Cambodia To Eradicate HIV/AIDS Infection From Mother To Child By 2020

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia has set year 2020 as a timeline to eradicate the spread or infection of HIV/AIDS from mother to child, reports China's Xinhua news agency on Saturday.

Mean Chhiv Vun, advisor to Cambodia's Ministry of Health and director of National Center for HIV/AIDS said Saturday that the Ministry of Health has pledged to eradicate the infection of HIV/ AIDS from mother to child by 2020.

As of now, of the total 36,077 HIV/AIDS related patients, 3,500 are children and being provided medical care by the government.

According to the government's statistics, the prevalence of infection rate has declined from 2 percent in 2006 to 0.9 percent in 2008 for adults aged 15 and 49, and is expected the rate will further decline to 0.6 percent by 2012.

Earlier this month, Bun Rany, spouse of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and Chairman of Cambodian Red Cross pledged that the government, her Cambodian Red Cross as well as other national and international organizations were committed to continue helping and supporting all activities that help combating this deadly disease.

She also urged all private companies to not condition employees ' pre-blood test prior to offering their new job, an act she says a violation to law on HIV/AIDS.

Cambodia is considered as a successful country in fighting against the spread or infection of HIV/AIDS through a 100 percent condom use campaign.

-- BERNAMA
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PM denies coup charge from hun sen

By THE NATION


The government yesterday denied Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen's accusation of plotting to stage a coup to topple the government in Phnom Penh.

"The Thai government will never do such a thing," Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said, and added his government had a policy to maintain good ties with neighbouring countries.

He said the Thai government would not interfere in Cambodia's internal affairs and had never criticised Cambodian politics.

Relations between Thailand and Cambodia plunged after Hun Sen appointed former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra as his adviser. The two countries downgraded diplomatic relations and there are no moves to normalise ties.

Prime Minister Abhisit turned down Indonesia's offer to mediate, saying he had already explained his side of the story to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and hoped that such an explanation could help.

However relations look unlikely to improve in the near future. Hun Sen was quoted by Agence France-Presse as saying in a speech at a provincial ceremony on Thursday that he had seen a secret Thai government document outlining a plan to mount a coup.

"You have outlined bad scenarios, including preparing to wage war against Cambodia," Hun Sen said.

Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said Cambodia might have received incorrect information from ousted prime minister Thaksin.

Suthep insisted the Thai government had never thought of intervention in Cambodian politics and Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva was a champion of democracy who would never stoop to destroy the neighbouring country through other means.

The information Cambodia has received from Thaksin and opposition Pheu Thai MP Jatuporn Promphan is incorrect and it might have misled the Cambodian leader, Suthep said.

The Foreign Ministry on Thursday lodged a complaint with the police, charging key leaders of the anti-government red-shirt group with publicising confidential documents and libel following a leak of the ministry's classified document on relations between Thailand and Cambodia.

Army chief Anupong Paochinda said he did not expect any Thai people would be involved in politics in the neighbouring country. Read more!

Thaksin popular in Cambodia, too

Cambodians living across the border from Thailand's northeastern provinces idolise ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, a study shows.

The initial findings of the research conducted by National University of Singapore senior lecturer Peter Vail for the Thailand Research Fund were unveiled on Tuesday.

They show border people in Cambodia, due to their geographical proximity to Thailand, are impressed with the former prime minister and the populist policies implemented when he was in power.

"They [survey respondents] also enjoyed discussing polarised Thai domestic politics and we could see several effigies in these areas slandering Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva,'' said Mr Vail, who is also attached to the Mekong Sub-region Social Research Centre at Ubon Ratchathani University.

The northern Cambodians related to the red shirt group and found the yellow shirts were backward-looking people who wanted to steal Cambodian land and artefacts, he said, adding that they might also want to talk about Cambodian politics but they could not.

"They simply said they did not like [Cambodian Prime Minister] Hun Sen but wanted Hun Sen to introduce populist projects like Thaksin did to Thailand,'' the researcher said.

Northern Cambodians also disapproved of the Thai-Cambodian spat over Phnom Penh's campaign to list Preah Vihear as a World Heritage site.

"They just want to do business and make money,'' Mr Vail said. "They simply want better livelihoods, helped by border trade.''

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Thailand rejects Cambodian allegation of coup plot

BANGKOK — Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on Friday rejected an accusation from his Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen that Thailand is hatching a plot to stage a coup in the neighbouring nation.

The Cambodian premier made the allegation on Thursday as diplomatic relations between the governments sunk to a new low.

Hun Sen said he had seen a secret Thai government document outlining the plan to mount a coup, but Suthep, who is in charge of national security, said the charge was groundless.

"We have no reason to do such a thing. My government has a clear policy to maintain good relations and we don't need to resort to violence or disrupt bilateral trade," Abhisit told reporters.

"Thailand would not interfere in Cambodia's internal affairs and Thailand never criticises domestic Cambodian politics," he said.

Relations between the countries, which have fought a string of deadly gunbattles on their border since last year, plunged last month when fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra became an economic adviser to Cambodia.

Both recalled their ambassadors in November and diplomatic tensions were further raised when Phnom Penh refused to extradite Thaksin during his first visit as adviser last month.

Thaksin, who was ousted in a coup in 2006, is living abroad, mostly in Dubai, to avoid a two-year jail term for corruption handed down by a Thai court in August 2008.

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Alabama native, among nation's most decorated veterans, dies

By The Associated Press


WACO, Texas -- Retired Col. Robert Lewis Howard, a man considered to be the country's most decorated soldier, died Wednesday. He was 70.

Howard was battling pancreatic cancer and died about noon at a hospice, his friend Benito Guerrero, a Vietnam veteran and retired sergeant major, told the San Antonio Express-News.

The Army veteran died in Waco, according to Oak Crest Funeral Home. At the time of his death he was the most decorated American soldier, the funeral home obituary said. He will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors. No date has been set, the funeral home said.

Howard grew up in Opelika, Ala., and served in the Army from 1956 to 1992. He was part of the U.S. Army Special Forces, known as the Green Berets, and ran cross-border operations in Laos, Cambodia and North Vietnam. He was wounded 14 times in Vietnam and was awarded eight Purple Hearts.

He was nominated three times for the Medal of Honor, the nation's most prestigious award for combat veterans. President Richard M. Nixon presented him with the honor at the White House in 1971 for his bravery in Vietnam during a mission to rescue a missing soldier in enemy territory.


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Cambodian PM accuses Thailand of preparing coup

CAMBODIAN Prime Minister Hun Sen today accused neighbouring Thailand of preparing a coup against his government as the war of words between the neighbouring nations worsened.

Hun Sen said he had seen a secret Thai government document outlining the plan to mount a coup, which he said he had passed to Cambodia's King Norodom Sihamoni to show the "bad character of our neighbouring leaders''.

"In your secret document it says that although the (Thai) foreign ministry does not agree to stage a coup in Cambodia... others are working on it,'' Hun Sen said.

"Don't even think about it. I know who is doing this,'' he added, during a speech at a provincial ceremony.

The Cambodian premier said he had also seen documents that showed Thailand has considered waging war against its neighbour.

``You have outlined bad scenarios, including preparing to wage war against Cambodia,'' he said.

Hun Sen's comments follow the leaking of a document in Thailand last week, written by the Thai foreign minister to premier Abhisit Vejjajiva, in which the worsening relations between the two countries are analysed. Read more!

Thailand preparing coup?

PHNOM PENH - CAMBODIAN Prime Minister Hun Sen on Thursday accused neighbouring Thailand of preparing a coup against his government as the war of words between the neighbouring nations worsened.

Mr Hun Sen said he had seen a secret Thai government document outlining the plan to mount a coup, which he said he had passed to Cambodia's King Norodom Sihamoni to show the 'bad character of our neighbouring leaders'.

'In your secret document it says that although the (Thai) foreign ministry does not agree to stage a coup in Cambodia... others are working on it,' Mr Hun Sen said. 'Don't even think about it. I know who is doing this,' he added, during a speech at a provincial ceremony.

The Cambodian premier said he had also seen documents that showed Thailand has considered waging war against its neighbour. 'You have outlined bad scenarios, including preparing to wage war against Cambodia,' he said.

Mr Hun Sen's comments follow the leaking of a document in Thailand last week, written by the Thai foreign minister to premier Abhisit Vejjajiva, in which the worsening relations between the two countries are analysed.

Relations between the countries, which have fought a string of deadly gunbattles on their border since last year, plunged last month when fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra became an economic adviser to Cambodia. -- AFP


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Cambodian new national airline makes profit

PHNOM PENH: Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Thursday said the country's new national airline, Cambodia Angkor Air, had begun to turn a profit, raising hopes it would not fail like its predecessor.

The airline, which has capitalisation of US$100 million, was launched in July following the failure of a previous effort in 2001.

Cambodia Angkor Air, a joint venture between the government and Vietnam Airlines, aims to promote Cambodia as a destination and boost tourism.

"We expected the airline to make losses for two years, but now this airline is making profit because a lot of passengers are using it," Hun Sen said during a provincial ceremony.

The last national carrier, Royal Air Cambodge, folded in 2001 after running up losses of US$30 million.

Cambodia Angkor Air flies between tourist hub Siem Reap and Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City.

Tourism is one of the only sources of foreign exchange for impoverished Cambodia, which is recovering from nearly three decades of conflict that ended in 1998.

The kingdom aims to lure three million tourists annually by next year, and in 2009 attracted more than two million holidaymakers.

A number of foreign airlines, including Japan Airlines and Qatar Airways, currently operate direct flights to Cambodia.

- AFP/sc
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They were on track to kill him: Reds

By Naya Jaikawang,
Hassaya Chartmontree
The Nation


Pheu Thai MP Jatuporn Prompan yesterday alleged the government was hatching a secret plan to "get rid of" fugitive ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra - backing up his allegation for a second time by disclosing a classified memorandum prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Repeating his claim of last week, Jatuporn said a memorandum on Thai-Cambodian ties, classified as secret and sent from Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya to Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, was purportedly a plot to assassinate Thaksin.

"The term "get rid of" is a codeword for killing," he said, claiming such a codeword is commonly understood by MFA officials.

At yesterday's press conference, Jatuporn focused on the five-page annex to the main document which he touched on last week.

The annex outlined responses of varying intensity to the prime minister of Cambodia, he said. The 18 measures included a ban on Thai citizens visiting Cambodian casinos, cancellation of the extradition treaty, reinforcement of troops along the borders, and cancellation of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) on maritime boundaries.

He said the MFA analysis shed light on the dilemma of memorandums of understanding previously signed with Cambodia.

In one case, the MFA urged cancellation of the 2001 MOU on maritime boundaries in order to smear Thaksin for conflict of interest, he said. But an anticipated adverse impact might have led to the questioning of the MOU on land borders, signed in 2000 by Democrat MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra, he added.

He claimed the debate about the MOUs raised two interesting facts - first, Thaksin had no conflict of interest but the government wanted to smear him; and second, the 2000 MOU highlighted the loss of sovereignty around Preah Vihear Temple, but the Democrats did not want to concede their mistake.

The two MOUs have remained in effect and Thailand will not be better off by meddling with them, he said.

The entire memorandum was 12-pages long and should be made public in order to stop the alleged plot to kill Thaksin, he said.

He insisted disclosure of the classified memorandum would neither be harmful to Thai interests nor beneficial to Cambodia.

"The memorandum is illegal with the aim to take Thaksin's life," he said, shrugging off the threat of litigation on unauthorised disclosure of classified information.

He said he might file a counter lawsuit charging the MFA with abuse of power for undertaking illegal actions.

He vowed to use the classified memorandum as a major rallying point for the red shirts to resume street protests next month designed to oust the government.

He also said he planned to censure Deputy Prime Minister Korbsak Sabhavasu for intimidating the judiciary to relocate the construction site for a court in Pai, Mae Hong Son.

Reacting to Jatuporn's claims, Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said he would allow legal experts to determine appropriate counter-measures.

Suthep said the government had not planned on taking out a contract on Thaksin's life as alleged. Even though he had no access to the memorandum in question, he assumed it was just an outline of a general plan for responses to anticipated measures from Cambodia, he said.

Because of the leak, the MFA might have to rethink and redraw the plan, he added.

He said there was virtually nothing he nor the government could do to improve the bilateral ties with Cambodia since its prime minister was fully committed to supporting Thaksin in his attempts to undermine the Thai government.

The House committee on foreign relations plans to launch a hearing and will call on Kasit to testify on the classified memorandum, committee chairman Tophong Chaiyasarn said.

Meanwhile, Chavanond Intarakomalyasut, secretary to the foreign minister, said yesterday the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was preparing to take legal action against Jatuporn for making public the classified documents.

A fact-finding committee has been set up to investigate the leak of the documents, according to a ministry source.

The panel, headed by deputy permanent secretary for foreign affairs Piyawat Niyomroek, has questioned almost 20 people but still has not yet completed its work, the source said. Read more!

Deported Uyghur Had Cambodian Visa

A legal visitor in Cambodia was apparently swept up in a mass deportation to China.

WASHINGTON—One of 20 ethnic Uyghur asylum-seekers deported from Cambodia to China as illegal migrants entered the country legally and on the advice of U.N. refugee officials, Radio Free Asia (RFA) has learned.

Aikebaerjiang Tuniyaz, 27, left China in March 2009 after serving a one-year jail term in Liudawan prison in Urumqi for allegedly “leaking secret information abroad.”

Tuniyaz, born in Aksu and a graduate of Shanghai Jiaotong University, spoke in 2007 with RFA’s Uyghur service about the shooting of a Uyghur man by Chinese security forces in Urumqi, capital of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR).

Tuniyaz entered Thailand in early 2009 and sought asylum through the Bangkok office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), where a staff member suggested he might expedite the process by approaching the UNHCR office in the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, instead, he said in an earlier interview.

He obtained a visa through the Cambodian embassy in Bangkok and entered Cambodia legally, he said. Tuniyaz was in Cambodia legally when deadly ethnic rioting erupted in Urumqi on July 5 this year.

The 20 Uyghur Muslims deported Saturday under intense Chinese pressure had fled to Cambodia in search of asylum after witnessing and documenting violent ethnic riots in the restive western Chinese region of Xinjiang this summer that left nearly 200 dead.

They had warned the UNHCR that they feared long jail terms or even the death penalty if they were sent back to China, according to statements obtained by The Associated Press.

Tuniyaz had been translating for and staying with the group of 21 Uyghurs in Phnom Penh—two are said to have fled—when the group was detained.

Cambodia said it expelled the Uyghurs because they had illegally entered the country. It has since been sharply criticized by Washington, which said the deportations would harm bilateral ties with the United States, though they may have strengthened relations with Beijing.

On Monday, China signed off on more than U.S. $1.2 billion in aid to Cambodia during a visit there by Vice President Xi Jinping. The assistance, including 14 agreements for grants and loans, ranges from help in building roads to repairing Buddhist temples.

More protests

The European Union said Monday it was "deeply concerned" about Cambodia's decision to return the group of Uyghurs to China and urged Beijing to respect the rights of the returnees.

On Tuesday, U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture Manfred Nowak slammed the deportations.

“This is a blatant violation of Cambodia’s obligations under the principle of non-refoulement as stipulated in Article 3 of the U.N. Convention Against Torture,” Nowak said in a statement.

Nowak said that he had reports of “severe torture” in Xinjiang following the unrest and that recent executions there violated “the most basic fair trial guarantees.”

“I am calling on the Chinese authorities to treat the 20 persons humanely upon return in accordance with international standards, to grant access to them in case they are detained and to afford them due process guarantees, if charged with criminal offenses”, he added.

U.N. Independent Expert on Minority Issues Gay McDougall called on Beijing to allow U.N. rights envoys to examine ethnic tensions in Xinjiang after the deadly violence there.

Original reporting by Shohret Hoshur for RFA’s Uyghur service. Uyghur service director: Dolkun Kamberi. Written in English by Sarah Jackson-Han. Read more!

China denies linking Cambodia aid with deportation of Uighurs

China denied on Tuesday it had linked aid to Cambodia with the Southeast Asian nation’s decision to deport a group of Uighurs back to China despite protests from the United Nations and the United States.

Cambodia signed 14 deals worth an estimated $850 million with China on Monday, two days after defying international pressure by expelling 20 Uighur asylum-seekers, underlining growing trade and diplomatic links.

Uighurs are a Turkic Muslim group native to China’s far western region of Xinjiang, where ethnic rioting in July killed 197 people. Many there chafe under Chinese restrictions on their culture and religion. A group of Uighurs were smuggled into Cambodia about a month ago and applied for asylum at the United Nations refugee office. Yet Cambodia brushed off concerns they would be mistreated if returned and deported them for immigration offenses.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu declined to say where the deported Uighurs currently were, but said their case was not connected with China providing Cambodia aid. ”These accusations are groundless. These Chinese nationals’ illegal boarder crossing and entry into Cambodia violated both China’s Entry and Exit Law and relevant Cambodian laws,” she told a regular news briefing in Beijing.

“Furthermore, they are suspected of crimes. I think any country in this situation has the right to make its own decision according to domestic laws,” Jiang said. US-based Uighur leader Rebiya Kadeer, reviled by Beijing as a separatist, wrote in the Wall Street Journal that Cambodia’s deportation was “no doubt influenced by enormous Chinese pressure, backed by hundreds of millions of dollars in aid”.

The UN accused Cambodia of bowing to pressure and deporting the asylum seekers despite having given “strong assurances” it would be allowed to complete its investigation to determine their status.
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Jatuporn reveals more papers

Puea Thai MP Jatuporn Promphan on Wednesday made public an additional nine pages of a classified document he claims to have been prepared by the Foreign Ministry and outlining proposed action against Cambodia.

The pages shown by Mr Jatuporn at a press conference proposed taking three steps to counter the actions of the Cambodian prime minister. This included delaying Thai-Cambodian cooperation projects and reinforcement of troops along the border, particularly near the Preah Vihear temple.

The papers also proposed tough action against former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who is now economic adviser to the Phnom Penh government and is being protected by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen.

Mr Jatuporn, a leader of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship, on Friday released what he said were the first pages of Foreign Ministry document. They focused on how Thailand should handle its relations with Cambodia and described Thaksin as a "key factor" in the destabilisation of the government that must be eliminated.

Mr Jatuporn interpreted it as a threat to Thaksin's life.

Mr Jatuporn said on Wednesday that he did not regard the document he had revealed as confidential since it was illegal, an interference in the judicial process and in violation of the constitution.

The UDD leader dared the Foreign Ministry to take legal action against him, saying he would launch a counter suit.

This matter would also be used to grill Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya during the coming no-confidence debate parliament and to seek his removal from office, he added.

He said the document which had been revealed would be translated into English and published on Thaksin's twitter website.

Chavanond Intarakomalsut, secretary to Mr Kasit, said the Foreign Ministry had consulted with the Office of the Attorney-General over legal action against those who made the document public.

Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said he agreed with air force chief ACM Ithiporn Supawong's comment that the Information Act should be used against those who make public classified official documents. Read more!

China says handling with citizens deported from Cambodia its own affair

China said on Tuesday that it was the country's internal affair to deal with the citizens deported from Cambodia, who were suspected of committing criminal offences, and the outside world should not make irresponsible remarks.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu made the remarks at a regular news briefing in response to a question on Cambodia's deportation of 20 Chinese citizens of the Uygur ethnic group.

Cambodia deported the Chinese citizens according to its immigration law and China received them according to the customs, said Jiang.

The Chinese nationals illegally cross the border to break the laws both in China and Cambodia. They were also suspected of committing criminal offenses, she said.

"Any country facing such circumstances is entitled to make its own decision in accordance with its domestic laws," Jiang said.

"How to handle with these people is the internal affair of China, and the outside world shall not make irresponsible remarks," Jiang said.

"China is a country under the rule of law. Judicial authorities will deal with these people's illegal criminal activities in accordance with the law and safeguard their legitimate rights."

Commenting on whether the deportation was linked with China's assistance to Cambodia, Jiang said both countries have maintained comprehensive and cooperative partnership, and "We provide assistance to Cambodia in line with our own capacity and without any strings attached."

Source:Xinhua Read more!

Thaksin leaves Cambodia

PHNOM PENH - THAILAND'S fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra has left Cambodia after spending more than a week stepping up his advisory role and meeting Thai supporters, an official said on Tuesday.

Thaksin, who arrived in Phnom Penh on Dec 13 for a second visit as an economic adviser to the Cambodian government, departed on Monday morning, said deputy cabinet minister Prak Sokhon. 'He left Cambodia yesterday at around 10am (0300 GMT, 11am Singapore time),' he said.

Officials would not disclose his destination. Thaksin, who was ousted in a 2006 coup, has based himself in Dubai and travelled widely since leaving Thailand in August last year to escape a two-year jail term for corruption.

During his stay in Cambodia, Thaksin addressed top government officials on how to boost investment, tourism and agriculture.

He also met scores of his 'Red Shirt' supporters from Thailand, where he remains a hugely influential figure, witnesses and officials said.

Relations between Thailand and Cambodia, who have fought a string of deadly gunbattles on their border since last year, plunged following Thaksin's appointment as an adviser last month. -- AFP

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UN to launch labour rights contest for Cambodian garment workers

22 December 2009 – Garment workers in Cambodia will have to know their rights to compete in a radio contest being launched by the UN labour organization, with the winners to be announced on International Labour Day in May next year.

The competition is organized by the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) ‘Better Factories Cambodia’ project which, with support from the Government of Cambodia, monitors and strives to improve the conditions in Cambodian garment factories.

“The basis of a sound industrial relation system, which is a key ingredient of healthy and sustained economic growth, is set in a wide understanding of the labour law and the institutions that implement it,” said Catherine Vaillancourt-Laflamme, Training Specialist for Better Factories Cambodia.

“With this garment workers’ competition, Better Factories Cambodia wants to increase the knowledge that Cambodian workers have of the labour law, while promoting the importance, for workers, workers representatives and employers, of respecting the national legal framework, especially in times of economic hardship,” she added.

The competition is open for free to all current and former garment workers who apply before the 22 January deadline. Twelve finalists will be selected to debate with one another in front of a panel of judges during a live radio broadcast on 20 February.

The three winners will be announced on the International Labour Day, observed on 1 May 2010. Cash prizes will be awarded to the first, second, and third-place winners.


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Forcible return of Uighurs from Cambodia sparks UN experts’ concern

22 December 2009 – Two United Nations human rights experts have expressed their concern over the forcible return from Cambodia to China of 20 ethnic Uighur asylum-seekers who had fled violence in their home country.

The asylum-seekers had escaped China in recent months, following the July clashes between Uighurs and ethnic Han in Urumqi, the capital of China’s Xinjiang Autonomous Region, which Government figures show claimed more than 150 lives.

Nine people, mostly Uighurs, were executed last month for their involvement in the violence. Earlier this month, eight more people were sentenced to death, while concerns remain over the whereabouts and circumstances of many others reportedly detained after the clashes.

“In light of the reports of severe torture I have received following the July events and the recent executions in Xinjiang region in violation of the most basic fair trial guarantees, this is a blatant violation of Cambodia’s obligations under the principle of non-refoulement as stipulated in article 3 of the UN Convention against Torture,” said Manfred Nowak, the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture.

Mr. Nowak said the current situation is aggravated by the fact that he had previously reminded the Cambodian Government, through an urgent communication, of their international obligations.

The deportation order for the Uighurs came before they had learned of the results of their asylum applications.

“This means that the Cambodian authorities have knowingly prevented an objective determination of their refugee status under the Geneva Convention on refugees and whether the deportees would be at risk of torture, other forms of ill-treatment or the death penalty,” Mr. Nowak stressed.

He called on the Chinese authorities to treat the 20 Uighurs humanely and to grant access to them in case they are detained.

For her part, Gay McDougall, the UN Independent Expert on minority issues, urged the Chinese Government to allow for a comprehensive and independent assessment of the tensions and grievances that erupted into violence in July as quickly as possible.

“A thorough analysis of the events that took place must go to the heart of the ethnic tensions in the region that underlie the terrible tragedy and appalling loss of life experienced by both [the Uighurs and the Han],” she said.

Such an assessment must be impartial and hear from both communities and would be a “positive step towards reconciliation,” said Ms. McDougall, whose application in the immediate aftermath of the July violence to visit the region still has not been granted.

Without an understanding of the causes of the July clashes in an open and transparent manner, the communities will be pushed further apart, she underscored. “The possibility of further ethnic hostility cannot be discounted under current conditions.”

The expert also voiced concern over respect for due process rights. “The apparent fast-tracking of some trials and subsequent executions send shocking signals to some communities and may serve to further inflame tensions.”

Over the weekend, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCR) said the forced return of the asylum-seekers on Saturday took place a day after the agency had communicated its concern to the Cambodian Government about the deportations of the 20 Uighurs which took place before their asylum cases had been assessed.

The agency stressed that “a disturbing pattern of such cases is increasingly evident around the world.”

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Man jailed for eating rare tiger

A Chinese man has been jailed for 12 years for killing and eating a rare Indochinese tiger.

Kang Wannian, a villager from the southern province of Yunnan, said he had encountered the tiger while out fishing, and killed it in self-defence.

The animal may have been China's only wild Indochinese tiger, which is on the brink of extinction.

Four other men were jailed for sharing the tiger meal and covering up the incident.

Endangered species

Kang was confronted by the tiger in February while gathering freshwater clams in a nature reserve near China's border with Laos.

He said he shot the animal after dark and claimed that, at the time, he did not know it was an endangered Indochinese tiger.

According to local media, Kang was sentenced to 10 years for killing a rare animal plus two years for illegal possession of firearms.

The court in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan province, also ordered him to pay a fine of 480,000 yuan ($70,000; £44,000).

Fewer than 1,800 Indochinese tigers are thought to be living in the wild, in the forests of Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Burma.

The only known wild Indochinese tiger in China was photographed in 2007 at the same reserve that Kang visited.

The tiger has not been seen since Kang's meal, and there is speculation that Kang could have eaten the last one.

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China boosts Cambodia aid after Uighurs deported

China signed pacts worth one billion dollars in aid to Cambodia Monday and thanked Phnom Penh for its controversial decision to deport a group of Uighurs seeking refuge back to Chinese soil.

China signed pacts worth one billion dollars in aid to Cambodia Monday and thanked Phnom Penh for its controversial decision to deport a group of Uighurs seeking refuge back to Chinese soil.

The 20 Muslim Uighurs, who had fled the far western Xinjiang region after unrest erupted there in July, were expelled late Saturday as they were seeking asylum in the Cambodian capital, saying they risked torture in China.

Phnom Penh said the group, which Beijing had labelled as "criminals", was expelled in line with domestic law.

But the US, the European Union, the UN and rights groups deplored the move as an apparent breach of an international convention on refugees.

In a statement, the Swedish EU presidency said it was "deeply concerned" about Phnom Penh's action, adding that it showed "a worrying disregard for Cambodia's obligations under international law".

The decision came ahead of a three-day visit by Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping, who held talks Monday with Prime Minister Hun Sen and witnessed the signing of 14 bilateral agreements.

The pacts were worth 1.2 billion dollars in aid and loans to Cambodia, according to government spokesman Khieu Kanharith, who said the two countries agreed to strengthen their relations in all fields.

China and Cambodia have long had close relations, with China previously giving 930 million dollars in aid and loans to the impoverished Southeast Asian nation since 1992, Khieu Kanharith said.

"China has thanked the government of Cambodia for assisting in sending back these people," he said of the Uighurs' deportation. "According to Chinese law, these people are criminals."

Uighur leader Rebiya Kadeer said the deportation reflected Beijing's growing clout in the region, saying Phnom Penh's decision was "no doubt influenced by enormous Chinese pressure, backed by hundreds of millions of dollars in aid".

"Governments of countries neighbouring China are reluctant to take any action that would displease Chinese authorities, leaving Uighurs nowhere to flee," Kadeer said.

Clashes between Xinjiang's Uighurs and China's majority Han ethnic group in July left nearly 200 dead and 1,600 injured, according to official tolls.

The violence erupted when Uighurs -- who have long complained of repression under Chinese rule -- attacked members of China's Han ethnic majority. In the days following, mobs of Han roamed the streets seeking revenge.

Last month, nine people were executed for their roles in the violence.

Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said in a fax sent to AFP that China had received the group of 20 from Cambodia "in accordance with routine practice".

"China resolutely opposes and cracks down hard on illegal border crossing activities and advocates greater cooperation among the international community to work together to combat crime," Jiang said.

Christophe Peschoux, a representative of the office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said Monday he was "dismayed" by the deportation.

He said Cambodian authorities were "obviously under pressure" when they overturned initially strong assurances that they considered the Uighurs asylum seekers and would complete assessments to see if they were of refugee status.

"This deportation is all the more disturbing in a country that has known massive persecution during the wars and the Khmer rouge regime, and which knows all too well the price and value of refugee protection," he said.
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Deported Uighurs told UN of fears of China return

By TINI TRAN (AP)

BEIJING — Ethnic Uighur asylum-seekers forcibly repatriated over the weekend had warned the U.N. refugee agency they feared long jail terms or even the death penalty if they were sent back to China, according to statements seen Monday by The Associated Press.

The 20 Uighur Muslims had fled to Cambodia in search of asylum after witnessing and documenting violent ethnic riots in the restive western Chinese region of Xinjiang this summer that left nearly 200 dead. They were put on a plane from Phnom Penh to Beijing on Saturday under heavy pressure from China, despite strong protests from the U.S. and the United Nations.
China has called the Uighurs suspected criminals, and on Monday defended the forced returns, saying it was in line with immigration law.

"The Chinese side received the above-mentioned people according to usual practice," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said in a faxed statement. Jiang refused to say where the Uighurs are being held and whether they had been charged with any crime.

Cambodia said it expelled the Uighurs because they had illegally entered the country. It has since been publicly censured by the U.S., which warned the deportations could hurt their bilateral relations.

But it may have helped cement Cambodia's ties with China, a key ally and major donor to the impoverished Southeast Asian nation. On Monday, China signed over $1.2 billion in aid to Cambodia during a visit there by Vice President Xi Jinping. The assistance, including 14 agreements for grants and loans, ranges from help in building roads to repairing Buddhist temples.

Several of the Uighurs had told the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, or UNHCR, in Cambodia, that they feared lengthy imprisonment or even the death penalty if they were returned to China because they had been involved in the summer's ethnic unrest.

Their written statements, which had been provided to the U.N. to support their asylum applications, were obtained independently by The AP Monday. Their names are not being published for fear of retaliation by the government. The statements describe the bloodshed that broke out after security forces cracked down on protesting Uighurs. The unrest, in which Uighurs also clashed with ethnic Han Chinese residents, was widely regarded as the worst ethnic violence in the region for decades.

One man, a 29-year-old from Kashgar, said he had taken photos and videos of the chaos on July 5 in the Xinjiang capital of Urumqi. He told of watching and filming from a roof at night as military police clashed with and shot at protesters, and Uighurs fought back with rocks. He said he saw bloodied bodies in the streets.

"I felt like I was in a battlefield. Looking down at the streets full of Uighur bodies, I thought that I was going to die," he said in his statement.

Four days later, he met a foreign reporter on the streets and agreed to turn over the photographs and video footage.

"If I am returned to China, I am sure that I will be sentenced to life imprisonment or the death penalty for my involvement in the Urumqi riots," he said in his statement.

Another 29-year-old witness, from Aksu, who had sold cell phones for a living, said he had joined some 300 protesters in the main square before hundreds of police arrived and began beating them.

"I heard shots fired and became very scared ... The next morning, I went into the street after praying. I saw blood on the streets," he said in his statement.

A third man, a 27-year-old teacher from Aksu, said that before the summer unrest he had been pressed to act as an informant by state security officials who wanted to know if his students were anti-Chinese. They asked him to monitor Uighur communist Web sites. He spent more than a year being tortured and beaten in a re-education camp.

"I can tell the world what is happening to Uighur people and the Chinese authorities do not want this. If returned, I am certain I would be sent to prison," he wrote in his statement.

The group of Uighurs had made the journey from China's far west through to Vietnam and then Cambodia with the help of a network of missionary groups. Two Uighurs fled before the group was forced to return on a special plane sent to Phnom Penh Saturday.

The European Union said Monday it was "deeply concerned" about Cambodia's decision to return the group of Uighurs to China and urged Beijing to respect the rights of the returnees.

"The (Cambodian) government's action shows a worrying disregard for Cambodia's obligations under international law, as well as for specific undertakings given to UNHCR in this case," said a statement from the EU's Swedish presidency.

Earlier, the United States voiced similar concerns, while human rights groups say they fear the Uighurs will be harshly persecuted.

Overseas Uighur groups say Uighurs in China have been rounded up in mass detentions since the summer's violence. China has handed down at least 17 death sentences over the rioting.

Associated Press Writer Isolda Morillo in Beijing contributed to this report.

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Cambodian-Thai conflict 'stems from political personality clash'

Pad Supa, a leading businessman and senator in Koh Kong, has a close connection with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen. In an excerpt from an interview with Jakkrit Waewkraihong in Trat, Mr Pad aired his views on development in the Cambodian province and the thorny issues that have marred relations between Cambodia and Thailand.

- What are the government's development plans for Koh Kong, especially its attempt to make the province a special economic area?

The government has laid out broad ideas, from improving all necessary utilities to facilitating business growth. The province is ideal for development because it borders Thailand and is also close to the sea.

- Would high property prices in Koh Kong or any state rules hinder investment?

Land prices are not as expensive as expected. They soared after the opening of Road 48 [from the Thai border province of Trat to Srey Ampel], speculation about Thaksin Shinawatra's plan to invest there and the discovery of natural gas and oil deposits in overlapping maritime areas between Cambodia and Thailand.

- How realistic is Thaksin's plan to invest in Koh Kong?

There's no progress now. Mr Thaksin has no plans to invest here, but he knows many foreign businessmen and could invite them to invest in Koh Kong and the other provinces.

- Has the fishing concession dispute between Thailand and the Koh Kong authorities been solved?

That problem has ended. We've reopened our waters since Dec 4. In fact, we have just adjusted our conditions on fishing near Koh Kong following the appointment of a new governor [Yuth Pouthang].

So far, we've awarded concessions to 200 Thai fishing boats without charging higher fees.

- Will the continuing conflict between the two countries lead to new problems?

That's an issue between the governments. None of the present problems have anything to do with the ordinary people or businessmen. To be honest, They all seem to be personal problems.

- How long do you think the current problems will last?

It will go on for some time, I think. Abhisit Vejjajiva and Hun Sen have still not understood each other.

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