir. But the heritage organisations charged with conserving the monuments say small-scale theft is not a widespread problem. Philipe Delanghe, programme specialist in Culture for the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, or UNESCO, said pilfering has not been discussed in heritage meetings and is not an issue.

John Stubbs, vice president of field projects at the World Monuments Fund, said stealing from temples was "supremely selfish" and short-sighted.

"If each of the 2 million visitors who visit Angkor annually took away an authentic stone souvenir from the place, in time there would be nothing left of the fine stone carving that people expect to see."

But the looting of stone sculptures has diminished in recent years due to improved policing and airport bag inspections, he added.

MOVING EXPERIENCE
This is the final issue of Phnom Penh's Post's Siem Reap section to be published on Thursdays.

From Friday, July 31, the section will appear in a colourful new weekly liftout, 7Days.

Temple Watch: Tranquil Banteay Samre

The Phnom Penh Post
Thursday, 23 July 2009
Dave Perkes

Tucked away at the eastern edge of the Angkor park is the small temple Banteay Samre. It was named after the Samre, an ethnic tribe that lived around Phnom Kulen. Built in a distinctive Angkor Wat style, it has a single lotus flower tower surrounded by cloistered courtyards. The grey limestone doorways and window frames contrast attractively with the pinkish laterite walls. Visitors normally approach from the north, but the main entrance, with cruciform terrace and Naga balustrades, is to the east. To the west, a rough path flanked with lantern stones leads to the remains of a stone bridge. Banteay Samre is a peaceful place, and there are likely to be more vendors than visitors in the rainy season. The drive via the ancient village of Pre Dak passes through idyllic countryside. Pre Dak is sited in the Eastern Baray Reservoir, which dried up centuries ago. Green signs denote the new road, via Route 6 to Siem Reap and north to Banteay Srey. The temple causeway opposite the primary school is about a kilometre from Pre Dak, and the earth banks of the Eastern Baray are easily visible along the road just before the school.

Police Blotter: 23 Jul 2009

The Phnom Penh Post
Thursday, 23 July 2009
Kong Sokun

BOTCHED ROBBERY TURNS DEADLY
A grocery seller was killed during an attempted robbery Monday by a group of unidentified men in Kratie's Changkrang commune. The victim was identified as 20-year-old Khin Sokny. Police said the the crime began at 11:50pm. The victim was tied up and stabbed several times, though the unknown perpetrators eventually fled the scene empty-handed.
KOH SANTEPHEAP

DRUNK, DISABLED MAN KILLS WIFE
A man afflicted with polio in his left arm was arrested Tuesday ni connection with the death of his wife in Pursat's Bakan district. On Monday evening, 58-year-old Mer Han punched his wife, 55-year-old Soun Ron, two times in the temple, plucked her hair, and crushed her head against a column of their home until she fell unconscious, police said. The victim was then rushed to hospital, where she died the next day. Police said Mer Han's violence stemmed from jealousy compounded by his "wine-directed feeling".
RASMEY KAMPUCHEA

DRUNKEN SOLDIER MISSING IN RIVER
A drunken soldier from Brigade 52 who attempted to swim home after a party in Battambang province on Monday evening has yet to be located. Samlot district police chief Ly Bouy identified the missing man as Bun Rong, 48, a resident of Samlot commune. Local residents who attended a party with the soldier on Monday said that they drank Cambodian-made wine with the missing man from 5pm to 7pm, after which he dove into a river to swim home. He did not show up at his house on Tuesday morning.
RASMEY KAMPUCHEA

UNRULY WATERING HOLE SHUTTERED
Daun Penh district authorities on Tuesday ordered the temporary closure of a local beer garden, known as Thavy Rasmey 68, following numerous complaints from nearby residents who alleged that the presence of the facility affected public order and disturbed their daily living. They said that intoxicated customers from the beer garden were always fighting, shouting, hurling glasses, smashing tables and "urinating anarchically".
KOH SANTEPHEAP

GARMENT WORKER ATTEMPTS SUICIDE
A garment worker attempted to commit suicide Tuesday by throwing herself from Chroy Changvar bridge after becoming depressed by repeated mistreatment at the hands of her drunken husband, 40-year-old Khun Neang, a soldier from RCAF Unit 70, police said. A police officer standing guard near the bridge stopped the woman, 32-year-old Veth Nath of Sen Sok district, from leaping to her death. Veth Nath told police that her husband always hits her when he is drunk.
KOH SANTEPHEAP

The Phnom Penh Post News in Brief

In Brief: Chevron's new diesel

Thursday, 23 July 2009
Hor Hab

CHEVRON (Cambodia) Limited said Wednesday it would release a new, cleaner diesel formulation nationwide in Cambodia from today. Caltex Diesel with Techron D will be priced the same as existing formulations, the company told a press conference. "We believe that the new Caltex Diesel with Techron D with its proven cleaning power will result in cleaner engines, and cleaner engines perform better," said Jeremy Oh, general manager of retail, commercial and industrial operations for Chevron.


In Brief: Korean bank to open

Thursday, 23 July 2009
Post Staff

HUANGDBS Commercial Bank Plc (HDCB) will become Cambodia's 28th commercial bank when the wholly owned local subsidiary of Kuala Lumpur-based Hwang-DBS (Malaysia) Berhard is officially launched at a ceremony today. The bank received a certificate of incorporation from the Ministry of Commerce on June 26, effective from June 19, which required it to begin operations by July 31. In a June 29 filing to the Malaysian stock exchange, HuangDBS said the bank would have issued and paid up capital of US$20 million.

BBC News In pictures: Cambodia's rubbish-pickers

Hundreds of scavengers work every day at Phnom Penh’s main rubbish tip, Stung Meanchey. But the work will disappear soon, as a new facility is due to open which will not allow rubbish pickers. (Pictures and text by the BBC's Guy De Launey)

Child workers are a regular sight at the dump. Competing with adult rubbish-pickers for the best material can be a hazardous activity.

As soon as a lorry dumps its load, the scramble is on. The scavengers are looking for plastic bottles and aluminium cans, which have a small recycling value.

Giant bulldozers spread the rubbish across the landfill site. These machines move rapidly, stopping for nothing - and nobody.

Some families actually make their homes on top of the dump. Their children play among the broken glass and oozing landfill.

At age 15, Sombath is a veteran of the dump. He goes to school in the morning and scavenges in the afternoon.

His younger brother Virak, and mother Sophun, rely on Sombath. His father is dead, so he has become the main breadwinner.

About a dollar a day is the best most scavengers can hope for. Some of them dry paper in the sun so they can sell it to be recycled.

When the rubbish tip closes, the pickings will become ever slimmer. Scavengers will not be allowed at the new facility, so many are wondering what they will do for an income.

Buth Vibol works for the Cambodian Children’s Fund, one of several organisations helping families at the dump. He is worried that when the rubbish tip closes, children will end up on the city's streets, where they are vulnerable to exploitation.

The fund currently helps several hundred children - giving them education, healthcare and vocational training. But if families leave the area to look for work, they might be out of reach of the aid organisations.

Soon the goats will be the only regular visitors to Stung Meanchey. Perhaps one day the site will be redeveloped, as Phnom Penh continues to expand.

Rising number of RP drug mules ‘alarming’

http://businessmirror.com.ph

Written by Estrella Torres / Reporter
Wednesday, 22 July 2009

AN increasing number of Filipinas are now acting as “mules” or couriers in the illegal-drug trade. This was revealed by the Philippine Embassy in Vietnam in a report made to the Department of Foreign Affairs.

In its report, the embassy in Hanoi said drug-trafficking syndicates often lure Filipinas to act as mules with the promise of an unusually high pay. Among the steps include:

1. Upon the direction by a Nigerian drug syndicate, a Filipino contact in China gives or promises an unsuspecting Filipina a job that involves a lot of traveling, with a salary of $2,000 per trip. The contact buys the Filipina’s plane ticket for the trip from the Philippines to China via Vietnam, where the unsuspecting Filipina is instructed to obtain a Chinese visa.

2. The contact, now supposedly a “benefactor,” asks the Filipina a favor, which involves bringing to China a present or an item from a friend based in Cambodia. The unsuspecting Filipina, thinking that she is doing her “benefactor” a favor, agrees and exits Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Vietnam, for Phnom Penh, Cambodia, by bus.

3. From Cambodia, the unsuspecting Filipina, now a “mule,” goes back to HCMC to take a direct flight to China, or proceeds to Hanoi to take a bus trip to Manning, China.

Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman Eduardo Malaya said most of the death-penalty cases involving Filipinos abroad were due to drug-related offenses, including those in mainland China.

At least 111 Filipinos, most of them women, were arrested for drug-related offenses in China, Hong Kong and Macau in 2008.

“This was a 594-percent increase compared [with] the 16 Filipinos arrested in 2007,” said Malaya in a statement on Wednesday.

Of those arrested in 2007 and 2008, 22 were sentenced with the death penalty, 12 were meted life sentences, while 11 received prison sentences of 15 to 16 years.

“The Department of Foreign Affairs reiterates its warning to all Filipinos traveling abroad to refrain from engaging in drug-smuggling activities and not to accept packages from other people without knowing the contents of the said packages,” said Malaya.

The embassy report from Hanoi said the modus operandi of an illegal-drugs syndicate was exposed by a Filipina victim who sought assistance after she was stranded in Vietnam from Cambodia.

The Filipina failed to bring with her the package for delivery to China, as the Nigerian contact in Cambodia had a miscommunication with the Filipina and the Nigerian contacts in China, said the report.

The Filipina victim, who was used as a drug mule, said the package was a pair of slippers with bulging soles, which she was directed to bring in a bag.

The Philippine Embassy in Beijing has also issued similar warnings to Filipinos not to allow themselves to be used as drug couriers of huge syndicates of illegal drugs.

The People’s Republic of China imposes harsh penalties on persons caught in possession of or trafficking in prohibited or dangerous drugs. For instance, trafficking 50 grams or more of prohibited drugs in mainland China may be punishable by 15 years in prison, life imprisonment or even the death penalty.

Malaya explained that most of the victims were banking on the job promised them in China and were not fully aware of the contents of the package they were directed to bring to their benefactor.

The embassy in Hanoi said that three Filipinas traveled to HCMC from Manila because of an offer by a Nigerian national for these women to “deliver” five to 10 pieces of T-shirts from HCMC to China for a fee of $500 to $600 per person.

“The T-shirts could have been immersed in liquefied illegal drugs and then dried before delivery,” said the report.

BIDV allowed to open Cambodia representative office

http://www.thanhniennews.com

July 22, 2009

The State Bank of Vietnam said Tuesday it gave approval to the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) to open a representative office in Cambodia.


The office, to be located in Phnom Penh, will be open for a four-year term, the central bank said in a statement on its website.

“This will be our first office abroad,” Tran Phuong, Hanoi-based BIDV’s deputy chief executive officer told Bloomberg Tuesday.

The Vietnam news agency said earlier this month that BIDV, the country’s second-biggest bank by assets, plans to invest US$50 million in Cambodia.

The agency quoted BIDV Chairman Tran Bac Ha as saying the Vietnamese bank was negotiating to acquire a Cambodian bank and the purchase would likely be completed this month.

BIDV also planned to invest in property and other businesses in Cambodia, Ha said.

He was also quoted as saying that BIDV was investing $15 million in Laos and Singapore.

Saigon Thuong Tin Commercial Joint-Stock Bank (Sacombank), Vietnam’s second-largest listed bank, last month opened a branch in Cambodia, which plans to open a stock market this year.

Source: Thanh Nien

The Municipality Announced that Following Samdech Dekchor’s Recommendation, There Are No Development Plans for Any Markets – Wednesday, 22.7.2009

Posted on 22 July 2009
The Mirror, Vol. 13, No. 622
http://cambodiamirror.wordpress.com/

“Because of the wise recommendation of the Prime Minister of The Kingdom of Cambodia, Samdech Akkak Moha Senapadei Dekchor Hun Sen, which was clearly announced, there are no permissions for any markets in Phnom Penh to be re-developed, after there had been protests by vendors who halted their operations at their stalls when they knew that somebody would invest in their market to replace it by a new one. The major reason why vendors absolutely rejected the plan is because they had seen many previous negative models, where, at the end, vendors were required to buy stalls from the new market owners. But then another new surprising case happened at the Kandal Market, when vendors heard that there were plans to develop their market into a supermarket.

“Responding to the protest by Kandal Market vendors in front of the Municipality on 20 July 2009, the Phnom Penh Municipality issued a notification on 21 July 2009 to inform the public that there are no permits for any development plans for any markets. Koh Santepheap would like to publicize the notification as follow:

The Kingdom of Cambodia
Nation Religious King
The Phnom Penh Municipality

(Logo)

Phnom Penh, 21 July 2009

Notification

Recently the Phnom Penh Municipality noticed that there was various information going around about attempts to develop this or that market, and especially about a plan to develop the Kandal Market in Phsar Kandal I, Daun Penh, Phnom Penh. The Phnom Penh Municipality would like to confirm that in response to the vendors’ requests, the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, Samdech Akkak Moha Senapadei Dekchor Hun Sen, decided officially and made it known through the Notification 811, dated 16 June 2009, to stop the re-development of all markets in Phnom Penh. This is a very wise decision of the Royal Government, overriding any other legal documents relating to this case.

Therefore all vendors are requested to continue their operations normally and calmly, and they should not believe any incitements originating from some dishonest people who try to take the opportunity to make benefits for themselves by provoking the vendors to demonstrate, wasting both their time and their benefits.

The heads of the Phnom Penh police and military police will look for those who provoke to disturb public order so that they can to be convicted according to the law.

The Phnom Penh Municipality

(Seal)

Koh Santepheap, Vol.42, #6708, 22.7.2009
Newspapers Appearing on the Newsstand:
Wednesday, 22 July 2009

Cambodian PM calls for help on ASEAN rail

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

July 22, 2009

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Wednesday called for other countries to provide assistance for the construction of the missing link in Cambodia of the ASEAN railroad which connects from Singapore to China.

"We need help from other countries to construct the missing link in Cambodia of the ASEAN railway," he announced in the workshop of Khmer Art performing at Chaktumok Theater hall in Phnom Penh.

"The ASEAN railway will also provide the huge benefit for other countries," he added. "Therefore we need the help for that project," he said, adding that so far only china has provided the assistance including research study of the project. "China alone will not be enough," he said.

Missing link is distance about the 225-kilometer between Phnom Penh and Loc Ninh, a provincial capital in southern Vietnam. ASEAN ministers have agreed to build a modern railway from Singapore through Thailand and ending in Kunming, China, which will enter Cambodia at Poipet and follow the existing line along the southern shore of the Tonle Sap lake into Phnom Penh.

Sun Chanthol, former Cambodian minister of public work and transport said in 2008 that Cambodia need about 500 million U.S. dollars to build and upgrade Cambodia's stretch of a proposed railway of the ASEAN and it depends on the price of materials. The proposed Trans-Asia Rail Link will be completed by 2015.

Railroad conditions across Cambodia have eroded greatly in the past 30 years so much money is needed for reconstruction and upgrade.

Source: Xinhua

Duch Denies Much of Interrogator Testimony

By VOA Khmer Reporters
Original report from Phnom Penh
22 July 2009

Jailed Khmer Rouge prison chief Duch told tribunal judges on Wednesday he did not need his subordinates to face trial for the deaths of thousands of inmates, as he refuted some testimony of a former interrogator at his prison.

Duch addressed the court following testimony of Prak Khorn, 58, who took the stand Tuesday and Wednesday, alleging he had seen an infant tossed to its death from the second story of Tuol Sleng prison, among other atrocities.

Duch, 66, whose real name is Kaing Kek Iev, is facing charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity, torture and murder, for administering the Khmer Rouge prison, where prosecutors say 12,380 were sent to their deaths.

Duch said Wednesday the testimony of Prak Khorn was mostly untrue, but some of his testimony was not supported by documentary evidence. He denied his staff killed an 8-month-old infant at the prison, known to the Khmer Rogue as S-21.

“The majority of the testimony is not true,” Duch said. “It comes from fear. During that time, you feared I would arrest you. And at this time, you fear facing the court as I do. I do not demand that any of my subordinates come here to face the court. I have taken all the responsibility before the law, with my heart alone, for the framework of S-21.”

Prak Khorn also told the judges he had seen blood drained from prisoners, to resupply military hospitals, testimony that Duch conceded to. Duch said blood was taken from 100 prisoners at the order of his superior, Son Sen.

On Tuesday, Prak Khorn said he watched as a fellow interrogator at the prison took an infant from its mother “and threw it off the building.” Prak Khorn was then ordered to bury the child, he said. He was unsure the child had been killed under orders by Duch.

However, he said, torture was only performed on prisoner after Duch’s orders. This included beatings, electrocution and suffocation with plastic bags.

Cambodia Vigilant After Jakarta Bombing: Official

By Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
22 July 2009

Cambodian has taken action to identify terrorist suspects at airports and borders following the bombings in Jakarta last week, a police spokesman said.

Nine people where killed when suicide bombers attacked two hotels in Jakarta, on the island of Java, raising the specter of Islamic militancy in the Southeast Asian country.

In 2002, similar attacks killed 202 people, including 152 foreigners, in Bali, an island east of Java, and the mastermind of those attacks, Hambali, was later found to have hidden in Cambodia.

Hambali was arrested near Bangkok in 2003, and Cambodia emerged as a willing friend in US counterterrorism efforts. The FBI provided counterterrorism training to the Cambodian military police and soldiers as recently as May.

However, the specific actions now being taken to watch for suspicious visitors are a security secret, said Lt. Gen. Khieu Sopheak, spokesman for the Ministry of Interior, adding that Cambodia has been continually vigilant against counterterrorism.

Terrorism can happen anywhere anytime, so Cambodia will be vigilant and “not miss one minute,” he told VOA Khmer.

Bay Area Cambodian-Americans Seek Justice

Former Khmer Rouge prison commander, 66-year-old Duch (center), whose real name is Kaing Guek Eav, sits in the Extraordinary Chamber in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) on Feb. 17, 2009, in Phnom Penh for the opening of the Khmer rouge trial.
Adrees Latif/Getty Images

Reporting
Thuy Vu

E-mail

Jul 21, 2009

(CBS 5) It was one of the most horrific episodes of genocide in the 20th century.

The Killing Fields of Cambodia. Nearly 11,000 Cambodian-Americans live in the Bay Area, and are now giving voice to the atrocities as the killers go on trial.

Nearly 2 million Cambodians died during the communist experiment under Pol Pot from 1975 to 1979. Pol Pot has died, but five Khmer Rouge leaders have been arrested and charged with crimes against humanity. An international tribunal backed with the United Nations is underway. Activists are trying to get refugees to submit their testimonies.

Watching Video Click here

Clinton to offer N.Korea the carrot or the stick

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks during a news conference at a hotel in Phuket, southern Thailand Wednesday, July 22, 2009. Clinton said 'irreversible denuclearization' is the only viable option for North Korea.
(AP Photo/Apichart Weerawong)

By ROBERT BURNS
AP National Security Writer Robert Burns

PHUKET, Thailand – U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton plans to tell North Korea that it can avoid "unrelenting" sanctions and win normalized relations with the U.S. by completely scrapping its nuclear program.

Officials said Clinton intends to announce Thursday that if North Korea takes irreversible steps to denuclearize, then the United States and its negotiating partners would be willing to reciprocate in a "comprehensive and coordinated fashion."

"Full normalization of relations, a permanent peace regime, and significant energy and economic assistance are all possible in the context of full and verifiable denuclearization," Clinton says in excerpts of prepared remarks released late Wednesday by her staff.

"In the meantime, we will undertake the necessary defensive measures to protect our interests and our allies. North Korea's ongoing threatening behavior does not inspire trust, nor does it permit us to sit idly by," she says.

The Obama administration approach outlined by Clinton combines the lure of full normal relations with the U.S. and it allies with the threat of stiff international sanctions if North Korea continues with its nuclear buildup.

Clinton's emphasis on international cooperation to deter growing nuclear threats hit at least one sour note on Wednesday.

Clinton said during an earlier television interview in Bangkok that the U.S. would also turn to its international partners in dealing with Iran, extending a "defense umbrella" over its Persian Gulf allies to prevent Iran from dominating the region "once they have a nuclear weapon."

"We want Iran to calculate what I think is a fair assessment: that if the United States extends a defense umbrella over the region, if we do even more to develop the military capacity of those (allies) in the Gulf, it is unlikely that Iran will be any stronger or safer because they won't be able to intimidate and dominate as they apparently believe they can once they have a nuclear weapon," she said.

Those remarks raised eyebrows in Jerusalem, where Dan Meridor, Israel's minister of intelligence and atomic energy, told Army Radio: "I was not thrilled to hear the American statement from yesterday that they will protect their allies with a nuclear umbrella, as if they have already come to terms with a nuclear Iran. I think that's a mistake."

Hours after Meridor spoke, Clinton insisted during the news conference in Phuket that she was "not suggesting any new policy" on Iran and continued to believe that "Iran's pursuit of nuclear weapons is unacceptable."

Clinton had mentioned the notion of a "defense umbrella" against Iran earlier this year during a conference in Sharm el-Sheik, but it has not advanced much beyond the stage of an amorphous idea, officials said.

After consulting at this seaside Thai resort Wednesday with counterparts from China, Russia, Japan and South Korea on a strategy for enforcing the latest U.N. Security Council sanctions against North Korea, Clinton said Wednesday that Pyongyang could avoid isolation by ending its nuclear weapons program.

If not, she warned during a news conference, North Korea faces "the unrelenting pressure" of expanded international sanctions.

Clinton said the four nations all agree with Washington on the core goal of irreversibly ending North Korea's nuclear program, and she said the international community is in a "strong position" in its push to change North Korean policy.

Asked by a reporter what specific steps North Korea must take, Clinton indicated the steps include dismantling its main nuclear reactor at Yongbyon and surrendering its plutonium stockpile. The particular details of required actions are to be determined by technical experts, she added.

"We do not want to be in another negotiation that doesn't move us toward the goal of denuclearization," Clinton said. "So we want verifiable, irreversible steps taken."

Clinton added that the Obama administration knows it will be difficult to achieve this goal, given North Korea's record of having agreed during the administration of President George W. Bush to end its nuclear program, only to change course. Last year it declared the so-called Six Party negotiations — with the U.S., Russia, China, Japan and South Korea — dead.

Clinton was in Phuket to meet with her counterparts in the 10-nation Association of South East Asian Nations, or ASEAN. She also was signing the association's Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, which is a commitment to peacefully resolve regional disputes. More than a dozen other countries that, like the United States, are not ASEAN members, have already signed the treaty.

US is 'back in South-East Asia,' says Clinton

Earth Times
http://www.earthtimes.org/

Wed, 22 Jul 2009
Author : DPA

Phuket, Thailand - US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Wednesday signed South-East Asia's main friendship and security treaty in a gesture signalling America's return to the region. "The United States is back in South-East Asia," Clinton told a press conference minutes before signing the Treaty on Amity and Cooperation in South-East Asia (TAC), a loose code of conduct for the region that was signed by the original founding members of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 1976.

Nearly all of ASEAN's main dialogue partners, such as Australia, China, India, Japan and South Korea, have already signed the TAC.

The US, under the previous administration of George W Bush, refused to accede to the document to fear its would cramp its unilateral-inclined style of diplomacy in Asia.

"US President (Barack) Obama and I believe this region is vital to global progress, peace and prosperity," Clinton said before signing the TAC.

"The treaty seals our commitment to work in participation with ASEAN," she added.

Clinton was in Phuket to sign the TAC and to attend the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), Asia's main security event that has drawn 27 foreign ministers to the island, on Thursday.

The forum is expected to focus on the region's two main security threats - North Korea's nuclear armaments programme and Myanmar's ongoing political instability.

Clinton on Wednesday called for "irreversible denuclearization" in North Korea as the only "viable path" for North Korea.

She also called on Myanmar to free its political prisoners including Aung San Suu Kyi and take other steps to assure a credible general election next year.

A former S-21 guard incriminates Duch in fragile testimony

Phnom Penh (Cambodia). 10/05/2002: Prak Khan, former Khmer Rouge interrogator at S-21, during the shooting of documentary movie “S-21, the Khmer Rouge Killling Machine” of Rithy Panh
©John Vink/Magnum

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

By Stéphanie Gée
22-07-2009

Third subordinate of the former director of S-21 to take the stand on Tuesday July 21st, Prak Khan made specific accusations against Duch, although they were unfortunately often supported by one example only. Judges highlighted several contradictions between his testimony and statements he made previously, which left the impression of a “reconstructed” story before the Trial Chamber, possibly on the basis of what he heard during the trial. At several times in his testimony, the accused seemed to show some disbelief as amused smiles appeared on his face.


An “inappropriate” in camera session
Before hearing the new witness, the president announced that the previous day in camera session – which dealt with a request by the office of the co-Prosecutors aimed at examining a request by the defence to warn the witnesses of their right to avoid self-incrimination – had been “inappropriate.” “The Trial Chamber will continue to make sure that the witnesses who may be at risk of self-incrimination receive the required legal aid. […] As for the defence, they must no longer warn the witnesses of their right to remain silent when they come and testify.”

A child thrown off the floor
Prak Khan, who is 58 years old and has lost his right ear, took his seat. The president reminded him of his duties and obligations as a witness. He had a lawyer, which was not very useful to him. He joined the revolution in late 1972, in a farming section before being assigned to division 703. After the capture of Phnom Penh, on April 17th 1975, he was assigned as labour force in the rice field, in Prey Sar, which “at the time, was not under the authority of S-21, but division 703,” he later claimed. Late 1975-early 1976, he no longer knew, he was sent to S-21 where he became an “ordinary guard,” a sentinel posted outside the security centre compound.

To judge Ya Sokhan, who numbed the audience by taking such a long time to ask his questions, the witness described the movements of prisoners transported by trucks. Prak Khan said he saw children detained at S-21 and reported a related incident: he saw Dek Bou, a chief of guards, take away from the hands of a Vietnamese prisoner her young baby and “throw him off the superior floor.” “Afterwards, I was made to bury the baby’s body.” On June 16th, Duch had denied that children were thrown off floors. “That never happened,” he had then exclaimed.

“Do you know when Vietnamese war prisoners were arrested?” “I am not quite sure, but I think it happened around late 1976 or early 1977.” He believed there were “more than a hundred” imprisoned at S-21.

What training for interrogators?
Late 1976, the simple guard was attached, within S-21, to the interrogators team, the “chewing group.” “I don’t know who made the decision […]. At the start, there was not really any training as such. I simply observed the interrogators to see how they did and, after a month or two, I was authorised to interrogate myself, on my own.” Much later, he perfected his knowledge during short training sessions “at Duch’s political school.” He claimed the accused was the instructor there.

What about the interrogation and torture methods taught, partly by Duch? “We were taught how to torture prisoners so they did not die. Otherwise, we could no longer obtain their confessions and risked being punished. We were also trained on lashing the prisoners, electroshocks, cane beating or using a plastic bag to make them suffocate.”

Kambol (Phnom Penh, Cambodia). 21/07/2009: Prak Khan, during his testimony in Duch’s trial
©Stéphanie Gée

The rules that bound the interrogators, he recalled, were not to cause the death of a detainee during torture and make sure no one escaped. As for the prisoners, “they were told not to make any noise, not to swear, not to shout slogans or cry when they were tortured,” he summarised. Discipline rules that were “constantly reminded during studying sessions.” As for the “KGB,” “CIA,” “Vietnamese enemies” or “networks of traitors” terminology, “all of that was taught to us by Duch.” To determine who among the detainees was guilty or an enemy, the accused hammered that “as long as someone had been arrested by the Party and taken to S-21, that person was an enemy.”

The accused allegedly interrogated a female detainee
His so-called chewing group was in charge of interrogating “rigorously any detainee who refused to answer.” Prak Khan conceded that the said detainee would have already been tortured and bear injuries on the body, but not yet given out the confessions expected of him. The witness then claimed he saw the accused interrogate a prisoner himself. It was a woman, who was brought back unconscious to her cell at 3am. He witnessed the episode because he had been asked to be on guard duty outside the door of the room. “I did not see very clearly what was happening. I think [Duch] simply interrogated the detainee and others tortured her.” Did Duch give orders to torture her? Prak Khan did not know. On June 16th, the accused had categorically rejected such a story: “I do not think such an event could have happened at S-21.”

Phone calls from Duch...
In principle, the witness recalled, an interrogator was alone with the detainee and nobody came to observe. “But sometimes, Duch would come nearby and ask questions to know if the prisoner had confessed or not, before leaving again.” Prak Khan explained he received instructions on the detainees to interrogate “sometimes by a written message [by the hand of the accused] that was given to me by a messenger, sometimes by phone,” calls that were sometimes made by Duch. The information stirred surprise, as the witness was a simple interrogator. Once the interrogations were over, he reported back to his group leader. The judge wondered: “To the co-Investigating Judge, you said that when the prisoner’s confessions were finished, you sent them either to Chan [Mam Nay, chief interrogator] or to the accused. But now, you are telling us that you sent them to your group leader. Why this discrepancy in your statements?” “It depended on the network. I gave the confessions to my group leader and he was the one to then transmit them either to Chan or Duch,” the witness justified.

“50 to 60% of the detainees were not interrogated”
As for the interrogation of female detainees, without handcuffs or blindfold, it had to take place with open doors and windows while the interrogator had to remain at a distance from them to avoid any licentious behaviour, Prak Khan detailed. A majority of prisoners were not interrogated. “Probably 50 to 60% of the detainees were not interrogated because we lacked interrogators or because a lot of time was needed for an interrogation to reach its end.” Indeed, he specified that an interrogation lasted from one to several months.

Torture only upon authorisation, according to the witness
“Did you need to ask permission before performing acts of torture?”, the judge inquired. “As a general rule, the interrogator did not have the right to torture anyone, except upon specific instruction from Duch to do so.” “And if the detainee did not make full confessions, could the interrogator use torture?” “We could only use torture when we had received the order to do so,” the witness insisted. He again added that the orders of the accused “were usually given by phone or verbally.” Again, Duch looked sceptical upon hearing such a detail. “What kind of violence was inflicted upon the detainees?” “I would rather not answer.”

Witness to drawing of detainees’ blood
Prak Khan claimed he saw blood drawing be performed on detainees, to provide hospitals with blood for wounded soldiers. “For one detainee, five bags of blood had been taken until that person was dying,” he detailed. It was curious he was able to observe this in detail, in 1977-1978, even occasionally, when he would walk “near the office of the medical staff.” In any case, Duch now recognises that the practice took place at S-21.

A witness influenced by the stories heard in court?
“Did the S-21 medical staff include women?” “Yes, there were some.” He knew that because he was hospitalised there, he said. “Was one of these women named Nam Mon [a civil party who came to testify and presented herself as a S-21 nurse]?” “It is possible…” “How can you remember Nam Mon’s name?” “I remember the name because she came to testify here before the Chamber.” “Can you tell us if she was actually a member of the S-21 medical staff?” “By the way she talked, I was convinced she was, but I cannot say it with certainty because I do not remember her name.” “At S-21, were there cells that were high enough for one to stand up in it?” “Yes, it was in each stairwell, under the steps […], arranged either to store things or to place detainees there.” Did Prak Khan also hear this detail during the trial, during the testimony on July 7th of civil party Lay Chan ?

Contradictions
Judge Cartwright returned to an incident observed and reported by the witness, a prisoner interrogated and tortured until she fainted, in the presence of Duch. She sought to ascertain its veracity before saying: “During a previous testimony, you said the accused Duch was the one who inflicted electroshocks on this woman. Is that accurate?” “Yes, Duch was the director at the time. It was not him who was tortured.” He also said he did not know if he gave the order to torture her. “So, you are saying that you were able to hear Duch clearly, that you could see him in the room, and you confirm today that it was Dek Bou who inflicted electroshocks on that woman. Is that right?” “Yes, it was Dek Bou who tortured the detainee…” Earlier in the hearing, he had recognised he had not witnessed the accused perform torture.

Kambol (Phnom Penh, Cambodia). 21/07/2009: Duch, closely following the statement of his former subordinate Prak Khan
©Stéphanie Gée

The New Zealand judge raised another contradiction. “Earlier today, you said you did not see pregnant women at the prison. But in an earlier statement, you mentioned a pregnant woman who allegedly gave birth in the prison…” Prak Khan gave an answer that made no sense before admitting that today, he could no longer confirm what he had said previously.

Contacts between Duch and Prak Khan
Her French colleague chose to interrogate the witness on his contacts with Duch, at the time when he was an interrogator. “I had to be in contact with him [Duch] because he was the one I reported to constantly. […] So, contacts with him were fairly frequent.” “Did you often have phone contacts with Duch?” “They were only occasional.” The accused monitored progress on the interrogations, the witness explained, and gave instructions, particularly for important prisoners whose confessions were waited. Judge Lavergne sought to have the witness say, with much difficulty, if those instructions could involve the resort to any kind of violence. The witness eluded until he finally acknowledged that point.

A witness who does not incriminate himself
During the trainings they were given by Duch, “they were taught to insert needles under the nails” of detainees, Prak Khan stressed, in order to provoke acute pain without the victim risking death. On this matter, the witness was careful not to incriminate himself, as he was told, and thus declared: “I did not participate to torture, but I saw how others [interrogators] tortured until the detainees lost consciousness.” He added that Duch had recommended them “the light approach to humiliate the enemies by the treatment they were given,” whether it was forcing them to eat their own feces or to bow before the picture of a dog, he cited as examples.

Judge Lavergne asked him: “Did you see Duch participate to some interrogations?” “No, I did not see that.” If he saw him do so, it was very brief. “He would come and go,” the witness added. On June 16th, the accused had assured he had not participated to interrogations of prisoners and never been to the interrogation rooms.

Santebal rules
The judge asked that the screens show the blackboard, now at Tuol Sleng museum, on which the ten rules of the Santebal (political security office, S-21) are written, for the attention of prisoners: “Answer the question you are asked, do not stray from it”, “Answer questions immediately without thinking,” “When you are electrocuted, do not shout”… “Any breach of these rules will be punished by ten cane blows and five electroshocks.” The minutes of the reconstruction indicate that, according to Prak Khan, these rules featured in all the rooms, written on the wall or a blackboard. The witness confirmed: “These rules had to be prominent in all the interrogation rooms in order to put psychological pressure on the prisoners.” Today, there is nothing left of these writings and boards, and, as judge Lavergne pointed out, “the accused denied the claim during the reconstruction,” arguing that if these rules had existed, they would have been found in the interrogators’ notebooks that survived or in torture manuals. In court, Duch had thus affirmed that the board had appeared after the arrival in 1979 of the Vietnamese, who were eager to do propaganda by blackening the crimes of the Khmer Rouge regime to better justify their military intervention.

The judge asked the accused to stand up to verify if the witness did recognise him.

And Him Huy?
Finally, left unsatisfied on the previous day, judge Lavergne asked him whether, in his memory, Him Huy, another S-21 staff member who preceded him at the stand, was present at S-21 until the last days of existence of the security centre. But Prak Khan did not remember.

At the end of the day, the witness’ credibility was hard-hit…

(translated from French by Ji-Sook Lee)

.Rouge prisoners were 'considered animals'

Prak Khan, former Khmer Rouge interrogator of S-21 or Tuol Sleng prison

By Suy Se (AFP)

PHNOM PENH — A former Khmer Rouge interrogator told Cambodia's war crimes court Wednesday that his boss at the regime's main torture centre indoctrinated staff to consider their prisoners as animals.

Prak Khan, 58, was testifying at the UN-backed court against prison chief Duch, who is accused of overseeing the torture and execution of around 15,000 people held at Tuol Sleng prison, known as S-21, in the late 1970s.

"At S-21, it was only Duch who indoctrinated our stance, our absolute stance against the enemies (prisoners) and that we had to take it seriously. We had to consider the enemies as animals," he told the tribunal.

Prak Khan's statements represent some of the trial's most damning testimony against Duch, whom he described as an enthusiastic leader who terrified staff.

In testimony Tuesday, Prak Khan told the court that Duch taught staff how to torture prisoners by using electric shocks, suffocation and inserting needles under their nails.

The witness Wednesday admitted his own involvement in crimes at S-21, after the prosecution showed a video in which he told prison survivor Vann Nath that he beat a young female prisoner with branches until she urinated herself.

Prak Khan never saw Duch torture any prisoners but said he did see the S-21 chief once enter an interrogation room while staff were abusing an inmate.

Duch, however, disputed some of Prak Khan's account, calling the witness "minor staff" at the prison and denying he participated in an interrogation with his subordinates.

"I think (this testimony) came out as a result of fear. At that time you were afraid, you were fearful of being arrested by me. But now you are afraid that you might be faced with the court as I am facing now," Duch said.

The 66-year-old Duch, whose real name is Kaing Guek Eav, has accepted responsibility for his role governing the jail and begged forgiveness for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

But the defendant has consistently rejected claims by prosecutors that he held a central leadership role in the Khmer Rouge, and says he never personally killed 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 and torture or were executed during the 1975-1979 regime.

The tribunal was formed in 2006 after nearly a decade of wrangling between the UN and the Cambodian government. The court aims to complete Duch's trial by October, said a spokesman on Wednesday.

Four more former Khmer Rouge leaders currently in detention are expected to face trial next year at the court, and judges are expected to soon rule whether investigators should pursue six more regime cadres for prosecution.

However, the troubled tribunal faces accusations of Cambodian government interference and claims that local staff were forced to pay kickbacks for their jobs.

Draft telecoms law awaiting approval

TeleGeography
http://www.telegeography.com

Wednesday, 22 July 2009

Cambodia’s long-awaited draft Telecoms Law is awaiting approval by the Council of Ministers, writes local newspaper Phnom Penh Post, citing spokesman Phay Siphan. If given the go-ahead, the legislation will be passed to the National Assembly. According to TeleGeography’s GlobalComms database, the draft telecoms law has been in development since 2000, with assistance from the ITU and the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The law proposes to separate the regulatory and policy making functions of the Ministry of Post and Telecommunications (MPTC) by establishing a standalone regulator which will assume the traditional roles of licensing, spectrum management, interconnection regulation, universal access and numbering. If passed into law, the legislation will cover telecoms management and the building of infrastructure, as well as the rights and obligations of consumers, companies and authorities. Among the law’s provisions is an article requiring operators to cooperate and share infrastructure.

TC fixed line growth speeds up

TeleGeography
http://www.telegeography.com/

Wednesday, 22 July 2009

Cambodia’s state-owned incumbent Telecom Cambodia (TC) gained twice as many fixed lines subscribers in 2008 than in the previous year, boosting its number of lines in service to 26,091, writes local newspaper Phnom Penh Post. In 2008 more than 3,600 fixed lines were added, compared with just 1,500 in 2007. TC's subscriber growth has continued in 2009, with the number of fixed lines up by 1,337 in the first five months of the year. The report also adds that in total there are around 50,000 fixed line voice connections in the country, with the remainder shared between rival telcos Camintel and Mfone.

Meanwhile Camnet, the internet arm of TC, has also witnessed an increased growth in subscribers. ‘In 2007 there were about 300 Camnet subscribers, but by the close of the first half of this year (2009), the number climbed to around 1,000,’ said Lao Saroeun, director general of TC. One reason behind the increase in customers is the operator’s decision to cut the cost of broadband internet access, Saroeun added. Previously, the monthly cost for a 1Mbps downlink connection stood at USD1,300, but since Vietnamese military-owned rival operator Viettel entered the market, Camnet had dropped its price to USD700 for the same amount of bandwidth.