Royalist parties u-turn and accept Cambodia poll results

The insane Royalist Funcinpec Party is a useless and disgrace group. They are existing just to bring shames to the Cambodia Kingdom.

PHNOM PENH (AFP) — Cambodia's royalist parties said Tuesday they would accept the results of last month's election, despite their previous claims that Prime Minister Hun Sen's ruling party had rigged the polls.

The royalist Funcinpec party and its offshoot the Norodom Ranariddh Party (NRP) joined opposition leader Sam Rainsy late last month to complain that thousands of people were left off voter lists in the July 27 election.

Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party (CPP) claimed victory as early results showed they won nearly 60 percent of the vote, and in separate statements released Tuesday the royalists said they would accept that outcome.

"NRP considers that the election ... was transparent, free, fair and in accordance with democratic process in Cambodia," the party headed by former Funcinpec leader Prince Norodom Ranariddh said.

His old outfit, meanwhile, said: "Although there are some technical irregularities, Funcinpec party publicly supports and accepts the temporary results of the election."

Their apparent u-turn comes after Hun Sen said last week he would include Funcinpec in the new government. He also said another party with two seats in parliament -- and apparent reference to the NRP -- had approached him.

Early results released by the National Election Committee (NEC) show the CPP winning 58.1 percent of the vote, compared with 21.9 percent for its nearest rival, the Sam Rainsy Party.

Hun Sen's CPP has said it captured at least 90 of the 123 parliament seats up for grabs. Funcinpec and the NRP are believed to have won only two seats each.

The final NEC tally will be announced in September, ahead of the forming of a new government.

International monitors have said the election was flawed and did not meet key standards, despite a more peaceful campaign and improvements in the electoral process compared to past polls here.

Sam Rainsy has estimated that one million registered voters were cut from the rolls and has demanded a re-vote. Read more!

Cambodia reasserts claim over border temples

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia: Cambodia reasserted its claim Tuesday over ancient border temples that also are claimed by Thailand ahead of talks next week on lingering territorial disputes.

The foreign ministers of the two countries are to meet Monday in Thailand to try to defuse military standoffs along their shared border — first near the 11th century Preah Vihear temple and then at the 13th century Ta Moan Thom temple.

Ta Moan Thom is several hundred miles (kilometers) west of Preah Vihear, where Cambodian and Thai soldiers have been facing off for four weeks in a dispute over 1.8 square miles (4.6 square kilometers) of nearby land.

The Cambodian Foreign Ministry said in a statement Tuesday that Ta Moan Thom "is clearly situated in the Cambodian territory."

It said a nearby temple, Ta Moan Toch, which has been occupied by Thai troops also belongs to Cambodia.

Thailand has also laid claims to both temples.

Late last month, Cambodian officials said Thai soldiers had occupied the site and prevented Cambodian troops from entering. Thai military officials countered that their troops had been in the area for years.

Last week, the standoff there appeared to have eased, with both sides pulling back their soldiers.
But Thai troops have reoccupied the area since then, Maj. Ho Bunthy, a Cambodian army commander in the area, said Tuesday.

He said about 50 Cambodian soldiers have now positioned themselves in close proximity to about 120 Thai troops who are stationed on the temple grounds and in a camp nearby.

"The Thai troops are guarding a gate to the temple, and Cambodian soldiers are standing just outside the gate," he said in a telephone interview.

The two countries share about 500 miles (800 kilometers) of land border, which has not been fully demarcated.

The dispute surrounding the Preah Vihear temple escalated last month after UNESCO approved Cambodia's application to have it named a World Heritage Site. Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej had backed the bid, sparking demonstrations by anti-government protesters who claimed the temple's new status would undermine Thailand's claim to the surrounding area.

The dispute has continued despite two rounds of talks since last month, with the countries referring to two different maps.

Cambodia uses a French colonial map demarcating the border, which Thailand says favors Cambodia. Thailand relies on a map drawn up later with American technical assistance. Read more!

Cambodian tribunal indicts Khmer Rouge jailer

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Cambodia's genocide tribunal formally indicted a former prison chief of the country's notorious Khmer Rouge on Tuesday, paving the way for a historic trial.

The U.N.-assisted tribunal said in a statement Tuesday that its investigating judges issued the indictment upon ending their investigation of Kaing Guek Eav — also known as Duch — whose Phnom Penh prison was used as a torture center.

Duch, charged with crimes against humanity and war crimes, is the first suspect to be indicted by the tribunal. He and four other former senior members of the Khmer Rouge, who held power in the late 1970s, were taken into custody last year.

The radical policies of the communist group are considered responsible for the deaths of some 1.7 million people from starvation, disease, overwork and execution. No senior member of the group has ever stood trial for the atrocities.

The tribunal's announcement marks another "important moment in the history of the court," said Peter Foster, a spokesman for the U.N.-assisted tribunal.

He said the indictment sets the stage for the first trial of the tribunal, which began its work in early 2006. No date has yet been set for a trial, but tribunal officials have previously said it was expected to begin in late September.

Duch, 66, headed S-21 prison, the Khmer Rouge's largest torture facility, which used to be a school and is now the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. About 16,000 men, women and children are believed to have been held there. Only 14 are thought to have survived.

When Duch was detained by the tribunal in July last year, he was charged only with crimes against humanity, with the war crimes charge being added with the end of the investigation against him.

Duch will be tried by a panel of five judges — three Cambodian, one French and one New Zealander — according to a 2003 pact between Cambodia and the United Nations establishing the tribunal.

The other four suspects being held by the tribunal are former top lieutenants of late Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot, who died in 1998. They are former head of state Khieu Samphan, former chief ideologist Nuon Chea, ex-Foreign Minister Ieng Sary, and his wife Ieng Thirith, who served as the Khmer Rouge social affairs minister.

They also face charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes.

Cambodian politics and disagreements between the government and the U.N. delayed the establishment of the tribunal for years. Its work was further delayed by disagreements among judges over the procedural rules and controversies involving allegations of kickbacks among Cambodian staffers.

The tribunal, which is mostly funded by donations from foreign donors, is facing a budget crunch. The $56.3 million that was originally earmarked proved inadequate because the tribunal has had to recruit more staff and expand its work.

A revised budget estimated the cost of carrying out the tribunal's work through 2010 to be $143 million. The tribunal is $86.7 million short of that goal.
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Cambodia claims more Thai troops sent to border

Phnom Penh (dpa) - Cambodian border officials Monday accused Thailand of disregarding agreements to move back from three border temples in northern Oddar Meanchey province, but said they would not act until after bilateral ministerial talks in a week.

After negotiations Tuesday, Thai troops agreed to pull back from the Ta Moan group of temples, but moved back into the area Saturday, said a senior border official who asked not to be named.

"We have held four rounds of negotiations with the Thais and they just don't respect any agreement," the official said. "They have not built a barricade at the temple - that has been there for a long time - but they are making it bigger."

However, he said Cambodia refused to react until after talks between the nations' foreign ministers scheduled for August 18.

"We will not be drawn," he said. "We await the orders of Prime Minister Hun Sen and he has ordered peaceful negotiation."

The English-language Cambodia Daily quoted provincial governor Pich Sokkin as saying about 20 Thai troops were now at the temples, with 70 more stationed nearby, and said they were fortifying barricades.

Thailand moved troops into the disputed border area on July 28, further worsening relations over a spat concerning the Preah Vihear temple, which was recently listed as a World Heritage site, about 150 kilometres east of Ta Moan.

Preah Vihear's listing by UNESCO on July 7 came despite protests by Thailand, which complained the surrounding border area remained in dispute and Thai troops moved in not long after. Later that month the spat spread to Ta Moan.

Cambodia has repeatedly said it has proof that the Ta Moan group of temples are sovereign territory but has stressed it seeks a peaceful resolution to the dispute.

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China's top political advisor meets former Cambodian King

BEIJING, China's top political advisor Jia Qinglin met here Monday with former Cambodian King Norodom Sihanouk, who was here to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games.

Jia said the China-Cambodia friendship became a treasure shared by the two peoples over the past 50 years, and Norodom Sihanouk was an old and good friend known by all the Chinese people. China and Cambodia were indeed good neighbors, good friends, good brothers and good partners, as the two sides enjoy mutual trust in political field, have mutually beneficial cooperation in economic field, and support each other in international affairs.

The Chinese side is willing to join hands with Cambodia to enrich and expand the bilateral relations so as to better benefit the two peoples.

Sihanouk said the Cambodian royal family, government and people would adhere to the friendly relations with China and make further efforts to consolidate and develop the traditional friendship.

China and Cambodia have maintained mutual friendship and cooperation since the two countries established diplomatic relations on July 19, 1958.
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South-east Asia: the gapper's paradise

Cheap, safe and vibrant, South-east Asia is the premier choice for the budget traveller, says Kate Thomas

Who goes there?

Whether you’re an eco-adventurer looking for a low impact challenge, a water baby in search of an island paradise or a city dweller looking for a bit of excitement, South-east Asia offers it all in a neat, low-cost package. The last five years have seen destinations such as Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam really open up to gappers – low costs, relative political stability and short distances make it easy to combine a worthwhile project with a travel experience.

What gap years can you do there?

From volunteering on coral reef conservation projects on Thailand’s Edenic islands to helping shape the futures of street children in the Philippines, gap year organisations offer a dazzling array of projects in Southeast Asia. Old favourite Thailand has plenty to tempt travellers. While you’ll probably want to check out the beaches and put in an appearance at the famous full moon parties, there are also lots of opportunities to volunteer. Projects Abroad offers gap year experiences that combine both work and play (www.projects-abroad.org).

For those who want to visit a part of Thailand most tourists never get to see, Africa and Asia Venture offer a two-month programme close to the Thai border with Burma. After five days’ orientation – including a Thai cookery course – you’ll spend eight weeks helping to shape the futures of children in the classroom (www.aventure.co.uk).

Adrenalin junkies looking for a thrill that lasts might want to bypass New Zealand and look at Trekforce Worldwide’s adventures to remote parts of Borneo and Papua New Guinea. Opt for the Borneo trek (from £1,500; two to 20 weeks) and you’ll stay in a traditional long house, climb mountains, swim lakes and help ensure the protection of the orangutan. Trekforce’s expeditions are more extreme than the average gap year project – Tribe presenter Bruce Parry was once a group leader, which gives you an idea of how intense the trip is likely to be (www.trekforce.org.uk).

What opportunities for further travel are there?

With so many countries packed into one region, it’s easy to get around. The backpacker path through Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Malaysia is so well trodden, you’ll be sure to meet like-minded people along the way. The only problem is deciding where to go first. Some travellers opt to spend their time exploring the temples, decadent nightlife and heartbreaking history of Vietnam and Cambodia.

Others are enchanted by the ultra soporific islands of Thailand or Indonesia’s perfect waves. The express train from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi is a spectacular ride that skirts breathtaking valleys, patches of jungle and idyllic bays; fashionistas might want to make a stop in Hoi An, a veritable treasure trove of sprawling fabric markets, local tailors and cobblers. Rainforest clad Laos attracts eco-adventurers and amateur anthropologists – you can try white-water rafting or tubing as well as learning about the country’s threatened hill tribes. Malaysia offers a heady mix of jungle, island paradise and urban sprawl while next-door neighbour Singapore is an oasis of calm. Burma has a lot to offer tourists but you should think long and hard before going: many campaigners believe visitors should stay away for now.

How much will it cost me?

South-east Asia is a backpacker’s dream. The cost of gap year programmes varies dramatically, but most reputable companies won’t charge more than £1,500 for a four-week project. Transport is your greatest expense; even so, a second-class train ticket from Singapore to Bangkok costs just £50. You can eat well in most countries for as little as £3 or £4 a day.Unless you’re intent on luxury, a night in a decent guesthouse in Cambodia will set you back around £4. Prepare to tighten the purse strings if you venture off the beaten track, where there may be fewer options for travellers on a budget.

Book ahead and you’ll find great deals on flights to the region. Specialist travel agencies such as STA Travel sell return flights from London to Bangkok from £450, while Qantas and Singapore Airlines both offer fully-flexible fares to Kuala Lumpur from £750.

You’ll need to factor in the costs of visas and insurance – a 30-day tourist visa to Cambodia currently costs US$20(£10.50) – as well as enough spending money to cover such backpacker necessities as a T-shirt or string of beads from Bangkok’s famous Khao San strip.

Are there any risks?

Nowhere in the world is completely risk-free but South-east Asia is a sound choice for first-time travellers. The path through Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Malaysia is so well trodden that you’ll always have the company of other backpackers and there are reliable medical facilities in most backpacker hotspots.

Malaria and Dengue Fever are endemic to parts of South-east Asia; visit a travel nurse for prophylaxis and other important shots before departure. Female travellers are unlikely to receive much unwanted attention in this largely-Buddhist region.

Make sure you’re properly kitted out before you head off into the sunset – Gap Year Travel Store (www.gapyeartravelstore.com) sells destination-specific kits containing everything from first aid and travel pillows to heat-conserving blankets and waterproof matches. They’ll even throw in a pack of glow-sticks – useful for providing emergency light as well as for waving around at all those full moon parties.

What they say

Paul Edwards spent five months in South-east Asia as part of his gap year, visiting Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia and Vietnam.

“I structured my gap year to incorporate volunteering as well as travel; I didn’t want to waste all my time sitting on a beach. I did a four-week tour of Cambodia and Vietnam with Intrepid Travel, who provided a fixed placement and local tour guides. There were people in the group from all over the world. I also volunteered to work with rescued elephants in Kanchanaburi in Thailand –a brilliant experience. I wanted to visit South-east Asia because it really is a backpacker mecca. You can live on around £5 a day. Your money goes a long way.”

What we say

“This region has always been hugely popular, but the downside is that every year another town or resort loses its largely-untouched lustre. In Thailand, westernisation is pulling and pushing at traditions. That means there’s all the more reason to steer clear of the hordes and find your own low-impact adventures, be it in the tranquil Indonesian islands, the quiet backwaters of Laos or the less-visited parts of Cambodia,” Andrew Buncombe, Asia correspondent, The Independent.

Should we be on the next flight out?
Yes

This is the backpacker trail, so it’s dead easy to meet other travellers
South-east Asia offers a wealth of attractions and historic sites in close proximity
Travel is much cheaper than in Africa or the Americas
No

All those fellow travellers mean it can be difficult to escape the crowds
Local traditions are under threat from the constant influx of tourists
English is widely spoken so you probably won’t pick up a language to put on your CV.

Read more!

Chinese teachers arrive in Cambodia

Cambodia has welcomed the arrival of 12 Chinese teachers who will work for one year in six community schools, it has been reported.

An agreement between the Chinese government and the Association of the Chinese People in Cambodia (ACPC) means that the teachers will work in institutions in the country's capital Phnom Penh.

The teachers' arrival aims to strengthen the ties between the two countries and promote further educational exchanges between them, chinaview.cn reported.

Secretary of the ACPC Ming Lean offered an encouraging welcome to the teachers, saying: "Your arrival embodies the care and support from the Chinese government for the education cause of the Chinese Cambodian community schools."

According to the ACPC, Cambodia has 1,000 Chinese language teachers and around 30,000 students studying the subject.

The ministry of foreign affairs for the People's Republic of China says that two countries have a "time-honoured traditional friendship" with their economic relations expanding rapidly. Read more!

Vietnam illegal wildlife trade eats away at biodiversity

Vietnam’s appetite for illegal wildlife meat and demand for traditional medicine is devastating animal and plant species within and beyond its borders, experts warn in two new reports. Vietnam has been one of Southeast Asia’s most biodiverse countries, but some species may be lost before they are known to science due to an illegal global trade believed to be trailing only drugs and gunrunning.

Two new reports spell out that, despite Vietnam’s international commitments to combat the trade, the smuggling of tigers, monkeys, snakes, pangolins and other animals to and through Vietnam is booming.

“Vietnam’s illegal trade in wildlife continues unabated and affects neighbouring countries,” wrote Nguyen Van Song of the Hanoi Agricultural University in the Journal of Environment and Development.

“Wildlife in Vietnam has become very scarce.”

The study estimated that up to 4,000 tonnes of live animals or meat, skins, ground bones and other illegal products are trafficked into and out of Vietnam per year, generating more than 67 million dollars in revenues.

Species are mostly sourced from Vietnam’s national parks and neighbouring Laos and Cambodia, to be consumed in Vietnam, China, South Korea, Taiwan and Japan, according to the study based on hundreds of interviews.

The largest volume of illegal wildlife goods is smuggled across the Vietnam-China border, with an estimated 2,500 to 3,500 kilogrammes flowing daily through the two major border gates, it said.
There have been high-profile crackdowns. In a case last week, Vietnamese police seized more than two tonnes of live snakes and 770 kilogrammes of tortoises from Laos en route to China.

But the report estimated that the total value of confiscated wildlife accounts for only three percent of the illegal trade, and that authorities are at a disadvantage when a forest ranger polices an average of 1,400 hectares (3,500 acres) of forest at a monthly wage of about $50.

Smugglers connected to ‘influential people’ — shorthand for gangsters — bribe or threaten officials and hide their contraband in trucks, ambulances, wedding and funeral cars and prison vans, the report said. The capital Hanoi is Vietnam’s largest market for illegal wildlife meat, with revenues of over 12,000 dollars a day, the report said.

“Hanoi is the cultural and political centre of Vietnam where wildlife protection and conservation policies are issued and implemented,” said the report.

“This suggests that the gap between policies and implementation of wildlife protection is still big.”

The most popular species served in Hanoi were snakes, palm civets, monitor lizards, porcupines, leopards, pangolins, monkeys, forest pigs, hardshell turtles, soft-shell turtles, civets, boas and birds.

The other market fuelling the trade is traditional Vietnamese and Chinese medicine, said a report by the wildlife monitoring network TRAFFIC.

Surveys found that “many high-profile animals of global conservation concern (such as tigers, bears or rhinos) can still be bought on the market, provided prior notice is given and that the price negotiated is high enough.”

Informants had told TRAFFIC that live tiger cubs, tiger skeletons, raw materials and processed medicinal products were brought from Cambodia, Laos and as far as Malaysia to supply the Vietnamese market.

Traders in Ninh Hiep commune near Hanoi had offered to supply investigators with “any type of medicinal animal if ordered sufficiently in advance” — including a frozen tiger, rhino horn and wild bear gall bladder.

The shop-owners who offered the illicit goods, the TRAFFIC report found, were “well organised, each claiming that they were shielded from investigations through protection by enforcement personnel.” afp Read more!

Aussies, Brits and Kiwi rescued from capsized Cambodian tour boat

Phnom Penh - Eight foreign tourists and five Cambodians were rescued from a tourist boat which capsized in high winds and sank near the popular tourist hub of Siem Reap, a district official said Monday. One New Zealander, three Australians and four Britons were rescued from the Vietnamese-skippered 20-metre slow boat by Cambodian vessels which came to the rescue, Tho Sambath, a district governor, said by telephone.

"They were lucky they were near the shore. Any further out and it would have been difficult to help them," he said.

The boat sank in the Tonle Sap lake near Siem Reap, about 400 kilometres north-west of the capital.

Siem Reap is home to the Angkor Wat temple complex, which is Cambodia's largest tourist attraction, and a popular way to get there from the capital is by boat, despite often rudimentary safety precautions.
Read more!

Cambodia: Phnom Penh In The Groove

On the day when Cambodia Premier League leaders Phnom Penh Empire FC scored a thumping 5-0 win over Mohd Garuda, third-place Build Bright United stuttered to a 3-1 loss to Naga Corp FC.

And Build Bright could not have had a worse start to their campaign when they scored an own goal off S. Z. Sani in the 64th minute to cancel out their earlier strike from Prom Put Sithy just five minutes after the restart.

With the score level at one goal apiece, Naga Corp grew in confidence for Sunn Sovanna Rith to slam home the lead in 75th minutes before A. P. Uademebuo grabbed the winner in injury time.

The three points has allowed Naga Corp to move up to fifth in the standings.

In the meantime, Phnom Penh Empire had little difficulty to pick up the full points when they blasted five goals past a hapless Moha Garuda with Chan Rithy knocking in a hat-trick with goals in the 34th, 53rd and 90th.

The two remaining goals for Phnom Penh were scored by Chim Ratanak in the third minute and Lappe Lappe in the 76th minute as they remained on top with 36 points from 13 matches.


CURRENT CAMBODIA PREMIER LEAGUE 2008 STANDINGS

1. PHNOM PENH EMPIRE FC 36pts (+22)

2. PREAH KHAN REACH FC 23pts (+5)

3. BUILD BRIGHT UNITED FC 20pts (+9)

4. KHEMARA KEILA FC 20pts (+8)

5. NAGA CORP FC 20pts (+6)

6. NATIONAL DEFENSE MINISTRY FC 19pts (+8)

7. KIRIVONG SOK SEN CHEY FC 14pts (-11)

8. MOHA GARUDA FC 11pts (-13)

9. PHUCHUNG NEAK FC 9pts (-17)

10. POST-TEL FC 4pts (-17)

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A land of great beauty and heartbreak inspires an artist

BY ALEX SINNOTT

GENOCIDE, war, famine and renewed hope in a land redefining itself after the murderous regime of Pol Pot are subjects explored by artist Rachel Peters' exhibition on Cambodia.

Colours of the Khmer was inspired by Peters' three-week visit to Cambodia last year to meet up with a long-time friend, Kannikun Ouk.

Peters first met Kannikun in 1988 through her work in the charity organisation Initiatives for Change.

"When Kannikun was a child her father was killed, and he, like many others, were killed for the simple fact that they were teachers," Peters said.

As a teenager Kannikun became separated from her mother after fleeing Cambodia to a refugee camp in Thailand.

"For many years she didn't know that her mother was still alive in Cambodia until she was able to return to Phnom Penh in the mid-1980s," Peters said.

Visiting Cambodia in June 2007, Peters said her meeting with Kannikun was bittersweet as her physical condition had deteriorated after her experience as a refugee.

"It's a sad country. There's still a lot of corruption, but the Cambodian landscape is so rich and exotic and so aspects of that went into my artwork," she said.

Proceeds from the exhibition, which will run at the Allan Lane Community Gallery until August 17, will go to the Cambodia Trust.

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Cambodia's Sokimex Group Building 5-Star Hotel in Phnom Penh

PHNOM PENH, Aug 11 Asia Pulse - Cambodia's Sokimex group has held a ground-breaking ceremony for the construction of a five-star hotel in Phnom Penh in an effort to improve tourism infrastructure in the country.

The US$100 million hotel, the third of its kind in Phnom Penh, is expected to be full operational in two years time.

The 16-floor hotel, once completed, will have 799 rooms, two great conference halls and 10 ballrooms.

At present, the Cambodian capital has only two five-star hotels and four four-star ones. Meanwhile, the number of foreign travellers going to Cambodia has increased rapidly, reaching 1.1 million people in the first half of 2008, up 13 per cent over the same period of last year.

The Cambodian tourism authorities have set a target of attracting 2.5 million foreign travellers this year, as compared with over 2 million visitors in 2007.

Sokimex, established in the early 1980s, is one of Cambodia's biggest business groups. Read more!

Acleda poised to shift focus out of Cambodia

By Raphael Minder in Hong Kong

Acleda, a Cambodian microfinancier that has built up the country’s largest retail banking network, is considering opening its shareholding to a western commercial bank as it starts to expand outside its home market.

Last month Acleda became the first Cambodian bank to make a foray abroad, after obtaining a banking licence from neighbouring Laos. The bank is eyeing China and Vietnam next.

In Channy, chief executive, told the Financial Times that Acleda had received 19 investment proposals and would decide next month which one would make the best “strategic shareholder”. Western banks are on the list, although he would not disclose names.

Acleda began 15 years ago as a microfinance program­me backed by the United Nations and has since established itself as one of Asia’s leading providers of microcredit.

It has also developed a full-fledged retail business, with 214 branches across Cambodia. Mr In Channy forecast that, in five years, microfinance would represent 30-40 per cent of Acleda’s lending business, down from 50 per cent now and 70 per cent in 2005.

Mr In Channy added that there was no specific timetable for expanding into more countries but sounded particularly optimistic about filling a void in the Chinese lending market. “There is just no institution in China like ours serving the lower sector,” he said.

To meet such ambitions, Mr In Channy said Acleda “really needs the capital base to grow”, at a rate of about $70m a year. Adding a shareholder, however, could alter the balance of power, since Acleda is currently 51 per cent-owned by its staff and other locals, while the other 49 per cent is owned by foreign funds and international donors, including the International Finance Corporation, the World Bank’s private lending arm.

With inflation recently soaring in Cambodia, Mr In Channy insisted that Acleda could weather any serious economic downturn, noting that its rate of non-performing loans was 0.02 per cent in 2007, compared with an average of 5.2 per cent for the country’s banking sector.

In a report earlier this year, Standard & Poor’s, the credit ratings agency, commended Acleda for its good asset quality, “although the laws on secured transactions are not well-defined in Cambodia and recovery is not guaranteed. This might call into question the bank’s ability to enforce claims and magnify its exposure to structural weakness in the economy.”
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Cambodia releases final count in election

Phnom Penh - Cambodia released the final vote count from last month's general election on Saturday, showing the full extent to which the country's two main parties dominated the polls.

Of just over 6 million votes, the ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) took almost 3.5 million, and the opposition Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) 1.3 million, according to National Election Committee figures.

The remaining nine parties split the rest. The results were posted as temporary because parties now have 72 hours to lodge final complaints against the tally.

However, lawmakers from SRP plus the Norodom Ranariddh Party and the Human Rights Party, which together hold about 31 seats of 123, held a press conference Friday to say they will boycott the swearing in of new parliamentarians on August 24.

They claim up to 1 million voters were unable to find their names on polling day on July 27, compromising the fairness of the elections.

Prime Minister Hun Sen has said the ceremony will go ahead regardless, even though some constitutional experts have disputed the legality of this move.

The CPP hold 90 seats and its partner, the royalist Funcinpec Party, holds two, but despite its poor showing, Funcinpec is expected to maintain its coalition position as members of the formerly dominant party are intricately woven into the army, police, government and public service.

Analysts say undoing the coalition, which was formed under the UN after it assisted the first democratic multi-party election in 1993, could cause instability and the CPP now has the numbers to overrule any opposition in the parliament, making it a moot issue . Read more!

Cambodia's Forgotten Temples Fall Prey to Looters

Guards now patrol Angkor Wat but other cultural sites are being plundered daily.

The three freshly dug holes under the two arching palm trees measured a metre by about half a meter, and about half a meter deep. A few fragments of what appeared to be centuries-old clay pots were scattered around the excavation site, seemingly discarded as worthless in the hunt for more valuable treasure.

"We find new holes every week," said Ndson Hun, a farmer living in the nearby village of Phoum Snay. "The demand [for artefacts] is as great as ever, so people keep digging."

No one knows the extent of the riches at Phoum Snay, an unremarkable Cambodian village about 40 miles north-west of Angkor Wat, the complex of 100 9th to 15th-century Buddhist temples seen as among the world's architectural wonders. But, unlike at Angkor Wat, there are no heritage police here, no Unesco staff, and no local authorities to guard the site.

As the latest holes testify, anyone wishing to pillage the remaining hidden riches will encounter few obstacles. Experts fear the decades-long looting for artifacts across Cambodia is now so rampant there will soon be little left outside the splendors of the Unesco world heritage site at Angkor.

"Almost all sites of antiquity and temples far from towns are being destroyed," said Michel Trenet, the undersecretary of state at Cambodia's culture and fine arts ministry. "Naturally, the priority for us is to protect the Angkor sites and then think about the others. But we don't have enough guards and people are not motivated to protect their heritage. Cambodia is becoming a cultural desert."

Phoum Snay is a classic example. On its discovery, almost three years ago, the site was thought to have been a mass grave for victims of the Khmer Rouge, the communists who ruled from 1975-79 and under whose regime some 1.7 million people were executed or died from disease and starvation.

Then, when iron-age artifacts, including weapons, jewelery, pots and trinkets, started appearing, the site was reassessed as the burial ground of an ancient army. The researchers moved in, and digging started. Thousands of items were found.

Yet little was done to secure the area and antiques traders - people mainly from neighboring Thailand, say villagers, and seeking to sell Khmer treasures abroad - now have virtual free rein.

Their success is shown by the regularity with which Khmer artifacts appear at auction around the world. At any one time, dozens of Khmer "treasures" are on offer on the eBay auction website.

Poverty and greed are considered the two main motivations behind the looting. Monks living in a temple half a mile from Phoum Snay believe the villagers are involved in the illicit digging, despite protestations by Ndson Hun and his friends.

"The villagers are doing it because they are so poor," said Moy Sau, clad in his traditional saffron-colored robes. "They don't respect their heritage because they can't afford to turn down an offer of a few dollars for a night's work."

Chea Vannath, president of the Center for Social Development, says that the average annual income in Cambodia is about £155 a year - much lower in rural areas. "Protecting our cultural heritage is a luxury," she said. "People are fighting to survive so they don't know better."

Moy Sau does not dare warn the authorities about the looting: "As a monk I cannot do anything because I rely on the villagers for my food."

Preservation

Even if he raised the alarm, that might not ensure the artifacts' preservation since government officials and members of the security forces are also involved in the trade, widespread reports suggest.

A stone carver based a few miles away, in Phumi Rohal, who was too afraid to give his name, said some provincial government officials last month asked him to build a base for a "half Buddha" that one of their bosses had acquired.

"I was suspicious even though they had lots of letters and said it would be kept in a temple," he said. "But I did it because I'm afraid of the authorities. Us little people can do nothing against them."

With the country's legal system being so corrupt, the "dark forces", Mr Trenet says, are too powerful, even for him.

A tour of Toul Ta Puon, known as the Russian market, in the capital, Phnom Penh, proves his point, with shops packed with tall cabinets full of artefacts. Bronze-age axe heads and rings sell for less than £15. One intricately carved 11th-century, long-necked water jar was £30.

The shopkeepers appear motivated only by money and refuse to lower their prices, even for Mr Trenet, though most recognize him. "I would like to buy all [the artifacts] for the museum. But my salary is only [£155] a month so what can I do?" he says.
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Ministry steps in after orphanage violence

SIEM REAP - Social services personnel were called to intervene after violence broke out at one of Siem Reap's most prominent orphanages.

The Sunrise Children's Villages orphanage erupted in chaos when a group of boys, angered over the firing of a staff member and new night curfews attempted to take control of the facility, threatening orphanage staff with sticks and trying to batter down doors with hammers and axes last weekend, according to the head of the facility, Geraldine Cox.

Cox, who oversees the orphanage from Sunrise's offices in Phnom Penh, told the Post that trouble began when the Siem Reap staff member was investigated for being too lax in discipline and allowing some boys to leave the orphanage at night, allegedly to participate in gang activity.

"When that person was fired, some children began rebelling and blamed me," Cox said. "I had to seek the cooperation of the Ministry of Social Affairs to remove these children to enable Sunrise to operate normally."

Cox said that she was advised to temporarily sleep in a hotel away from the orphanage for fear of violent reprisals from some of the children at the facility, which is operated by the Australia Cambodia Foundation Inc.

"Not all orphanages can always have all success stories," Cox said. "We certainly have had more than our share of successes, but we also have to accept that some of the children that come from troubled backgrounds are simply beyond help." Read more!

Cambodia plants 600 trees to welcome Olympic Games in Beijing

PHNOM PENH, The Banteay Meanchey provincial authority Friday planted 600 trees in its capital town to welcome the opening of the 29th Olympic Games in Beijing, China, Khmer-language newspaper the Kampuchea Thmey said Saturday.

"Eight o'clock in the evening, Aug. 8, 2008, is a luck time for us and means good fortune in Feng-shui theory. Therefore, we are planting 600 trees and also organize football tournament to welcome the Olympic Games to open in China and memorize the friendship between Cambodian and China, too," provincial governor Ong Eoeurn was quoted as saying.

This sports gala was very important for the diplomatic relationships between the two countries, which would make the bilateral ties closer, as Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni attended the opening ceremony of the games, he said.

"It is a great day for our best friend China to organize the event," he added.

The trees planted Friday are usually called "royal plant" or "king tree" in Cambodia. They are expected to blossom during the Khmer New Year in mid-April.

Led by Tourism Minister and National Olympic Committee of Cambodia (NOCC) president Thong Khon, the Cambodian Olympic delegation will join swimming and tracking matches at the games in Beijing. Read more!

Thailand welcomes Hun Sen's call for peace

Thailand on Friday welcomes Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen's desire to peacefully resolve the border conflict around the Preah Vihear temple through existing bilateral mechanisms.

Hun Sen on Wednesday said the dispute should be settled on a bilateral basis and through peaceful means, following the military standoff since the middle of last month.

The Foreign Ministry issued a statement on Friday welcoming Hun Sen's views, saying it also wished to find a peaceful solution to the Preah Vihear issue.

The statement said the dispute should be resolved by existing bilateral mechanisms, including meetings between the foreign ministers of both countries and the ThaiCambodian Joint Boundary Commission, and the General Border Committee.

The countries' foreign ministers are to hold their second meeting on the dispute later this month in Hua Hin.

Both countries agreed to redeploy their troops from the area following the first meeting between Foreign Minister Tej Bunnag and his Cambodian counterpart Hor Namhong in Siem Reap late last month.

Differences on boundary issues between the nieghbours are not unusual, the Thai Foreign Ministry statement said.

This issue is just one small part of the overall relations between Thailand and Cambodia. The two countries have a myriad of common interests and wideranging cooperation in economic, political, social and other dimensions, it said.
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Ratch suspends three overseas projects

Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding, Thailand's largest private power producer, has suspended work on three projects outside the country, notably the Koh Kong power plant in Cambodia, which has been put on hold mainly because of the political dispute between the two nations.

Projects in Laos have also been suspended. Ratch has to negotiate with the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) to adjust power prices after construction costs increased from last year.

Referring to the Koh Kong plant, Ratch managing director Narong Sitasuwan said yesterday: "As everyone knows, if the relationship between the two countries is not good, we can't do anything. But we can wait for the right time and we still intend to invest in this project."

The project in Cambodia is the biggest power plant in which Ratch has ever invested. The company has co-invested with Electricity Generating (Egco) - with a combined share of 70 per cent - to generate power from coal, with a production capacity of 3,660 megawatts. The US$7.3-billion (Bt246 billion) project was scheduled to begin commercial operations in 2016.

According to the previous plan, Ratch was to start construction of the Koh Kong power plant this year. The company did start some of the basic construction but now the process is suspended.

Narong added that the other overseas projects suspended are the Hong Sa lignite power plant and the Nam Ngum 3 hydropower plant in Laos. Ratch is proposing that Egat revise its power price now that construction costs have soared by 25 to 30 per cent from last year.

The investment value of the Hong Sa power plant and the Nam Ngum hydropower plant are $2.61 billion and $708 million, respectively. The Nam Ngum 2 power plant is Ratch's only overseas project that is still on schedule.

Narong said that in order to diversify risk from the existing projects, Ratch had recently restructured its internal administration by naming two deputy managing directors. The company also set up three business units in order to closely monitor its overseas investments, particularly in Laos, which needs new power plants.

"As far as I'm concerned, there are roughly 100 locations in Laos that can set up power plants, of which 30 to 40 locations [have commercial potential]. Our staff is now exploring those locations to seek out new opportunities," he said.

The company is conductng a feasibility study for the 140MW Nam Bak hydropower plant - an extension project of Nam Ngum 2 - which will enhance production efficiency of the Nam Ngum 2 plant.

Narong added that Ratch would revise down its investment budget for the five-year business plan ending in 2011 in order to reflect the fact that several projects have been suspended. The current plan calls for spending Bt30 billion on the projects.

Narong said he could not estimate the revised, lower amount.

Ratch expects its revenue this year to grow by 5 per cent from Bt46 billion last year, while earnings are forecast to increase by 10 per cent from Bt5.8 billion. Read more!

Cambodia: Kuwait Pledges US$5 Million For Cambodian Muslims

PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA: Kuwait has pledged US$5 million to help support religious activity and education for Cambodia's Muslims, a government official said Friday (8 Aug).

Prime Minister Sheik Nasser Al-Mohammed Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah made the pledge during his visit here earlier this week, said Ahmad Yahya, a government adviser who heads the Cambodian Muslim Community Development.

He said the fund was in response to a request Cambodian Muslim leaders brought to Kuwaiti officials during the visit.

The money will be used for renovating a mosque in the capital Phnom Penh and building a 2-hectare (5-acre) Islamic center near the mosque, in addition to several schools and mosques in a northeastern Cambodian province, Ahmad Yahya said.

Kuwait and other Gulf states, especially Saudi Arabia, have long funded schools and mosques in Cambodia and neighboring Thailand, both of which have small and generally poor Muslim populations.

Ahmad Yahya said the Kuwaiti prime minister announced the new pledge to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen during their dinner meeting on Monday.

"Prime Minister Hun Sen very much welcomed the pledge," he said. "The money is not here yet, but when its comes the Cambodian government will manage it accordingly."

Cambodia has an estimated 700,000 Muslims, representing about 5% of the country's 14 million people, according the U.S. State Department's annual report on religious freedom.

Most of them live in the rural areas and, in the past decade, have been experiencing a revival of their religious freedom that was abolished, just like all religious practices, when the Khmer Rouge ruled Cambodia from 1975 to 1979.

With the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in the past decade, there have been concerns that some projects funded by Middle Eastern money may become breeding grounds for extremists.

In May 2003, Cambodian authorities closed down a Saudi-funded Islamic religious school outside Phnom Penh and arrested three of its members on charges of alleged links to Jemaah Islamiyah, the Southeast Asian Islamic extremist group connected to al-Qaida.

During his visit, the Kuwaiti leader also expressed his country's interest in investing in Cambodian farmland to produce food for the oil-rich Gulf state.

The two countries also signed agreements to foster economic cooperation, protect investments, and establish direct flights between them.

Cambodia also asked Kuwait for assistance in training its workers in offshore oil exploration and production. (AP)

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