ASIA: CHINA-ASEAN FREE TRADE AREA SPARKS CAUTIOUS OPTIMISM

BANGKOK, The world's largest free trade area that became a reality at the start of the year is being billed as a welcome shot in the arm for the countries comprising it, namely, China and six South-east Asian countries. It offers a route out of the global financial crisis, analysts said.

Such optimism stems from the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA), which went into effect on Jan. 1, almost eight years after it was signed on Nov. 4, 2002 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

"The CAFTA is an important vehicle for trade-led growth and recovery in ASEAN," said Ganeshan Wignaraja, principal economist at the Office of Regional Economic Integration at the Asian Development Bank (AsDB). "We expect trade-led recovery to grow from 3.9 percent in 2009 to 6.4 percent in 2010."

CAFTA dwarfs other free trade areas by the 1.9 billion people it will cater to, having a combined gross domestic product of six trillion U.S. dollars. Only the North American Free Trade Area and the European Union (EU) are larger in economic value.

The South-east Asian nations which will initially profit from such deeper trade ties with China are also members of the Association of South-east Asian Nations (ASEAN). They are Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. By 2015, the remaining four members of the ASEAN - Burma, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam - will join CAFTA.

Beijing's interest to fortify this free trade terrain has been confirmed by the launch of a $10-billion infrastructure investment fund to improve roads, railways and airlines and strengthen telecommunication links between China and the ASEAN. The Asian powerhouse has also committed a $15-billion credit facility to promote regional integration.

"It will be good (for the ASEAN countries) to latch on to China's production network, to get into that value chain, and also sell to Chinese consumers," Wignaraja said during a telephone interview from the AsDB's Manila headquarters. "We think by 2017 the ASEAN region will gain 82 billion U.S. dollars at least, and this is a conservative estimate, from a zero scenario."

ASEAN countries will have to "adjust their thinking, offering a competitive advantage for companies to invest in this new climate," said Gyorgy Szirackzi, a senior economist at the International Labour Organization's Asia-Pacific office in Bangkok. "Some sectors in ASEAN will benefit early on, like the health service sector, tourism sector and the telemarketing sector."

But he cautioned that CAFTA would have birth pains, including loss of jobs in countries that cannot compete against the labour costs of their new trade partners.

"Some countries will gain, some will lose," Szirackzi told IPS. "Companies will consider how to increase their scale of production and may choose to operate from the country that makes economic sense for them."

Indonesia has already sounded such an alarm. The archipelago's trade minister, Mari Pangestu, wrote to the ASEAN secretariat this month stating that Jakarta wanted to "renegotiate" some features of CAFTA, noting that local industries like textiles and food were suffering from a flood of cheaper Chinese imports.

Filipino legislator and economist Walden Bello offered a more trenchant criticism. "The picture is more complex than that of a Chinese locomotive pulling the rest of East Asia along with it on the fast track to economic nirvana," he wrote in last Sunday's online edition of 'Business Mirror', a Manila-based newspaper.

"The reality, however, is that most of the advantages will probably flow to China," added Bello, who is also a senior analyst at Focus on the Global South, a Bangkok-based regional think tank.

The CAFTA has slashed tariffs on 90 percent of traded goods. These include final products from chilli, fish and soy sauces to manufactured products such as air conditioners, motorcycle parts and machinery. By 2015, goods described as "highly sensitive," such as rice, cars and petrochemical products, will be subject to a 50 percent import duty reduction.

Since CAFTA came into force, China has made deep inroads into ASEAN's economy. Trade between China and the regional bloc reached $193 billion in 2009, a fourfold increase since 2003. This rise has made China the ASEAN's third largest trading partner, replacing the United States, and next only to Japan and the EU.

According to the Jakarta-based ASEAN secretariat, trade between ASEAN and China grew at a rate of 20 percent annually between 2003 and 2008. Nearly a third of ASEAN exports to China consist of electrical and electronic products.

Against this picture of stronger China-ASEAN trade ties was the sobering reminder of how they collectively felt the impact of the global financial crisis, which saw export markets in the United States and the EU contract. China's exports dropped by 26 percent in early 2009 in contrast to the previous year, according to the World Bank, while Indonesia saw a 32 percent contraction, Malaysia 34 percent and the Philippines 41 percent during the same period.

Yet to enjoy the benefits of CAFTA, ASEAN countries have to address concerns over "trade facilitation," said Ravi Ratnayake, director of the trade and investment division at the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), a Bangkok-based United Nations regional body. "The region needs to simplify its trade procedures and documentation needed for exports."

There is a "lot of red tape" that exporters encounter at customs or with ministries of finance and some of them are "exhaustive," he said in an IPS interview. "Even if you reduce tariffs to zero, the trade is not going to see a boost unless you remove all the red tape."

In some ASEAN countries, delays caused by bureaucratic procedures for exports last from 22 to 29 days, an ESCAP study revealed. "The average number of documents and time required for import/export in many (Asian) subregions remain well above the (developed country) average." Read more!

Life West takes mission trip to Cambodia

Hayward, Calif., January 19, 2010 — Kim Khauv, a doctor of chiropractic and faculty member and alumnus from Life Chiropractic College West, led a team of twelve college interns who traveled to rural parts of Cambodia to provide chiropractic care. Over the course of two weeks in December 2009 they provided care to over 1500 patients, many of whom where children in orphanages and the sick and elderly in local villages.

This marks the first chiropractic mission trip to Cambodia from Life West. Arrangements were made with cooperation from government officials, village leaders and orphanage directors. The Life West team was joined by volunteer organizer, Aireen Navarro, and volunteer doctors, Amy Vevoda, D.C., and Nathan Clem, D.C., both from Seattle, Washington.

The trip had been a long-held dream by Dr. Khauv, whose family fled Cambodia in 1981 after the Khmer Rouge, a faction of the Communist Party of Kampuchea, began an agricultural reform leading to widespread famine and genocide between 1975 and 1979. After earning his graduate degree as a doctor of chiropractic and a master’s degree in public health, he began a non-profit organization, Well-Balanced World, with the sole intention of returning to his homeland and bringing chiropractic to his fellow countrymen.

Dr. Khauv is very grateful to have the opportunity to go back to Cambodia and offer healing to many who have little or no access to any health care. He states, “I sincerely appreciate Life West for their support. The devoted doctors and dedicated interns who came along allowed me to live out my dream of bringing chiropractic to Cambodia.” He is planning the next mission trip for December 2010 with the intention of increasing the number of locations and the number of patients served.
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Ghost Voices Come to Life on 'Dengue Fever Presents Electric Cambodia'

Chhom Nimol remembers hearing a song on the radio in the '80s when she was a child in Cambodia.

"It was very sad, slow romantic," she says. "Sounded like a ghost voice."

She's not sure, but it may have been the insinuating 'Flowers in the Pond,' by singer Ros Sereysothea, or perhaps something else by the Cambodian star.

Ros Sereysothea, 'Flowers in the Pond':

Senon Williams, Nimol's bandmate in Dengue Fever -- a Los Angeles group that began doing versions of Cambodian pop and rock tunes in the early 2000s and which was chronicled in a 2008 Around the World column -- explains that "ghost voice" is an actual technical term in Cambodian singing as heard in this track.

"It's where you break from one octave to the next and the voice cracks," he says.

"The high key," Nimol explains.

"Ros Sereysothea was the master of that," Williams adds.

But in this case it has a double meaning: The singer on the radio, whoever it was, had almost certainly been killed during the brutal late-'70s reign of Pol Pot's totalitarian Khmer Rouge. Estimates of the total deaths attributable to the Khmer Rouge range as high as 2 or 3 million from execution, starvation and disease, most of them buried in mass graves. Musicians and artists -- pretty much anyone seen as educated or connected to the cultural identity of the earlier Cambodia -- were among those targeted for elimination.

"It is very sad," Nimol says, in halting English, sometimes with help from friend Soche Meas. "Our musicians, they are gone."

"The only people who did survive were musicians, not singers," Williams says. "John Pirozzi, who directed our film 'Sleepwalking Through the Mekong,' has done insane research for his own film he's doing about this but only found a few surviving band members, guitar players. But no one in the limelight survived."

Those ghost voices are being honored on 'Dengue Fever Presents Electric Cambodia.' Subtitled '14 Rare Gems From Cambodia's Past,' the CD is just that -- samples of a lost era of Cambodian pop music. Much of the music exists today only via cassettes that made their ways around the Cambodian exile communities of California. A couple of previous compilations have made their way via the cultural curiosity seekers networks, notably the door-opening 1996 compilation 'Cambodian Rocks,' from the Parallel World label; and 2004's 'Cambodian Cassette Archives,' drawn from deteriorating tapes in the archives of the Oakland [Calif.] Public Library by global ephemera-centric Sublime Frequencies. These all show a culture enamored by Western pop -- the songs are redolent of quasi-psychedelia, with reverb guitars and cheesy organ -- without any sacrifice of Cambodian-ness.

'Electric Cambodia,' with proceeds being donated to the Cambodian Living Arts program promoting traditional performance in the Southeast Asian nation, digs even deeper to the point that none of the tracks had any identification -- neither titles nor artist information. They might have stayed that way but for the memory of Nimol's older sister, Chhom Chevin, herself a pop star in Cambodia in the '80s and '90s.

"We wanted to keep ours more obscure, things that hadn't been released to Westerners -- all our bizarre tastes," Williams says. "And Nimol's older sister enabled us to give names to all the songs. She was the No. 1 singer there through the '80s and she remembers all the voices."

As somber and heavy as that all might sound, the music is anything but. Rather, this album portrays a "golden age," even more striking for the horror that was to follow.

"What I think is interesting about the music is it doesn't depict a time of woe and sadness, but of prosperity and joy and parties," Williams says. "It's like a time when all of us think we can't be touched, living the high life. And the next you know we're mixing concrete in the streets to make a bunker. How quickly things can go from this flowering state of beauty to complete destruction -- horrific and humbling."

Of course, for Nimol it's a little more complicated and personal.

"This is like a new awakening for me," she says of hearing these songs and of her role with Dengue Fever bringing the spirit of that era back to life. "Was a sad time for my parents. Everything was forgotten."

Asked her pick of the bunch, Nimol says, "My favorite is the song that talks about a young girl waiting for the handsome guy."

"That's all the songs, Nimol!" Williams interjects.

"Some talk about bands and flowers and teenagers," she responds. "A lot talk about broken hears and break-ups. But I think my favorite song is 'Sneaha.'"

The choice is a good illustration of the era -- and it probably sounds familiar:

Pan Ron, 'Sneaha':

Yes, that's a version of the Cher hit 'Bang Bang,' sung here in Khmer by Pan Ron. You wonder if perhaps Quentin Tarantino had heard this one it might have made it into 'Kill Bill' rather than the Nancy Sinatra recording.

"I really like that one," Williams agrees. "It's just a cover of 'Bang Bang' but not even a cover. The lyrics are different. The melody's a little different. It's kind of what we've done with Dengue Fever in reverse. The song is beautiful, for one. Amazing production. But there, this way, they take this American music and just completely make it Cambodian. There's the melody and energy and all the psychedelics, but nothing remaining of the American familiarity."

And he stresses that neither 'Electric Cambodia' nor Dengue Fever's forays into the Cambodian pop catalog are meant to be taken as novelty or ironic offerings.

"For me, it's the other way around," he says. "We're trying to give respect back to the folks that influenced us. When the idea for the compilation came up, it was appealing, a way to show fans what influenced us and maybe open their eyes to dig deeper and find out more. And it allowed us to raise money for Cambodian Living Arts, which we've worked with in the past. So it's a way to shine light back on Cambodia."

Nimol says that it's a continuation of what she's seen happen since Dengue Fever plucked her out of regular club gigs singing standard pop music shortly after she emigrated in 2001 to the Long Beach, Calif., neighborhood known as Little Phnom Penh.

"I think a lot of people from Cambodia forgot -- the young teenagers don't know much of this music," she says. "I remember last year when we were on tour in New York and Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia, a lot of Cambodian people came to our show and enjoyed the music."

Williams adds, "There have been young people coming up to me of Cambodian heritage telling me, 'Wow, this is the first time I've listened to Cambodian music and I really loved it.' They'd be more into rock and hip-hop and R&B and say, 'My parents turned me on to you guys, but I'd never liked what my parents liked before.' Some of the kids and parents both are finding pride in music that comes from their own culture."

A particularly moving experience in shining the light came unexpectedly in late 2009 when Dengue Fever were invited to participate in, of all things, a Hanukkah celebration in Los Angeles.
"They did a lighting of the candles on the stage between bands," Williams says. "And Nimol went up and spoke about the Khmer Rouge and said she was lighting a candle for her ancestor people who perished under Pol Pot."

"That was a terrible time," Nimol says.

"Nimol cried," Williams continues. "And it took me by surprise. Later I got an e-mail from the organizer, a Jewish guy, who had never heard that there had been a genocide in Cambodia. That something so horrific and huge can be overlooked is remarkable." Read more!

Cambodia jails Swede for sex with adopted son

A Cambodian court has sentenced a Swedish man to six-and-a-half years in prison for having sex with three underaged boys, including his adopted son.

Judge Chhay Kong says Johan Brahim Escori, 62, was convicted on Tuesday on charges of illegal sexual intercourse with his nine-year-old adopted son and indecent acts with two other boys.

He also ordered Escori to pay a four million riel ($1040) fine and be expelled from Cambodia after serving his sentence.

Lax law enforcement and poverty have made Cambodia a prime destination for foreigners seeking sex with minors. But police working with social activists have stepped up efforts to fight the crime, and several foreigners are serving lengthy prison terms.

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Cambodia Takes to the Roads in Building Spree

By THOMAS FULLER


SIEM REAP, CAMBODIA — Bullet by bullet, workers removed the detritus of Cambodia’s past. They pulled 300 land mines and 30,000 rounds of ammunition from the red dirt and then laid down a thick layer of asphalt. Today, what would pass for a very ordinary road in wealthier parts of the world is precious pavement for a country motoring toward prosperity and trying to leave its bloody past behind.

Last month, the government inaugurated the newly refurbished Routes 5 and 6, both built during the French colonial era to connect the capital, Phnom Penh, with the Thai border.

Western Cambodia was the last holdout of the Khmer Rouge, the brutal regime toppled three decades ago. Rebel units held onto remote areas into the 1990s, skirmishing periodically with government forces and leaving the roads in total disrepair, a moonscape of potholes and mud that gave travelers sore backs and made for a crater-dodging, head-bumping ride.

Now enjoying the dividends of peace, Cambodia is halfway through a road-building spree with 10 projects totaling 1,173 kilometers, or 730 miles, of pavement still under way, said Prime Minister Hun Sen, who presided over the ceremony on Dec. 28. A further 11 major roads are under negotiation, he said.

The new roads make the storied temples of Angkor Wat a comfortable drive from the Thai border — and a short day’s drive from Bangkok. The roads also put more remote historic sites — in a country filled with them — within easy reach for tourists.

Roads are a big deal in Cambodia, and more than 5,000 villagers were summoned to attend the road’s official inauguration — farmers who arrived by bicycle, monks with freshly shaved heads, children in school uniforms. Organizers stenciled messages onto large banners strung across the canopy that gave shade from the searing sun: “Where there are bridges and roads there is hope.”

Cambodia’s road-building program is now taking “elephant steps, not mouse steps,” Mr. Hun Sen told the crowd.

Like the North-South Expressway in peninsular Malaysia, the American-built Friendship Road across Thailand’s northeast and the vast network of roads built by China over the past decade, roads are a key milestone of development in Asia.

For Cambodia, in particular, good roads help bring together a country fractured by civil war.

“This section was a very heavy battlefield,” said Pheng Sovicheano, the project manager of the road to the Thai border.

Mr. Pheng Sovicheano, who is also Cambodia’s deputy director general for public works, knows firsthand how bad the road was. During construction his driver drove into what looked like a large muddy pothole but turned out to be a small pond, flooding the car up to his chest.

Now, as a measure of Cambodia’s national reconciliation, some of the 360 workers Mr. Pheng Sovicheano hired to build the road were former Khmer Rouge soldiers.

Roads are expensive — $350,000 per kilometer for the road to the Thai border. But with many countries jockeying for influence in Cambodia the government appears to have no trouble finding financing. China is building a number of roads here, including one that passes through the former Khmer Rouge stronghold of Pailin.

Route 5 and Route 6 were financed with a low-interest, 32-year loan by the Asian Development Bank in Manila, an institution whose largest shareholders are Japan and the United States. South Korea is financing other road projects.

Mr. Hun Sen seems to enjoy playing these donors off each other. In his speech he chided the Asian Development Bank for its sluggish and bureaucratic two-year bidding process and praised the speed of Chinese projects.

“I compliment the way the Chinese companies work — very fast,” Mr. Hun Sen said, pointedly glancing over at the representative from the Asian Development Bank.

Political ties between Thailand and Cambodia have been strained by a territorial dispute near a 900-year-old mountaintop temple, Preah Vihear, but officials made no mention of the troubles.

Economic ties endure: By the end of this year western Cambodia will have three good roads leading to Thailand, connections that the government hopes will increase trade and investment. Western Cambodia gets most of its electricity from Thailand, and the company that built the road to the border, S.P.T. Civil Group, is based in Thailand. (The company has ties to Thaksin Shinawatra, the Thai prime minister deposed in the military coup of 2006 who last year was named Mr. Hun Sen’s economic adviser.)

The new roads will make it easier for Thai companies to sell more cement, instant noodles and other products across the border. For Japanese companies, the roads will link the supply chains of factories in Bangkok and in Ho Chi Minh City.

And for villagers in western Cambodia, it may help lift rock-bottom incomes.

Yong Da, a 39-year-old deliveryman in the town of Kralanh, has more than doubled his income because of the new road. “The road was bumpy, and I could not take much stuff on my motorcycle,” he said. He now makes $2.50 a day, up from a dollar a day.

The sheets of dust that enveloped the roadside are also gone, and villagers say their children no longer have trouble breathing.

Good roads and the end of the civil war have allowed villagers to take back the night. Travel after dark was discouraged two decades ago because of poor security and the perils of bad pavement.

But with modernity comes another type of danger. Mr. Pheng Sovicheano says he was driving to Phnom Penh one night recently when he came upon a road accident.

A young man had been killed on his motorcycle when he rammed into the back of a poorly lighted truck. The boy’s distraught mother blamed the good road, Mr. Pheng Sovicheano remembers.

“She said, ‘Before, when there were bad roads, he never drove this fast.”’


Read more!

Authorities: NY Man Drugged Child, Took Nude Photos

PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA (WPIX) - A New York man is facing charges that he drugged a 12-year-old girl in Cambodia and took pornographic pictures of her.

51-year-old Ronald A. Adams, 51, was arrested at his seaside home in Cambodia Friday after the girl's mother filed a complaint, said Deputy police chief of Preah Sihanouk Province Chor Heng. He was holding a passport indicating he was from New York.

Adams could be brought up on rape charges if testing confirms he physically abused the girl, said Provincial prosecutor You Tith Vattanak. The initial charges could lead to at least 10 years in jail.
Police said Adams, who runs a small restaurant, has lived 115 miles southwest of Phnom Penh for at least two years.

Cambodian law enforcement has recently been working harder to prevent foreigners from using their nation as a prime target for those seeking sex with minors. Lengthy prison terms have been doled out to foreigners caught in the act. Read more!

Building Cambodia's Roads

The New York Times reported on Monday that since the end of the tumultuous civil war in Cambodia, the government has been working to rebuild and enhance the country's inadequate road system. This move will not only improve the quality of life for Cambodians, but will help to boost its tourism industry.

The rise in road construction began last month with the inauguration of Routes 5 and 6, which connect the capital, Phnom Penh and the Thai border.

"Now enjoying the dividends of peace, Cambodia is halfway through a road-building spree with 10 projects totally 1,173 kilometers, or 730 miles, of pavement still under way, said Prime Minister Hun Sen..." the Times reported.

The system of roads will help bring together popular destinations, such as Angkor Wat, and other historic sites, which were once more difficult to get to. Travel throughout the country will be much easier, as well.

Read more!

Introduction to the Martial Arts in Southeast Asia and Oceania

The sheer diversity of cultures in Southeast Asia and Oceania has played a large part in the evolution of martial arts in the region. At the same time, a wealth of religious practices-including shamanism, Christianity, Islam, Sikhism, Hinduism, and, in particular, Buddhism-have all contributed to the philosophical underpinnings of indigenous, imported, and hybrid art forms. These have been influenced by Chinese traditions and martial arts, and have flowered into a wide-ranging catalogue of fighting : systems, each with its own distinct flavor and cultural identity.

Some martial-arts traditions in the region, such as amis and kali, have provided the inspiration for other, more modern arts. For example, today there are more than 800 schools across Indonesia’s 13,000 islands teaching the indigenous martial art pencak silat and the majority of them teach different styles. In the Philippines, eskrima contains a multitude of stick-fighting, knife-fighting, and empty-hand techniques that were developed in the past, but which have been adapted to cope with the risks and dangers of modern life on the country’s mean city streets.

Southeast Asian arts range from full-contact aggression to a more gentle focus on self-development. For example, muay Thai, the direct and effective kickboxing sport that uses elbows and knees, is a simple yet brutal art. In contrast, the Myanmarian art of pongyi thaing is nonviolent and stresses Hindu and Buddhist principles in an attempt to develop a practitioner’s mind, body, and spirit. Those who practice the ancient Myanmarian art of bando yoga seek to cultivate their health-and in former times their readiness for battle-by defending themselves against both armed attack from without and internal disease from within, leading to a more peaceful existence free from confrontation and conflict. This philosophical concept was captured succinctly by the legendary Bruce Lee when he said: “If you don’t fight, you cannot lose.”

The past meets the present

Many of the older indigenous martial-art forms in Southeast Asia were practiced alongside music, dance, and drama. These traditions live on today, although in a slightly different form. For example, muay thai practitioners engage in a dancelike ritual before they fight to protect themselves and hex their opponent during a bout. The fight itself is always accompanied by hypnotic and distinctive music. In Indonesia and Malaysia, silat is often practiced to a musical accompaniment and often features in folk dramas.

Renewed life

As nations and their people in the region emerge from years of conflict and suppression, traditional martial arts have begun to flower once again. Cambodia’s ancient martial-art traditions can be seen in the figures that adorn the temples of Angkor Wat, which dates back to the 12th century CE. The arts in Myanmar are mostly animal-based techniques and have survived with relatively little influence from the other modern sporting arts in the region. Many styles of thaing-the generic term for defense or all-out fighting systems in Myanmar-are largely based on grappling and striking. Lethwei, a traditional Myanmarian sport similar to muay Thai, has been practiced in Myanmar for centuries and continues to grow in popularity.

Jingoistic trends

Throughout Vietnam’s turbulent history, both culturally and philosophically, the country’s Chinese-influenced martial arts were never standardized. Instead they were primarily passed along family lines and, during the French occupation from 1859 to 1954, were driven underground. They are now enjoying a reemergence and many have strong nationalistic elements, such as vovinam, which was founded in 1938 as a Vietnamese martial art for Vietnamese people.

Martial arts “down under”

In Oceania, most of the ancient fighting techniques and systems not only use simple weapons, such as stones, slingshots, and sticks, but also metal spears, swords, and other bladed weapons. Mau rakau, the traditional Maori martial art, is of particular interest. The art is seen as being a useful way of cultivating self-discipline and social responsibility and practitioners often have to endure painful tattooing as a rite of passage to warriorhood. A number of hybrid martial arts have evolved in Australia and New Zealand, especially during the early 1970s when the martial-arts craze reached its zenith and films and television series featured central characters who were skilled in combat or self-defense techniques. Many of these arts remain popular today. Read more!

The big issue: Malcolm Caldwell A carefully redesigned version of history

Andrew Anthony's reason for his bitter denunciation of Malcolm Caldwell over 30 years after he was murdered in Cambodia, he explains, is to ensure "that we don't forget history". ("Lost in Cambodia", Magazine) A certain version of history, that is: one carefully redesigned in the interests of power.

Caldwell's fate, Anthony suggests, may have resulted from his failure to read Francois Ponchaud's "Cambodia Year Zero" because of my review of the book (Chomsky and Edward Herman, June 1977) – which recommended it as "serious and worth reading." An odd reaction. Anthony also omits Ponchaud's reaction to the review. In the preface to the English translation a year later, Ponchaud opens by referring to my praise for his book, and praises me in turn for "the responsible attitude and precision of thought" in everything I had written about the topic, including this review and extensive personal correspondence, which led to the discovery of many serious errors in his book, corrected in the translation.

Note that I am referring to the American edition. Ponchaud's preface to the British edition, dated the same day, is identical except that he replaces these passages with the charge that I denounced his book and rejected its conclusions. And he left the errors uncorrected. Evidently, Ponchaud believed that in England he could get away with anything, as Anthony is keen to demonstrate.

Anthony claims further that we denied the refugee testimony on which Ponchaud relied – in our words, his "grisly account of what refugees have reported to him about the barbarity of their treatment at the hands of the Khmer Rouge". We raised no question at all about his sources, though elsewhere we did reiterate Ponchaud's position that "the accounts of refugees are indeed to be used with great care" and showed that others had violated this familiar truism.

Anthony charges that I "compared Ponchaud's work unfavourably with another book, Cambodia: Starvation and Revolution, written by George Hildebrand and Gareth Porter, which cravenly rehashed the Khmer Rouge's most outlandish lies to produce a picture of a kind of radical bucolic idyll." We did, indeed, draw one (and only one) comparison between the two books. Ponchaud claimed that 200,000 people were killed in American bombings from March to August 1973, mentioning an unidentified Cambodian report. Hildebrand and Porter's study cites such a report, which refers however to killed and wounded. Anthony raises no objection to this: apparently it is legitimate to cite sources to refute undocumented charges against the US.

The Hildebrand-Porter book was concerned almost entirely with the period before the Khmer Rouge takeover, and was written much too early for more than a few words about the aftermath. A serious commentary on their work is provided by George Kahin, the leading US Southeast Asian scholar, in his introduction to it. As he observes, they "provide what is undoubtedly the best informed and clearest picture yet to emerge of the desperate economic problems" resulting largely from the American bombing, with Phnom Penh and other urban centers overflowing with peasant refugees and facing starvation as much of the countryside had been destroyed. Almost the entire book is devoted to detailed documentation of this shocking tragedy, which explains US intelligence predictions after the fall of Phnom Penh "that 1 million Cambodians will die in the next twelve months" (Far Eastern Economic Review, 25 July 1975).

None of this is granted entry into Anthony's version of "history." Nor is the revelation by Cambodia scholars Taylor Owen and Ben Kiernan three years ago that the US bombing of rural Cambodia was actually at five times the horrendous level previously reported, greater than all allied bombing in all theaters in World War II, and "drove an enraged populace into the arms" of the previously marginal Khmer Rouge, setting the stage for the horrors that followed.

Had he chosen, Anthony could have found accounts of Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge that provide at least minimal support for his farcical rant about Hildebrand-Porter. For example, a description of the "genuine egalitarian revolution" with a new "spirit of responsibility" and "inventiveness" that "represents a revolution in the traditional mentality" as "the people of Kampuchea are now making a thousand-year old dream come true" and taking new pride in their constructive work. But these observations by Francois Ponchaud would not conform to his agenda.

The rest proceeds in much the same vein. The only reason to waste even a moment on such a performance is that it encapsulates so well the common technique of apologetics for the crimes for which one shares responsibility. It would not do to deny the crimes outright; that exposes them to view and undermines pretensions of liberal ideals. The first and most crucial principle is therefore to evade our own crimes. Next, vilify the messenger, to ensure that unwanted history is forgotten. And finally, vilify those who dare to refute charges against official enemies, thus preserving the right to posture heroically about their real or alleged crimes without concern for such impediments as fact and uncertainty. Add a few appropriate rhetorical touches and the concoction is ready to serve, a tasty morsel in some circles.

Noam Chomsky

Lexington MA

■ It was clear to anyone who knew Caldwell and who saw his films and photographs from Cambodia that he was not blind to what was going on. From my knowledge of him, there was no doubt he was a Marxist, but he valued freedom of speech, intellectual exchange and open discussion and was not blind to the negative side of developments in the then socialist regimes.

Ian J Stones

Beijing

■ It was good to be reminded of the life and work of Malcolm Caldwell, once my good friend and political ally, but your account failed to take account of the peculiarity of his theoretical interests nor of the nature of the times.

Malcolm was a revolutionary leftist, but not a Marxist. He drew his inspiration from the French Physiocrats of the 1760s and from the writings of the 19th-century German economist Friedrich List. Malcolm believed these neglected thinkers provided a model for third world development and he imagined that Pol Pot's French-educated economists were kindred spirits.

He was also politically active when the Americans were conducting genocidal operations in Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia and elsewhere in south-east Asia. As a result, he believed it was a duty to support all revolutionary movements in the region, regardless of the nature of their project. The full extent of the violence inflicted on Cambodia during the Pol Pot years was not known during Malcolm's lifetime, but the comparable damage caused by the US, now largely ignored, was an ever-present reality.

Richard Gott

London W11

■ I was disappointed to see an article about my uncle Malcolm used to peddle a smear linking anti-imperialism and Marxism to "communist terror".

I did not share Malcolm's views on Pol Pot, but I would welcome his voice were he around today against the terrors being visited upon the peoples of Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine.

Sue Caldwell

London N15

■ What a fantastic piece by Andrew Anthony on Malcolm Caldwell. I don't think I have read a more interesting article in any Sunday newspaper for many years. What an irony that, as Anthony revealed, the current UN representative on the victims of Pol Pot should be what we should now call a "self-confessed" Marxist.

Matthew Scott

Bath Read more!

Bring troops home from Afghanistan

Before plunging deeper into the Afghanistan quagmire, we should consider a lesson from our Vietnam debacle. After sacrificing 58,000 American lives and millions of Vietnamese, to stop the “dominoes” from falling into the Communist camp, we lost the war, only to discover we were better off losing the war than winning it.

After Vietnam’s guerrilla forces drove American forces out of their country, the dominoes fell against each other: Communist China against Communist Russia, Communist Vietnam against China and Communist Cambodia. Blinded by our monolithic anticommunist ideology, Washington ignored the historical hostilities dividing the communist world. The bond uniting our enemies was not communism, but a common enemy—America; and when that bond shattered, their divisions surfaced with a vengeance.

How many more lives, American and Arab, will we sacrifice before learning that winning or losing in Afghanistan has little relevance to crushing al-Qaida when those terrorists can attack Americans from many other places in the globe? More effective, should President Obama act as an honest broker for the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, removing a major source of anti-American hostility in the Middle East, he would land a far more powerful blow than sending more Americans into the bloody quicksands of Afghanistan.

Edward Cuddy

Kenmore Read more!

US Senator Jim Webb makes quick stop in Cambodia on Asian tour

Phnom Penh - US Senator Jim Webb made a lightning visit to Cambodia on Tuesday as part of a regional trip designed to 'invigorate the relationship' between the United States and..

Phnom Penh - US Senator Jim Webb made a lightning visit to Cambodia on Tuesday as part of a regional trip designed to 'invigorate the relationship' between the United States and South-East Asian nations. Webb is in the region in his capacity as chairman of the Sub-Committee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs for the US Senate's Foreign Relations Committee.

His trip takes in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. At a press conference in Phnom Penh on Tuesday ahead of a scheduled meeting with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, Webb was asked about the ongoing crackdown by the Cambodian government against its opponents. The question followed a strong European Union statement issued earlier in August in which the EU warned that the government's actions could narrow Cambodia's democratic space.

Webb would not be drawn on whether or how the US would exert pressure on Phnom Penh to respect democratic rights, saying only that the US wants to do 'what we can to encourage political diversity in Cambodia.' 'As a part of my visit here I met with the leaders of two of the opposition groups to hear their views, and we had [a] discussion with respect to the issues that you mentioned, and we will continue to listen to people from all sides,' Webb said. 'I listened in great detail to the concerns of the two opposition leaders on that topic.' He was more forthcoming on the Trade Act of 2009, a measure introduced by Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein to provide duty-free access to the US market for garments made in 14 least-developed countries.

Cambodia, whose economically vital garment industry has been battered over the past year, would benefit from the passage of the bill. However the legislation is currently languishing in the US Senate. 'That issue was the subject of a pretty lengthy discussion with the minister of commerce, and I committed to him that we'll take a very close look at the legislation,' Webb said. Webb said one key concern is that labour standards in beneficiary countries should meet international standards.

'It's very important to the Democratic Party in the United States to make sure we have a fair playing field among our workers and workers overseas,' he explained. 'That being said, the minister made a very compelling case for us to look at that legislation and we will do that when we get back.' Webb leaves Cambodia later on Tuesday headed to Vietnam.

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U.N. special rapporteur to make second visit to Cambodia

PHNOM PENH, A special rapporteur of the United Nations is planned to make his second visit to Cambodia next week, according to the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on Saturday.

In a statement released on Saturday, the OHCHR said Surya Prasad Subedi, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia, will visit Cambodia on Jan. 18-30.

This is his second mission to Cambodia. "He intends to use the visit to examine the functioning of the National Assembly and judiciary, including the Supreme Council of Magistracy and the Constitutional Council," the statement said.

His objective is to conduct an analysis of how these institutions work, and the extent to which they provide citizens recourse and remedy for breaches of their rights.

The Special Rapporteur is an independent expert appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council to follow and report on the human rights situation in Cambodia.

His task is to assess the human rights situation, report publicly about it, and work with the Government, civil society and others to foster international cooperation in this field.
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Stop repatriation of refugees in Thailand, Cambodia

More than five dozen civil society groups in the region have released a joint statement calling for the principle of non-refoulement to be upheld and for an end to the recent forced deportations of the Uighurs from Cambodia and the Lao Hmong from Thailand.

We, the undersigned, condemn the actions in the last days of 2009 of some Asian governments in requesting, encouraging and performing the forcible deportation (refoulement) of refugees and asylum seekers from Cambodia and Thailand.

We demand that all governments in the Asia-Pacific region reaffirm the importance of the principle of non-refoulement of asylum seekers and refugees.

We further call on these governments and all governments in the Asia-Pacific region to resolve to make 2010 a year in which the basic rights of refugees and asylum seekers are recognised, including the fundamental principle of non-refoulement.

Uighurs from Cambodia

On 19 December 2009, in advance of a visit by Vice President Xi Jinping of China, the government of Cambodia forcibly repatriated 20 ethnic Uighur asylum seekers to China, before their claims for asylum had been fully examined. The forced repatriation occurred despite the protests of the international community, including the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and civil society. Cambodia is a signatory to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.

Human rights groups, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have reported that Uighurs, a Turkic-speaking ethnic minority, predominantly Muslim and living mostly in western China, are facing various forms of mistreatment and persecution which has intensified since the crackdown by the Chinese government that followed the July 2009 riots in Urumqi.

China thanked the Cambodian government for the forced repatriation and two days later signed 14 commercial deals with Cambodia worth approximately US$1 billion.

Amnesty International has documented past cases of Uighur asylum seekers forcibly returned to China who were detained, reportedly tortured and, in some cases, sentenced to death and executed.

Lao Hmong from Thailand

On 28 December 2009, the government of Thailand forcibly repatriated to Laos about 4,000 Lao Hmong from Huay Nam Khao camp in Phetchabun as well as 158 Lao Hmong detained in the Nong Khai Immigration Detention Centre since November 2006. Amongst them were 87 children, some born in detention. The 158 Lao Hmong were recognised by the UNHCR as being in need of international protection; they had already been accepted for resettlement by several countries but had been denied departure from Thailand. The UNHCR was not permitted access to the larger group in Huay Nam Khao camp in Phetchabun to determine their status.

In a statement dated 31 December 2009 protesting these deportations, the Special Rapporteur on Torture, Manfred Nowak, stated, “the fact that no independent and reliable pre-screening mechanism is in place to assess whether these individuals would be at risk of torture violates international human rights norms.” This statement was jointly released with the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Migrants, Jorge A. Bustamante,

Until now, no NGO or UN agencies have been granted access to monitor the deportees back in Laos.

In recent years, forcibly repatriated Lao Hmong have been subject to disappearance, imprisonment, forced re-education, and physical and sexual assault. The Hmong population has been subject to persecution by Lao authorities, including arbitrary arrests and detention, and the suppression of religious freedom.

Principle of non-refoulement

We remind the governments of China, Cambodia, Laos and Thailand and other governments in the Asia-Pacific region that under international law, the forcible deportation (refoulement) of an individual to a place where they will be exposed to a real risk of serious harm is absolutely forbidden under both customary international law and under the treaty provisions of the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

We also remind these governments that under the terms of the Charter of the United Nations, the Statute of the UNHCR and the terms of the memoranda of agreement that they have signed with the the UNHCR that they are bound to cooperate with it and to facilitate its efforts to ensure access and the protection of refugees.

We recall the numerous Conclusions on International Protection of the Executive Committee of the UNHCR, of which the governments of China and Thailand are members, which call on states to “scrupulously respect the principle of non-refoulement”. We further recall that the Executive Committee adopted these conclusions by consent and that the governments of China and Thailand have on multiple occasions agreed to abide by them.

Therefore, we, the undersigned, call on the following governments to take the following specific actions:

The government of Cambodia:

To recognise the right to seek asylum of all Uighur asylum seekers;
To cease their refoulement before a proper determination of their status; and
To abide by their obligations as a state party to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, its 1967 Protocol, as well as the 1984 Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

The government of China:

To provide the UNHCR with access to forcibly repatriated Uighur asylum seekers;
To cease making demands of other Asian states to forcibly repatriate asylum seekers; and
To abide by their obligations as a state party to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, its 1967 Protocol, as well as the 1984 Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

The government of Thailand:

To recognise the right to seek asylum of all Lao Hmong refugees and asylum seekers;
To cease the refoulement of the Lao Hmong;
To issue exit permits to those Lao Hmong who have been accepted for resettlement in third countries; and
To abide by their obligations as a state party to the 1984 Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

The government of Laos:

To provide the UNHCR access to forcibly repatriated Lao Hmong;
To cease making demands of other Asian states to forcibly repatriate asylum seekers;
To make all necessary arrangements for those individuals who had already been accepted for resettlement in a third country prior to their return to Laos to be expeditiously processed and depart from Laos.

All governments in the Asia-Pacific region:

To respect the fundamental principle of non-refoulement;
To cease requesting, condoning, cooperating with, carrying out or otherwise allowing the refoulement of asylum seekers and refugees, and
To respect the principle that the granting of asylum is a peaceful and humanitarian act and should not be regarded as an unfriendly act by any state.
We call on all governments in the Asia-Pacific region to resolve to fully respect the rights of all refugees and asylum seekers under international law as of 2010, including by renouncing the practice of refoulement.

(Released: 14 January 2010)

This statement was written by members of the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN) and has been endorsed by the following organisations:

Australia
1. Amnesty International Australia
2. Australian National Committee on Refugee Women
3. Centre for Refugee Research
4. Refugee Council of Australia
5. Survivors of Torture and Trauma Assistance and Rehabilitation Service of South Australia

Bangladesh
6. Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK)
7. Odhikar
8. Ovibashi Karmi Unnayan Program (OKUP)

Cambodia
9. Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC)
10. Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO)
11. Khmer Kampuchea Krom Human Rights Association (KKKHRA)
12. The Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC)

Canada
13. Canadian Council for Refugees
14. Fellowship Christian Reformed Church Refugee Committee
15. Quaker Committee for Refugees

Egypt
16. Egyptian Foundation for Refugee Rights

Hong Kong
17. Amnesty International Hong Kong
18. Hong Kong Refugee Advice Centre

Indonesia
19. Human Rights Working Group - Indonesia
20. Lembaga Bantuan Hukum Jakarta (The Jakarta Legal Aid Institute)

Japan
21. Amnesty International Japan

Lebanon
22. Frontiers Ruwad Association

Malaysia
23. Aliran Kesedaran Negara
24. Amnesty International Malaysia
25. Bar Council of Malaysia
26. Health Equity Initiatives
27. Kumpulan ACTS Berhad
28. Parti Sosialis Malaysia
29. Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM)
30. The National Human Rights Society (HAKAM)

Nepal
31. INHURED International

New Zealand
32. Amnesty International New Zealand
33. New Zealand National Refugee Network

Pakistan
34. Pakistan International Human Rights Organization

Philippines
35. Amnesty International Philippines
36. Centre for Migrant Advocacy

South Africa
37. Lawyers for Human Rights

South Korea
38. Korean Public Interest Lawyers Group (GONGGAM)
39. Korean House for International Solidarity

Sri Lanka
40. South Asian Network for Refugees, IDPs & Migrants, Sri Lanka (SANRIM)

Switzerland
41. Tibetan UN Advocacy (TUNA)

Taiwan
42. Taiwan Association for Human Rights

Thailand
43. Amnesty International Thailand
44. US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants – Thailand

Turkey
45. Helsinki Citizens' Assembly Refugee Advocacy and Support Program

United Kingdom
46. Christian Solidarity Worldwide
47. The Equal Rights Trust

United States of America
48. Citizens Against Trafficking
49. Defense Forum Foundation
50.Jubilee Campaign

Regional/International
51. Advocates International
52. Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD)
53. Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD)
54. Borneo Child Aid Society/ Humana
55. Caram Asia
56. Chin Human Rights Organization
57. Christian Solidarity Worldwide - Southeast Asia
58. Committee for Asian Women
59. ESCR-Asia
60. Fahamu Refugee Programme, Fahamu Trust
61. Forum Asia
62. Human Rights Without Frontiers
63. International Detention Coalition
64. International Women's Rights Action Watch Asia Pacific
65.Pax Romana
66. The Arakan Project
67. UNANIMA International
68. Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organisation (UNPO) Read more!

Asians to watch

MANILA, Philippines—The Year of the White Tiger is said to be characterized by conflict and significant changes. As the world steps right into the new year, AsiaNews listed personalities from politics to business who deserve attention this year.

Who among them will create conflict or bring about change?

AsiaNews is the newsmagazine of Asia News Network, a group of 21 newspapers, including the Philippine Daily Inquirer, in 18 countries.

Because of limited space, Talk of the Town cannot feature the others listed by AsiaNews.

They are opposition leader Nawaz Sharif of Pakistan, former Prime Minister Puhspa Kamal Dahal of Nepal, Deputy Prime Minister Somsavat Lengsavad of Laos, Kim Jong-eun of North Korea, former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad of Malaysia, Finance Secretary Sri Mulyani of Indonesia, Chief Justice Sonam Tobgye of Bhutan, lawyer Kyi Win of Burma, Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia, the third generation offspring of Korea’s chaebol founders and businessman Tsai Eng Meng of Taiwan.

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Tasting Cambodia Ecotourism with TourismIndochina.com

Ecotourism development is an emerging trend being developed for responsible tourists. Ecotourism is a current diversified form of tourism contributed to national economic growth.

Jan 15, 2010 – Ecotourism development is an emerging trend being developed for responsible tourists. Ecotourism is a current diversified form of tourism contributed to national economic growth. A new form of ecotourism development drives local community to a next stage to local livelihood improvement through alternative income, diversified job, capacity building and community empowerment.

Ecotourism development in Cambodian has been progressively developed in the northeastern area, where fabulous of biological species, life style and charming alongside region of the Mekong River, is not yet completely explored. With ecotourism development, community no longer predominantly depend on previous occupation, especially agricultural productivity, but having more opportunity to gain operational skills for ecotourism demands. Tourist involvement in ecotourism activities operated by local community is an act of stepping forwards to poverty alleviation responding to one of main millennium development goals. (Where to go in Cambodia: http://www.tourismindochina.com/attractionsite.htm)

With a wide variety of natural creational activities, you can enjoy cycling, trekking, boating, viewing landscape, and involving with local livelihood activities like agricultural activities which will immerse you a real combination of communities’ life experiences and natural tourism in Cambodia, a Kingdom of yet explored. Through accurate ecotourism activities, negative impact will be minimize, environmental and cultural experiences and respect will be built, experiences for both hosts and visitor will be provided, financial benefit will be contributed to conservation, community empowerment will be enhanced , and sensitivity of host environmental, political, social climate will be raised.

Cambodian communities are warm-hearted, friendly, and helpful. Tasting ecotourism and other types of tourism Cambodia is looking to serve, you will feel like you make your self at home as we greet you as resident and evoke you to revisit as family. Will you enjoy tasting ecotourism in The Kingdom of Wonder? Why not! We, Bayon Heritage Travel and Tours (More about Bayon Heritage Travel and Tours: http://www.tourismindochina.com/), could drive you to taste the environmental friendly and responsible tourism with our hard working colleagues committed to ensure your quality experience via good packages provision. Waiting no more to see a charming and yet explored of the Southeast Asia. More details: http://www.tourismindochina.com/cambodia/news/Tasting-Ca%20...

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Cambodian Senate approves expropriation law

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia's Expropriation Law was approved by the Senate on Thursday with 50 votes in favor among 52 senators present, official news agency AKP reported on Friday.

The law will allow authorities to withdraw legal ownership on land and other immovable properties for public development purposes and building infrastructure to serve the national benefit.

Through the law, an expropriation institution will be formed which is composed of an expropriation committee conducted by Ministry of Economy and Finance and its sub-committees at municipal and provincial levels, Chea Cheth, chairman of financing, banking and auditing commission, was quoted as saying on the Senate floor.

An independent evaluation commission or agency for land and immovable properties is formed so that the compensation is able to be paid to owners according to the land market prices, he said.

The law will be used for contribution to implementing the royal government's rectangular strategy for infrastructure rehabilitation and construction toward the national development, as well as the promotion of the Cambodian people's living, mainly poverty reduction and the creation of investment opportunity in the country, he added.

The draft law will come into effect when signed by His Majesty King Norodom Sihamoni.
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Cambodia cautions TVs and radios on religious broadcast

The Cambodian government has ordered all televisions and radios to not broadcast or air any comments that insult religious beliefs of other religion, according to an advisory, obtained Friday from Information Ministry.

In an advisory sent out this week to all televisions and radio stations across the country, the Ministry of Information said recently that there was one radio station airing comment saying only Christians who always distribute relief stuff to prisoners, the victims by typhoon and flood or earthquakes.

The advisory which was signed by Khieu Kanharith, Minister of Information said Buddhists are in great help of others when they are in need.

The advisory, however, said it was fine any televisions and radio to broadcast and air anything relating to all kinds of religions, but not to insult others.

It noted with appreciation that many programs that touch on religious affairs that help the society through the respect of morality, culture and tradition.

As many as 90 percent of 14 million Cambodian populations are Buddhists whereas the rest are Christians, Muslims as well as other ethnic believers.

According to Cambodian constitution, Buddhism is the state religion.

Source: Xinhua Read more!

Cambodia reinforces Thailand border amid simmering tensions

Cambodian soldiers stand guard near the Preah Vihear temple in Preah Vihear province on October 14, 2008. Cambodia says it plans to reinforce the border. [AFP]

Liam Cochrane, Alex Khun

Cambodia is reinforcing its border with Thailand, establishing new villages full of soldiers, building roads and buying new equipment.

The strengthened military presence is part of an ongoing dispute over land surrounding the Preah Vihear temple on the Cambodia-Thailand border.

The 12th century temple has been the site of numerous violent clashes between the two countries in recent years.

Cambodia's Ministry of Defence made the announcement and said the program was necessary for national protection.

It says the military bulwark is part of a five-year plan, with work already underway on five new villages that will be populated with soldiers.

Preah Vihear program officer for the Wildlife Conservation Society, Tan Setha has witnessed the flurry of new construction activity.

"At the moment I can see the government establish some new village for the army family along the border."

It's believed a total of 14 new villages will eventually be established at a cost of hundreds of millions of US dollars.

A multi-ministerial committee, headed by former Phnom Penh governor and long-time Preah Vihear supporter, Chea Sophara, is driving the development.

Development

Cambodia is clearing land along the heavily-mined border so new infrastructures can be built to sustain the permanent relocation of soldiers and their families.

Heng Ratana, from the Cambodian Center for Mine Action says more than 300 de-miners are clearing land for the first five new villages being built for soldiers and their families.

"In Preah Vihear province, we've deploy more than 300 de-miners there to support demining activity which [has] tasks prioritised by local community and provincial community there."

"Our team is clearing a number of areas for supporting their development activity there, such as building new schools, new roads, irrigation system and so on."

The plan comes amid ongoing tension between Cambodia and Thailand over who owns 4.6 square kilometres of land surrounding the ruins of Preah Vihear.

Since July 2008 there have been several deadly clashes on the border and troops from both sides are prepared for a long standoff.

The paved road that leads from the Thai side to the foot of the temple, gives Thailand a distinct military advantage over Cambodia where dirt roads are full of pot holes, making the movement of troops and equipment difficult.

But that looks set to change, with this major investment to boost the number of Cambodian troops in the area and enhance their capacity to respond to any future incidents.

The troubled relationship between the two countries have been recently inflamed by Cambodia appointing former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra as an economic advisor.

It's understood Mr Thaksin will make his next visit to Cambodia later this month.

Read more!

Security Concerns Hampered FBI in 1997 Investigation

By Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer
Original report from Washington


A security threat to an FBI agent in 1997 and concerns over US cooperation with Cambodia put a grenade attack investigation on hold, according to recent media reports.

The agent, Tom Nicoletti, was sent to Cambodia to look into the attack, on an opposition rally, which killed sixteen people and wounded more than 100 others, including an American citizen.

Nicoletti, who is now retired, told the English-language Cambodia Daily that by the time he left Cambodia, the evidence he had collected was not up to US standards for prosecution. He had planned to return, he said in e-mails to the newspaper, but an unfavorable situation in the country prevented it.

Nicoletti said he had been pulled out of Cambodia for fear he may be the target of attacks for his investigation, which pointed toward possible collusion in the attack on opposition leader Sam Rainsy by members of then-second prime minister Hun Sen’s bodyguard unit.

The FBI produced nine sketches of three suspects, including Kong Samrith, also known as Brazil. In report released to the Cambodian Daily following a Freedom of Information request, the FBI said its investigation had been hampered and that agents had difficulty discerning which witnesses were telling the truth.

One witness told FBI investigators he saw a line of Hun Sen bodyguards allow two grenade-throwers to pass as they fled the carnage of the scene in front of Wat Botum, near what was then the National Assembly building.

The witness “pursued but was prevented from heading towards the wat and nearby CPP headquarters,” according to the report. “As he turned, he was kicked by the soldiers and knocked to the ground.”

However, in another interview, one of Hun Sen’s bodyguards gave a different account, according to recordings posted on www.cambodiagrenade.info. In an interview with another investigator in the case, Peter Hoffman, the bodyguard denied such an incident took place.

“When the grenade throwers were running toward your position, how many people were chasing them?” Hoffman asked the unnamed witness, who answered through a translator.

“I have no intention to count how many people [were] chasing the throwers, and I have no knowledge that those people were the grenade throwers,” the witness replied.

“Do you have good eyesight?” Hoffman asked.

“No, no problem with the eyes. The reason is that there are a lot of demonstrators.”

“So three or four people throw grenades into a crowd,” Hoffman asked, “and you didn’t see anything?”

“I see nothing.”

Ultimately, the FBI investigation became inactive and failed to identify the perpetrators.

“The Cambodian police could finish the investigation any time they want,” said Brad Adams, Asia director of Human Rights Watch. “They would have sufficient information in their files. They just choose not to do it. Maybe because they don’t want to do it, and maybe because they are afraid of Hun Sen.”

Khieu Sopheak, a spokesman for the Ministry of Interior, denied police were unwilling to pick up the case.

“We lost track when we lost Brazil,” he said, referring to one of the suspects. “At the time, it was chaotic, and Brazil died for no reason in a camp of a political party that I prefer not to name.”

He was referring to bloody street fighting between the Cambodian People’s Party, led by Hun Sen, and Funcinpec, led by Prince Norodom Ranariddh, in a coup that took place months after the grenade attack, July 5 and July 6.

Khieu Sopheak also blamed FBI agent Nicoletti for failing in the case.

“What Tom Nicoletti did was not professional,” Khieu Sopheak said. “He was assigned to conduct the investigation, but could not solve it. Once he concluded a case, he just kept it.”

“The FBI agent was very stupid,” said Mok Chito, who is now head of the criminal police division and was head of Phnom Penh penal police when the attack took place. “He does not know how to investigate. He sometimes listened to other people without knowing [who the subject was]. I remember that in one of its reports, the FBI said I was Hun Sen’s nephew and was chief of municipal police.”

Rights group and families of the victims have insisted that the FBI come back and conclude
their investigation to bring those responsible to court.

“I cannot speculate on what the FBI may or may not do in the future regarding this case,” John Johnson, a spokesman for the US Embassy, said in an e-mail. “I can only say that their original investigation was inconclusive and the US Prosecutor’s Office declined to pursue the case.”

He referred further questions to the FBI in Washington, who have not responded to written questions.

The FBI said in its 1997 report a continued investigation could threaten cooperation with Cambodia, but Adams, of Human Rights Watch, said the investigation should be concluded.

“The US doesn’t need Cambodia,” he said. “Cambodia needs the US, and I think the US should remember that. China is an increasing power, but not a superpower, and the US can work with other countries to put pressure on Cambodia to improve its human rights situation, to try to improve governance and dealing with things like corruption and the rule of law.” Read more!

Thaksin tells followers to stay put

By THE NATION


Former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra will make his third visit to Cambodia later this month, Cambodia's media reported yesterday.

Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said Thaksin's visit as an economic adviser to the Cambodian government had nothing to do with political tensions in Thailand, where the Supreme Court will rule on Thaksin's asset case in late-February.

"Thaksin's coming or going out of Cambodia is not strange. It is a normal thing," Hor Namhong was quoted by the Phnom Penh Post as saying.

"We are absolutely not interfering in Thai internal affairs. Whatever colour T-shirts they have is up to them."

Thaksin said on his Twitter site that his supporters should not visit him in Phnom Penh just now as he is still in Dubai.

"Some want to see me in Cambodia - but hang on. I'm now still in Dubai, please do not go [ahead of] me," Thaksin said. Read more!

Two Cambodian loggers shot, one missing in new Thai border incident

Phnom Penh - Cambodian authorities said two Cambodian citizens logging illegally in Thailand have been shot dead by Thai troops and a third is missing, national media reported Wednesday.

The two dead men were in a party of 26 who crossed the border on January 10 in Oddar Meanchey province in north-west Cambodia, the Cambodia Daily newspaper quoted a senior army source as saying.

It was the latest in a series of shootings in the past four months in which Thai troops were accused of shooting Cambodians logging illegally and brings the number of dead to at least four.

Last week, the Cambodian government said it would station extra soldiers along the border in Oddar Meanchey to prevent its citizens from crossing illegally into Thailand. After the latest incident was reported, Information Minister Khieu Kanharith said the government would again increase its efforts.

'The government will build more checkpoints to prevent them and warn them from crossing the border illegally to prevent shootings,' he told the newspaper.

In the most infamous case, a 16-year-old died in September after he was shot and wounded, then allegedly tied to an ox cart while alive and set on fire by Thai soldiers. The Thai government later insisted the teenager had already died from gunshot wounds when troops burned his body.

Poverty is widespread in Cambodia and drives thousands to work in Thailand, often illegally.

The relationship between the two nations has been tense for more than a year with a number of clashes reported between troops from both countries over a disputed piece of land near the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple in northern Cambodia.

Ties worsened late last year when Cambodia appointed Thailand's fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra as an adviser to the government.
Read more!

Nation ups security ties with Cambodia

HA NOI—Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung yesterday stressed that Viet Nam’s Ministry of Public Security and Cambodia’s Ministry of Interior needed to boost their co-operation to benefit people in both countries.

He made this statement while receiving Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sar Kheng.

Dung expressed his pleasure with the great achievements in the traditional and friendly relations between the two countries, as well as with the results of meetings between Sar Kheng and Vietnamese Minister of Public Security Le Hong Anh.

He said he hoped that in the future, the two ministries would actively implement their agreements.

Dung said that the good relationship between the two ministries would create favourable conditions for the two countries, especially for their border-sharing provinces.

The leader said that the two ministries needed to develop their mutual support and co-operation in training and the exchange of professional skills to ensure security and social order.

For his part, Sar Kheng said that the co-operation between the two ministries had contributed to boosting the development of the two countries’ relations across all fields.

He affirmed that the Cambodian Government was ready to co-operate with Viet Nam in implementing the agreements reached by the two countries’ leaders, including the co-operation agreement between the Cambodian Ministry of Interior and the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security.

Earlier yesterday, Sar Kheng held talks with Anh about the two ministries’ co-operation last year, and on the co-operation between the two ministries this year.

On the same day, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung received Professor Joseph Nye of Harvard University, the author of the theory of soft power.

Dung said that Viet Nam always appreciated its co-operation with the United States in the fields of economy, trade, investment, education and training.

He said that the relations between Viet Nam and the US on politics and diplomacy in bilateral and multilateral forums had become stronger.

The leader affirmed that the country was always consistent with building its market economy, integrating into the world economy, ensuring the social welfare system and environmental protection and developing friendship with other countries for mutual benefits.

Professor Nye affirmed that Viet Nam had been forecast to make impressive progress like Singapore and South Korea in the future.

He said that trade liberalisation and globalisation were still going on, giving the country a good chance to boost its exports and attract foreign direct investments.

Dung said he hoped that with his prestige, Professor Nye would make contributions to the co-operative and equal relationship between Viet Nam and the US, as well as between Viet Nam’s universities and Harvard University.

Nye affirmed that Harvard University always paid close attention to Viet Nam. — VNS
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U.S. help Cambodian judicial officials on IT data base

PHNOM PENH, Ninety-seven members of Cambodia's Ministry of Justice received diplomas on Wednesday after they had successfully completing an intensive information technology (IT) training program funded by the United States.

The statement released by the United States Embassy in Phnom Penh said the five-month course -- the first of its kind offered at the ministry -- provided basic technology skills to the graduates and trained them on the use of an electronic information system that is being installed at the ministry by the United States.

As more and more Cambodians come to trust the country's courts to resolve their disputes, the volume and complexity of the ministry's work will increase, an issue the new system will help address, said Flynn Fuller, the mission director.

The system consists of an office intranet for file sharing, a webpage to publicize court information such as caseloads and clearance rates, and a series of databases.

Many court officials still use hand writing for their reports and keep their information on shelves instead of using computer database.

According the statement, the United States is providing nearly two million U.S. dollars this year to strengthen Cambodia's legal system by training judges and lawyers and by providing the public with greater access to information about the courts.
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Cambodian PM says Thai govt will collapse

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia: Cambodian premier Hun Sen Tuesday stoked a diplomatic row with Thailand, saying the neighboring country’s government would not survive and branding its foreign minister the “chief of terrorists.” Ties between the two nations, which have fought a string of deadly border clashes, hit a new low late last year when Phnom Penh appointed former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra as an economics adviser.

Hun Sen told a student graduation ceremony that the current Thai government would “not have long to live” and vowed to wait for a new administration to take power in Bangkok before fully restoring diplomatic relations.

Thailand and Cambodia recalled their ambassadors in November and expelled senior diplomats over Hun
Sen’s appointment of Thaksin, who is living abroad to avoid a jail term for corruption in his home country.

Diplomatic tensions soared further when Phnom Penh then refused to extradite Thaksin during his first visit to Cambodia in his new role.

Thai premier Abhisit Vejjajiva took office in December 2008 and must call an election by December 2011.
He came to power after a blockade of Bangkok’s airports in 2008 helped bring down the previous, pro-Thaksin government.

Hun Sen criticized Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya for his involvement in the blockade, which was carried out by the royalist “Yellow Shirt” movement that also helped spark the coup that toppled Thaksin in 2006.

“You are the chief of terrorists in the siege of the airports, because some Cambodians were also hostages at the airports,” Hun Sen said Tuesday, referring to Kasit.

Kasit is a favorite target of the Cambodian strongman after allegedly calling Hun Sen a “gangster” in a parliamentary debate last year. The Thai minister said at the time that his comments had been translated incorrectly.

Hun Sen also restated Cambodia’s claim to disputed land around an ancient temple on the border between the two countries, a row that has sparked a series of clashes since mid-2008 in which seven people have died.

Thai media reported Tuesday that Thaksin would visit Cambodia again in late January to better coordinate fresh anti-government protests in Thailand by his own supporters, known as the “Red Shirts.”
AFP

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Second Helping

By Jesse Hughey


Dallas hip-hop producer and DJ Rob Viktum is known as an impeccably tasteful sampler, a beatmaker who uses snippets of half-forgotten soul songs and boom-bap drumbeats for a sound that hearkens to the '90s Golden Era of rap and '70s movie soundtracks. And yet he still manages to sound modern.

But, in 2007, his Progress project referenced a completely different time and place: pre-Khmer Rouge Cambodia. Inspired by a treasure trove of records given to him by a Cambodian family member, he assembled a combination of hard-hitting hip-hop beats merging Cambodian classical music and pop with rappers contributing verses to a handful of the tracks. He offered the resulting collection as a free download on the Internet, and it became a minor sensation, with more than 10,000 copies downloaded in the States and in Southeast Asia.

Tuesday, meanwhile, brought the release of the follow-up, Progress Vol. 2. But, this time, Viktum is raising more than just awareness: Each $7.99 download charge for the digital album will go to a soon-to-be-determined Cambodian charity.

As with the original, Viktum used samples from some 35 or 40 records saved by his longtime girlfriend Tavy Um's father Sihourn Um, who with his wife, Sovannary Um, managed to escape the Pol Pot-led genocide. Knowing of Viktum's love of music, Sihourn gave the rare records to his de facto son-in-law. Had he not salvaged them, they would have almost certainly been destroyed, as music and other cultural artifacts were seen by the communist regime as tainted by capitalism.

"A lot of them were completely random compilations," Viktum says. "One song might be classical Oriental music, and the next will be a Credence Clearwater Revival cover."

While he was proud of the results and bolstered by the encouragement of Um's family, Viktum braced himself for criticism that he was misappropriating the Cambodian culture. To his shock, there was none.

"I figured there would be some backlash, but the Cambodian youth were so intrigued by it because all that music had been destroyed during Khmer Rouge," he says. "They're enthralled with U.S. hip-hop, and then for them to see it used in that way was exciting for them."

While she thinks it's a great album, Tavy is just as proud of Viktum's research into the dark subject. Her parents don't talk much about their experiences during the regime, but a 1999 trip to Cambodia capital Phnom Penh brought the horror to life. There, she visited a memorial at the school her parents had attended. The school had been turned into a torture camp—bloodstains on the walls were still visible, and bones exhumed from a mass grave loomed in a gruesome pile that stood two stories high.

"A lot of people don't realize that as many people were affected as were during the Holocaust," she says.

Like the first, Progress 2 is a mix of instrumental beats and songs with rappers. Each instrumental track is named for a specific date corresponding to an unnamed event, which Viktum hopes will encourage curious record buyers to do some research into the genocide. As for the tracks with rhymes, Viktum let the guest rappers come up with their own titles. In fact, he gave them no framework for their lyrics.

"I didn't want people rapping at you about the issue, because that comes off as corny," he says. " I just said, 'Do whatever the song makes you feel.'"

Despite that lack of guidance, he says positive vibes of triumph over adversity seemed to be a recurring theme.

"Problem Child [from Austin] did 'Born Leader,' which is kind of a from-the-ashes, phoenix-type story," he says. "And Caucasian [from Lubbock] sang 'Progress,' which is just one of those feel-good, moving-forward type things."

Other rappers include Damien Randle of Houston's Legendary K.O./K-Otix, original Progress alum Bavu Blakes (from Austin by way of Dallas) and Viktum's collaborator on his recent Aight, New Drink release, Elucid from Brooklyn.

Though Viktum had a beneficiary in mind, he found out some "sketchy" information about the would-be recipient. As it happened, Um's family recently left the States to visit Cambodia following a death in the family. While there, Viktum says, they plan to choose a beneficiary.

Even without that detail finalized, Progress Vol. 2 is already moving forward. Read more!

China to build giant hydro project in Cambodia

Beijing has unveiled plans to build a £347 million hydroelectric power plant in Cambodia.

China's state-owned Huadian Corporation plans to begin building the 338 megawatt plant this year, the company said in a statement posted on the website of the China Electricity Council.

The announcement followed the signing last week of a financing agreement with the Export-Import Bank of China during a China-Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Nanning.
Cambodia's economy has grown rapidly over the past decade, but poverty remains widespread, particularly in the countryside where basic infrastructure is still lacking.

Apart from the hydroelectric plant, which will be Cambodia's biggest, Huadian said last month that it plans to build two 50 megawatt coal-fired facilities with partner Cambodia Energy Ltd.

Huadian's new energy development division recently signed an agreement to invest 26 billion yuan (£2.36bn) in building five solar projects with a total annual power output of 2 billion kilowatt hours (kWh) in Jiayuguan, Gansu province, over the next 10 years.

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Cambodian PM says Thai government won't survive

By Prak Chan Thul


PHNOM PENH, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said indicated on Tuesday that relations with neighbouring Thailand remained tense and said "it won't be long" before a change of government in Bangkok.

The outspoken premier, who has made it clear he is unwilling to cooperate with the current Thai leadership, said ties might be restored soon -- but only because Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's embattled government will not last much longer.

"There is no need to set conditions to send back the (Thai) ambassador," he said at a graduation ceremony in Phnom Penh. "Wait for the next government -- it won't be long."

Hun Sen's comments came ahead of a planned push to unseat the Thai government by protesters and parliamentarians allied with exiled former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra, who was appointed an economic adviser by Hun Sen and offered asylum.

The speech followed Cambodia's decision on Monday to return control of Cambodia Air Traffic Services to its Thai owners after taking temporary control of the company and suspending its Thai staff over a spying controversy [ID:nBKK496131].

One of its engineers was sentenced to seven years in prison for leaking details of Thaksin's flight to Phnom Penh in November to a Thai diplomat. He was released after Thaksin lobbied Cambodia to pardon him in what his critics said was a publicity stunt to discredit the Thai government [ID:nBKK430205].

Thaksin's job in Phnom Penh and his visit there angered Bangkok, which is trying to seek his extradition, and resulted in a recall and expulsion of diplomats by both sides.

Thai Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said on Tuesday that relations were unlikely to improve unless Cambodia reconsidered its appointment of the fugitive billionaire.

Hun Sen said Thaksin's appointment had nothing to do with the row, which he said stemmed from Thailand's opposition to Cambodia's listing of its 11th Century Preah Vihear temple as a U.N. heritage site, and a deadly skirmish between border troops, which he described as a Thai "invasion".

Abhisit's government has said the listing, which the previous administration had supported, should not go ahead until the land around the temple, which straddles their joint border, is properly demarcated.

For a Q+A click [ID:nSGE60A0B4] and related analysis [ID:nSGE5BH0EH]). (Additional Reporting by Pracha Hariraksapitak in Bangkok; Writing by Ambika Ahuja; Editing by Martin Petty)) Read more!

FM: Thailand still not to normalize relations with Cambodia now

BANGKOK, Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said Tuesday that currently, it is still not the time to normalize the relations with Cambodia, Thai News Agency reported.

If Cambodia has not ended its relationships with ousted former Thai Premier Thaksin Shinawatra, it will be difficult to improve the bilateral tie, Kasit said.

No matter what Cambodia would say, it could not change the fact that Cambodia has not respected the justice system of Thailand, Kasit said.

The diplomatic problem between the two countries has occurred after Cambodia has appointed Thaksin as an economic advisor to Cambodia's government and Hun Sen from Nov. 4.

A day after the appointment, the Cambodian government announced recall of its ambassador to Thailand in a move to respond to the Thai government's recall of its ambassador to Cambodia.
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Volunteer heads to Cambodia

By DENISE PIPER - Whangarei Leader

A young woman from Whangarei is about to spend a year volunteering with orphans in Cambodia.

Tess Guiney, 21, leaves for Cambodia on January 29 with Volunteer Service Abroad.

She is one of 12 new university volunteers, or UniVols, who are heading to Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, Cambodia, South Africa and Tanzania this year.

The UniVols programme provides opportunities for students from Otago and Victoria universities to gain practical field experience.

Tess is doing a masters in geography at Otago University, looking specifically at development geography.

"I am especially interested in the gap which exists between countries of the developed north and those of the developing south.

"By travelling to Cambodia I will be able to see how development and poverty are actually experienced within nations," she says.

Tess hopes the programme will give her an opportunity to see real life examples of the
theoretical themes covered in her studies.

Cambodia is a largely rural economy and the second poorest in southeast Asia, causing serious disadvantages in health, education and employment, she says.

"I feel that by travelling to Cambodia I will hopefully be able to share my knowledge with them but also to gain a new understanding of development by learning from the people of Cambodia," she says.

Tess will work with the rural Economic Development Association, a non-governmental organisation in the province of Svay Rieng.

The association works with those in the community who are most vulnerable, including people living with HIV AIDS, orphans and vulnerable children, and those people with chronic illnesses.

She will be a childcare worker for orphans and will organise activities for them and help to improve their living conditions.

The work will be done alongside the Cambodian staff to ensure development occurs in a form the local community desires, a guiding principal of Volunteer Service Abroad, she says.

"Volunteer Service Abroad arranges for people to live within and work alongside local communities in an attempt to ensure more representative development, something that my own studies have firmly convinced me is the key to reducing poverty," she says.

Like other Volunteer Service Abroad volunteers, Tess will be covered for travel, initial resettlement, accommodation and utilities, a living allowance and insurance. Her student loan is interest-free for the year of the assignment.

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Cambodian govt returns air traffic firm to Thais

The Associated Press


(AP) — PHNOM PENH, Cambodia - Cambodia's government on Monday returned management of the country's air traffic control company to its Thai owners, a small concession in a dispute over its overtures to ousted former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Control of Cambodia Traffic Air Services, or CATS, was seized in November after Cambodia arrested a Thai employee, Siwarak Chutipong, on a spying charge. He allegedly stole the flight schedule of Thaksin-who is a fugitive from Thai justice but who was visiting Cambodia as a VIP guest-and gave it to a Thai diplomat.

Other Thai employees of the company were barred from coming to its offices, but not otherwise penalized.

Samart Corp., the parent firm of CATS, said Cambodia's Cabinet returned control of the company on Monday.

In 2008, a Thai court sentenced Thaksin in absentia to two years in prison for violating a conflict of interest law, but he fled into exile before the verdict. He was ousted by a 2006 military coup after being accused of corruption and abuse of power.

In early November, Cambodia named Thaksin as an adviser to the government on economic affairs. The appointment, and a subsequent visit by Thaksin, set off a diplomatic imbroglio in which the two countries recalled their ambassadors. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said Thaksin had been unfairly convicted for political reasons.

Siwarak was convicted and sentenced to seven years in jail by a Cambodian court but was pardoned soon afterward and allowed to leave for Thailand.

The statement by Samart quoted its president, Watchai Vilailuck, as expressing appreciation for the handover and saying that it signaled "that Kingdom of Cambodia is open and fair to the foreign businesses and shall win investor's confidence in the long-term."

It said that Samart in 2001 won a concession to operate CATS for 32 years. Read more!

Mekong Dams Could Threaten Aquatic Life

Plans to build a series of hydropower dams on the Mekong River could threaten already endangered species in the waterway.

The Mekong River is the lifeblood of Southeast Asia, with the largest inland fisheries in the world.

About 40 million people depend to some degree on the fisheries, worth about $2.5 billion a year.

But fisheries experts say plans by Cambodia, Laos and Thailand to build hydropower dams on the Mekong would block fish migration, threatening already endangered species.

Environmental activists say plans by Laos to build a dam in the Don Sahong area near the Cambodian border could doom the nearly extinct Irrawaddy dolphin.

Soung Ma earns money taking tourists for a rare glimpse of the dolphins. "Local people normally work in dolphin tourism. Everyone has a small boat and can pick up tourists and get money from tourists every day or every month depending on the season," Ma said.

The Mekong River Commission works to manage river resources among Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Jeremy Bird heads the commission and says balancing the pros and cons of hydropower dams is the biggest challenge facing the Mekong basin. "We're talking about the livelihoods of millions of people but we're also talking about a huge potential resource of hydropower which can not only provide foreign revenues to the countries, but can those revenues can then be used to finance other development programs and help countries meet their targets on poverty alleviation and millenium development goals," Bird said.

Some dams on rivers feeding the Mekong have disrupted fish populations.

Fishermen may have to turn to aquaculture like this tilapia farm in Vientiane to make up for the lost wild catch.

Suchart Ingthamjitr, a program officer at the MRC's fishery program, says fish farms help meet demand. "The price of wild fish is higher than cultured fish. But, the problem of wild fish is seasonality," Ingthamjitr said. "Yeah, you can catch and have the wild fish depend on the time of year. But, for tilapia all year round you can buy it in the market."

As the sun sets on the Mekong, fishermen try their luck.

Environmental and fisheries experts say damming the Mekong will change some of their traditional ways.
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