Thailand deports beggars, group says

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:04 James O'Toole

THAI authorities have completed the deportation of more than 500 Cambodian beggars rounded up in Bangkok earlier this month, a Thailand-based rights group said Thursday, as activists registered concerns about the possible deportation from Thailand of thousands of migrant labourers.

Jackie Pollack of the Mekong Migration Network, a network of nongovernmental organisations in the Greater Mekong Sub-Region, said every member of a group of approximately 570 Cambodians had been sent back over the border from Bangkok, and that more were being arrested “every day” as part of a campaign to crack down on beggars in the Thai capital.

Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs deputy spokesman Thani Thongphakdi said Wednesday that the deportation was conducted “in accordance with our immigration laws” in an effort to prevent trafficking.

In an open letter to Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva published this week, 36 organisations, including Human Rights Watch, called on the Thai government to clarify its migrant worker policy after Bangkok set a deadline of February 28 for migrant workers to register with the government and complete a Nationality Verification process.

“We would be most concerned if the [Thai government] decides to adopt a policy not to renew work permits and deport migrants,” the groups wrote.

There are 124,174 Cambodians registered to work in Thailand, Pollack said, with “probably at least the same number undocumented”.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CHEANG SOKHA

Rights group targets drug treatment in new report

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:04 Seth Meixner

CAMBODIA’S handling of drug addicts has come under fire in a new report by Human Rights Watch, which has accused staff at drug treatment centres of denying care for people in withdrawal and forcing other drug-dependant inmates to perform labour or exercise, according to a statement released Thursday by the New York-based group.

“The Hippocratic Oath declares that physicians must treat all patients to the best of their abilities and to do them no ‘harm or injustice’,” said Joe Amon, the health and human rights director at Human Rights Watch.

“Medical societies need to show leadership to empower health providers to act to prevent patients from being tortured or abused,” Amon added. “The international rights community needs to join in these efforts.”

Authorities announced in December that the government is planning to build the country’s first national drug rehabilitation centre with support from Vietnam.

The news came amid controversy over a recently completed detoxification programme in which street drug users were dosed with a little-known Vietnamese herbal medication – a scheme that has drawn criticism from rights groups and concern from the UN.

The new treatment centre, would fall under the watch of Cambodia’s anti-drugs bureau, the National Authority for Combating Drugs (NACD).

“Our future is to build a national drug centre,” NACD Secretary General Moek Dara said in December. “We will have trained doctors to treat addicted people and provide [drug users] with job training.”

Reactions mixed for mooted NGO liaison

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:04 Sebastian Strangio and Vong Sokeng

SOCIAL activists have offered mixed responses to a recent proposal for an elected representative to promote dialogue between the NGO sector and the government, with some calling instead for a national commission that would represent the sector’s many disparate views.

The proposal, aired in talks on Tuesday between Prime Minister Hun Sen and Surya Subedi, the UN’s special rapporteur on human rights to Cambodia, would involve the election of an NGO representative to liaise with the government, said Om Yentieng, chairman of the government’s Human Rights Committee.

“Prime Minister Hun Sen agreed with Subedi’s idea of calling on the NGOs in Cambodia to elect their representative in order to facilitate dialogue with the government,” he told reporters after Tuesday’s meeting.

But NGO representatives contacted on Thursday said the election of one person was problematic given the broad scope of groups in Cambodia.

“There’s no single representative of civil society. Civil society, by its nature, has a lot of different interests,” said Ou Virak, president of the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights.

Sin Somuny, executive director of Medicam, an umbrella organisation for health NGOs, agreed, saying a national committee of some sort would better represent the wide variety of nongovernmental groups.

“Instead of electing one person as an NGO representative, which I think is very fragile, I feel that we should have a national civil society committee” that would be represented by an elected chairman, he said.

“When there is one person, they can be bought or can change their mind. We need to have a system.”

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WE BELIEVE THAT THIS IS A NEW STEP TOWARDS IMPROVING HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES ...

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Ou Virak said he also welcomed a civil society-government forum as a counterpart to the pre-existing government-donor forum and government-private sector forum.

‘Loud’ voices

Phay Siphan, spokesman for the Council of Ministers, said on Thursday that Hun Sen’s stated intention was indicative of a “new trend” that would “reduce the louder voices of some NGOs” and increase the cooperation between government and civil society as a whole. “We believe that this is a new step towards improving human rights issues in Cambodia,” he said.

The issue of “loud” NGOs was also raised by Om Yentieng on Tuesday, when he warned that out of more than 1,000 organisations, four or five shouted more loudly than the rest, creating a “bias” within the NGO community.

Yim Sovann, a spokesman for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, said the idea for a national NGO body could be derailed by the questionable nature of some groups registered in the Kingdom.

“Some NGOs are created by the government in order to show the international community that it is a democratic country,” he said, adding that they could be used as a tool “to elect a representative that is loyal to the government”.

Many more groups are either inactive or produce work of uncertain quality, he said, arguing that only those “recognised by the international community” should be considered for the job.

UN rights envoy to meet with opposition parties next week

Photo by: Heng Chivoan

Sam Rainsy Party lawmaker Ho Vann stands near a barricade that was erected to prevent some opposition MPs from visiting villagers awaiting trial in connection with an October border protest on Tuesday.

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:03 Meas Sokchea

CAMBODIA’S opposition parties will meet with the UN’s human rights envoy, Surya Subedi, in the coming week to raise concerns about perceived injustices in the Kingdom, party members said on Thursday amid warnings from officials that these discussions should not be used to insult the government.

Human Rights Party spokesman Yem Ponarith said Subedi is scheduled to meet the Sam Rainsy Party on Saturday and then hold talks with the HRP on Monday.

“We want to talk about issues of injustice in society, including corruption, violation of land rights, human rights and freedom of expression,” he said.

SRP spokesman Yim Sovann said his party had not yet decided what issues to raise with Subedi and would have to meet first to discuss it.

Subedi, who arrived in the Kingdom on Monday, “intends to use the visit to examine the functioning of the National Assembly and judiciary, including the Supreme Council of Magistracy and the Constitutional Council”, according to a statement issued by the UN on January 15.

Phay Siphan, spokesman for the Council of Ministers, said the opposition parties, while having the right to raise any issues they want, should not use their meetings with Subedi as an opportunity to attack the government.

“The UN human rights envoy comes to help compromise; he does not have a trend of ordering governments how to work,” he said.

“The opposition parties have to prepare themselves to be in a partnership,” Phay Siphan added.

Defamation case uncertain

Photo by: Pha Lina

Vendors from Chhouk market in Kampot province protest Monday in Phnom Penh.

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:03 Chhay Channyda

FOUR vendors’ representatives from Chhouk market in Kampot province remain uncertain about the status of defamation charges brought against them by the market owner, even after authorities removed 50 stalls from the market’s parking lot on Wednesday, honouring the request that prompted the charges in the first place.

The removal followed a protest in Phnom Penh on Monday, staged by around 100 vendors, who said the stalls, built in 2007 on the market’s parking lot, were driving away their customers.

Ou Narin, the owner of the market, filed a defamation suit against the four defendants some time after they sent a complaint about the stalls to Prime Minister Hun Sen last August on behalf of the market’s 303 vendors.

Vouch Bo, one of the four accused, did not know when Ou Narin filed his suit, but said she had received a summons in December ordering her to appear in provincial court on January 14. Court officials said that all four representatives – Vouch Bo, Pak Chhay, Viech Sokhon and Ith Samnang – were sent summonses, but that only Vouch Bo and Pak Chhay claimed to have received them.

“I was very frightened, but when Pak Chhay and I appeared in court we had the support of more than 200 vendors who accompanied us,” Vouch Bo said, adding that the court had postponed the session for 15 days after she and her co-defendant were unable to find a lawyer.

Vouch Bo said that vendors were “happy for the help of the prime minister”, but that the defamation lawsuit was taking a toll on her health.

“I cannot eat or sleep well,” she said. “I am always thinking of the court case.”

As of Thursday, the court had given no indication of when the next session would take place, if ever, but Doeu Sokhom, provincial monitor for the rights group Adhoc, said his organisation had hired lawyers for the defendants from a private firm.

“We have the lawyers for them, but we only began discussing the case with them today,” he said.

Doeu Sokhom said the vendors’ complaint did not constitute defamation because the market vendor violated the 15-year contract he made with district authorities in 2002, which allowed him to charge daily vending fees and build infrastructure at the market, but “did not allow him to build stalls in the parking lot”.

Ou Narin could not be reached for comment on Thursday.

Sex worker arrests on the rise

Photo by: Sovan Philong

Sex workers waiting for costumers near Wat Phnom. The municipal Social Affairs Department recorded a slight increase in the number of detained sex workers in 2009.

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:03 Mom Kunthear and Tep Nimol

THE municipal Social Affairs Department has reported a slight increase in the number of sex workers who were rounded up and detained in Phnom Penh in 2009.

Nut Nang, the department’s deputy director of social health, said that 469 sex workers were detained in Phnom Penh in 2009, up from 415 in 2008.

Although the department blamed the economic crisis for the rise in detentions, NGO officials who work with sex workers said the government had failed in providing alternative income sources for the women it had rounded up.

“The number of sex workers is increasing because of the global economic crisis,” Nut Nang said.

“We saw that many factories were closed and factory workers lost their jobs, and most of them didn’t go back to their hometown but instead turned to work in night clubs, karaoke parlours and other public places in order to earn money for their families.”

She decried the tendency of detained sex workers to head right back onto the street when they are released.

“They never care about their own future. When I explain to them that they should not continue doing sex work and encourage them to learn a specific skill, what I hear from them is: ‘I cannot let my family members die because they have no food – I must go to do the same job,’” Nut Nang said.

But NGO workers said the department should be doing more to prepare detained sex workers for other professions.

“Of course they are going back,” said Sara Bradford, a technical adviser for the Asia Pacific Network of Sex Workers.

“The Ministry of Social Affairs detention centres offer nothing in terms of vocational training, so how would they provide sex workers with marketable skills upon their release?” she said.

Keo Tha, a coordinator for the Women’s Network for Unity, said any increase in sex worker detentions was cause for concern.

“I am worried about the number of sightings of police detaining sex workers, because it can impact those who need to use antiretroviral medication,” she said.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY DAVID BOYLE

DRIVER'S ED: Schools to be driven off the road

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:03 Khoun Leakhana

DRIVER'S ED

The Ministry of Public Works and Transport has pledged to shut down the Kingdom’s more than 40 unlicensed driving schools unless they register, a ministry official said. Preab Chanvitol, the chief of the ministry’s Land Transportation Department, said officials had issued a warning about the pending closures during a meeting with driving in-structors on Wednesday. “We will organise expert teams of officials to control every driving school across the country in order to educate them about the importance of having licences, because we need registration to trust the quality of teaching,” he said. Preab Chantivol said there were 91 driving schools, both licensed and unlicensed, operating nationwide.

Cops face court probe

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:03 Chrann Chamroeun

KANDAL provincial court has launched an investigation into a complaint filed by the family of a 25-year-old man who was allegedly beaten to death by two off-duty police officers at a wedding reception earlier this month, a court official said Thursday.

Long Chhun Leng was found dead on January 10 at his mother’s house, close to where the reception was held. An autopsy report stated that the man died from an unspecified illness, but his family and the rights group Adhoc filed a complaint later that week urging the court to re-investigate the case, saying the victim had been beaten to death by the two officers.

Phorn Phal, a clerk for the prosecutor, said the court was investigating the case. The prosecutor was scheduled to question the two officers on Wednesday, he said, but only one of the officers appeared. He said the prosecution “told him to come back when the pair could be summoned at the same time, because right now we are terribly busy with other cases”.

The victim’s mother-in-law, Prum Sokhoeun, said she was hopeful that the court would ultimately find justice for the family.

“But if the court fails to charge the two officers, we will bring all 132 witnesses to Prime Minister Hun Sen’s house to call for help,” she said.

Vendors resist move

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:03 May Titthara

About 100 vendors at Snoeung Market in Battambang province’s Banan district have resolved to ignore today’s relocation deadline and instead travel to Battambang town to protest in front of provincial headquarters, a vendor representative said Thursday.

“If we still haven’t heard from district officials, we will take taxis to the provincial offices to ask for help,” Bun Thet said.

The vendors were notified by authorities on Wednesday that they would need to move from their current location because the market was interfering with a proposed road upgrade.

District authorities have suggested that the vendors pay between US$800 and $1,000 to set up shop in a market about 200 metres away, but the vendors have said they cannot afford the new stalls.

Banan district Governor Sreng Sreang on Thursday reiterated officials’ position that the market would interfere with the road upgrade.

“The upgrade will impact all of the land on which the old market is built,” he said.

Night Market owner defiant

Photo by: Byron Perry

The controversial Siem Reap Night Market was forced to close earlier this week in response to complaints that it was blocking a busy thoroughfare. Its owner has vowed to fight the closure.

via CAAI News Media

Friday, 22 January 2010 15:02 Rann Reuy

Siem Reap Province

THE owner of the Siem Reap Night Market is pledging to fight a decision that saw his upstart market closed down after competing vendors complained he was siphoning business and clogging a main thoroughfare.

Provincial officials ordered owner Huy Leng to shut his night market in Siem Reap town this week, bowing to complaints from rival businesses. But Huy Leng said Thursday he plans to petition authorities to reopen the market with the support of his vendors.

He said 27 of his vendors took back their US$300 stall deposits after news of the closure came this week. But 20 have returned the money, he said.

“The people believe that I can win this case,” Huy Leng said. “I didn’t pressure them to do this. I told them that if they don’t trust me, they can take their money back. If they trust me, they can support me and demand permission to sell in the same place.”

Huy Leng erected the night market earlier this year on a busy thoroughfare beside Pub Street, charging vendors US$50 per month – less than half of what competing markets charged, he said.

But public outcry from many nearby businesses forced the closure, with local authorities saying that provincial officials had not yet approved the market.

Huy Leng said the closure is hurting not only him but several people with disabilities whom he had employed as masseuses.

“I am in a really difficult position right now,” he said. “Since the market closed, more than 20 disabled people are jobless. I am helping to support them.”

But Lim Nam, owner of the competing Angkor Night Market, said it wouldn’t be fair if authorities allowed the Siem Reap Night Market to reopen on a public street that lies roughly 100 metres away from his stalls.

“When I started here three years ago, this town was quiet. I spent thousands of dollars to advertise to attract customers,” Lim Nam said. “It would be dishonest competition if authorities gave [Huy Leng] the right to sell on public space.”

Provincial officials who ordered the Siem Reap Night Market shut, however, said little on the issue Thursday.

Bun Tharith, deputy governor and spokesman for Siem Reap province, referred questions to Governor Sou Phirin, who could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Norwegian accused of sexually abusing boy

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:02 Chrann Chamroeun

A 64-year-old Norwegian man suspected of sexually abusing a 14-year-old boy was arrested Wednesday and will be sent to provincial court where he is expected to be charged with purchasing child prostitution, police officials said Thursday.

The man was arrested in Siem Reap town’s Sala Kamroek commune after police put under suveillance a guesthouse that he frequented.

Sun Bunthorn, chief of the province’s Anti-Child Trafficking Bureau, told the Post Thursday that his team had been investigating the suspect for several months, after seeing him entering the guest house with a young boy several times.

The youth was questioned after emerging from the guesthouse and told officers he had been paid US$40 for performing oral sex and other sexual acts on the man, Sun Bunthorn said.

Sun Bunthorn said the man had not confessed, but that he had admitted to giving the boy money.

Police are looking for other victims, Sun Bunthorn said, adding that authorities believe more boys have been abused by this man.

Worried telcos pen letter to Hun Sen

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:02 Ellie Dyer

THE row over government distribution of overlapping frequency licences in the telecoms industry escalated Thursday when a letter of complaint, signed by top officials from seven leading businesses, was delivered to Prime Minister Hun Sen.

The document, passed to the premier through his Cabinet, formally lodged concerns about the way the Ministry of Post and Telecommunication awards frequency licences in the sector and was endorsed by CEOs of some of the Kingdom’s largest telecommunications companies.

On Wednesday, the Post reported that widespread disaffection was spreading through the business community after a TV company was licensed to broadcast on a frequency already used by nine Internet service providers.

Without a valid licence, companies are unable to provide services that use radio frequency, such as the Internet or mobile-phone networks, to the public.

According to the letter, a permit is the “foundation stone” for businesses on which tens of millions of US dollars’ worth of telecoms infrastructure is built.

An industry insider, who requested anonymity, explained that if multiple companies were to use the same frequency, “no telecommunications or broadcast network could function with any level of quality. Massive signal interference would make consumers so disgusted, they’d just give up.”

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It's unprecedented for operators to join together and voice collectively their concerns in this way."
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The letter – which has been seen by the Post – demands that providers’ existing licences be honoured and discusses the ramifications of multiple licensing upon future investment in the Kingdom. It was sent after talks between companies and the ministry failed to reach a resolution.

Recently awarded licences send “the investment community, both current and potential, the wrong message about investment protection and rule of law in Cambodia”, the letter reads in part.

“Perceptions that licences issued by a government ministry such as MPTC are valueless cannot be allowed to spread.”

The letter continues: “It would hurt investment in the development of information and communication technologies (ICT) that Cambodia needs.”

The dispatch added that “the sweeping nature” of the new permit – awarded to company Star Digital TV for the large 2.5GHz to 2.7GHz of spectrum – immediately impacts on businesses and the 2,000 subscribers who use the new WiMAX wireless Internet services provided by the ISPs.

The letter asks Hun Sen to provide assurances to all holders of existing radio frequency licences that their bandwidth will not be taken away or reallocated to other groups.

The letter was signed by Sreang Tito, president and CEO of Angkor Data Communication Group; Sok Channda, CEO and president of Cambodia Data Communication Co Ltd; Hyam Bolande, vice president of Chuan Wei; Ngeth Chanthol, owner of Wicam; Khan Angkeabot, CEO of Wireless IP; Chris Maloy, CEO of AZ Communication Group; and Paul Blanche Horgan, CEO of Ezecom.

Representatives from Ezecom and AZ Communications signed the letter despite not being directly affected by multiple licensing, as a sign of industry solidarity, an industry expert said.

An official with one affected licence holder, who asked to remain anonymous, wrote via email: “It’s unprecedented for operators to join together and voice collectively their concerns in this way, and it really bespeaks the gravity of the situation.”

When approached by the Post on Thursday night, Telecommunications Ministry Director General Moa Chakrya said he had no knowledge of the letter and declined to comment about the issuing of the licence to Star Digital TV.

An assistant to the prime minister did not answer calls on Thursday, and the Post was told Wednesday that the manager of Digital Star TV was travelling until next week.

New casino launched in Vietnam border SEZ

Photo by: SOEUN SAY

A visitor on Thursday enters the new Top Diamond Casino close to the Vietnamese border in Takeo province, a US$2 million project in the Phnom Den SEZ.

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:02 Soeun Say

Officials say they hope development will lead to more projects

TAKEO PROVINCE

ANEW US$2 million casino opened on Thursday in a special economic zone (SEZ) which lies on the border between Cambodia and Vietnam.

Top Diamond, a 1,600-square-metre casino, is the first of three gambling outlets expected to be built in the Phnom Den SEZ, developers said Thursday. It has been constructed about 1km from the international border with Vietnam.

The 200-employee casino was built on land leased by Cambodian developers Doung Chhiv Investment on National Road 2.

Managing director Hout Chanthou said: “This location has great potential. I hope that businessmen will stop by here to gamble.

“This is the first casino here. If it is successful, we will be opening two more casinos. I also have plans to build a new US$4.5 million three-star hotel in the next year.”

Deputy of National Police Commissioner, Sok Phal, said Thursday that there are now 32 licensed casinos in Cambodia.

“We hope that one will be set up on the Cambodia-Laos border in the near future soon,” he said, citing numerous casinos already built along the Kingdom’s borders with Thailand and Vietnam. “Casinos can create jobs for Cambodian people in those areas.”

Investors hope to expand on the casino market as part of the development of SEZs. Cambodia currently has 19 licensed areas, but only six are in operation.

Construction in the Phnom Den SEZ, which was created in 2006, is due to finish in 2015.

Duong Tech, general manager of Duong Chhiv Group, told the Post on Thursday that the company has completed about 15 percent of its development plans for the area. Its progress has slowed as a result of the world economic crisis.

“So far we have built a warehouse, a casino and 42 apartment units. Our plan for the SEZ is to build three casinos on the land,” he said.

Tek Tong Lim, governor of Kirivong district in Takeo province, told the Post that development has aided the local economy.

“We are happy to have a SEZ. It will also bring more jobs to many people in the district,” he said. “Local people will be better off, as the zone will create infrastructure in the area, which will support many factories to buy people’s agriculture products.”

Sok Samnang, chief of police at the Phnom Den International checkpoint, said that the number of tourists who entered Cambodia through the crossing remained stable despite the world financial crisis.

“There are about 80 to 100 tourists who go across the border every day. This number is the same as last year. We hope that it will increase in the next year because of the new casino operation,” he said.

“Cambodian and Vietnamese people have a good trade relationship here. But we only trade fruit and vegetables.”

OZ gold estimate at latest drill due in Q1

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:02 Ellie Dyer

MEASUREMENTS to estimate gold resources at Okvau, in Mondulkiri province, are set to be finalised by mining company OZ Minerals in the first quarter of 2010.

According to the company’s fourth-quarter report released Thursday, structural and geological modelling at the gold deposit have recently been completed, and resource calculations are now under way.

The company hopes to outline an initial inferred resource by the first quarter of 2010, as part of its “new discovery” programme, the report added.

The modelling followed a 5,800-metre drilling programme to test previously unidentified gold mineralisation at Okvau.

Last month, a spokesman for OZ Minerals told the Post it aims to identify at least 2 million ounces of gold at its Cambodian concessions by the end of this year.

Surface sampling and geophysical analysis is ongoing at the four other areas being explored by the company.

The areas, located close to Okvau, are Oput, Area 6, Granite Hill and Area 1. “These prospects are currently being, or will be, drill-tested in 2010 to ascertain the district-scale potential in the Okvau region,” Thursday’s report said.

Australian-based OZ Minerals outperformed its estimates in the last quarter of 2009, according to the figures released. Copper and gold production exceeded expectations at its Primrose Hill site in Australia.

The company mined 36,497 tonnes of copper and 30,526 ounces of gold during the period.

OZ Minerals recently refocused on gold and copper mining in Australia and Southeast Asia following the June sale of US$1.35 billion of its zinc mines to China Minmetals Non-Ferrous Metals Co.

Police Blotter: 22 Jan 2010

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:02 Chrann Chamroeun

MONEY EXCHANGER POISONED, LOSES 5K

Police are hunting three suspects wanted for stealing US$5,000 from a money changer after doping her with sleeping pills mixed with fish paste in Koh Kong province’s Dong Tung market on Wednesday. Witnesses report seeing two men and a woman on a motorbike approach the victim’s house, where they allegedly asked the victim to taste the paste. The victim was dazed when the robbery occurred.

RASMEY KAMPUCHEA

TEEN ADMITS TO RAPE, MURDER OF GIRL, 9

Kratie provincial police arrested a teenage boy Tuesday for the rape and murder of a 9-year-old girl near her school in Sambo district’s Khbal Damrey commune. The 16-year-old suspect was arrested five days after the victim’s body was found on January 14. The provincial chief of the Serious Crimes Bureau, Chan Sokhim, said the suspect will face provincial court after he confessed to raping the girl in a nearby forest and beating her to death to prevent her from talking to authorities.

KOH SANTEPHEAP

BRITON FOUND DEAD IN SIEM REAP HOTEL

A British man found dead in his hotel bathroom in Siem Reap province Wednesday may have slipped and fallen because he was too drunk, according to an autopsy report. The 26-year-old was found dead seven days after he arrived in Siem Reap. Police could not confirm the cause of death. His body is to be picked up by officials from the British embassy.

KOH SANTEPHEAP

VIETNAMESE MAN ARRESTED IN STING

Preah Sihanouk provincial police arrested a Vietnamese man suspected of possessing and distributing drugs after a raid at his house in Stung Hav’s Tomnop Rolok commune. Yang Loeun, 28, was arrested Sunday when the raid uncovered two methamphetamine pills, two smoking devices and two samurai swords. Police said the man had confessed to both charges and would face provincial court.

KOH SANTEPHEAP

FATHER ACCUSED OF TRAFFICKING CHILD

Takeo provincial police arrested a man Wednesday on suspicion of arranging to have his stepdaughter trafficked to Malaysia. Mith Slatinh, 45, was detained following a complaint from the girl’s grandmother, who told police the man and his wife had paid her a visit Sunday requesting to take the girl to Phnom Tamao resort. After the girl did not return, the grandmother complained to the commune chief, who found out that the couple had taken the victim to a broker in Phnom Penh. Mith Slatinh confessed that the broker had sent the girl to Malaysia.

RASMEY KAMPUCHEA

HK bourse expert points to IPO opportunies

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:01 Nguon Sovan

CAMBODIA’S new stock market will benefit companies and help them bring in extra capital for expansion, a Hong Kong expert said in a Thursday seminar.

Referring to securities markets and the private sector, Alec Yiu Wa Tsui, former CEO of Hong Kong Stock Exchange and former chairman of Hong Kong Finance Institute, said: “Newly listed companies will bring in new capital, win prestige, attract professional management, and earn more business opportunities.”

However, the former CEO said that there are burdens for companies that wish to become listed on the exchange. He named the cost of an initial public offering (IPO), the possibility of corporate restructuring before an IPO, and continued need for compliance with listing requirements – such as regular financial reporting and ac hoc disclosure of sensitive information – as factors.

“However with risk comes opportunity,” he explained.

The Kingdom’s first stock exchange is due to launch at the end of this year, after its implementation was delayed.

Sorn Sokna, chairman of the newly founded Financial Institute of Cambodia, said that a number of Cambodian companies already have a transparent and effective corporate culture, which means they have the potential to engage in the stock exchange.

“However, these companies have shown great reluctance in engaging with the securities market, primarily due to a lack of clear understanding in the ways they could participate,” he added.

Keat Chhon, finance minister and chairman of Securities and Exchange Commission of Cambodia, said the most important factor from the government’s side is that the bourse becomes a transparent, effective, just, sustainable, and investor-protective force in the economy.

Chinese company picked to boost capital's port capacity

Photo by: HENG CHIVOAN

Phnom Penh Port is set for a makeover following a newly signed deal with Shanghai Co, according to the head of the port Hei Bavy

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:01 Chun Sophal

Upgrade to be funded by already approved loan from Beijing

CHINESE company Shanghai Co has been selected by the government to develop infrastructure at Phnom Penh Autonomous Port (PPAP).

Hei Bavy, director general of PPAP, told the Post Wednesday that the business has been awarded the rights to develop the port from the Cambodian government. It is set to start the project this March and due to finish 30 months later.

The scheme will be funded by a US$30 million Chinese loan, announced by the government in October.

In its first stage, Shanghai will equip the 59-year-old port with modern goods-lifting equipment and build a new port for storing containers in a deep-water area. This will be situated on the Mekong River, in Kien Svay district, 20 kilometres east of Phnom Penh.

“We hope more ... containers will be shipped through Phnom Penh Autonomous Port because of this development project,” said Hei Bavy.

It is hoped that after development the port will be able to load from 120,000 to 300,000 standard containers of goods per year, he added. At present, it is able to load a maximum of 50,000 to 60,000 per year.

In 2009, PPAP shipped only 43,500 standard containers of freight, a drop of 7.44 percent compared with 2008, due to the global economic crisis.

Hei Bavy predicted that the shipment of freight at PPAP this year might reach 60,000 containers, due to a predicted increase in rice exports and some other agricultural products.

“I believe that Cambodia will continue to develop in the future. There will be bigger demand for produce, which means transportation services will need to expand too,” Hei Bavy said.

Last week, Chan Nora, secretary of state of the Ministry of Commerce, predicted that business in Cambodia would improve this year because large amounts of agricultural products like rice, corn and rubber had been reserved for export.

Fashion boutique lends a hand to the less fortunate

Photo by: BYRON PERRY

Lauren Iida (left) and Rachel Faller have opened Circle, a new boutique in the Alley West area of Siem Reap.

via CAAI News Media

Friday, 22 January 2010 15:01 Post Staff

Two young, tattooed American girls have opened the latest boutique, named Circle, in the increasingly fashionable Alley West area of Siem Reap. Rachel Faller, 23, and Lauren Iida, 25, joined forces in Phnom Penh and have expanded northward with Circle, which opened on Wednesday.

The boutique will sell clothing and accessories supplied by Rachel and Lauren’s separate Phnom Penh-based social enterprises. Keo K’jay, started by Rachel, provides jobs for HIV positive women, who manufacture handmade clothing and accessories from recycled and sustainable materials. Lauren’s project, called Iida, provides housing, literacy classes and a fair salary to disadvantaged, rural women for manufacturing clothing made from vintage fabric.

Rachel and Lauren – both art school graduates – design all of the fashion items that their enterprises produce, and almost all are one-of-a-kind. Rachel already has a shop in Phnom Penh called Keo K’jay that carries her products and some of Lauren’s.

The two women had already established their respective projects before they met in Phnom Penh. “We’d heard about each other because our projects were similar and one day I walked into her store,” said Lauren.

“This shop is going to have a different feeling though because our products are going to be married together,” said Rachel, who describes her style as more funky and urban, and Lauren’s as classic and feminine.

The young designer also feels that temple town is the perfect place to showcase their wares. “Siem Reap’s just got a really cool vibe for artists and designers, especially on this street,” Rachel said.

Circle will host an opening party tomorrow night from 7-10pm with free drinks, cupcakes and gifts.

Making shrooms in the liquid form

Photo by: PETER OLSZEWSKI

Angkor Rice Wine Work Shop owner Lima Lim (left) and her sister Viriya Lim hold a bottle of soo krom mushroom wine and a chunk of the rare mushroom.

via CAAI News Media

Friday, 22 January 2010 15:01 Peter Olszewski

One of Siem Reap’s newest tourist attractions, the Angkor Rice Wine Work Shop, is doing a roaring trade with a wine made from the rare, expensive and almost forgotten traditional soo krom healing mushroom.

The tourism business, owned by Lima Lin, was spun out late last year from a family rice wine making operation. The showroom and working museum guides tourists through all the steps of making a range of rice-based wines, including the soo krom mushroom wine.

Lima Lim explained that the mushroom was used medicinally in ancient times, but knowledge about it disappeared during the war years. It also only grows in heavily forested mountain ranges, particularly in the Dongrek mountain region, and this has made it hard to collect in recent times due to the possible presence of unexploded ordnance.

When Koreans recently discovered the mushroom on sale in some villages, business surged. Lima Lim and her family also discovered the mushroom used to be as popular in Khmer culture as ginseng is among the Chinese. But Lima Lim’s sister Viriya Lim points out the mushroom is exceedingly rare and expensive.

It grows in large clumps weighing up to about 30 kilos or, as Viriya said, “It comes in pieces almost as big as the ruins of Angkor.” A clump can be up to 100 years old, but clumps in the 50-60 year old range are best for medicinal purposes and can cost up to $60 per kilo.

School helps women stitch together a brighter future

Hotel de la Paix director of sales and marketing Christian de Boer congratulates a graduate of the hotel-sponsored sewing school. PHOTO SUPPLIED

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:01 Post Staff

Graduates from the 2009 Sewing School sponsored by Hotel de la Paix and MasterCard in conjunction with the Life and Hope Association received their diplomas in a colorful ceremony at Wat Damnak last Friday.

As well as receiving diplomas, the participating women also received sewing machines and a starter kit to help them set up business in their villages.

This innovate project, a brainchild of the management of Hotel de la Paix, has been underway for just over two years, and this year MasterCard helped fund the philanthropic endeavour by covering all costs for 10 village women to take part in the course.

Originally, 21 women from remote villages in the province signed up for the sewing school, but three dropped out due to marriage or pregnancy.

The sewing school lasted for 10 months and, as well as receiving training skills, the women also received basic education and training in life skills. Christian de Boer, the director of sales and marketing at Hotel de la Paix, said the project is a very simple way to help uneducated girls from the countryside learn skills they can take back and use in their villages.

“It makes a very direct daily difference to their lives,” de Boer said.

Among the guests who attended the ceremony were the Venerable Nol Chum, Chief of Monks in Wat Damnak and honorary president of Life and Hope Association; Venerable Chhun Chhoeurn, acting director of the Life and Hope Association; Pang Sok Chea, deputy director of the Provincial Department of Labour and Vocational Training; and Sam Lorn, chief of Sangkat Salakamreuk.

Puppets help poppets

A child works on a puppet for the Great Puppet Project. PHOTO SUPPLIED

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:01 Post Staff

The Giant Puppet Project has begun to pull strings around town to raise funds for its fourth year of operations.

“Our budget this year is around US$10,000 and we’ve already got some of that. We’re trying to raise money in the UK and US as well,” says director Stuart Cochlin. “We’re also having a raffle this year at Abacus restaurant.”

The project aims to provide a “creative platform for disadvantaged children to foster and promote expression and self-confidence through art,” says Bina Hanley, director of marketing and communication for the Giant Puppet Project. It claims to be the largest local children’s community arts project in Siem Reap.

A few weeks of workshops will lead up to the climax of The Giant Puppet Project – a parade through the streets and along the river of Siem Reap ending with a party in the park across from the Royal Residence. The parade will start in the Old Market area at 7pm on February 27.

Like years past, international puppeteers from the UK and five student artists from Phare School in Battambang will come to Siem Reap to help out with the project.

Ulsan Uni side upset PKR

Photo by: HENG CHIVOAN

Preah Khan Reach’s San Narith shields the ball from an Ulsan University player during their match at Olympic Stadium Thursday.

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:00 Ung Chamroeun

Preah Khan Reach lose friendly 3-1 to visiting South Korean team

Cambodian Premier League club Preah Khan Reach (PKR) were beaten 3-1 in a friendly at Olympic Stadium Thursday by visiting South Korean side University Ulsan. The match played to only a smattering of local football fans and television station TVK decided not to screen the match live as promised.

The youngsters on the Korean side had started the brighter, but struggled to find an opening goal. Then, in the 20th minute, PKR new signing Ande Apollo gave his team the lead after overcoming two Ulsan defenders to slot home.

In the 38th minute, Ung Kanyanith came off the bench to replace skipper Samel Nasa. The veteran forward linked well with Tum Saray to create some scoring chances, but the Ulsan defence managed to deny PKR of extending their lead heading into the interval.

In the second half, Ulsan pushed hard for the equaliser, including an inspirational performance by Choi Min-seok. The Korean frontman set up teammate Cha Tae-young in the 76th minute to tie the scores, and the just three minutes later, granted his side the lead with a well struck shot.

Choi Min-seok sealed the win with his second of the game just a minute from time to fill the travelling side with confidence ahead of their Saturday clash with the national team. Despite the loss, PKR coach Prak Sovannara was satisfied with their efforts. “My boys played not too bad but they lost some chances,” he said after the match. “However, I recognise that the Koreans play at a high standard with great speed. From this match experience, we’ve learnt our weaknesses and strengths. I believe that my players will do better in the Samdech Hun Sen Cup.”

Boules throwers to clash in tournament

Photo by: HENG CHIVOAN

34-year-old national petanque player Douch Sophaon practices at the National Sports Complex on July 28, 2009, ahead of the SEA Games in Vientiane

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:00 Ung Chamroeun

THE Cambodia Petanque and Boules Sports Federation (CPBF), in collaboration with the Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie de Phnom Penh, has sent out an open invitation to all petanque players, either local or expatriate, to participate in the inaugural Francophonie Cup, to be staged in March at the National Sports Complex.

According to Meas Sarin, undersecretary of state at the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports and also general secretary of the CPBF, the tournament is being organised as part of celebrations for International Francophone Day (March 20). Cambodia is a member of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (International Francophone Organisation).

Teams will be organised into three categories – men, women and mixed – with preliminary matches played from March 12-14, and semifinals and finals on March 22. Each team must not exceed five members (one coach, three players and one reserve) with a maximum of one member from the national team.

“We want to encourage the non-professional players and other parties to participate the event,” stated Meas Sarin. “If we can find sponsorship partners in time, we will contact the TV channels for broadcasting the final event [live]”

The CPBF was established in 1992 with members starting to compete in international competitions two years later. In 2001, Cambodia claimed their first ever medal at the SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur, and have steadily increased their tally over the years up to last year’s tournament in Vientiane, which saw them bring home two golds, three silvers and five bronzes.

“Petanque always made a good account at international competitions for Cambodia. So we really need to encourage participation, especially from the younger generation,” explained Meas Sarin.

Registration fees are 10,000 riels each (US$2.41) or 40,000 riels per team, and deadline is March 9. Forms can be collected at the CPBF’s office inside Olympic Stadium, or you can make contact by email: campetanque@yahoo.com

Man United look to blast back to top spot

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:00 Chris Dring

ONCE again the Premiership is pulled off centre stage as the fourth round of the FA Cup returns, with punters eagerly hoping for more giants to fall at the hands of English football’s minnows. Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson will be livid with his early exit from the competition to historic nemeses Leeds, and then their midweek League cup defeat to Manchester City. Someone has to take Sir Alex’s backlash, and unfortunately for Hull they travel west to visit Old Trafford in the only Premiership fixture of the weekend.

Myhill was a human brick wall last Saturday as Hull incredibly drew 0-0 against an on form Spurs side. Without Myhill’s heroics in goal, the score line could have been embarrassing. Hull boss Phil Brown would have been delighted with the point, but knows there was a giant gulf in class between the sides this weekend. With Manchester United offering more potency upfront than Tottenham, it is almost impossible to conceive Hull can repeat such a feat.

Rooney is the new king of the Theatre of Dreams. He has started to move around the pitch with the arrogance and swagger that Cantona and Ronaldo had done before him. He’s the main catalyst going forward and everything good about United’s performances, despite their current wobble, has come through him.

One of Ferguson’s main issues at the moment is working out his best midfield, and who should partner Rooney. Giggs and Scholes can’t play every week and United seem to be missing their old fluency.

However, this is the perfect game to iron out all of United’s creases and get things back on track. Regardless of their lineup, they should be head and shoulders above a poor Hull outfit. With Van der Sar back in goal, the defence should be sealed nice and tight. Expect a one sided game with Giggs and Valencia offering the width, and one that sees the Red Devils temporally reclaim top spot in the league.

The Phnom Penh Post News in Brief

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Shorter route from VN

Friday, 22 January 2010 15:00 Post Staff

VIETNAM has finalised new air routes that will cut flight times to Cambodia, according to local press reports Thursday. Flights from Danang and the capital Hanoi would now take a shorter route through Laos over Vilao and Pakse cutting flight times to Cambodia’s two main hubs Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, Vietnam News Agency reported. The new flight path would cut 25 minutes off flight times to Siem Reap, according to the revised route, which is part of the Vietnam Airlines itinerary to the Kingdom. These routes previously did not pass over Laos thus avoiding fly-over fees.

Axiata Q4 to be strong

Friday, 22 January 2010 15:00 BLOOMBERG AND POST STAFF

KUALA LUMPUR – Axiata Group Bhd, the Malaysian parent company of mobile-phone operator Hello, may report “strong” fourth-quarter earnings growth, helped by demand for wireless broadband amid an improving economy, CIMB Investment Bank Bhd said Thursday. Earnings may “surprise on the upside”, CIMB said in a report. Net income more than doubled during the third quarter to 503.7 million ringgit (US$148 million) from 243.9 million ringgit. However, this performance was not matched at the firm’s Cambodia arm where Axiata recorded a 5 percent slide in revenues. The company cited increased competition for the second successive quarter of falling earnings.

Aid coordination is main challenge as search for ...

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With the search for survivors of Haiti's deadly earthquake on Jan. 12 drawing to a close; US troops, UN blue helmets and relief organisations face the challenge of coordinating aid operations on the ground.