Thai-Cambodian JBC meets on border temple conflict

BANGKOK, Feb 3 (TNA) - Members of the Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) met here Tuesday after a hiatus of over two months, with an aim of resolving the two nations' ongoing border conflict, especially in the environs of the ancient temple of Preah Vihear.

Meeting in Bangkok, Vasin Teeravechyan, chairman of the Thai-Cambodian JBC headed the Thai side, while Var Kim Hong, a senior Cambodian minister, led the Cambodian negotiators.

Tuesday's meeting was the first since the committee last conferred in Cambodia's Siem Reap province in November, when they agreed to speed to a survey and demarcate the area around Preah Vihear temple. Members of the two neighbours failed to reach agreement then.

The survey and border demarcation teams have moved from Thailand's Trat province bordering Cambodia to start work at Preah Vihear.

Mr. Vasin told reporters that the delegates discussed a possible additional team tasked to survey and demarcate the border. The new team will survey the area from Phusing and Kantaralak districts of Thailand's Si Sa Ket province, while the existing team will survey from Phusing district to Surin province.

The Thai chairman, however, said the issue has not yet to be settled pending recognition on the official name of Preah Vihear.

Cambodia insisted that the ancient temple should be officially recognised as the Temple of Preah Vihear, while Thailand preferred it to be recognised as the Temple of Phra Viharn, or Preah Vihear.

The unresolved issue, Mr. Vasin said, prevented the endorsement of documents from the last JBC meeting, which delays the border demarcation work.

Two Cambodian soldiers were killed in an exchange of gunfire with Thai troops along a disputed section of the border last July.

Tension rose after Preah Vihear was awarded heritage status by the United Nations last year. The International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple belongs to Cambodia, but the demarcation of the surrounding land remains in dispute.

Thailand insists on using the watershed as the border, while Cambodia maintains that the demarcation of the area must be based on a map drawn in 1908. (TNA)


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B.C. man died in motorcycle crash: Cambodian police

VANCOUVER -- Cambodian police officials say a B.C. humanitarian worker died of injuries from a motorcycle crash - not the violent robbery previously reported.

Cambodian authorities say Jiri Zivny was fatally injured after a moped motorcycle he was riding collided with another moped.

Mr. Zivny died Jan. 15 after being injured in the coastal resort town of Sihanoukville, where he was vacationing after doing aid work in Vietnam for the International Hope Society.

Officials from the society, based in the B.C. Interior city of Kamloops, have said Mr. Zivny, 46, died from injuries he suffered after being clubbed on the head by assailants who stole his cash and clothes and left him in a coma.

This version of events has been disputed by Sboang Sarath, the Sihanoukville governor.

"I want the [Canadian] websites to review the case and correct it, since it contaminates Cambodia's fame," Mr. Sarath told the Cambodia Daily newspaper in Khmer, the native language of Cambodia.

Cambodian police have even produced a witness to the crash. Teing Ngeoun, 24, claimed to be a passenger of the moped that collided with Mr.. Zivny's moped.

Ket Sopheak, chief of Sihanoukville's traffic police, has said he considers the case closed.

Mr. Zivny's colleagues at the International Hope Society said their understanding of his injuries came from Reid Sheftall, an American doctor who treated Mr. Zivny at a hospital in the capital city of Phnom Penh.

Monty Aldoff, a friend of Mr. Zivney's, said Mr. Sheftall told the society he believed Mr. Zivny had been beaten and his injuries did not appear to be from a motor vehicle collision.

But a recent article in Asia Sentinel, a web-based publication, carried interviews with other doctors who backed the Cambodian police's view of Mr. Zivny's death.

"His injuries were not unlike those of other motorbike accident victims," said Dr. Phak Dararith, in the Sentinel article.

"The swelling was internal," he said. There were no bruises or lacerations on his head that would indicate he had been struck by an assailant, he and other doctors at the hospital said.

The confusion over Mr. Zivny's death has left some of his friends wondering if they will ever find out what happened.

"No truth will ever come from this. It will remain a mystery forever," said Mr. Aldoff.

Lisa Monette, a spokeswoman for the Department of Foreign Affairs in Ottawa, declined to discuss any details of Mr. Zivny's death, citing federal privacy legislation.

"We continue to give support to the family and are in contact with the local authorities who are responsible for the investigation," said Ms. Monette.

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Cambodia to reform commune-level policing, border security in 2009

PHNOM PENH, Cambodian National Police Commissioner Neth Savoeun has pledged to reform commune-level policing and border security in 2009, said English-Khmer language newspaper the Cambodia Daily on Tuesday.

One such reform would be establishing telephone hotlines to take complaints at municipal and provincial police headquarters and "national police will check up on the situation of the network and system of administrative police across the country," he told the annual national assembly of Cambodian police here on Monday.

In addition, boxes have been set up at all 76 commune police stations in Phnom Penh to accept comments and criticism from local residents, he said.

The system is still in trial phase, but will expand to all 24 provinces in 2009, he added.

Villagers must provide more feedback to both commune police and border police about illegal activities to help improve security, he said.

"We have to strengthen the border police and provide them with reasonable uniforms, camp equipment and training. We also need participation of villagers," he added.

During the meeting, it was made public that the kingdom's crime rate dropped by 23 percent in 2008 compared with the previous year, due to political stability, economic development and hard work of the police.

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Cambodia cuts term for convicted German man

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia: A Cambodian appeals court Tuesday reduced the prison term of a German man convicted of sexually abusing four Cambodian boys, a court official said.

A court panel cut Alexander Moritz Watrin's prison term from 10 years to seven years, said Appeals Court Judge Samrith Sophal.

A provincial court had sentenced Watrin, 38, in October 2006 for molesting four boys aged 7 to 15.

Cambodia has long been a magnet for foreign pedophiles, and its courts have stepped up action against sex offenders in recent years.

Police arrested Watrin in April 2006 at his rental home in Sihanoukville, in the south of the country, for his allegedly molesting the boys, paying them $5 to $10 each time he had sex with them.

Pich Sorya, a defense lawyer of Watrin, said he will discuss with his client whether to further appeal to Cambodia's Supreme Court. Read more!

Slain Long Beach woman was well-known in Lao-Cambodian community

The body of Leam Sovanasy, 76, a devout Buddhist and grandmother of 25, was found at her home Saturday. She was stabbed to death.

By Corina Knoll

A 76-year-old woman stabbed to death in her Long Beach home was a well-known figure in the Cambodian and Laotian communities, her son said Monday.

The body of Leam Sovanasy, who lived with relatives in the 1400 block of Peterson Avenue, was discovered by a relative about 11 a.m. Saturday, police said. She had been stabbed multiple times in her upper body. Sovanasy was ethnically Laotian but born in Cambodia, said her son, who asked not to be named.

She arrived in the United States with seven children more than 20 years ago. Many other families from her village have since immigrated to Long Beach, forming what Sovanasy's nephew, Sam Bunlot, called a local Lao-Cambodian community.

"Most of us, we know each other," said Bunlot, 40. "She's one of the elders, so she's very popular."

Grieving family members said they had no idea why Sovanasy, a grandmother of 25, would be attacked in her home. Investigators are trying to determine a motive for the killing, said Lisa Massacani, a police spokeswoman.

Sovanasy attended services at Cambodian Buddhist Temple in Long Beach four to five times a week, monks said through a translator.

"She devoted her life to Buddhism," Bunlot said. "All she did was try to be a good person."

Long Beach police ask that anyone with information about the case call homicide Dets. Russ Moss or Teri Hubert at (562) 570-7244.

corina.knoll@latimes.com

Times staff writer Joanna Lin contributed to this report.



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Cambodia-Boost to pork industry

CAMBODIA - Local pork producers and agriculture officials are pressing ahead with plans to boost the local industry by improving processing facilities, cutting feed prices and cracking down on smuggling.

This year, the government set up additional border inspection points to stem the illegal flow of animals entering the country and is providing free veterinary services to farmers, reports The Phnom Penh Post.

"We don’t charge for veterinary services for locally bred animals, but we charge 100 riels (2.42 cents) per kilo for imported ones," said Kao Phal, director of the Animal Health and Production Department at the Ministry of Agriculture.

"We are trying to attract more investment in animal food production ... to keep the price low for farmers and create jobs," said Kao Phal.

Officials are also cracking down on smuggling and have installed new inspection points at the border and inside the country.

Each day 800 pigs are imported from Thailand and Vietnam with many more smuggled. Kao Phal said that three smugglers have been caught this year and fined.

Mong Reththy, head of Mong Reththy Group, said his company is spearheading an effort to improve sanitary standards and reduce processing costs.

The company is building a US$1 million processing factory capable of producing 10 tonnes of pork per hour.

The facility will export local pork and pork products within five years, he said.

"We can sell pork abroad at $10 per kilo, but only $5 locally, so we need to encourage exports. Firstly, we need to improve our sanitary standards otherwise nobody will buy local pork," said Mong Reththy. "I think we can export some of the pork and leave local farmers to supply the Cambodian market."

He said that his company will not undercut local farmers, but will raise the standards of the industry.

The facility would source its feed locally, he said, which would allow farmers to sell low-quality grains in-country.

The company hopes to take advantage of Cambodia’s free trade agreements by targeting China and Japan as export markets.

In the long term, the company would make dried pork and sausages for export at a $1.8 million facility, said Mong Reththy.

Srun Pov, the first deputy president of the country’s biggest pork association, the Cambodian Pig Raisers Association, said that farmers earn nearly double if they process pork locally.

"We are asking the government to encourage local processing to boost the Cambodian pork industry," he said.

He urged the government to focus on cutting feed prices ,which can account for 70 per cent of farmers’ costs.
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Cambodia's private sector exports of milled rice expected to rise 10 folds in 2009

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia may see a 10-fold increase in private sector milled rice exports this year, up to 200,000 tons from 20,000 tons in 2008, due to greater milling capacity and emergence of new markets, national media said on Monday.

The rise would come despite higher government stock requirement, English-language daily newspaper the Phnom Penh quoted the Federation of Cambodian Rice Miller Associations (FCRMA), as saying.

The private sector is required to maintain minimum stocks of 500,000 tons in 2009, up from 400,000 tons in 2008, it said.

About 300,000 tons have already been collected from the latest harvest, and the industry is using 15 million U.S. dollars of low-interest bank loans to enhance the capacity and quality of milling through upgrading infrastructure, said FCRMA president Phou Puy.

The industry has also expanded the overseas market and plans to export over 200,000 tons of rice to Germany, Malaysia, Brunei and Saudi Arabia, he added.

Among the countries beside the Mekong River, where rice plantation is popular, Cambodia only lags behind Thailand and Vietnam in the fields of rice exports.

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Efforts to Limit Khmer Rouge Trials Decried

By SETH MYDANS

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — At first glance it seems to be simply a numbers game: whether to try 5, 10 or more defendants for the deaths of an estimated 1.7 million people at the hands of the Khmer Rouge three decades ago.

But as a United Nations-backed tribunal prepares to hold its first trial hearing this month, the wrangle over numbers is reinforcing longstanding concerns about the tribunal’s fairness and independence.

The Cambodian government, critics say, is trying to limit the scope of the trials for its own political reasons, a limit that the critics say would compromise justice and could discredit the entire process.

“To me, it’s the credibility of the tribunal which is at stake, its integrity and therefore its credibility,” said Christophe Peschoux, who runs the Cambodia office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.

The first defendant is the man with perhaps the most horrifying past: Kaing Guek Eav, known as Duch (pronounced DOIK), the commander of the Tuol Sleng torture house in Phnom Penh, where at least 14,000 people were sent to their deaths. His trial is to open with a procedural hearing, set for Feb. 17, during which more substantive sessions, involving witnesses and evidence, are expected to be scheduled.

Four other defendants, all of whom were members of the Khmer Rouge Central Committee, are also in custody, waiting their turns to face charges on crimes that occurred while they were at the top of the chain of command from 1975 to 1979. As much as one-fourth of the population in Cambodia died from disease, hunger or overwork, or were executed under the Khmer Rouge’s brutal Communist rule.

Those five defendants are enough, Cambodian officials say.

But foreign legal experts counter that within reasonable limits, the judicial process should not be arbitrarily limited.

After a decade of difficult and not always friendly negotiations between the United Nations and the Cambodians, a hybrid tribunal is in place, with Cambodian and foreign co-prosecutors and co-judges in an awkward political and legal balancing act.

Now, even before Duch’s trial gets under way, that balance is being tested.

Last month the foreign co-prosecutor, a Canadian named Robert Petit, submitted six more names to the court for investigation, saying that he had gathered enough evidence to support possible charges. Mr. Petit’s Cambodian counterpart, Chea Leang, objected — not on legal grounds, but for reasons that appear to reflect the government’s position on the trials.

Additional indictments, the Cambodian prosecutor said, could be destabilizing. She said they would cost too much, take too long and violate the spirit of the tribunal, which she said envisioned “only a small number of trials.”

Prime Minister Hun Sen, who bargained hard with the United Nations over the shape and scope of the tribunal, has said that trying “four or five people” would be enough, although there is no formal limit on the number.

Indeed, Peter Maguire, author of “Facing Death in Cambodia,” suggests that Mr. Hun Sen’s plan might be to try only Duch — “a garden-variety war criminal” — and hope the other defendants die before they can be tried.

The additional names submitted by Mr. Petit have not been made public. But people close to the court say that none of them hold a significant position in Cambodia’s current government.

Mr. Hun Sen and several senior members of his government were Khmer Rouge cadres, but experts say they do not fall under the scope of the tribunal and are not at risk of prosecution.

The mandate of the court is to try the top leadership of the Khmer Rouge and “those most responsible” for the crimes — that is, people like Duch, who is accused of overseeing the torture and killing of thousands.

In Cambodia, though, courts do not head off in their own directions without tight control from Mr. Hun Sen or the people around him. Some advocates of the tribunal, called the Extraordinary Chambers of the Courts of Cambodia or E.C.C.C., see it as challenging this top-down control by offering Cambodia a model for a more independent judiciary.

“Some in Phnom Penh are apparently frightened that the E.C.C.C. might actually succeed, that it might serve as an example of accountability that could be applied more widely,” said James A. Goldston, executive director of the Open Society Justice Initiative, a New York-based organization that pursues legal reform.

“With the Feb. 17 start of the first trial fast approaching, now is the moment to show that the court is not a tool of the Cambodian government,” he said.

Most Cambodians are eager to see Khmer Rouge leaders on trial, according to a survey published last week by the Human Rights Center at the University of California, Berkeley.

But the poll found that about one-third of people answering the survey had doubts about the tribunal’s neutrality and independence, perhaps because of their experience with their own corrupt and coerced judiciary.

Confidence in the tribunal has also been eroded by allegations of kickbacks that are familiar in the Cambodian court system. The United Nations has investigated the allegations but has not released its findings.

Now, with the dispute between the two co-prosecutors in the open, the checks and balances of the hybrid court will meet their first major test.

The dispute must now go to a panel known as the pretrial chamber, whose makeup reflects the supermajority structure of the tribunal — three Cambodian judges and two foreign judges.

There is nothing so far to suggest that this process will not work as it should, said David J. Scheffer, a human rights law professor at Northwestern University School of Law who took part in talks to create the tribunal.

The real test, Mr. Scheffer said in a recent article in The Phnom Penh Post, will be whether the judges in the pretrial chamber “step up to the plate and do their duty with the highest degree of judicial integrity.”

“We can all assess that when their decision is rendered,” he said.

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Gen. David Baker dies at 62

Retired Air Force Brig. Gen. David E. Baker, a combat fighter pilot and former Vietnam War prisoner of war, died Thursday of congestive heart failure. He was 62.

Gen. Baker, called "Bull" by fellow fighter pilots because of his aggressive flying style, was a forward air controller during the Vietnam War whose aircraft was shot down by a missile while flying over Cambodia in June 1972. He is the only prisoner of war repatriated from that war who went on to carry out 20 fighter missions over Baghdad as an F-15 pilot during the Persian Gulf War.

"He was a hero who fought in two wars and a leader in the Air Force who went on to have a tremendous career in the investment community," said Edward Garlich, director of the Stanford Policy Research Group who worked with Gen. Baker in Washington. "He will be sorely missed."

Gen. Baker was born in Huntington, N.Y., and began his career in the Air Force in 1969 after graduating from Hofstra University.

He was deployed to then-South Vietnam in January 1972 and was taken prisoner June 27, 1972, after his Cessna O-2A aircraft was shot down. He spent the next eight months as a prisoner of the Viet Cong in Cambodia until his release Feb. 12, 1973.

During the ordeal, he was wounded trying to escape after he stole a rifle and shot several of his captors. He is the only Air Force prisoner repatriated from Cambodia after the war ended.

Complications from the leg wound lingered for years and led to his hospitalization at Walter Reed Army Medical Center several months ago.

Gen. Baker told associates he was lucky to be returned from captivity alive and was the first Air Force POW to be released by the Viet Cong. The release from captivity is "something I will always be proud to remember for the rest of my life," he once told former POW returnees.

After the war, Gen. Baker became an F-15 fighter pilot and held positions with the Air Force in the Netherlands, Africa and Egypt.

In 1991, he was deployed as deputy commander of the 4th Tactical Fighter Wing at Al Kharj, Saudi Arabia. He flew 20 combat missions during the Gulf War.

In 1994, he worked in the Pentagon as vice director of operational plans and interoperability on the Joint Staff. He retired in 1997 and became a financial adviser and consultant to investors.

His numerous awards and medals include the Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross with oak leaf cluster, Bronze Star Medal with "V" device and oak leaf cluster, and Purple Heart

He is survived by his wife Carol, his sons David Jr. and Christopher, and a twin brother, retired Rear Adm. Stephen Baker.

Gen. Baker composed a poem while in Viet Cong captivity that he wrote down after his release, which thanked God for keeping the camp's seven men alive despite Communist brutality. It concluded by imagining the day they would be freed:

"We will be a little older, but much more wise,

And I don't mean from listening to Communist lies.

If there is one thing upon which seven men can agree.

That one thing is: Freedom is not free!"

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Border dispute 'now better understood'

Although the Preah Vihear issue seems to have cooled down, the Foreign Ministry's mission to build people's understanding about the issue continues through the Phra Viharn Centre headed by Paskorn Siriyaphan. The former diplomat based in Phnom Penh talks to THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL about this newly established office.

Why was the centre set up and when did it start operations?

The ministry set up the centre on Oct 8 last year and it started operations six days later. The centre is under the permanent secretary's office and is supervised by the Legal and Treaties Department chief.

Its mandate is to improve coordination among internal departments on the Preah Vihear issue. The International Organisation Department deals with Unesco, the Legal and Treaties Department deals with border issues, the East Asian Department deals with Cambodia on bilateral issues and the Information Department deals with public relations in general.

In addition, the centre will also take care of other issues which are not the particular responsibility of any department as well as acting as the secretariat for Preah Vihear issue meetings.

The centre was also set up under Article 190 (3) of the constitution which stipulates that prior to any binding agreements [about a border line change] being signed with the international community or an international organisation, cabinet must inform and provide the opinions of the public to parliament and be ready for any queries related to such an agreement.

The centre is responsible for providing information and listening to the public while border and demarcation talks with Cambodia are in progress.

What information has the centre given to the people?

We have four kinds of information. The first is the background of the border issue. The second describes the causes of the tension last year after Cambodia was trying to list the Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage site while some parts of the compound would have affected Thailand's rights as a claimant. The third explains what happened as the military forces of the two countries were still there. And the last explains what the ministry is doing to cut tension in the short term and negotiate under the framework of the Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) in the long run.

What is the aim of the centre? We would like people to understand more about the Preah Vihear issue and try not to use emotions or misunderstand things to launch accusations against each other.

Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya reaffirmed that the sharing of information with people must be done transparently and without conflict of interest.

He has also made this a priority of the centre.

The centre has also opened a webpage at the ministry's website to listen to public opinion. It will also develop booklets about the issue for public distribution soon.

What is your plan for sharing information with the public? We plan to reach out to people in each province every month. We held three public opinion sessions.

After parliament approved the short- and long-term negotiation frameworks with Cambodia on Oct 28 last year, we held the first session at Chulalongkorn University on Nov 6, the second on Dec 16 in Si Sa Ket and the latest on Jan 20 in Chanthaburi province.

The information will not be the same every time as we will update it to include the latest results of the minister's visits to Cambodia or the outcome of the latest JBC meeting.

We plan to repeat this in all seven provinces along the Thai-Cambodian border.

We will go back to Si Sa Ket again after there is progress in negotiations with Cambodia (because the temple is located opposite the Thai border in this province.)

Has public opinion changed after the three public meetings?

Yes. I think they understand the issue better. We will not try to argue with the public but will give them all the necessary facts. People in Si Sa Ket and Chanthaburi shared the same opinion that we must protect Thai sovereignty and must have a clear position over the Preah Vihear issue.

In the meantime, we must also keep a good relationship with Cambodia especially in trade between our two peoples. They would like to see trade come before politics and would like the situation to return to normal.

As long as there is a negotiation mechanism, the tension along the border will be toned down. Border demarcation will surely take a long time to complete but we should do everything to avoid further confrontation.

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UN criticises forced evictions in Cambodia

GENEVA, Jan 30 (Reuters) - The Cambodian government is forcing tens of thousands of poor people from their homes in a grave breach of human rights, a U.N. investigator said on Friday.

Raquel Rolnik, United Nations special rapporteur on adequate housing, called for a halt to the evictions in the Southeast Asian country.

"The increase in forced evictions throughout Cambodia is very alarming," Rolnik said in a statement.

Cambodian police fired teargas to move more than 130 families last weekend from a Phnom Penh slum facing the Mekong River, without giving them prior notice, she said. It was the latest of a series of land disputes in the country where garment factories and hotels are springing up fast.

Rolnik, a Brazilian architect and urban planner, said those evicted from the site that the Cambodian government had sold to a private company should be compensated for losing their homes.

Witnesses said an elderly woman and a boy were hit by a bulldozer during the nightime eviction, and other residents were injured by clubs and stones, some seriously.

Police denied using excessive force against the group who had waged a 3-year battle against their eviction.

"We did not use violence against them, but tear gas to disperse the people who resisted," Phnom Penh police chief G. Touch Naruth told Reuters.

In her statement, Rolnik said Cambodia sould stop the practice that results in increased homeless and destitution.

"Forced evictions constitute a grave breach of human rights. They can be carried out only in exceptional circumstances and with the full respect of international standards," she said. (Reporting by Laura MacInnis; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
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B.C. court rejects challenge of Canada's child-sex tourism law

VANCOUVER, B.C. — A British Columbia court has rejected a constitutional challenge of Canada's child-sex tourism law in the case of a man charged with abusing children in three countries, setting the stage for his trial 12 years after the alleged offences began.

Kenneth Klassen faces 35 charges for the exploitation and sexual abuse of children in Cambodia, Colombia and the Philippines between July 1997 and March 2002.

Klassen challenged the child-sex tourism law saying the incidents happened in other countries where Canadian courts have no jurisdiction.

But B.C. Supreme Court Justice Austin Cullen found that the law against child-sex tourism is internationally valid because so many countries have similar legislation and because of the existence of international children's rights treaties.

"In the absence of extraterritorial legislation, Canada would become a safer harbour for those who engage in the economic or sexual exploitation of children," Cullen wrote in a recent decision.

"The sale of children and the sexual exploitation of children through prostitution and the creation of child pornography are thus activities which, conducted anywhere, a nation has a sovereign interest in preventing among itsnationals or residents, simply because of their nationality or residence."

According to the United Nations, as of Jan. 5, 130 countries have signed an international treaty agreeing to the creation of extraterritorial laws against child-sex offences, including Cambodia, Colombia and the Philippines.

The child-sex tourism laws in Canada were enacted in 1997 and bolstered five years later to no longer require the consent of the foreign country where allegations of sexual abuse took place.

Klassen was the first to challenge the law on constitutional grounds.

In 2005, Vancouver hotel employee Donald Bakker was the first Canadian to be convicted under the law.

Bakker received a 10-year sentence for 10 sexual assaults on girls between seven and 12 in Cambodia, where he videotaped his horrific exploits.

Last November, two Quebec aid workers pleaded guilty to sexually abusing teenage boys while working at an orphanage in Haiti.

Armand Huard, 65, was sentenced to three years in prison after he pleaded guilty to 10 out of 13 charges of sexual touching and invitation to sexual touching.

Denis Rochefort, 59, who worked at the same orphanage, was sentenced to two years for similar acts.

Klassen, a 58-year-old father of three, is accused of abusing girls as young as nine. He was charged in March 2007 after a two-and-a-half-year international investigation that netted videos showing a man having sex with young girls.

He was charged with 14 counts of sexual interference, 14 counts of invitation to sexual touching, three counts of making child pornography, three counts of procuring and one count of permitting illegal sexual activity.

University of British Columbia law professor Benjamin Perrin, an expert in child-sex tourism legislation, said the court decision is a major victory for those who have been fighting for the rights of children abused abroad by foreigners.

"It's the first decision by a Canadian court which does confirm the constitutional validity of this child-sex tourism legislation," he said.

"I also provides a significant boost for prosecutors, non-governmental organizations who work in this area and police to begin to more proactively enforce Canada's child-sex tourism law."

Last November, international representatives at a conference in Rio de Janeiro called on various countries, including Canada, to designate a lead agency to enforce extraterritorial laws related to the sexual exploitation of children.

Perrin said the RCMP's National Child Exploitation Co-Ordination Centre needs to proactively enforce Canada's laws by training officers in child-sex tourism hot spots and work with non-governmental organizations that assist victims of western sex offenders.

Participants at the conference also encouraged countries to establish an international notice system to warn other jurisdictions about travelling sex offenders so they could refuse them entry.
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Cambodia: Internet censorship targets artists

As the number of Internet users has been growing rapidly in Southeast Asia in recent years, online censorship has proliferated, from China to Cambodia, as if it runs through the Mekong river.

Not only the “Great Firewall of China” that is known to many people, democratic country like Thailand also blocks a large number of Web sites; in Vietnam, its Ministry of Information and Communication has recently released a circular to regulate and enforce blogging rules in the country in late 2008. With rules and regulations in place, these governments have developed and deployed their own censorship machine to control how citizens publish and access online contents.

Although Cambodia has the lowest Internet penetration rate (70,000 users as of 2007), artists, however, are more recognized not through offline exhibitions, but their presence on the world wide web. This increasing use of blog to reach out larger audiences attracts more than attention and support.

A former freelance editorial cartoonist for Far Eastern Economic Review from 1997-1999, Bun Heang Ung presently lives in Australia. Observing his home country Cambodia from the other side, the 57-year-old cartoonist launched Sacrava Toons blog in 2004, nearly a decade after he published ‘The Murderous Revolution : Life and Death in Pol Pot's Kampuchea,' his first book of black and white line illustrations that tells his very own experiences of the Khmer Rouge regime. In voicing his opinions, the talented cartoonist publish his drawings of all things that matter to him on the Web. In one of his recent posts, he used ‘I have a dream' as a backdrop for his illustration of Barack Obama, the 44th President of the United States.

Recently, according to Wikileaks, the political cartoonist's blog is being blocked in Thailand, where its Ministry of Information and Communication Technology is in charge of banning Internet sites that violates its Kingdom's lèse majesté.

Cambodian blogger Thom Vanak, at Blog By Khmer, made his point on the issue:

Regarding Lèse majesté, although I think it's archaic and outdated law in this day and age, but nevertheless, it's still Thai's law. If I ever set my foot on Thai soil I would respect their laws. The same if I'm to visit any other country, I would respect the local laws of that country.

While the prominent cartoonist's blog appears on censorship list (as of 20 Dec 2008) by Thailand, the Cambodian Ministry of Women's Affairs, in December last year, threatened to block a Web site that contains artistic illustrations of bare-breasted Apsara dancers and a Khmer Rouge soldier. The attempt to shut down reahu.net (or at least to filter it by Internet Service Providers in the Cambodian capital) was echoed by a human rights activist, who was quoted as saying that “the Web site should be shut down because it appealed too much to young Cambodians.”

Reahu.net is currently not accessible by Internet visitors in Cambodia, while there is no issue with access in the U.S. The error message appears:

Screenshot of reahu.net site being filtered by Cambodia's Internet Service Providers

Cambodia's most prominent anonymous blog author at ‘Cambodia: Details are Sketchy' wrote about the controversial issue:

“If anyone should understand the value of free speech, the deputy director of communication and advocacy at Licadho seems a likely candidate. It is disheartening that Vann Sophath supports censoring Reahu’s illustrations”

Artist Reahu posted a note on his site, recently becoming popular after gaining media attentions in the past few months, in response to his critics:

Judging from the complaints, I wonder how we as Khmer will be able to make it in the 21st Century. Please be open-minded, you must be able to see beyond the four walls surrounding your hut.

Read more!

Why Asia Could Be The Best Place To Park Your Money

By Irwin Greenstein

A new labor report by an agency of the United Nations indicates that Asia could be the best place for investors to wait out the global recession. While the report does not indicate abundant opportunities in Asian regions, it does show that Asia could be more resilient and consequentially return potential longer term gains.

For investors in survivor mode, the report may be interpreted as an investment roadmap with a relatively safe course.

The report, titled Global Employment Trends, is an annual survey from the International Labour Office (ILO), arm of the U.N that brings together governments, employers and workers to jointly shape policies and programs for fair and humane employment practices.

Based on new developments in the labor market, the report says global unemployment in 2009 could increase over 2007 by a range of 18 million to 30 million workers, and more than 50 million if the situation continues to deteriorate.

The ILO also said that in this last scenario some 200 million workers, mostly in developing economies, could be pushed into extreme poverty.

The lowest unemployment rate was observed in East Asia at 3.8%, followed by South Asia and South-East Asia & the Pacific where respectively 5.4 and 5.7% of the labor force was unemployed in 2008, according to the ILO.

As per the report, three Asian regions – South Asia, South-East Asia & the Pacific and East Asia – accounted for 57% of global employment creation in 2008. In the Developed Economies and European Union region, 900,000 jobs were lost in 2008.

Compared with 2007, the largest increase in a regional unemployment rate was observed in the Developed Economies and European Union region, from 5.7 to 6.4%. The number of unemployed in the region jumped by 3.5 million in one year, reaching 32.3 million in 2008.

In looking at the breakdown of the Asian regions identified in the report, we see countries where cheap labor abounds. While this may not be the best possible news for the ILO, the lower unemployment rates in Asia could show an acceleration in outsourcing – not just from the industrialized West, but from mature emerging markets such as China and India.

For example, South Asia consists of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and other countries. Pakistan’s large-scale manufacturing efforts have stumbled over the past few years due to rising commodity costs. Now that commodity prices have plunged, and manufacturers seek out lowest cost providers, Pakistan could see a turning point in this sector.

Bangladesh, meanwhile, has seen exports rise 60% since 2004. It is now the second largest exporter of apparel to the U.S. market after China.

Southeast Asia consists of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia. Given their proximity to China and India, these countries could see trickle-down business as the two emerging-market giants move away from knock-offs to creating original intellectual property.

In East Asia, the countries to watch for growth are Hong Kong, Macau, Japan and South Korea. Although the global recession has certainly put a damper on these fast-growing economies, the investment returns from these regions could outpace industrialized countries based the ILO’s employment numbers.

This could be a prudent time for investors to investigate ETFs and other funds that get you into these markets without the risk of cherry picking stocks.

Read more!

FARMS makes headway on Cambodia self-sufficiency project

Cambodia (MNN) ― After years of living in refugee camps, many Cambodians who now are free are unsure of how to handle life on their own. Vietnam occupied Cambodia from the 1950's until the 1990's and held many of its people in camps for at least that long.

"[Cambodia] is probably one of the more difficult areas I've seen in the world: the skills, the background, and the history of most Cambodians revolves around being refugees. Now they're being relocated back into their own country without the history that's normally there with a people like this," says FARMS International's Joseph Richter. "I think one of the big challenges is the dependent mentality, which is just the result of living in a camp for 20 or 30 years."

Years ago, FARMS took notice of the need in Cambodia, especially as it related to native Christians, and they began to seek out ways to start a program there. FARMS plans to help people on their way to financial and vocational independence.

"The whole idea of self-help is new to people," Richter explains. On Richter's most recent trips to the area, however, Christians have seemed receptive. "People there were very encouraged, I think, about the FARMS idea of helping people locally so that they could help their own churches."

FARMS is currently raising funds in preparation to officially launch a program in Cambodia alongside two or three other organizations within the next few months. The program will be run through local churches and will provide micro-loans, as well as help with technical and managerial skills, in order to get people on their feet again. Distribution of aid in these forms also provides a platform to share the Gospel.

"FARMS believes that the church is the center for development in any community," says Richter. "It's a very natural thing that people can share what God has done in their lives through the program and through their belief in Jesus. This is the way FARMS really accomplishes evangelism: through the changed lives of the people involved in the churches."

While FARMS is preparing to launch the program, Richter asks for prayer that native believers' hearts will be open to a new way of living, and there will be progress made toward independence.

If you would like to help begin this important new ministry in Cambodia, click here.


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Rebuilding Cambodia

By Weng Aow
General Manager
Angkor Palace Resort

CAMBODIA first became a part of my life in 1997 when I volunteered for a project there for Raffles International.

I went to bring over the pioneer batch of Cambodian hospitality trainees from Phnom Penh to our hotels in Singapore for systematic on-the-job training.

These trainees would eventually form the backbone of the hospitality industry in Cambodia. Back in 1997 when Raffles was preparing for the opening of its two properties in Cambodia, there were hardly any skilled hospitality workers to speak of, given the tragic past of the kingdom.

In 1997, not many foreigners were keen to work in Cambodia. The country was going through political turmoil and there was no stability. Having personally experienced the rough political situation and lawlessness, including the evacuation of foreigners, I felt a calling to be here and a strong desire to be part of the country's rebuilding efforts.

Having been trained as an officer in the SAF, I was grateful that my training came in handy during this crisis.
We in Singapore have been very fortunate to be living in a peaceful environment and this crisis was an eye-opener for me. I do not see myself as just a hotelier but prefer to look at this as a vocation to help the locals improve their lives through imparting skills and knowledge.

Today, I am managing a Cambodian-owned 259-room Angkor Palace Resort & Spa with a staff strength of nearly 300. Called 'The Palace in Siem Reap', it is an authentic Cambodian designed and built resort. The Palace sits on a land area of 11 hectares and comes with its own golf driving range.

The people here have gone through so much political volatility and social unrest. I feel it's my calling to help them regain their lost heritage and pride, and rebuild their homes. The Cambodians are eager to move on and are motivated to improve their lives. Their innate charm and warmth make them natural candidates for the hospitality industry.

In October 2008, the resort embarked on a Responsible Tourism programme which aims to better the lives of the community. These include classroom construction for impoverished villages and training for teachers, purchase of school materials, and toilet and well building projects in the rural areas. We are fortunate to have the support of our owner-cum-architect in carrying out these projects.

As far as I am aware, the number of Singaporeans in Siem Reap is probably less than 20. But in Phnom Penh, there is a Singapore Club called The Buaya Club (I kid you not) with a membership of over a few hundred formed for the purpose of golf. I am now an ardent golf enthusiast and on weekends you will find me at the Angkor Golf Club or practising at the driving range in the Resort. I am happy to play the game with any visiting Singaporean needing a partner in Siem Reap.

As a Singaporean, I have also volunteered Angkor Palace Resort as a rendezvous point for Singaporeans living in Siem Reap in the event of an emergency.

I am not sure where I will be in the long term, but I do think this is a country with lots of opportunities to offer for work or business; and most importantly, a chance to be part of history-making in the positive sense. Against a historic backdrop of monumental temples from one of the most significant eras gone by, one can't help but feel inspired to continue with the noble ideals of the ancient monarchs who once ruled this kingdom.

We invite Singaporeans living overseas or posted abroad to write about life, culture and doing business where you are. Read more!

Cindy McCain resumes international aid work

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates: Cindy McCain, the wife of the former Republican presidential candidate, resumed her international aid work this week with a stop in Dubai on her way to India and Cambodia to volunteer at maternity hospitals.

McCain, 54, frequently does charity work overseas. The wife of Arizona Senator John McCain is a member of the board of Halo Trust, an international land-mine removal group, and Operation Smile, which provides surgery for children born with cleft palates.

On Tuesday, she toured the World Food Program's warehouse in this Gulf city-state and on Wednesday she gave an interview to Al-Arabiya — the pan-Arab satellite television network that Barack Obama gave his first formal TV interview to as president.

She said she was relieved her husband's long election campaign was over.

"From (a) health aspect, I am very glad it's over," she said. It was "wild and nuts" at times, but also "a remarkable experience to be a contender for the highest office in the land."

She said humanitarian organizations are feeling the pinch of the global economic crisis.

"The crisis will make Americans look at themselves closer. ... I hope it will, because it is always best when you start at home first," she told The Associated Press. "These are hard economic times ... and everyone, including the humanitarian world, is feeling it."

"I hope President Obama, for the good of the U.S., can solve this problem," she added. "It's my job to continue to encourage people to make sure people are cared for around the world." Read more!

Summit Hotels & Resorts welcomes its first member in Cambodia

Preferred Hotel Group is pleased to announce its newest member - Angkor Palace Resort & Spa in Siem Reap - under the Summit Hotels & Resorts brand, a collection of more than 150 internationally acclaimed hotels and resorts that celebrate local luxury.

Located just 15 minutes from the Angkor temples and 10 minutes from the airport, the Angkor Palace Resort & Spa is set amidst 11 hectares of exotic tropical gardens and offers a delightful resort base from which to discover the legendary temples of Angkor. The first Cambodian-owned luxury five-star resort accommodation, its design, décor and furnishing reflect the finest in traditional Khmer architecture.

The resort features 251 guestrooms and suites and eight villas, all tastefully furnished in Cambodian style with inlaid teak floors and traditional poster beds with balconies overlooking the gardens. Complimentary broadband Internet is also offered in all rooms and wireless internet access is available in public areas. Business travelers are catered for with a fully-equipped business center and meeting facilities can cater for up to 200 persons.

The resort features 251 guestrooms and suites and eight villas, all tastefully furnished in Cambodian style with inlaid teak floors and traditional poster beds with balconies overlooking the gardens. Complimentary broadband Internet is also offered in all rooms and wireless internet access is available in public areas. Business travelers are catered for with a fully-equipped business center and meeting facilities can cater for up to 200 persons.

Four restaurants and bars offer a traditional Khmer menu as well as international cuisine. The Kainnora Spa is a relaxing sanctuary with nine treatment rooms and four spa villas offering a wide range of holistic body treatments including traditional Khmer massage, body wraps and scrubs. Other recreational facilities include a gym, two tennis courts and a large freeform outdoor swimming pool surrounded by lush greenery. Newly-opened, a golf driving range is located within the hotel with 16 sheltered golf driving bays. Also, the resort is within a 10-minute drive to Angkor Golf Resort, a Nick Faldo design 18-hole golf course, and host to the prestigious Indochine Cup.

"Siem Reap is one of the major tourism hotspots in Asia and we are thrilled to be partnered with a hotel that is truly representative of genuine Cambodian hospitality. We aim to bring high-end FIT and MICE business to the city and to the resort through our global channels," said Mark Simmons, Area Managing Director, Asia.

"As a member of Summit Hotels, Angkor Palace Resort & Spa joins a hotel brand that is made up of some of the finest hotels in the world. With Summit Hotels' stringent criteria to ensure all members meet global service excellence and quality standards, we are able to offer and ensure five-star quality services to all discerning travelers visiting Angkor Wat temple complex, an UNESCO-designated World Heritage Site," said Weng Aow, General Manager, Angkor Palace Resort & Spa.. Read more!

Newest fibre-optic cable is set to set get Cambodia connected

Written by Hor Hab and Chun Sophal

Hopes high $18 million infrastructure project will bring cheaper, faster internet to Cambodia

CAMBODIA is expected to complete the latest stage of its telecoms infrastructure development in April - a fibre-optic cable to Laos that will connect to China's Yunnan Province, telecommunications officials said Monday.

Cambodia and Laos signed a memorandum of understanding on January 12 in Champassak province, Laos, to finalise the arrangement.

Cambodia Telecom has implemented the project on the Cambodian side with construction already complete, Minister of Posts and Telecommunications So Khun told the Post Monday.

The US$18 million project - built with a loan from China - would, he added, "improve the quality of internet, telecommunications and televisions system transfer".

It is part of information and communication technology [ICT] in Cambodia, he said, adding that the new infrastructure would offer greater opportunities for connectivity in Cambodia.

The project will also improve the speed of internet connections and reduce the cost of telecommunication services, said Sao Valak, CEO of internet service provider Campura System Corp.


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This connection ... can integrate economic and political cooperation.

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"With this cable link, Cambodia is no longer isolated from the rest of the world," he added.

Integrating with the region
The new cable has been constructed in two phases, the first a 113-kilometre section from Poipet on the Thai border up to Siem Reap province. This section is then connected to a longer 700-kilometre fibre optic cable that runs north of Siem Reap province across the Lao border at Nong Nonkhien.

In turn, the Laotian connection extends the cable network already in place in China's Yunnan province.
Another fibre-optic cable crosses Cambodia east to west between Thailand and Vietnam - a project implemented with money from Germany - meaning the new cable to China will further develop Cambodia's telecommunications system as part of the greater Mekong subregion.

"This connection is very important because it can integrate economic and political cooperation with the region and the world," said Ken Chanthan, president of the ICT Association of Cambodia.

Still, many challenges remain, he added. Cambodia still suffers from a lack of IT human resources and very low internet connectivity in rural areas.

"We can create job opportunities for our people if we can develop ICT to a certain level, because ICT services are still limited. We always hire overseas consultants," he said.

Sao Volak called on Cambodian people - and particularly students - to take full advantage of improved infrastructure by becoming better trained in information technology. . Read more!