Cambodia's Hun Sen looks safe despite some unease

By Ek Madra


PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Trouble is mounting for Cambodia's long-serving prime minister, Hun Sen, with rising unemployment and an economic slowdown on top of growing criticism from diplomats, rights activists and political rivals.

But analysts see little threat to his power or the long-term investment outlook in a country that has made great strides after decades of poverty, brutalilty and instability.

"Things are far from perfect in Cambodia, but democracy is a slow process and we have to see the bigger picture," said Pou Sothirak, a senior research fellow at Singapore's Institute of South East Asian Studies (ISEAS).

"Hun Sen's priority has been the economy, social order and the avoidance of conflict, and the current situation is a significant improvement from the past."

Hun Sen's government has come under fire recently, accused of corruption, abuse of power, and undermining the judiciary, raising concerns about future stability and its sincerity about carrying out long-awaited reforms.

Tens of thousands of people have been driven out of their homes in a slew of land seizures, while critics have blasted Hun Sen for filing lawsuits they say are merely attempts to intimidate journalists, activists and political opponents.

However, Hun Sen gets plenty of plaudits as well, and some analysts say the firm hand of the undisputed strongman is exactly what Cambodia and its economy needs.

"It's easy to criticise Hun Sen as a single-party ruler, authoritarian and totalitarian, but he's a pragmatist -- he does what he needs to do," said Ian Bryson, a regional analyst for Control Risks.
"There's no reason to forecast any instability in the near future. Cambodia's pretty rock solid. Hun Sen is healthy and he really is quite well-regarded."

Given the steady turnaround in Cambodia's fortunes since Hun Sen came to power 25 years ago, the popularity of the Khmer Rouge defector and former farmer and monk, comes as no surprise.

RECOVERY COURSE

Six years after Vietnamese invaders ended the Khmer Rouge's 1975-79 "killing fields" reign of terror, Hun Sen became premier and cultivated a reputation as a moderate, investor-friendly democrat, which helped put Cambodia on the road to recovery.

Until the global economic crisis struck, Cambodia had seen four straight years of double-digit growth fuelled by Hun Sen's pro-business policies, which created new jobs and infrastructure and raised living standards among the rural poor, many of whom live on less than $1 a day.

With backing from the poor, his Cambodian People's Party (CPP) scored 73 percent of the vote in 2008 elections, which observers said had only minor irregularities, to win its first outright majority after years of bickering coalition governments.

"I see no party that can challenge the CPP. They've improved the livelihoods of the poor and boosted their hopes and expectations for the future," said a Cambodian political science lecturer, who asked not to be named.

"The criticism Hun Sen has received does not reflect the overall situation. I can see the ruling party will continue to hold power ... and foreigners will continue to invest here."

Analysts say complaints about graft, cronyism, lawsuits and forced evictions from donors, rights groups, diplomats and financial institutions have irked Hun Sen, but will have little impact on his popularity.

The biggest challenge for the CPP, they say, is to revive the economy and ensure jobs are created to minimise the threat of social problems or civil disorder that could undermine its grip on power.

Foreign direct investment has slowed since the global financial crisis took its toll. Economic growth slowed to 5.5 percent in 2008 and the economy is forecast to shrink by 0.5 percent this year, according to the International Monetary Fund.

With a slump in demand from key markets like the United States, at least 130 garment factories have closed since late last year, prompting an estimated 50,000-60,000 lay-offs in an industry that brought in $3.8 billion in 2007.

But analysts say workers have accepted this is not the fault of government mismanagment, and that it looks unlikely to pose a threat to Cambodia's stability.

Neither, they say, will long-running diplomatic disputes with traditional foe Thailand over border demarcations, near the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple and in the Gulf of Thailand, where oil and gas deposits have been found.

Both sides have beefed up their military presence in the areas and seven soldiers died in skirmishes over the past year. But too much is at stake for both countries, and that is preventing the disputes from escalating significantly.

"It's been a bumpy ride for Cambodia, but stability is, and will remain, very much intact," added Pou Sothirak of ISEAS. "And for that reason, I expect foreign investors will return when the global economic situation improves." Read more!

Over 100,000 pills of drug substances destroyed in Cambodia

Phnom Penh Municipality on Thursday destroyed 107,958 pills of mixed drug substances including 21,499 grams of cocaine, 601 grams of heroin, over 80,000 pills of methamphetamines and amphetamines and other drugs substances, as well as some materials of drug lab.

"Drug substances and drug materials for labs that we burned off today were confiscated from criminals," Kep Chutema, Phnom Penh governor said in the ceremony of destroying at the outskirt of Phnom Penh.

"Drug trafficking cases have decreased after the authorities have cracked down on drug distribution places and drug using places," he said. However, he added that cases of crimes have increased in Phnom Penh and it has occurred among young people.

"So far this year, our authorities in Phnom Penh has cracked down 36 drug cases and arrested 80 criminals, and also seized some drug substances," he noted. "We have strengthened the law enforcement and our law enforcement officials have raised their law enforcement ability."

"We will establish a new drug-rehabilitation center for women in Phnom Penh and we considered drug users as drug victims without discrimination," he said.

"We have helped 2,143 people to get rid of drugs through the rehabilitation center, and other 215 people are in process of drug rehabilitation," Kep Chutema said, adding that "after they left this center, they will have jobs and skills for helping themselves and family."

Cambodia became the one of places of drug transmit, according to the governor. "Criminals used our country to distribute drugs to other countries and produce drug, even we destroyed it regularly," he said, "We must get together to stop the drug trafficking and fight against it to live with harmony at the local community."

Source:Xinhua Read more!

Lightning kills 4, raising death toll to 113 this year in Cambodia

PHNOM PENH, Lightning has killed 113 Cambodians so far this year, making 2009 one of the worst years on record for lightning deaths, local media reported on Wednesday, citing four more people have been killed by lightning since Saturday.

Kompong Thorn provincial officials reported that a 16-year-old boy living in Prasat Sambor district was struck by lightning as he walked through a rice field on Tuesday. In Battambang province's Thma Koul district, Hun Chhomm, 57, was killed as he walked home from his rice field on Sunday. And two men were killed in Prey Veng province over the weekend.

Keo Vy, deputy public relation director for the National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM), was quoted by the Cambodia Daily as saying that the committee is concerned about the number of lightning deaths this year, especially since they are already above the 93 people reported killed by lightning in all of2008, and well above the 45 reported killed in 2007.

"This year lightning has killed more than 100 people, but it is more usual for lightning to kill around 40 people per year," said Nhim Vanda, first vice chairman of the NCDM, adding that nobody knows why there have been so many more deaths this year. However, he speculated that climate change could be a factor.

Nhim Vanda said that his officials have tried to educate the public on how to protect themselves from lightning strikes during storms.

Seth Vannareth, meteorology director at the Ministry of Water Resources, agreed that lightning deaths have been unusually high this year and said that the government is planning on holding a series of lightning prevention workshops next year that will "teach people how to escape from lightning, how to protect themselves."
Read more!

Cambodia hosts meeting to discuss microfinance amid global financial crisis

With the helps from the International Financial Corporation (IFC) and the European Union (EU), Cambodia is hosting a conference to talk on how microfinance can boost country's economy, promote financial inclusion and enhance customer protection.

The IFC which is a member of the World Bank Group is helping Cambodian microfinance institutions to strengthen their contribution to the country's socio-economic development, and expand financial services to the rural population amid the global financial crisis.

The two-day meeting, which began Wednesday, participated by representatives from the Cambodia Microfinance Association, senior microfinanciers, bankers, regulators, and local authorities.

"The microfinance sector in Cambodia has grown fast and significantly contributed to improving access to financial services for the rural population," said Chea Chanto, governor of the National Bank of Cambodia.

"The success of the sector is vital to ensuring quick financial inclusion. We have adopted legislation that enables microfinance institutions to mobilize public deposits to help them access cheaper sources of funds while allowing rural populations to safely save their hard-earned cash," he said.

Participants also shared their views and experiences on how to respond to the global financial crisis, addressing credit culture, risk and nonperforming loan management, ethical debt collection practices, financial education, and consumer protection.

"The microfinance sector, which has loans of more than 280 million U.S. dollars outstanding to about one million clients in rural areas, already has felt the impact of the global financial crisis as no performing loans have increased from under one percent one year ago to 3.8 percent as of June 2009," said Huot Ieng Tong, president of Cambodia Microfinance Association.

IFC also works with individual microfinance institutions to help them diversify and focus their strategies, expanding their product range and improving their risk management capabilities.

"While the crisis has adversely affected microfinance institutions and their borrowers, it also brings opportunities for them to review their lending practices and risk and nonperforming loan management systems so they become more resilient to future crises," said Russell Muir, IFC Acting Head of Advisory Services for East Asia and Pacific.

Source:Xinhua Read more!

Southeast Asian Mobile Sector to Surpass 453 Million Subs, US$32 Billion in 2009, Frost & Sullivan Predicts

SINGAPORE, Southeast Asia's (SEA) mobile users are expected to hit 453.3 million subscribers by the close of this year, growing 18.4 percent over 2008. Billings are estimated to grow by 13.6 percent year-on-year to top US$32 billion by year-end.

New analysis from Frost & Sullivan (http://www.wireless.frost.com), 2009 Southeast Asia Wireless Outlook, finds that the mobile subscriber base in the region - covering seven Southeast Asian nations - grew 36 percent year-on-year to reach 383 million users in 2008, for a corresponding mobile penetration of 72.5 percent. By the close of year 2014, Frost & Sullivan estimates SEA's mobile subscribers to reach 606 million, growing at a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of eight percent (2009-2014).

SEA's mobile services grossed an estimated US$28.3 billion in revenues in 2008, and are forecasted to reach billings of US$36.2 billion by end-2014, at a CAGR of 4.2 percent (2009-2014).

If you are interested in a virtual brochure, which provides a brief synopsis and a table of content of the research on the Southeast Asia wireless market, then send an e-mail to Sarah Lourdes at sarah.lourdes@frost.com, with your full name, company name, title, telephone number, company e-mail address, company website and country. Upon receipt of the above information, a brochure will be sent to you by e-mail.

The diversity of SEA markets means that growth will be driven by a mix of subscriber net additions of consumers in the rural districts - many of whom will receive mobile connectivity for the first time as networks continue to expand beyond major urban areas - as well as the increase in data usage and higher-end services brought on by 3G.

Frost & Sullivan industry analyst Shaker Amin explains, "In saturated markets like Singapore and Malaysia with mobile penetration already at 131 percent and 97.8 percent respectively, growth, although marginal, will largely be fuelled by user migration to 3G, mobile broadband uptake and generally, the higher consumer appetite for mobile content and data services.

"On the other extreme, growing markets like Cambodia, Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines, with mobile penetration well below 75 percent and even lower fixed broadband penetration, are likely to see growth in new subscriber additions," he says, adding that these users are predominantly low-ARPU (average revenue per user) prepaid subscribers.

Amin believes that mobile usage in these growing markets will continue to be dominated by voice and basic text messaging services. He says, "Although 3G will be making its entry into many of these markets, it will be some years still before 3G services become commonplace."

Only about six percent (22.9 million) of SEA's total mobile users last year were 3G subscribers.

The race to roll-out 3G services in the hugely competitive growing markets however shows no signs of abating. Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam - each have no less than six mobile operators; Indonesia the most with eleven. "As operators compete fiercely to enrol new subscribers, 3G will be the technology to eventually deliver [mobile] broadband to the rural communities that are not likely to ever receive fixed broadband access," Amin adds.

In 2008, SEA accounted for approximately 21.5 percent of the total mobile users in Asia-Pacific (18 countries).

The 2009 Southeast Asia Wireless Outlook study is part of the Mobile & Wireless Growth Partnership Service program, which also includes research in the following markets: WiMAX, mobile content, mobile advertising, mobile broadband, smartphones, mobile CAPEX (capital expenditure), 3G-embedded devices and LTE (Long Term Evolution) networks. All research services included in subscriptions provide detailed market opportunities and industry trends that have been evaluated following extensive interviews with market participants.

Frost & Sullivan, the Growth Partnership Company, enables clients to accelerate growth and achieve best-in-class positions in growth, innovation and leadership. The company's Growth Partnership Service provides the CEO and the CEO's Growth Team with disciplined research and best practice models to drive the generation, evaluation, and implementation of powerful growth strategies. Frost & Sullivan leverages over 45 years of experience in partnering with Global 1000 companies, emerging businesses and the investment community from more than 35 offices on six continents. To join our Growth Partnership, please visit http://www.frost.com

Read more!

Former Premier’s Daughter Speaks Against Duch

By Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer


Antonya Tioulong, whose father was the prime minister in 1962, told the UN-backed Khmer Rouge tribunal on Tuesday that Duch’s crimes as a prison administrator were unpardonable.

One of seven daughters of former premier Tioulong Nhiek, Tioulong filed as a civil party complainant in the case, having lost a sister and brother-in-law in the killing machine of Tuol Sleng prison.

Prosecutors say 12,380 people were sent to their deaths at the prison.

“We must teach the new generation of Cambodians that this crime is not pardonable,” she told the court. “The criminal must recognize [his crime], and there must be justice for that.”

Tioulong works for L’Express newspaper in France and is the sister of Tioulong Somura, the wife of Sam Rainsy and an opposition lawmaker.

“I beg the [Trial] Chamber to issue a verdict fitting the crimes committed by the accused,” Antonya Tioulong told the court.

Duch, whose real name is Kaing Kek Iev, accepted the testimony, but he said Tioulong’s sister, Rainsy, died from illness.

Tioulong’s testimony follows statements from another civil party complainant on Monday, New Zealander Robert Hamill, whose brother was one of the few foreigners killed at Tuol Sleng.

Hamill told the court he wanted Duch to experience the same punishments his prisoners were subject to, including electrocution of the genitals, forced eating of feces, suffocation in water and a guillotine.

“I want you to have this pain; I want you to suffer,” he said in court.

There are no allowances for corporeal punishment under the tribunal—the maximum punishment is a life sentence—though Duch told the court last week he would accept stoning from the Cambodian people for his crimes.


Read more!

Lightning strikes kill 113 in Cambodia in 2009

Phnom Penh - Lightning has killed 113 people so far this year in Cambodia, making 2009 the worst in recent years for deaths attributable to the natural phenomenon, national media reported. Four more people have been struck and killed by lightning since Saturday, the Cambodia Daily newspaper reported, including a 16-year-old youth walking two cows across a rice field on Tuesday.

The government's National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM) said 93 people died last year from lightning strikes, more than double the 45 who were killed in 2007.

The deputy head of the NCDM, Nhim Vanda, said it was unclear why numbers are rising year on year, but said climate change could in part be to blame.

"This year lightning has killed more than 100 people, but it is more usual for lightning to kill around 40 people per year," Nhim Vanda told the newspaper.

He said the government is making efforts to educate Cambodians about the dangers of lightning, and how to protect themselves in the event of a storm.

"Everyone should turn off TVs, radios and telephones, and refrain from touching metal objects during rainstorms," he said.

The government will hold a series of workshops next year to educate people about the dangers of lightning.
Read more!

Cambodia approves ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement

PHNOM PENH (Xinhua) - Cambodian National Assembly yesterday approved the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement, paving the way for the Kingdom to implement trade facilitation and tariff liberalization among ASEAN member countries.

The agreement is aimed at achieving the establishment of the ASEAN market and the ASEAN Economic Community by 2015.

This agreement covers, among others, tariff liberalization, elimination of non-tariff barriers, rules of origin, trade facilitation, customs procedures, standards and conformance, and sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures.

"It will help reduce or omit import tax, favorable tax for good items from the partners and help facilitate private sector for their business, as well as speed up the flow of investment capital from the outside world," said Nin Saphan, chairwoman for the committee of public work, transport, posts and telecommunication, industry, mine, energy, commerce, urbanization, land management and construction.

"Cambodia has prepared itself to join with other countries in regional integration like the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement, and for Cambodia, the agreement will come into effect in 2018. So we still have time to take actions for trade deal," said Kong Vibol, secretary of state for the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

"Our country still need the state revenue from the import tax for supporting the state expenditure and development infrastructures and the country is the youngest in ASEAN. Therefore, other members allow us to fully implement the agreement in 2018," he said.

"The agreement will also help narrowing the development gap between the ASEAN's old and new members," he added.

It is said that after 2018, Cambodia is still allowed to charge 5 percent of customs duties on 61 farm products imported from other ASEAN countries.
Read more!

Cambodia: Pedal to the mettle

By Kerri Jackson


Silver has crossed my palm. Or, more specifically, my wrist. And being fatally attracted to shiny things as I am, silver - in a metaphorical, American dollar sense - is soon crossing the palm of the Cambodian girl now eyeing me expectantly.

I'm in a small silversmith village about two hours' drive north of Phnom Penh, on the potholed, bustling NH5 highway to Battambang in Cambodia's north west.

The city is another bone-rattling four hours away by bus, so this is certainly not the fastest way to travel between the country's two largest cities, but it is a fantastic way to see the rural back blocks of this country. From the emerald-green rice paddies to the clusters of slow-moving oxen, this is a very different Cambodia from the hustle and edginess of Phnom Penh. The only similarity is the motor scooters which beep and toot their way along the highway - although here they're laden with livestock rather than school children.

Then there are the small villages, like this one where our bus stops to load up with silver. Each village between Phnom Penh and Battambang seems to specialise in a craft or industry, whether it's this exquisite silversmithing, pottery, stone carving, or silk farming and weaving.

Each is a small hive for tourists, but they are still a better place to buy your treasures than the heaving markets of Phnom Penh if you want "buy-from-the-manufacturer" bargains.

So it is that our bus now resembles a blinged-out Priscilla wagon, at least on the inside, as it wends its way into Battambang.

This city of some 140,000 people is an elegantly wasted place - comprising just five named streets and a beautiful collection of ramshackle French colonial buildings - located along the meandering riverbanks of Stung Sangker.

Today Battambang city works as a hub, servicing the surrounding agricultural region, home to what it claims is the country's best rice, and a fledgling tourist industry. Visitors come here for the French architecture but stay for the easy pace, the friendly locals and the beautiful scenery.

The vast market seems to take up the entire centre of town. It's a sometimes sobering, olfactory-challenging introduction to Third World food storage and preparation but mostly it's a thriving community centre. With vendors selling everything from fish, meat and vegetables to ready-made snacks, clothing and bicycles, this is the beating heart of this small city.

Once you've explored the town centre there's plenty to see in the surrounding areas. And one of the best ways to see it all is by bicycle.

Cambodia is as flat a country as you're every likely to find, making it perfect for pedal-powered sightseeing. However, temperatures can be scorching, so a word of advice: start your trip early in the day to avoid pedalling through the searing heat of the midday sun. We learnt that the hard way.

The effort of battling through chaotic early-morning scooter traffic is soon rewarded with a calm riverside ride through the city's outskirts towards Wat Slaket, where you can wander among the picturesque temple buildings and monks' living quarters. The monks are friendly and happy to chat to visitors.

"Thank you for your smile. I give you my smile too. It is important to give your smile to people," says one, his smile beaming from a window.

Another 12-year-old boy explains in Khmer to our guide that he asked his mother to let him live at the monaster, y already recognising it as offering a better type life in this very poor country.

For us though, it's time to saddle up again for the big push on through villages and past rice paddies for another 11km to the spectacular Wat Ek Phnom.

Along the way, the roads are lined with stalls, drying rice paper and other bicycles laden down with produce and merchandise. Children rush out of houses giggling, waving and keen to practise their language skills with "hellos!" or "bonjours!"

Wat Ek Phnom, a partly ruined 11th-century temple that was once Hindu but now Buddhist, is a calm, contemplative place. On one side is a lotus-filled water reservoir; on the other, a giant Buddha statue stands majestically amongst the cattle.

Refreshed with a fresh coconut drink, it's time to get our slightly saddle-sore hides back on those bikes for the ride back to Battambang.

As the temperature bolts merrily towards 40C, all sensible Cambodians have retired to the shade for a siesta while we desperately plug our pedals homeward dreaming of hotel swimming pools or cold showers.

Instead, there's the quick, cooling violence of a torrential thunderstorm as we're off the bikes and on the bus for the ride to Prasat Banan, an imposing five-towered temple atop a hill, 30km south of Battambang. More pressingly, it's atop some 358 steps. They are, thankfully, largely under the shade, but still a big ask of bicycle-weary legs. But by the time you reach the top, and let the dots clear from your eyes, the panoramic views across the patchworked countryside more than make up for it. The temple is another moody 11th-century, falling-down stone structure locals say was a model for the grander, more famous temples at Angkor.

There's one more surprise on the road back to Battambang - the Chan Thay Chhoeng winery. Yes, a winery.

Here, one Cambodian woman has taught herself winemaking from English-language books, while teaching herself English from a dictionary. The wine, from a sister in France, produces wine, that is, to be fair, a little rough around the edges but the commitment and story behind it, make it seem a little sweeter.

It's a good spot to wrap up a tour of this area as it seems to encapsulate the mix of cultures and history that is Battambang's biggest asset.

Kerri Jackson travelled to Cambodia with Cathay Pacific and Adventure World Read more!

Webb Assures Cambodia Of "very Close Look" At The Trade Act

U.S. Senator Jim Webb, who is on a two-week tour of five South-East Asian nations, made a lightning visit to Cambodia Tuesday to 'invigorate' the United States' relationship with that country.

Talking to reporters at the capital, Phnom Penh, Webb said he assured during talks with the minister of commerce that Washington will take a "very close look" at the Trade Act of 2009, a measure introduced to provide duty-free access to the U.S. market for garments made in 14 least-developed countries.

He stressed the need for labor standards in beneficiary countries meeting international standards.

He said he discussed with the leaders of two of the opposition groups about the ongoing crackdown by the Cambodian government against its opponents. The U.S. wants to do "what we can to encourage political diversity in Cambodia," he added.

He is to meet with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen later in the day.

Chairman of the U.S. Senate's Sub-Committee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Webb visited Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand with the mission of the U.S. government's re-engagement with Southeast Asia at all levels.

He will wind up the tour with a visit to Vietnam later Tuesday.

by RTT Staff Writer 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 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. Read more!

Rob Hamill faces brother's killer

By JEFF NEEMS - Waikato Times


Hamilton man Rob Hamill faced his brother's alleged killer in a Cambodian court yesterday, but the former torture camp commandant claims he can not remember him.

Speaking to the Times from Phnom Penh shortly after testifying at the UN-backed trial of Kaing Guek Eav, better known as Duch and the head of the notorious S21 prison camp under Pol Pot's Khymer Rouge regime, Mr Hamill was not surprised by Duch's claim he did not recall Mr Hamill's older brother Kerry.

Kerry Hamill is believed to have been one of a handful of Westerners killed in the camp between 1975 and 1979. Kerry Hamill's yacht strayed into Cambodian waters in 1978, and while exact details of his death remain unknown, he is believed to have been tortured and executed while in S21.

Duch has testified he carried out orders from the regime's late leader Pol Pot, and Mr Hamill said Duch continued with that defence when he gave the equivalent of a victim impact statement in Phnom Penh's Extraordinary Chambers of Courts of Cambodia.

"His out is that he was just taking orders. It was either that, or be killed himself."

An emotionally drained Mr Hamill said there was sense of relief at having made his statement, aimed at court judges and detailing the huge impact of his brother's death on the Hamill family. He was able to make extensive eye contact with Duch, who sat just metres from him.

"It was very difficult, but he was certainly very attentive," Mr Hamill said. "I didn't look at him that much when I was making my statement - I was really looking up at the judges."

Reading his statement from notes, Mr Hamill said he was able to look directly at Duch when he made "a couple of pointed comments", while Mr Hamill's wife Rachel noticed Duch nervously fidgeting during particularly emotional parts of her husband's testimony.

"I had some emotional moments in there," Mr Hamill said of his appearance, which lasted just under an hour. "I was wiping away a few tears as I was telling the story."

"Whenever I said things that were emotionally charged about him (Duch), he was shuffling, pretty nervy..."

Mr Hamill believed Duch to be a "very sharp cookie, playing the court really well". Mr Hamill was able to directly question Duch, and asked him how long his brother was interned for.

"But the answer I got was that he (Duch) didn't know...which was a bit disappointing. He just didn't remember."

"The longer Kerry was in there, the worse it would've been," Mr Hamill said. "I know he was in there for at least two months."

Ad Feedback Mr Hamill said Duch recalled Kerry Hamill's British crewmate John Dewhurst, "and he just said they both were killed at the same time".

"He said specifically he remembered the British man, but not my brother. It is disappointing, and I find it hard to believe...they were brought in at the same time, two Westerners."

Mr Hamill said although somewhat surreal, events at the trial had transpired much as he had expected. While he had not neccessarily gained any more information about his brother's death, Mr Hamill said he felt it was significant to represent the estimated 17,000 people killed in the camp, and their families.

Feedback from lawyers participating in the trial was that Mr Hamill's statement and questioning had made a strong impact on the judges.

"It was pretty powerful, being in there, and being part of that. I really felt I got the message across that I wanted to."

The trip to Cambodia for the trial will be an integral part of a documentary on Mr Hamill's search for justice for his brother, entitled Brother No 1. Read more!

Mekong River Raises Cost of Trans-Asia Railway

By Luke Hunt, Phnom Penh


Plans to finally finish the massive Trans-Asia Railway have hit cost hurdles in Cambodia. The initial findings in a Chinese feasibility study shows the need to build several bridges in the Mekong River Delta will raise the final cost of linking Phnom Penh with the Vietnamese border by rail. New estimates put the cost at $600 million for the Phnom Penh to Vietnam leg.

A preliminary technical study report says that two big bridges - a thousand meter span over the Mekong River and 1,500 meter bridge over the Tonle Sap - will be the big ticket items. The Chinese-funded study, which will be published soon, estimates they will have a combined price tag of $262 million.

More than $100 million will also be spent on smaller bridges to enable safe passage across the Mekong Delta.

Cambodia has divided its railway system in two. The China Railway Group will build an entirely new 255 kilometer line in the east while Australia's Toll Holdings will take control and reconstruct old French-built lines in the west.
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Derek Mayes is a board member of the Australian Business Association of Cambodia. He says the economic benefits will be enormous for the Southeast Asian economy, with rail offering a cheaper and safer alternative to road.

"I think it will be very large, it certainly will increase traffic on the rails because road transport as we know is very expensive and considerably dangerous, considering the safety aspects on the roads here," Mayes said.

The problem, though, is the initial costs. Touch Chankosal is Cambodia's undersecretary of state for the Ministry of Public Works and Transport. He says that the $600 million needed to connect Phnom Penh to Vietnam represents a huge sum for the Cambodians. The government probably will have to seek additional capital from outside the country, possibly the Asian Development Bank, if it is to be completed.

The Trans-Asian Railway project intends to use existing and new rail lines to connect all of Asia to Central Asia, South Asia and Western Europe. In all, tracks will link 28 countries, although only less than half that number has ratified the agreement with the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.

In Southeast Asia, the line will connect Singapore to Turkey, with tracks running through Burma, Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam. Read more!

Brother of New Zealander jailed, killed by Cambodia's Khmer Rouge rages at prison commander

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — The brother of a New Zealander tortured and killed by the Khmer Rouge three decades ago told the man who ordered the execution on Monday that he wished him a similarly gruesome fate.

Kerry Hamill was 28 when his yacht was blown off course into Cambodian waters in 1978, and he was captured by the radical communist regime. He and a shipmate, Briton John Dewhirst, were taken to Phnom Penh's S-21 prison and later killed.

Kerry's brother, Rob, wept as he testified at the trial of S-21's commander, Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch — the first of five senior Khmer Rouge defendants to be tried by a U.N.-assisted tribunal and the only one to acknowledge responsibility for his actions.

"Duch, at times I have wanted to smash you, to use your words. The same way that you smashed so many others," Rob Hamill said, sitting in a suit and tie, his hands folded before him. "Smash" was the euphemism the Khmer Rouge used when ordering executions.

"At times, I have imagined you shackled, starved, whipped and clubbed, viciously. I have imagined your scrotum electrified, being forced to eat your own feces, being nearly drowned and having your throat cut," said Hamill, referring to some of the horrors faced by prisoners.

Duch sat behind him, expressionless.

"I have wanted that to be your experience, your reality. I have wanted you to suffer the way you made Kerry and so many others (suffer)," Hamill said.

About a dozen Westerners were among the estimated 16,000 people held at the prison before being killed. The communist regime's radical policies while in power from 1975-79 caused the deaths of an estimated 1.7 million people nationwide by execution, overwork, disease and malnutrition.

Rob Hamill, 45, a rower who represented New Zealand at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, said his family learned of his brother's death 16 months after he disappeared. Their parents read in a newspaper that he was executed after two months at S-21.

"Death not by shipwreck, not by drowning or freak accident, but death by torture. Death by torture not over a few seconds or minutes or hours or days or weeks even," said Hamill.

Asked by judges for his response, Duch (pronounced DOIK) repeated his earlier testimony that he received orders to kill the Westerners and burn their bodies.

He asked for forgiveness from the victims' families, acknowledging that they had suffered miserably.

He said he was not offended by being blamed.

"Even if the people threw stones at me and caused my death, I would not say anything," he told the court.

Duch is charged with crimes against humanity, war crimes, torture and murder, and could face a maximum penalty of life in prison. Cambodia has no death penalty.

His trial is expected to wrap up by the end of the year.
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Malaria deaths, infections in Cambodia on rise

PHNOM PENH, The reported number of fatal malaria cases almost doubled in the first half of 2009 compared with the same period last year, while the overall number of infections rose more than 58 percent, local media reported Monday, citing the figures from the Ministry of Health officials.

Tol Bunkea, chief epidemiologist at the Ministry of Health, was quoted by the Cambodia Daily as saying that the number of malaria deaths this year stood at 130 out of a total of 32,638 registered malaria cases. Dr Bunkea said that in the first half of 2008 there were 67 fatalities out of 20,563 reported cases of malaria.

Duong Socheat, director of National Center of Parasitology, Entomology, and Malaria Control, said the increase of infections was due to the early rains and the fact that the government had distributed mosquito nets too late this year.

Dr Socheat said the increasing number of people migrating to remote, forested areas on the Cambodian-Thai border, such as in Pailin and Oddar Meanchey provinces, was also leading to a rise in malaria cases.

"People are moving there to work, clear the forest and do farming in areas that have a lot of mosquitoes. Then they come back with malaria," he was quoted as saying, and adding that, "this migration is still the major cause of this disease."

Dr Socheat said the government is also increasingly concerned about the effectiveness of medicine for malaria treatment, as recent international studies found strains of drug resistant malaria in western Cambodia "Before it took 48 hours to kill the parasite, but now [in some cases] it takes 80 hours," he said.

In February, the World Health Organization started a 22.5 million U.S. dollars cross-border project to contain the drug-resistant malaria strains.
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Cambodia: Appointment Of Judges

Cambodia: Appointment Of Judges And Prosecutors Is Unconstitutional

Lately there has been a hectic time within the Cambodian judiciary with the actual and planned retirement and appointments of many judges and prosecutors. The government has retired and replaced half of the members, two ex-officio and two appointed, of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy (SCM), the supreme judicial body responsible for the nomination and discipline of judges and prosecutors. A further 27 are also to be retired. In the meantime, some 32 judges and prosecutors, including four who are the de facto age of retirement of 60, have been appointed to new positions.

In a statement dated 7 August 2009 (see CAMBODIA: Law on the statute of judges, not their retirement, is the right end from which to tackle judicial reform), the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has already pointed out the unconstitutionality of the government’s infringement upon the jurisdiction and independence of the SCM when it had bypassed it and retired and replaced those four SCM members. According to the country’s Constitution, the nomination, including appointment, retirement and transfer, as well as the discipline of judges and prosecutors are the responsibility of the SCM, and not that of the government. The SCM is the supreme body of the judiciary which is chaired by the country’s king and which also has the responsibility of ensuring judicial independence.

The AHRC has also urged the Cambodian government to enact two long-overdue laws which the country has specifically stipulated (Art.135 of the Constitution) and which would provide the legal background and framework for the judiciary as required under Art.14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights on the right to a fair trial by an independent, competent and impartial tribunal established by law. With the law on the statute of judges and prosecutors, the age of retirement would be officially fixed and known, and actual retirement could be set without arousing any suspicion of favouritism for those who wish to remain in active service.

The AHRC has further noticed that the appointment of judges and prosecutors, as shown in the king’s successive appointment decrees, has not respected the principle of separation of powers and the independence of the judiciary as enshrined the country’s Constitutions (Arts 51 and 128). In these appointments, the Minister of Justice, a cabinet member and also a member of the SCM, has made nomination proposals, received the approval of the SCM and submitted them to the king for signing. For some appointments, the SCM has been bypassed altogether and the proposals directly submitted to the king for signature.

This practice contravenes Art 134 of the country’s Constitution which says, among other things, that “The Supreme Council of the Magistracy shall make proposals to the King on the appointment of judges and prosecutors to all courts.” It should be declared unconstitutional when, according Art. 150 of the same Constitution, “Laws and decisions by the State institutions shall have to be in strict conformity with the Constitution.”

The Cambodian government and its ministry of justice in particular seem to have exploited the absence of the constitutional review or any other forms of judicial review of their decisions and have tried to rule by decree, at least in appointment and retirement of judges and prosecutors. The constitutional review of laws seems clear cut when a specific number of public figures and even ordinary citizens may request for it. However, there is almost a complete silence over the constitutional review of decisions of state institutions, the government and its ministries included. Only a litigant who feels his or her rights are affected by such a decision could raise the issue of its unconstitutionality with the Constitutional Council through the Supreme Court. Unlike in the case of promulgated laws, neither any public figure mentioned above nor any concerned citizen may request for the constitutional review of decisions of state institutions. Nor is the Constitutional Council habilitated to do this constitutional

The AHRC strongly urges the Minister of Justice to respect the principle of separation of powers and the independence of the judiciary and the SCM, refrain from infringing upon the jurisdiction of the SCM, and let this supreme judicial body fully exercise its full constitutional authority over the nomination and discipline of judges and prosecutors. The Minister of Justice should relinquish its control of the SCM Secretariat and transfer it back where it belongs, that is, to the SCM. It should instead secure for the SCM adequate resources to enable it to fulfill its constitutional duties in the nomination and discipline of judges and prosecutors, and in the independence of the judiciary.

AHRC further urges that all decisions of state institutions, including those of the government and the Ministry of Justice regarding the nomination and discipline of judges and prosecutors as well as the independence of the judiciary, should be in strict conformity with the Constitution as specifically stipulated under its Art 150. The Law on the Organization and Functioning of the Constitutional Council should therefore be amended in order to subject such decisions to the same constitutional review as all laws.

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Vietnam, Cambodia mull rice venture to steady prices

VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnamese and Cambodian officials met this week to discuss setting up a state-owned joint rice mill project to control prices, a local association said.

An official from the Vietnam Food Association said Thursday that the Southern Food Corporation (Vinafood 2) and the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam would be the Vietnamese partners, representing a 60 percent stake in the Cambodia-based joint venture.

The first rice venture between the two countries would combine the rice processing experience of the Vietnamese partners with Cambodia’s rice production sector, which has been largely untapped for exports, said the official.

Vietnam is the world’s second biggest rice exporter, having shipped nearly US$1.7 billion worth of rice in the first seven months this year.

Cambodian rice yields have been increasing and its government has encouraged businesses to process for export, according to the association.

About 1 million tons of Cambodian rice was ready for export, said the association. The competition, as well as a high summer-fall yield in Vietnam, was pushing prices down, according to local officials.

The new venture is expected to help prevent prices from falling, the association said.

The association aims to prevent price drops by asking members to buy 400,000 tons of the grain from farmers in order to increase its rice stockpiles.

Regional association

A Thai official said Saturday that five Southeast Asian nations may set up a rice-trade association next year to cooperate in stabilizing rice prices.

Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar will also cooperate on other issues related to food security and production, said Chiya Yimvilai, a spokesman at a meeting of ASEAN economic ministers in Bangkok. The countries would also work together on developing rice products, he said.

“It won’t be like OPEC,” said Chiya, speaking at a press briefing. “Our objective is to help prevent prices from falling too much, but we won’t jointly set the prices.” Read more!

Myanmar deports American citizen out of relations with U.S.: official

YANGON, The Myanmar government said on Sunday night that its decision to deport imprisoned American citizen John William Yettaw is out of attachment of importance to bilateral relations with the United States, according to the state-run Myanmar Radio and Television.

At the request of Democratic Senator of the U.S. Jim Webb, who is Chairman of the East Asian and Pacific Affairs Subcommittee of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and the U.S. Embassy in Myanmar, Yettaw's seven years' rigorous imprisonment, sentenced by a Myanmar district court on Aug. 11, was commuted half and the remainder half was suspended by deportation, the report quoted a government order as saying.

The 54-year-old epilepsy-suffering Yettaw was convicted by the court on charge of entering into Aung San Suu Kyi's restricted lake-side residence for three days in early May.

The government's decision was made also on grounds of sympathy with his health and his future, the report said, adding that Yettaw left the country along with Webb on conclusion of the latter's three-day visit to Myanmar Sunday afternoon.

Webb told the press before his departure from Yangon that he hopes that the U.S.-Myanmar relation would improve, thanking the Myanmar government for freeing Yettaw.

Webb also said the U.S. Administration is reassessing its policy towards Myanmar and he would make proposals for the move after he is back to the country.

Webb arrived in Myanmar on Friday on a three-day visit as part of his two-week tour to five Southeast Asian nations at the invitation of Myanmar Foreign Minister U Nyan Win.

During his visit in Nay Pyi Taw, Webb met with Myanmar top leader Senior-General Than Shwe, Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council, Prime Minister General Thein Sein and the State Constitution Drafting Commission, led by Chief Justice U Aung Toe, on the government side.

Webb also met with leadership of 10 legal political parties including the National League for Democracy (NLD) and National Unity Party (NUP) and that of some ethnic peace groups from Kachin, Shan and Kayah special regions as well as representatives of some social organizations.

He was allowed by the government to meet with NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who is under suspended 18 months' sentence of confinement to her residence in connection with Yattaw's case, becoming the first foreign official to meet with Suu Kyi after her sentence.

Webb's Myanmar visit also represents the first ever one to the country of a member of the U.S. Congress in over a decade.

Webb's five-nation trip had taken him to Laos and he is proceeding to Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia after Myanmar visit.
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Asean to get $25bn loan from China

ANOTHER $10BN TO BE OFFERED IN THE FORM OF A FUND FOR EMERGENCY USE

Writer: PHUSADEE ARUNMAS


Newspaper section: NewsChina yesterday agreed to provide a US$15 billion (510 billion baht) loan to help Southeast Asian countries with infrastructure development and another $10 billion in the form of an emergency investment fund to help the region cope with future economic crises.

Beijing made the pledges in a meeting between Asean commerce ministers and their Chinese counterpart Chen Deming.

The loan will be used to improve transport and telecommunications infrastructures in the region, said Commerce Minister Porntiva Nakasai, who chaired the meeting.

Railway connections between Kunming in southern China to Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore will benefit from the injection of cash, which will also be used to boost trade, investment and tourism between Asean and China.

The Asean Secretariat will prioritise the infrastructure projects that will benefit from this loan.

Details would be hammered out at the Asean summit in October.

As for the $10 billion emergency fund, China hoped that it will help Asean solve its future economic problems.

Asean and China also signed the Asean-China Investment Agreement yesterday, which the two sides have been negotiating since 2003.

The agreement will expand trade and investment and will come into effect on Jan 1.

Mr Chen called the agreement a "milestone" in fostering trade and investment ties between China and Southeast Asia.

Ms Porntiva said she hoped the accord will also benefit trade and investment between Thailand and China.

China is the eighth largest investor in Asean with a total investment of $60 billion. Last year, investment from China rose 125% from 2007.

In a related development, Asean ministers and their counterparts from China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand and India supported efforts to turn their countries into a free trade area.

According to a study by an expert group, the free trade area of 16 countries would boost GDP by 1.3%.

Thailand's economic growth would rise 4.8% and the Asean economy would grow 3.8% once the 16 countries have been turned into one free trade zone, the study said.

Also yesterday, Asean and South Korea agreed to set up a special fund to support cooperation schemes including projects aimed at reducing the economic gap in Southeast Asia. South Korea contributed $1.5 billion to the fund. Read more!

China signs investment agreement with ASEAN

BANGKOK - China and the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Saturday signed an investment pact that provides guarantees against nationalisation, riots and disputes and is expected to boost investment.

“The ASEAN-China Investment Agreement is expected to boost bilateral investments by 40 to 60 percent over the next two years,” Thai Commerce Minister Porntiva Nakasai said after inking the pact with Chinese Commerce Minister Chen De-ming.

China is currently ranked the eighth-largest investor in South East Asia with $5.6 billion in cumulative investments in the region as of 2008.

Investments in China from the 10 members of ASEAN amounted to $6.1 billion as of last year.

The investment agreement provides Chinese and ASEAN investors guarantees not necessarily proffered to other countries.

“For instance, the agreement will guarantee compensation for investors in the case of nationalisation or riots,” said Krisda Piampongsant, spokesman for the commerce ministry of Thailand, which now holds the rotating chairmanship of ASEAN.

The association agreed to set up a dispute-settlement body soon to resolve legal problems that might arise between investors and the respective states, Krisda said.

ASEAN has already signed a partial free trade agreement with China, which covers trade in goods. The investment pact, which took six years to finalise, was seen as the second step toward a full free trade pact with China with the third being an agreement in services.

“Services is a tougher nut to crack,” Krisda noted.

China was the fourth-largest export market for ASEAN between January to September 2008 when the region’s exports to China amounted to $85.6 billion. China’s exports to ASEAN during the same period was $107 billion.

The ASEAN-China investment agreement was signed at a meeting of ASEAN’s economic ministers in Bangkok. On Thursday, the regional bloc signed a partial trade agreement with India, which was expected to boost bilateral trade to $60 billion by 2016 from $47 billion last year.

ASEAN consists of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

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