JSM Indochina plans to move to LSE's main mkt

Sept 10 (Reuters) - AIM-listed property firm JSM Indochina Ltd on Thursday said it planned to apply for trading on the London Stock Exchange's main market.

JSM, which invests in Vietnamese and Cambodian real estate, said it expected the move to the main board of the LSE would be concluded before year end.

So far, six AIM-listed firms have transferred to LSE's main market. In 2008, 11 companies had moved to the main market.

JSM's move to graduate to the main market comes at a time when a growing band of small companies are planning to delist from the junior market as many see the cost of staying listed outweighs any potential benefit.

JSM, whose investment portfolio comprises five projects in Cambodia and two in Vietnam, was listed on AIM in July 2007.

For the six months ended June 30, the company's net loss was $9 million, compared with net profit of $18 million in the year-ago period. Read more!

Vietnamese producers urged to cement position in Cambodia

VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnam-made products have become the second-most favoured products in the neighbouring market of Cambodia, just after Thai goods, a survey has found. However, Vietnam could be dislodged from the second position if it does not come up with suitable business strategies for the market.

The survey of Cambodian retailers and Vietnam-, Thailand- and China-made goods in the Cambodian market, conducted by BSA and Truong Doan Market Survey Company in August 2009 in Phnom Penh and Battambong, showed that Vietnam-made goods are popular in the country.

There are two main factors that are responsible for this: they are cheaper than Thai products and have acceptable quality.

The programme on introducing high-quality Vietnamese products in Cambodia, which has been in existence for eight years, has also made a considerable contribution to the popularising of Vietnamese goods in the market. A lot of Vietnamese brand names like Kinh Do or Vina Acecook have become familiar to Cambodian consumers.

However, the said survey has also pointed out problems with Vietnam-made goods. Goods are often inconsistent as far as quality.

Many Vietnam-made products are unfriendly to Cambodian consumers, since no Khmer words are on the packages or instruction books. This is particularly critical in sales of fertiliser or pharmaceutical products.

Some Cambodian retailers have complained that they cannot contact Vietnamese producers when necessary, since no addresses are provided on product packages. Meanwhile, Cambodian retailers say that they can get support from Thai producers when selling Thai products.

As for food products, Vietnamese producers still have not made deep studies of the tastes of consumers; they are simply selling the products they have. Instant noodles are an example. Vietnamese noodles are selling well on the market, but just because they are much cheaper than the same products from Thailand.

The current position may be lost

Cambodia, with 14.7 million people and income per capita at $600 per annum, as well as an open import policy (no limitation is set on the imports of the country), is a market with great potentials for Vietnam.

In 2008, two-way trade between Vietnam and Cambodia was $1.7 billion, of which Vietnam exported $1.45 billion.

However, Truong Cung Nghia, Market Survey Director of Truong Doan, has warned that Vietnam will be dislodged from the position if it does not come up with suitable business strategies.

China still does not consider Cambodia a potential market, so it has no plan to develop the market. But the situation may be different in the future.

Meanwhile, goods from Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia have begun landing in the market. The Chinese community in Cambodia has close relations with the Chinese communities in the said countries.

Additionally, Thailand continues conquering the market with methodical measures and with support from the Government. Meanwhile, Vietnamese enterprises do not get any support from their Government.

VietNamNet/TBKTVN

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Cambodia PM accuses other countries of stirring unrest

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — Cambodia’s prime minister accused foreign judges and prosecutors at the U.N.-backed Khmer Rouge tribunal of seeking to arrest new suspects as part of a plot by foreign governments to incite unrest.

Hun Sen’s accusation was the latest in a series he has launched against the tribunal and its ruling last week to allow foreign prosecutors to pursue more suspects.

On Monday, Hun Sen said such action could lead to civil war. He has repeatedly spoken out against expanding the list of defendants beyond the one currently on trial — Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, — and four others in custody.

He elaborated Wednesday, saying foreign governments want war in Cambodia, a former French colony that was later wracked by decades of civil war.

“I know that some foreign judges and prosecutors have received orders from their governments to create problems here,” Hun Sen said while inaugurating a Buddhist pagoda south of the capital. “There is no doubt that they have received advice from their government to do so.”

Hun Sen did not name specific countries. The tribunal includes 12 foreign judges and two foreign prosecutors from countries including Australia, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Zambia.

“What Cambodia needs is peace,” Hun Sen added. “If Cambodia has peace, they (foreign governments) are not quite happy with us — but if Cambodia has war, they are happy because then we’ll be easy to occupy.”

A tribunal spokesman, Lars Olsen, said Hun Sen’s comments were being verified before a comment could be issued.

Critics accuse Hun Sen of trying to limit the tribunal’s scope to prevent his political allies from being indicted. Hun Sen once served as a Khmer Rouge officer and many of his main allies are also former members of the group.

On Tuesday, the tribunal’s acting international co-prosecutor, William Smith of Australia, formally recommended that five more suspects be investigated for possible crimes against humanity and other offences.

The tribunal’s Cambodian co-prosecutor opposed further indictments, but the tribunal ruled last week that his international counterpart could seek them. The tribunal, created last year under an agreement reached in 2003 between Cambodia and the United Nations, employs joint teams of Cambodian and international court personnel.

The tribunal is seeking justice for the estimated 1.7 million people who died in Cambodia from execution, overwork, disease and malnutrition as a result of the ultra-communist group’s radical policies while in power in 1975-79.

The Khmer Rouge took control after a bitter 1970-75 civil war, and after being ousted from power in 1979, fought an insurgency from the jungles until 1999.

Read more!

UN says Khmer Rouge tribunal must be independent

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen gestures at a ceremony in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Monday, Sep. 7, 2009. Hun Sen renewed his criticism of the country's U.N.-backed Khmer Rouge tribunal Monday, warning that arresting more suspects could spark civil war. (AP Photo/Khem Sovannara) (Khem Sovannara - AP)

By SOPHENG CHEANG
The Associated Press


PHNOM PENH, Cambodia -- The U.N. administrator for the Khmer Rouge tribunal issued a blunt reminder to Prime Minister Hun Sen that the panel is independent, after the Cambodian leader suggested that arresting more suspects for trial could spark a civil war.

The U.N.-backed tribunal ruled last week that prosecutors could pursue further arrests beyond the five Khmer Rouge leaders already indicted, in a decision opposed by the panel's Cambodian co-prosecutor but supported by his international counterparts.

Hun Sen said Monday that he had devoted several years to persuading Khmer Rouge leaders and their soldiers to stop fighting, so he could not allow anyone to drag the country back into a new civil war by putting additional suspects them on trial.

Knut Rosandhaug, Coordinator of the United Nations Assistance to the Khmer Rouge trials, subsequently issued a statement that he expects the tribunal to continue to work independently.
"It is a clearly established international standard that courts do not seek approval of advice on their work from the executive branch," he said.

The tribunal is seeking justice for the estimated 1.7 million people who died in Cambodia from execution, overwork, disease and malnutrition as a result of the communist regime's radical policies while in power between 1975-79.

Critics accuse Hun Sen of seeking to limit the tribunal's scope because other potential defendants are his current political allies. Hun Sen served as a Khmer Rouge officer, before changing sides, and many of his major political allies are also former members of the group.

Brad Adams, Asia director at New York-based Human Rights Watch, said he believes Hun Sen was seeking to protect members of his own Cambodian People's Party, who could be targets for prosecution. But he said it was unlikely more arrests would be made.

Adams pointed out that the Khmer Rouge have been defunct for a decade, and that its former leaders are now more interested in business than war.

The tribunal's long-awaited first trial - of the Khmer Rouge's chief jailer for war crimes and crimes against humanity - opened in March. A joint trial of the four other senior officials - the only others currently in detention - is expected within the next two years.

The Khmer Rouge came to power after a bitter 1970-75 Civil War, and after being ousted from power in 1979, carried out an insurgency from the jungles until 1999.

Hun Sen has dominated Cambodian politics for more than two decades. He ousted his former co-prime minister in a 1997 coup and has since ruled virtually unchallenged.

Read more!

Cambodia's Phnom Penh Post goes daily in Khmer

PHNOM PENH — The Phnom Penh Post, one of Cambodia's leading newspapers, launched its first-ever Khmer language edition Wednesday, stepping up competition in the country's burgeoning media market.

Australian publisher Ross Dunkley said the paper, which will have a daily print run of 15,000 copies, would focus its reporting on Cambodia's changing economy and business climate as it leaves behind decades of conflict.

"Ultimately a newspaper is a reflection of the society we live in so you can expect the paper to be much more in tune with the new realities of this country," Dunkley said.

The majority of publications in the country's large and lively Cambodian-language press are accused of being aligned with political parties, however Dunkley promised independent reporting.

Cambodian Information Minister Khieu Kanharith welcomed the paper, the first full-colour Khmer tabloid in the kingdom's media market, as a "good thing" that would help "widen our free press".

The English version of the Post launched its first daily edition in August last year, after Australian businessmen with stakes in Yangon's The Myanmar Times weekly took a controlling interest in the paper.

The Post, founded by American journalist Michael Hayes 18 years ago, had published every two weeks but Post Media Ltd, the company now behind the paper, has invested heavily in expanded editions.

Read more!

U.S. Citizen Arraigned on Charges of International Sex Tourism

WASHINGTON, Richard David Mitchell was arraigned yesterday on sex tourism charges in the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii, after being deported from Cambodia, announced Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division Lanny A. Breuer and U.S. Attorney
for the District of Hawaii Edward H. Kubo, Jr.

Mitchell, 61, a U.S. citizen and resident of Hawaii, was charged in a criminal
complaint filed on Aug. 26, 2009, in U.S. District Court for the District of
Hawaii with engaging in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign place. According
to the affidavit filed in support of the complaint, witnesses reported seeing
Mitchell engaging in sex acts with a female child on the curbside of a street
in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in August 2008. Mitchell was initially arrested in
August 2008 by the Cambodian National Police on local charges related to the
same incident.

Mitchell returned to Hawaii on Sept. 5, 2009, following his removal from
Cambodia. Upon his arrival at Honolulu International Airport, he was taken
into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. At
yesterday's hearing, U.S. Magistrate Judge Barry Kurren ordered Mitchell held
without bond pending a detention hearing.

Mitchell is the fourth American arrested by ICE in the past two weeks for
sexually exploiting minors in Cambodia. On Aug. 31, 2009, three Americans
were taken into custody by ICE at Los Angeles International Airport following
their removal from Cambodia on sex tourism charges. The four cases are the
result of unprecedented cooperation among U.S. authorities, the Cambodian
government and non-governmental organizations to target American sex tourists
in Cambodia.

Mitchell faces up to 30 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 if
convicted of the charges.

Charges in a criminal complaint are merely accusations, and a defendant is
presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Olson of the U.S.
Attorney's Office for the District of Hawaii and Trial Attorney Anitha Ibrahim
of the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section. The case
was investigated by ICE.

SOURCE U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs, +1-202-514-2007, TDD
+1-202-514-1888 Read more!

A ticket to somewhere

Deborah Groves with local Cambodian villagers, outside the temple district of Angkor Wat where Ms Groves has established an aid organisation. Picture supplied.

Four years ago, Australian photographer Deborah Groves walked into a small village in the Cambodian countryside and met a man who would change her life.

Just 25 minutes away was the town of Siem Reap, the stopping-off point to the world famous Angkor Wat temple, a formerly modest town now flourishing with Western-style pubs, designer shops and luxury hotels driven by the influx of tourist money.

But lying in a primitive hut in the outlying village was 52-year-old man Mr Som - skeleton-thin, his ribcage clearly visible and emaciated legs resembling long strands of licorice.

Despite being gravely ill with tuberculosis for more than 18 months, he had not received any medical care mainly due to his family’s poverty Ms Groves was horrified.

"Morally I thought, ‘I have an obligation, this man is going to die, I need to stand up and offer some help’," she said.

Enlisting the help of family and friends, Ms Groves raised the money needed for Mr Som to be carried out on a stretcher to medical care.

But it was too late; Mr Som died 10 days later.

For Ms Groves, a wedding photographer from Queensland, Mr Som’s death was an enormous “wake-up call” that not everything could be fixed easily.

Shaken by the village’s desperate poverty, she vowed to stay on and help.

The result has been Helping Hands Cambodia, an aid organisation formed Ms Groves to support Mr Som’s village and three others near Angkor Wat.

The idea behind Helping Hands is to give the local villagers a 'hand up,' rather than straight charity. For instance, recently when it gave away 1000 bicycles, each recipient agreed to work at least three days to fix local roads.

The organisation, which now has 10 Cambodian staff and up to two volunteers at a time, has also helped build bridges, a school, provided agricultural training and hundreds of free breakfasts.

The latest project will see drop toilets installed in the four villages. Fifty neighbours a day queued up to use the first one when it was installed in March, and another 15 have since been built.

To help fund Helping Hands, Groves sells photographs, magnets and bookmarks at hotels, airports and the night market in Siem Reap.

It is a long way from snapping excited brides on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.

In 2004 Ms Groves fell love with the country following an Intrepid Travel tour, and feeling unfulfilled and burnt out, decided to quit her business and move to Cambodia.

But making the leap to live in one of the world’s least developed countries wasn’t easy, with many friends advising caution about leaving her business and safe life behind. "(But) I thought ‘surely I’m more than just a business’," Ms Groves said.

In the ensuing years, Ms Groves says she has developed a thick skin after four years of dealing with sometimes terrible situations.

One of her worst experiences was a man who received terrible eye injuries after a landmine exploded in his face near the Thai border.

"He was sent back to the village he was originally from without seeing a single eye doctor... I thought it was so unfair that no one cares," she said.

Helping Hands paid for his treatment, although the man’s eyes couldn’t be saved. They were later removed to stop his pain. To Western ears this may sound horrific, but Ms Groves said the man was "unbelievably grateful".

As well as the lows, there have also been incredible highs, such as a man in his 60s, blind since he was 15, regaining his sight in one eye following surgery sponsored by Ms Groves' organisation.

Another woman with cataracts regained her vision after 20 years. Ms Groves says the woman told her the thing she was most excited about was now being able to find the best food at communal dinners.

"I get a big kick out of stories like that, when you’ve had a radical impact," Ms Groves said.

However, the economic crisis has made life harder for everyone this year. Figures from the Cambodia’s Ministry of Tourism say although Vietnamese tourists increased by 40 per cent in the six months to June because of new visa exemptions, Australian, Japanese, Chinese, Thai and South Korean visitors fell sharply.

Cambodia’s two main industries, garment manufacturing and construction, have been crippled as US clothes orders fell and tourists stayed at home.

According to the United Nations Development Program, the garment sector lost 60,000 jobs by April and the construction sector 25,000.

UN resident co-ordinator Douglas Broderick warned: "it’s not just people’s livelihoods at risk – it’s people’s lives".

The effect on Ms Groves’ photography business has also been dramatic.

"Last year was a boom year, then the Australian dollar crashed. It made a big impact because a lot of our customers are Australian,” she said.

In June this year, her photo sales had fallen 50 per cent from the same period in 2008.

Donations to Helping Hands have also dropped, although fundraising efforts such as a US$23,000 (about $27,500) donation raised by a young Irishwoman who rowed 250 kilometres down the Shannon River- Ireland's longest river - have helped.

Ms Groves radical life-change has meant many personal sacrifices, including sleepless nights, long work hours, lack of a social life and being unable to regularly see her family and friends.

She is working towards spending more time in Australia, but continues to manage Helping Hands and run her photo business full-time from wherever she is at any given moment.

Back home, Ms Groves says her standards of living will probably be different to last time she lived there. She believes that might be a good thing.

“Most of my staff have never had a hot shower, most of the people in the village don’t even have a shower, they use a bucket. Hot water now I consider a luxury,” she says.

“Even the poorest in Australia are still better off than the people here.”

Read more!

Prosecutor wants 5 more Khmer Rouge investigated

Phnom Penh: A prosecutor at Cambodia's Khmer Rouge tribunal has formally recommended that five more suspects be investigated for crimes against humanity and other offenses, setting the legal body on a collision course with the country's powerful Prime Minister.

A statement from the tribunal Tuesday said the acting international co-prosecutor, William Smith of Australia, submitted his recommendation to the co-investigating judges, who would then decide whether to issue arrest warrants.

Citing the confidentiality of the process, the tribunal announcement did not identify the five new suspects. It said the cases involved at least 32 instances of murder, torture, unlawful detention, forced labour, and persecution that constituted violations of Cambodian and international law.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has repeatedly spoken out against expanding the list of defendants beyond the one now on trial — Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch — and four others in custody.

On Monday, Hun Sen said such action could lead to civil war, a claim doubted by his critics.

"I would like to tell you that if you prosecute (more leaders) without thinking beforehand about national reconciliation and peace, and if war breaks out again and kills 20,000 or 30,000 people, who will be responsible?" Hun Sen said.

The tribunal's Cambodian co-prosecutor opposed further indictments, but the tribunal last week ruled that his international counterpart could seek them. The tribunal, created last year under an agreement reached in 2003 between Cambodia and the United Nations, employs joint teams of Cambodian and international court personnel.

Lars Olsen, a spokesman for the tribunal, said there was no timeframe for action by the co-investigating judges on Smith's submission, made Monday.

The tribunal is seeking justice for the estimated 1.7 million people who died in Cambodia from execution, overwork, disease and malnutrition as a result of the communist regime's radical policies while in power from 1975-79.

The UN administrator for the tribunal issued a blunt reminder Tuesday to Hun Sen that the panel was independent.

Related Stories
Khmer Rouge tribunal must be independent: UN "It is a clearly established international standard that courts do not seek approval of advice on their work from the executive branch," Knut Rosandhaug said in a statement.

Critics accuse Hun Sen of trying to limit the tribunal's scope to prevent his political allies from being indicted. Hun Sen once served as a Khmer Rouge officer and many of his main allies are also former members of the group.

The tribunal's long-awaited first trial — of Kaing Guek Eav, the Khmer Rouge's chief jailer for war crimes and crimes against humanity — opened in March. A joint trial of the four other defendants is expected within the next two years.

The Khmer Rouge came to power after a bitter 1970-75 civil war, and after being ousted from power in 1979, carried out an insurgency from the jungles until 1999.

Hun Sen has dominated Cambodian politics for more than two decades. He ousted his former co-prime minister in a 1997 coup and has since ruled virtually unchallenged. Read more!

Hundreds of homes swamped, bridge washed away in northwest

ANKARA, Turkey - Flash floods triggered by torrential rains killed six people and left swaths of lands in northwestern Turkey awash Tuesday. At least three people were reported missing.

Nazmi Coban, the mayor of the town of Saray, said rescue workers there recovered the bodies of four people, including a 6-year-old girl, and were searching for another member of the family who was swept away by floods.

Rescuers also found the bodies of an elderly couple whose house collapsed in the floods, the state-run Anatolia news agency reported. Saray is in Tekirdag province, close to the border with Greece.

Heavy rains that began late Monday washed away one bridge and inundated hundreds of homes in the Saray region. Dozens of farm animals were swept away by gushing waters.

Heavy rains caused floods in the Silivri and Catalca suburbs of Istanbul, as well, immersing homes and roads, officials said. Two people were reported missing. One was a girl, whose mother and sister managed to get out of a car safely before the girl was dragged away by the floods, Istanbul Gov. Muammer Guler said.

In Silivri, police and military helicopters were sent to rescue people confined to their homes, according to television footage. Dozens of cars were swept away. A fire truck could be seen lying on its side.

Two international highways linking Istanbul to the borders with Greece and Bulgaria were closed temporarily, Anatolia reported.

On Monday, a Cambodia-flagged freighter broke into two and sank in heavy storms off the coast of Istanbul. All 12 crew members were rescued.

More rain was forecast for the area Wednesday.

Read more!

Cambodian PM: KRouge trials may ignite war

Cambodian premier Hun Sen on Monday renewed strong warnings his country could be plunged back into civil war if the UN-backed Khmer Rouge court tried more suspects from the late 1970s movement.

Hun Sen, himself a former low level commander in the communist regime, made his speech less than a week after the court said it could open investigations against more members of the government which killed up to two million people.

"If you tried (more suspects) without taking national unification and peace into consideration and if war re-occurred, killing between 200 000 and 300 000 people more, who would be responsible for it?" the premier told a ceremony.

"I have achieved this work (peace), I will not allow anybody to destroy it.... The value of peace here is very big," Hun Sen said, lamenting that Cambodia had already been drenched "by blood and tears".

"So anybody, please don't cause more trouble," he added.

The prime minister in a speech in March made similar assertions that further prosecutions at the Khmer Rouge court could destabilise Cambodia, saying that he would prefer the court failed than indict more suspects.

But critics have said there is no risk of renewed fighting since the country's civil war ended in 1998, and have accused the administration of trying to protect former regime members now in government.

A lead administrator at the Khmer Rouge court said Monday that he expected tribunal investigators would not be influenced by Hun Sen's statements.

"It is a clearly established international standard that courts do not seek approval or advice on their work from the executive branch," UN coordinator of the court Knut Rosandhaug told AFP.

"I expect that the (court) will comply with this internationally recognised standard and make its decisions independently," he added.

The tribunal was created in 2006 to try leading members of the 1975-1979 regime and five former leaders are currently being held on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The court's long-awaited first trial of Kaing Guek Eav, better known by the alias Duch, is under way and he has accepted responsibility for overseeing the execution of more than 15,000 people at the regime's main prison.

After Duch's trial, the court plans to prosecute former Khmer Rouge ideologue Nuon Chea, head of state Khieu Samphan, foreign minister Ieng Sary and his wife, minister of social affairs Ieng Thirith.

Led by Pol Pot, who died in 1998, the Khmer Rouge emptied Cambodia's cities in a bid to forge an agrarian utopia, resulting in the deaths of up to two million people from starvation, overwork and torture. - AFP
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Cambodian PM asks U.S. to cancel Cambodian debts

PHNOM PENH, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Monday asked the United States to remit Cambodia's debts which the country has owed since 1970s by Lon Nol's regime.

"The U.S. should cancel the debts for Cambodia because the U.S. dropped large amount of bombs on Cambodia and many people suffered from it," he said at a ceremony of releasing final result of 2008 Population census at Chuktumok Theater Hall in Phnom Penh.

Hun Sen put forwards the requirement directly to Carol A. Rodley, U.S. ambassador to Cambodia who also attended the ceremony.

"The U.S. should pay compensation for Cambodians but the U.S. side has always asked us to pay debt back," he said.

Cheam Yeap, a lawmaker and chairman of the committee of finance, banking, economy and audition of Cambodian National Assembly, said that "we have been urging U.S. side to cancel debts for several times but they said they need decision from top level."

He added that Cambodia has owed the United State in a total of over 300 million U.S. dollars by Lon Nol regime.
Read more!

New Season, Further Sales for A World of Wonders

By Kristin Brzoznowski


OTTAWA: A third season is slated for Genuine Pictures' children's series A World of Wonders, which has notched up a slew of new international sales.

The show has now been sold to National Geographic in Turkey, Kuwait TV, TVB in Hong Kong and on Al Jazeera in Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, UAE and Yemen. A third season launches today on TVO Kids.

The live-action series takes young viewers on a trip across the globe. The new season will feature locations such as the Galapagos Islands, Cambodia, Jordan, Japan and Vietnam. “We took the series to a whole new level this year with the use of smaller format HD cameras,” said executive producer Donna Leon. “That gave us more flexibility, and season three is packed with lots of wonderful content.”

“A World of Wonders continues to perform well for the factual channels overseas and while educational it doesn’t fall short on entertainment," said Diane Tripp, the VP of international sales for The Fremantle Corporation. "The episodes are self-contained and accommodate a multi-media platform strategy quite well—a task most broadcasters aim to achieve." Read more!

‘Ring of Fire’ shows off Asian Pottery Works

Sixteen Filipino potters and 10 other Southeast Asian ceramic artists will exhibit their wares in an international show entitled Ring of Fire at the Ayala Museum from September 21 to October 4, 2009.

The convergence of ASEAN potters in Makati is the first of its kind in the Philippines.

The participants of the ASEAN show will also interact in a two-day workshop where they will exchange information, and discuss individual techniques and the creative process underlying their works. The workshop will be held at the Luna and Amorsolo rooms of the Ayala Museum from September 22 to 23.

A display of 64works by the master potters in the region will attest to the intensity, passion, and peculiar identity of ASEAN ceramic artists. They have been influenced by ceramic artists from other parts of Asia, but now, they are drawing fire from each other.

Renowned ASEAN potters participating in the event include Ahadiat Joedawinata of Indonesia; Peter Low, James Seet, Lileng Wong, and Yeow Seng Cheah of Malaysia; Teck Heng Tan and Thomas Cheong of Singapore; Bathma Kaew-Ngok of Thailand; and Bao Toan Nguyen of Vietnam.

Filipino potters in the exhibit include Jon and wife Tessie Pettyjohn of Pansol; Hadrian and wife Camille Mendoza of Makiling; Jaime de Guzman of Candelaria, Quezon; Colorado-based Nelfa Querubin of Iloilo; Manila-based sculptress Julie Lluch of Iligan; Pete Cortes of Bulacan; Pablo Capati of Batangas; Joe Geraldo of Bacolod; Mark Valenzuela of Dumaguete; Winnie Go and Joey de Castro of Makati; Siegrid Bangyay and Lope Bosaing of Sagada.

“The primary goal of this project is to foster a community among Southeast Asian peoples that celebrates both the diversity and unity of the region through the art and craft of pottery,” says Mr. Mendoza, recipient of a Toyota Foundation networking grant in November 2007.

“A network of individuals and the organization of potters, scholars, and cultural workers in Southeast Asia will revive traditional knowledge and skills in pottery as well as teach new techniques and best practices done by contemporary ASEAN ceramic artists,” he adds.

Mendoza has touched base with contemporary potters in Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. He is searching for more modern practitioners of the ancient art of pottery in Brunei and Myanmar. He has also connected with various communities of potters in the Philippines.

A website for the project: http://www.seapots.com has been created, aimed at increasing active exchanges among the region’s potters.

Also on display in the website are the works of various potters in the region including Serge Rega of Cambodia; Kurniawaty Guatama of Indonesia; Sisuk a refugee from Laos, now Thailand-based; Cindy Koh of Malaysia; folk potters from various pottery centers in Myanmar; Krisaya Luenganantakul, Takood Nui, and Vipoo Srivilasa, Atiporn Thongborisut, and Somthavin Urasyanadana of Thailand; and Van Che Nguyen of Vietnam.
Read more!

Aviation administration wants new, faster flights

HCM CITY — The Civil Aviation Administration of Viet Nam is in negotiations with Laos, Cambodia and China to launch new air routes in a move to help airlines cut operating costs and boost profit, according to senior officials from the administration.

Lai Xuan Thanh, deputy head of the administration, said it was not easy to set up air routes which brought both economic interest and the general benefits for the concerned countries.

But the hard work is worth it to the countries and the airlines. National carrier Vietnam Airlines, for one, estimated it would save about US$400 per minute when flying times are reduced.

The air routes that would help shorten the distance among three Indochinese countries are Nam Dinh to Vilao and Pakse in Laos; Noi Bai in Ha Noi, Na San and Moc Chau in Son La Province to ASSA (in Laos); Tan Son Nhat in HCM City to Enrep (in Singapore); and the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta Province of Can Tho to Phnom Penh in Cambodia. The new routes will shorten by at least three minutes flying times from Ha Noi and Da Nang to Siem Riep and Phnom Penh in Cambodia; from Ha Noi to France, Germany or the US; from Malaysia and Singapore to Tan Son Nhat and Can Tho airports; from Cambodia, Thailand and Laos to Can Tho.

New links

To bring economic interest to airlines, CAAV proposed to set up new international air links to reduce flying times.

They are Cam Ranh to Mesox (in Thailand), which would shorten by four to five minutes flights from Tan Son Nhat to Northeast Asia; Phu Cat or Chu Lai to Bunta (in Indonesia) which would shave eight to 10 minutes off flights from HCM City to Hong Kong or Northeast Asia; and Noi Bai or Cat Bi to Sikou (in China), which would cut by 11 to 15 minutes flights from Noi Bai or Cat Bi airports to Hong Kong, Macau and Northeast Asia.

In order to provide alternatives to north-south routes in case of a storm in central Viet Nam, the administration is also trying to open new direct international flights, like Vientiane (in Laos)–Siem Riep (in Cambodia)–Tan Son Nhat, and Pakse/Vibun (in Laos)–Popet (in Cambodia).

These proposals will be discussed at the Asia Pacific Aviation Summit in mid-September, according to Bui Van Vo, head of the CAAV’s Air Traffic Management Bureau.

Economic interest

New routes would reduce flying times and cut operating costs for the airlines. In addition, the concerned countries would have the chance to apply world-standard methods of air traffic management, Thanh said.

"The new routes would attract more flights in transit via Viet Nam," Thanh said.

In June, CAAV opened four new domestic air routes, which lessened flying times on north-south routes by three to five minutes. Vietnam Airlines estimates the move would result in annual savings of hundreds of billions of dong. — VNS
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Cambodia finds its 1st ancient ironworks site in history

PHNOM PENH, The Apsara Authority of Cambodia has found and excavated for the first time in its history the ancient ironworks site at Khav village, Khav commune, Chi-kreng district of Siem Reap province where is the home of Angkor Wat temple, the local media reported on Saturday.

"We have excavated four sites and each site has size of five meters in length and two meters in width, and we also found iron mines, some potteries, pieces of cook, some bamboos, other ancient materials, and a tube for blowing the air into the ancient cook to melt the iron stone," the khmer language newspaper Rasmei Kampuchea quoted Ea Darith, deputy director of temple conservation for external affairs of Angkor wat park as saying, who is also expert for leading the excavation group.

"Those sites were used for melting iron mines and it was belonged to aborigine "Kouy" and their relatives still exist in living in Cambodia now," he said. "They melted those iron mines to produce as guns, swords, javelins, and other daily households including axes, knifes, and chisels for the king at that time," he added.

"According to the analysis on potteries, those sites were constructed in the 11th or 13th century," Ea Darith said.

At the same time, Apsara Authority also found the ancient Chinese ointment containers which Khmer imported from China. "Khmer and Chinese people got married and lived at Angkor Wat region at that time. So we could find them," he said, adding that those ancient Chinese ointment containers were made in 12th or 13th century.

"Our excavation of the sites was stopped temporarily because our experts need to take those materials for laboratory and took photos to print on books for keeping for next generation to research. There are five sites of iron works here and we will excavate one more in the future at the area," according to Ea Darith.
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Life in focus

WHEN Age photographer Simon O'Dwyer first visited Cambodia in 1997 to photograph the landmine clearing work being done by AusAID and the Cambodian Mine Action Centre, he found a country devastated by war and death.

Under the command of Pol Pot, between 1975 and 1979, the Khmer Rouge systematically killed an estimated 2 million Cambodians, almost a quarter of the country's population.

The victims' ''crimes'' ranged from having an education or speaking a foreign language to being a soldier or government official from the previous regime. Entire families were imprisoned and murdered and, even today, the country remains forever changed, with generations lost to the Killing Fields.

Back in 1997, despite Cambodia's continuing struggles with poverty and disease and the pain still so visible on the scarred bodies of so many people, O'Dwyer also saw a resilience and hopeful dignity.

It was a resilience and hope that he explored further on a recent trip back - photographing the displaced people of Andong Village, the Stung Meanchey garbage dump and the historic temples of Angkor.

"For me, returning so many years later, the growth of tourism has taken a small part of that initial charm, but the spirit of the people and their hopes for a happier future remain," O'Dwyer says.

With more than 42 per cent of the country's population under the age of 15, Cambodia is a young country that is trying to move forward; taking what it can from a growing tourist market that draws international visitors to both the memorials of its grisly past and a raw beauty that decades of killing and conflict have not been able to destroy.

Next weekend, as part of the third Ballarat International Foto Biennale, a collection of photographs from O'Dwyer's two Cambodian journeys will be on display. It is just one of the exhibitions being staged at venues in and around the Ballarat Heritage and Arts precinct featuring at least 2000 images from up to 500 photographers.

For festival director Jeff Moorfoot, the decision to include O'Dwyer's work was based on his belief in the photographer's "humanist approach" to the subjects he photographs.

"There is a real empathy with his subjects, rather than sensationalism," Moorfoot says.

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Succulent souvenir of Cambodia

By Julie A. Warner


Our community has been enriched by recent immigrants from many countries, including Cambodia. Being a foodie, my conversations with my Cambodian friends often turn to their cuisine.

So I was excited recently to have the opportunity visit Cambodia with my daughter to experience the food, an important part of their culture.

During the course of this backpacking adventure, we traveled with an experienced guide who knew where and what to eat, be it roadside rest stops or fine dining. The colors, textures, aromas, and fellow diners were most unlike Rochester, but because of my contacts with our local community, strangely familiar as well.

One memorable stop on our journey was near Siem Reap, where we explored the ancient temples of Angkor Wat. After a morning of prowling these fascinating ruins we found ourselves at a very basic, outdoor roadside restaurant.

We dined under the shade of a canopy that provided welcome relief from the broiling sun, at red vinyl-covered tables fashioned from rough wood. The kitchen was also outdoors, without the benefit of shade, hidden behind a rather flimsy temporary wall. We wondered what was going on behind that wall!

Wanting to sample a traditional regional dish, I asked our guide for a suggestion, and he suggested loc lac or marinated beef strips with lime sauce. Our pretty young waitress took my order and I anxiously awaited my lunch.

I was not disappointed -- when the dish arrived, I found lime-marinated beef strips placed delicately upon a bed of green lettuces, red tomatoes, and golden fried potato wedges with a lightly fried egg placed on top.

To accompany my dish there was the common condiment of cracked black pepper, salt and lime wedges, the ingredients to make a dipping sauce by squeezing the lime wedges and mixing the juice with the salt and pepper.

I eagerly tasted the beef, and found it to be tender to the bite, sweet yet tangy to the taste and balanced by the richness of the fried egg. I savored each bit and was amazed that one could find such cuisine in such a humble roadside restaurant.

When I came home, I wanted to recreate this lime-marinated beef in my own kitchen.

This is the recipe I modified and shared with my family with great success.

Even though I do not have Angkor Wat in sight as I relish my loc lac I can still smell, see and savor a traditional Cambodian meal in my own home. Enjoy, enjoy!


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U.S. donates military equipment to Cambodian Armed Forces

PHNOM PENH, The United States donated military equipment to the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF) to help human resources and strengthen Cambodia's capacity, said a press release issued by the U.S. Embassy on Friday.

The U.S. formally transferred nearly twenty forty foot containers of excess military equipment to the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces. The original cost of the material was approximately 6.5 million U.S. dollars and included 16,000 Kevlar helmets, 4,000field packs, 6,000 camouflage uniforms among other items.

The equipment was donated through the Foreign Military Financing (FMF) program. Since 2006, Cambodia has received approximately 4.5 million U.S. dollars worth of military equipment and technical assistance through this program.

The FMF program is also funding the grant of excess military transport equipment and technical assistance to the Ministry of National Defense and the High Command, English language training materials and technical assistance to the RCAF English Language Training Program and Maritime Security and Professional Development training to the Royal Cambodian Navy.

The equipment will be issued to priority units with the RCAF, many of whom are currently receiving training and capacity building assistance from the United States, it added.

The handover ceremony was conducted at the National Defense Ministry on Sept. 3 presided over by Brigadier General Skip Vincent and Lieutenant General Chau Phirun, General Director of Materiel and Techniques of the Ministry of National Defense.
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WHO: H1N1 flu widespread in South Asia

GENEVA, Switzerland, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Sri Lanka and Indonesia report regional or widespread H1N1 flu, World Health Organization officials say.

Pandemic H1N1 influenza continues to be the predominant circulating flu virus, both in the Northern and Southern hemispheres, WHO officials say.

Many tropical regions of South Asia and Southeastern Asia report increased or sustained high levels of respiratory disease, but Thailand and Brunei Darussalam report a declining trend.

In tropical regions of Central America and the Caribbean, flu activity continues to be geographically regional or widespread.

Ecuador, Venezuela, Peru and parts of Brazil report regional or widespread flu activity, with some reporting an increasing trend in the level of respiratory diseases.

However, Chile, Argentina, Australia and New Zealand have passed the peak of their winter influenza epidemic. Influenza continues in South Africa and in parts of Australia.

In the Northern hemisphere, flu activity continues to increase in Japan, indicating an early beginning to its annual influenza season. In Canada and the United States, influenza remains low overall, however regional increases are detected in the Southeastern United States, WHO officials say.

Little flu activity is being reported in Europe or in central and western Asia. A few countries are reporting geographically widespread flu activity -- Austria and Israel, for example -- or an increasing trend in respiratory diseases -- such as the Netherlands and Romania.

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Hundreds of Cambodian police deployed against robbery in Phnom Penh

PHNOM PENH, Cambodian police authorities has deployed hundreds of police troops to seek the robbers and prevent any cases of robberies, DAP News reported on its website Thursday.

The action was taken after several cases of jewelry and property robberies occurred in past few weeks in Phnom Penh and which have caused some concern among the public, it said.

"We has been deploying our police troops to prevent any cases of robbery and provided safety for people especially jewelry sellers in the city after robbery cases occurred in the past two weeks," Khmer language DAP News quoted Touch Naroth, Phnom Penh police commander, as saying.

"We are also seeking to arrest the robbers and suspected people," he added.

It added that in the past two weeks, there were six cases of gold and other jewelry robberies in the city, and two gold sellers were shot to death. Meanwhile, the robberies caused thousands of U.S. dollars losses for the sellers.

"Our authority have to provide security for people, especially during the Khmer traditional Pchum Ben festival "ancestor guardian spirit ceremony" which will last from Sept. 5 to 19," Phnom Penh governor Ke Chuptema said.

"We have sent our spies and plain clothes police to seek robbers for punishment by law and take actions against it quickly," said Ya Kim Ie, Phnom Penh military chief.


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