Cambodia busted auto smuggling ring

Phnom penh(dpa) - Cambodia announced on Wednesday that 29 officials had been removed from their posts and anothe 10 had been suspended during a probe into the smuggling fo hundreds fo vihicles of neighboring Thailand since March.

The 39 officials included a provincial police chief, two provincial governor officials and the chief and the deputy chief of a customs' office, according to the government's anti-corruption chief, Om yentieng.

The smugging of the mainly luxury vehicles into Cambodia across the nationwestern border has been conservatively estimated to cost the government hundred of thousand dollars in the cost of customs' revenue.

The 10 suspended officials will remain without pay for six months, Yintieng said.

What we have done is not fovour for donors but a favour for cambodians people, said Yentieng who is also an advisor to priminister Hun Sen.

International donors have been pressuring the aid-dependant country to crack down on corruption or face on possible sanctions. They also demanded tough anti-corruption legislation which, despite the government promises, has yet to send to the national assembly.

Yentieng answered criticism that the penalties might be too linient by promising even tougher action if subsequent investigations showed the smuggling had not ceased.

"The education of one person may influence100", he said.

He also promise to protect the identities of those who had informed on the officials during his comment's three weeks long investigation

Hun Sen announced this year that all right hand drive vehicles such as those from Thailand which were imported into Cambodia before March would be legalized, but those were imported after deadline would be deemed illegal.

On Tuesday Finance Minister Keat Chhon warned that corruption was crippling the country 's economy and called for tougher measures. He has previously estimated that smuggling robbed the impoverished nation of aound 20 per cent of customs' revenue.