PHNOM PENH, Cambodia - A U.S.-based foundation is urging concerted international action to preserve world-famed cultural heritage sites at risk of loss or damage, including Cambodia's ancient Angkor Wat temple complex, one of the great landmarks of Asia.
The Global Heritage Fund says in a report circulated Monday that "of the nearly 500 global heritage sites in the 100 poorest and emerging countries of the world ... over 200 are facing irreversible loss and damage today."
Among the other sites highlighted are Sumerian archaeological sites in southern Iraq it says that are subject to massive looting; the ancient city of Hasankeyf in Turkey that could be flooded by a new dam project; and Kashgar in western China, where old quarters face demolition under government plans to guard against earthquakes that will relocate over 50,000 people.
"The trend of loss is accelerating due to the simultaneous man-made threats of development pressures, unsustainable tourism, insufficient management, looting, and war and conflict," says the report, "Saving Our Vanishing Heritage: Safeguarding Endangered Cultural Heritage."
The report says that visitors to Angkor Wat increased by 188 per cent from 840,000 in 2000 to 2.4 million in 2009. The temples were built when Angkorian kings ruled over much of Southeast Asia between the ninth and 14th centuries. After centuries of abandonment — and neglect in the 1970s during a civil war — they have emerged as Cambodia's leading tourist destination.
Visitors climbing over the ruins is causing "heavy deterioration of original Khmer stonework," the report warns. It adds that hotels and restaurants nearby are sapping region's aquifer, which has caused the famed Bayon temple's 54 towers to sink into the ground.
Tan Sambu, an official of the Apsara Authority — the Cambodian government office that oversees the temples — said it has issued guidelines for tourists, telling them not to touch carvings and statues. Earlier this year, South Korea provided $9.2 million to build a new road that will circle the temple complex and reduce traffic inside the heritage area.
"Of course when there are many tourists visiting, the deterioration of the original stonework at the temples can't be avoided, but our agency has tried to reduce the effects as much as possible," Tam Sambu said.
The Global Heritage Fund report calls for the preservation of heritage to be recognized as a global priority like combating climate change and biological diversity. It is due to will host a forum on the issue Tuesday at California's Stanford University.
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Monday, October 18, 2010
Conservation group urges action to save Angkor, other developing world cultural heritage sites
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Flooding on Thailand-Cambodia border still critical
(NECN/MCOT: Sa Kaeo, Thailand) - The border district of Aranyaprathet in Sa Kaew province was under water for the second day on Sunday, with more than 1,000 households being affected.
Flooding in the municipal area and Aranyaprathet's market was described as the worst in 13 years, forcing local residents and vendors to move their belongings and goods to areas with higher ground. Buddhist monks had to wade through floodwaters while on their morning alms rounds.
Many roads in the Aranyaprathet municipal area were heavily flooded and several sections of them could not be used by small passenger cars.
At the border market of Rong Kluea, which was earlier heavily inundated, saw receding levels of floodwater and was returning to business as usual. However, officials were removing large amounts of garbage brought by floodwater.
At Sa Kaew's Baan Klong Luek border checkpoint, cargo trucks from Thailand were prevented by Cambodian authorities from entering that country due to severe flooding in Cambodia's border town of Poipet. The Cambodians said there was no space left to store new goods and the local warehouses were being flooded.
Officials at the Aranyaprathet customs house said the Cambodian authorities order continued for the second day Sunday.
They said each day more than 150 trucks carrying Thai exports to Cambodia pass the Baan Klong Luek border checkpoint. It was estimated that the suspension of cargo transport caused 50 million baht in loss of revenue each day for Thai exporters.
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Mekong countries should delay dam projects for decade: study
Countries in the lower Mekong River region should delay any decisions about building hydropower dams for 10 years, an influential new study said Friday, warning of the many risks involved.
The recommendation was made in a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) report commissioned by the Mekong River Commission (MRC), an inter-governmental advisory body that deals with all Mekong River-related activities.
The MRC -- which represents Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam -- is studying the possible construction of 11 hydropower projects on southeast Asia's longest river.
"The recommendation to defer dam construction for a 10-year period is very significant," said Tiffany Hacker, an interim communication advisor for the MRC.
Environmental groups have long objected to damming the river, arguing that it would damage fragile ecosystems.
The assessment, led by consultants with the help of the MRC, government agencies and civil society representatives, said more time was needed to study the risks that come with building dams in such a complex environment.
"The mainstream projects are likely to result in serious and irreversible environmental damage and... losses in biological diversity and ecological integrity," the report said.
It also warned that the dams would have a negative impact on fisheries and could "lead to increasing food insecurity for millions of people".
The MRC stressed that it was under no obligation to follow the report's recommendations, but Hacker told AFP that member countries were "likely to take the findings seriously".
The four countries will now study the findings "for at least six months" before deciding on how to proceed, Hacker said.
More than 60 million people rely in some way on the river, which is the world's largest inland fishery, according to the MRC.
The wildlife group WWF has warned that the Mekong giant catfish -- one of the world's biggest freshwater fish -- could be driven to extinction if plans to build hydropower dams on the river go ahead, blocking spawning grounds.
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Nine years old girl allegedly tortured
Officials are investigating allegations that a 9-year-old girl was tortured while working as a housemaid for a family in Pursat province.
Ben Sivla, a commune councillor, said the girl’s neighbours reported the case to police and rights workers on Saturday after she fled the house where she lived and worked in Krakor district’s Anlong Thnout commune.
“She ran away from home because her [employers] fought her and accused her of taking their money,” she said.
She said officials had found “many wounds” on the girl’s head, hands, face and back – some of which appeared to have been inflicted with knives and ropes – and that the girl appeared to have been the victim of ongoing abuse.
“She has both new wounds and old wounds on her body,” she said.
She said the girl – who had previously worked for two other families and was sold to her current employers in exchange for 100 kilograms of rice – was being sheltered in an orphanage pending the results of an investigation, which would include interviews with the girl’s former employers.
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Saturday, October 16, 2010
PNoy names envoys to Cambodia, Brunei
MANILA, Philippines - President Benigno Aquino has reappointed Noe Wong as ambassador to Cambodia and named retired general Nestor Ochoa as ambassador to Brunei.
Aquino had appointed Ochoa as acting armed forces chief at the start of his presidency, but was replaced by General Ric David.
Wong, a former admiral in the Philippine Navy, was appointed ambassador to Phnom Penh by President Arroyo.
Their appointments will have to be confirmed by the Commission on Appointments.
Cambodia and Brunei are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a cornerstone of Philippine foreign policy.
The Presidential Communications Operations Office said the President also appointed the following to the Cebu Port Authority:
Vicente T. Hualdo Jr. and Engr. Ben Acol as commissioners representing the shipping sector;
Arturo R. Barit, representing the cargo handling sector;
Atty Joselito Pedaria;
Engr. Carlos G. Co and Engr. Dennis Villamor, representing the business sector.
The Cebu Port Authority is under the Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC).
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Sex Workers Advised to Use Condoms to Prevent HIV Infection
As per the international Independent Commission on AIDS in Asia, 10 million women indulge in sex with 75 million men, who further have sex with additional 50 million people.
Steve Krauss, who is the Regional Director of UNAIDS Asia Pacific, said, “The technology is there to prevent infections, but punitive laws get in the way”.
The international community until recently was singing paeans for Cambodia for effectively implementing its 100% Condom Use Programme, according to which it was necessary for the sex workers to use condoms during sex.
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But commencing the national anti-trafficking law in the year 2008 largely illegalized sex work and forced the sex workers to hibernate.
After the closure of most whorehouses in Cambodia, majority of sex workers adopted other professions like working in karaoke bars, massage parlors and parks, putting them at increase risk to police corruption and HIV infection.
Andrew Hunt, creator of the Asia Pacific Network of Sex Workers said that police believe that its main duty is to clamp down on sex workers use condoms as evidence.
Hunter also said that the police require legal training, as many nations refuse to present condoms as evidence in court.
Hunter further stated that majority of sex workers believe that amendments should be done both in the judicial procedure and accessibility to justice.
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UBELONG Contributes to Reaching the MDGs In Cambodia
In September we proudly supported our volunteering projects in Cambodia by donating money from the UBELONG Fund to help reach the UN's Millennium Development Goals.
(I-Newswire) Washington, DC, October 16, 2010 - We recently proudly supported our volunteering projects in Cambodia by donating money from the UBELONG Fund to the Salvation Center Cambodia (SCC), a local Cambodian organization devoted to sustainable community development. The money was used to help a school for disadvantaged children in the Som Reang Mean Chey community of Phnom Penh. Specifically, it went to provide the children with school uniforms and materials, including plants for the school’s educational garden.
Our donation was made as part of a larger city-wide event that brought together various organizations to raise awareness and fundraising in support of the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to end extreme poverty by 2015. During the event, volunteers from across the world solicited donations from local business and held discussions with locals and tourists about the MDGs. The volunteers also played games with local children and helped them to create community gardens and learn English.
For the volunteers, the festivities were an opportunity to learn about the MDGs, as well as contribute firsthand to poverty alleviation efforts. In line with the UBELONG mission, volunteers of all backgrounds were able to contribute and make a difference. UBELONG co-founder Raul Roman was in Cambodia visiting the UBELONG projects during the run-up to the event and, as he notes: “It was inspiring to see locals and international volunteers from all walks of life working together. Any barriers that may have existed because of culture, language or nationality were overcome as people came together with the aim of making a positive difference.”
Looking ahead, we look forward to continuing our support of local organization like SCC. In the next 12 months we anticipate that over 1,000 volunteers of all backgrounds and nationalities will join our programs. These volunteers represent the core of our efforts to assist communities. We encourage you to explore our volunteering opportunities in both Cambodia and the rest of the world, and to help spread the word about UBELONG.
To learn more about our projects in Cambodia and throughout the world, please visit www.ubelong.org.
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Friday, October 15, 2010
Chaotic But Widespread Voting in Philippines: Monitor
Despite concern raised by critics, a Cambodian election expert says Cambodia's process is better than some, particularly the Philippines.
“Because in the Philippines, there is behavior that does not follow procedures and the election law, so they can't compare to Cambodia,” said Keo Darith, a monitoring coordinator for the Neutral and Impartial Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia.
Cambodia's electoral organization is orderly, better equipped and includes secret ballot booths, he said, as a guest on “Hello VOA.” Keo Darith recently monitored an election in the Philippines.
Cambodia is preparing for commune elections in 2012 and national elections the following year. In past elections, some groups, including the opposition, have complained of registration and voter-list flaws that denied some the right to vote.
The National Election Committee this month has begun to register new voters, in a process that ends Oct. 20.
The Philippines, which has been a democracy since 1946, operates in a system of electoral anarchy, where folded papers are used as ballots and 10-year-old children vote in lieu of their parents, Keo Darith said.
For all that, voters are more attentive than in Cambodia, which in recent years has seen a drop-off in election participation and where access to voting information is limited, he said.
Keo Darith said he supports a computerized voter list equipped with biometrics that would make it easier for people to vote.
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Council of Ministers Approves $2.3-Billion Budget for 2011
Last month, September, Cambodia purchased 94 T-55 tanks from eastern Europe to bolster its military capacity.
The Council approved military and security spending of $298 million, including $185 million for the Ministry of Defense.
The Ministry of Interior was budgeted $111 million, the Ministry of Health $165 million and the Ministry of education $218 million.
Defense and security spending reflected an increase of $22 million over the previous year, the largest increase overall.
Spending for the Ministry of Interior rose $1 million, while the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education saw increases of $21 million and $20 million, respectively.
DirectRooms.com - Runners Raise Money for Landmine Survivors in Cambodia
Experienced and amateur runners will be stretching off and warming up in preparation for the Angkor Wat half marathon taking placing at the start of December DirectRooms.com can reveal.
PHUKET, THAILAND, The race will see competitors sprinting from the start line to gain an early lead before settling into a more gradual pace as runners take to the course to raise essential funds for people affected by landmines.
Cambodia has one of the highest percentages of people maimed by anti-personnel land mines in the world and the country is still littered with the devices resulting in more people needing help. The race aims to support people who have been injured with medical care and provide prosthetic limbs which need replacing every three to four years.
The money raised from race entry fees and from runners collecting sponsorship money is donated to the Hearts of Gold charity.
Athletes will be trying to complete the 21km course in the shortest time possible which starts and finishes from the world famous Angkor Wat in Siem Reap. For people that feel they can't tackle the whole half marathon distance but still want to take part there is a 10km run for men and women and also a 3km run for families.
Spectators staying in a Siem Reap hotel can also see contestants taking part in the 21km wheelchair race and all events are being held on 5th December 2010.
Lek Boonlert, marketing head at www.DirectRooms.com commented: "The race is for a great cause and generates much needed funds for landmine victims. Hundreds of people will be taking part and hotel accommodation will be getting booked up so any visitors heading to the city should make an early online reservation."
About DirectRoomsDirectRooms an independent discount hotel Reservations Company based in Asia. Established and online since 2000 with over 50,000 hotels worldwide.
For further information
please contact Lek Boonlert:Email: email us hereTel: + 66 (0)76 241 145.
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Foreign visitors to Angkor Wat rise by a quarter to 804,000
Phnom Penh - The number of foreign tourists visiting the Angkor Wat temple complex, Cambodia's key tourist attraction, climbed 24 per cent in the first nine months of this year, local media reported Friday.
The Apsara Authority, which manages the temples, told the Phnom Penh Post newspaper that 804,000 people had visited the complex this year compared with 649,000 in the same period last year.
However Bun Narith, who heads the Apsara Authority, said the impact on revenues was unclear.
'(For example) some 200 to 300 government delegations attended meetings in Siem Reap, and they visit Angkor Wat for free,' he said.
The president of the Cambodian Association of Travel Agents said up to 80 per cent of foreign tourists visit Angkor Wat, which is situated outside Siem Reap town in western Cambodia.
'Most guests think they haven't seen Cambodia if they miss visiting Angkor Wat,' Ang Kim Eang said.
The number of tourists to the kingdom is up 15 per cent this year, but big-spending visitors from the United States and the United Kingdom are down 4 per cent. The average foreign tourist spends 112 dollars a day when in-country.
Most of this year's increase in tourist numbers has come from neighbouring Vietnam, whose citizens typically spend less and do not stay as long.
The government is targeting 2.4 million tourists this year, 11 per cent up on last year.
Tourism is one of Cambodia's four economic pillars, along with agriculture, garment manufacturing and construction. Agriculture was the only pillar not badly hit by the 2008 global economic crisis.
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Union rejects industry offer
THE Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia said yesterday that it would drop all complaints related to last month’s strikes in exchange for apologies from workers and unions, an offer a prominent union leader said had been rejected.
GMAC Secretary General Ken Loo said the offer had come following “several meetings” with union leaders and government officials convened in an attempt to resolve the outstanding disputes within the industry.
“We have two main conditions that we deem necessary. Firstly would be at the confederation level, we need a letter of apology ... not to us, but rather to all stakeholders,” Loo said.
“Secondly, at the enterprise level, the workers in question at the enterprise level have got to apologise to the factories.”
“If the unions accept the facts and acknowledge the fact that they were in the wrong, that’s the end of the issue.”
But Kong Athit, secretary general of the Cambodian Labour Confederation, said GMAC’s offer was unacceptable.
“We cannot do that because we are not wrong and the government did not accuse us of being wrong,” he said. “If we apologise to them, it means we admit we were wrong, and then they can make more problems for us.”
Loo said 67 union representatives in total remained suspended in connection with strikes held last month to protest the minimum wage for garment workers. A total of 358 workers who protested the suspensions of their representatives had been fired because they ignored court orders requiring them to return to work within 48 hours, he added.
Kong Athit disputed these figures, however. He said 106 union representatives remained suspended and 677 workers had had their contracts terminated after protesting these suspensions.
Loo said that if the unions and workers did not agree to apologise, the factories that had filed complaints would continue to pursue them through the court system.
“If they don’t feel they were in the wrong, obviously they don’t have to apologise,” he said. “Obviously, we don’t think we were wrong, and the unions don’t admit they were wrong, but somebody’s wrong, so we can only turn to the courts to intervene.”
In a speech last month, Prime Minister Hun Sen called for employers to drop complaints against workers and union representatives.
Tuomo Poutiainen, the chief technical adviser for the International Labour Organisation’s Better Factories Cambodia programme, said it was still possible to find a compromise that would suit both the unions and the employers. He pointed to last month’s signing of a memorandum of understanding between union and industry representatives related to dispute resolution as a promising step for the Kingdom’s industrial relations.
“In my opinion, there’s basis to find positive cohabitation, and that would play well for the future of the industry,” Poutiainen said.
On Monday, 22 union representatives who had been suspended at the Sangwoo garment factory in Kampong Speu province were allowed to return to their jobs following a meeting with factory management.
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Thursday, October 14, 2010
Cambodan network warned over mobile money service
The National Bank of Cambodia has warned that it will take action after local mobile network, Mobitel launched a mobile banking service without applying for permission from the Central Bank. The Central Bank issued a ruling in August that it must oversee credit remittances - which it says includes the money transfer services provided by mobile networks.
Mobitel's Cellcard Cash service was launched on September 20 without the filing of an application, reports the Phnom Penh Post. The money transfer service is backed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Central Bank director general Tal Nay Im declined to comment on what action the central bank was considering, she did not rule out legal action against the mobile network operator.
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"I cannot tell you yet [what action we will take], but we have to do something," she said.
Mobitel Chief Executive Officer David Spriggs declined to comment on the issue, but operations manager Kay Lot has said that the company did not consider mobile-money transfers to be banking.
On the web: Phnom Penh Post
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In Wake of Complaints, City Agents Charge Correct Tax
A watchdog organization says the Ministry of Economy and Finance's tax collectors are bilking the country out of at least a million dollars a year by overcharging for annual vehicle stickers.
In a bundle of 90 complaints sent to the newfound Anti-Corruption Unit, 2,700 people complained they were being overcharged at tax collection sites across the country.
But at 15 sites around Phnom Penh this week, tax agents were charging the standard amount set by the Ministry of Finance, while avoiding unofficial surcharges.
“I paid for tags for two motorcycles according to the price on the invoice,” said Chea Bora, a 30-year-old resident of Phnom Penh's Prampi Makara district. His Chaly cost 3,500 riel, about $0.80, for a vehicle tag, and his more expensive Fino cost 4,500 riel, about $1.07.
“The tax agents didn't overcharge me,” he said.
Ly Vanny, a tax agent in the capital's Chamkar Mon district, said accusations of overcharging did not apply to her.
“We respect the price table of the Ministry of Economy and Finance's general tax department,” she said. “We want the process of vehicle tax collection to have transparency and effectiveness for both tax agents and tax payers.”
Nevertheless, in complaints filed with the ACU by the Affiliated Network for Social Accountability in East Asia and the Pacific, Cambodians said they were being overcharged for their annual tags. The ACU has said it is considering the complaints for possible investigation.
Om John, deputy chief of the Finance Ministry's tax department, said agents have been counseled not to over charge, though they do not always comply. Still, he said, overcharging has been reduced.
The deadline for vehicle tax is Oct. 20, and as the deadline approaches, people outside of Phnom Penh say they are being forced to overpay. Sometimes they are asked to pay extra for the forms, or for pens, they said.
“I almost lost my temper, because the government staff are supposed to work to serve the interests of the people,” said Thon Saroeun, 38, who lives in Siem Reap province. The set fee for tax on his CRV car is 100,000 riel, or $25, he said. But agents charged him an extra 5,000 riel.
“It affects my own feelings, when tax agents illegally take money,” he said. “Five thousand riel is not so much, but many people pay the overcharge. I feel bad paying the overcharge because the money comes from my own labor.”
“The agents look down on the law,” said Keo Soeun, a 65-year-old farmer from Svay Rieng province. He said he was overcharged 1,500 riel, around $0.40, for his vehicle tax. “I earn less than $1 per day, and I can spend 1,500 riel to buy salt, prahok [fish paste] and fish sauce to eat for three days.”
Pang Sameth, a 47-year-old motorcycle taxi driver in Preah Sihanouk province, said overcharging for government services has worsened his living conditions. He earns about $2 a day and supports a family of three children.
“I want the government and the Anti-Corruption Unit to take strong action against corruption,” he said. “If the tax agents continue to overcharge, it affects the legal system, the state regime and the system of government and administration,” he said. “The overcharging hurts my feelings, my spirit and my daily living.”
Illegal migrant workers await decision in Malaysia
Cambodian officials have said that four women caught working illegally in Malaysia might be allowed to stay in the country, a decision that a Malaysian official said would contravene immigration laws.
Unt Vantha, second secretary at the Cambodian embassy in Kuala Lumpur, said embassy officials interviewed four women on Monday after they were caught working as domestic aids while staying in the country on a social visit visa.
He said the case – which was originally investigated by the Cambodian Interior Ministry’s Anti-Human Trafficking and Juvenile Protection Department following a complaint filed by the parents of the four women – was not being treated as one of human trafficking because the women reported that they had willingly gone to Malaysia.
“They told us that they are OK,” he said. “They said they work with a kind employer.”
He said it was possible the four women would be allowed to continue working in Malaysia.
“We reported the case to our government, and now we are waiting for instructions from our government [regarding] whether we should send them back or not,” he said.
In the meantime, he said, the four women and their employers would apply for work visas.
Raja Saifful Ridzuwan, minister counsellor at the Malaysian embassy in Phnom Penh, said he had not yet received information about the case, but that illegal workers would not normally be allowed to stay in Malaysia.
He said Cambodians could stay in Malaysia for 30 days on a social visit visa, but would be detained and sent to court if caught working without a permit during this time.
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Parliamentary Group Seeks Solution to Sam Rainsy Cases
A group of European parliamentarians says charges brought in Cambodia against opposition leader Sam Rainsy are more political than criminal.
The Inter-Parliamentarian Union issued a resolution this month calling on Cambodian authorities to “explore ways and means of resolving the issues at hand through political dialogue.”
Sam Rainsy, who is in exile abroad, is facing a 12-year jail sentence in two cases, for uprooting markers along the Vietnamese border and for posting a map on his party's website the government says falsely alleges Vietnamese border encroachment.
The Appeals Court this week upheld a guilty verdict in Sam Rainsy's border marker case, which carries a two-year sentence for destruction of property and incitement.
The IPU called on the government to “enable Mr. Sam Rainsy to resume his parliamentary activities as rapidly as possible.”
Government officials, including Prime Minister Hun Sen, have said the cases belong to the courts and will not be discussed beyond them.
The IPU said in its Oct. 6 resolution the cases “never should have been brought before the courts, but resolved at the political level.”
As a result of the charges, Sam Rainsy has been stripped of his parliamentary immunity. Meanwhile, his party and others must now prepare for commune elections in 2012 and national elections the following year.
The IPU said it was “particularly alarmed that, if upheld, this verdict would bar Mr. Sam Rainsy from standing in the 2013 parliamentary elections.”
The verdict would also have “consequences far beyond Mr. Sam Rainsy's case, as it is bound to affect the opposition,” the IPU said, calling recent prosecutions of other opposition supporters a narrowing of the political space and detrimental to the democratic process.
Cheam Yiep, a senior Cambodian People's Party lawmaker, said Sam Rainsy had broken the law and should face the legal ramifications.
“What they have raised as a resolution of the IPU, I cannot accept it as a parliamentarian of Cambodia,” he said, and he accused the IPU of “listening to the minority.”
The Sam Rainsy Party holds 26 of 123 National Assembly seats, compared to the CPP's 90.
“So they are paying attention only to 26 seats,” he said.
The IPU resolution calls for close monitoring of the developments of Sam Rainsy's legal cases.
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Immigration Reform Bill Could Lessen Deportations: Group
The US has expelled more than 200 Cambodians under the law since 2001, when Cambodia signed an agreement to take back deportees.
The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill, which has the backing of a number of groups, including Cambodian, still needs more support, Sinuon Hem, director of the Asian Pacific Islanders Youth Program, told VOA Khmer.
“We should push congressmen from the Republicans to help sponsor it,” she said from Seattle, Wash.
Passage of the bill would reduce Cambodians on a deportation list under immigration laws, she said. Currently, the list is 1,400 Cambodians long, many of whom have already served jail time and have the potential of becoming good US citizens, she said.
Deportation of some US-Cambodians under the law have met with opposition from the Cambodian-American communities. So far 230 people have been deported. Five of them were sent in September.
Daravuth Huot, the Cambodian consular in Seattle, said he has received requests for more information about deportation procedures, but he encouraged people who are concerned to seek legal counsel.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Cambodia blasts Thailand over Red Shirt accusations
by Michelle Fitzpatrick Michelle Fitzpatrick
PHNOM PENH (AFP) – Cambodia on Wednesday accused Thai authorities of playing "dirty games" and concocting evidence that anti-government "Red Shirts" had received weapons training on its territory.
Thailand's Department of Special Investigation (DSI) said that 11 Red Shirts picked up in the northern province of Chiang Mai this month had confessed to receiving three weeks of training in Siem Reap to assassinate politicians.
"When they came back to Thailand, they were sent to Chiang Mai to prepare for assignment. They told us that they were trained for sabotage and assassination," DSI chief Tharit Pengdit told AFP on Monday.
The 11 men, who are reportedly part of a larger group of 39 militants, will not face charges but will serve as witnesses in efforts to prosecute the people who organised the training, he added.
Prime Minister Hun Sen said that he had been in touch with his Thai counterpart Abhisit Vejjajiva about the allegations and asked him to clarify Bangkok's position.
In a speech at a university graduation ceremony, Hun Sen said Cambodia had a "responsibility to fight against terrorism" and that it would "not interfere in Thailand's internal affairs".
The government-owned Thai news website MCOT quoted Police Lieutenant Colonel Payao Thongsen as saying that the men were taken by Red Shirt leaders to Cambodia without passing legal immigration processes.
The Cambodian government strongly rejected the allegations, saying it would not allow foreigners to set up training camps on its territory.
In a statement, a spokesman for the Council of Ministers accused the Thai authorities of engaging in "malicious political manoeuvring" to link the country to Thailand's internal problems.
Cambodia "strongly demands that Thailand DSI put an end to the dirty games of concocting evidences to deflect Thailand public opinion from Thailand's own internal political and social problems," he said.
Mass anti-government rallies by the Red Shirts in the heart of Bangkok in April and May left 91 people dead -- mainly civilians -- in clashes between demonstrators and armed soldiers.
The Thai government has blamed the movement for a recent string of bomb blasts, but the Reds deny any involvement and have accused the authorities of a conspiracy to justify tough security powers and tarnish the Reds' image.
Ties between Thailand and Cambodia have been strained since a long-running dispute over a border temple flared up in 2008, and the Red Shirt row threatens to reverse a recent thaw in relations.
In another statement, Cambodia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the "unsubstantiated and malignant claim made by the DSI is causing greater harm to the Thai-Cambodian relations".
Thailand was outraged when Cambodia hired ousted former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra, a hero to many of the Reds, as an economic adviser in November 2009.
The move led to both countries withdrawing their ambassadors and relations were not fully restored until Thaksin resigned in August of this year.
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Japanese man guilty of buying underage sex
Phnom Penh Municipal Court has sentenced a Japanese man to seven years in prison after finding him guilty of purchasing sex from a 13-year-old girl in August last year.
Atsushi Kato, 40, was arrested in September 2009, one month after police raided a Daun Penh district brothel where he paid for sex with the girl on multiple occasions.
His arrest was carried out after he visited the government-run rehabilitation centre where the victim was held following the raid.
He said he paid the victim a visit because he wanted “to know how well she was being treated there”.
In addition to handing down the jail term, Judge Din Sivuthy ordered Kato to pay 400,000 riels (US$94) in compensation, and said he would be deported at the end of his sentence.
Kato told reporters after the verdict was announced that he planned to appeal.
“I am not happy with the conviction, and I will ask my lawyer to appeal the conviction at the Appeal Court,” he said.
Defence lawyer Kao Soupha said the sentence was “acceptable” because it was the minimum called for under the Law on the Suppression of Human Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation.
He added, though, that the guilty verdict itself was unjust.
“My client was not aware that the prostitute was 13, because she was wearing makeup and it was not necessary to ask her for her identity card,” he said.
“This is my question to you court officials and government officials: When you go to have sex with girls, have you ever asked them to show identity cards?”
Nuon Phanith, a lawyer provided to the victim by child protection NGO Action Pour Les Enfants, said the compensation awarded to his client was “too small”.
“The court’s conviction is acceptable and just for my client, and is in the right accordance with the law,” he said.
“But the compensation is too small relative to the damage inflicted on the victim.”
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Court Upholds Verdict for Sam Rainsy in Border Marker Case
A guard separates Prum Chea, left, and Meas Srey, right, as they wait at the Court of Appeals on Wednesday. Both were released later with time served on charges related to the uprooting of markers along the Vietnamese border in Svay Rieng province.
The court upheld the verdict of Svay Rieng court against Sam Rainsy, who was found guilty of destruction of property and racial incitement for uprooting markers along the Vietnam border, where Cambodian villagers said they had lost land to encroachment.
Sam Rainsy's lawyer, Chu Choung Y, said he would appeal the verdict with the Supreme Court.
Arrested for the October 2009 incident were Prum Chea, 41, and Meas Srey, 40, who lived in Chantreay district where the posts were uprooted.
Both have been held ever since, but the Appeals Court said Wednesday they could be released with time served. Both said they were grateful for the decision.
