BANGKOK, Nov 6 (TNA) - Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva arrived in Tokyo Friday morning to attend the first Mekong-Japan Summit in the Japanese capital and to hold bilateral talks with Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama.
Mr Abhisit declined to comment on his possible first encounter with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen at the summit, saying that there was no schedule to meet the Cambodia leader and the gathering was focusing in the regional issue.
The Thai prime minister and leaders of Cambodia, the Lao PDR, Myanmar, Vietnam, were scheduled to attend the luncheon hosted by the Japan Business Federation (Nippon Keidanren) and it could be the first time that Mr Abhisit and Hun Sen meet after tensions were heightened following Cambodia’s appointment of convicted former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra as personal advisor to Cambodian Premier Hun Sen and advisor on economy to his government.
Thailand protested the move by withdrawing its ambassador from Phnom Penh, saying it considered the Mr Thaksin’s appointment as interference in its internal affairs, while Cambodia later recalled its own ambassador in a reciprocal action.
After the luncheon, the leaders the Mekong sub-region countries were to have an audience with Crown Prince Naruhito and then meet the Speaker of the Japanese House of Representatives, Takahiro Yokomichi, and Japan's upper house President Satsuki Eda respectively.
The Thai prime minister was scheduled to participate in the Mekong-Japan Summit at 5.30pm local time or 7.30pm Thai time.
Mr Abhisit said earlier that Thailand will focus on three important issues—infrastructure connectivity to boost economic development in the East-West and Southern economic corridors and pave the way for ASEAN economic integration, resolution of environmental problems (Japan has played a major role in resolving climate change), and human resources development.
The Thai premier said that the summit is expected to issue an investment plan for infrastructure and environmental rehabilitation, as well as human resources development.
In addition, Mr Abhisit said a declaration on joint political will was scheduled to be signed.
The Thai premier said that after the summit ends, he will meet bilaterally with the Japanese premier and with Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada.
He said the meeting will focus on economic cooperation, especially applying the Japan-Thailand Economic Partnership Agreement (JTEPA) and Creative Economics for Economic Value Added.
The Thai premier said Thailand has met with Japanese investors both in Thailand and abroad about implementing the economic partnership agreement and will resolve the continuing problem at Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate in accord with the law, worrying investors after Thailand's Central Administrative Court ordered 76 industrial projects there to temporarily halt operations amid continued concern by local residents and NGOs about critical environmental and health impacts.
Japan earlier reaffirmed its continued commitment to help narrow the development gaps in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) through various sub-regional development activities.
Japan initiated the Mekong-Japan Cooperation framework while designating the year 2009 as the Mekong-Japan Exchange Year.
The 1st Mekong-Japan Summit in Tokyo is expected to strengthen cooperative relations between Japan and the Mekong countries, including Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam. (TNA)
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Friday, November 06, 2009
PM Abhisit arrives in Tokyo for 1st Mekong-Japan Summit
Japan’s Hatoyama Pledges $5.5 Billion in Aid to Mekong Nations
By Sachiko Sakamaki
Nov. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Japan pledged at least 500 billion yen ($5.5 billion) in aid to five Southeast Asian nations that share the Mekong river over the next three years to spur economic development and fight climate change.
Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said developing the Mekong region will accelerate economic integration among members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. The Mekong region is “key” to promoting Hatoyama’s idea of an “East Asian Community” modeled on the European Union and that would eventually have a regional currency, according to a Japanese government official who briefed reporters.
The leaders of Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar welcomed Japan’s pledge at the first Japan-Mekong summit in Tokyo, the official said.
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Attendees included Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and his Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen, whose countries have recalled their respective ambassadors after Cambodia named fugitive ex-Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra an economic adviser.
Also present were Laotian Prime Minister Bouasone Bouphavanh, Myanmar Prime Minister Thein Sein and Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.
Japan is now giving roughly 160-170 billion yen a year to the five countries, the official said.
President Barack Obama, on his first trip to Asia, is scheduled to co-chair with Abhisit a Nov. 15 summit of Southeast Asian leaders that will include Hun Sen.
To contact the reporters on this story: Sachiko Sakamaki in Tokyo at Ssakamaki1@bloomberg.net;
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Thailand to pull out of maritime talks with Cambodia in protest
Nov 06, 2009 (BBC Monitoring via COMTEX) -- Bangkok, Nov. 6 Kyodo - A dispute between Thailand and Cambodia escalated Friday with Bangkok's threat to end talks with Cambodia on their disputed maritime border in the wake of Phnom Penh's recent appointment of ousted Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra as an economic adviser.
Meanwhile, fellow ASEAN member Singapore issued a statement Friday saying it is "concerned about the deteriorating relationship between Thailand and Cambodia." "It is not good for ASEAN. We hope that both our friends will keep the larger interest of ASEAN in mind and find a way to resolve their differences quickly in a spirit of good neighbourliness," it said.
Thailand's threat to pull out of maritime talks with Cambodia comes a day after it recalled its ambassador from Phnom Penh to protest against Thaksin, a fugitive from justice, being made Cambodia's economic adviser, calling it an insult to the Thai judicial system.
Cambodia recalled its ambassador from Bangkok in return.
On Friday, Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said his ministry will seek abrogation of a memorandum of understanding on maritime boundary negotiations that the two countries signed in 2001 while Thaksin was still Thai premier.
He said Thailand's negotiating stance is known to Thaksin, so his new advisory position could leave Thailand at a disadvantage in the maritime talks with Cambodia, which have not made progress in the last eight years.
Thailand will instead explore other ways under international law of resolving the two countries' overlapping claims over about 26,000 square kilometres of the Gulf of Thailand, he said.
Kasit was speaking by telephone from Tokyo, where he is attending the Japan-Mekong summit meeting that is being participated in by both Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and his Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen.
Thai Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said Friday that if Cambodia continues to act badly towards Thailand, "then we must continue to downgrade relations and maybe seal off all border checkpoints." Koy Kuong, spokesman of Cambodia's Foreign Ministry, told Kyodo News that the appointment of Thaksin as an adviser is purely an internal affair of Cambodia and that revocation of 2001 MOU would slow down and further complicate the already slow and complicated negotiation process.
Regarding the threat to close the land border, the spokesman said such an action would benefit neither side and would actually be more costly to Thailand more than Cambodia.
He cited figures for two-way trade in 2008, which show exports from Cambodia to Thailand were worth only $14 million whereas imports from Thailand to Cambodia were worth $674 million.
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Thailand, Cambodia dispute not good for ASEAN: Singapore
SINGAPORE, Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Friday that the recent dispute between Thailand and Cambodia is not good for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The ministry said in a statement that Singapore is concerned about the deteriorating relationship between Thailand and Cambodia.
"It is not good for ASEAN. We hope that both our friends will keep the larger interest of ASEAN in mind and find a way to resolve their differences quickly in a spirit of good neighborliness," the ministry said.
The Cambodian government on Thursday evening announced it recalled its ambassador to Thailand in a move to respond to the Thai government's earlier recall of its ambassador to Cambodia. The diplomatic retaliation occurred after ousted former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was officially appointed as adviser to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and the Royal Government of Cambodia King Norodom Sihamoni.
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Thailand-Cambodia Tensions Rise Over Appointment of Fugitive Thai Official
By Daniel Schearf
Bangkok
Tensions between Southeast Asian neighbors Thailand and Cambodia are high after Cambodia's leader appointed a fugitive former Thai prime minister as an advisor. Both countries have withdrawn their ambassadors and claim interference in their internal affairs.
Regional political analysts say relations between Bangkok and Phnom Penh are the worst they have been in several years.
On Friday, Cambodia withdrew its ambassador to Thailand, in retaliation for Bangkok's withdrawal of its ambassador the day before. Thailand's action came after the Cambodian government of Prime Minister Hun Sen appointed fugitive Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra as an economic advisor.
The Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs calls the appointment interference in its domestic affairs and a failure to respect its judicial system.
Thani Thonthongpakdi is a Foreign Ministry spokesman. He says Thai-Cambodia relations have been tested for over a year, and tensions are rising.
"We believe that we had to send a strong signal to Cambodia regarding their recent action. I think that the extant to which our bilateral relations will be affected, we will have to see what the reaction on the Cambodian side is," he said.
Thailand says it is now reviewing all its existing agreements and cooperation projects with Cambodia.
Thani says the government will most likely postpone or reduce projects if Mr. Thaksin's appointment goes ahead.
Koy Kuong, a spokesman for Cambodia's Foreign Ministry, says despite Thailand's objections, the government will go ahead with Mr. Thaksin's appointment. He says the Thai government is interfering in Cambodia's internal affairs by objecting to the appointment.
"The government of Cambodia has no intention to worsen the relationship between the two countries because of the appointment of Thaksin as an economic advisor to the government. So, it is the Thai side which views [it] in [a] different way," he said.
Koy Kuong says Cambodia views the charges against the former prime minister as politically motivated.
Mr. Thaksin was ousted in a 2006 military coup and fled Thailand last year to avoid a jail term for corruption.
The former leader is still popular in Thailand's countryside and among the poor because of his social welfare projects.
The argument adds to growing tensions over a disputed border area where sporadic fighting has broken out.
Puangtong Pawakapan is a professor of politics at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University. She says Cambodia's appointment of Thaksin Shinawatra is pay-back against the Thailand's Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva for disputing the listing of a temple along the border as a world heritage site. The temple is in Cambodia, but Thailand controls land around it.
"I don't think Hun Sen invited Thaksin to be his advisor because he really needs Thaksin's advice no economic issues … I think it's [a] political issue and it's emotional retaliation of Hun Sen on the Abhisit government," said Pawakapan.
The Thailand's ambassador was last withdrawn in 2003 when rioters burned down the Thai embassy in Phnom Penh after a Thai actress questioned Cambodian sovereignty over the border temple.
Despite the withdrawal of ambassadors, both Thailand and Cambodia say normal business and travel relations will not be affected.
Thursday, November 05, 2009
UN: 50 peacekeepers punished for sex abuses
By BRADLEY S. KLAPPER
GENEVA — At least 50 peacekeepers have received punishments ranging from reduction in military rank to eight months imprisonment for committing sexual abuses on United Nations missions since 2007, the U.N. said Thursday.
The data were released after media organizations asked what measures countries were taking against peacekeepers accused of rape and other abuses in conflict areas such as Congo. The U.N. can investigate allegations of misconduct, but prosecution is handled solely by governments contributing personnel to missions.
The figures show a significant increase in prosecutions and court-martials by national authorities this year. The disciplinary action against 33 peacekeepers in "cases involving sexual exploitation and abuse" through November included lesser penalties from dismissal, forced retirement and withdrawal of an officer's commission to prison sentences reaching eight months.
Only two military personnel were punished for similar abuses in 2008, and 15 in 2007, according to the U.N. data aggregated by the organization's field support department.
"When allegations of misconduct involving military and police personnel are substantiated, the U.N. can repatriate the individuals concerned and ban them from participating in future peacekeeping operations," the U.N. said.
Allegations of sexual exploitation and other crimes have dogged U.N. peacekeeping missions almost since their inception in 1948, with abuses reported in missions from Bosnia and Kosovo to Cambodia, East Timor, West Africa and Congo. The issue was thrust into the spotlight after the United Nations found in early 2005 that peacekeepers in Congo had sex with Congolese women and girls, usually in exchange for food or small sums of money.
In response, the U.N. adopted a "zero tolerance" policy toward sexual abuse and a universal code of conduct that required training for all peacekeepers. But it left punishment for wrongdoers to individual countries, which has been a continuing problem.
The figures show that the U.N. has referred to national authorities over 450 instances of misconduct — sexual and otherwise — since 2007. It received responses in only 29 of these cases.
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Cambodia recalls ambassador to Thailand over Thaksin issue
PHNOM PENH, The Cambodian government on Thursday evening announced to temporarily call back its Ambassador to Thailand, a move came shortly after Thai government's recall of its ambassador to Cambodia.
The decision was announced at 8:30 pm local time by Sok An, minister of council of ministers, at a hastily arranged press conference.
"The move we took is a response to Thai's recall of its Ambassador to Cambodia," Sok An said, adding that "That we appointed Thaksin as our government's adviser is Cambodia's internal affairs and conforms to international practice."
Earlier Thursday, the Thai government decided to recall its Ambassador to Cambodia to protest against the appointment of the ousted former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatre as adviser of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and the Royal Government.
The Cambodian government announced on Wednesday that former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was officially appointed as adviser of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and the Royal Government of Cambodia by King Norodom Sihamoni. Moreover, the Cambodian government will not allow to extradite the ex-Thai premier.
Also, the Thai government said that it is ready to demand of revising bilateral agreements, which have been agreed by the two countries, Thai News Agency reported.
The Thai government's movement is based on diplomatic principle, which does not intend to any violence to occur between the two neighboring countries, the report said.
Ties between Cambodia and Thailand have been difficult since July 2008 amid an ongoing border conflict over land surrounding an11th century temple which has claimed several lives. The withdrawal of ambassadors was the most severe diplomatic actions thus far in ongoing tensions between the two countries which will only result in a further worsening of the relations between them.
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Thailand, Cambodia recall envoys over Thaksin spat
By Ploy Ten Kate Ploy Ten Kate
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand and Cambodia recalled their ambassadors from each others' countries Thursday, deepening a diplomatic row after Cambodia made fugitive former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra an economic adviser.
The tit-for-tat spat threatens to worsen a political crisis in Thailand by giving Thaksin and his red-shirted anti-government supporters an ally just across the border, causing a diplomatic embarrassment for Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva.
It also suggests deepening enmity between leaders of the two countries after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen soured the start of an Asian summit hosted by Abhisit last month by turning up and offering Thaksin the job of adviser.
"We will recall our ambassador in Cambodia to express our dissatisfaction," Chavanont Intarakomalsut, a secretary to the Thai foreign minister, told reporters.
"We will also review all of the agreements between the two countries along with any other cooperation with them."
Hours later, Cambodia followed suit, describing its move as temporary and saying that its envoy would return when Thailand's ambassador was sent back to Phnom Penh.
It called on Thailand to be "open minded" and said it was not surprised by Bangkok's decision to withdraw its envoy.
Hun Sen's offer last month to give Thaksin a job and a home in Cambodia riled Thaksin's opponents and heightened tension between the neighbors, whose troops have clashed over a disputed border and a 900-year old temple straddling the frontier.
DAMAGE CONTROL
Some independent analysts said Thailand's decision to respond to Thaksin's appointment by recall its ambassador was playing into the hands of the former telecoms tycoon.
"The government should avoid escalating this and should instead be in damage control mode," said Gothom Arya, director of research at Mahidol University in Bangkok.
"Thaksin is already causing problems for the government. Being so close to home, he will be in closer contact with his people and it could strengthen his political campaign."
Thaksin lives mainly in exile in Dubai but he is still immensely popular among Thailand's rural poor and his supporters have staged frequent street rallies, calling for his pardon and return.
The Cambodian government said late Wednesday that Thaksin had been made a personal adviser to Hun Sen and an economic adviser, effective October 27.
It said it would reject any request to extradite the billionaire on the grounds that his removal in a 2006 coup and subsequent graft conviction were politically motivated.
"(Cambodia) will not, under any circumstances, extradite Excellency Thaksin upon any eventual request made by Thailand," the statement said.
Abhisit stood by the decision to recall the ambassador and said the Cambodian government had "intervened in Thai justice" and hurt the feelings of the Thai people.
"I believe Thailand and Cambodia still want to be good neighbors, but once these problems happen, we need to respond," Abhisit told reporters.
The Thai Foreign Ministry accused Cambodia of meddling in its internal affairs by helping a "criminal fugitive" to "play a political role."
"This is an intervention in Thailand's business and a rejection of Thai justice, putting a personal relationship and an individual's benefit above the relationship between the two countries," the ministry said in a statement.
"The Thai government, therefore, will not stand still."
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Cambodia aims to raise AIDS/HIV awareness among drivers
By Wang Eng Eng, Channel NewsAsia
PHNOM PENH: Cambodia's battle against AIDS and HIV infection has hit the road.
From this year, new drivers will have to learn more than just how to handle a vehicle; they will also be quizzed on their knowledge of AIDS/HIV infection.
"Every year, we have more than 20,000 people who want to get a driver's licence. So during the examination, we'll put 12 questions on HIV prevention," said Lim Sidenine, director of Planning and Admin General Department, Ministry of Public Works & Transport, Cambodia.
Questions include how AIDS/HIV infection is transmitted and how to protect oneself against the disease.
The Ministry of Public Works & Transport is also taking the lead in educating truck and lorry drivers, as this group is considered at greater risk of AIDS/HIV infection.
Truck and lorry drivers play a key role in Cambodia's infrastructure growth as they transport building materials across the country.
However, most of the infrastructure and road improvement projects are concentrated in towns with a high prevalence of AIDS/HIV infection such as Poipet, which is at the Thai-Cambodia border.
Cambodia's HIV infection rate has fallen in recent years from 0.9 per cent in 2006 to 0.7 per cent in 2008 - mostly due to government efforts to promote condom use in brothels. - CNA /ls
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Thailand says Thaksin job may harm Cambodia relations
BANGKOK, Nov 5 (AFP) - Thailand said Thursday that Cambodia's appointment of fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra as economic adviser may cause relations between the two countries to further deteriorate.
The Cambodian government announced the move on state television late Wednesday, two weeks after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen first riled Bangkok by offering the job to the billionaire Thaksin.
Twice-elected Thaksin was ousted in a military coup in 2006 and is living abroad to avoid a jail term for corruption. The Thai government, now led by his opponents, wants to bring him home to face justice.
"It will hardly help. It is more likely to make things worse," Thai Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban told reporters Thursday when asked if Thaksin's appointment would improve relations.
Suthep said Thailand would also press for Thaksin's extradition if he ever goes to live in Cambodia, saying that a treaty between the two nations would cover the former premier's case.
"If they refuse to hand him over then we consider that a breach of an international agreement," he said.
Thaksin, who is believed to spend much of his time in Dubai, said in a Twitter posting that he thanked Hun Sen for the appointment but still wanted to work for Thailand's well-being.
"I thank His Excellency Hun Sen and I just received a copy which was signed by King Sihamoni. It's an honour. But it's not going to be fun like working to help Thai people out of poverty," Thaksin said.
Thaksin remains a hugely influential figure in Thailand, where he has stirred up mass protests against the government of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva in the past year.
His own allies were driven from government in December 2008 after anti-Thaksin protesters occupied Bangkok's airports.
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Veteran Vietnamese meet Cambodian officials
Representatives of Vietnamese veterans who had been sent to Cambodia as voluntary soldiers and specialists in the past two decades met with those of the Cambodia-Vietnam Friendship Association in Hanoi on November 4.
The event was hosted by the Vietnam-Cambodia Friendship Association, the Military-run TelecommunicationsCorporation, Viettel, and the Cambodian embassy in Vietnam.
The visiting President of the Cambodia-Vietnam Friendship Association Men Sam On, who is also Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister, expressed her gratitude to Vietnam, for helping Cambodia to escape from Pol Pot’s genocidal regime.
She pledged to do her best to preserve and foster the solidarity and friendship between the two nations.
Meanwhile, the President of the Vietnam-Cambodia Friendship Association, Vu Mao, and a contingent of veteran Vietnamese volunteers expressed their hopes that Men Sam On’s visit would usher in a new era of cooperation between the two associations to boost the traditional friendship between the two countries.
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Wednesday, November 04, 2009
Vietnam set to reinforce practical ties with Cambodia
The strangest relationship between Vietnam and Cambodia in this world. This friendship is always reinforced too many times in a year and every year. Isn't it more than good enough for Vietnam? every time in reinforcement practical tie, Vietnam ordered Cambodia to silence for land grabbed by Vietnam. Stop dreaming!
Vietnam expects to join efforts with Cambodia to develop bilateral relations in a bid to bring practical benefits to both sides, said Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.
PM Dung made this statement while receiving Cambodian Permanent Deputy PM Men Sam An, who doubles as President of the Cambodia-Vietnam Friendship Association (CVFA), in Hanoi on November 3.
The government leader noted with pleasure that Vietnam-Cambodia ties have grown fruitfully, especially in the fields of politics, diplomacy, economics and trade, despite the impact of the global economic crisis.
The two nations have also co-operated smoothly in maintaining security, border demarcation and marker planting, mitigating damage caused by natural disasters and facilitating co-operative relations between border provinces, he said.
PM Dung appreciated the efforts of both the CVFA and Men Sam An in beefing up their bilateral relationship, saying that the Vietnamese government will create favourable conditions for the two sides to co-operate effectively, not only at the central level, but also among local chapters.
The PM asked the two associations to increase the dissemination of information about the time-honoured friendship amongst younger generations, and step up co-ordination at international forums, particularly in ASEAN and APEC.
Regarding acts and statements made by Sam Rainsy - President of the Sam Rainsy Party (SRP), who recently uprooted six temporary poles for Marker 185 between Vietnam’s southern province of Long An and Cambodia’s Svay Rieng province - he proposed that the Cambodian government take due measures to deal with Rainsy’s acts of sabotage and not permit similar cases to occur, as they negatively affect the fine relations between the two nations.
Having expressed delight at effective co-operation in economics, trade and investment, An said the two nations need to expand co-operation into the areas of aviation, post and telecommunications and banking.
The deputy PM stated that Sam Rainsy’s recent acts destroyed a national asset and violated the laws of Cambodia , undermining its fine relationship with Vietnam .
Empowered by the President, PM Dung bestowed a Friendship Order on the Cambodian official.
The same day, Politburo member and permanent member of the Secretariat of the Party Central Committee, Truong Tan Sang, received the Cambodian guests.
Mr Sang applauded the CVFA’s collaboration with its Vietnamese counterpart and other partners from both countries to organise practical activities which have helped to beef up friendship and co-operation between their two peoples.
The Party official said he hoped that the two associations would work together to hold more such activities in future for the sake of Vietnam-Cambodia relations.
Also on November 3, the Cambodian delegates worked with the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations (VUFO) and the Vietnam Women’s Union .
VUFO President Vu Xuan Hong took this occasion to present the union’s noblest award--the insignia ‘For peace and friendship between nations’ - to Men Sam An and four other members of the Cambodian delegation. (VNA)
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Tropical storm flooding kills 91 in Vietnam
15,000 evacuated in hardest-hit area; some rescued from rooftops
HANOI, Vietnam - The death toll from Tropical Storm Mirinae rose to 91 in Vietnam on Wednesday as authorities stepped up rescue and relief operations in the country's central region.
In the hardest-hit province of Phu Yen, 26 more deaths were reported as information trickled in from isolated areas, bringing the death toll there to 65, disaster official Dang Thi Lanh said. An additional 13 people were missing.
Elsewhere in the region, the storm and flooding left 26 people dead and five others missing, according to disaster officials and the government's Web site.
In Phu Yen, soldiers in dozens of speed boats rushed instant noodles, water and clothes to victims in flooded areas who have gone hungry for the past several days, Lanh said. Three military helicopters were also dropping food to victims in isolated areas.
Although flood waters were beginning to recede, many areas remain inundated.
Authorities have evacuated nearly 15,000 people from Phu Yen. Some were rescued from rooftops, where they had scrambled to escape the overflowing Ha Thanh River.
In the neighboring province of Binh Dinh, two military helicopters dropped food and water to villagers still stranded in isolated areas, said Ho Quoc Dung, deputy chairman of the provincial People's Committee.
Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung sent a telegram late Tuesday urging local authorities to use all means to bring people still stranded to safety and provide them with temporary shelters and food, the government said on its Web site.
The storm and flooding also left 52 people injured, destroyed or damaged 14,000 homes, and damaged about 12,400 acres of rice and other crops, according the national committee for flood and storm control.
Vietnam's western neighbor, Cambodia, reported a woman and her daughter died Monday night when the storm toppled trees onto their house in Mondulkiri province, about 325 miles east of the capital, Phnom Penh.
In a separate incident in northern Vietnam on
Mirinae hit the Philippines with typhoon strength over the weekend, killing 27 people before losing strength as it moved across the South China Sea toward Vietnam.
Both Vietnam and the Philippines were still recovering from Typhoon Ketsana, which brought the Philippine capital of Manila its worst flooding in 40 years when it struck in September. Ketsana killed 160 people in Vietnam.
In the Philippines, Ketsana and two later storms killed more than 900. Some 87,000 people who fled the storms were still living in temporary shelters when Mirinae struck.
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Cambodia appoints former Thai PM as advisor
Former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was appointed as economic advisor to the Cambodian government, officials said Wednesday.
He will also be a private advisor to Prime Minister Hun Sen, Xinhua reported.
King Norodom Sihamoni has formally appointed Thaksin to the posts on Oct 27 at the request of prime minister and in accordance with the country's constitution, a government spokesman said Wednesday.
Thaksin has been living in self-exile in foreign countries since he was toppled from power in 2006.
Cambodia said it will not extradite Thaksin to Thailand if he stays in the country.
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No fanfare for China's Three Gorges Dam
by Staff Writers
Beijing (UPI) Nov 3, 2009
As the water level in the reservoir on the Yangtze River approaches its final height of 175 meters, criticism of China's Three Gorges Dam continues.
The completion of Three Gorges is being met with little fanfare, unlike the elaborate celebrations Beijing staged 12 years ago to mark the diversion of the Yangtze on the spot of the future massive dam, Inter Press Service reports.
In China, critics are saying filling of the dam is worsening the drought already affecting the Yangtze's delta. And Chinese diplomats are being met with skepticism in their efforts to promote hydropower across Asia and Africa.
To construct Three Gorges -- the world's largest and most expensive dam -- 1,350 villages were submerged and 1.3 million displaced from their homes. The dam has a capacity of 18,000 megawatts of electricity.
The dam's original cost, when approved in 1992, was estimated at $8.3 billion. That figure has now risen to $27 billion by Beijing's estimate, while other predictions slate the final cost at $88 billion.
"The Three Gorges dam is a model of the past," said Peter Bosshard, the policy director of California-based International Rivers, an organization whose mission is "to protect rivers and the communities that depend on them," Inter Press reports.
"There are smarter ways of generating energy and managing floods than by building outdated mega-projects," said Bosshard.
By blocking the flow of the Yangtze, its ecosystem has been altered to the extent that rare river species of dolphin and sturgeon are now facing extinction. Commercial fisheries along the Yangtze as well as off the river's mouth in the East China Sea have declined. And landslides, pollution of freshwater supplies and a greater risk of earthquakes are among the side effects of the dam.
In September 2007 government officials admitted, "If preventive measures are not taken, there could be an environmental collapse."
Pan Jiazheng, hydrologist with the Chinese Academy of Engineering, maintains that water is the only renewable energy source in China that can be developed on a large scale.
"Developing hydropower is the only viable way to make a dent in China's consumption of coal," Pan told Inter Press. "Those who argue that hydropower is not a clean energy have to ask themselves whether there is any other task more urgent for China's clean development than burning less coal."
Despite domestic and foreign criticism of Three Gorges, China is actively seeking to build hydropower projects in countries ranging from Cambodia to Pakistan to Nigeria.
"It is quasi-science to believe that hydropower equals green energy," said Zheng Yisheng, who researches environment and development at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. "You can't see rivers just as a source of energy and choose to ignore their ecological function as ecosystems. People need energy but they need a place to live, too."
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Vietnam Set To Reinforce Practical Ties With Cambodia
HANOI, Nov 4 (Bernama) -- Vietnam expects to join efforts with Cambodia to develop bilateral relations in a bid to bring practical benefits to both sides, said Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.
Dung made this statement while receiving here Tuesday Cambodian Permanent Deputy PM Men Sam An, who doubles as President of the Cambodia-Vietnam Friendship Association (CVFA), Vietnam News Agency (VNA) reported.
The government leader noted with pleasure that Vietnam-Cambodia ties have grown fruitfully, especially in the fields of politics, diplomacy, economics and trade, despite the impact of the global economic crisis.
The two nations have also cooperated smoothly in maintaining security, border demarcation and marker planting, mitigating damage caused by natural disasters and facilitating cooperative relations between border provinces, he said.
Dung spoke highly of the efforts of both the CVFA and Men Sam An in beefing up their bilateral relationship, saying that the Vietnamese government will create favourable conditions for the two sides to cooperate effectively, not only at the central level, but also among local chapters.
The PM asked the two associations to increase the dissemination of information about the time-honoured friendship amongst younger generations, and step up coordination at international forums, particularly in Asean and APEC.
Regarding acts and statements made by Sam Rainsy - President of the Sam Rainsy Party (SRP), who recently uprooted six temporary poles for Marker 185 between Vietnam's southern province of Long An and Cambodia's Svay Rieng province - he proposed that the Cambodian government take due measures to deal with Rainsy's acts of sabotage and not permit similar cases to occur, as they negatively affect the fine relations between the two nations.
Having expressed delight at effective cooperation in economics, trade and investment, An said the two nations need to expand cooperation into the areas of aviation, post and telecommunications and banking.
The deputy PM stated that Sam Rainsy's recent acts destroyed a national asset and violated the laws of Cambodia , undermining its fine relationship with Vietnam.
Empowered by the State President, Dung bestowed a Friendship Order on the Cambodian official.
The same day, Politburo member and permanent member of the Secretariat of the Party Central Committee, Truong Tan Sang, received the Cambodian guests.
Sang applauded the CVFA's collaboration with its Vietnamese counterpart and other partners from both countries to organise practical activities which have helped to beef up friendship and cooperation between their two peoples.
The Party official said he hoped that the two associations would work together to hold more such activities in future for the sake of Vietnam-Cambodia relations.
Also on Tuesday, the Cambodian delegates worked with the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations (VUFO) and the Vietnam Women's Union.
VUFO President Vu Xuan Hong took this occasion to present the union's noblest award--the insignia "For peace and friendship between nations" -- to Men Sam An and four other members of the Cambodian delegation.
-- BERNAMA
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Tuesday, November 03, 2009
Cambodia To Pave Road To Preah Vihear Temple
PHNOM PENH, Royal Cambodian Armed Forces ( RCAF) will begin paving the 80 km dirt road from Oddar Meanchey province's Anlong Veng district to Preah Vihear temple before Nov 25, China's Xinhua news agency reported, citing officials from RCAF as saying in a local media.
"We will begin pave the road by the end of the month. The total distance is about 80 km. It may cost about US$10 million and it will be finished by June 2010," Kwann Seam, director of RCAF's engineering department, was quoted by the Cambodia Daily as saying.
He said that his team would begin surveying the road after the Water Festival in Phnom Penh is finished.
By April 2010, RCAF will begin paving another 22 km dirt road, this time to Ta Moan temple from Kork Mon commune in Oddar Meanchey province's Banteay Ampil district, he said.
Seam said that the paving of roads in the area is part of a larger project to pave all northern roads in the country.
"We hope that by 2013, all the roads in the northern area will be paved," he said.
Major General Srey Dek, commander of RCAF Division 3, said that despite ongoing tension between Cambodia and Thailand over Preah Vihear temple, tourists should not worry about safety.
-- BERNAMA
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Hun Sen praises Japan's role in Cambodia ahead of regional summit+
PHNOM PENH, Nov. 3 (AP) - (Kyodo)—Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Tuesday praised Japan's contributions to peace in Cambodia over the years and said Tokyo is playing a key role as a development partner in the Mekong River region.
In a written interview with a group of senior editors from Kyodo News' member newspapers visiting Cambodia, Hun Sen expressed a request for Japan to upgrade infrastructure to strengthen ties in the region.
In particular, Hun Sen sought support as "a highest priority" for the Mekong River Bridge that will serve as the final gateway of the Southern Economic Corridor, and requested cooperation in world heritage protection.
Hun Sen said Japan has played a key role in seeking justice for the victims of the genocidal Pol Pot regime by contributing both spiritual and financial support for the work of the Khmer Rouge tribunal.
He said Japan has provided $56.9 million to the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, nearly half of the total budget spent by both Cambodia and United Nations since it began operation from 2006.
Other than key roles played in Cambodia, Hun Sen also commended Japan's contributions to larger regional cooperation.
Hun Sen is due to visit Japan later this week to meet with Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama along with his fellow leaders from other Mekong countries -- Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam -- at the first Mekong-Japan Summit to be held in Tokyo on Friday and Saturday.
Hun Sen said he "regards Japan as a key partner in discussion over political and security issues in the region and also thanks Japan for her recent efforts in helping maintain political stability in the region such as seeking a solution over problems in Myanmar and the Korean peninsula."
In spite of receiving great assistance from Japan in many fields, Hun Sen said he desired to see more Japanese investors flocking to his country.
He said as his country is enjoying the discovery of oil and gas, and assured a warm welcome for Japanese investors.
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Tropical Storm Mirinae kills 23 people in Vietnam, 2 in Cambodia
HANOI, Vietnam - Tropical Storm Mirinae unleashed severe flooding in parts of central Vietnam, killing 23 people, leaving two missing and stranding families on rooftops, disaster officials said Tuesday.
The death toll in the hardest-hit province of Phu Yen was 15 after the storm drenched the region with heavy rain Monday, said disaster official Dang Thi Lanh.
"Many villages remain cut off by rising waters and we expect the death toll to rise," she said.
Several villages in neighbouring Binh Dinh province suffered the worst flooding in four decades after the Ha Thanh River surged over its banks, said disaster official Nguyen Van Hoa. Five people were killed by falling trees or were washed away by floods in Binh Dinh and two others were missing, Hoa said.
In Khanh Hoa province, south of Phu Yen, three people were killed, a disaster official there said, refusing to give his name, citing policy.
Vietnam's western neighbour, Cambodia, reported a 40-year-old woman and her 14-year-old daughter died Monday night when the storm toppled trees onto their house in Mondulkiri province, about 325 miles (520 kilometres) east of the capital, Phnom Penh.
Three other people from the same family were injured, said Neth Sophana, deputy chief of the disaster management committee of the Cambodian Red Cross.
In Vietnam, the military sent two helicopters to drop instant noodles to people in isolated villages and to rescue people who were still trapped on rooftops a day after the storm, which lost force as it moved inland.
"We have received many calls for help from people who are still stranded," Hoa said by telephone.
Ho Quoc Dung, vice chairman of Binh Dinh provincial People's Committee, said about 400 soldiers were mobilized to use speed boats to reach areas cut off by flooding and have ferried out more than 1,000 villagers.
Several thousand remain stranded, he said.
Mirinae hit the Philippines with typhoon strength over the weekend, killing 20 people before losing power as it moved across the South China Sea toward Vietnam.
Vietnam, the Philippines and Cambodia were still recovering from Typhoon Ketsana, which brought the Philippine capital of Manila its worst flooding in 40 years when it struck in September. Ketsana killed 160 people in Vietnam and at least 18 in Cambodia.
In the Philippines, Ketsana and two later storms killed more than 900. Some 87,000 people who fled the storms were still living in temporary shelters when Mirinae struck.
In a separate incident in northern Vietnam on Monday, one woman drowned and five others were missing after a whirlwind toppled two boats in Quang Ninh province, disaster official Le Thanh Nam said.
Sixteen other passengers managed to swim to safety after the boats sank, Nam said.
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Outside influence allegations dog Khmer Rouge trials
The beleaguered Khmer Rouge trials in Cambodia have hit another obstacle. In a motion filed last week, two pre-trial judges, Australian Rowan Downing QC, and a Dutch national, have been accused of taking instruction from their respective governments.
The Khmer Rouge tribunal has endured considerable controversy in its four years of existence, and the latest scandal is yet another setback to expedient justice for victims.
Presenter: David Boyle
Speakers: Michael Karnavas, defence lawyer; Yuko Maeda, spokeswoman, ECCC; Heather Ryan, court monitor, Open Society Justice Initiative
Listen: Windows Media
BOYLE: The Extraordinary Chambers of the Courts of Cambodia were created to try the leaders of the Khmer Rouge regime, which is accused of killing more than two million people in the 1970s.
But instead of bringing justice to a generation, many believe its become entrenched in its own politics.
The lawyers of accused war criminal, Ieng Sary, have filed a motion requesting that two pre trial judges, including Australian Rowan Downing, be removed from the court due to a public perception of bias.
Radio Australia has obtained a copy of the motion that seizes on comments recently made by the Cambodian Prime Minister.
He's alleged the two judges have been acting on the orders of their respective foreign governments.
Michael Karnavas is one of the co-defence lawyers who filed the motion.
KARNAVAS: "What we're saying is we're caught in the middle of all of this, we're entitled to a fair trial. The average person in Cambodia believes their Prime Minister, the United Nations hasn't stepped up to the plate, to either defend these judges or to show that they've taken any action to look into these allegations. The judges haven't spoken up I expect because of their position, but we want this matter cleared."
BOYLE: The two pre-trial judges, Mr Downing and Dutch national Katinka Lahuis are unable to comment on either Hun Sen's comments or the motion being filed against them.
But a spokeswoman for the court, Yuko Maeda, says the court believes all their court officials are behaving appropriately.
MAEDA: "We believe all the judicial officials who work at the ECCC are performing accordingly, independently from any of the executive bodies. This is the international standard, ECCC is following the international standard. We believe that none of the judicial officials who are working at the ECCC is influenced by any executive body."
BOYLE: Heather Ryan is a court monitor with the Open Society Justice Initiative.
She's seen no evidence to confirm the allegations, but says they should be publicly addressed to protect the credibility of the court.
RYAN: "Many of the international players and the judges are in my view, unfortunately reluctant to speak publicly when statements like this that impact the credibility of the court are made and I think it's part of that sort of general reluctance of commentators and officials of the courts to speak about what's going on in the court publicly. There's kind of a conspiracy of silence."
BOYLE: An early report into the court's activities prepared for the U.S. Agency for International Development concluded corruption was "pandemic" within the administration of local officials with bribery a widely accepted practice.
A subsequent report produced by the court, which was initially suppressed, revealed similar findings.
But there is no suggestion that these allegations relate to the judges of the court.
And lawyer Michael Karnavas dismisses any suggestion that his motion is designed to further erode the tribunal's reputation, arguing it upholds expectations of transparency and due diligence.
KARNAVAS:"I haven't made these allegations, somebody else has. I'm not the one getting kick backs from the national staff. I'm not the one who is hiding the UN report, others are doing that. So you can't blame the defence for trying to shed light and trying to make this process as transparent as possible."
BOYLE: Ms Ryan -- of the Open Society Justice Initiatives -- says the court should be concerned about mounting public scepticism over its transparency and capacity to deliver swift and effective justice.
RYAN: "The court has an obligation now, if its to preserve its obligation to the people of Cambodia to go out of its way and take additional steps to be transparent, to scrupulously deal with any allegations of misconduct or wrong doing and to ensure that people can see that they actually are serving the interests of justice. Right now when everything is done behind closed doors people don't see that and so when statements like the one that is alleged by Ieng Sary's lawyers are made, it feeds on a kind of inherent suspicion."
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Humanitarian emergency aid for typhoon victims in Cambodia
1. With regard to enormous loss of human lives and property in Cambodia caused by typhoon "Ketsana" on October 1-2, the Government of the Republic of Korea has decided to provide emergency relief supplies worth 200,000 dollars to support recovery efforts in Cambodia and join the international community in its humanitarian assistance activities.
Typhoon "Ketsana" that hit northwestern Cambodia on October 1-2 has left 43 people dead, 67 injured, about 6,000 families homeless, and around 48,000 families short of food. The typhoon also caused property and infrastructure damage, washing away or damaging about 1,000 houses, sweeping away 57,000 hectares of farmland and livestock, and destroying roads.
2. During the summit between President Lee Myung-bak and Prime Minister Hun Sen on October 22, President Lee expressed his intention to provide cooperation through the Foreign Ministry in response to a request from the Cambodian side to support typhoon recovery operations. The Korean government will provide relief food and daily necessities that the Cambodian government has asked for.
Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Relations of MOFAT
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Monday, November 02, 2009
In Cambodia, a Cry for Small-Scale Subsidies
A $20 solar-powered lamp could benefit millions of rural Cambodian residents, but most still can’t afford it. Subsidies, its makers say, are sorely needed.
At the moment, conference participants complained, such incentives are sorely lacking.
“Cambodian investors have low investment capital,” said Rin Seyha, the managing director of SME Renewable Energy, a Cambodian-based renewable energy investment firm. Unlike neighboring Vietnam, there is very little in the way of tax incentives and subsidies on loans for renewable energy companies, he said.
Jeroen Verschelling, the director of Kamworks, a Cambodian-based solar energy company, said consumers who wish to use more environmentally friendly energy sources are often forced to ask for assistance from microfinance institutions that tend to provide loans with extremely high interest rates.
Mr Verschelling complained that large scale coal plant and hydropower projects are able to easily secure financing. For smaller, renewable projects, “it is much harder to do that,” he said.
According to the environmental group Geres, 80 percent of Cambodia’s energy consumption comes from biomass, mostly from burning timber. The United Nations Development Program estimates that just 20 percent of the population has access to the national power grid.
Small, renewable energy developers say this means most energy-sector financing is directed at projects that benefit only a fifth of Cambodia’s residents.
Meanwhile, Margaret Ryan, an energy consultant for Khmer Solar, which specializes in solar power installation, said that despite government efforts to slash import tariffs on equipment used for renewable energy sources — tariff rates on imports have been reduced form 35 percent to seven percent on items such as solar panels and battery chargers and have been altogether eliminated for items such as wind and hydraulic turbines — the Cambodian consumer is generally unable to afford the costs of installing solar panels.
“Even if labor is very inexpensive, it is still costly,” she said. “Any expense is too much expense.”
In order to reduce prices, Khmer solar is encouraging Cambodians to install the equipment themselves by disseminating simple installation leaflets and employing operators who can troubleshoot for clients with technical issues.
Danish man charged with child sex abuse in Cambodia
PHNOM PENH, A Cambodian court has charged a Danish man with sexually abusing three underage girls in a northwestern border town, officials said Monday.
Banteay Meanchey provincial court on Sunday charged Kenneth Hansen-Jorgen, 61, with sexual abuse of children and he faces at least 10 years in jail if convicted, prosecutor So Vath told AFP.
The mother of one of the children was also charged with prostituting her daughter to the suspect, the prosecutor said.
Hansen-Jorgen allegedly crossed from Thailand into Cambodia and took the girls, all aged under 15, to a guesthouse in the border town of Poipet, said provincial police chief Hun Hean.
"He has confessed to us through translation that he has had sex with the girls, and the victims have also told us about him," the police chief added.
Dozens of foreigners have been jailed for child sex crimes or deported to face trial in their home countries since Cambodia launched an anti-paedophilia push in 2003 to try to shake off its reputation as a haven for sex predators.
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Taiwan smuggler gets 37 years
PHNOM PENH - A CAMBODIAN court has sentenced a Taiwanese man to 37 years in jail for drug smuggling and possession of illegal weapons, a judge said on Monday.
Judge Chhay Kong of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court said he sentenced 21-year-old Hsiao Kuo-leang on Friday after finding him guilty of trying to smuggle a kilogram (2.2 pounds) of heroin and possession of two handguns.
Hsiao, who was arrested in late 2008 when authorities found the drugs in his car, was also ordered to pay a fine of US$25,000 (S$35,000), the judge said.
The judge added that Hsiao also testified that he was hired by another Taiwanese man to set up a laboratory in order to produce drugs to smuggle out of Cambodia.
In recent years a number of Taiwanese nationals, including a 90-year-old man, have been jailed for attempting to smuggle narcotics out of the Cambodian capital.
Although drug arrests have increased, Cambodia is becoming an increasingly popular trafficking point for methamphetamines and heroin, particularly since neighbouring Thailand toughened its stance on illegal drugs. -- AFP
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AHF/Cambodia CARES to launch its AIDS testing initiative during the annual Water Festival
During Last Year's 'One Million Tests' World AIDS Day 2008 Campaign, AHF/Cambodia CARES and Cambodian Partners Surpassed Country's 30,000 Testing Goal by Testing 35,034
As part of an ambitious global effort to test several million people for HIV in observance of the Testing Millions World AIDS Day 2009 campaign, AHF/Cambodia CARES will launch its inaugural testing effort during the annual Water Festival, which marks the end of the rainy season and is the largest festival in the Cambodian calendar. The Water Festival commences Sunday, November 1st. AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest AIDS group in the US which currently provides AIDS medical care and services to more than 120,000 individuals in 22 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean, the Asia Pacific Region and Eastern Europe, is spearheading the worldwide initiative to test millions. Last year, AHF led the successful 'One Million Tests/World AIDS Day 2008' campaign during which AHF/Cambodia CARES and its Cambodian partners surpassed their country goal of performing 30,000 tests by testing 35,034 individuals, identifying 1,112 HIV positive individuals in the process. The 2008 campaign far exceeded its goal of performing one million tests by testing 1,603,272 people and identifying 61,399 HIV positive people.
AHF/Cambodia CARES, which partners with NCHADS in operating 12 free AIDS treatment clinics throughout the country, has also taken a leadership role to coordinate and partner with other stakeholders to reach as many people as possible for the HIV testing and the Love Condom campaign. As its part of the in-country component of the global testing campaign, AHF/Cambodia CARES has committed to testing 12,000 people for HIV throughout the month of November in Cambodia, one of the countries in the Asia Pacific region that has been hardest-hit by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
"With the beginning of the Water Festival, AHF/Cambodia CARES will get an early start and launch our country's participation in the 'Testing Millions' World AIDS Day 2009 campaign. We will be testing in Phnom Penh and other provinces and link those found to be positive to a clinic for follow up care and access to lifesaving antiretroviral treatment as well as the positive prevention to stop the spreading of the virus, and those who found as negative will learn about HIV prevention to keep them stay negative" said Chhim Sarath, M.D., AHF Country Director for Cambodia.
Cambodia is one of the poorest nations in Asia and also has one of the most rapidly growing HIV/AIDS epidemics in the region. The HIV epidemic has spread beyond high-risk groups such as sex workers, male police officers, factory workers, mobile populations, injection drug users and men who have sex with men, to the general population.
The number of Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT) centers in Cambodia has increased dramatically over the last 5 years (only 12 sites in 2000 to 216 sites by the end of first quarter 2009). Of the current 216 VCT centers, 194 are supported directly by the government, while 22 are supported by non-governmental organizations.
SOURCE AIDS Healthcare Foundation
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Sunday, November 01, 2009
Trying to get Cambodia Town off the ground
Long Beach provided the designation but left financial support up to businesses in the area. Many have been reluctant to sign on, but backers of the district are working hard to persuade them.
Sithea San rejoiced when Long Beach officials designated a strip of Anaheim Street the nation's first Cambodia Town in 2007. The name would celebrate the largest Cambodian population center in the country and help revitalize the gritty neighborhood, she believed.
San envisioned one day looking down Anaheim Street and seeing facades resembling ornate Cambodian temples; a large-scale shopping center where tourists could sample Cambodian cuisine and buy handcrafts; and even a museum outlining the history of Cambodian Americans in Long Beach.
But years after the official designation, the fate of Cambodia Town remains in limbo. Long Beach officials did not commit city funds to improve the area.
Backers have been struggling to persuade businesses on the 1.2-mile strip to shell out money to support a business improvement district, which is mandated by the city to pay for additional services, such as special signs, increased security, street cleaning and landscaping.
These are features that would lure investors and tourists to the area, said San, chairwoman of Cambodia Town Inc. But for businesses, many of them mom-and-pop shops hurt by the economic downturn, the extra services would mean paying $50 to $200 in extra fees per year.
"You can't blame the small businesses because they count every penny, and they don't necessarily feel the need" for the district, San said. "They are asking us, 'I already pay high taxes; why should I have to pay extra?' "
For San, a refugee who fled the killing fields in Cambodia with her family as a teenager, the answer is simple. "We should be proud to have Cambodia Town," she said. "In the U.S., we are the only place that has one."
On a recent Saturday afternoon, San and a dozen other Cambodian Americans walked down Anaheim Street to promote the district, which would run from Atlantic Avenue to Junipero Avenue.
San, who wore a navy blue Cambodia Town Inc. hat, carried a black binder containing glossy photos of ethnic districts in the area that she hoped Cambodia Town would resemble one day: Little Saigon in Westminster and Chinatown in Los Angeles.
The corridor is lined with Cambodian-owned restaurants, bakeries, markets and auto repair shops. It is also home to a hodgepodge of Latino-owned stores and Chinese and Vietnamese businesses.
The group needed about 185 businesses of the 370 along the corridor to support the district. At first, proponents reached out to owners they knew personally, and petitions were streaming in. Then they turned to businesses owned by those outside of their community. After several years of pounding the pavement, the group had 105 businesses on board.
"We're going to be more aggressive now," San said as she marched west on Anaheim Street in the beating sun, past vacant lots and drab strip malls with signs in the Khmer language. "It doesn't matter how long it takes."
Long Beach is known as the Cambodian capital of the United States. The port city is believed to have the largest concentration of Cambodians outside the home country, with an estimated 50,000, though 2000 census figures put the number at 20,000. Most were refugees who escaped the Khmer Rouge regime in the 1970s that claimed the lives of nearly 2 million Cambodians. Many settled around Anaheim Street, lured by its cheap housing and growing Cambodian American community.
"In the past, no one wanted to walk down Anaheim Street because it was considered a red-light district," San said. "It's a lot safer now, but we can do more. We want it to look clean and very nice to attract more people to shop."
A few steps behind San, Paul Chorn, 25, recalled that when he was younger, he hardly ventured onto Anaheim Street because of crime. But now he is proud that many Cambodian businesses have transformed the corridor into a safer, thriving area.
Chorn said the district would mean something more for his people. "With this designation, we can show that we are not people stuck in the era of genocide," he said. "We progressed for the better."
Chorn, San and several others walked into a strip mall at Anaheim and Orange Avenue. It was the third time the group had tried to get business owners in the plaza to sign the petition. Owners of a Cambodian supermarket, two restaurants, a design store and a video store have already signed up, but the group still needed the support of an Eastern herbal store, a dentist, a sandwich shop, a jewelry store and a pharmacy.
Chorn and several others walked into a pharmacy.
Michael Saing, 25, explained to Ben Mai, whose wife is a pharmacist there, why the group wanted a business improvement district.
Mai, who is Vietnamese, said he understood. "I come from Orange County, and when I drive down Bolsa [Avenue] in Little Saigon, you can see there's a lot there," he said. "For you Cambodians, you have a big community, but you don't have something to represent you."
Saing said it took 15 years to get Little Saigon started. "You have to start somewhere," he said.
But Mai said the pharmaceutical industry is struggling. "I don't know if I can make this decision right now," he said. "I'm for improvement, but it is kind of expensive."
The group left the store and continued down the street. They popped into Lily Bakery, a French patisserie that also sells Cambodian sweets. The flowery fragrance of sesame balls and breaded banana wafted through the store.
Saing greeted three women standing behind the counter in Khmer. He showed them the petition, laying his binder over the counter where packaged spring rolls lay. The women asked several questions and said they would talk to the owner.
The group continued westward, turning into a Church's Chicken and two auto repair stores. No one signed.
Next, the group walked into a Cambodian broadcasting studio, the Khmer Media Network. They were greeted by Alexander Thong, president of the studio, who invited San to sit on a black leather couch as she explained the need for the improvement district.
Thong decided to sign. "We moved to Anaheim Street to be closer to the Cambodian center," he said. "Cambodia Town is my second home from my homeland."
The group's last stop was Edith's Beauty and Barber Shop, owned by Blanca Edith Rivas, who said she doesn't have many Cambodian costumers. Many decide to go elsewhere when they learn that the shop is not Cambodian-owned, she said.
But Rivas decided to sign the petition. "I know that what Cambodians say they are going to do, they do it," she said.
The group gathered outside in the shade of Rivas' building. They were joined by Long Beach Councilman Dee Andrews, whose district includes parts of Cambodia Town. He told them to keep up the effort. The group snapped a photo.
It had been two hours, and the group got five businesses on board, including a Vietnamese pho noodle restaurant, a pizza joint and a coin-operated laundry.
"You see, it's not easy," said Richer San, Sithea's husband. But he said they weren't discouraged. The group would try again soon, he said.
He looked down the street and said he could one day see tourists streaming in from downtown Long Beach.
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Cambodia celebrates Water Festival
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia on Sunday started the celebrations of the annual Water Festival, the biggest festival in the capital city, in front of the Royal Palace here, which regularly draws over 1 million people from all over the country.
King Norodom Sihamoni, accompanied by the government leaders, including Prime Minister Hun Sen and members of the foreign diplomatic corps, watched the boat racing on the first day of the festival celebrations which will last through Tuesday.
Nearly 400 boats with more than 25,000 boat racers are ready to take part in the annual water festival. Last year, 424 boats with 26,000 boat racers came from various parts of the country participated.
Cambodia's boat races or water festival is a three-day event crediting Cambodia's strong armed forces in defeating enemies by using boats.
Every year, millions of Cambodians are coming from across the country and are flocking to Phnom Penh to view and enjoy the boat races. Besides the boat racing, the three-day celebrations include firework, moon prayers and illuminated boats with ministry and royal emblems.
The 1,700-meter race is held on the Mekong River in the capital in front of the Royal Palace.
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United Kingdom-Yorkshire pigs arrive in Cambodia.
The Yorkshire company ACMC Ltd, who specialize in breeding genetically advanced pigs, flew the first consignment of pigs to Cambodia last week, as the first shipment in a multi million pound deal.
There was a Royal reception for the pigs at Phnom Penh Airport in Cambodia, complete with garlands of flowers and dignitaries from the highest level of government.
This was the start of a 20 year franchise agreement, and is the first time Cambodia have imported such a large number of breeding pigs into the country.
The pigs including ACMC’s specially created Meidan breed, plus Volante and Vantage sows and boars, which will form the nucleus of a herd in a new 5 hectare pig unit that plans to fatten over 20,000 pigs per week.
The CEO of the MRT Group, Stephen Curtis said, " This is a massive boost for the company and the British pig industry, which has come out of 10 very bad years".
The company is currently exporting pigs to Thailand, China, the Philippines and Cambodia.
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Saturday, October 31, 2009
China learns that 2009 is not 1962 (Comment
by Amulya Ganguli
The inscrutable Chinese are supposed to take every step after careful deliberation. Whether it is Mao Zedong’s smile for an Indian envoy to open a new chapter after the 1962 conflict or the summoning of the Indian ambassador in Beijing to the foreign office at 2 a.m. to express displeasure, the Mandarins are believed to be sticklers for sign language.
The perceptible downturn in Sino-Indian relations, therefore, could not have been an unrehearsed event. It began a few years ago with the Chinese ambassador’s assertions on the disputed status of Arunachal Pradesh and Beijing’s decision to unilaterally disown the 2005 agreement to leave inhabited areas out of the proposed solutions for the boundary question.
These incidents were followed by reports of an increase in border incursions by Chinese patrols, attempts to block the Asian Development Bank’s loans for Arunachal Pradesh, the filibustering by Chinese delegates at the Nuclear Suppliers Group’s meetings on the India-US nuclear deal, the stapling of visas on the passports of Kashmiris, the depiction of Kashmir as a separate country in Chinese-made globes, involvement in development projects in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, and so on.
Arguably, the Chinese had convinced themselves that India needed to be taught another ‘lesson’, as they purportedly did in 1962, to show who was the boss in Asia, especially to the neighbouring countries, none of which matched (or hoped to match) Beijing’s might. It is also possible that China believed that its expected emergence as No.2 to the US necessitated a perceptible snubbing of India, its only potential rival in
These long dormant Middle Kingdom sentiments are not entertained by the communist regime alone. For instance, Chiang Kai-shek’s book, ‘China’s Destiny’, listed Tibet, Mongolia, Nepal, Bhutan, Sikkim, Burma and Vietnam as his country’s lost territories. Well-known historian R.C. Mazumdar also noted that ‘if a region once acknowledged her (China’s) nominal suzerainty even for a short period, she would regard it as a part of her empire forever and would automatically revive her claim over it even after a thousand years’.
This attitude of aggrandisement contrasts sharply with India’s benignity and lack of imperialistic ambitions. Although Southeast Asia, from Cambodia to Bali, demonstrates the overwhelming presence of Indian influence, there has never been any question of India claiming these lands as its own.
The same spirit of generosity and friendship was shown by India to Beijing when it rejected the Two China theory preferred by the US in the 1950s and 60s and strongly advocated Beijing’s membership of the United Nations even after the deterioration in Sino-Indian relations.
As a report on a conference of governors in 1959 said, late prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru gave the ‘reasons for the stand taken by India in the UN on the question of the entry of China into the organisation though there was resentment in the country about China’s hostile attitude towards India’. Nehru had also accompanied Zhou Enlai as a big brother at the Bandung conference in 1955.
But China never reciprocated these friendly gestures. Instead, as Nehru said after the 1962 war, ‘it was wrong to assume that the Chinese undertook this aggression only because they wanted some patches of territory…China did not want any country near her which was not prepared to accept her leadership; so India had to be humiliated’.
Continuing, he said, ‘though India would not interfere with what was happening within China, yet she came in China’s way by the mere fact of her separate political structure and pursuing a separate policy which was succeeding’.
These factors are apparently still riling China. Not only is India emerging as a major regional power with a robust economy which has weathered the storm of recession with reasonable success, its ’separate political structure’ of a widely admired multicultural democracy contrasts sharply with China’s obviously repressive one-party rule.
What is more, while Pakistan’s degeneration into a dysfunctional state robs China of an ‘all-weather friend’ which it could use to needle India, Beijing’s own peripheries have become seedbeds of trouble. Let alone subdue its neighbours, the aspiring Middle Kingdom is not even in full control over Tibet and Xinjiang, not to mention Taiwan. Nor is it able to hide the growing rural unrest over the disparity between the rich and the poor.
It is apparently because of such restiveness that even the supposedly monolithic communist party is divided. On one side are the so-called populists, who include President Hu Jintao and Prime Minister Web Jiabao, with their preference for a level-playing field between the poor Western regions and the more affluent urban areas on the eastern coast and on the other side are the elitists, who want faster growth based on the free market.
It was perhaps to divert attention from all these difficulties by ratcheting up nationalistic fervour that China thought of provoking India. But its miscalculation was that it did not take into account the fact that India in 2009 was different from its naive and militarily unprepared self in 1962.
The blow to its pride in that year has led to an augmentation of its military prowess, which it is no longer hesitant to display. India also seems to have realised that the Chinese misinterpret politeness as weakness. Hence it chose to ignore Beijing’s objections to the Dalai Lama’s visit to Arunachal Pradesh.
It is possible that the Chinese will now pay greater heed to the second part of the advice of Sun Tzu, the military genius of 6th century B.C., who said the winner is the person who ‘knows when to fight and when not to
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Typhoon Mirinae likely to worsen Cambodia's flood problems: Oxfam
International aid agency Oxfam has cautioned that a new wave of rain from Typhoon Mirinae is expected to reach Cambodia on Nov. 2.
In a statement received Saturday, Oxfam said situations in communities already affected by Typhoon Ketsana and prolonged annual floods in central and northern Cambodia are likely to worsen with the effects of the new typhoon, putting already affected people further at risk.
"Typhoon Mirinae is currently on track to hit the northern Philippines island of Luzon . Although Cambodia may not be hit with the full strength of the typhoon, the country remains vulnerable due to its limited resources for preparation and response, and while the country is just beginning to recover from recent flooding," the statement said.
"Typhoon Mirinae could set back on-going emergency work and planned recovery and rehabilitation efforts in Cambodia ," said Francis Perez, Country Lead of Oxfam in Cambodia .
"The effects of the new typhoon could increase hazards in still flooded areas and cause further damage to crops and livelihoods. It may also displace communities or prolong the return of those already displaced by Typhoon Ketsana," he added.
Fearing a new threat of another typhoon, Oxfam is alerting humanitarian agencies and government authorities to help communities living in areas susceptible to flooding to be prepared by stocking on clean water and food and securing important documents.
The damage from Typhoon Ketsana runs to around 40 million U.S. dollars in Cambodia, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The storm, which killed at least 30 people, affected about 6,000 families and destroyed thousands of hectares of rice fields, and local infrastructure such as irrigation systems, roads, schools and houses.
Source: Xinhua
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Thaksin not to reside in Cambodia: Thai opposition leader
Ousted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra refused to permanently reside in Cambodia as hedid not want to create problem to Thailand, opposition Puea Thai Party Chairman Chavalit Yongchaiyuth said Saturday.
"I asked him through people close him why he did not stay in Cambodia as it is near home and family, Thaksin said that he did not want to create problem," the INN news agency quoted Chavalit, deputy prime minister in Thaksin's administration as saying.
It was a test of Thaksin's thought, he said.
Thaksin was ousted by a military coup in September 2006 and has been in exile since then. In February 2008, Thaksin returned to Thailand to face corruption charges but later went to exile again and was convicted in absentia.
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen told reporters during the recent 15th ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Summit at Thailand's central beach resort of Hua Hin that Cambodiawould not hand over Thaksin to Thailand if Thailand sought his extradition.
Hun Sen also said that he could appoint Thaksin as his economic advisor.
The opposition party chairman said that he is planning to visit neighboring country of Malaysia in mid-November and visit Myanmar after that.
"I have known Gen Than Shwe (Myanmar top leader) for quite a long time and he can help improve relations between Thailand and Myanmar," he said.
Over the criticism that he was trying to discredit the government and to help Thaksin, Chavalit said if someone wants to do a big thing, he must be able to stand for such a negative criticism.
Also on Saturday, Thailand's Attorney-General Julasingh Wasantsingh said that Cambodia reserves the rights to refuse to extradite Thaksin if he stays in the neighboring country, but substantial grounds must be provided.
Source: Xinhua
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Vietnam condemns acts hindering border demarcation with Cambodia
The Cambodia Kingdom had a vast land, East and West part of the country had been shrinking by encroachment from Yuon and Siam. Twenty one province had lost to Yuon and a bout Twenty Province to Siam. Recently Cambodia had lost some Islands, water, sea and land to Yuon. Border demarcation with Yuon had never been a fair management. Border posts are in Cambodian farm lands, is it called a friendship and good neighbour? Yuon will face something in the future, critical.
Sam Rainsy on October 25 visited the border demarcation area between Vietnam’s southern province of Long An and Svay Rieng province of Cambodia and uprooted six temporary poles that mark the position of Marker 185 and then brought them to Phnom Penh. Sam Rainsy also made statements slandering Vietnam as encroaching on the land of Cambodia through the border demarcation and marker planting.
In response to questions from the media about Vietnam’s reaction to Sam Rainsy’s acts and statements, spokesperson Nguyen Phuong Nga said that “ Vietnam and Cambodia are promptly conducting borderline demarcation and planting border markers. Protection of land markers and poles is the shared obligation of the two countries’ governments and people, in accordance with bilateral agreements and international law.”
Sam Rainsy’s speeches slandering Vietnam were ill-informed, irresponsible and designed to incite a feud, undermining the relationship between Vietnam and Cambodia, she added.
The Vietnamese government urged the Cambodian government to take due measures to deal with sabotage acts, ensuring favourable conditions for conducting borderline demarcation and marker planting between Vietnam and Cambodia, and for the common benefit of both peoples, Nga concluded. (VNA)
Cambodia gives big boost to military budget
By Ek Madra
PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Cambodia, one of Southeast Asia's poorest countries, plans to boost defense and security spending by 23 percent next year, its budget showed on Saturday, raising the prospect of a clash with the IMF.
Cambodia plans to spend $274 million on defense and security next year, up from $223 million this year, the budget showed. The total budget for calendar 2010 was $1.97 billion, which meant the military was allocated about 14 percent of total spending.
That compares with 1.7 percent spent on agriculture, the backbone of Cambodia's economy, and 0.7 percent on water resources. About 1.7 percent was set aside for rural development.
Military spending is a sensitive topic in Cambodia because of the millions of dollars of donor money flowing into the country, largely to social programmes.
"This big budget for defense is meant for preventative measures in response to international conflicts," said government spokesman Phay Siphan.
Siphan said the spending was unrelated to tensions with neighbouring Thailand over land surrounding a 900-year-old, cliff-top Hindu temple known as Preah Vihear. Skirmishes in the border area have killed seven troops in the past year.
Thailand is challenging a U.N. decision to make the temple a world heritage site under Cambodian jurisdiction. Cambodia was awarded the temple in a 1962 international court ruling that did not determine who owns 1.8 square miles (4.6 sq km) next to it.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) criticised Cambodia last year for its military spending, leading the Cambodian government to cut back its defense budget during a debate in parliament after questioning by the IMF.
"Donors will not be happy," Ou Vireak, head of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights, said of the latest military budget.
He said Prime Minister Hun Sen was likely trying to whip up nationalist support by projecting an image of a strong military at a time of heightened tension with Thailand.
"By doing so, he is turning the country effectively into a military state," he said.
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Cambodia: World AIDS Day HIV Campaign, 'Testing Millions,' to Again Launch During Cambodia's National Water Festival
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia, Oct. 31 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As part of an ambitious global effort to test several million people for HIV in observance of the Testing Millions World AIDS Day 2009 campaign, AHF/Cambodia CARES will launch its inaugural testing effort during the annual Water Festival, which marks the end of the rainy season and is the largest festival in the Cambodian calendar. The Water Festival commences Sunday, November 1st. AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest AIDS group in the US which currently provides AIDS medical care and services to more than 120,000 individuals in 22 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean, the Asia Pacific Region and Eastern Europe, is spearheading the worldwide initiative to test millions. Last year, AHF led the successful 'One Million Tests/World AIDS Day 2008' campaign during which AHF/Cambodia CARES and its Cambodian partners surpassed their country goal of performing 30,000 tests by testing 35,034 individuals, identifying 1,112 HIV positive individuals in the process. The 2008 campaign far exceeded its goal of performing one million tests by testing 1,603,272 people and identifying 61,399 HIV positive people.
AHF/Cambodia CARES, which partners with NCHADS in operating 12 free AIDS treatment clinics throughout the country, has also taken a leadership role to coordinate and partner with other stakeholders to reach as many people as possible for the HIV testing and the Love Condom campaign. As its part of the in-country component of the global testing campaign, AHF/Cambodia CARES has committed to testing 12,000 people for HIV throughout the month of November in Cambodia, one of the countries in the Asia Pacific region that has been hardest-hit by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
"With the beginning of the Water Festival, AHF/Cambodia CARES will get an early start and launch our country's participation in the 'Testing Millions' World AIDS Day 2009 campaign. We will be testing in Phnom Penh and other provinces and link those found to be positive to a clinic for follow up care and access to lifesaving antiretroviral treatment as well as the positive prevention to stop the spreading of the virus, and those who found as negative will learn about HIV prevention to keep them stay negative" said Chhim Sarath, M.D., AHF Country Director for Cambodia.
Cambodia is one of the poorest nations in Asia and also has one of the most rapidly growing HIV/AIDS epidemics in the region. The HIV epidemic has spread beyond high-risk groups such as sex workers, male police officers, factory workers, mobile populations, injection drug users and men who have sex with men, to the general population.
The number of Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT) centers in Cambodia has increased dramatically over the last 5 years (only 12 sites in 2000 to 216 sites by the end of first quarter 2009). Of the current 216 VCT centers, 194 are supported directly by the government, while 22 are supported by non-governmental organizations.
About AHF
AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) is the nation's largest non-profit HIV/AIDS organization. AHF currently provides medical care and/or services to more than 120,000 individuals in 22 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean, the Asia Pacific Region and Eastern Europe. Additional information is available at www.aidshealth.org
SOURCE AIDS Healthcare Foundation
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Friday, October 30, 2009
Khmer Rouge trial judges accused of bias
By David Boyle for Radio Australia
The beleaguered Khmer Rouge trials in Cambodia have hit another obstacle.
Two pre-trial judges, including Australian Rowan Downing QC, have been accused of taking instruction from their respective governments in a motion filed last week.
The Extraordinary Chambers of the Courts of Cambodia were created to try the leaders of the Khmer Rouge regime, which is accused of killing more than 2 million people in the 1970s.
The Khmer Rouge tribunal has endured considerable controversy in its four years of existence and now many people believe it has become entrenched in its own politics.
The lawyers of accused war criminal, Ieng Sary, have filed a motion requesting that two pre trial judges, including Mr Downing, be removed from the court due to a public perception of bias.
Radio Australia has obtained a copy of the motion that seizes on comments recently made by the Cambodian Prime Minister, Hun Sen.
Mr Sen has alleged the two judges have been acting on the orders of their respective foreign governments.
'Fair trial'
Michael Karnavas is one of the co-defence lawyers who filed the motion.
"What we're saying is we're caught in the middle of all of this, we're entitled to a fair trial," he said.
"The average person in Cambodia believes their Prime Minister. The United Nations hasn't stepped up to the plate, to either defend these judges or to show that they've taken any action to look into these allegations.
"The judges haven't spoken up, I suspect because of their position, but we want this matter cleared."
The two pre-trial judges, Mr Downing and Dutch national Katinka Lahuis are unable to comment on either Hun Sen's comments or the motion being filed against them.
Appropriate behaviour
But a spokeswoman for the court, Yuko Maeda, says the court believes all their court officials are behaving appropriately.
"We believe all the judicial officials who work at the ECCC are performing accordingly, independently from any of the executive bodies," she said.
"This is the international standard, ECCC is following the international standard. We believe that none of the judicial officials who are working at the ECCC are influenced by any executive body."
Heather Ryan, a court monitor with the Open Society Justice Initiative, says she has seen no evidence to confirm the allegations, but says they should be publicly addressed to protect the credibility of the court.
"Many of the international players and the judges are in my view, unfortunately reluctant to speak publicly when statements like this that impact the credibility of the court are made," she said.
"I think it's part of that sort of general reluctance of commentators and officials of the courts to speak about what's going on in the court publicly. There's kind of a conspiracy of silence."
Bribery claims
An early report into the court's activities prepared for the US Agency for International Development concluded corruption was "pandemic" within the administration of local officials with bribery a widely accepted practice.
A subsequent report produced by the court, which was initially suppressed, revealed similar findings.
But there is no suggestion that these allegations relate to the judges of the court.
Lawyer Michael Karnavas dismisses any suggestion that his motion is designed further erode the tribunal's reputation, arguing it upholds expectations of transparency and due diligence.
"I haven't made these allegations, somebody else has. I'm not the one getting kick backs from the national staff. I'm not the one who is hiding the UN report, others are doing that," he said.
"So you can't blame the defence for trying to shed light and trying to make this process as transparent as possible."
Ms Ryan, of the Open Society Justice Initiatives, says the court should be concerned about mounting public scepticism over its transparency and capacity to deliver swift and effective justice.
"The court has an obligation now, if it's to preserve its obligation to the people of Cambodia to go out of its way and take additional steps to be transparent, to scrupulously deal with any allegations of misconduct or wrong doing and to ensure that people can see that they actually are serving the interests of justice," she said.
"Right now when everything is done behind closed doors people don't see that and so when statements like the one that is alleged by Ieng Sary's lawyers are made, it feeds on a kind of inherent suspicion."
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Cambodia can deny Thaksin extradition bid by Thailand: Attorney-General
BANGKOK, Oct 30 (TNA) - Cambodia reserves the right to deny a request by Thailand to extradite ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra if he stays in the neighbouring country, but substantial grounds must be provided for the denial, according to the Attorney-General Julasingh Wasantsingh.
Mr Julasingh said he did not focus on anybody in particular, but would touch only on the principle that even though Thailand and Cambodia had signed an extradition treaty, in practice the country which was asked for the extradition has the full right to deny the request.
However, that country must justify its denial in line with international practice.
As for Mr Thaksin’s case, the Office of the Attorney-General has not been informed about his whereabouts so the office could not make the request.
If the police and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirm that Mr Thaksin is in Cambodia, Thai officials would seek extradition, but it depends on Phnom Penh's decision.
He added that Thailand had formerly denied such requests from some countries, but the kingdom was able to provide strong grounds to clarify its decisions in the past.
Mr Hun Sen told reporters during attending the 15th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Thailand that Mr Thaksin could remain in Cambodia as his guest and could be his economic advisor, saying he was not interfering in Thailand's internal affairs, but that Cambodia has the right to exercise its sovereignty and make such a decision.
Nationalist fire counters Chavalit's move
If national reconciliation was truly one of the goals Gen Chavalit Yongchaiyudh set himself when returning to active politics, then he could barely have got off to a worse start.
Gen Chavalit claimed his move was aimed at mending fences with the Cambodian leader to ease tensions between Thailand and Cambodia before the 15th Asean summit in Hua Hin and Cha-am.
However, the ulterior objective seemed to be for Hun Sen to discredit the Thai government, which he proceeded to do, claiming Thaksin was politically persecuted, that he would welcome Thaksin to Cambodia any time and would not extradite Thaksin to Thailand even though the two countries have signed an extradition treaty.
Gen Chavalit, upon agreeing to become chairman of the Puea Thai Party, declared four strategic goals for the party:
- To prove to Thai society that Thaksin is loyal to the country and monarchy;
- To mend social divisions in the country;
- To solve the unrest in the lower South; and
- To mend fences with neighbouring countries.
These four goals are aimed at shoring up the image of Puea Thai, with Thaksin as its guiding light, and they have the ultimate objective of winning the next election and returning Thaksin to his former glory without having to serve his two-year jail sentence.
Puea Thai can also rely on its staunch allies, the red shirts, to continue to hold rallies to disrupt the government's administration with the aim of forcing the government to quit as soon as possible. The opposition party believes the Democrats and their coalition partners are seen in a negative light for being linked to various graft allegations involving spending programmes under the second stimulus package.
Unfortunately for Puea Thai, Gen Chavalit's move to involve Hun Sen in the attack on the Thai government has provoked a strong reaction from many Thai people, who have condemned both Gen Chavalit and Thaksin as "letting the enemy in". They believe Gen Chavalit's move at the behest of Thaksin will only further strain relations between Thailand and Cambodia, not mend fences as claimed by Gen Chavalit.
So Gen Chavalit's declared move to mend fences with neighbouring countries seems to have failed at the first attempt.
Puea Thai's other aim has been to prove to Thai society that Thaksin is loyal to the country and monarchy by attracting a number of retired generals to the party. These former generals and Gen Chavalit himself should be enough to assure the Thai people that Thaksin is loyal because soldiers have to swear to protect the country and King, Puea Thai believes.
Again, Puea Thai might not be able to shake off people's doubts that Thaksin is disloyal to the monarchy as long as the red shirts continue to demand the resignation of Privy Council president Prem Tinsulanonda. Their stance that Gen Prem should not act as His Majesty's representative also raises eyebrows since everyone knows it is the King's prerogative to appoint anyone to be his personal adviser and act on his behalf.
Meanwhile, the Democrat Party, as the leading party in the coalition government, has to respond to Gen Chavalit's move. The strategy is to claim that Puea Thai is using dirty political tricks by involving foreigners to attack Thailand.
As the country's leader, Mr Abhisit has to act diplomatically by claiming Thailand and Cambodia remain friends. However, Mr Abhisit might also worry that the Cambodian leader has received misleading information so he does not want Hun Sen to become a pawn in someone else's game.
Meantime, core executives of the Democrat Party came out in force to condemn Thaksin and Gen Chavalit's move as "betraying the country", a phrase which the country's respected elder recently warned Gen Chavalit about when he was considering joining Puea Thai.
The government has also appointed a national public relations commission to clarify the issue to counter the red shirts' satellite TV People Channel.
Gen Chavalit's next move to visit Malaysia and Burma with the aim of using the foreign stage to paint a bad image of the Thai government might not be so successful now the Democrats know of his intentions and are ready to counter them with effective public relations campaigns, concluded Matichon.
Govt must change tack
If the government cannot come up with something concrete soon to show the people it is working on their behalf, it's unlikely to win the next general election.
It's more than likely the Puea Thai Party will win the election and be able to form a single-party government, noted a Thai Rath writer.
Even though Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has told the media the Democrats are ready for the coming election and the party will gain more or less the same number of seats as Puea Thai, the Thai Rath writer thought this was only political posturing designed to show the people, Puea Thai, the red shirts and the coalition parties the Democrats are ready to dissolve parliament at any time.
However, it is widely believed both the Democrats and the coalition parties are not ready to dissolve parliament and contest a new poll. Since the coalition government wants to stay in power for quite a while yet, it must work even harder to show its achievements and solve the protracted problems facing the country.
The trouble is that this coalition government does not project an image of unity from the different ministries under each coalition party's supervision.
Even within the Democrat Party itself there seem to be conflicts judging from the continuing saga of the failed appointment of a new police chief.
This is different from Puea Thai, which plays politics both inside parliament and out with Thaksin phoning in and Twittering practically every day.
So it is not surprising that a recent poll showed that Mr Abhisit's popularity continues to decline while Thaksin has gained at his expense.
If the Democrats do not change the way they administer the country, the situation will worsen and there might come a time when Mr Abhisit has no choice but to dissolve parliament even if the party is not ready to contest an election.
Former prime minister Chuan Leekpai, now chief adviser to the Democrat Party, recently remarked there should be more discussion and consultation, not just among the Democrats but with their coalition partners as well.
Since taking charge of the country 10 months or so ago, Mr Abhisit seems to have accepted multitudes of outside engagements to speak practically every day. It's got to the stage where he hardly has time to talk and coordinate with ministers from different parties. So it is inevitable that small issues easily turn into bigger ones.
The Thai Rath writer recommended that apart from adjusting his working style by paying more attention to his coalition partners, Mr Abhisit should think about a cabinet reshuffle as now there has been sufficient time to judge which ministers need to be moved out to bring in more capable replacements to shore up the government's image.
Miscellany
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva revealed he would not hold a meeting of the Police Commission to appoint a new police chief any time soon, even though he really wants to convene one as soon as possible. There are still differing opinions and information, but the situation was improving, he said.
Meanwhile, Puea Thai Party spokesman Prompong Nopparit accused the government of pulling the strings behind the Council of State's decision that the government can proceed with stripping Thaksin Shinawatra of his police rank and royal decorations.
Mr Prompong issued a threat that if the government went ahead with stripping Thaksin of his rank and decorations, it would inflame the red shirts to come out to rally against the government. He warned the government to be careful in proceeding with such a step as it was no way to nurture reconciliation.
Cambodia's Mysterious 'Jungle Woman' Sick, Stressed Out
A woman dubbed the "jungle woman" after emerging naked and unable to speak from the wilds of northeastern Cambodia two years ago is sick and apparently suffering from mental illness, a doctor said Friday.
Hing Phan Sokhunthea, chief of Rattanakiri province hospital, said the woman, believed to be 28-year-old Rochom P'ngieng, was taken home Friday after four days in a hospital even though she remained weak and the cause of her nervous distress remained unclear.
She was brought from the jungle in early 2007 after being caught trying to steal food from a villager. Her case attracted international attention after a local family claimed she was their daughter, who was 8 years old when she disappeared in 1988 while herding buffalo in a remote area.
However, the relationship was never proven, and it was never established how she could have survived in the wild for 19 years. Some villagers suspected she was not Rochom P'ngieng, but someone else suffering from mental problems who had been lost in the jungle for a much briefer time.
The man who claims to be her father, Sal Lou, said Friday by telephone that the woman still does not speak any intelligible language.
He said his daughter was hospitalized Monday after she refused to eat any rice for almost a month.
"She was very sick and her condition looks worse than when she was first found," he said. "She is very skinny now."
He said he decided to take her back home after her condition didn't improve and she kept trying to run away.
The Rattanakiri doctor said a preliminary diagnosis found she suffered from a nervous condition.
"We wanted her to stay longer in the hospital, so that we could learn more about her mental state, but her father took her back home without letting us know," said Hing Phan Sokunthea.
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Voices: No cause for celebration
On Sept. 20, the Empire State building was lighted red and yellow to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. At the same time, this event was either being celebrated on the south White House lawn or across the street, depending on whom you talk to.
Celebrating the 60th year of the most murderous regime in history. Chairman Mao and his successors have murdered at least 20 million of their own people, not counting Tibet, Korea (1950-54), various “wars of liberation” in South America, Africa, Southeast Asia as well as Tiananmen Square. This regime’s murderous endeavors far surpass Adolf Hitler, Josef Stalin, Vladimir Lenin, Leon Trotsky, Pol Pot of Cambodia, Idi Amin and other murderers throughout history.
And now the owners of the Empire State building and our government are sanctioning celebrations of this communist government that is undoubtedly assisting, aiding and abetting terrorist organizations around the world, while our young men and women are combating terrorism in many far and distant places. Shades of Vietnam! While we were fighting against communism in that country, our government was cutting grain deals, doling out foreign aid, etc. to the communists in Europe who were supplying the communists in Southeast Asia.
John P. Fitts
Noel
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Thursday, October 29, 2009
Cambodia, UN mark 64th anniversary of UN Day
The Cambodian government and the United Nations country team on Tuesday jointly marked the 64th anniversary of UN Day, focusing on reviewing common priorities, said a press released from UN Resident Coordinator in Cambodia on Wednesday.
The discussion with Prime Minister Hun Sen and 11 UN Representatives focused on the excellent working relationship between Cambodia and the UN.
"The United Nations brings around 100 million U.S. dollars of development assistance to Cambodia each year but our support stretches beyond the dollar value of this contribution. We have a long-standing history of promoting peace and human development in Cambodia and we are extremely proud to serve the Cambodian people" expressed UN Resident Coordinator to Cambodia, Douglas Broderick.
Topics raised during the meeting included climate change, the global economic crisis, drug awareness, disaster management and Cambodia's support to international peacekeeping.
Among the highest priorities for the UN Country Team is helping Cambodia to achieve its Millennium Development Goals including improving maternal health, the goal currently requiring the most attention.
"The United Nations believes that no Cambodian woman should die giving life. We are committed to assisting the government to scale-up the quantity and quality of midwives and to improve access to emergency obstetrics care and reproductive health services as part of our joint effort to advance maternal health" Broderick assured the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister shared UN concern that the Millennium Development Goals could be endangered by the combined impacts of the global economic crisis and climate change but was grateful to the UN system for its assistance in helping compile information on the goals' progress at sub-national level.
Regarding the global economic crisis and its impact on the local economy, both sides recognized the importance of coordinating closely to maintain focus on the most vulnerable groups.
"We have been pleased by Cambodia's active response to the global economic crisis especially the attention given to social protection and the progress made towards an integrated Social Safety Net strategy. The UN will work with the government to maintain efforts in this area of social protection to ensure that as the world moves out of this crisis, the poorest people are protected from current and future economic shocks"
In closing the meeting, the Prime Minister congratulated the UN on its 64th anniversary and vowed to continue the UN Day meeting tradition.
United Nations Day (October 24) marks the signing of the United Nations Charter in 1945. Cambodia joined the United Nations on 14 December 1955.
The United Nations Country Team in Cambodia consists of 23 agencies, fund and programmes operating in the country.
Source: Xinhua
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In Cambodia, a threatened tribe of Islam
By Brendan B Brady
UDONG - Imam San was perhaps once Cambodia's most privileged Muslim. Legend has it that in the 19th century, former King Ang Duong encountered him meditating in the forest and was so captivated by the stranger's spirituality that he offered him land in the royal capital. A more cynical account relates that the Khmer royal family, at a time when its power was dwindling, found a ready and willing ally in the Muslim leader.
On the occasion of Imam San's birthday each October, the sect that emerged from his early followers gathers in the former royal city of Udong, about 30 kilometers outside of the present capital
of Phnom Penh, to honor his memory through prayer and offerings. The colorful mawlut ceremony reaffirms the sect's privileged heritage and its continued isolation from the rest of the country's Islamic community, which is dominated by a group known as the Cham.
The Imam San followers are the only group to remain outside the domain of the Mufti, the government-sanctioned leader of Islam in Cambodia - a status that was renewed by the government in 1988. Successive Imam San leaders, or Ong Khnuur, have held the prestigious title of Okhna, originally bestowed by the palace.
Cambodia's estimated 37,000 Imam San followers live in only a few dozen villages spread throughout the country. Geography has reinforced the sect's isolation, and the mawlut has become an increasingly important opportunity to forge friendships and - more essential to the survival of the community - marriages.
At the annual ceremony, parents search for eligible suitors for their children, who otherwise would not come in contact with teenagers and young adults from other Imam San communities. The day's use for matchmaking may have new importance as the sect's long-standing isolation is challenged by pressures from Cambodia's larger Islamic community as well as from abroad.
Many Imam San followers see their sect's relationship with other Muslims as the biggest threat to their way of life, as their most vehement critics come from within their faith. For Ek Bourt, an elder member of the Imam San community, it is discrimination from other Muslims that he fears most.
"Other Muslims look down on us since we practice our religion in a different way," he said. "I'm afraid the next generation might lose our unique culture and customs."
The pilgrimage to Udong's Phnom Katera - a site of great importance for Khmers' Buddhist and royal traditions - highlights what some other Muslims see as the Imam San community's unholy cultural proximity to mainstream Khmer society. Conspicuously, the mosque on Phnom Katera is adjacent to the tombs of former Khmer kings and its name, "The Islam Cham Temple of Imam San", is written in Khmer, Cham and English, but not Arabic.
Purity perceptions
Descendants of the Cham Bani from Vietnam, who converted to Islam in the 17th century, Imam San followers view themselves as devoted adherents of the Muslim faith even as they maintain religious and cultural practices that are viewed by some as at odds with Islamic teachings. Because they blend faith in the Koran with other religious customs, including animist-like ceremonies, the Imam San followers are seen by many other Muslims as impure.
Perhaps no tradition of the Imam San community is more offensive to critics than praying only once a week, while praying five times a day is standard practice for most Muslims. And none is more bizarre than the chai ceremony, in which they dance in a possessed state, sometimes carrying prop weapons.
In fact, about 85% of Muslims consider the Imam San followers to be so heterodox as not to qualify as Muslims, according to a study by Norwegian Bjorn Blengsli, who has studied Muslims in Cambodia for nearly a decade.
"They're not true followers of Mohammed," said Hussein Bin Ibrahim, a Salafi Muslim who lives in Phnom Penh. "They don't really count as Muslims. For Muslims like us in Cambodia, our Islam is now becoming more like the Islam in Arab countries. We have grown closer to Mecca." Hussein prays in the outskirts of Phnom Penh at the Norul Ehsan mosque, which was recently renovated with funds from Kuwait.
Most of Cambodia's Muslims are ethnically Cham, whose practices have traditionally been moderate. But the last several years have seen a rise of fundamentalism in the Cham community, most notably of Wahhabism, an austere form of Islam originating from Saudi Arabia.
Growing economic ties between Cambodia and Arab countries suggest the trend will only strengthen.
Last year, after making high-level state visits, Kuwait and Qatar pledged hundreds of millions of dollars in soft loans to Cambodia for agricultural development. The aid sparked concerns among some Western officials that the money could be used not just to invigorate Cambodia's farming, but also to radicalize its Muslims.
"There are some organizations here from the Middle East that are very radical and that are very intolerant, and they are trying very hard to change the attitude and the atmosphere of the Muslim population here in Cambodia," said then-outgoing American Ambassador Joseph Mussomeli in his farewell speech to reporters in August 2008.
The primary focus of the most recent state visits has been trade. Yet cultural ties are also at stake: Kuwait pledged some $5 million for Cambodian Islamic institutions, including renovating the dilapidated International Dubai Mosque in Phnom Penh.
Economic ties with Arab countries will reverberate in Islamic practices in Cambodia, according to Blengsli. "Economic ties between Cambodia and Arab countries will lead to more funding for Islamic organisations in Cambodia and, since they are often unhappy with the purity of Islam as its practiced here, there will be increasing Arab influence on local Muslim practices," he said.
Islamic revivalism
The penetration of Islamic missionaries, as well as development and educational organizations into Cambodia, is problematic because of the separation from other cultures these groups encourage, according to Alberto Perez, a Spanish anthropologist who is writing his PhD dissertation on the Cham.
The Imam San community has been further estranged amid a wave of Islamic revivalism embraced by the majority of Cambodia's nearly 350,000 Muslims. In the past, Imam San followers have rejected donations from wealthy Middle East-based Islamic groups and resisted pressure from foreign preachers, whose requests that they convert to orthodox Islam are frequently backed by offers to finance the construction of new mosques.
But this long-maintained separation is weakening under the same foreign influences that, according to Blengsli, have made Cambodia's mainstream Muslims one of the fastest-changing Islamic communities in the world.
The Imam San community is losing numbers to other Muslim sects, including the Salafi, Jamaat Tabligh and Ahmadiyya, which have international standing and deeper pockets, he said. In particular, young Imam San followers who are sent to Phnom Penh to continue their studies face pressure from other Muslim communities to convert to orthodox Islam.
"We're especially afraid that the young will be tempted to join other groups that are well-funded," said Kai Tam, the Imam San's current Ong Khnuur. But such concerns would not have him change his group's practices.
"Our people are strong because we believe in our ancestors and we believe in their culture and the way they practiced Islam - to change would be an insult to our ancestors. We have the same goal as other Muslims, but we get there a different way."
Ahmad Yahya, president of the Cambodian Islamic Development Association and an advisor to the government on Cham issues, has said that Imam San followers should break their isolation and reform their observance. Yahya has aggressively solicited foreign funding for Cambodian Muslims to continue their studies locally and abroad, and he believes Iman San followers should make the changes necessary to avail themselves of such opportunities.
Indeed, some Imam San villages have begun praying five times a day as a compromise to foreign donors who have financed new mosques for them. But for 19-year-old Keu Sarath, whose home is in the same village as the Ong Khnuur's, her faith in the way of her ancestors has not wavered.
"We love God just the same as others," she said. "But we don't tell others how to practice and they should show us the same respect."
Brendan B Brady is a freelance journalist based in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
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Where’s This War Headed?
Ayaz Amir
The resort to arms, as any armchair strategist will tell you, can never be an end in itself. You go to war to achieve a political aim.
And if you don’t have that aim—if you are not clear what you are hoping to achieve—picking up arms is the height of folly. You can be the strongest military in the world—as the Wehrmacht was on the eve of the Second World War, or the US armed forces are now—but if there is no clarity in your mind about why you are going to war, or if your aims are open-ended and not rigorously thought through, in the face of a determined opponent your efforts are likely to be doomed.
America’s Vietnam venture was bereft of reason. It made no sense at the time, it makes less in hindsight. Against a weak foe this impiety would have succeeded. But the North Vietnamese and the Viet Cong were anything but weak. Eventually America had to drink deep from the cup of humiliation.
The invasion of Iraq was another exercise in folly. It had no aim beyond the display of arrogance. Meant to “shock and awe” the world, it has done incalculable harm to American prestige and power. Where the US strode the planet like a colossus after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, Iraq has made it look like a wounded giant.
Afghanistan was a bit different. With the Taleban giving sanctuary to Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda, the invasion of Afghanistan, to much of the world, appeared as a legitimate response to the Sep 11 terrorist incidents on the US soil. But with the US occupation of Afghanistan in its eighth year (two longer than the Second World War), and doubts on the rise in Washington about US war aims, America’s Afghan enterprise makes less and less sense. Indeed, far from achieving anything, the US occupation is now the prime cause of Afghan turbulence. Indeed, unfolding in Afghanistan is a popular insurrection, people drawn to the Taleban not out of love for their primitive philosophy but out of hostility to the foreign occupier.
With more troops the Americans can probably hold Afghanistan’s cities, as the Soviet army did before them in the 1980s. But that is not the same as imposing their will on the entire country.
Gen McChrystal is calling for more troops to stem the tide of Taleban resurgence. But just as domestic support for the Vietnam war plummeted, the same is now happening in relation to Afghanistan. There is no shortage of armchair warriors in Washington urging Obama to go with the McChrystal recipe of 40,000 more troops for Afghanistan. But the president is right to take his time. This is a critical moment for him. He makes a wrong move and it is him, not the sofa gladiators, who will have to take the fall.
Cambodia was a sideshow in the Vietnam conflict. Pakistan is not Cambodia to Afghanistan’s Vietnam. It is the buttress which sustains America’s Afghan enterprise. Take away the Pakistan army from this equation, and America’s continuing presence in Afghanistan becomes untenable. Pakistan’s role is thus not that of a satellite. It is the central point of the Afghan constellation. It is a failure of Pakistani leadership that instead of being in the driving seat of strategy formulation Pakistan is made to look like a supplicant holding on to America’s coattails.
This is all the more strange when set against another phenomenon: whereas anti-war sentiment is on the rise in the US, over the last few months we have seen a burgeoning pro-war movement in Pakistan, expressed in the feeling that enough is enough and extremism must be countered head on.
A small body of critics apart—spearheaded by the Jamaat-e-Islami and Imran Khan—all the signs suggest that there is popular backing for the army. After a long time (and may this never end) nation and army are marching to the same tune.
But where is the higher direction of this war? Who is laying down the political parameters of this conflict? We know that Gen Ashfaq Kayani, the army chief, is directing the military effort. There are no doubts on this score. But who is the political commander-in-chief, the Churchill—and I will have to be forgiven this analogy, but just to make things clear—to Kayani’s Montgomery?
As our army moves against the strongholds of the Taleban in South Waziristan, where is the higher direction of war? Where is the political leadership? Who will attend to the political aspects of this struggle?
The foremost political aspect relates to our relationship with the US. This is a relationship full of contradictions. The US is our ally---or rather we are doing the donkey’s work in this partnership---but its continued presence in Afghanistan is turning out to be our biggest headache. We are engaged in a grim struggle to defeat militancy and subversion. But the US presence in Afghanistan is the principal factor now keeping militancy alive.
Vietnam knew no peace until the Americans withdrew from there. Afghanistan will know no peace, and Pakistan will not be able to insulate itself from its effects, until the last American soldier gets out of Afghanistan.
Clearly, the Americans won’t get out of Afghanistan because we tell them. They will exit, when they finally do, out of their own calculations and compulsions. But the political direction of the war from our side demands that Pakistan not appear as a sentry man at America’s door, because that compromises our position and fighting the Taleban becomes all that much harder.
We should be seen as our own masters, acting in our own interests, not America’s. But for this fine balancing act to succeed it is essential that we keep some distance from the Americans and engage in a dialogue of equals with them.
What the US is now beginning to undergo in Afghanistan is a trauma. We may be a cash-strapped country with a perpetual begging bowl in our hands but America is stuck in a quagmire. Between a begging bowl and a quagmire there is not much to choose.
The objection to the Kerry-Lugar act is not that it compromises our sovereignty but that it makes us look like a lackey receiving his wages. Pakistan may have done foolish things in the past but the Swat and South Waziristan operation are tokens of a new beginning. Our soldiers’ sacrifices don’t go with a lackey image.
The Americans are telling us what to do, which is strange given that they are not doing too well in Afghanistan. They should be listening rather than giving sermons. Being their allies, and taking more hits than they are, it is now time for us to tell them that their occupation can’t last much longer. Sooner than they now think possible, it will have to be rolled back and other options examined. When they depart we will still be here. Bolstering Pakistan and its military should not be seen thus as a favour. From America’s point of view it should be a strategic necessity.
But such exchanges are possible only if the political direction of this conflict is in firm hands. This is where our weakness lies: where there should be leadership there is a yawning chasm. The military is on its own and that is never a good thing.
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Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Confessions of a Foodie: From the Flavors of Thiland to Vietnam
Fresh, salubrious, innovative, and heavenly divine: these are the elements that fuel my addiction to the flavors of Thailand and Vietnam. Rarely do I have the opportunity to laud over food that is actually healthy and absent of the artery-clogging fun that exists in our rendered pork fat-loving society. The masterful synthesis of aromatic herbs, flavorful chilies, rich meat stocks, and an avant-garde use of spices often spark insatiable cravings for the delights of Southeast Asia.
Having tasted the exotic dishes of Thailand firsthand, I can differentiate between true multidimensional Southeast Asian cuisine and homogeneously seasoned, Asian-like food devoured by those with less than discerning palates. The cornucopia of subtle herbs, spices, seasonings, and vegetables including basil, citrus fruits, nutmeg, culantro, mint, chilies, and coriander lend Thai and Vietnamese food its distinctive, multilayered flavors.
I grew to adore these tastes from an early age, but just recently have the cuisines of Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Indonesia flourished in popularity and authenticity stateside. This recent development is allowing more Americans than ever to broaden their horizons and experience a taste of Asia that they may not be accustomed to.
I was standing in my kitchen last week, lamenting over eating leftovers for dinner, when I came across a box of spaghetti, a bottle of Texas Pete, and oddly enough, a jar of peanut butter. I had no intention of cooking such bizarre ingredients together, but it did remind me of slurping Pad Thai on the streets of Bangkok. The thought of those soft rice noodles, lightly tossed with egg, fish sauce, tamarind, red chilies, and topped with crunchy peanuts made my mouth water and initiated a desperate craving for Pho Hien Vuong on Spring Garden Street. Leftovers would have to wait until tomorrow.
Pho Hien Vuong is among the most authentic and delicious Southeast Asian cuisine on the East Coast. Their menu is impressively expansive, brimming with both Thai and Vietnamese favorites such as Ph? (Vietnamese noodle soup, pronounced, "fah"), G?i Cu?n (fresh Vietnamese spring rolls), Tom Yum (hot and sour Thai seafood soup), and of course: Pad Thai. First on my menu that evening was an order of Fresh Spring Rolls. I asked Trang, my server and fellow UNCG Spartan, to add roasted pork and basil to the delicate Vermicelli rice noodles, plump shrimp, and earthy vegetables, which are then cloaked in a sheet of rice paper and served immediately.
The urgency in which the rolls are served is substantial, because rice paper quickly becomes rigid and flavorless minutes after being activated in water and rolled into G?i Cu?n. The rolls are complemented by a rich, homemade peanut sauce that pairs perfectly with a touch of spicy Sriracha (known colloquially as "Rooster Sauce") to lend the dish some heat.
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Obama Administration Fares Even Worse than Bush at the UN, Says Fund for Reconciliation and Development
NEW YORK, Oct. 28 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is being released by the Fund for Reconciliation and Development: "Obama Administration pledges of multi-lateralism and respect for the views of other nations suffered today in the United Nations. Amazingly, Obama did even worse than the Bush Administration when votes on a resolution to condemn the unilateral US embargo of Cuba rose from 185 to 187 in favor, 3 opposed."
John McAuliff, executive director of the Fund for Reconciliation and Development, also commented that, "continued accommodation to the dwindling special interest minority of Senator Bob Menendez and other hard line Cuban Americans is undermining the international credibility of the President."
"To redeem his reputation, President Obama must quickly send a signal more compatible with the values and aspirations he voiced at the United Nations, several international venues, and during his campaign. He should declare his readiness to sign legislation which ends all restrictions on travel by Americans to Cuba, and, in the interim, to use his own power to authorize all visits for educational, cultural, religious and humanitarian purposes," McAuliff said.
"US hypocrisy in defense of the embargo is equaled by Israel's hypocrisy in voting with us. Its own citizens, unlike Americans, vacation, invest and work in Cuba," he concluded.
McAuliff founded the Fund for Reconciliation and Development in 1985 to bring about normal US diplomatic, cultural and trade relations with Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. With the success of that effort he redirected his work to the similar problem of US relations with Cuba. He has visited Cuba at least annually during the past decade.
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Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Thais protest outside Cambodia embassy over invite
By AMBIKA AHUJA,Associated Press Writer
BANGKOK – Dozens of demonstrators gathered Tuesday outside Cambodia's embassy in Bangkok to protest an offer of refuge from that country's leader to Thailand's ousted and fugitive prime minister.
About 80 people gathered a week after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen called former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra a "political victim."
Relations between the countries are already strained by a dispute over border territory near the 11th century Preah Vihear temple, which has led to small but deadly military skirmishes over the past year and a half.
Thaksin was ousted by a 2006 military coup on accusations of corruption and later sentenced to two years in prison for violating a conflict of interest law.
Hun Sen said he was welcome anytime in Cambodia and could become his economic adviser.
Thaksin left Thailand before his conviction last year. Though he is probably the country's most popular politician, the Thai government has said it would request his extradition if he went to Cambodia, and Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said Hun Sen was "seriously misinformed" in saying Thaksin was being politically persecuted.
Abhisit played down speculation that the issue will further hurt ties between the two countries.
"Right now, Cambodia understands our feelings," Abhisit told reporters Tuesday.
A statement by Tuesday's protesters said, "We would like to condemn Hun Sen for his atrocious action which is in contempt of Thailand, the Thai government, the Thai army and the Thai people."
The group, the "People's Assembly of Thailand," appears to be affiliated with the People's Alliance for Democracy, which in 2006 campaigned for Thaksin's ouster. The alliance denies any connection, though the People's Assembly is led by one of its top leaders.
Thailand has revoked Thaksin's passport, and much of his fortune remains frozen in Thai banks. He has been barred from several countries following diplomatic pressure.
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Tigers Said to be on “Verge of Extinction”
by The Associated Press
(AP) - The world's tiger population is declining fast despite efforts to save them, and new strategies are urgently needed to keep the species from dying out, international wildlife experts said Tuesday.
"We are assembled here to save tigers that are at the verge of extinction," Nepal's secretary of forest and soil conservation, Yuvaraj Bhusal, told a conference of tiger experts from 20 countries, including the 13 where wild tigers are still found.
An estimated 3,500 to 4,000 tigers now roam the world's forests, down from the more than 100,000 estimated at the beginning of the 20th century. All the remaining tigers are in Asia.
Participants at the conference, which also includes the World Bank, the World Wildlife Fund and other groups, plan to discuss strategies for tiger conservation, as well as challenges such as poaching, the trade of tiger parts and conflicts between tigers and local populations.
In a recent case, a Sumatran tiger died after being caught in a pig snare last week in Indonesia, the country's news agency, Antara, reported Monday. The report said the tiger died as it was being prepared for surgery Monday. Only about 250 Sumatran tigers remain in the wild.
"Despite our efforts in the last three decades, tigers still face threats of survival. The primary threat is from poaching and habitat loss," Nepal's prime minister Madhav Kumar Nepal told the conference.
He said extreme poverty has also challenged efforts.
"Global and regional solidarity and corrective measures are more necessary now than ever to face these challenges," the prime minister said.
Bhusal, the forest secretary, said participants hope to make high-level policy makers in their countries more aware of the animal's possible extinction.
The 13 countries where wild tigers are still found include Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam.
The conference continues through Friday.
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Women's Conference opens on notes of sadness and hope
Somaly Mam, a native of Cambodia was forced into sex slavery as a youth. After escaping she vowed to fight the practice and started Acting for Women in Distressing Circumstances, in 1996 with her French husband, Pierre. Mam spoke during the morning session of the California Conference on Women held inside the Long Beach Sports Arena on Tuesday, October 27, 2009. ( Diandra Jay/Press-Telegram)
"I have to show people we have hope in life," she said. "I'm not alone anymore. I know that all of you are here."
Mam was able to escape the brothel that was her prison and now dedicates her life to helping other victims of sex slavery. Through her organization, "Acting for Women in Distressing Circumstances," Mam has saved more than 5,000 girls, but with 1 in 40 Cambodian girls still being sold into sex slavery, the need is urgent.
"How many of them are still in a brothel now?" she asks.
More than 10,000 people packed the Long Beach Convention Center and Arena today for the annual Women's Conference. The first session, which kicked off at 8 a.m., focused on themes of self-worth, empowerment and leadership with speakers including Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, actress Geena Davis, Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson and playwright Eve Ensler.
In a roundtable discussion on leadership in hard economic times,Schwarzenegger said not everyone may like his decisions, but it's his job as a leader to take risks and make tough choices.
"It's always more fun to lead in good times," the governor said. "But you also have to lead in tough times and leadership (now) is more important than ever."
Branson, who took a somewhat unconventional rout on his rise to become the Virgin Goup mega mogul, spoke of the importance of taking risks and not being afraid to fail.
"If you're bold and you're brave and not afraid of falling on your face and trying things, ultimately you will succeed," he said.
Aside from harsh economic times, Ensler said the world is also facing dangerous times as women around the world are victims of horrific violence. Now is the time, she said, for women to fight back.
"Dangerous times require great, bold passionate responses," Ensler said. "Be braver, be bolder, stand up, resist and find your voice."
Author Cheryl Saban spoke candidly of her own experience being raped at age 18 and her struggle to regain her self-confidence. Years after the incident, the author said a moment of fear during a public speech made her realize that she still harbored feelings of inadequacy and
humiliation.
"I had subconsciously let an incident in my life stunt my self-worth," she said "I discovered my voice had been muzzled."
Saban urged the women in the crowd, many of them tearful, to find their voices.
"You are an amazing force," she said. "Embrace it."
Monday, October 26, 2009
Suthep sets out case for ending spat
Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban has used his personal connections with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen to defuse a potential diplomatic spat between the two countries.
Mr Suthep yesterday said he met the Cambodian leader for two hours on Saturday after a gala dinner hosted by Thailand for leaders attending the Asean summit.
The meeting was made necessary by Hun Sen's reiteration soon after arriving in Thailand last Friday, that former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was welcome to stay in Cambodia without fear of repatriation.
Mr Suthep's mission was to make the Cambodian leader understand the real situation in Thailand, particularly concerning the legal cases against Thaksin.
He explained that Thaksin was unlikely to return to Thailand any time soon and that the Democrat-led government was not "a temporary" administration.
Mr Suthep also clarified that Bangkok had allowed Sam Rainsy entry to Thailand in his capacity as leader of the Cambodian opposition. He said this should not be compared with Thaksin's position as Mr Rainsy was not a political fugitive wanted by Phnom Penh.
Hun Sen criticised Thailand on Friday for allowing his political rival to use the Kingdom to attack his government.
Mr Suthep earlier offered Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva his services in helping mend ties with Cambodia after Phnom Penh was angered by Thailand's protest against the listing of the Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage Site under the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation.
He visited Hun Sen before the Democrats came to power and twice since.
Mr Suthep was appointed chairman of the Joint Technical Committee, a position normally headed by the foreign minister, based on his close ties with the Cambodian leader.
The Joint Technical Committee has the role of demarcating the overlapping maritime boundary in the Gulf of Thailand and jointly developing areas where the issue of sovereignty cannot be settled.
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JSM IndoChina rejects Passport Capital claims
JSM IndoChina, an AIM-listed property fund focused on Cambodia and Vietnam, hit back at an activist shareholder yesterday, rubbishing claims of mismanagement.
Passport Capital, a San Francisco-based investor holding a 13.4 per cent stake, requisitioned a special general meeting last week in an attempt to oust the board and return surplus cash to shareholders, claiming that JSM had moved too slowly to spend its IPO proceeds.
JSM said that Passport merely was trying to obtain a short-term gain through a cash return at the cost of the future sustainability and growth of the company, and at the expense of fellow shareholders.
The group added that it believed Passport’s accusations — which called into question JSM’s corporate governance over issues such as loans to directors and payment of investment management fees — were unfounded and without merit. The shares fell 0.04p to 0.69p.
Churchill Mining rose 8½p to 113½p after it said that an initial reserve estimate at its East Kutai Coal Project in Indonesia had shown it to have 956 million tonnes of thermal coal.
Rockhopper Petroleum fell 5½p to 59p after it said that it had raised £50 million in a placing of 92.6 million shares at 54p through Canaccord Adams to fund drilling in the Falkland Islands. Aurelian Oil & Gas rose 2½p to 19½p after the AIM-listed group said that a well it had drilled in Romania has struck gas and as the company sealed a gas sales agreement in Poland. Zenergy Power fell 2p to 114½, despite getting a new order for an induction heater and saying that its superconductor was now considered commercially favourable by four industrial metals producers.
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Sunday, October 25, 2009
Chinese Premier Raises Border Stability at Asean Summit
By WAI MOE
Wen told Thein Sein that Beijing “hopes that the Burmese regime will achieve stability, national reconciliation and development” in Burma, according to the China Ministry of Foreign Affairs Web site.
Wen said that the Sino-Burma relationship is conducive to “regional peace and development,” while pledging development aid to Burma.
To inject “new vitality” in bilateral relations, China will provide support and assistance to strengthen the economy and trade, infrastructure, utilities, energy and other areas, Wen said.
Wen and Thein Sein’s meeting on Saturday was the highest level contact since 37,000 Kokang Chinese refugees in Burma fled to China in September, following a government military offensive against the Kokang ethnic militias in northeastern Burma. At least two Chinese citizens were reportedly killed, and there was widespread looting by government troops of property owned by Chinese citizens.
Wen attended the Asean-China Summit as well as the East Asia Summit (EAS) along with heads of state from Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand and India.
The EAS chairman statement called for a free, fair and inclusive election in 2010 in Burma.
“We encouraged the Myanmar [Burma] government to ensure the implementation of the Seven-Step Roadmap to Democracy,” the statement said.
The Asean and the EAS chairman statements over the weekend did not mention the release of Burmese political prisoners including pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Asean-member countries called for the release of all political prisoners at the 14th Asean Summit in late February and at the Asean Regional Forum in July.
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejijjiva said at a press conference on Sunday that Burmese issues were discussed at the Asean and two other summits throughout the weekend.
He said Thein Sein told leaders at the summits that Suu Kyi was a part of the process of national reconciliation.
Japan, under the new administration of the Democratic Party of Japan, raised the issue of Burma’s democratization process at the Asean + 3 Summit and the East Asia Summit, according to Kazuo Kodama, a Japan foreign ministry spokesman.
Kodama said Japan Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama told his Burma counterpart that Japan hoped all stakeholders in Burma’s democratization process would be included in the 2010 elections.
Kodama said Japan, during its meeting with junta officials, called for the release of Suu Kyi and other political prisoners before the election.
Burmese Foreign Minister Nyan Win met with Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada in Cambodia in early October, and he told Okada that Suu Kyi would be released before her current 18-month house arrest term expires, Kodama said.
CORRECTED: ASEAN divided over inclusion of U.S. in envisaged E. Asia community+
community+ (AP) - HUA HIN, Thailand, Oct. 25 (Kyodo)—Leaders of the 10-member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are divided over whether the United States should be included in an East Asian community as envisaged by Japan's new leader Yukio Hatoyama, senior ASEAN officials said Sunday.
The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that as of this juncture, half of ASEAN members favor inclusion of the United States and the other oppose it.
Hatoyama said Saturday in a 13-nation summit meeting with ASEAN leaders and those from China and South Korea, held at Thailand's seaside resort of Hua Hin, that he favors U.S. involvement in the envisioned community for closer regional cooperation.
But what the Japanese prime minister meant by U.S. involvement remains unclear as he has been vague on specifics.
Hatoyama later told reporters, "I don't intend to exclude the United States or any other country."
Meanwhile, Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya told a press conference that ASEAN leaders welcomed Hatoyama's initiative, saying that while an East Asian community is possible to achieve, it would take time.
But at this stage, according to ASEAN senior officials, only the five original ASEAN members -- Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand -- have indicated that they favor having the United States on board.
ASEAN also includes Brunei and the grouping's less-developed newer members Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.
Some of those opposed are concerned that inclusion of the United States would make the community to large and unwieldy, and that ASEAN would lose its core role and become a "minority" in the community, the ASEAN officials said.
But some of those in favor feel U.S. inclusion would be of benefit to ASEAN, by helping offset the strong influence that China would have in the proposed community, for example.
One official said ASEAN is now thinking on "how many legs" the East Asia community should have -- "13 legs, 16 legs or more than that?"
ASEAN, which is already committed to forging an ASEAN Community by has already for years played a central role by hosting two separate annual gatherings of leaders of countries outside Southeast Asia -- the 13-nation ASEAN-plus-three summit with Japan, China, and South Korea, as well as 16-nation East Asia Summit that also includes Australia, India and New Zealand.
Whether or not the United States will be included in a future East Asian community aside, it has been strengthening its role and influence in the region.
In July, the Washington consolidated relations with the four Lower Mekong nations of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam through the holding of their first-ever ministerial meeting, while next month the first-ever U.S.-ASEAN summit will be held, marking a historic point in the ASEAN-U.S. Dialogue Relations that began in 1977.
ASEAN leaders, in a statement Saturday, welcomed the upcoming summit and said it reflects the "strong commitment" of the new administration of U.S. President Barack Obama "to deepen and expand its engagement with ASEAN."
The Philippines, which has been tasked by ASEAN to coordinate its relations with the United States, has drafted a concept paper on ASEAN-U.S. relations that suggests future cooperation in the seven areas -- global economy, nuclear-proliferation and disarmament, climate change, disaster management, health pandemics, energy security and fighting transnational crime, according to the officials.
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Cambodia's new park protects tigers, elephants and CO2
Washington, October 25 (ANI): The government of Cambodia has transformed a former logging concession into a new, Yosemite-sized protected area that safeguards not only threatened primates, tigers, and elephants, but also massive stores of carbon.
The Royal Government's Council of Ministers recently declared the creation of the Seima Protection Forest, which covers more than 1,100 square miles along Cambodia's eastern border with Vietnam.
"We commend the Royal Government of Cambodia for their decision to protect this important refuge for the region's wildlife and also for safeguarding stocks of carbon," said WCS Asia Program Director Colin Poole.
Seima is the first protected area in Cambodia created with the conservation of forest carbon as one of its key goals.
WCS is helping to measure carbon stocks contained in Seima Protection Forest to calculate the total amount of carbon dioxide emissions that will not be released to the atmosphere as a result of the project's work on reducing deforestation.
This effort will support WCS's "Carbon for Conservation" initiatives to help provide incentives to people to protect their forest in high-biodiversity landscapes, which are being developed in conjunction with negotiations on a proposed international policy known as Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD).
In addition to work in Cambodia, WCS is supporting similar efforts in Bolivia, Guatemala, Chile, Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania, Madagascar, and Indonesia.
"In addition to safeguarding the wildlife of Cambodia, Seima Protection Forest will serve as an important model for demonstrating how REDD could be implemented on the ground," said Dr. Jane Carter Ingram of WCS's Conservation Support Team.
"Forests provide numerous benefits for both wildlife and rural communities, so efforts such as these will help on local, regional and global scales," she added.
The newly designated protected area contains 23 species of carnivore, including seven cat species, two bears, and two species of wild dog. (ANI)
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Vietnam, Cambodia seeks ways to lift investment ties
Leaders from the Ministries of Planning and Investment of Vietnam and Cambodia met in southwestern Tay Ninh province on October 23-24 to discuss measures to step up bilateral cooperative relations.
The Vietnamese delegation was led by Deputy Minister Truong Van Doan, while the Cambodian mission was headed by Secretary of State at the Ministry of Planning Hu Taing Eng.
Doan said the recent cooperation between the two ministries as well as border provinces have yielded promising results, especially in investment, agriculture, transport, trade, exports and human resources development.
However, Doan stressed that the cooperation in a number of areas have yet to match aspirations of both sides.
The deputy minister proposed that the ministries increase the exchange of experiences, support each other in personnel training, and join hands to raise two-way trade.
He also called on provinces along the shared border to boost cooperation in line with the agreements already signed between the two governments.
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Saturday, October 24, 2009
'Cool' Thais downplay verbal spat with Cambodia
Cha-am, Thailand - Thailand on Saturday downplayed a diplomatic spat that erupted with Cambodia at a South-East Asian in Cha-am over the weekend that was to supposed to demonstrate regional solidarity and "connectivity."The summit got off to rocky start Friday after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen announced upon arrival his intention to provide asylum to fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra and to offer him a job as economic advisor.
Hun Sen also insisted Cambodia would not extradite Thaksin, who faces a two-tear jail sentence in Thailand on abuse-of-pwer chareges, if he moved to Cambodia.
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, for whom Thaksin is an arch political foe, responded to Hun Sen's diplomatic offensive by suggesting the Cambodian premier had been misinformed and was being used as a "pawn" by Thaksin, who has been living in self-exile since August, 2008.
Despite the tempestuous start, Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya insisted the summit had been carried out with "civility."
"We have been approaching everything in a very cool, impartial manner," Kaset told a press conference after the conclusion of a two- day summit among the leaders of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Cha-am, 130 kilometres south-west of Bangkok.
He said Hun Sen had participated in all the talks "in a constructive manner," and had even backed a proposal that Thailand become the base for a regional emergency financial fund to be set up at the end of the year with a suggested pooled amount of 120 billion dollars.
"It's not like our differences will make us hate each other," Kasit said. "There is civility. There is a need to foster and build up the relationship as much as possible."
Thailand and Cambodia have a long history of animosity and border spats, the latest one being over joint claims to land adjacent to the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple on the Thai-Cambodian border that broke out last year.
A pro-Thaksin government in July, last year backed Cambodia's bid to get the temple listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site despite an unsettled territory dispute.
The previous government was charged with helping Phnom Penh to benefit from one of Thaksin's business deals in Cambodia. The new Thai government under Abhisit has insisted on settling the territorial dispute before opening the temple to tourists again.
Thaksin has a long personal relationship with Hun Sen dating back to when he was a business tycoon and won a 90-year concession to offer telecommunication services in Cambodia.
ASEAN, which includes Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, has followed a policy of non-interference with one another's internal and even bilateral affairs.
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Japan pushes for Asia bloc, US role uncertain
Japan’s prime minister backed a US role for a proposed EU-style Asian community on Saturday, telling Southeast Asian leaders Tokyo’s alliance with Washington was at the heart of its diplomacy.
Making a case for an East Asian Community at a summit of Asian leaders in Thailand, Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said there should be some US involvement in the bloc, which faces stiff obstacles including Japan’s historic rivalry with China.
It was unclear how a US role would work. But the comment may help allay concern in some countries that such a body would ultimately fail by shutting out the world’s biggest economy.
Hatoyama may also be trying to defuse U.S.-Japan tension over the long-planned reorganisation of the American military presence in Japan, the first big test of ties between Washington and the new Japanese government.
‘Japan places the U.S.-Japan alliance at the foundation of its diplomacy,’ Hatoyama said at the meeting, according to a Japanese government spokesman.
‘I would like to firmly promote regional cooperation in East Asia with a long-term vision of forming an East Asian Community.’ Several Southeast Asian leaders expressed support for the bloc, but none spoke of a US role at the meetings.
The talks are part of a three-day leaders’ summit which got off to a rancorous start on Friday, marred by a diplomatic spat between Thailand and neighbour Cambodia, a trade feud over Filipino rice and a few no-shows in the 10-member Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN).
China had a very different message at the meetings, signalling possible trouble ahead for Hatoyama. While he promoted a new community, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao focused on the current one, delivering what Chinese state media described as a six-point proposal for strengthening links with ASEAN.
This included developing a recently signed China-ASEAN free trade pact and accelerating regional infrastructure construction.
MYANMAR, NORTH KOREA
An ASEAN statement summing up talks within its own members urged its most recalcitrant state, Myanmar, to ensure elections next year are free and fair, though it stopped short of seeking the release of detained pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.
That came a day after ASEAN launched a human rights commission as part of a plan to build an economic and political community by 2015, and drew a scathing rebuke from rights activists who said it was toothless and lacked independence.
The region’s leaders also called on North Korea to return to six-way nuclear disarmament talks.
The summit in the resort town of Hua Hin gave Asia’s economic titans, China and Japan, a chance to jockey for influence in Southeast Asia, a region of 570 million people with a combined $1.1 trillion economy, as it pulls out of recession.
Japan’s new government sees its influence bound to the East Asian Community, an idea inspired by the European Union that would account for nearly a quarter of global economic output.
It would encompass Japan, China, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand, along with ASEAN countries.
After meetings with China, Japan and South Korea, ASEAN holds talks on Sunday with India, Australia and New Zealand.
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on Sunday will push another idea for a new, separate forum of Asia-Pacific nations to respond to regional crises. His idea includes the United States.
Washington has stepped up Asian diplomacy under the Obama administration and fears missing out on such groupings, especially as Japan considers redefining its US security alliance, and Beijing expands its diplomatic and trade presence.
Exactly how Washington would participate is uncertain.
Asked if Washington would be a member of the Community, a Japanese government official told reporters: ‘It remains unclear. We have to see how multilateral meetings will turn out today.’
The proposal wasn’t elaborated upon, said Mari Elka Pangestu, trade minister of Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s biggest economy. ‘How the US participates — because the US is one of our dialogue partners — we need to think through.’
China has been coy about the idea while rapidly expanding ties across Southeast Asia — from building sleek new government offices in Cambodia to working closely with reclusive Myanmar.
‘China wants to establish healthy relations with the new government in Japan, so it is not going to object to discussing this idea,’ said Shi Yinhong, a regional security professor at Beijing’s Renmin University.
‘But everybody understands the idea of an East Asia Community is extremely far off,’ he added.
Host Thailand deployed about 18,000 security personnel backed by military gunships, determined to avoid a rerun of mishaps at past summits.
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Thai-Cambodia spat couds ASEAN Summit
Bangkok
, Oct 24 : A war of words between Southeast Asian neighbours Thailand and Cambodia over coup-ousted Thai leader Thaksin Shinawatra, has marred the ASEAN Summit taking place at Hua Hin near here.
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, who is current chair of the 10-nation grouping, has questioned his Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen's defence of Mr Thaksin, who was ousted in a bloodless coup in September 2006.''What is the purpose of Prime Minister Hun Sen coming to Thailand? And what has he said that was in line with the aim of the meeting?'' Mr Abhisit told a press conference.
Mr Abhisit was responding to Mr Hun Sen's reported remarks to the press on his arrival in Hua Hin that his country was ready to offer refuge to Mr Thaksin, who is living abroad in self-imposed exile to avoid prosecution in Thailand on corruption charges.
Mr Hun Sen added that the former Thai Prime Minister could become his economic advisor and insisted that Phnom Penh would not be legally obliged to extradite Mr Thaksin on Bangkok's request.
Mr Hun Sen said Mr Thaksin was a political victim of the 2006 military takeover in Bangkok and compared him to Myanmar's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
The Thai Prime Minister said the ASEAN Summit was aimed at building a stronger Southeast Asian community and dismissed his Cambodian counterpart's remarks.
''(ASEAN) has no time to pay attention to a person who wants to destroy ASEAN unity. And I hope Prime Minister Hun Sen will receive the right information and change his mind on the matter,'' Mr Abhisit said.
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Pressure Off Burmese PM
By KYAW ZWA MOE
CHA-AM, Thailand — Burmese Prime Minister Thein Sein was relaxed at the 15th Asean Summit in the Thai beach town of Hua Hin. The pressure he had felt from his counterparts in earlier meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) had simply evaporated.
The lack of significant criticsm of Burma at the current meeting, which ends on Sunday, was no doubt even felt by his boss, Sen-Gen Than Shwe, and other junta generals back in Naypyidaw, the capital.
The lack of criticism doesn’t mean that human rights violations in the military-ruled country have stopped. About 2,100 political prisoners still languish in its notorious jails and pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi is still under an 18-month house arrest.
What’s changed are regional and national factors: the current border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia; the tardy arrival of half of the Asean leaders because of a tropical storm; domestic political matters in the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia and Cambodia; and the negotiations involved in forming an Asean economic community by 2015, which was one of the summit’s chief goals.
More importantly, the diplomatic dance between Burma and the United States in recent weeks has overshadowed Burma’s presence at the summit. A US delegation will visit Burma soon to begin direct talks with junta leaders, part of a new US “engagement policy” announced in September.
At the Asean 2007 summit in Singapore, Thein Sein was pressure by his counterparts after the junta violently suppressed mass demonstrations organized by monks, killing and jailing peaceful protestors, which outraged the world community.
Asean host chair Singapore had invited UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari to Burma to brief the leaders of 16 Asian countries, including China and Japan, on his visits to Burma after the crackdown.
Thein Sein’s retort: “Nobody has the right to brief on Myanmar but me” caused a diplomatic furor and the invitation was revoked.
Thein Sein and his delegation also faced also Asean pressure at the 14th summit in Feb-Mar this year. The United States, as the strongest vocal critic of the military regime, raised the issue of Burma’s stonewalling on civil rights in one-on-one conversations with delegates. In addition, the civil society representatives highlighted the issue of the scores of Rohingya, who had fled Burma to Thailand by boat, to escape harsh economic conditions and discrimination in western Burma.
In July this year, Burmese Foreign Minister Nyan Win was the focus of Asean pressure at the ministerial meeting of the Asean Regional Forum. At that time, Suu Kyi, who was due to be released in May, faced trial, following the bizarre intrusion of an American into her Rangoon lakeside compound. Apart from her trial, international concerns also centered on Burma’s military ties with North Korea and the issue of nuclear weapons.
During this summit, Then Sein did manage to inject himself into the current tension between Thailand and Cambodia, following a war of words after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen offered sanctuary to fugitive ex-Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Thein Sein reportedly told the Thai prime minister that Burma would not allow anyone to use its soil as a springboard to attack Thailand.
Even though the pressure was off Thein Sein at this summit, the Burma issue didn’t go away entirely. On Saturday, Asean leaders again called on the junta to conduct free and fair elections in 2010, but avoided criticizing it directly.
The statement read: “We underscore the importance of achieving national reconciliation and that the general elections to be held in Myanmar [Burma] in 2010 must be conducted in a fair, free, inclusive and transparent manner in order to be credible to the international community.”
Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya told reporters late Saturday that Asean didn’t take tougher measures this time because there were positive developments, such as the direct contact between Suu Kyi and the military regime and between the US and the regime. He said, however, Asean’s policy remains firm in terms of calling for the release of all political prisoners and including opposition groups in the upcoming election.
The diplomatic pressure that Burma has faced in the past has lessened, at least for right now, mostly because it comes at a time when the junta is undertaking face-to-face talks with the US.
However, some Burma watchers believe that Than Shwe is just “buying time” while the junta consolidates more power, as the generals have done over the past two decades.
One thing is clear. It was a mistake for Asean leaders to take a soft approach toward Burma at this summit, before the junta has made any significant progress toward democracy and national reconciliation.
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Friday, October 23, 2009
Thaksin, trade rows erupt at Southeast Asian summit
By Jeremy Laurence
HUA HIN, Thailand (Reuters) - A Southeast Asian summit got off to a troubled start on Friday as hosts Thailand faced off against two neighbours in trade and diplomatic spats, and a new regional human rights body drew withering criticism.
Determined to avoid a rerun of embarrassing mishaps at past summits, Thailand deployed a security force of 18,000 backed by naval gunships to the seaside resort town of Hua Hin as leaders gathered. Tensions rose to the surface within hours.
In a slap in the face to Thailand's rulers, Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen offered fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra a job as economic adviser.
Thaksin, ousted in a 2006 coup, heavily influences a red-shirted, anti-government protest movement from self-imposed exile in Dubai. Thailand is seeking to extradite him to serve a jail term for corruption.
"Thaksin can stay in Cambodia as the guest of Cambodia and also be my guest as my adviser on our economy," said Hun Sen, who described the former telecommunications tycoon on Wednesday as an "eternal friend" who had a residence in Cambodia waiting for him.
He likened Thaksin to pro-democracy figure and Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, who has spent 14 of the past 20 years under house arrest or in jail in military-ruled Myanmar.
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva had tough words for Hun Sen, calling him "seriously misinformed" as the row threatened to overtake other issues at the summit of leaders from the 10-member Association of South East Nations (ASEAN).
A trade dispute with the Philippines also deepened.
Last week Thailand, the world's biggest rice exporter, threatened to delay an ASEAN free trade pact unless it could get a "fair deal" on tariffs from the Philippines, the world's biggest buyer of the food staple.
Those differences could derail an ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement expected to be signed this weekend, undermining a key plank of an ambitious bid by Southeast Asia and its 540 million people to build an EU-style economic community by 2015.
"It's a very sensitive issue, we're friends, we need to talk this through," Thailand's deputy commerce minister Alongkorn Polabutr told Reuters.
RIGHTS BODY LAUNCHED
Thailand had hoped for a smooth summit after hundreds of anti-government protesters broke through security barriers six months ago at a gathering at Thailand's resort town of Pattaya, forcing some Asian leaders to flee by helicopter and abruptly ending the summit.
Protests at Bangkok's airport last year forced another summit to be abandoned.
ASEAN leaders plan a series of meetings in Hua Hin, first among themselves and later with counterparts from China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand at the weekend.
ASEAN also launched a human rights watchdog, which critics say is toothless and already discredited by having military-ruled Myanmar, seen as a serial rights abuser, as part of the mechanism.
The new body, called the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights, has no power to punish members such as Myanmar and aims to promote rather than protect human rights.
Non-governmental rights organisations and London-based Amnesty International have expressed concerns over the body, while the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights says it has no clear mandate for victims of abuse.
Debbie Stothard of the ASEAN People's Forum said five of the 10 governments had also rejected nominees from civil society groups for the watchdog and have replaced them with their own.
She said observers at Friday's meeting were instructed not to question the leaders.
"It's a big slap in the face for civil society. We are trying to engage with them (ASEAN)," she said. "This situation and the gag order is an irresponsible move by ASEAN governments and it will damage the credibility of the grouping."
ASEAN foreign ministers raised pressure on Myanmar on Thursday to hold "free and fair" elections next year, and urged the junta to free Suu Kyi.
The sentencing of Suu Kyi to a further 18 months of detention this year has prompted Western critics to dismiss next year's polls -- the first in two decades -- as a sham.
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Queensland man accused of keeping catalogue of horror
CHRISTINE KELLETT
A north Queensland man allegedly caught with a terabyte worth of videos depicting the sexual abuse of young children and babies has been extradited from Cambodia.
The 53-year-old Daintree man was arrested at Brisbane Airport yesterday and is expected to appear in Brisbane Magistrates Court today on charges of possessing child exploitation material, accessing child pornography material from the internet, and making available child pornography material to other users of the internet.
He is the first person to be extradited to face prosecution for alleged child sex crimes under 2005 changes to the Commonwealth Criminal Code and a new international treaty to stop the sale of children for sex and pornography.
His arrest follows a year-long investigation by the Australian Federal Police's High Tech Crime Operations team, dubbed Operation Resistance, and their counterparts in Brazil
Police allege a number of offenders had been operating a library of child abuse videos for sharing over the internet.
In the Daintree man's home, raided in November last year, police say they found 10 computer hard drives and 60 compact discs containing child abuse video files depicting attacks on children as young as 12 months old.
The sheer volume of files - totalling a terabyte of information - is equivalent to 40,000 filing cabinets of paper.
"The AFP will allege in court that up to 140,000 images and 10,350 graphic videos were located at the premises, containing abuse images of children and infants as young as 12 months to persons under the age of 16," investigators said in a statement today.
One month after the raid, an arrest warrant was issued for the man, who was believed to have travelled to South East Asia.
Cambodia's government approved his formal extradition to face a Queensland court.
He has been charged with possessing, accessing and making available child pornography, offences which carrying a maximum penalty of 10 years' jail.
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CBRE spots opportunity in Cambodia
Foreign ownership set to stimulate market
PHNOM PENH : CB Richard Ellis Group Inc (CBRE) is opening a new office in Phnom Penh to expand its footprint in Southeast Asia. The company aims to capitalise on growing demand for professional real estate services and is also planning ahead to serve the market on Cambodia's southern coast.
"The opening of an office in Cambodia will allow CBRE to provide research, consultancy, valuation and advisory services in the country and will strengthen our broader platform in Southeast Asia," said Daniel Parkes, country manager of CBRE Cambodia.
He said land prices in Cambodia had eased back from the sharp rises experienced since 2005. The market could be compared to Thailand, in particular Bangkok in the late 1980s, and Vietnam in the early 1990s - with a lot of potential for growth, few modern developments but latent demand.
The good news, he said, is that the government is very pro-investment and is offering a tax cap of 20%. It already offers 99-year leases to foreigners and is considering full foreign freehold.
Cambodia's Council of Ministers in July approved a sub-decree covering new co-ownership regulations, allowing legal ownership of individual apartments or condominium units, which paves the way for a law allowing foreign ownership of some property.
The new co-ownership regulations will make it possible to own units within a larger building without having title to the land it occupies. The goal is to guarantee and protect rights of legal holders in apartments or condominiums for co-ownership. It will also facilitate management on behalf of co-owners who live in the apartments or condominiums.
As well, the new regulations facilitate co-ownership for sale, exchange, donation, inheritance, permanent rental and collateralising of private holdings as personal ownership.
Foreigners have not been able to own Cambodian land or housing in the past. They could only rent property for their business or residence. Also, foreigners cannot buy land near borders with neighbouring countries because it could affect national sovereignty and security.
"The market is not without challenges and is coming off a low base," said Mr Parkes. "There is no doubt that per-capita income in Phnom Penh is continuing to improve, with a surprisingly high number of private cars, trucks and bikes.
"Inbound retailers, while they lack a modern centre, are enjoying good business - for example, pizza franchises. There is only one modern high-rise office, Canadia Tower, which is soon to be completed. Projected rents are comparable to those of Bangkok's Grade A space."
In 2008, the GDP of Cambodia reached $9.2 billion, with tourism contributing $1.72 billion. Culture has played a key role in Cambodia in the past three decades and has created many jobs. From 2000 to 2008, GDP per capita in Cambodia increased by 158% from $286.90 to $739.
Take-up of industrial property is slow but major global companies are already buying land for assembly and manufacturing facilities, said Mr Parkes. There is also a fledgling condominium market and Korean developers have been active. There has also been a boom in new villas, with prices of up to $1 million each.
Chris Brooke, president and chief executive officer of CBRE in Asia, said the company's presence in the market would facilitate the provision of professional property services, while also supporting regional clients who have an interest in a unique emerging market.
As the capital, Phnom Penh has become a major focal point for economic and business development in recent years, said Mr Brooke. This region offers enormous business potential for further growth of domestic and foreign businesses.
In particular, backed by investment resulting from positive sentiment, Cambodia's real estate market is expected to continue its growth momentum in the years to come, particularly the resort property market along the coastline.
In the future CBRE will consider a resort office on the south coast, with the opening of the Ream airport, said Mr Parkes.
The company already has two major contracts. It is the sole agent for marketing exclusive villas on a private island, which are priced from $200,000 and come with hotel management and guaranteed returns. The company also has a key advisory role for Koh Rong, an island being positioned as an eco-tourism destination and a potential rival to Phuket and Koh Samui in Thailand.
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Trade slides with neighbours
Official figures show Cambodia’s bilateral trade with Thailand and Vietnam continues to fall on a year-on-year basis, but the pace of decline is slowing.
TRADE figures released Thursday by the embassies of Vietnam and Thailand showed that Cambodia’s bilateral trade with its two neighbours continued to suffer in August, although with Thailand the pace of the downturn eased slightly.
In the first eight months of the year, trade with Thailand fell 30.66 percent, from US$1.518 billion in the same period last year to $1.052 billion, a slight improvement after bilateral trade dropped just over 31 percent in the first seven months. The Thai embassy did not disclose monthly figures.
Trade with Vietnam was down more than 29 percent year on year in the first eight months, according to embassy figures, meaning August saw a steep decline in bilateral trade after the first seven months registered a decline of just 21.9 percent.
“It was really very severe because it is a time of crisis,” said Le Bien Cuong, commercial counsellor at the embassy, adding that he expected an overall drop of just 20 percent in trade for this year compared to 2008. “We are seeing that global trade is getting better, so our two-way trade will
also be good from now until next year.”
Figures showed trade with Vietnam fell from $1.197 billion in the first eight months of 2008 to $848 million during the same period this year.
Thai exports to Cambodia fell 31.4 percent over the first seven months compared with the same period last year after dropping 30.29 percent over the first eight months.
Thailand exported goods worth $1.013 billion in the first eight months, while Cambodia in return shipped just $39 million, mostly garments, unprocessed agricultural products, fish and recyclable metal.
Jiranan Wongmongkol, the director of the Thai embassy’s Foreign Trade Promotion Office, last month blamed the decline on the economic crisis rather than disagreements between Bangkok and Phnom Penh. She was unavailable for comment Thursday.
Cambodia’s exports to Vietnam dropped 21.5 percent over the first seven months compared with the same period last year. They fell nearly 27 percent when the first eight months are taken into account. The Kingdom exported mostly unprocessed agricultural products, including rubber, tobacco, cashew nuts, smoked fish and rice.
Vietnam’s exports to the Kingdom were down 22 percent in the first seven months. A sharp fall in August propelled that to a 29.5 percent decline over the first eight months.
Chan Nora, secretary of state at the Ministry of Commerce, blamed bad weather for exacerbating the effects of the global downturn by reducing crop yields. This had especially affected exports, given Cambodia’s reliance on agriculture, he said.
Cambodian Economic Association President Chan Sophal blamed the decline on the cyclical nature of global trade, which had declined this year due to lower demand, he said. “We see that recently the global economy, as well as that in the region, is recovering, so I hope that it will improve in 2010,” he said.
Minister of Economy and Finance Keat Chhon said Tuesday that he expected Cambodia’s economy to grow 2.1 percent this year, with agriculture growing 5 percent.
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Youths in Cambodia face job crisis: UN
OUNG Cambodians face increasingly daunting prospects for entering the Kingdom’s labour market, the UN said in a report released today.
The report, titled “Situation Analysis of Youth in Cambodia”, was prepared to coincide with Saturday’s UN Day and is being launched at a ceremony this morning at the National Institute of Education. UN resident coordinator Douglas Broderick said that though the report also contains sections on health, education, rights and vulnerability, many of its most urgent recommendations focus on the issue of youth employment.
“This is the biggest issue affecting young people,” he said. “Cambodia has a young and vibrant workforce, but they lack the skills and training to achieve their full potential.”
People ages 10 to 24 currently comprise 34.7 percent of the Cambodian population – more than 300,000 leave school and look for work each year, and youth participation in the labour force is among the highest in the region, according to the report. However, recent economic growth has largely depended on a few key sectors: garments, construction and tourism, and these sectors are ill-equipped to further absorb large numbers of workers.
John McGeoghan, project manager at the Phnom Penh office of the International Organisation for Migration, said that Cambodia must account for the potential social dislocation that occurs when young people migrate from rural to urban areas in search of employment.
“What we are concerned about, perhaps in terms of trafficking, is that there are significant numbers of young people who don’t have a social network,” he said.
The UN analysis also noted this trend, though it emphasised the importance of expanding Cambodia’s labour capabilities in the agricultural sector, as the earning potential for youths entering the labour force is significantly lower in rural areas than it is in Phnom Penh.
Officials from the Ministry of Labour could not be reached for comment Thursday. In August, however, Ministry of Labour Director General Heng Sour told the Post that the government is currently sponsoring a job training programme supporting 40,000 people, 30,000 of whom are studying agricultural vocations.
“We are observing whether the economic crisis will continue and whether this training will be enough,” he said, adding that the Ministry of Economy and Finance will consider whether or not to renew this programme at the end of the year.
These sorts of initiatives, Broderick said, are crucial for the Kingdom to meet the challenge or a burgeoning working-age population.
“Establishing programmes and opportunities for young people to develop work-related skills, such as more school-based vocational training, apprenticeships, on-the-job training, and opportunities in civil service ... is essential,” he said.
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Thursday, October 22, 2009
Abhisit: Thailand to seek Thaksin's extradition if he stays in Cambodia
BANGKOK, Oct. 22 — Thailand's Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on Thursday said Thailand would seek to extradite ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra from Cambodia if he stays there following the invitation of Prime Minister Hun Sen to host the former Thai leader in his country.
Mr Abhisit commented after former Thai prime minister Chavalit Yongchaiyuth, chairman of the opposition Puea Thai Party, visited Phnom Penh to meet the Cambodian leader who was quoted as saying that Thaksin was a "political victim'' and is welcome in Cambodia any time he wishes to stay.
The Thai premier however said he was not surprised by the remarks, saying Mr Hun Sen has told him several times that he was a friend of Mr Thaksin.
"Mr Hun Sen has repeatedly told me that that he could separate personal relations from duty and international relations," Mr Abhisit said. "I don't think (Mr Hun Sen's recent remarks) would affect bilateral relations as both Thailand and Cambodia must bear in mind their own national interests and good relations as an ultimate aim in their policy implementation."
The Thai premier added that his government would seek the extradition of Mr Thaksin once it is established that he is staying in the neighbouring country.
Ousted in a bloodless coup in September 2006, convicted and sentenced to a two-year jail term for malfeasance in the controversial Bangkok Ratchadapisek land purchase, Mr Thaksin now spends most of his time in the United Arab Emirates after his status as a visitor was rejected by a number of countries including both the United Kingdom and Germany.
Prime Minister Abhisit downplayed the absence of Mr Hun Sen at the opening ceremony of the 15th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit Friday morning, saying nothing is unusual as some country leaders are also unable to attend the ceremony as they are busily engaged with other important missions in their own countries.
The ASEAN summit and its related summits are scheduled to be held in the Thai seaside resorts town of Cha-am and Hua Hin October 23 to 25.
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak will not be able to arrive in Thailand in time for the opening ceremony of the ASEAN summit, said Vitavas Srivihok, director-general of Thailand's ASEAN Affairs Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as Mr Yudhoyono is forming his cabinet, while Mr Najib is scheduled to deliver a statement on the government's budget to the parliament.
ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, while the Plus+3 countries are China, Japan and South Korea, and the ASEAN+6 – are the 13 plus India, Australia and New Zealand. (PNA/TNA)
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Cambodia signs deals for loans, more during South Korean president's visit
PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA — Cambodia and South Korea have signed several agreements during a visit by the South Korean president.
Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong says two of the most important deals signed during Thursday's visit by South Korean President Lee Myung-bak cover extradition and the framework for $200 million in development loans from Seoul to Cambodia from 2009 to 2012.
The minister says other agreements concern mineral exploitation and joint mine exploration, investment in forest plantations and climate change.
South Korea's Yonhap news agency says South Korean investment in Cambodia totaled nearly $2.5 billion last year.
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Q+A - What's behind Cambodia's offer to give Thaksin a home?
By Martin Petty
BANGKOK, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has offered to give asylum to fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra, his "eternal friend", a move likely to further strain ties between the two countries.
Hun Sen's offer will rile Thailand's shaky government as it hosts a summit this week of 16 Asia-Pacific leaders twice delayed due to political unrest that has plagued Southeast Asia's second-biggest economy for four years.
WHY HAS HUN SEN MADE THE OFFER TO THAKSIN?
The outspoken Cambodian premier has always got on well with Thaksin, an investor in his country's telecoms sector in the past and reported to be looking at new investments, including casinos.
He considers Thaksin to be a victim of a political vendetta and has made it clear he is not fond of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's government.
Hun Sen is a wily politician who has often used the historical rivalry between the two countries to stoke nationalist fervour for his own gain. His offer to Thaksin will anger many Thais and thus score a few points for him at home.
A long dispute over the 11th century Preah Vihear temple has gained momentum under Abhisit's government and Hun Sen was not impressed when Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya reportedly called him a "gangster". Kasit denies saying that.
HOW HAS THAILAND RESPONDED?
Keen to save face among his peers, Thai Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban, who has called Hun Sen a friend, played down the asylum offer and said the Cambodian premier had misunderstood Thailand's political situation.
But the government and Thaksin's opponents in the Thai establishment and military will be seething at the prospect of the billionaire running a political campaign from a neighbouring country.
Should Thaksin move to Cambodia, Thailand would probably seek his extradition to serve a two-year prison sentence he was given for graft. However, Cambodia and Thailand have no extradition treaty.
HOW WILL A MOVE TO CAMBODIA HELP THAKSIN?
Thaksin's strategy to wrestle back power after being ousted in a 2006 coup centres on the ballot box. His latest political party, Puea Thai, would probably win most votes when another election takes place.
Thaksin has mobilised his supporters in Puea Thai, which has mass rural support, and in an extra-parliamentary movement that is stepping up street protests to bring down Abhisit's government.
A base in Cambodia would let him use his vast wealth and mass support to coordinate his political campaign, making meetings with his henchmen easier and allowing him to stage public relations stunts in the vote-rich northeast bordering Cambodia.
HOW WOULD THIS AFFECT THAILAND'S POLITICAL CRISIS?
It could intensify the standoff, and the prospect of a pro-Thaksin party returning to power would prompt outrage among his opponents who have fought hard to keep him at bay.
Mass street protests and legal challenges against Thaksin and his allies would resume, further polarising the country, spooking investors and tourists and plunging Thailand into deeper uncertainty. Credit ratings could be downgraded.
WILL HUN SEN'S OFFER OVERSHADOW THE SUMMIT?
Hun Sen previously threatened boycotts over the temple dispute and has said he would arrive late in Hua Hin for the gathering of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN).
It is likely to take centre stage and further embarrass Thailand, whose presidency of the grouping has been fraught with problems. Diplomatic spats are common in ASEAN and the move could derail attempts to seek consensus on a number of issues.
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SKorean president visits Cambodia to boost ties
PHNOM PENH — South Korean president Lee Myung-bak arrived in Cambodia Thursday for a two-day official visit to boost ties and develop economic relations between the two countries.
Lee descended from his airplane to a red carpet at Phnom Penh International Airport, and then received an audience with King Norodom Sihamoni at the capital's royal palace and held talks with premier Hun Sen later in the day.
"Cooperation and relations between Cambodia and South Korea have been growing through many projects," Hun Sen said.
During their meeting, Lee and Hun Sen agreed to form a "strategic and cooperative partnership" between their countries, Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong told reporters.
Lee also promised South Korea would provide 200 million dollars in soft loans to Cambodia between 2009 and 2013, Hor Namhong said.
In the lunchtime speech distributed to reporters, the South Korean president promised to help develop Cambodia's agricultural sector by providing new technology and training.
Over 500 South Korean companies were currently investing in Cambodia, Lee added.
The two countries also signed an extradition agreement and a deal for an initiative in which Cambodia would issue South Korean tourists multiple entry year-long visas, officials said.
"The visit by the South Korean president is very important. It will boost economic relations between the two countries," government spokesman Khieu Kanharith told reporters.
The Yonhap news agency has reported that South Korean investment in Cambodia increased to nearly 2.5 billion dollars last year from 30 million dollars in 1997.
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Wednesday, October 21, 2009
PM: Cambodia Is 'Victim' Of Climate Change
PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA
Cambodia is a "victim" of climate change, and developed countries should shoulder more responsibility in reversing the effects of global warming, said Prime Minister Hun Sen.
Developing countries like Cambodia have been severely affected by climate change and lack the resources to tackle the problem on their own, Hun Sen said at the opening ceremony Monday at the country's first National Forum on Climate Change.
"The rich countries should be more responsible, as they have more resources to settle this matter. Cambodia is not the country responsible for climate change but is the victim. ... The huge countries should not blame less-developed countries," he said.
Hun Sen said rising temperatures, shifts in rainfall patterns and surging sea levels would only continue to hit developing countries like Cambodia the hardest.
"Developed countries certainly must accept most of the blame for causing the problem," Geoffrey Blate, climate change coordinator for the Greater Mekong program of the conservation group WWF, told the Phnom Penh Post. "At the same time, Cambodia can and should take immediate steps to address climate change. The problem is global in scope."
Hun Sen noted that in 2006 Cambodia implemented a program of climate change adaptation, which includes 39 projects to respond to the immediate needs of its communities. The premier said he was encouraged that the European Union is considering a budget of $2 billion to $15 billion annually to help poor countries implement their climate change adaption measures.
Hun Sen's comments come ahead of December's climate change talks in Copenhagen, Denmark, in which world leaders will attempt to strike a new global climate treaty to replace the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012.
Observers at the Cambodia forum said they hoped it would help bolster the country's bargaining position ahead of the Copenhagen talks. Ministry of Environment officials are expected to present Cambodia's draft position on climate change at the forum's conclusion on Wednesday.
"Cambodia needs to have a strong voice in international negotiations and demand that developed countries meet their historical responsibility and provide financing for adaptation," said Brian Lund, regional director of Oxfam's East Asia office, the Post reports.
Cambodia's Environment Minister Mok Mareth linked climate change to devastating weather events over the past two decades.
From 1987 to 2007 the country experienced 12 floods that claimed the lives of 1,125 people and caused $300 million in damages, Mareth said. The country also faced five severe droughts, causing $140 million in damages, he said.
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Cambodian PM Offers to Host Fugitive Thai Ex - PM
PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has offered to host his "eternal friend," fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra, at any time, state television reported on Wednesday.
Hun Sen conveyed his message to Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, a Thai political heavyweight and close Thaksin aide, in comments likely to rile a Thai government anxious to minimise the billionaire's influence from exile.
State-run TVK said Hun Sen described Thaksin, ousted in a 2006 coup, as an "eternal friend" and said he had a residence in Cambodia waiting for him.
"Thaksin is a political victim and I take pity on him," Hun Sen told reporters after meeting Chavalit, a key member of the pro-Thaksin Puea Thai party, in Phnom Penh on Wednesday.
Hun Sen pledged his support for Puea Thai, Thailand's main opposition and the latest incarnation of Thaksin's disbanded mass Thai Rak Thai party.
His comments came on the eve of a summit of Asian leaders in Hua Hin, Thailand, where Hun Sen is due to meet his Thai counterpart Abhisit Vejjajiva, whose fragile government is battling to survive amid mass protests by Thaksin's supporters.
MOUNTING TENSIONS
Hun Sen caused a stir this month when he ordered troops to shoot any Thai crossing illegally into Cambodia, as nationalist tensions mounted over an 11th century temple the two countries have fought over for decades.
Hun Sen previously threatened to boycott the Hua Hin meeting over the temple row, but has confirmed he will attend, while missing Friday's opening ceremony.
Thaksin, who scored an unprecedented two landslide election victories, has been living mostly in Dubai since skipping bail in August 2008 ahead of a two-year prison sentence for graft.
He owns a private jet and has travelled the world on various passports, including one from Nicaragua, and continues to rally his supporters in video addresses from exile.
Analysts say with Thaksin's vast war chest and huge support among the rural masses, Puea Thai would likely win the next election, a scenario that would lead to more instability in a country dogged by four years of intractable political strife.
Chavalit, an influential former prime minister who joined Pueu Thai last week, said Hun Sen saw Thaksin as a victim of a political vendetta.
"Hun Sen feels Thaksin has been unfairly treated. He says he has done so much for the country but he has no country to live in," Chavalit told reporters on his return to Bangkok. "He will build a house in Phnom Penh for Thaksin to live. He said there's no need to stay in Dubai, he can come any time he wants."
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Trial of war crimes our obligation
Trial of war crimes is our legal obligation, said Bangladesh Ambassador to USA Akramul Qader at a programme on October 18.
He said war criminals should be brought to book to serve justice to the war victims and to ensure a fair trial of the accused.
He was speaking as a keynote speaker at a seminar on 'Bangladesh 1971: Addressing claims of war crimes, genocide and human rights violation' at Kean University in New Jersey, USA.
Human Rights Institute and Bangladesh Study Group at Kean hosted the seminar, says a press release.
Saying that the trial will be fair and would meet international standard, Ambassador Qader informed the audience of the unanimous passage of a resolution on January 29 by the Bangladesh Parliament to try war criminals under the 1973 International Crimes (Tribunals) Act.
Referring to similar tribunals in countries like Cambodia, Ambassador Qader said Bangladesh had already sought assistance of UN experts on this issue in order to make the trial fair and transparent and to meet national and international legal and human rights standard.
Kean University President Dr Dawood Farahi, Dr Kristie Reilly, vice president and dean of Graduate Studies, and Dr Henry Kaplowitz, director, Human Rights Institute of Kean University, also spoke.
During the seminar, a number of survivors recalled stories of their suffering during the war.
Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the UN Dr Abdul Momen, journalist and writer Shahriar Kabir, Mofidul Hoque, trustee of Liberation War Museum, Bangladesh, Dr Zia Uddin Ahmed of Pennsylvania, Anis Ahmed of Washington DC, Faruque Chowdhury and Roger Clark of New Jersey, Prof Shelly Feldman of Cornell University, Suhail Islam of New York, David Matas of Canada, Winston Nagan of Florida and Dr ABM Nasir of North Carolina were also present.
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RI suffers deficit in trade with Thailand
Bangkok (ANTARA News) - Indonesia still saw a deficit in its trade with Thailand despite a drastic increase in its exports to the neighboring country last year, an envoy said.
"We are trying to reduce it," Indonesian Ambassador to Thailand Muhammad Hatta said when receiving a delegation of the Indonesian Young Businessmen`s Association (HIPMI) here on Wednesday.
Indonesia`s exports to Thailand mainly consist of oil, gas and other natural resource products.
Indonesia`s exports to Thailand jumped to US$11 billion in 2008 from US$8.7 billion a year earlier, he said.
But he stopped short of revealing the amount of the deficit and the value of Thailand`s exports to Indonesia in the past couple of years.
The ambassador expressed hope that the association would play a bigger role in increasing Indonesia`s exports to Thailand in the years to come.
"Many (Thai) investors wish to invest in Indonesia. But a lack of supporting infrastructures has made them doubtful. I hope that HIPMI can capitalize on this opportunity," he said.
HIPMI Chairman for Information Technology and the Media Febrizal Rahmana meanwhile expressed hope that the Indonesian embassy in Thailand would always inform the association of any business opportunity in Thailand.
"We hope that we will be informed of any business potentials here," he said.
Both Indonesia and Thailand are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The other ASEAN members are Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam. (*)
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Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Local woman raising funds for a school in Cambodia
BY ROD STETZER
Donna Martin loves being retired after teaching full-time for 34 years in the Chippewa Falls School District.
But while enjoying the more relaxed pace of retirement, she kept asking herself: “What are you doing to make a difference?”
Last summer, while on a trip to the Boundary Waters area in Minnesota, Martin found out.
She read an article in O, The Oprah Magazine, about how to help girls around the world. The article said a Web site, Cambodiaschools.com, builds an entire school in Cambodia, a country of 14 million, for a donation of $13,000. After the Asian Development Bank matches the donation (up to $30,000), a site is selected from a waiting list and a school is built by American Assistance for Cambodia. The group, which has built over 300 schools in the country, says $10,000 of the donation is used to build the school, and the other $3,000 for a general school account. (The contributions are tax-deductible).
“I thought $13,000 was nothing,” she said.
So Carol Martin, who retired in 2003, is setting aside money she earns by substitute teaching to build a school in Cambodia. She figures that it will take three years to raise the money.
Several people suggested speeding the process by taking her idea to community groups to see if they would be willing to donate. “That’s exactly what I’m doing,” she said.
She said she’s willing to speak to groups about the school project, and has a 10-minute DVD to show about building a Cambodian school.
She talked with the Chippewa Falls Senior High School staff on Thursday, Oct. 15, asking that the school’s service clubs keep the Cambodian school idea in mind for a project.
Martin said each school built by the group behind the Web site has three to six classrooms. The teachers are state certified, and each school has solar panels that give off enough power to run a couple of computers.
Each school is built in brick, because a wooden structure would not stand up to Cambodia’s monsoon season from May to November.
Martin said some people may remember Cambodia for “The Killing Fields” days, when murderous dictator Pol Pot killed thousands. Cambodia today is a democracy, and has been since 1991. “It is stable,” Martin said.
Many in the country live in villages of 100 to 400 people. Martin said 84 percent of the population lives in rural areas. “Half of the women can’t read or write,” she said.
So there are a lot of people in search of an education. “The classes are huge. The classes are 30 to 45 people in the class,” Martin said.
Martin said within 5-8 months of getting the money, the American Assistance for Cambodia will have the school built. “I could name the school. I could go visit it. And I could teach there,” Martin said.
The main thing, however, is to get the school built so students can begin learning.
“I’m hoping to do it in a year with contributions,” Martin said.
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Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his Wife, Rosalynn, Join Thousands of Volunteers in Asia for Annual Habitat for Humanity Build
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his Wife, Rosalynn, Join Thousands of
Volunteers in Asia for Annual Habitat for Humanity Build 166 homes will be built or repaired in Thailand, Vietnam, China, Cambodia and Laos as part of Habitat for Humanity's Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project.
ATLANTA, Oct. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Former U.S. President and Nobel Peace Prize
laureate Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, will lead the annual Habitat for
Humanity build bearing their name in five Asian countries, Nov. 15-20.
The Carters and nearly 3,000 volunteers from around the world will build and
repair 166 homes in Thailand, Vietnam, China, Cambodia and Laos - all
countries along the Mekong River. In the Mekong River Basin, nearly one-fifth
of the population lives in poverty - many on less than the equivalent of one
US dollar per day, according to the CIA World Factbook.
"In an area of the world where many people live in deplorable conditions, we
have a chance to help families improve their housing," said former President
Jimmy Carter. "Over the years I have seen the lasting impact Habitat for
Humanity volunteers can have, and I have been personally touched by the work
they are doing around the world."
Country music stars Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood will volunteer alongside
the Carters during the Carter Work Project. Brooks and Yearwood have worked
on numerous Habitat build sites in recent years.
Habitat for Humanity of Thailand will anchor the five-country Carter Work
Project, where volunteers will build a community of 82 houses with families in
Chiang Mai province. The number 82 was chosen to honor the 82nd birthday of
the Thai king, His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, on Dec. 5, 2009.
Habitat volunteers in Cambodia will build 21 houses in Damnak Thom village
with families who will be relocating from a dumpsite near Phnom Penh.
Thirty-two houses will be built by Habitat homeowners and volunteers in
Vietnam's Dong Xa village near Hanoi.
In China Habitat is working with the local government in Qionglai city, in the
southwestern province of Sichuan, in a project to build a series of
multi-story, urban housing units that will eventually house hundreds of
families. Habitat volunteers will help construct 20 Habitat for Humanity units
during the Carter project.
Additionally, in Laos, Habitat volunteers and families will refurbish 11 homes
in Ban Chawang village, 30 minutes outside the capital city of Vientiane.
"With the help of President and Mrs. Carter and the thousands of devoted
Habitat volunteers, the Carter Work Project will result not only in better
housing for families who urgently need it in the Mekong region, but in
much-needed attention to the housing plight of so many families in this part
of the world," said Habitat for Humanity chief executive officer Jonathan
Reckford. "Decent shelter helps transform lives and entire communities, and
we're grateful for President and Mrs. Carter's servant leadership."
"Habitat for Humanity has a strong and growing presence in all the Mekong
countries through a wide range of housing solutions," said Richard Hathaway,
vice president for Habitat for Humanity International's Asia/Pacific region.
"We are thankful to President and Mrs. Carter and the thousands of volunteers
who will give programs in this area a major boost, allowing Habitat to serve
even more families in need of decent shelter."
Habitat's Carter Work Project is an annual, internationally-recognized week of
building that brings attention to the need for simple, decent and affordable
housing in partnership with low-income families. President and Mrs. Carter
have faithfully given one week of their time each year since 1984 to help
build Habitat homes and raise awareness about the need for simple, decent
housing. The Carter Work Project has been held in India, Korea, The
Philippines, Mexico, South Africa, Hungary and throughout the United States.
About Habitat for Humanity International
Habitat for Humanity International is an ecumenical Christian ministry that
welcomes to its work all people dedicated to the cause of eliminating poverty
housing. Since its founding in 1976, Habitat has built more than 300,000
houses worldwide, providing simple, decent and affordable shelter for more
than 1.5 million people. For more information, visit www.habitat.org.
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Monday, October 19, 2009
Climate change the 'sin' of rich countries: Cambodian PM
PHNOM PENH — Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Monday urged rich countries to take more responsibility for causing climate change, saying poorer nations were the ones to suffer the fall-out.
"All of us poor countries do not cause climate change. (We) would like rich countries to take a bit more responsibility than before," Hun Sen said, branding it a "sin".
Hun Sen made his remarks at the first national forum to promote understanding of climate change in Cambodia, ahead of a key global summit on the issue this December in Copenhagen, Denmark.
He said it was difficult to expect a deal at the UN climate conference because countries disagreed on many points.
"But we hope that all countries will agree on some common points regarding the obligation of reducing greenhouse gas emissions," he said.
The December 7-18 UN climate summit in the Danish capital will see nations attempt to hammer out a new global climate treaty to replace the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012.
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Maybank opens sixth Cambodian branch
PETALING JAYA: Malayan Banking Bhd’s (Maybank) newly opened sixth branch in Cambodia is expected to support its loans and deposits growth by 38% and 15% respectively in the current financial year ending June 2010.
Maybank Olympic Branch is located at the Olympic area, Phnom Penh’s largest business centre dominated by the city’s Olympic Stadium landmark.
Senior executive vice president and head of international Abdul Farid Alias said the branch would offer a range of business and retail facilities to cater to local as well as Malaysian and Singaporean businesses with interests in the country.
“The new branch will tap the growing opportunities in Cambodia. Deposits and total assets grew by 27% respectively over the last three years and as the Cambodian economy gets back on a growth path, we are targeting our Olympic branch to contribute to earnings from its second year of operations. The branch will also support our four other branches located in the capital city,” he said in a statement yesterday.
“We remain committed to Cambodia and believe that our network expansion will contribute to the overall economic growth of the country,” he said, adding that Maybank was looking to add two more branches in Cambodia this financial year.
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Cambodia: Rebuilding lives after Typhoon Ketsana
Thach You, like thousands of others in Cambodia, is struggling to keep a roof over her family's head and find enough food for her children following a season of devastating floods. Oxfam is providing relief assistance.
Flooding is not new for Thach You, a 25-year-old mother of five. Thach's house, which stands on stilts, is flooded for a week almost every year. But this year, floodwaters have reached higher and have lasted for three months. Around her house and beyond, a vast body of water covers over 80 percent of the rice fields vital to the local livelihoods in her village.
Like most of the 47 families in Toul Char, a village 143 miles north of Cambodia's capital, Phnom Penh, Thach's family left their house to escape the danger and since mid-July they have taken refuge on higher ground. This was especially warranted after two near- fatal incidents with her two-year-old daughter who fell into the flood waters.
Conditions grew worse for Thach's family on September 29 after typhoon Ketsana, which coincided with the annual floods, dumped heavy rains on the region. The family's temporary shelter, made of palm leaves and tree branches, was no match for the onslaught.
"On the night of the typhoon, the wind was so strong that the roof could not stand it anymore," said Thach. The wind tore it off. "The downpour of rain was frightening. I used sleeping mats to cover my four children and a blanket to cover my then two-week-old daughter while my husband and I were trembling in the rainwater praying for the storm to end."
The same storm devastated parts of the Philippines, Vietnam, and Laos.
Across Cambodia, the storm affected an estimated 100,000 people. Floods and heavy rain hit eight provinces in central and northern Cambodia. Oxfam's reports show 10,867 families being affected with 19 deaths in Kampong Thom province alone. Oxfam is now focusing relief efforts on three hard-hit provinces: Kampong Thom, Kratie, and Stueng Treng. About 97,000 people in the three provinces are affected with 40,000 hectares of rice fields destroyed. Public infrastructure and private property, including houses and livestock, were damaged or lost, causing major disruption to people's livelihoods.
Keeping her family safe
After the typhoon destroyed her roof, Thach had to find palm leaves to rebuild it—while the rain kept pouring, sometimes non-stop for days. Every day, the family looked for food and hoped that the rain would stop.
When Thach's village finally became accessible, she received an Oxfam relief kit containing one plastic sheet, one water filter, two sleeping mats, one mosquito net, one krawma (a traditional multi-purpose scarf in Cambodia), one sarong, one kettle, two 16-liter buckets, one 80-liter bucket, and a bar of soap. These items have helped her to make the living conditions a little better and to ensure that the family has clean drinking water which will help fend off some waterborne diseases.
Thach told Oxfam that finding enough food for her family has been a challenge. A month earlier, she had received 60 kilograms of rice from a relief organization, but that food was long gone because she had to feed the family and return some of the rice she had borrowed from others. To get by, Thach and her husband skip meals so that their children can have more. But malnutrition is already visible.
"Now, it's extremely difficult to borrow rice from others because everybody is in urgent need of rice," Thach said. "Today I could only borrow four kilograms of cassavas and this will keep my children full for only two days."
Oxfam is working to assist 5,000 other hard-hit households by distributing relief items. It has reached 75 percent of them, but the challenges are growing.
"More efforts by humanitarian agencies are needed as receding waters become shallow, disrupting delivery of aid by boat," said Francis Perez, country lead of Oxfam International in Cambodia. "Oxfam will consider giving cash for food if that is the only resort to avoid hunger."
Concern about public health
Food isn't the only worry for Thach's family. Health is also an issue—one that Oxfam is concerned about, too, as water-related diseases are increasing and access to medical care for many people is difficult.
In Thach's village, Chief Houen Chea said only four families in his community went to a health center within the last three months. The nearest one is nearly five miles away and now a boat is necessary to reach it.
Thach's husband, Lun Peang, can hardly walk as his foot was cut with a bamboo thorn. The foot continues to swell and he cannot perform even the basic daily chores. But Lun never sought medical help.
"Even if the public health center does not charge me fees, I will not go because I do not have the $1 I need to pay for the boat to the center," Lun said.
Oxfam plans to reach an additional 5,000 families in the recovery phase in the next three to six months to help provide sanitation, rehabilitate safe water sources, and ensure food and livelihood security for the affected communities.
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Sunday, October 18, 2009
Cambodian agriculture sector serves as a strategic support to UAE's food security program
WAM Dubai, 18th October, 2009 (WAM) -- His Excellency Sultan Bin Saeed Al Mansouri, UAE Minister of Economy, has said that the Cambodian agriculture sector could serve as a strategic support for the UAE's food security programme.
Al Mansouri made the statement during an official visit to Cambodia, heading a UAE economic delegation to the East Asian country. The UAE delegation visited various ministries and senior Cambodian officials including the Prime Minister and Ministers of Economy, Agriculture, Transport, Telecommunication, Water and Environment. The discussions with Cambodian government mainly focused on enhancing cooperation in the agriculture sector and ways to explore investments in this vital sector.
During his meeting with the Cambodian Minister of agriculture, Al Mansouri said that the UAE is keen to explore the opportunities in rice cultivation in Cambodia, and will form a technical team which will visit Cambodia to check on-ground the possibilities of investing in Cambodian farmlands.
Al Mansouri visited the Rice Research Centre in Cambodia and evaluated the varities of rice and took samples to be tested in the UAE agricultural labs, to check its quality and their suitability for UAE consumers.
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Global Surface Temperature Was Second Warmest For September
ScienceDaily (Oct. 18, 2009) — The combined global land and ocean surface temperature was the second warmest September on record, according to NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, N.C. Based on records going back to 1880, the monthly National Climatic Data Center analysis is part of the suite of climate services NOAA provides.
NCDC scientists also reported that the average land surface temperature for September was the second warmest on record, behind 2005. Additionally, the global ocean surface temperature was tied for the fifth warmest on record for September.
Global Temperature Highlights
The combined global land and ocean surface temperature was 1.12 degrees F above the 20th century average of 59.0 degrees F. Separately the global land surface temperature was 1.75 degrees F above the 20th century average of 53.6 degrees F.
Warmer-than-average temperatures engulfed most of the world’s land areas during the month. The greatest warmth occurred across Canada and the northern and western contiguous United States. Warmer-than-normal conditions also prevailed across Europe, most of Asia and Australia.
The worldwide ocean temperature tied with 2004 as the fifth warmest September on record, 0.90 degree F above the 20th century average of 61.1 degrees F. The near-Antarctic southern ocean and the Gulf of Alaska featured notable cooler-than-average temperatures.
Other Highlights
Arctic sea ice covered an average 2.1 million square miles in September - the third lowest for any September since records began in 1979. The coverage was 23.8 percent below the 1979-2000 average, and the 13th consecutive September with below-average Arctic sea ice extent.
Antarctic sea ice extent in September was 2.2 percent above the 1979-2000 average. This was the third largest September extent on record, behind 2006 and 2007.
Typhoon Ketsana became 2009’s second-deadliest tropical cyclone so far, claiming nearly 500 lives across the Philippines, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. The storm struck the Philippines on September 26, leaving 80 percent of Manila submerged.
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Saturday, October 17, 2009
China to continue its assistance to Cambodian infrastructure: FM
PHNOM PENH, China said it will continue to provide financial assistance to Cambodia to develop projects of infrastructure in the country, Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said on Saturday.
"Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen met Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao for bilateral talks and China will continue to support Cambodia to push economic, social and infrastructure development,"Hor Namhong told reporters at Phnom Penh International Airport after the delegation led by Prime Minister Hun Sen returned home from China.
"The fund will be used to build roads, bridges, irrigation systems and hydro powers, expand electricity on outskirts of Phnom Penh and also in rural areas to help poor and improve people's living conditions," Hor said.
Moreover, Hor added that the Chinese Premier said during the meeting that Chinese government will provide 100 million RMB yuan (about 14.65 million U.S. dollars) to Cambodia for its government to help develop and restore infrastructure in the typhoon Ketsana-hit regions.
The visit of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen to China this time is fruitful and brings benefits for the country and people, Hor added.
Hor told reporters that Prime Minister Hun Sen attended the opening ceremony of the 10th Western China International Economy and Trade Fair (WCIETF) in Chengdu, capital of China's Sichuan Province and also met with Liu Qibao, secretary of the Communist Party of China Sichuan Provincial Committee.
"Sichuan authorities also provided 50 water pumps, 30 tractors,10 trucks for serving agricultural fields. They also provided scholarship for training our officials and students in their province," Hor added.
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Gates Foundation pours $115 million into new malaria drugs
By Sandi Doughton
Health experts around the globe were chilled earlier this year by the discovery that malaria in Cambodia has evolved resistance to the most promising drug in medicine's arsenal.
With the effectiveness of artemisinin under threat, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is stepping up its investment in new malaria drugs with a $115 million grant to the Geneva-based Medicines for Malaria Venture. The grant brings the foundation's total funding for the group to $317 million.
Malaria has long been a top priority for the Gateses, who in 2007 took the controversial step of calling for eradication of the disease. Many experts question whether that will ever be possible, but foundation CEO Jeff Raikes recently said the world's biggest philanthropy is refocusing its malaria programs with the goal of eradication in mind.
The "E-word," which some malaria scientists utter with trepidation based on past failures, is repeated three times in MMV's four-paragraph press release on the new grant.
In February, MMV and drugmaker Novartis introduced a sweet-tasting version of the combination malaria drug Coartem for African children. The group is funding work on more than 50 drug candidates, ten of which are in clinical development.
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Speed bumps on the Asean highway
By SUPALAK GANJANAKHUNDEE
THE NATION
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has garnered praise from other national leaders at previous Asean meetings, but the full-scale summit he's hosting next week in Cha-am/Hua Hin will test him.
Abhisit's cool and steady hand on the reins at the 14th summit in the same locale early this year impressed Malaysia's then-premier, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who raved to reporters afterwards.
The academically inclined Abhisit has little problem conducting meetings of any kind thanks to his knack for staying on top of issues and responding appropriately.
Foreign Ministry officials were ready with back-up details for the Prime Minister at the earlier Asean gathering and found he didn't need them. No one needed to whisper in his ear.
The 15th summit next weekend - October 23 to 25 - is a full-scale meeting with Asean's East Asian and Pacific Rim partners attending, meaning there will be 16 state leaders in all.
Though just nine months in office, Abhisit has met most of them several times.
And he's also on steady ground with the central issue on the agenda: formally inaugurating the Asean Inter-governmental Commission on Human Rights.
He's quite familiar with the other topics, too - food and energy security, establishing rules to settle internal disputes, and dealing with natural disasters, climate change and the economic crisis.
But Abhisit faces two critical challenges at the summit: domestic security and the border conflict with Cambodia, which is a fellow Asean member as well as a next-door neighbour.
Abhisit appears to have made summit security a priority, warning that the draconian Internal Security Law would be enforced in Cha-am/Hua Hin and Bangkok through most of October.
The move is not groundless, with anti-government red-shirt protesters having shut down the April Asean meeting in Pattaya. Thailand, which yields the Asean chairmanship at the end of this year, cannot afford another such disruption.
The red shirts of the Democratic Alliance Against Dictatorship have threatened to derail next week's summit if the government blocks their concurrent rally in Bangkok.
And facing Abhisit across the table at the coming summit will be Cambodian Premier Hun Sen, who will raise the long-standing and newly revived dispute over Preah Vihear.
The issue became heated again last year when Thailand objected to Cambodia's bid to have the centuries-old temple listed as a World Heritage site.
Although a UN agency ruled in 1962 that Preah Vihear is Cambodian property, the Abhisit government is insisting that the adjacent 4.6 square kilometres were never properly demarcated and in fact belong to Thailand.
A joint boundary commission has undertaken the slow process of demarcation, but Hun Sen wants to talk about the temple at the Asean summit, his foreign minister Hor Namhong has indicated.
In its several attempts since last year to have an international forum decide the temple's fate, including last year's Asean ministerial meeting in Singapore, Cambodia has tended to be bombastic in its claim to ownership.
Thailand's representatives have been repeatedly forced to explain their position.
How will Abhisit handle the situation if Hun Sen mentions Preah Vihear in every session next weekend? As the summit's chairman, he'll be hard-pressed to respond fairly, if not prevented from doing so by Asean's rules of conduct.
Unless Abhisit manages to sideline the Preah Vihear conflict ahead of the summit, Hun Sen could well be the one this time to cast a gloomy shadow over the gathering.
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Final Death Toll of Ketsana Raised to 35
By Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer
Cambodian officials now estimate that Typhoon Ketsana claimed 35 lives and cost the country $41 million, leaving thousands of people homeless.
Hardest hit was Kampong Thom province, but 11 provinces in all suffered from the storm, which raged across the east and north of the country on Sept. 28.
Hundreds of homes were destroyed, and many people are now facing food shortages, the National Committee for Disaster Management said Friday.
The agency “will submit a compiled report of damage to the government to request assistance from the international community,” Nhem Vanda, first deputy president of the disaster committee, said.
The World Bank and the Japanese government have signaled a willingness to provide aid for victims of the storm, but they need a clear damage report from the government to proceed.
In Kampong Thom, the storm destroyed nearly 20,000 hectares of rice crop, as well as infrastructure, for a total of $17 million in damages, according to a preliminary estimate.
“I have worries for the destruction and damage of more infrastructure,” Som Sophath, deputy governor of the province, said. There, the storm killed 20 people, injured 14, and destroyed 109 houses, he said.
The German government will provide $280,000 in emergency assistance, Josef Fullen Bach, a government representative for Southeast Asian policy, told Finance Minister Keat Chhon on Friday.
The aid agency Oxfam last week estimated 20,000 people were in need of immediate emergency assistance.
Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Men Sam On, in a weekly government meeting Friday, encouraged government officials to travel to affected areas and help victims.
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Philippines, Vietnam and Cambodia Typhoon Ketsana
Typhoon Ketsana left thousands homeless when it struck the Philippines, Vietnam and Cambodia in October 2009.
Habitat's response in the Philippines
Habitat for Humanity is supplying house repair kits for up to 10,000 families in Metro Manila to help them cope with the terrible flooding caused by Typhoon Ketsana.
Habitat for Humanity Philippines will work with local government agencies and the ABS-CBN Foundation to build new homes and relocate families from flood-affected areas of Pasig, Taguig, Quezon City and Laguna.
At least 120 toilets will be built in ten evacuation centers under a co-funding partnership between Philippines National Red Cross and Habitat for Humanity. Volunteers from "Friends of Habitat for Humanity Philippines" continue to distribute relief packs to families in these evacuation centers.
Habitat's response in Vietnam
Habitat will repair homes and replace roofs for families affected by the typhoon. Moving forward, Habitat hopes to provide permanent houses in phases for affected families along the central coastline and to provide disaster preparedness and mitigation programs.
Habitat's response in Cambodia
Habitat Cambodia will offer technical assistance and construction help to families who are rebuilding their houses after the typhoon.
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EU Grabs Korea Trade Pact That Was Ours
Free Trade: Europe just walked off with the second-biggest trade deal in history with South Korea, bringing a fresh $26 billion to both economies and extending their clout globally. It's a prize that could have been ours.
Welcome to the new America, the land of the left behind. As the Obama administration dithers for the eighth straight month about three pending free-trade treaties, those dust clouds you see are Europe taking off and running with the big one — South Korea.
Late Thursday, Europe completed a free-trade pact with Korea in which 99% of all tariffs will be scrapped within five years. The two blocs already do business totaling $98 billion, and this deal is expected to tack on another $26 billion.
Products affected include machine tool parts, pharmaceuticals and agricultural produce. All are goods that American companies also make, but they still shell out 56% in tariffs.
For Europe, the deal with Korea was easy. The U.S. had already negotiated a trade pact of its own that was ready to go in 2006. Details of the EU-Korea treaty are nearly identical, so it's obvious the Europeans just Xeroxed the U.S.-Korea pact and will now walk off with the spoils.
The EU-Korea treaty is the biggest since the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement. South Korea is the world's 15th-largest economy, and the 27-nation European Union is the biggest bloc.
A U.S. in the throes of recession could use that kind of market opening. And with the dollar tumbling, it would be in the middle of an export boom if the treaty went through.
The EU-Korea pact is expected to take effect next June. Media reports say Congress won't take up U.S. free-trade agreements with Korea (or Colombia and Panama, for that matter) until 2011 at the earliest. That's time enough for Europe to snap up our market share. No wonder the Europeans are smiling.
This isn't the only thing they're cooking up. EU trade pacts are also in the works with India and the Asian Tiger states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) — Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Brunei, Indonesia, the Philippines, Burma, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia. And talks with Pakistan (with a GDP ranked 48th) start Oct. 19.
Other nations are doing the same. China, Japan and South Korea are creating their own economic zone, South Korea and Colombia have begun talks for a free-trade pact, Korea is holding talks with Peru, and Australia is pushing for free trade with India.
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Cambodian political leader to receive honorary degree
Written by Dave Mabell
A political leader who’s also an educator and humanitarian will be an honoured guest today in Lethbridge.
Son Soubert, first elected to Cambodia’s parliament in 1993, will be awarded an honourary Doctor of Laws degree during fall convocation ceremonies at the University of Lethbridge.
He’ll join Juno Award-winning Calgary musician Paul Brandt — a Doctor of Fine Arts, as of today — and hundreds from a fall graduating class of nearly 350 during public events starting at 10 a.m.
Soubert, educated in archeology and classics in France, met students in the university’s Rotaract group Friday and described his nation’s colourful history and future opportunities.
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Now leader of the new Human Rights Party — one of several contenders in the Kingdom of Cambodia, which combines a constitutional monarchy with a multi-party parliament — Soubert traced his nation’s influences back to the time of the Roman Empire. It’s been profoundly influenced by trade with China to the north and the power of India to the west.
Canada’s influence is more recent, he said, dating back to the 1950s. During the 40 years that followed, however, Cambodia survived many political changes — including more than a decade of occupation by Vietnamese troops.
Since democratic government returned in 1993, he pointed out, many Canadian doctors, dentists and many other volunteers have responded to the nation’s many health issues. Malnutrition remains a major concern, and HIV poses another ongoing threat.
Canada’s federal government seems less interested, Soubert suggested.
“Canada closed its embassy in Phnom-Penh this year,” making things more difficult for Canadians who wish to visit or volunteer.
Soubert also works with his nation’s orphans — their parents are still alive, but too poor to feed them — and he described their improved living conditions and educational opportunities. Today, he said, some of those children have done well enough to attend university classes.
On the political front, Soubert and his father helped found the Khmer Buddhist Liberal Democratic Party. Later he was elected president of the Son Sann Party before moving on to help found the Human Rights Party.
Just what those rights are, he said, depends on many cultural, religious and political factors. Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam and — in some parts of the country — Roman Catholic teachings are involved.
Competing values and beliefs are at play in many of Cambodia’s neighbouring nations as well, he pointed out. Still, some political leaders hope to expand economic ties between the ASEAN countries.
Soubert admitted he’s doubtful about how that could occur.
“How are the ASEAN nations, with so many differences, going to build something like the European Union?”
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Thursday, October 15, 2009
VN-Cambodia border gates ’will increase trade, tourism’
VietNamNet Bridge – The opening of three more border gates between Viet Nam and Cambodia earlier this month will create more opportunities for trade and tourism between the two countries, economists say.
Xa Mat gate is located in Tay Ninh province, Tinh Bien gate in An Giang province and Ha Tien gate in Kien Giang province, all in southern Viet Nam.
The move is part of an agreement signed between the two countries in 2005 to open seven border gates in the long run.
After the first border gate of Moc Bai was put into operation in 2006, the number of vehicles going through it increased from 80 to 300 by March this year. According to Phan Thi Thu Hien, deputy head of the Transport Department under the Ministry of Transport’s Road Administration, the sluggish infrastructure development coupled with complicated import-export policies applied at border gate areas was to blame for the delay in opening more border gates.
The business community, meanwhile, has seen new opportunities.
Huynh Huu Phuc, head of the finance and legal group of Bitis, one of Viet Nam’s biggest shoe producers that has branches in Cambodia, said that his company was conducting research to open more branches in Cambodian provinces that have convenient transportation to and from Viet Nam.
Pho Duc Hung, vice-president of Viettel Post, a subsidiary of Viet Nam’s Military Telecom Corporation (Viettel), which is now the largest telecommunications service provider in Cambodia, said that his company was hoping to open more branches in Vietnamese provinces that have border gates to Cambodia.
Hung said that having more border gates would cut down on transportation costs and help businesses. He said currently his company had to send their products via other companies and was thinking of sending them directly to Cambodia using their own vehicles.
Trade and commerce between Viet Nam and Cambodia has been quickly expanding. More than 100 Vietnamese companies are now operating in Cambodia, mostly in agro-forestry, services and industrial sectors. In Viet Nam, many Cambodian companies are also doing business with local companies including Golden Eagle Meng Sun Fish Sauce Enterprise, LyLy Food Industry and Sin Tai Seng Tea-Coffee factory.
In addition, tourist potential will benefit both countries. According to statistics from the Cambodian Ministry of Tourism, Vietnamese tourists constituted the second greatest number of foreign tourists in Cambodia in 2007 and 2008, 9.86 per cent of the total. The number of Vietnamese tourists in 2008 increased dramatically at a rate of 67.02 per cent from the previous year. As more border gates open, tour costs will decrease and the number of tourists will increase.
Phan Thanh, vice president of Phuong Nam Star Travel, said the border gate openings were very good news for Vietnamese tourists as they now could travel to Cambodia more conveniently and for lower prices.
However, Thanh also underlined the fact that more borders gates will also mean already-existing companies facing more competition, as more local companies in border areas open. According to the agreement between the two countries, another three border gates will open, helping boost bilateral trade.
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1,000 Cambodian schools still closed after storm Ketsana
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — Flooding caused by Typhoon Ketsana prevented almost a thousand Cambodian schools from opening at the start of the academic year, keeping tens of thousands of students home, an Education Ministry official said Thursday.
Chroeng Limsry, director of the secondary education department, said some schools were still inundated while others had been damaged by the storm, which swept through the country late last month. Cambodia has about 7,000 schools nationwide attended by more than 3 million students. They should have opened at the beginning of this month.
Typhoon Ketsana toppled scores of rickety houses in Cambodia, killing at least 18 people and injuring 100 others.
Keo Vy, communications officer at the National Committee for Disaster Management, said initial estimates were that the storm caused at least $29.3 million in damage.
The British-based international aid agency Oxfam warned Thursday that "a food crisis is looming in flood-affected communities."
It said an estimated 100,000 people in eight provinces remain affected by the floods, and 15,000 households need immediate food assistance.
The situation is expected to get worse unless food assistance is provided urgently, it said.
"Many of the affected families are forced to borrow rice from each other, but now finding enough food is a big challenge," it said in a statement. "In some communities, Oxfam has also observed an increase in food prices which further weakens the capacities of the most vulnerable to live life in dignity." - AP
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Cambodian Charcoal Market Is Booming
By Simon Marks
According to a 2008 study conducted jointly by Cambodia’s Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy, the United Nations Development Program and the environmental group Geres, the number of households projected to use charcoal as an energy source in Cambodia will rise from about 500,000 currently to more than one million in 2015.
That projected increase has raised concerns among environmentalists, who note that charcoal production entails the removal of vast quantities of woodland, often in naturally growing forests, as well as high levels of “black carbon” or soot — which scientists say plays a significant role in global warming.
The report values the current annual market for charcoal in the capital, Phnom Penh, at $25 million — a number that is expected to more than double in size during the next five years based on current trends.
And while the authors note a shift towards modern energy sources, “the demand for firewood, charcoal, kerosene and batteries will remain high over the next decades,” the report said.
Wood burners for cooking, which are used extensively in Asia and Africa, produce large quantities of soot particles, which scientists say is responsible for as much as 18 percent of global warming.
David Beritault, an energy expert at Geres, said that much of the charcoal made in Cambodia has not been sufficiently burned to complete its transformation from wood, a phenomenon that leads to higher levels of black carbon in the atmosphere.
Black carbon can travel long distances, warming the air and melting ice by absorbing the sun’s heat.
But charcoal, if produced correctly, can burn almost smokeless, and is less polluting than wood — although it does emit greenhouse gases during its production. Geres is currently involved in a so-called “green charcoal” project that aims to make charcoal with more energy-efficient wood.
“If we can control the process we can produce the same amount of charcoal but with less wood,” said Mr Beritault.
Environmentalists also say that water filters, which cost about $7.50, could be used instead of having to boil water to make it potable. Moreover, Biodigesters, which provide a cheap source of fuel by converting organic waste into biogas, is another option that could improve health conditions inside households that cook with wood and charcoal.
Still, 27 percent of residents in Phnom Penh are currently using charcoal as their main energy source, according to the Ministry of Industry, and urban demand for charcoal is expected to nearly triple over the next two decades.
Khiev Thim, a charcoal merchant in the Phnom Penh who, on a recent morning, sold roughly 1,300 lbs. of charcoal to a avariety of households and small businesses, said that demand in the city was fierce.
“We sell it everywhere in the city,” he said, “except along the main roads.”
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Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Bringing teachers back home
THERE is a teacher drain from Cambodia’s rural countryside to Phnom Penh and other urban centres. The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports is trying to stop it with various initiatives and policies, but unless economic opportunities in the Kingdom’s more remote areas are improved, the flight of educators to the city will continue.
The lack of teachers is a national problem, with one teacher for every 41 students in the Kingdom, but the shortage is particularly severe in rural and remote areas, where there is one teacher for every 50 students. “Ideally, we would have 40 students per class, but now we have some classes with 65 students because we can’t get more teachers at our school,” said Phan Sophea, a secondary school principal in Kandal province.
The situation differs in each province, but as you move away from the town centres there is a widespread drop in educational performance. “In Preah Vihear town we have many students and schools for them to go to, but sometimes at schools in more remote areas we have to find untrained members of the community to teach,” said Ouk Boreyrun, provincial education director for Preah Vihear province.
We want more
The Cambodian Independent Teachers Association (CITA), which counts its members at 3,900, has been lobbying for a raise in teachers’ salaries since its inception in 2001. Despite the government’s measures of increasing teachers’ salaries by 20 percent each year, Rong Chhun, the president of CITA, says that salaries are not high enough for teachers in remote areas to maintain a decent living.
“They work for four hours a day as public school teachers, and then there is no other opportunity for income. They can’t feed their family on US$35 to $45 a month,” he said. “In Phnom Penh there are many opportunities for extra work and study. If they want to get teachers to go to the rural areas, they need to compensate them somehow.”
At a CITA teachers rally in Phnom Penh on October 5 that coincided with World Teachers Day, 250 educators from 15 provinces demanded a salary increase to 1 million riels (US$244) per month. “When our stomachs are hungry, we cannot teach because we have no power; the government should pay more attention to improving teachers’ lifestyles,” said Phat Theavy, representing teachers from Prey Veng.
At a press conference later that day, ministry officials said that calls for an improved standard of living for provincial teachers have not gone unheard, but that paying teachers 1 million riels a month is unfounded when compared to changes in the economy. According to Thaong Borath, director of the Education Ministry’s Department of Personnel Affairs, payments of between $10 and $15 were given to some 25,454 teachers in remote areas to compensate them for the inaccessibility of their work location. The ministry has also instituted programmes to encourage Teacher Training Centre graduates to head back to their homeland.
Going home for good
Through a partnership with the United States Education Programme (USEP), 300 new teachers have been placed in remote primary schools in Mondulkiri, Kampong Cham and Kratie provinces in the last two years through the 9+2 program. USEP located candidates in lower secondary school (7-9 grade) and provided financial support and tutoring for students to finish grade 9 and attend teacher training colleges. In return, the young educators promised to return to teach at their childhood primary school.
Also beginning this year, teachers who commit to working in Cambodia’s remote areas will not have to wait to become full-fledged teachers and receive their full salaries, as do most graduates of the training centres, who wait seven to 12 months for a salary.
“Many of our students are going to the provinces because they can get their salary seven months earlier than if they stay in Phnom Penh,” said Dr Im Koch, director of the National Institute of Education in Phnom Penh.
The government provides full financial support for students to study at training centres, requiring two years of methodology training for primary school teachers and a year of study at the national institute and a specialised degree for secondary school teachers at public schools.
In return, teachers must return to their home provinces to teach for two years.
Teachers wanted for hire
During his inauguration speech at the new Pursat High School, Im Sethy, Cambodia’s minister of education, youth and sport said Cambodia was in need of 5,000 new teachers.
The ministry wouldn’t say where these teachers will come from, but perhaps a better question is, where will they go.
“Cambodia has enough teachers for all of its students,” explained Rong Chhun.
“The government just needs to find a way to spread them out equally across the country.” Additional reporting by Tep Nimol.
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Cambodia as a player in education
By John O'leary
Universities are set to play a key role in Cambodia’s economic development, national leadership and its move forward in globalisation.
Asian higher education is on the rise and looks set to take the global stage. Global university rankings show this growth, and even the European Union’s education commissioner says the famous names that dominate such exercises should look to their laurels if they are not to be overtaken by the tigers from the East.
But these plaudits apply to a relatively small proportion of universities in relatively few countries. Although spending on higher education has been rising sharply, with 10 percent growth in student numbers each year in East Asia, the poorer countries risk being left behind.
The first Asian university rankings, which were published by QS earlier this year, were dominated by Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and China. There were no universities in the top 200 from Cambodia, Vietnam or Laos, and even Thailand had only three representatives in the top 100.
Higher education has become more of a international phenomenon, with millions of students crossing borders to take a degree, universities (both public and private) establishing campuses in other countries, and global networks springing up to promote collaboration in research. Governments are desperate to have universities that are “players” in this new world, which they see as vital to prosperity as a knowledge economy.
So how realistic is it for a country like Cambodia to harbour such ambitions? What sort of a higher education system should it develop to serve the needs of its people and boost the economy?
The gap between Cambodia and the leading Asian nations in terms of participation and spending on higher education is so large that trying to compete on the international stage would surely be a waste of money. The latest UNESCO statistics showed fewer than 3 percent of Cambodians completing tertiary education, compared with more than 30 percent in South Korea and 20 percent even in the Philippines. Spending per student was less than $1,000 a year, compared with $5,000 in Malaysia.
Of course, the destruction of its universities and the loss of a generation of academics under the Khmer Rouge make Cambodia a special case.
During the Khmer Rouge regime, teachers and educated role models were killed, schools were destroyed and books were burned. Although new teachers have been trained and schools have been rebuilt, there continue to be a variety of obstacles that challenge the country’s ability to provide access to quality education. Initiatives like the World Bank’s commitment of $15 million to support public and private universities acknowledge the need for extra investment in the country’s higher education. Agreements like the one signed by the University of Texas at San Antonio with the Royal University of Phnom Penh and Pannasastra University will also help to strengthen the system.
Universities elsewhere in Asia and farther afield are increasingly keen to recruit international students. The University of Bedfordshire, in the United Kingdom, for example, offers scholarships to Cambodians of “high academic standing”.
A realistic target for the country’s universities, therefore, would be to keep more of the brightest students at home, as well as take more students in total when funding allows. As per-capita income and the numbers completing secondary education grow, the demand for higher education is certain to increase. The university system can make an important contribution to Cambodia’s development, particularly in areas such as agriculture and tourism, without worrying about international rankings.
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Cambodia approves law of non-proliferation of nuclear, chemical weapon
Cambodian National Assembly on Wednesday approved the law of non-proliferation of nuclear weapon, bio-chemical weapon, radioactive weapons and chemical weapon.
"This law bans on producing, recycling, transferring, transporting the kinds of these weapons in the country, and we will create authority for controlling and investigating the chemical substances as well as a laboratory for observing these substances in the country," said Tea Banh, deputy prime minister and minister of national defense. "We do not want to see these substances destroying our people's heath and lives," he added.
"We need peace and good environment in the country and we experienced the disaster of the weapons in the world," said Oeung Noeng, chairman of the committee of national defense, interior, investigation and clearance of the National Assembly.
"We have purpose to set up a region of ASEAN without the nuclear weapon," said Cheap Yeam, chairman of the audition, banking and finance. "When we have this kind of law, we will show other countries, United Nations, and IEAE (International Energy Agency) that we do not produce these weapons."
"We also show them that we are not the threat of regional security and the war monger," he said, adding that "our country is poor; we need the help from donor and other friend countries to develop the country and we do not have abilities to produce this kind of weapons."
He also expressed his concerns for some countries in the world that produced nuclear weapons because they could destroy the world and threaten security of the world.
He added this law follows to Cambodian constitution in 1993 and ASEAN charter, and International Conventions that Cambodia is signatory state.
Source: Xinhua
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ASEAN chief: Thai-Cambodian issue unlikely to be aired at ASEAN Summit
BANGKOK, Oct 14 (TNA) - ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan on Wednesday said he did not believe that Cambodia will raise the border conflict with its neighbour Thailand at the upcoming summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) at the end of this month.
The ASEAN chief commented after French news agency Agence France-Presse (AFP) earlier quoted Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong as saying Prime Minister Hun Sen will raise the Thai border spat at an upcoming regional summit despite opposition from Thailand, which is hosting the meeting.
Mr Hor Namhong however said "Because there is no answer from Thailand to my official proposal, Cambodia still considers that Prime Minister Hun Sen can raise the dispute in the ASEAN summit."
He said that Cambodia is willing to raise the issue in other international bodies, including the United Nations Security Council, and accused Thailand of delaying the resolution of the dispute.
Thailand will host the 15th ASEAN Summit and its related summits in Phetchaburi's Cha-am district and Prachuab Khiri Khan's Hua Hin district October 23 to 25.
The ASEAN chief said that if any country member feels that the Thai-Cambodian border dispute affects ASEAN's image, the foreign ministers from other eight country members (except from Thailand and Cambodia) can raise the issue for discussion at the regional pact meeting.
"I know the Cambodian stance only from news report. I think that the border spat is the issue between the two countries which can be agreed at bilateral talks," said Mr Surin, "It should not be raised in the ASEAN Summit."
The ASEAN chief added that he is not worried that the summit will be overshadowed by the Thailand-Cambodia conflict, saying that ASEAN members are mature and willing to solve problems.
He said if anyone of either party raises this topic at the meeting, it will be a good opportunity to help find appropriate solutions to the conflict.
Tensions between the two neighbouring countries, renewed when Mr Hun Sen said he had ordered his troops to shoot any Thai stepping on Cambodian soil, after protesters of Thailand's yellow-shirted Peoples’ Alliance for Democracy (PAD) rallied in Si Sa Ket province last month opposing Cambodia's plan to build new structures in the contested 4.6 square kilometre zone surrounding Preah Vihear.
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva shunned Mr Hun Sen's threat, saying it is his style to make international headlines and for his internal political benefit.
Cambodian Foreign minister said early this week that he wished to propose the dispute over the area around the ancient Preah Vihear temple be included in the agenda of the ASEAN summit and in other international meetings.
The Thai foreign affairs ministry however said the dispute should not be internationalised or raised at the regional pact meeting and Thailand will continue to seek a peaceful solution with Cambodia via a bilateral mechanism. (TNA)
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S Korean President to visit Cambodia next week
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak will pay a two-day state visit to Cambodia next week at the invitation of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, according to a statement released Wednesday by Cambodia's Foreign Ministry.
The statement said Lee will arrive in Cambodia on Oct. 22-23 and will be received in the Royal Audience by His Majesty King Norodom Sihamoni and will also receive courtesy calls by Chea Sim, president of the Senate and Heng Samrin, president of the National Assembly.
Lee Myung-bak is scheduled to hold bilateral talk with Hun Sen and will witness the signing of two agreements by Cambodia's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Hor Namhong and his counterpart Yu Myung-hwan, minister of foreign affairs and trade of the Republic of Korea.
The two agreements are on extradition and framework arrangement concerning loans from the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) for 2009-2012.
Also, during the visit, five other documents are expected to be singed: agreement on cooperation between the Korean Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Cambodian Chamber of Commerce; agreement on co-production of broadcasting programs; MOU on cooperation for the field of mineral sector; MOU on cooperation for joint mineral exploration and MOU concerning the cooperation on investment in forest plantation and climate change.
At a round-table discussion organized Wednesday by Club of Cambodian Journalists, Lee Kyung-soo, South Korean ambassador to Cambodia told reporters that Republic of Korea has considered Cambodia as one of the main dialogue partners and one of the recipient countries of South Korean grants and loans in the form of ODA.
He said since Cambodia has tied diplomatic relation with South Korea in 1997, many forms of bilateral cooperation have been achieved including the investment, culture, economic and tourism.
Lee Myung-bak is expected to depart Tuesday for Vietnam, where he will meet with the country's President Nguyen Minh Triet and Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.
And after Cambodia, Lee will also attend the annual East Asia Summit to be held in Hua Hin, Thailand, back-to-back sessions of the 15th ASEAN Summit set on Oct. 23-25.
Source:Xinhua
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S Korea's Hyundai Group to build vehicle assembling factory in Cambodia: ambassador
Hyundai Company of South Korea will build a vehicle assembling factory in Cambodia, South Korean ambassador to Cambodia said on Wednesday.
"The vehicle assembling factory will be opened in coastal Koh Kong Province," Lee Kyung Soo, South Korean ambassador here told reporters in a news conference on the state visit of South Korea president Lee Myung Bak to Cambodian on Oct. 22-23.
The press conference is organized by the club of Cambodian Journalists.
But Lee Kyung Soo did not give the details about the amount invested by Hyundai in Cambodia. Deputy Director General of Hyundai Group already paid a visit to Cambodia a few days ago, LeeKyung Soo said.
The press release from South Korean Embassy in Phnom Penh said that Camko Motor Company is building a Hyundai car assembly factory in Koh Koh province, about 370 km southwest of capital Phnom Penh. It covered land area of 165,000 square meters with two facilities for maintenance and dormitory. It can assemble 3,000 cars per year and the type of car including SUV, Van and other cars.
According to Lee Kyung Soo, South Korea's investment in Cambodia last year was worth about 1,238 million U.S. dollars, but for the first six months of this year, the investment decreased about 58 percent compared with the same period of last year because of the global financial crisis. South Korea's investment in Cambodia focuses on the rubber plantation, mines, energy, oil and gas, real estate, tourism, construction, agri-industry, Lee Kyung Soo said.
For the bilateral trade between the two countries in 2008, Cambodia imported about 309 million U.S. dollars worth of products from South Korea and Cambodia's export to South Korea about 294 million U.S. dollars. So far this year the two-way trade volume is worth about 120 million U.S. dollars. Both sides will try to foster more trade volume, Lee Kyung Soo said.
Source:Xinhua
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Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Cambodia's floating villages
Tonle Sap largest freshwater lake in Asia
By Michael McCarthy, Vancouver Courier
One of the great wonders of the world is the vast temple complex of Angkor Wat, spread through the jungles of northern Cambodia. Aside from the gigantic size of the complex --it was the largest city in the world in the Middle Ages before the jungle consumed it after its unexplained abandonment--one wonders why the Khmer empire was located here in the middle of nowhere, with no rivers or trading routes to support the city and its huge population. However, another great wonder of the world can be found a few miles away.
Tonle Sap is Cambodia's Great Lake and the most prominent feature on the map of Cambodia, a huge body of water stretching across the northwest section of the country. In the wet season, the Tonle Sap Lake becomes the largest freshwater lake in Asia, swelling to an expansive 12,000 square miles, and the largest freshwater floodplain in the world. More than three million people live on the floodplain around the Tonle Sap but what's interesting are the 170 floating villages found on the lake itself.
In the rainy season, a unique hydrologic phenomenon causes the Mekong River to reverse direction, filling the lake up instead of draining it. The inflow expands the surface area of lake more than five-fold, inundating the surrounding forested floodplain and supporting an extraordinarily rich and diverse eco-system. More than 100 varieties of waterbirds and over 200 species of fish, as well as crocodiles, turtles, macaques, otter and other wildlife inhabit the inundated mangrove forests. The Tonle Sap provides more than half of the fish consumed in Cambodia.
Sitting on the edge of the lake are these distinctive floating villages, many sitting on towering stilts, with their economy and way of life deeply intertwined with the lake, the fish, the wildlife and the cycles of rising and falling waters. Visiting them is not easy unless you happen to travel with your own motorboat, but not far from Angkor Wat you'll find the tiny port of Chong Khneas, where a fast ferry departs daily for the capital of Phnom Penh, a five-hour journey across the great waters. Here the Khmer and Vietnamese boat people live in their floating homes and a guided two-hour boat trip through the floating village costs $6 U.S. and is an experience worth the time and effort.
Drifting through these drowned villages on a boat is the weirdest thing. In the dry season the houses stand eerily atop stilts in a sea of mud. At the height of the rainy season, the tops of trees poke through the surface of the water in a drowned landscape. Depending on the time of the year and the depth of the lake--it can be as little as a foot deep at times--trucks and cars look like they are being driven on top of the water and villagers appear as if they are walking on the surface. Huge fish traps are placed everywhere. Some of the houses float, others are on stilts, and yet others are boats on which entire families live.
Being so close to a major tourist site like Angkor Wat, this floating village gets plenty of visitors, and the villagers have devised interesting tourist attractions like the crocodile farm, where you can get face to face with some nasty creatures who are, thankfully, kept in a pit. Just don't fall in. Then there are the snake girls, who live on barges and run up to visiting boats thrusting giant water snakes into people's faces. Certainly you can take a photo, but be prepared to pay a fee. There are even floating bars and restaurants, markets, a clinic and a school. Watching kids play basketball in the middle of a vast lake is something different. If you don't want to descend from your boat to explore, villagers will paddle out to meet you, offering excellent ice-cold Cambodian beer and snacks.
Other more remote floating villages can be visited at more time and expense, and bird watchers will go crazy floating through the giant mangrove swamps spotting the 100 different species of waterbirds. But make sure you don't fall out of the boat, because a floating clinic 200 miles away from the nearest hospital likely won't be able to patch up any crocodile attacks.
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PM: Cambodia not allow any one to use Cambodia as shelter against other countries
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Tuesday said that his country does not allow foreigners and international organizations to use Cambodia as a stronghold to create illegal political and international organizations to oppose neighboring countries.
Hun Sen made the remarks at the celebration of the 15th anniversary of the founding of the Brigade 70 on the outskirts of Phnom Penh.
"The government has followed a policy that does not allow any illegal political and military organizations which has the purposes of making turmoil in the country to use Cambodia as a stronghold to do activities to oppose the neighboring countries," Hun Sen said.
"We strongly opposed illegal political and military organizations to conduct subversion in the country and in neighboring countries," he added. "Our armed forces are playing a key role to fight against these activities," he noted. "Moreover, our armed forces also contribute to humanitarian mission and to fight against terrorism cooperated with international communities."
In 2003, Cambodia arrested Thai nationals including Muhammad Yalaluding and Abdul Azi Haji Chiming, both from Yala province and sentenced them to life in prison on charges of helping the regional terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) plot a terrorist attack against western embassies in Cambodia.
Source:Xinhua
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Korean University honours former President Kufuor
Accra, Oct 13, GNA - South Korea's Inje University has conferred an Honorary Doctorate Degree (PhD) in Political Science on former President John Agyekum Kufuor and it goes with full scholarships for two Ghanaians to study any of the sciences in the university.
A statement signed by the former President's Press Secretary, Mr Frank Agyekum, quoted a release from the office of the Dean of Graduate School, Dr Sung Goo Kang, as saying Inje University was established in 1932, is ranked second by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology of Korea and excels in the sciences.
Dr. Kyeonp Ho Lee, President of the University, in conferring the award, lauded former President Kufuor for devoting his productive life to the service of Ghana which culminated in his serving two four-year terms as President.
"His role in ensuring peace and stability in the West African region and the Africa continent as a whole, as Chairman of the Economic Community of West Africa States and the Africa Union deserves to be celebrated by all," the statement said.
In accepting the award, former President Kufuor said he was overwhelmed with his selection and dedicated it to leaders throughout the world who stood for the respect of human rights and the rule of law. The ceremony was attended by a large Asian academic community, business and interest groups as well as the Acting Ghana Ambassador in Korea and ambassadors from Sudan, Congo, Egypt, South Africa, Lebanon, Cambodia and Singapore. 13 Oct 09.
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Cambodia ready for its close-up
By Patrick Frater
BUSAN, South Korea -- Location managers now have an additional choice in Southeast Asia, following the recent establishment of a film commission in Cambodia.
The new Cambodia Film Commission made its market debut Monday at BIFCOM.
Established this year with finance from France's Agency for Overseas Development, the organization is headed by Cedric Eloy as CEO and Sovichea Cheap as director.
"This is real-low-cost Asia, but these days Cambodia has so much more to offer, too," Eloy said. "Regulation is done with a light touch. Our office acts as a filter for the ministry and can get shooting permits issued within a couple of weeks. Many of our locations could pass for other places in Asia."
He said that the country is also improving other technical facilities such as lighting and grip equipment, trained operators and disused factories that have been used as studios by the BBC for four months.
"Natural landscapes are already one of our great strengths, but the government is looking to expand on that with the creation of a 'natural reserve for cinema' complete with jungle, seaside locations and facilities," Eloy said.
International films that have previously shot in Cambodia include "Tomb Raider," Korea's "R-Point" and the recent "Same, Same but Different," by German director Detlev Buck, which premiered at the Locarno Film Festival and played at last month's Toronto festival.
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Monday, October 12, 2009
CAMBODIA TRIBUNAL MUST NOT USE TORTURE "CONFESSIONS" AS A LEGITIMATE SOURCE OF INFORMATION
What prisoners say or "confess" to under torture should never be admissible in any court proceedings, said Amnesty International, The International Commission of Jurists and the Redress Trust, after submitting a brief to the Pre-Trial Chamber of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC).
The brief was submitted on 25 September 2009, as part of an application to intervene as "friends of the court" (amicus curiae) in the case of Ieng Thirith, where a dispute has arisen in respect of the potential admissibility of certain statements. In it, the organizations explain that the prohibition on the use of the content of statements obtained by torture by courts is absolute. It both reflects and supports the absolute prohibition on torture and is essential for preserving the integrity of the judicial process and the right to a fair trial. It is also impelled by the moral repugnance at the prospect of using the torturer's creation -- the "confession" -- to seek justice.
Admitting the content of a torture "confession" as evidence, bearing in mind that it was extracted out of a helpless detainee through the intentional infliction of pain and suffering, would irreparably taint any court proceedings.
Article 15 of the UN Convention against Torture, which binds the ECCC, excludes all statements obtained by torture from any court proceedings, with one exception only: torture statements may be used against the suspected torturers themselves, but then only "as evidence that the statement was made." In other words, such statements may be used as part of the proof that the act of torture took place, and not in any way for the truth of its contents or any other purpose. This limitation is clear from the language of the article, which uses the word "only" to prevent any misinterpretations. It is also clear from the history of its drafting in the UN, which the brief describes. During the drafting, proposals to allow the wider use of statements obtained by torture were considered but rejected.
The brief also explains that under international law, the use of statements obtained by torture to prove that they were made, is not limited to proceedings against the actual torturer, but also against commanders and political superiors accused of bearing responsibility for the torture.
The prohibition on the use of "confessions" does not extend automatically to all related material. For instance, other documents in the same file, including registration forms, need not be excluded automatically. However, the admissibility of any such material can nevertheless be challenged, on grounds that it did form part of the statement obtained by torture, that it was obtained by torture independently of the statement, or on other grounds set out in international and Cambodian law.
The organizations urge the ECCC to ensure that its proceedings adhere to international law and standards, which would contribute to the Court's credibility and ability to leave behind a positive and long-lasting legacy. A failure to do so would run counter to the international community's fundamental rejection of torture and refusal to provide it any legitimacy, and potentially undermine the integrity of the ECCC itself.
Regrettably, procedures in the Pre-Trial Chamber involving this brief have been rendered confidential.
The text of the brief is available here: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA23/020/2009/en
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Chinese Red Cross Society donates $30,000 to Cambodia for flood relief
Chinese Red Cross Society on Monday donated 30,000 U.S. dollars emergency humanitarian aid to its Cambodian counterpart in order to help the Cambodian side for the flood control and victims relief.
The donation was delivered by Zhang Jinfeng, Chinese ambassador to Cambodia, on behalf of the Red Cross Society of China, to the Cambodian Red Cross.
Typhoon Ketsana has caused severe flood in several provinces in Cambodia, the Red Cross Society of China decided to offer 30,000 U.S. dollars emergency humanitarian aid, Zhang Jinfeng said.
Pum Chantinie, secretary general of Cambodian Red Cross, expressed her thanks to China at the donation ceremony and spoke highly of China's consistent assistance to Cambodia. "Cambodia and China are two friendly neighborhood and our people always support and help each other, when we have difficulty, Chinese government and people always give us a hand," she said.
Ambassador Zhang Jinfeng said she hopes that the donation will play an active role in helping the reconstruction in those areas hit by Kesana.
Typhoon Ketsana hit Cambodia and killed at least 20 people in Kompong Thom, Preah Vihear, Siem Reap, Ratanakiri, and Mondulkiri provinces, and also destroyed hundreds of houses, roads, dam for agricultural irrigation, and thousands of hectares of rice fields.
Source: Xinhua
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Crooks more high-tech than cops
SINGAPORE: Transnational crime syndicates are becoming stronger by exploiting technology, said officials at an Interpol conference here.
The syndicates are forging links with one another and taking advantage of insufficient co-ordination among the world’s police forces.
Delegates warned that law enforcement agencies must urgently boost the sharing of intelligence to fight criminals, who are increasingly in cahoots with terrorist networks including al-Qaida.
“It is fair to say that criminals are ahead of governments in exploiting the most advanced tools of globalisation,” such as international travel, banking and trade, US Deputy Attorney General David Ogden said.
“Criminals are at the most advanced stage of globalisation,” Ogden told The Associated Press on the sidelines of the conference organised by the United Nations and Interpol. “There is no question that we are behind and the power of these international criminals has grown.”
By one estimate, organised crime today comprises up to 15% of the global gross domestic product, Ogden said.
The Lyon, France-based Interpol was created in 1923 and is the world’s largest international police organisation with 187 member countries.
But it appears Interpol is behind in the fight against crime, thanks to insufficient co-operation among countries.
Part of the problem is corruption of police departments in many countries. Because of their shaky reputations, other countries are reluctant to share information with them.
“In order to share information you have to have confidence that it won’t be misused,” Ogden said.
Also, various law enforcement agencies — even within the same country — suffer from rivalries, resulting in information not being disseminated.
Examples of transnational crimes abound. Ogden cited an emblematic case disclosed last year — a racketeering enterprise in Romania that had joined forces with criminals around the world, including street gangs in Los Angeles, to use the Internet to defraud thousands of people and hundreds of financial institutions.
Those charged in the case operated from locations in the Canada, Pakistan, Portugal, Romania and the United States, and were citizens or permanent residents of Cambodia, Mexico, Pakistan, Romania, the United States and Vietnam. — AP
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Cambodia proposes Thai border talks at regional summit
PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA - Cambodia on Monday proposed neighbouring Thailand puts their border dispute on the agenda when it hosts this month's summit of Southeast Asian leaders, according to a diplomatic letter.
The summit of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and six dialogue partners - China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand - takes place in the coastal resort of Hua Hin on October 23-25.
In a letter to his Thai counterpart Kasit Piromya, a copy of which was sent to AFP, Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said the border dispute between the two countries should be included on the summit's agenda.
The move came after Kasit reportedly said last week he would seek approval at the meeting to establish a neutral organisation that would help settle the Thai-Cambodia dispute, which has sparked deadly skirmishes between troops.
"In this regard, I would like to propose that the dispute between Cambodia and Thailand in the area of the temple of Preah Vihear be included in the agenda of the ASEAN summit in Hua Hin," Hor Namhong said.
The focus of the border dispute has been an area of land around the 11th century Preah Vihear temple, where clashes have killed seven soldiers since nationalist tensions between the neighbours flared last year.
Cambodia and Thailand have been at loggerheads over the land around Preah Vihear for decades, but tensions spilled over into violence in July last year when the temple was granted UNESCO World Heritage status.
The World Court ruled in 1962 that it belonged to Cambodia.
Soldiers from Cambodia and Thailand continue to patrol the area, with the last gunbattle near the temple area in April leaving three people dead.
Cambodian premier Hun Sen last month said that he had ordered his troops to shoot anyone from neighbouring Thailand who crossed illegally on to land around Preah Vihear.
The border between the two countries has never been fully demarcated, in part because it is littered with landmines left over from decades of war in Cambodia. --AFP
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Sunday, October 11, 2009
Chirac demands action on fake medicines
By Andrew Jack in London
Jacques Chirac, France’s former president, is to spearhead a political campaign for an international treaty to criminalise fake medicines as concern grows over their threat to public health around the world.
Mr Chirac is set on Monday to unveil in Cotonou in Benin a declaration signed by African and Asian heads of state calling for a United Nations convention to fight fake medicines by imposing tough penalties, strengthening manufacturing and distribution controls and improving awareness.
The move marks a fresh step by regulators, governments and medical groups in taking more aggressive action as criminal groups exploit poor controls, high profits and limited enforcement to diversify from narcotics into the business of fake medicines.
It also marks one of the most high-profile initiatives so far by Mr Chirac’s foundation, established after the end of his term as French president, and dovetails with long-standing French concerns over counterfeits.
“Informal co-operation is not enough,” said Mr Chirac in a written interview with the Financial Times. “Fake medicines have become a real market that is poised to overtake that for narcotics. It is essential to mo