KI Media |
- Please Sign the Online Petition to "Reject New Cambodia-Vietnam Land Border Map"
- Sacrava's Political Cartoon: Another Black Sheep
- Hun Sen: Cambodia Not to Follow Tunisia's Path (sic!) [-All dictators are in denial]
- Don't criticize Baby Hun: Papa Hun
- Buddhist monk wanted for sexual assault of teen [-A shameful fraud!]
- Hun Xen fears the shadow cast by Tunisia's Ben Ali regime
- US embassy cables: Ousted Cambodian drugs tsar [Moek Dara] was trusted US source
- $100 for any information on KI-Media team
- Rocking a dictatorial regime
- Tunisian ministers quit party as Ben Ali family arrested
- Why Vietnam's Political Reshuffling Won't Fix A Struggling Economy
- RCAF forced to declare assets
- City restricts union march
- ISP denies blocking blog site [-EZECOM only wanted to provide free publicity for KI-Media]
- Dictator Hun Xen barking in fear of comparison with Tunisia's Ben Ali
- I want the opposition party dead: Dictator Hun Xen
- China's footprint in Thailand expands
- Ex-Khmer Rouge foreign minister too ill for full-day trial sessions
- Postcards from Cambodia
- More Postcards from Cambodia
- Politiktoons No. 130: Taming the Red Dragon
- BANNING KI-MEDIA ? I SAY VIVA KI-MEDIA
- Politiktoons No. 131: Universality of Human RightsCartoo
- Sacrava's Political Cartoon: Hanoi's New Boss
Posted: 21 Jan 2011 04:08 AM PST   Reject New Cambodia-Vietnam Land Border Map Published by Vanna Lanh on Jan 19, 2011 Category: National Affairs Region: Cambodia Target: Members of Parliament and The Constitutional Council of Cambodia Web site: http://ki-media.blogspot.com/ Background (Preamble): The Royal Government of Cambodia and the government of Vietnam are preparing to co-produce a newly drawn land border map based on the on-going demarcations and markers planting work along the border between the two countries. We, the People of Cambodia, believe that such decision and action seriously undermine the Constitution of Kingdom of Cambodia, on the ground that the new borderline demarcation initiative is the implementation of the 2005 Treaty which is supplemental to the previous Land Border Treaty of 1985. The Treaty of 1985 had no legal standing whatsoever due to the fact that it was forged under a foreign occupation, when the Socialist Republic of Vietnam's military was propping up the puppet government of the People's Republic of Kampuchea (PRK). The Constitution of the Royal Kingdom of Cambodia, on Policy, Chapter IV, Article 55, stipulates that any treaty and agreement incompatible with the independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, neutrality and national unity of the Kingdom of Cambodia shall be annulled. Therefore, the constitutional council of Cambodia needs to reject this new map. Petition: We, the Khmer people, would like to notify Your Excellencies that the Royal Government of Cambodia is publishing a newly drawn map of land border for Kingdom of Cambodia and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 04:52 PM PST | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 02:20 PM PST
Xinhua Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said Thursday he will not allow his country to follow any situation as happened in Tunisia. Delivering speech at inauguration of a hospital in Kompong Cham province, Hun Sen said his country will not follow the same trace of Tunisia. "I will close the door and hit the dog inside," Hun Sen said, referring to a Cambodian politician who suggested a similar example in Tunisia be practiced in Cambodia. But, Hun Sen did not name the politician except saying he is staying abroad. Hun Sen said he came to power through people's votes and he will only lose his power through the same channel. He became the prime minister in 1985, or 26 years since then. Former Tunisian President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, who had ruled the country for 23 years, was ousted from power last week following mass protests from the people. He fled to Saudi Arabia last Saturday. Hun Sen is vice president of the ruling Cambodian People's Party which won 90 of the total 123-seat parliament in the last general election held in 2008.   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 02:11 PM PST Cambodian PM defends son's military promotion Friday, January 21, 2011 AFP
PHNOM PENH — Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Thursday defended his son's recent military promotion, a move that has fuelled speculation the young man is being groomed to succeed his father. Hun Manet, 33, is already chief of the ministry of defence's anti-terrorism unit as well as deputy commander of Hun Sen's personal bodyguard unit. He was promoted to a two-star general in a ceremony earlier this month, and critics have said his rapid career progression could be seen as an attempt by Hun Sen to consolidate his political power. But the premier has hit back, saying his son -- who graduated from the US Military Academy at West Point in 1999 and earned a doctorate in economics at Britain's University of Bristol -- was well-qualified for the roles. "He joined the army in 1994. He has been in army for 16 years, and there is promotion within the army ranks," Hun Sen said in a speech broadcast on national radio. Chea Vannath, a Cambodian independent political analyst, said Hun Manet's latest appointment was an attempt to "maintain political stability" in the country. "I think that this promotion is to prepare for a smooth succession," she said, explaining that if Hun Sen ever wanted to quit politics "at least he has paved the way for his son to have a smooth transition, but I cannot tell in what capacity." Hun Sen, 59, has ruled Cambodia since 1985, making him Asia's longest-serving prime minister. He has vowed to remain in power until he is 90 years old.   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 01:38 PM PST Jan. 20, 2011 By PEGGY O'HARE HOUSTON CHRONICLE (Texas, USA) A Buddhist monk from Spring who is accused of having sex with a 16-year-old girl is believed to have fled to his native land of Cambodia, Harris County Sheriff's Office reports show. Wat Angkorchum Por Venh, 41, of the 16700 block of Kuykendahl, is wanted on two charges of sexual assault of a child. Por Venh is accused of having sex with the teen, who worshipped at the man's temple, from June until September. The girl told a youth services specialist at Klein Forest High School that she was in love with Por Venh, a monk at the Wat Angkorchum Cambodian Buddhist Temple. The girl revealed she later became suicidal when she learned of his "possible" sexual relationship with another woman, court documents show. Harris County sheriff's investigators first learned of the incident Dec. 10 when the Klein Forest High School youth services specialist contacted them to report the alleged crime after the 16-year-old girl confided in her. The teenager told a sheriff's investigator that same day that she frequently accompanied her mother to the temple in the 16700 block of Kuykendahl, where her mother would deliver food to the monk because her mother cooked and cleaned for the temple, court papers show. The girl alleged the monk would take her into his bedroom, where they would have sex, according to court records. The girl later told a forensic interviewer at the Children's Assessment Center that she was in love with Por Venh, but she was also hurt because she later learned he was "possibly sexually active" with another woman involved with the temple, according to ducuments. The girl reported this discovery hurt her because the monk had referred to himself and the 16-year-old girl as "boyfriend and girlfriend" in previous conversations with her, court papers show. The girl confided to the forensic interviewer that she was contemplating suicide by hanging herself or overdosing on pills. Two charges of sexual assault of a child under 17 years old were first filed against Por Venh on Jan. 14, but Por Venh's attorney told sheriff's investigators that the Buddhist monk was believed to have fled the U.S. and returned to his native land of Cambodia by that time, court papers show. Both of those cases were dismissed on Tuesday due to a typographical error in the court papers, said Donna Hawkins, a spokeswoman with the Harris County District Attorney's Office. Hawkins said she did not know what that typographical error was. Both charges were refiled against Por Venh on Wednesday and were on today's court docket, but he did not appear, Hawkins said. He has been ordered held on bonds totaling $40,000. It was not clearwhen Por Venh left the U.S. The sheriff's investigator who handled the case could not immediately be reached for comment this afternoon. Por Venh has no previous criminal history in Harris County.   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 11:16 AM PST
Listen to RFA's report below:   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 09:53 AM PST Thursday 20 January 2011 guardian.co.uk 
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 PHNOM PENH 000983 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP/MLS, INL/AAE--PETER PRAHAR AND YANTI KAPOYOS, INL/C--GREG STANTON E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/23/2016 TAGS: SNAR, PGOV, CB, TW SUBJECT: CAMBODIA: DRUG SEIZURES AND ARRESTS UP 1. (U) SUMMARY: May 19 and 20 arrests of two Taiwanese nationals attempting to smuggle a total of nearly 7 kg of heroin to Taiwan highlight increased drug arrests and seizures in Cambodia. The quantity of heroin seized during the weekend airport busts is large by Cambodian standards--authorities seized just 11 kg of heroin in 2005. Seizures of amphetamine-type stimulants are more than double last year's levels. Police and international observers credit USG and other foreign training with providing skills, motivation, and international pressure for the increase, but say that narcotics trafficking may also be on the rise. END SUMMARY. Heroin Seizures at Phnom Penh International Airport --------------------------------------------- ------- 2. (U) Police and customs officials seized nearly 7 kg of heroin and arrested three Taiwanese nationals in two separate incidents at Phnom Penh International Airport on May 19 and 20. These two cases represent an impressive intake for one weekend given that in 2005 Cambodian authorities seized just over 11 kg of heroin. 3. (SBU) Chen Hsin Hung, 57, was arrested on May 19 carrying 4.75 kg of heroin with a local street value of USD 95,000 to 133,000. Customs officials became suspicious when they noticed that Hung was carrying several bags of imported Taiwanese foil-wrapped candies back to Taiwan in his hand luggage. The candies turned out to be foil-wrapped packages of heroin. Hung, who was due to travel to Taiwan via Kuala Lumpur on Malaysian Airlines flight 755, had arrived in Phnom Penh the previous day. During his police interrogation, Hung said that he had been picked up at the airport and returned to the airport by a couple, whom the police identified as a Cambodian woman and a mainland Chinese or Taiwanese man. Police are attempting to locate the couple. 4. (SBU) A second Taiwanese man, who was standing near Chen Hsin Hung during the security process, appeared to be quite interested in the proceedings and upset by Hung's arrest, and had tickets for the same flight as Hung, was also arrested on suspicion of drug trafficking. Moek Dara noted that the investigation had revealed no evidence to indicate that the second individual was also involved in drug smuggling, but that it was the prosecutor's decision how to proceed in the case. 5. (SBU) On May 20, a 90-year-old Taiwanese national named Huang Sang Hou was arrested at Phnom Penh International Airport with 1.9 kg of heroin, worth USD 38,000 to USD 53,000. Hou reportedly came to Cambodia as a tourist intending to gamble. Over the course of a week, he lost the USD 4,000 he brought with him, borrowed an additional USD 2,000 from a Taiwanese national in Phnom Penh, and then lost that money as well. The Taiwanese lender then persuaded Hou to carry the heroin back to Taiwan. Airport customs officials were tipped off by the sloppy manner in which the heroin was packed on Hou's body, making him appear bloated. Hou cooperated with the police in identifying the Taiwanese lender, and Cambodian government officials have already passed his name, address, and passport information to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Hou had been planning to fly Dragon Airlines flight 207 to Hong Kong, and then to continue on to Taiwan. Amphetamine Seizures, Prices on the Rise ---------------------------------------- 6. (SBU) According to statistics from the Ministry of Interior's Anti-Drug Police and the National Authority for Combating Drugs (NACD), seizures of amphetamine-type stimulant (ATS) tablets more than doubled when comparing the first four months of 2006 with the first four months of 2005. From January to April 2006, more than 220,000 ATS tablets were seized, whereas from January to April 2005, approximately 87,000 ATS tablets were seized. The number of offenders arrested also rose from 154 from January to April 2005 to 204 during January to April 2006. 7. (U) Both Brigadier General Moek Dara, Director of the Anti-Drugs Department, and World Health Organization XXXXXXXXXXXX noted that prices for ATS tablets have risen in the past few years, with particularly dramatic increases in the past 12 months. One year ago, a single ATS tablet sold for approximately one dollar in Phnom Penh, but now costs two to three dollars. Moek Dara noted that prices rise as the ATS tablets make their way along the drug route, from fifty cents per tablet in Laos, where the PHNOM PENH 00000983 002 OF 003 majority are produced, to USD 3 in Cambodia, and then even higher prices in two destination countries: USD 4 in Vietnam and USD 7.50 in Thailand. XXXXXXXXXXXX cited anecdotal evidence from NGOs that some ATS users are switching to injecting heroin, currently available for USD 1.50 to 2 in Phnom Penh, as a cheaper alternative to rising ATS prices. Lower Ecstasy Seizures Likely Point to Disrupted Network --------------------------------------------- ----------- 8. (U) In contrast to the dramatic rise in ATS seizures, seizures of ecstasy tablets are down sharply, from 1,900 in January to April 2005 to less than 800 in January to April 2006. Moek Dara and XXXXXXXXXXXX believe that lower levels of ecstasy seizures are a sign that supply has been disrupted following a cooperative DEA/Anti-Drug Police controlled delivery operation against the Peter Brown drug ring in 2004 and continued Anti-Drug Police action against the ring in 2005. USG Training Provides Needed Skills, International Pressure --------------------------------------------- -------------- 9. (SBU) Moek Dara gave much of the credit for the dramatic increase in heroin and ATS seizures and drug arrests to counternarcotics training funded by the State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) and conducted by the DEA. Before the training sessions, which were conducted in January and April 2006, police officers along Cambodia's porous northern border were not very active and would not even conduct foot patrols in the forest, according to Moek Dara. Now, however, the officers have more skills and are more motivated to patrol actively, he said, and have seized drugs and a lot of drug production equipment as well. Customs, immigration, and police officials at the airports are also better trained and more active, and Moek Dara noted that all of the officials involved in the weekend's airport arrests had completed DEA training. 10. (C) XXXXXXXXXXXX gave partial credit for increased anti-drug activity to counternarcotics training by the US and other foreign donors. Some high-ranking Cambodian police and military officials are rumored to be complicit in narcotics trafficking, he noted. He speculated that the training and pressure on the Cambodian government to clamp down on drug activity has finally made an impression on higher ranking officials, and lower-level officers are "being allowed" to make more seizures. At the same time, such a dramatic increase is probably also an indication of efforts to traffic increased amounts of ATS through Cambodia, he opined. Trainees Enthusiastic about INL/DEA Courses ------------------------------------------- 11. (U) Provincial Anti-Drug Police officers who attended the January Basic Counternarcotics course reported uniformly enthusiastic assessments to an embassy follow-up survey. Participating police captains reported an increased awareness of drug smuggling tactics, best practices in seizing and preparing evidence, and how to identify drugs using field test kits. Captain Preap Sovann of the Svay Rieng Anti-Drug Police noted that the training also promoted inter-agency and inter-province cooperation as well. All captains reported training their staffs in the key topics covered by the DEA training, and captains in Koh Kong and Pursat provinces reported conducting anti-drug outreach to primary and secondary school students as well. Trainees suggested that future courses provide written materials in Khmer as well as English, include information on money laundering, have more laboratory equipment available for in-class practice in drug identification, and include more time in simulations. Police Officer Arrested on Drug Charges --------------------------------------- 11. (C) Nov Sophal, a municipal police officer in the southern city of Kep, was arrested on April 15 and charged with trafficking 1 kg of heroin. Moek Dara was not expansive when asked about the case, noting simply that it is not uncommon for low-ranking police and military officials to be arrested for drug trafficking. In contrast, XXXXXXXXXXXX noted that drug investigations of police or military officials are very rare, and speculated that the individual involved may even have run afoul of rumored higher-level police involvement in narcotics. 12. (SBU) COMMENT: While increased smuggling activity may PHNOM PENH 00000983 003 OF 003 account for some of the increased seizures and arrests, it is clear that the Cambodian government is turning up the heat on the country's drug smugglers. Training from the USG and other countries is playing a critical role in supporting this effort--both through the skills and enthusiasm imparted to the participants, and also through the implicit expectations of improved performance on the part of the police and other officials. STORELLA   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 09:44 AM PST
Wednesday, December 29th, 2010 Bun Tharum, Phnom Penh Blogs.VOAnews.com This month, the Phnom Penh court sentenced World Food Program staffer Seng Kunnaka to six months in jail on incitement charges, after he handed out copies of an anti-government printout from KI Media. This isn't the first time the government has taken legal action against persons handing out leaflets. But because KI Media is an online news aggregator, Seng Kunnaka's conviction represents one of the first of its kind. The charges against him put Internet-based media, or even blogs, within site of the courts—at least when they go offline. Judith Clarke, who researches international journalism at Hong Kong Baptist University, said in an e-mail the government, run by the Cambodian People's Party, remains mostly unconcerned about the Internet, "because so few people have access to it, and they're not worried about the educated people who do." (Cambodia has about 78,000 Internet users, according to UN data.) "However," she wrote, "this latest case seems to have involved some printouts of a very anti-government KI Media article, so I suppose CPP anger is understandable." The case against Seng Kunnaka also shows that cracking down on an individual is easier than attacking a site like KI Media, as long as it stays online. The site, which began in the 2000s as an email digest, has remained faceless. In 2007, the English-language Cambodia Daily offered a reward for information about those who run the site, which posts full stories from that newspaper and other mainstream media on its site. The Daily wanted to pursue compensation for copyright infringement. The newspaper's publisher never found what he was looking for, despite a $100 reward. For its part, the Ministry of Information says it has never tried to shut down the site. Indeed, this would be hard to do. The team behind KI Media remains anonymous, and its service is hosted by Google's Blogger platform. That means KI Media is sitting on some of the most sophisticated servers in the world, while its authors could be anywhere. Blogger prides itself on "the importance of freedom of speech," according to its website. KI Media's contributors, who all use pen names, feed the blog round the clock, keeping content fresh, while keeping out of the reach of those who search for them. And for now, it seems, as long as they are online, its bloggers here are safer than in other coutnries. "Thailand and Malaysia have both had cases this year against people posting on the Internet, and Vietnam and Burma don't allow free expression anyway, nor does Singapore, and China is said by the watchdogs to have more internet journalists in jail than any other country in the world," Clarke wrote. "So Cambodia is still quite lenient compared to most of its neighbors. I don't think this arrest necessarily augurs a crackdown on the Internet but it's a strong warning to anybody who wants to pass round anti-CPP material, and to KI Media (and other American-based media) not to step too far."   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 09:36 AM PST  Posted 20 January 2011 Written by Sopheap Chak Global Voices Online As of today, blogspot sites in Cambodia have been blocked following an order from the Ministry of Interior to all Cambodia's internet service providers. The block has been confirmed by ISPs such as Cellcard, Metfone, and EZECOM. The crackdown is apparently a government reaction to the KI media post in December which described key government officials as 'traitors.' KI Media is a prominent online media blog which is critical to the government. This incident also led to the arrest of World Food Program staffer Seng Kunnaka who was sentenced to six months in jail for distributing copies of the controversial image from KI Media. While many share the idea that KI Media crossed the line of freedom of expression, the arrest of the WFP staff is seen as unjustified and it signaled the crackdown on freedom of expression and access to information. As soon as the blogspot sites have been blocked, online reactions were sent through Twitter and Facebook: ChrisInCambo (Chris Brown) tweet: Blogger.com has been blocked by all ISP's in Cambodia. Looking forward to hearing the reasoning behind it in tomorrows papers.john_weeks (John Weeks) tweeted back: @ChrisInCambo Current reports from IT community indicate Blogger ban ONLY enacted by ISPs EZEcom / Metfone. Time 2 use new ISP? ChrisInCambo replied: @john_weeks Blaming the ISP is like shooting the messenger. I'm sure they've not done it without being ordered to do so. Ninaism (Nina Lamparski) tweet: #Blogspot has been officially blocked by the Min of Interior as of today 10 a.m. Doing my thesis on e-censorship, perfect timing #Cambodia In her article concerning the Blog Control 2.0, Nina wrote: "Cambodia has so far remained relatively free of online censorship but the days of e-freedom could soon be over" Though questions have arisen on the reasons behind such systematic crackdown on blogsites, these discussant tweeters may have already known the real reason for the order. John Weeks reacts to the blocking of KI Media: @ChrisInCambo Not a big fan of KI-Media.But singling them out will only increase attention to their site as it did for Reahu.net. Here are some reactions on facebook: Cambodian Center for Human Rights, quotes a news report from the Cambodian Express News (CEN: CEN: Ministry of Interior has ordered all internet service providers to block access to all websites with blogspot domains in an attempt to stop KI Media. Access from a few ISPs is not possible today while at least one is accessible. Another facebook user, Cheng Samnang, wrote: What will happen when government block all blogspot websites?! What I am going to do with my blogspot? Ops, forget that I still can access it outside Cambodia but my friends in Cambodia cannot access my blog anymore. Come on, man!! Another facebook user stated: "before another jasmine revolution? lucky stil have fb & twitter" This may be too early to see what is next to happen after blogspot sites have been blocked since the decision may change as the case of the government plan earlier to have a state-run exchange point to control all local internet service providers in order to strengthen internet security against pornography, theft and cyber crime. The plan has been so far postponed due to popular opposition even inside the government. Update: KI Media reported that their site has been unblocked already. The government also denied that it planned to censor KI Media.   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 08:50 AM PST
Deutsche Welle All ministers in Tunisia's interim government have quit the party of ousted President Ben Ali following demands that it be dissolved. Relatives of Ben Ali have also been arrested for possessing state assets. As many as five Tunisian government ministers have resigned from the political party of ousted president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, according to state television. The ministers follow Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi and interim President Fouad Mebazaa in quitting Ben Ali's Constitutional Democratic Rally (RCD) party. A junior minister, who held a post under Ben Ali also became the first minister from the former regime to quit the government entirely on Thursday. "I am stepping down for the higher interests of the country in this delicate situation to try to bring the country out of crisis and ensure a democratic transition," Zouheir Mdhaffar, minister of state in the prime minister's office, was quoted as saying by Tunisia's TAP news agency on Thursday. Tunisia unveiled its interim government on Monday, after Ben Ali fled the country to Saudi Arabia in the face of a popular revolt. But the protests continued even after the interim government was established. Cutting ties to old regime Many Tunisians have been demanding that the RCD party be banned all together and were unhappy that so many RCD members were included in the new government. At a protest march on Thursday toward the RCD's headquarters in the capital, Tunis, police fired warning shots in an effort to get the demonstrators under control. The new cabinet is expected to meet for the first time later on Thursday, and new elections are due to be held within six months. Family assets seized Meanwhile, 33 members of Ben Ali's family have been arrested by Tunisian authorities on charges that related to accumulating part of the state's wealth. Images from state television showed jewelry, watches, and credit cards that had been confiscated from the family members, whose identities and relation to Ben Ali remain unknown. Earlier this week, Switzerland froze the assets of Ben Ali and his family. Author: Matt Zuvela (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters) Editor: Nancy Isenson   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 08:33 AM PST
By Geoffrey Cain / HANOI Time Magazine (USA) Sarcastic observers joked that the scene — the monotonous non-event held every five years that has become Vietnam's 11th National Party Congress — summed up the obsolescent state of the communist party itself. For a week starting last Wednesday, 1400 delegates gathered in the capital of Hanoi to set the party's strategy and voted out some older members of its gray-haired leadership. The outcome? Much of the same, but with a few younger faces — an increasingly rare species in a country where many business-oriented youth no longer join need to join the party. A third of the party's 15-man politburo, the most powerful committee in the country, stepped down, some citing their ages and health concerns. The prime minister, 61-year-old Nguyen Tan Dung, was re-elected to the central committee, a body comprising of the party's top 175 officials who elect the politburo, the highest-ranking of all party groups. That means Dung, widely seen as a market reformer, will likely win the post for a second five-year term as prime minister, a vote to be decided at a National Assembly session in May. But a 66-year-old ideologue reportedly close to China's communist party, the politically moderate Nguyen Phu Trong, was picked on Tuesday to be the new general secretary of the party, on paper the most powerful position in the country. In practice, however, the prime minister wields more clout, so it's unlikely Trong's victory will lead to policy shifts, analysts say. The leadership changes were announced a week after a pointed session of self-criticism as the Congress kicked off, in which leaders attacked their own party's handling of the nation's economic woes despite a decade-long stretch of growth in this "tiger economy." Though last year the country achieved its highest level of growth since 2007 at 6.8% — a terse rebound from the economic crisis — inflation has offset the benefits of growth for many of Vietnam's 90 million people, especially those who live in poverty. For months now, officials have been juggling double-digit inflation, a weak currency, and, of particular concern in the halls of power, the collapse of a megalithic state-owned shipbuilding company, Vinashin. Thanks to canceled orders after the 2008 economic crisis and faulty management, the conglomerate has amassed $4.4 billion worth of debt, equivalent to 5% of the $102 billion economy. Policymakers have acted slowly to address the gloom, a stance that isn't likely to change with key leaders keeping their posts. At Vinashin, whose expansive state-run model is seen as central to the Vietnamese economy, the situation hasn't been improving. In August, several executives were arrested and detained on allegations of mismanagement. Last month, the group defaulted on a $60 million payment to international creditors, partially prompting Moody's to downgrade Vietnam's credit rating. Vietnamese have jokingly dubbed the shipbuilder "Vinasink." Three weeks ago, Dung issued some assistance to the beleaguered group, offering it interest-free government loans to continue to pay its workers. But in the months leading up to the Congress, analysts say the debacle threw policymakers into a pickle. "This is a damned if you do, damned if you don't situation," says Eddy Malesky, a political science professor at the University of California at San Diego. He says a default could raise the costs of international borrowing for Vietnamese companies, potentially limiting access to capital that's needed for long-term economic growth. On the other hand, a bailout could send a message that state-backed conglomerates may not have to face the consequences of risky behavior. For the prime minister and his supporters, the quandary brought its own trouble. His reformist troupe has touted Vinashin as a model for development akin to South Korea's chaebols, or conglomerates such as Samsung and Hyundai, a stance that dampened their political platforms as the company has flailed. In November, Dung acknowledged on national television that he was partly responsible for Vinashin's near collapse, and that he and other ministers were conducting a "self-criticism." Opponents have also attacked Dung for his support of a plan that a Chinese company mine bauxite in the central highlands, a scheme they argue is environmentally unsound. Dung held onto his power base despite attacks. "The bottom line is that his detractors could not muster sufficient support to oust him," says Carl Thayer, a Vietnam expert at New South Wales University in Australia. "Despite Dung's shortcomings, he has achieved remarkable success while in office." Thayer points to his taming of inflation in 2007 and 2008, and a stimulus package that helped pull Vietnam out of the 2008 economic crisis. Now, policymakers are again under pressure to cool inflation, even if it means purposefully slowing the country's strong growth. (See TIME's photo essay "China-Vietnam Border War, 30 Years Later.") Thayer also suggests that, despite the Vinashin debacle, the Party's preference for large state-owned enterprises will continue, citing strategies laid out in party documents before the congress began. Despite their cumbersome bureaucracies, questionable business practices, and tendency to crowd out smaller and international competitors, supporters argue that the stalwarts are still stable — and still compromise 40% of the GDP. But many party leaders advocate more open markets balanced against a socialist system. On Wednesday, for example, delegates approved a measure that will allow private business owners to join the communist party, a full nine years after China enacted a similar policy. Despite talk of modernizing the economy, leaders signaled early during the congress that they won't tolerate discussions of liberal democracy. Outgoing party general secretary Nong Duc Manh claimed last Wednesday that "hostile forces" are using human rights to attempt an overthrow of socialism. His statements follow a censorship crackdown before the congress began, when, among other things, many Internet users reported difficulty accessing Facebook. "The biggest challenge I have to face every day is censorship," laments one newspaper editor in Ho Chi Minh City who did not want to named for fear of retribution. "The newspaper has not produced any significant investigative reporting for a long time." Since October 2009, authorities have convicted or arrested 39 political dissidents, according to the U.S. State Department. A week before the congress began, much to Washington's displeasure, police officers wrestled down and drove away a U.S. diplomat who attempted to visit a dissident Catholic priest in central Vietnam. But for many of Vietnam's rising middle class, politics is too abstract a worry compared to their very tangible economic problems. Nguyen Phuong, a blogger in Ho Chi Minh City who used to write anti-government blog posts, stopped publishing his ideas online two years ago. "It's not that we're scared," he says. "Right now, most of us have to focus on earning money for food and rent, rather than thinking about free speech and voting." It's an attitude that mirrors the self-criticisms and strategies laid down during the party congress, where banter about open markets — but not open politics — made the much-anticipated political gathering resemble any other.   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 08:22 AM PST
Vong Sokheng The Phnom Penh Post Defence Minister Tea Banh has announced that high-ranking officials in the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces will be required to submit asset declarations to the government's Anticorruption Unit next month. "We can't now say how many members of the RCAF will be required to make an asset declaration, but individual military officials who were appointed by royal decree and subdecree will be required to declare their assets," Tea Banh said at an annual military review at the Royal Cambodian Navy headquarters on Tuesday. Under new anticorruption legislation passed in March, senior officials will be required to declare their personal assets by February 28, part of a bid to fight endemic levels of graft. Nhem Ponharith, spokesman for the Human Rights Party, said that unofficial estimates indicate there are about 1,000 high-ranking officials in the RCAF. "We have never received an official number of appointed generals in the Ministry of Defence," he said. A senior military official, who declined to be named, also put the number of colonels and generals at about 1,000. Sar Sambath, a permanent member of the ACU, said today that the unit had increased the estimated number of senior government officials required to submit asset declarations from 100,000 to about 150,000. "Our proceedings of asset declarations are going smoothly and our teams are working hard to ensure that the asset declaration package is managed safely and properly," he said. "The ACU continues to conduct workshops with government ministries about the anticorruption law." On Tuesday, Tea Banh also appealed to senior RCAF officials to abstain from illegal activities such as human and drug trafficking. "The RCAF has to get away from corruption," he said. The comments were made after the arrests last week of Moek Dara, the former secretary general of the National Authority for Combating Drugs, and Chea Leng, former chief of the anti-drug office at the Ministry of Interior. The pair were implicated by former Banteay Meanchey provincial police chief Hun Hean and his deputy, Chheang Sun, who were arrested earlier last week.   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 08:11 AM PST
Meas Sokchea The Phnom Penh Post Phnom Penh municipal authorities have granted permission for unionists to hold a march through the city in memory of slain unionist Chea Vichea, though they have imposed restrictions on where and how the group can assemble. In a meeting at City Hall on Wednesday, Koeut Chhe, deputy chief of the municipal cabinet, said 250 members of the Free Trade Union would be permitted to participate in the march, but that they would not be permitted to carry banners make public statements. According to a report of the meeting obtained today, Koeut Chhe also said the march would be barred from passing Prime Minister Hun Sen's house near Independence Monument, and warned that the ceremony must not be used as a platform for FTU members to make political statements. "If the participants do not respect the above conditions, the permit holder must be completely responsible before the law," the report quoted Koeut Chhe as saying. Unionists march each year to mark the gunning down of former FTU president Chea Vichea on January 22, 2004, at a newspaper stand near Phnom Penh's Wat Lanka. Though two men were arrested in connection with Chea Vichea's killing, they were released in 2009 and rights activists have urged the government to track down those responsible. Authorities have also moved to break up several planned screenings of Who Killed Chea Vichea?, a 2009 film directed by American Bradley Cox which explores the unionist's killing. According to the Kingdom's law on Peaceful Demonstrations, passed in October 2009, public protests are restricted to crowds of fewer than 200 people and require at least three representatives to register their identification cards with local authorities at least five days prior to the protest. Demonstrations are also banned after dark. Koeut Chhe could not be reached for comment today. But Chea Vichea's brother and current FTU President Chea Mony strongly criticised the city's preconditions. He said that the FTU wrote to the authorities on January 10 not to ask permission, but only to inform them that the celebration would take place, describing the restrictions as an impingement on the freedom of assembly. "The government has always restricted democrats. We are not killers," he said. "If they do not allow the parade, I'll still do it." Chea Mony also called upon politicians from other parties to participate in the ceremony. He declared that if Prime Minister Hun Sen wanted them to avoid his villa, he should make the demand himself. Human Rights Party President Kem Sokha said he planned to inform members of his party to join with the FTU during the march. He added that the authorities' restrictions were evidence that they were ill-prepared to provide security for the people. "The right to freedom of expression cannot be banned except when [people] use violence and incitement," he said. "If the government refuses to allow the FTU to make statements, it appears to be seriously restricting the rights of the people."   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 08:03 AM PST Thursday, 20 January 2011 Summer Walker The Phnom Penh Post Local internet service provider Ezecom today denied reports it blocked a web domain hosting popular antigovernment news blog KI-Media, while access to the site appears to have been restored for its customers. Ezecom sent a notice to its customers today in response to press reports, denying it received a directive from the government to restrict access to any website. The notice stated that the ISP did experience a technical problem on Wednesday which "could have potentially caused some users issues". It claimed the technical glitch was resolved by 8:30pm that night. "Reportedly EZECOM Customer Service staff stated that we received a directive from the government," Ezecom CEO Paul Blanche-Horgan said in the letter. "As the CEO I can say, we have received no directive, nor did we block access to any websites on our service." KI-Media and other websites on the blogspot.com domain appeared available to Ezecom customers as of today, though users reported problems with the domains as early as Tuesday. On Wednesday, a customer service representative for Ezecom told The Post that his manager told him to block access to the website on the government's orders. Naly Pilorge, director of rights group Licadho, said an additional Ezecom representative had confirmed the order with her. The allegation was also reported in the Khmer-language press. Naly Pilorge said today that access to KI-Media appeared to have been restored for Ezecom customers, though around five of her associates were having difficult accessing the blogspot.com domain through the Metfone ISP. Nguyen Do, a marketing representative for Metfone, had not responded to questions as of press time. Minister of Information Khieu Kanharith said today that he was unaware of any order to block access to the site. "Until now I am still in the dark about who made the order. My ministry never issued such an order," he said. KI-Media last made headlines in December, when Seng Kunnaka, a security guard employed by the United Nations World Food Programme, was charged with incitement and jailed for six months after he showed colleagues an article printed from the website – a verdict that was harshly criticised by rights groups. The controversy also follows an aborted scheme by the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications to charge private companies to route all domestic web traffic through a single, state-run Domestic Internet Exchange managed by Telecom Cambodia. The plan, announced in April, fell through after the private sector exerted pressure due to concerns such a move would hinder the sector's growth. TC leaders told The Post at the time that the aim of the hub plan was to give the ministry more control over web content. ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY THOMAS MILLER   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 07:53 AM PST
Thursday, 20 January 2011 Cheang Sokha The Phnom Penh Post Prime Minister Hun Sen defended his oldest son's recent military promotion and lashed out at opponents suggesting a Tunisia-style revolution could come to the Kingdom in a characteristically wide-ranging address in Kampong Cham province today. Speaking at an inauguration ceremony for a new building at the Kampong Cham provincial hospital, the premier said 33-year-old Hun Manet, promoted to a rank of two-star general in the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces earlier this month, was well-qualified to serve in his new position. "He has been military age for 16 years already," Hun Sen said. "The military is obliged to promote in accordance with its internal framework." At a ceremony at the Ministry of Defence on January 3, Hun Manet became a two-star general and deputy commander-in-chief of the RCAF infantry. He is also director of the anti-terrorism department at the Ministry of Defence and was promoted in September to deputy commander of his father's bodyguard unit. Hun Manet has long been groomed for an apparent leadership role. He graduated in 1999 from the United States Military Academy at West Point, where his education was financed by the American government, according to The Associated Press. He was reportedly granted one of the 10 spots that are reserved for foreign students at the military academy each year, later going on to earn a PhD in economics at Bristol University in the United Kingdom. "Why develop human resources if you don't put them to good use?" Hun Sen said today. "What are we training our children for?" At the promotion ceremony this month, Defence Minister Tea Banh, too, lauded the young officer's credentials, pointing in particular to his West Point education. "This school is recognised internationally for its distinction in political science, law and military affairs, and in his new position, Manet must use the skills he has learned," Tea Banh said. "We have to let the younger generation take over our work and ensure that our achievements are protected and that forces of evil who want to destroy our achievements are stopped." Hun Sen has previously stated that he does not want his son to enter politics in the future, claiming Hun Manet will instead focus on charity work and his military obligations. Some observers, however, have seen Hun Manet's swift rise through the army ranks as a sign that he is the chosen successor of his strongman father. "Dynasties of this kind have happened," said Son Soubert, a former member of the Constitutional Council. "As for qualifications, he may be better than any other Cambodian high-ranking military [officers]," Son Soubert added. "Of course, it can be viewed as nepotism because he is the son of the prime minister, and other Cambodian citizens should be entitled to be sent to West Point." Another ruling party scion, Sar Sokha, is set to be promoted to the position of Phnom Penh municipal deputy police chief today in a ceremony at police headquarters in the capital, Phnom Penh deputy police chief Ben Rath said today. Sar Sokha is the son of Interior Minister Sar Kheng. Also today, Hun Sen lashed out an unnamed critic that he said had advocated a popular revolution in Cambodia on the model of Tunisia, where rioting and protests forced out long-time ruler Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali last week. "There is a guy saying that Cambodia should foment a Tunisia style-revolt. I would like to send you a message that if you provoke or foment a Tunisia style-revolt, I will close the door to beat the dog this time," Hun Sen said, arguing that the North African nation faces "the prospect of civil war" as it attempts to hold together its fragile interim government. "This guy, if he enters Cambodia, will face arrest. This guy has a bald head. This guy says Cambodia should look to the style of Tunisia: if you dare to gather [the people] to do that please come, don't say such silly words … I will beat you on the head." It was not clear to whom the prime minister was referring. ADDITIIONAL REPORTING BY MEAS SOKCHEA AND JAMES O'TOOLE   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 12:26 AM PST 20 Jan 2011 Everyday.com.kh Translated from Khmer by Soch During the inauguration of a hospital in Kampong Cham on Thursday, PM Hun Xen declared that he, as well as the CPP, not only want the opposition party to be weak, but both want the opposition party to be dead. Hun Xen's strong reaction came in response to some civil society organizations calling opposition groups to topple the Cambodian government just like the recent toppling of the Ben Ali regime in Tunisia. Hun Xen said: "I am leading the competition not just to weaken the opposition party, but I want it dead. This is the freedom right of a democratic society: the opposition has the right to win over us and we also have the right to win over them as well. The winning or losing depends on the competition, if you lose then you lose, and you cannot accuse the winner of weakening you."   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 20 Jan 2011 12:11 AM PST $1.5b trade centre in Bangkok sign of growing presence 20-01-2011 Nirmal Ghosh The Straits Times As China takes advantage of its free trade agreement with Asean and lower tariffs in Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos and Burma, trade throughout the region will be spurred by its dramatically expanding footprint in Thailand. Indeed, a model of the huge, 104,000 sq m, 45 billion baht (US$1.47 billion) China City trading complex on the outskirts of Bangkok was the centre of attention at the 1st Asean-China Business Conference - a one-day meeting in Bangkok on Tuesday (January 19). The trade centre alone is expected to create an estimated 70,000 new jobs when it is completed in two years, said Thailand's deputy commerce minister Alongkorn Ponlaboot, in opening the meeting. Dong Hongqi, president of Ashima Yunnan Cultural Industry Group, the lead Chinese investor, said that the trade centre would generate 45 billion to 50 billion baht worth of intra-Asean trade annually. It will be developed in three phases, with construction starting in March and the first phase ready by October next year. The second phase will see the expansion of exhibition and trading space and construction of manufacturing facilities. Phase three includes a luxury hotel. The project was the talk of the conference. Central Chambers Law Corp managing director Ronnie Tan, a Singaporean delegate representing the Economic Development Board at the conference, told The Straits Times: "China has the money, and all these countries would like to be aligned with it. And it's rich pickings for China. I don't see any Asean country saying no to it." Alongkorn said the trading centre "will become a channel for Thai business operators, particularly SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises), to trade with Asean and China". "We want to promote the cooperation of the private sectors of the 10 plus one," he added - referring to the 10-member Asean group plus China. The conference also drew the heads of the American School of Bangkok, which has a campus near the project site. The school expects rising demand from expatriates once the project was functional, it said. A cartoon in an English newspaper yesterday, however, expressed wariness of China's growing presence in some circles. It showed the dragon - a symbol of China - dropping an enormous box, labelled 'China City Complex', on a Thai landscape, with little local vendors running for their lives to escape being crushed under it. On Tuesday, the Nation newspaper quoted Thai Chamber of Commerce chairman Dusit Nontanakorn as saying: "Thai operators lack government support. They can do this (a similar project) if the policy is clear. China just wants to spread its money everywhere." A delegate at the conference, who asked not to be identified, acknowledged that the huge project would fire up some local sensitivities. Chinese investors appear to be aware of that, however. Dong said in the first phase, 30 per cent of the complex's floor space would be allocated to Thai traders, who would pay lower rent than Chinese traders. Dr Suthad Setboonsarng, who is in charge of Asean trade at the Thailand Trade Representative Office, told The Straits Times: "There will be a lot of positives from this project. It is not just about selling Chinese goods here. Thai businesses can establish themselves in the project. It will turn Thailand into a trading hub for Asean, which is what we aspire to. And Thais can also use it to sell their products to other Asean countries and China." The China City project is not the only Chinese venture due in Thailand soon. A wholesale hub is to be developed in the north, in a collaboration between a Thai department store group and China's Yiwu Market Management, which runs the Yiwu Wholesale Market in Zhejiang, south China.   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 19 Jan 2011 11:46 PM PST
DPA Phnom Penh - The defence team for the Khmer Rouge's former foreign minister said his advanced years and poor health precluded him from attending full-day sessions of Cambodia's UN-backed war crimes tribunal, a court spokesman said Thursday. The lawyers for Ieng Sary, whose trial along with three other defendants was expected to start in the first half of this year, requested half-day sessions instead. 'Ieng Sary's age and medical problems prevent him from sitting in the courtroom for any extended period of time,' the lawyers said, stressing that their client wanted to be present during his trial. They said the 85-year-old suffers from back problems and urological issues and cannot concentrate for long periods. Tribunal spokesman Lars Olsen said the court would assess Ieng Sary's request. The court last week confirmed the indictments against the four surviving leaders of the Khmer Rouge, clearing the way for their trial to start. The other three defendants are 'Brother Number Two' Nuon Chea, the movement's ideologue; former head of state Khieu Samphan; and the Khmer Rouge's social affairs minister Ieng Thirith. Legal teams for Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan this week called on the tribunal to release their clients ahead of the trial. Nuon Chea's lawyers said the court had not explained its reasons for refusing their appeal against his indictment, and Khieu Samphan's defence team said the court had held him for longer than the rules permitted. The four, who are in pre-trial detention, face charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity as well as an array of crimes under Cambodian law. The four are accused of involvement in millions of deaths from execution, disease, starvation and overwork during the Khmer Rouge's 1975-79 Maoist regime. They denied the charges. A demographic study by the tribunal estimated that 1.7 million to 2.2 million people died during that period, around 800,000 of them violently. The genocide charge relates to the persecution of Cham Muslims and ethnic Vietnamese living in Cambodia at the time. The accused are all elderly - aged 78 to 85 - and there are fears one or more might die before a trial is concluded. The movement's leader, Pol Pot, died in 1998. Nuon Chea is also accused of controlling the movement's security apparatus, including the notorious torture centre in Phnom Penh known as S-21, which was run by his subordinate Comrade Duch. At least 12,273 people died at S-21, tortured and condemned to death as perceived enemies of the regime. In July, the court jailed Duch, whose real name is Kaing Guek Eav, for 30 years for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Both the prosecution and Duch's lawyers appealed the ruling, the tribunal's first. Duch's appeal is to be heard in the last week of March.   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 19 Jan 2011 11:30 PM PST Photos by C.C.
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Posted: 19 Jan 2011 11:29 PM PST Photos by C.C.
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Posted: 19 Jan 2011 10:54 PM PST
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Posted: 19 Jan 2011 10:42 PM PST  Op-Ed by Heng Heng I could not help, but to poke a little fun at the way our incompetent government behaves when it comes to dealing with outside independent news. In this case, KI-Media created by a group of individual volunteer of whom most of us, if not all, have no clue to who they really are. If you ask me, I have no idea, even if I've ever bumped into one of them. Honestly, that is the case, so don't ask who is Heng Soy or who is Khmer Young. However, one thing for sure, we can correctly assume that these people are the rare products of our true Khmer nationalists. They are well educated group of individuals, came together for one common purpose that is to serve and defend the interests of Khmer people and the nation they truly care. What a find job they have done in providing an alternative news and analysis to the Cambodian publics. They have true conviction to Cambodian cause. The last few decades our Cambodian government has been able to effectively control broadcasting media and major printed newspapers in the country. It has done through all sorts of legal schemes, licensing, lawsuits, political intimidation, imprisonment, even implicated in political assassinations, i.e. grenade attack 97, killing journalists, union leader, singers, you name it. In the name of peace and fearful of a return to a Khmer rouge's bitter past as often reminded as a single effective argument of the regime, the Cambodian majority have been quite willing to live under such fear while their country is being misdirected to that unwanted past, a new revolution of the mistreated mass because of the government officials' greeds extended all they way down to their relatives, 7th class - 7 SANDANE. It has failed to intimidate or bring KI-Media on board since the way this news organization has been operated out of the ordinary. KI-Media has hit a central nerve system of the government on a hot boiling issue related to Cambodia's territorial integrity and the fundamental of human freedom. KI-Media allows Khmer publics, especially the new generation, ambitious and educated somewhat, a forum to discuss and debate issues concerning the health and well-being of their beloved Cambodia. Many have seen the government's view line, while others disagree otherwise, including myself who has chosen to support the opposing voice. It is all democratic and healthy at best. If the government punished Khmers, farmers, elected opposition leader in order to appease foreign aggressor, I said as such and KI-Media is a perfect forum for me to address my concern, hoping that the government will change its behaviour or policy. The government has plenty of big guns, mouth pieces, so-called A Quick Reaction Unit or whatever, but they are not as effective as KI-Media. So, the government has elected to violate once again the spirit and the principles of democracy, human rights and freedom - banning KI-Media. Will it work? Not in this modern day, I doubt it very much. This clumsy reaction by the government of Cambodia to ban KI-Media in Cambodia will only enhance the curiosity and popularity to this already the most sought after news by Cambodians world wide. Actually, by doing so, it hurts the government's image and its own reputation more than anything else. For KI-Media it has a lot to thanks the government of Cambodia for giving them the courage and determination to continue feeding the news. I am all for it, whether, I agree with KI or not, or even when I find some of the most outrageous comments out there, life goes on. You just have to learn to ignore it. The government of Cambodia should not be worried about KI, what it printed or otherwise. It should focus on making a more sound social and economic policies to ease the pain of the mass, stop confiscating lands, open up to oppositions for bi-partisanship, creating a more tolerating environment instead of threatening violence, intimidation and power abuse as we have witnessed up until now. Maybe the government is really feeling the heat at this moment, so any more negativity from outside or inside can no longer be tolerated. At least, KI-Media knows it has done its job and I am sure it would give people behind that blog more energy and creativity to be all over this extremely pro-Vietnam government. I would suggest KI-Media print and sell its T-Shirt to sell to the public, I love KI-Media, and I'll be buying one or a few. Until then, I say VIVA KI-Media and thank you for bringing the issue to the front.   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Posted: 19 Jan 2011 09:59 PM PST
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Posted: 19 Jan 2011 09:51 PM PST |
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