A Change of Guard

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Sunday, 31 July 2011

Malaysian interest up in Cambodia's land concessions

Friday, 29 July 2011
Don Weinland and Tom Brennan
Phnom Penh Post

Lion Forest Industries Berhad will seek to acquire a 9,995 hectare concession in Cambodia, the latest in a number of Malaysian firms eyeing the Kingdom to increase land banks this year.

The firm aims to cultivate rubber and palm oil on the proposed concession in Preah Vihear province, with a total investment of 11.77 million ringgit (US$3.9 million), according to a filing on the Bursa Malaysia late on Wednesday.

Lion Forest halted its operations in Malaysia and China and is seeking to tap into a new core business and diversify its earnings stream, the statement said.

“For investors looking to grow and process crops, Cambodia is an ideal location as it has plenty of land available for agricultural concessions,” it said.

Lion Forest joins a number of prominent Malaysian companies that have recently sought to acquire land concessions in the Kingdom. In January, Top Glove Bhd, the world’s largest rubber glove maker, announced plans to invest 160 million ringgit in rubber trees in Cambodia.

Other Malaysian companies such as Golden Land Bhd and Federal Land Development Authority have announced their intentions to apply for concessions since the beginning of the year, with Golden Land targeting two concessions in Koh Kong province.

Maybank Cambodia Country Head Jubely Pa wrote that the recent increase in Malaysian land acquisitions in the Kingdom is tied to its pro-business attitude.

“Cambodia is one of the most attractive business and investment destinations currently, given its location, market size, market-friendly policies and competitive business environment,” he said.

While potential for vast agricultural cultivation coupled with incentives from the Cambodian government have added to investor interest, the Malaysian government has also encouraged Malaysian companies to invest in ASEAN countries, he said.

He added regional investment will further integrate ASEAN economies.

Maybank began operating in the Kingdom in 1993, and has expanded to 10 branches in line with its vision to become a regional financial services leader.

The firm, the largest in Malaysia’s financial services sector, maintains a positive outlook on investment opportunities in Cambodia.

“Among the opportunities that appear most attractive include the manufacturing, agricultural, infrastructure development and general commerce and services industries,” he said.

Meanwhile, Top Glove declined to comment on its plans for the Cambodian concessions.

Other companies did not respond to interview requests or could not be immediately reached for comment.

Cambodian awarded ‘Nobel prize’ of Asia


Koul Panha (second from left) in a radio debate.

Friday, 29 July 2011
Daniel Sherrell
Phnom Penh Post

Cambodian citizen Koul Panha has been awarded the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award, often referred to as Asia’s Nobel peace prize, for his work with the Committee for Free and Fair Elections.

He is one of six people to receive this year’s award, which will be presented to them at a ceremony in Manila on August 31.

He is being recognised for “his determined and courageous leadership of the sustained campaign to build an enlightened, organised and vigilant citizenry who will ensure fair and free elections – as well as demand accountable governance by their elected officials – in Cambodia’s nascent democracy”, the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation said.

In an interview with The Post, Koul Panha said he was “surprised” and “excited” to receive the award.

Koul Panha is executive director of Comfrel, which seeks to increase electoral transparency and voter participation.

Since 1997 it has enlisted more than 50,000 election volunteers and held election-related workshops for about 150,000 voters, he said.

Koul Panha said the award would encourage his organisation to work harder, especially in preparation for the commune elections next year and national elections in 2013.

“We will deploy our volunteers to inform people about the importance of elections and their right to vote, as well as advocating electoral fairness, integrity and an even playing field for all [political] parties,” he said.

“The history of Cambodia is full of conflict. People want, finally, to enjoy democracy and fair elections.”

The award is named after a president of the Philippines who died in a plane crash in 1957. The foundation that oversees the award was established by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund to “honour his memory and perpetuate his example of integrity in public service and pragmatic idealism within a democratic society”.

Koul Panha will receive a certificate, a cash prize and a medallion emblazoned with the image of Ramon Magsaysay. A total of 290 people in 22 Asian countries have been given the award.

An American lady plans to live with her deported husband in Cambodia




Lodi’s Patricia Bou plans move to Cambodia with kids to rejoin deported husband

Source:www.lodinews.com
Posted: Saturday, July 30, 2011
By Maggie Creamer/News-Sentinel Staff Writer

Lodi resident Patricia Bou has spent the past week preparing to leave two of her children in the U.S. and move with her two youngest children to Cambodia.

The 22-year-old does not speak the Khmer language. She has no idea what it will be like in the Asian country. She doesn't know how she will earn money, but she is hoping to earn $1 to $3 a day doing basic work at a hotel and grow her own food.

She is faced with this life-altering move after finding out her husband is being deported back to his birthplace.

Her husband, Bunly Bou, 31, also has little knowledge of the country, having left at the age of 3 with his family as refugees.

He lived in Stockton as a child and then moved to Lodi on and off as an adult. Bunly ran into legal trouble in 2003 for drugs and 2005 for evading police.

During the past four years, he has turned his life around, working at the Lodi Round Table Pizza to support his family.

But last Saturday, his legal woes caught up with him when the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers knocked at the couple's apartment door off Almond Drive.

He was taken into custody and is scheduled to be deported to Cambodia, leaving his wife with four kids and another child who lives with her mom in Stockton.

Patricia spent the first two days crying.

But by Wednesday, she was pricing plane tickets, finding places for her two older children to stay when she moves to Cambodia and organizing a car wash to raise money.

Her situation illustrates the complexities of the immigration and deportation process, and how it can tear families apart.

"It's pretty scary stuff, but I can't fall apart and say I can't do this, because then who is going to do it?" she said. Coming to America

Patricia met her husband six years ago through mutual friends. She was immediately interested in the Cambodian immigrant. They fell in love and have been together ever since.

Her husband, Bunly, immigrated to Stockton from Cambodia with his family as refugees in 1983.
The government gave him all the paperwork he needed, and told him he needed to file for permanent citizenship after he turned 18 or got married, Patricia said.

As an adult, he worked at a variety of companies, including Big O Tires and Yoplait Yogurt, she said.

Because he had a good job and had a green card, he never felt like he needed to go through the citizenship process, Patricia said.

But then he started getting in trouble with the law.

He received a misdemeanor in 2003 for possession of a controlled substance and then a felony conviction in 2005 for evading a peace officer with wanton disregard, according to his immigration file.

He was sentenced to 16 months in prison.

In March 2007, after completing his sentence, an immigration judge ruled that he should be deported back to Cambodia, according to a statement from ICE.

After working with the Cambodian government, ICE was not able to get travel documents for Bunly back to his birthplace at that time. So they released him under an order of supervision in 2007 with the requirement that he check in every three months.

"We thought as long as he flies under the radar, keeps his job and checks in every three months with the government, he will be fine," Patricia said.

But four years later, the Cambodian government granted Bunly travel documents and he was taken into custody, according to the ICE statement.

"Foreign nationals who are residing in the United States as lawful permanent residents become subject to possible deportation if convicted of certain types of crimes. Ultimately, it is up to the judges who preside over the nation's immigration courts to weight the facts in these cases and determine whether an alien has a legal basis to remain in the country. If the courts order an alien removed from the United States, ICE is responsible for carrying out the judges' orders," according to the ICE statement.

Turning his life around

Despite the knowledge that Bunly could be deported, it didn't make it any less shocking when ICE officers knocked on the couple's door last Saturday, Patricia said.

She called him at work and he asked her what he should do. She said she told him to come home because there is no use running from anything.

He was taken into custody, and the officer said he would most likely be deported in 15 days. She consulted an attorney, but it was too late to do anything at that point.

"We are stunned by this. We don't know what to do," she said.

Patricia contacted his employer to let him know about the situation. She also quit her job at the Lodi Long John Silver's to be with her children and prepare to move.

Round Table assistant manager Marshia Espinoza confirmed that Bunly had worked for the pizza chain for about four years in Lodi.

"We all liked him. He was a great guy. He loved his family, and that was his main focus. He worked hard to take care of them," Espinoza said.

The family contacted the business saying Bunly was being deported, but they hadn't heard anything since, Espinoza said.

One of his strengths is that he never hesitated to work any shift that was available, she said.
"He tried to change his life from being in trouble. We really liked him," she said.

'The worst tragedy I've ever seen'

While sitting on a couch surrounded by their four children, Patricia Bou describes her husband as a loving, compassionate and humble man who rarely gets angry or stressed.

"He's an awesome father. That's why I hate him being away from his kids. They need his guidance, especially my sons," she said.

The two had a marriage ceremony in 2008, but at that point could not file for a marriage license because of Bunly's prior convictions.

They have two children together, and sole custody of Bunly Bou's two older children.

Patricia is planning to leave her 12-year-old son, Saahvin, and her 9-year-old daughter, Annastasia, in Stockton with family when she joins her husband in Cambodia. She will take her 4-year-old son, Bara, and her 2-year-old daughter, Dany.

"Leaving my children is going to be the hardest thing I've ever had to do. ... But I don't want to take them against their will," she said.

Saahvin said he does not want to go to the schools in Cambodia.

"I want to stay here for my education. I want to be with my mom and dad, but I don't think I'll be comfortable there," he said.

The children have been crying every night for their dad, especially Dany, who screams until falling asleep. Saahvin said it is hard to think about his family being split.

"One day I'll be a little bit happy, but then I think about my dad and how it's going to be," he said.

Patricia Bou said it is a hard decision to move with her husband, but she feels like there is no other choice.

She does not think she can support the four kids on her income, and she would feel lost without him.

"He's my rock. When something goes wrong, I always ask him what to do," she said.

Friends of the couple are helping them raise money for the trip. A ticket to Cambodia costs about $1,400.

One of their friends, Robert Darling, said he doesn't understand why they want to deport a family man who has been following the rules for the past four years, has a job and always checks in with the authorities.

"It's just the worst tragedy I've ever seen. They are the best family in the world, and to take him away from his kids and his wife ..." Darling said, before getting choked up. "They shouldn't be able to come and do that."

During the first two days after Patricia found out Bunly would be was deported, she was angry that her husband didn't file the right paperwork when he turned 18 that would keep him in the country. But about three days later, she has reached acceptance.

"If he went about things differently in the past, maybe our future would be better. But we have to move forward, and focus on getting us back on the same soil," she said.

Preparing for culture shock

Before Bunly Bou is deported, Patricia is taking her children up to see him one last time and give him his luggage at the ICE detention center in Sacramento.

Patricia is worried about his arrival in Cambodia because he speaks very little of the language and has not been to the country since he was four.

He has relatives who will hopefully help him through immigration and customs without any problems.

She is concerned that, because he is so Americanized, he will be a target for robberies or kidnapping. She also said it was hard for the U.S. to convince Cambodia to take him back.
"His country didn't want him back because he has been here for so many years," she said.
She plans to move there with him as soon as she can raise the money for a plane ticket for herself and her youngest children. The couple hopes to get a job working at a hotel for $1 to $3 a day. Because food might be scarce, Patricia is planning to learn how to garden and live off the land.

"It's going to be culture shock. That's going to be a huge obstacle to overcome. We don't know how it is there. I'm really dreading (going) there being no education for the children," she said.
Patricia realizes that some people would choose to stay in the U.S., but that is not an option.

Bunly will be able to reapply for citizenship in 2017, Patricia said, and she thinks he has a good chance because she is a U.S. citizen and so are his children.

"God has a plan for everybody, no matter how much this hurts, this is the plan for us right now," she said.

Contact reporter Maggie Creamer at maggiec@lodi news.com or read her blog at www.lodinews.com/blogs/city_buz.

Cambodia: Human rights on a slippery slope


Zine Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia and Muammar Qaddafi of Libya and Hun Sen of Cambodia

30 July 2011
By Arnaud Dubus
Liberation (France)
Translated from French by Luc Sâr

"Cambodia is slowly sinking into a predatory authoritarian regime like those established by Zine Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia and Muammar Qaddafi of Libya."


In the early 90s, there was an illusion that the massive operation undertaken by the United Nations to rehabilitate Cambodia after decades of war had "rooted" democracy there. A new constitution was drafted. The election, judged reasonably free and fair, took place in 1993 with a turnout of almost 90%. A civil society sprouted on the wasteland of a rejuvenated country. Cambodia was an exception in the region, leaping from an autocratic post-Khmer Rouge regime to a liberal government, a kind of "Cambodian miracle" that defies the lessons of history.

Since then, this dream has eroded steadily, especially since the Prime Minister, Hun Sen, has marginalized the political opposition following the 2008 election. The majority of local human rights representatives no longer wanted to be cited personally. The risk of being thrown in jail for criticizing the mighty Hun Sen and Bun Rany, his wife who bears the title "Honorable Wise Doctor," is just too much to bear. Christophe Peschoux, the director of the Phnom Penh office of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (UN OHCHR), had to leave the country in May after Hun Sen asked all government agencies to stop cooperating with him.

Nothing illustrates better the deterioration of fundamental freedoms than the issue of farmers who face forced eviction from their lands to make way for rubber plantation or sugar cane companies whose owners are closely linked to the government. "When the victims complain against the powerful people, judges do not pay attention them. But when private companies complain about the victims, the judges and prosecutors rush in [to meet the companies’ demands]," a Cambodian activist said.

The mixing of political and business interests is quite dizzy at times: for example, a senator who is a close friend of the Prime Minister grabs for himself a plot of land with the support of the military, next, he benefits from the passing of a law by the National Assembly that provides financial guarantee to the project on the plot of land. Cambodia is slowly sinking into a predatory authoritarian regime like those established by Zine Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia and Muammar Qaddafi of Libya.
------------
Au Cambodge, les droits de l’homme sur une mauvaise pente

30/07/11
Par Arnaud Dubus
Libération

Il y avait au début des années 90 une illusion selon laquelle l’opération massive des Nations unies pour réhabiliter le Cambodge après des décennies de guerre avait «enraciné» la démocratie. Une nouvelle constitution avait été rédigée. Des élections, jugées raisonnablement justes et libres, avaient eu lieu en 1993, avec un taux de participation de près de 90%. Une société civile vivace bourgeonnait sur les friches d’un pays rajeuni. Le Cambodge faisait figure d’exception dans la région, passant d’un bond du régime autocratique post-Khmers rouges à un gouvernement libéral, une sorte de «miracle cambodgien» qui défiait les leçons de l’histoire.

Ce rêve s’est effrité progressivement, particulièrement depuis que le Premier ministre, Hun Sen, a marginalisé l’opposition politique après les élections de 2008. La plupart des représentants des organisations locales de défense de droits de l’homme ne veulent plus, désormais, être cités nommément. Le risque de se faire jeter en prison pour avoir critiqué le tout puissant Hun Sen ou son épouse, Bun Rany, laquelle porte le titre d’«honorable docteure pleine de sagesse», est tout simplement trop important. Le directeur du bureau de Phnom Penh de la commission des Nations unies pour les droits de l’homme, Christophe Peschoux, a dû quitter le pays en mai, après que Hun Sen a demandé à toutes les agences gouvernementales de cesser de coopérer avec lui.

Rien n’illustre mieux la dégradation du respect des libertés fondamentales que la question des paysans expropriés manu militari de leurs terres pour faire place à des sociétés de plantations d’hévéas ou de cannes à sucre, dont les directeurs sont étroitement liés aux gouvernants. «Quand les victimes portent plainte contre un puissant, les juges n’y prêtent pas attention. Mais quand des firmes privées le font, les juges et les procureurs se précipitent», explique un militant cambodgien.

La confusion des intérêts est parfois confondante : tel sénateur, ami proche du Premier ministre, s’octroie un terrain grâce à l’appui des militaires, puis bénéficie du vote d’une loi par l’Assemblée nationale qui accorde une garantie financière au projet. Le Cambodge s’enfonce lentement dans un autoritarisme prédateur qui n’est pas sans rappeler l’édification des régimes de Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali en Tunisie ou de Muammar al-Kadhafi en Libye.

Life of U.S's Cambodian deportees

resident aliens trailer from Ross tuttle on Vimeo.



Resident Aliens trailer
July 27th, 2011
by channel APA

In 2002, the United States began deporting former Cambodian refugees with criminal offenses, even those who had arrived as children or infants following the Cambodian genocide. The documentary “Resident Aliens” follows three Cambodian American outcasts forced to resettle in the unforgiving city of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, the land of their birth. It’s a story of finding your way in an unfamiliar world.

KK, China and Looney – all former gang members and ex-cons – are Cambodian refugees whose families survived a genocide that wiped out nearly a fifth of the country’s population. (See Enemies of the People). They grew up in the United States but were deported along with hundreds of others – after felony convictions – to a country they hardly knew.

With few skills, little money and no family to fall back on, they face new obstacles as they follow different paths towards reconciliation and redemption. While China and Looney erect emotional walls to keep the world at bay, KK, through breakdancing, takes on the challenge of helping kids in even more desperate circumstances than him.

The documentary makes its premiere on the East Coast during the 2011 NY Asian American International Film Festival (AAIFF).

Cambodian jailed for using fake documents [in the Philippines]

Posted 7/31/2011

MANILA, Philippines (abs-cbnNEWS.com)– The Bureau of Immigration (BI) has detained a Cambodian national who attempted to apply for a Philippine passport using fake documents.

BI intelligence chief Maria Antonette Bucasas-Mangrobang identified the Cambodian as 61-year-old Edy Hu.

Hu is now at the immigration jail in Bicutan, Taguig City pending deportation proceedings.

"He is an undesirable alien," Mangrobang said in a statement.

"We will also put him in the blacklist so he could not return to the Philippines."

Mangrobang said the Cambodian national will be expelled for misrepresenting himself as a Filipino when he applied for a Philippine passport at the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) using fraudulent and spurious documents.

Hu was brought in for questioning after employees at the DFA consular office in Parañaque City reported that a passport applicant had submitted a document with what appeared as a forged signature of Immigration Commissioner Ricardo David Jr.

David's signature was seen on a certificate stating that Hu resides in Sta. Cruz, Manila and was born on July 16, 1950.

It was later discovered that a Filipino named Nick Waquiz was Hu's "fixer." Waquiz had reportedly provided Hu with fake documents, including a marriage contract and a Philippine birth certificate, and had also accompanied him to the BI in exchange for P40,000.

Waquiz was turned over to the National Bureau of Investigation for further questioning. He will be charged with falsification of public documents.

Asean must rise up to the occasion

Op-Ed by Warrior Blood
31st July, 2011

Re: Cambodia reportedly pulls out troops from disputed area

Cambodia has shown clear leadership role in resolving the Cambodian-Thai border dispute. ASEAN should be proud of Cambodia for taking such bold action against further violence and potentially loss of lives of Cambodian and Thai civilians. I am very proud to have the blood line of Cambodian descendants.

The ICJ decision for both countries to withdraw troops from the disputed, and now has become demilitarised, zone is the correct choice and Cambodia is taking the leadership be the bigger person in a peaceful and forward thinking decision. Cambodia have shown times and times again of its leadership in this issue and wanted a peaceful and stable relationship with Thailand.

Cambodia has never looked at Thailand as the permanent enemy. ASEAN is so lucky to have Cambodia's leadership to save its face in the world community. When the last fighting erupted in April 2011, the ASEAN chair, Dr. Marty Natalegawa, canceled his trip due to intensive situation without further following up to stop the fighting.

In July 2011, the ICJ decision punted the issue back to ASEAN to enforce the ruling, yet ASEAN has no plan in place on how to implement the ruling and Cambodia has asked for Asean's observers to step in, but there was no concrete response and Thailand continues to drag its feet with due to the irresponsible action of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva.

Cambodia has again taken the first step to end the dispute by unilaterally withdrawing troops to pave the way for ASEAN to do its work more easily. How much more flexible do you want Cambodia to be? Perhaps Cambodia could resolve this issue with the new Thai government alone if there is trust, however it still requires the ASEAN as a witness to the negotiation. If ASEAN can rise up to the occasion and play the witness role, the conflict could be resolved amicably.

Realistically, ASEAN can take the credit for Cambodia's hard work in this conflict. The recent ceasefire agreement was the work of both Thailand and Cambodia who decided to stop shooting. Military leaders from both sides decided not to killing each other to allow the ICJ to make its ruling.

I can almost feel victory for both Thailand and Cambodia with the open-minded government from both sides that wanted peace for their people. Despite the dispute, both countries share similar culture, tradition, language, literature, religion etc. Both countries worship the temple of Preah Vihear. Although the temple belongs to Cambodia, Thailand can still play a role in helping Cambodia protecting the heritage-listed temple that the Thai people also worshipped like the Cambodians.

ASEAN should continue its leadership role because Cambodia had made so much headway for ASEAN to step to resolve the conflict. Thailand also has the duties to help resolve the dispute by withdrawing its troop as ordered by the ICJ. Cambodia has never had any bad intention or to trick Thailand as you can witness Cambodia is withdrawing its troop whether Thailand does it or not. We obey the court's order and we live by the rule of law.

Asean not up to expectation

Op-Ed by Warrior Blood
30th July, 2011

Re: Cambodia calls on Indonesia to send observers urgently

The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) was established in 1967 and its current members are Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Brunei Darussalam, Vietnam, Lao, Myanmar, and Cambodia.

Its purposes are:

1. To accelerate the economic growth, social progress and cultural development;

2. To promote regional peace and stability through respect for justice and the rule of law in the relationship among countries of the region and adherence to the principles of the United Nations Charter;

3. To promote active collaboration and mutual assistance on matters of common interest in the economic, social, cultural, technical, scientific and administrative fields;

4. To provide assistance to each other in the form of training and research facilities in the educational, professional, technical and administrative spheres;

5. To collaborate more effectively for the greater utilisation of their agriculture and industries, the expansion of their trade, including the study of the problems of international commodity trade, the improvement of their transportation and communications facilities and the raising of the living standards of their peoples;

6. To promote Southeast Asian studies; and

7. To maintain close and beneficial cooperation with existing international and regional organisations with similar aims and purposes, and explore all avenues for even closer cooperation among themselves.

Thus, the Cambodia-Thai border conflict is the United Nation Security Council's job rather than ASEAN's. However, the world wanted ASEAN to do more than just round table discussions. The world wants to see ASEAN plays proactive roles in finding peace among themselves in the region. The lack of experiences caused delay, lives loss, as it is an ineffective entity in solving border dispute or have the real power to enforce or penalize any ASEAN members.

ASEAN should seek assistance from the United Nation Security Council for strategies and implementation or let the UN know that it cannot solve or implementing the operations set forth instead of wasting time and lives. ASEAN is not about to give up this test tube baby yet because it will be a major embarrassment to the entire region.

Given the behavior of ASEAN communities of face-saving ideology, it will not give up or easily admit that it doesn't have the capacity do the job. This is the major set back for both Cambodia and Thailand when ASEAN doesn't recognize its own weaknesses and strengths. In order for ASEAN to be successful; ASEAN members needed to be proactive in helping Indonesia solving the issue of Cambodia-Thai border conflict. They cannot sit around and kept their mouth shut without assisting Indonesia.

Indonesia itself needed to reach out to other ASEAN members to discuss strategies how to implement the tasks given that ICJ provided them with authority to resolve the conflict and UN backed them 100% already. Indonesia should not work on this issue alone. The last meeting that ASEAN had; they didn't discuss any concrete resolution and eventually has left the Cambodia-Thai border conflict to linger.

ASEAN has no power to punish or penalize any members nor its willingness to punish its members. ASEAN doesn't want to offend any members, therefore the limbo will continue. Can ASEAN rise up to the test? Sometime, I wonder if Cambodia-Thai border conflict is important enough for all Asean members to come together to put an end to this conflict once and for all? I wonder if the killings and the shootings of Cambodian civilians is important enough for ASEAN members to act?

Sometimes I wonder if human rights violation is important enough to reach ASEAN agenda if of their members have some of the worst human right records? I wonder if UN and ICJ has set up for ASEAN to fail? Why would the world power wants to see another Soviet bloc established? It is vital that ASEAN built its credibility in solving Cambodia-Thai border conflict. Is Cambodia is willing to be a guinea pig any longer for the ASEAN's learning curve? It is frustrating and scary when you come to see doctor for brain surgery and you got the intern operating on your brain instead. This is what is happening in the quest for a resolution to the Cambodian-Thai conflict.

Chinese Company Provides 130 Scholarships to Cambodian Students

AKP Phnom Penh, July 27, 2011 – A Chinese Coal Power Plant Investor in Preah Sihanouk, a Southwestern province of Cambodia pledged to provide 130 scholarships to Cambodian students.

Mr. Jiang Xibiao, CEO of C.I.I.D.G Erdos Hongjun Electric Power Co. Ltd, a Chinese investment company that planned to build a coal power plant in the province said his company will provide 130 scholarships mostly on electricity and technology to Cambodian students for two years study in China.

We are cooperating with Cambodian National Employment Agency to select the qualified candidates, he said.

The company plans to build a coal power plant and expects to generate electricity in 2013 and all the students will get jobs at the company once they finish their studies in China, he said.

By OU Sokha

Jayvaraman VII’s statue unveiled in Pailin

H.E. Khieu Kanharith Presides Over The Inauguration Ceremony Of Jayvaraman VII’s Statue

AKP, Phnom Penh, July 28, 2011

Photo: Hun Yuth Kun

Cambodia’s Information Minister H.E. Khieu Kanharith accompanied by his wife and Pailin provincial Governor H.E. Y (Ee) Chhien preside over an inauguration ceremony of a stone statue of King Jayvaraman VII (1125–1215, reigned c.1181-1215) and donate a unit of computer, printer, study material as well as some budget to Phnom Yat Secondary School in Pailin province.

Jayavarman VII was Cambodia's greatest king. During his reign as king, he had expanded the Khmer Empire's northern border, reaching as far as China, east bordering the Gulf of Tonkin near Hanoi, west bordering with Burma and south bordering with Malaysia.

After his death, the Khmer Empire crumbled and had shrunk to its present day's size.

Cambodia to host China-ASEAN car race in October

By PNA
Xinhua and U.S. News Agency / Asian

Cambodia will host China-ASEAN car race in October this year, the first car race ever involved by Cambodia, a senior official of National Olympic Committee said Saturday.

Vath Chamroeun, secretary general of the National Olympic Committee of Cambodia (COCC), said the car race is initiated by China in order to mark the 20th anniversary of China-ASEAN bilateral cooperation.

He said, as planned, the “2011 China-ASEAN International Touring Assembly and China-ASEAN Journalists Rally” will begin on September 9 through October 9 this year.

The rally will begin in China and go across five countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations: Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia and to end up in Cambodia.

According to the schedule, Cambodia will host the end-up rally racing on October 7-8, beginning from Siem Reap province, hometown of Angkor Wat Temple to Phnom Penh, the capital city of Cambodia.


Chamroeun said Cambodia is prepared to send two drivers for the race, the first ever that Cambodians directly involved in the race and as well as the host for the event.

He added the procedure for the rally-racing is free with any kinds of cars, but speed is the subject for scoring.

Saturday, 30 July 2011

The U.S's politics always rise above logic

Anet Khmer said...

Re: Civilian deaths probed [Thai human rights groups investigate the killings of Cambodians by Thai soldiers]

The USA can be defending human rights if it chooses to do and it has done so more than not.

Politics always rise above logic, common sense and the good side of human nature. For that America gets zero mark for choosing to be silent over the human rights abuses committed by the Thai military rather than speaking out against it. America should be helping her close ally, Thailand, to respect human rights and not abuse it.

America itself also commits human right abuses during the wars when it dropped loads of bombs on its so-called good targets when some of those bombs fell on civilians. The case in point here is the dropping of the bombs on Neak Loeung during the civil war in Cambodia in the 70s as shown in the movie entitled "the Killing Fields".

However, America is more on the right track than many other nations, so it needs to be encouraged and pressured to put more efforts into becoming a true advocate and defender of human rights.

The U.S must not ignore Thai abuses against Khmers

Warrior Blood said...

Re: Civilian deaths probed [Thai human rights groups investigate the killings of Cambodians by Thai soldiers]

This what Thai's soldiers did in the past and present time. If you ask the Burmese, Laotians and Vietnamese they also have similar stories regarding harsh treatment from Thai soldiers. Thai soldiers have committed many human right violations in the past and present time and nothing was done about it.

Take example, in 1979 Khmer refugees were loaded into trucks and they were dumped into Phnom Dangrek cliff while Thai soldiers threw stone at them and crushed them to death. Women, children hung to the cliff for survival. Sadly Thai soldiers finished them off with their heartless killing machine, there were thousands of them died at Phnom Dangrek.

The USA should take a look at Thai military on human right issues rather said "it doesn't take side". This is a major concern, why turned blind eyes? I thought USA is a human right defender. The Cambodian government should have pushed this agenda a long time ago. Thank god for the human right groups that care about other human kind regarding of their ethnicity. I am saying that not all Thais are bad, there are good and bad Thais. These human right violations cannot be ignored any more. How come, I never seen any Wikileaks on this human right violation issues? May be it is not important enough to release the file.

Cambodia reportedly pulls out troops from disputed area

A Cambodian newspaper publishing photos of Cambodian troop withdrawal.

Bangkok, July 30 (Bernama) - Cambodia has reportedly withdrawn some 2,500 troops from an unsettled area bordering Thailand, a move expected to ease tension between the two neigbouring countries, Thai News Agency (TNA) reported.

Updated reports on Saturday said that Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen had ordered troop withdrawal from the contentious area surrounding the Preah Vihear Temple. Newspapers show Cambodian troops and tanks leaving the area.

The withdrawal of the Cambodian troops came almost two weeks after The Hague-based International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered both Thailand and Cambodia to pull out their troops from the unsettled area pending the World Court's concluded decision on a case earlier filed by Phnom Penh, requesting the UN's highest court to provide clarification of its 1962 ruling on the Preah Vihear Temple.

However, according to TNA Phnom Penh reportedly acknowledged later that its troop pull-out from the border area was not aimed to comply with the World Court's order, but to lessen military confrontation in the area, where fatal clashes between Thai and Cambodian troops had erupted over the past few years.

The Cambodian government said that Cambodian troops have remained inside the Preah Vihear Temple.

--BERNAMA

Malaysia seeks defence ties [with Cambodia]


Visiting Malaysian Minister of National Defense H.E. Dato Sri Ahmad Zehid Hamidi pays a courtesy call on Cambodia’s Prime Minister Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen at Phnom Penh’s Peace Palace on July 28. Photo: Peou Kim Chan Rath

Friday, 29 July 2011
Vong Sokheng
Phnom Penh Post

Malaysia's defence minister expressed support yesterday for the recent ruling from the United Nations’ highest court that ordered a withdrawal of troops from a newly-created demilitarised zone around Preah Vihear temple.

The comments came after talks at the Ministry of Defence yesterday with Cambodian Defence Minister Tea Banh about bilateral defence cooperation.

Malaysian Defence Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi called the judgment an “opportunity” for Asean to promote peace in the region. “Cambodia and Thailand are being given an opportunity to maintain peace and stability,” he added.

Hamidi also met later with Prime Minister Hun Sen at the Peace Palace yesterday. Malaysia’s defence delegation arrived in the capital on Wednesday and is set to depart today.

Cambodia and Thailand are being given an opportunity to maintain peace and stability

On July 18, the International Court of Justice ordered Cambodia and Thailand to withdraw all military forces from a provisional demilitarised zone and allow Indonesian observers to monitor a ceasefire along the border. Both sides have pledged compliance but neither has removed troops from the area.

Tea Banh told reporters that a recent withdrawal of troops near Preah Vihear temple was part of normal troop movements and not linked to the order from the ICJ.

“As Prime Minister Hun Sen has said, the withdrawal of troops from the demilitarised zone has to be conducted at the same time with Thailand, and we hope that the new government of Thailand will create a good atmosphere to comply with the ruling of the ICJ,” he said.

Tea Banh also said the Ministry of Defence has had success in its goal of 5,000 new army recruits by the end of the year.

“So far, we have recruited about 70 percent of the total 5,000 soldiers, and all the soldiers will replace the retiree soldiers in the coming year,” he said. Tea Banh declined to elaborate on how many troops were retiring.

Silver screen setting up [Phnom Penh has second cinema]


Photo by: Pha Lina Construction was under way yesterday at Sabay’s cinema in Sorya Mall, aiming to be the second licenced Phnom Penh cinema to open recently.

Friday, 29 July 2011
Liam Barnes
Phnom Penh Post

SABAY Company is set to open a cinema in Sorya Mall on August 4, aiming to become the second cinema in as many months to show licenced films in the Kingdom, Sabay Chief Commercial Officer Abhaya said yesterday.

Legend cinema began showing primarily Hollywood movies in City Mall last month, but Sabay is aiming to offer patrons a more diverse range of international and independent films, he said yesterday.

“We don’t want to compete with the other cinema, as the market is still very small. However, we will show a number of Hollywood films alongside Asian blockbusters and independent films from around the world.”

Sabay received the green light to construct the theatre three months ago, at the same location as an existing cinema, and will comprise three screens, including one 3D.

The first movie to be screened will be the Chinese film Wu Xia, a hit at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

“We wanted the premiere to be a little different, a taste of things to come, and what is better than this highly successful Chinese export,” Abhaya said.

The second film set to be shown is Captain America: The First Avenger, which opened to US audiences last weekend.

The Cineplex will be only the second cinema nationwide to show legitimately distributed films, said Michael Chai, director of Sabay theatre’s distributor Westec Media Limited.

“I’m really happy. It’s great to see another cinema in Phnom Penh going down the legal path and with the right attitude.”

He added that he expects further Hollywood cinemas to open in the capital and is looking forward to the evolution of Cambodia’s film industry.

“The launch of these cinemas will evoke more companies’ interest in the idea of opening Hollywood-style cinemas and we are more than happy to advise them,” Chai said.

Tickets prices will start at $4, matching Legend Cinema, however, some industry experts doubt there will be many local filmgoers at first, given the Kingdom’s piracy culture and the lack of disposable income.

Although the recent emergence of new cinemas is a step in the right direction, it will be difficult to regularly attract people to the big screen when copied DVDs are widely available, Martin Robinson, co-founder of The Flicks Community Movie House, said last month.

“It’s unlikely that Cambodian families will pay $4 each to go to the movies when they can stay at home and watch a film that costs around $1,” he said.

Cambodia: Blog Article Leads to Murder Investigation


MP Mu Sochua vows to investigate the death of the teenager domestic worker

Global Voice Online
Written by Sopheap Chak
Posted 30 July 2011

An investigation on the reported death of a Cambodian domestic worker in Malaysia has been initiated by the Cambodian Embassy in Malaysia in cooperation with the police, according to an article by the Phnom Penh Post.

The aunt of the domestic worker was informed by the labor recruitment firm APTSE & C Cambodia Resource Co Ltd that her 19-year-old niece died from pneumonia. However, the pre-departure medical test in Cambodia in September last year showed her health to be perfectly fine.

It's now alleged that she could have been murdered following an expose by a news aggregation website, Khmerization, which published and circulated an email from an anonymous person who reported that a maid in Malaysia is being abused by her employer.

The case was picked up by rights groups and politicianswho appealed for a proper investigation. The anonymous sender of the letter wrote to Khmerization:

We came across a blog on your website (khmerization.blogspot.com) regarding “Malaysia Embassy saved Cambodian maid alerted by Khmerization's article”, posted on 23 March 2011. We would like to bring your attention to a recent death of a Cambodia maid which we suspected the actual cause of death is due to the constant physical and mental tortures by her employer.

According to the local neighbourhood, they do constantly witness the deceased being beaten up and abused and had many times sought help from other maids in the neighbourhood. A day before her death, she passed down a message saying that if she really pass away without any valid reason, please inform her uncle back in Cambodia.

It should be noted that Khmerization has once successfully convinced authorities to investigate and assist another Cambodian maid who was allegedly abused by her employer in Malaysia. Aside from publishing an article about the abuse, Khmerization circulated an email encouraging its readers to submit a letter to embassy officials in Malaysia.

According to the 2011 report jointly by CARAM Asia, CARAM Cambodia and Tenaganita, titled “Reality Check: Rights and Legislation for Migrant Domestic Workers Across Asia,” the number of Cambodian migrant domestic workers in Malaysia are over 40,000 of which the women account for 51.7%.The report outlined some common violations experienced by domestic workers:

  • Working conditions differ from the contract signed between migrant domestic workers and their agents in Cambodia including lower wages and debt bondage not known to worker prior to departure.
  • Detention at recruitment agencies’ training center
  • Underage girls sent to work with falsified documentations
  • No payment of wages
  • Irregular payment (migrant domestic workers are only paid at the end of their contract)
  • Long working hours
  • On call 24 hours a day
  • Excessive duties and tasks
  • No days off
  • No privacy
  • Verbal abuse
  • Sexual abuse
  • Physical abuse
  • Confiscation of personal documents

Cambodia Cleans Out The Pretenders [in a recruitment drive to build up the army]


Photo by: Pha Lina
Cambodian soldiers take part in the final day of a four-day military exercise held in Kampong Speu province last month.

strategypage.com

July 30, 2011: The Cambodian Army has been conducting a vigorous recruiting drive recently. The goal is 3,000 fit and intelligent young men. The new recruits are to replace several thousand older soldiers who were recently retired. Like many nations, Cambodia has long used the army as a jobs program. The emphasis was on keeping the 124,000 military personnel employed, not ready for war.

Cambodia found that there were serious shortcomings with this approach when, three years ago, a border dispute with Thailand turned into a military conflict. Nothing major. The action has been mostly assault rifles, machine-guns, artillery and mortars. There have been hundreds of casualties. What shocked Cambodian commanders and political leaders was how unprepared their army was for even a minor conflict like this. This led to a revitalization plan for the army, which the current recruiting drive is part of.

The border war was unexpected, even though Cambodia and Thailand have long argued over who owns how much of an ancient temple site. In 1962, an international court declared the temple Cambodian, but Thailand continued to claim adjacent areas that the Cambodians insist are part of the temple complex.

Currently, each side has about 3,000 troops near the temple site, and there have been a few shooting incidents since 2008, but nothing serious. The two countries have been negotiating the withdrawal of troops. Fighting earlier this year damaged portions of the temple (which Cambodians occupy) and caused over 20,000 local civilians to flee.

This dispute is but one of many similar ones. The basic problem is that the current 730 kilometer long border was defined in 1907 by the placement of only 73 border markers. This has left the exact location of the border open to interpretation. Occasionally these interpretations clash, as is happening now. Neither side wants a full scale war, even though Thailand has a larger and better equipped military. In the last few years, Cambodia doubled its annual military budget to $500 million. Thailand spends more than six times that, and has done so for decades. Thailand has 300,000 troops, Cambodia only 124,000.

Cambodia is very poor, and has been helped by China. which recently donated 50,000 field uniforms (including hats and boots). Last year, China donated 257 military trucks, and also supplied weapons. The infantry weapons tend to be older models. That's because China is introducing a new and improved model of their QBZ-95 assault rifle (also called the Type 95) to their own troops. The QBZ-95 is a distinctive bullpup design (the magazine is behind the trigger) that China has been issuing to its troops for over a decade now. That means China has plenty of surplus Type 81 (improved AK-47) rifles (which the QBZ-95 replaced) to either put into storage, or distribute to allies. Cambodia has bought some Type 95s, for elite units. But most everyone else has the second hand Type 81. AK-47s have been widely used in Burma nearly half a century.

Cambodia has never really recovered from its disastrous experiment in communist government (the Khmer Rouge) in the 1970s. That killed off 15 percent of the population (including nearly all the ethnic Chinese community) and trashed the economy. China supported the Khmer Rouge (as fellow communists), but Khmer Rouge aggression against Vietnam resulted in Vietnam invading in 1979 and deposing the Khmer Rouge. But as the decades went by, former Khmer Rouge officials got back in power, and China made nice.

[Malaysian] Cops deny Cambodian maid was abused and beaten to death

The Malaysian Star Online

GEORGE TOWN: Police have denied an online news portal report which claimed that a Cambodian domestic helper found dead on July 17 was abused and beaten.

Penang deputy CID chief Asst Comm Mohd Nasir Salleh said the claims made in the Thursday article that Choy Pich, 22, was beaten to death was false.

“We will approach the reporter who wrote the article to see how the information was obtained.

“The woman was found lying at the back of the house at Teluk Air Tawar in Butterworth where she worked at about 7.50am on July 17.

“Her body was taken to the Kepala Batas Hospital for a post-mortem and the pathologist found that she had died of pneumonitis (lung infection).

“The pathologist also confirmed that there were no signs of injuries on the victim's body except for some bruises on her cheeks believed to have been sustained when she fell on the ground,” ACP Nasir said at the Penang Road police station here yesterday.

He said the article had quoted a neighbour as saying that the maid had complained of abuse by her employer but this contradicted the findings of the investigation.

The article also quoted a Cambodian opposition MP demanding an answer to the death.

ACP Nasir said police spoke with neighbours and owners of nearby mini markets, all of whom said the deceased had never complained about any abuse or beating.

“Her agency had also visited her four times throughout the five months she had worked with the employer and received no complaints from her,” he said, adding that police were still waiting for the reports of the victim's blood and stomach content tests,” he said.

“We have also met officials from the Cambodian Embassy and explained the cause of death. They are satisfied with the report,” said ACP Nasir.

Thailand's PM-elect Yingluck offers hope for nation


Radio Australia
July 29, 2011

Thailand's new parliament will formally open on Monday .. with the 500-seat lower house due to start work two days later.

The economy is also uppermost on the mind of Thailand's prime minister elect, Yingluck Shinawatra (pictured), of the Puea Thai party.

Ms Yingluck, who's the sister of the fugitive former PM Thaksin, will be the nation's first woman prime minister.

So, after five years of turmoil, will the Yingluck government finally bring much-needed stability to Thailand?

Presenter: Sen Lam
Speaker: Sean Boonpracong, analyst and former international spokesman for Thailand's 'Red Shirts'

SEAN BOONPRACONG: When Puea Thai got involved in this election, it was always one party against 40 parties, plus the elite they're competing against. The fact that they won 265 votes (seats) is a huge mandate and the parties that decided to join government know that by being a part of this, it will enable them to sell to those who vote for them, that they could get something back to their constituents, and I believe that it will be less of a problem compared to Abhisit Vejjajiva, when his Democratic party formed with the breakaway factions of the-then People Power Party, which has reincarnated into the Puea Thai party now. At that time, most people voted for People Party, but yet during the parliamentary manoeuvering, the Democrats were able to use roughly about thirty-five of our MPs and forced them with theirs, so therefore, the Democrats had a much weaker hand, when they formed government. But that would not be the case with the Puea Thai party.

LAM: And Yingluck of course said, shortly after victory, that her first task is national reconciliation. How challenging is that, for someone who's so closely linked to the vastly polarising figure, Khun Thaksin, the former prime minister?

SEAN BOONPRACONG: Well, you have to understand that this is not a new experience for her. Her father was a politician. She herself has been CEO of a big corporation, since she was thirty years old. And I've sat at the luncheon table with her, observed her poise. She's definitely a conciliator (sic) and that would be a huge plus. And of course, the Reds would want to demand that those ninety-two who perished last year - there should be some accountability. The Puea Thai has to address this...otherwise...

LAM: Indeed, as you say, more than 90 people died last year in the military crackdown on the Red Shirts. Of course, the Red Shirts would want some kind of closure, but how difficult a task is this for prime minister-elect Yingluck, to bring about justice but without alienating the military?

SEAN BOONPRACONG: The fact that she's already stated publicly that she would like to let the Reconciliation (Commission) appointed by Abhisit stay, and by accepting this, she's treating this issue delicately, within the military. But for now, I believe that she can do it, by allowing this Commission to continue, and addressing the issue wide in the open. It will not be an easy task, but it's doable. She has what it takes to get the job done - deal with this issue delicately. Of course, the army would huff and puff, but in the end, they have realise that it's part of the democratic process, that they have to listen to, and whether the Supreme Court, would decide in their favour, whether they would have to go to jail, that's up to the foreseeable future. But Yingluck has to address the issue for the Reds and the army has to stand by and take it.

LAM: Yingluck has stressed that the minimum wage for Thai workers is high on her list of priorities. What will Yingluck have to do, to narrow this rural-urban divide that has plagued Thailand these past many years?

SEAN BOONPRACONG: But of course, this is a huge, huge approach, to have 300 bahts, which is a huge increase. Philosophically, the average Thais, seventy percent of them, are quite poor. By bringing this to the equal level of perhaps neighbouring countries of higher wages, like in Singapore and Malaysia, it will enhance a lot of dignity and of course, her focus is to make sure that with the high cost of gasoline, which brought about the increased cost of living, it's a first step and of course, with 130 organisations, in terms of big corporations supporting us, I believe this would possibly be the first thing that she does, and I believe that it would enhance the closure of the gap between the Bangkokians and the provincial people.

New border gates to Cambodia opened

Tourist bus and transport truck shuttling across the Cambodian-Vietnamese border.

July, 30 2011
VNS (Hanoi)

BINH PHUOC — Viet Nam and Cambodia yesterday opened another pair of border posts, Hoa Lu in Viet Nam's Binh Phuoc Province and Trapeang Sre in Cambodia's Kratie Province.

This is the fifth of seven pairs of border posts the two countries agreed to open under a road transport agreement signed in 1998 and a protocol signed in 2005.

Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Ngoc Dong said the gates would not only facilitate trade and economic development between the two border provinces, but also improve co-operation between the two countries.

The four border points currently open for road transport between the two countries are Moc Bai - Bavet (Tay Ninh and Svay Rieng provinces), Tinh Bien-Phnom Den (An Giang and Takeo provinces), Xa Xia - Prek Chak (Kien Giang, Lork, Kam Pot provinces), and Xa Mat -Trapeing (Tay Ninh and Kampong Cham provinces).

Two other pairs of border crossings are expected to open later this year, including Le Thanh - Oyadav (Gia Lai and Andong Pich - Ratanakiri provinces) and Bu Prang - O Raaing (Dak Nong and Mundulkiri provinces).

Last year, two-way trade between Viet Nam and Cambodia was US$1.83 billion. At present, Viet Nam is the fourth biggest importer of Cambodian goods and Cambodia is the 16th largest importer of goods from Viet Nam.

VIDEO: Elephant With Prosthetic Foot In Cambodia



Huffington Post
First Posted: 7/28/11
Visit www.wildlifealliance.org to learn more.

PHNOM TAMAO - In 2007, orphaned baby elephant Chhouk was found wandering alone in the forests of Mondulkiri Province, Cambodia. Badly emaciated and separated from his mother, this endangered Asian elephant had lost his left front foot due to injuries sustained from a poacher’s snare. The infection and severity of the illness represented certain death for a young elephant alone in the forest.

The Cambodian government requested the assistance of Wildlife Alliance and wildlife rescue and care director Nick Marx, who made the arduous journey and stayed alongside Chhouk for more than a week while his immediate injuries were tended to. When Chhouk had been stabilized, the injured elephant was transported by truck to Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Center in a difficult and treacherous 26-hour journey.

Chhouk was severely malnourished, his stump was badly infected, and nearly 5 inches of infected tissue and bone had to be removed. After his immediate survival was secure, his long-term care was the next concern. Without a foot, he was suffering severe balance issues, and the strain on his hips and back would make his lifelong welfare unlikely. With funding assistance from SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund, and technical support from the Cambodian School of Prosthetics and Orthotics, Chhouk was fitted with his first prosthetic foot in 2009. Because of his injuries, Chhouk will never be a candidate for release into the forest, but he is immensely beloved both inside Cambodia, and as a global ambassador for Cambodia’s threatened Asian elephant populations. Featured on television in Australia, the U.S., and Britain, he is an eloquent messenger to the world about the need to save Asia’s wildlife and forests.

Elephants are rough on hardware, and each year until he matures, Chhouk will need a replacement foot. As he continues to grow into his adolescence, he requires new prostheses to fit his growing frame and replace those lost to wear and tear. This month, Wildlife Alliance and the Cambodian School of Prosthetics and Orthotics fitted Chhouk with his fourth prosthesis.

You can visit Chhouk at Phnom Tamao Wildlife Refuge Center, an hour outside of Phnom Penh, Cambodia to meet him and learn more about his inspiring story. If Cambodia is too far away, check out this video of the inspirational elephant, taking his new foot out for a walk in the forest and a swim in his lake.

Winging it through Southeast Asia


Cambodian women vendors sit in the middle of their produce at a street market. Be wary of street food. Photograph by: Tang Chhin Sothy

A little technology - and duct tape - goes a long way for 50-something couple who backpacked five countries

By Edward Yatscoff,
For Postmedia News
July 30, 2011

Flashpacker (def): Flashpacking is a trend among travellers who share the backpacking ethos. Someone, usually in their mid-20s to early-30s, who travels like a backpacker but has more disposable income; also uses electronics on the road, e.g., iPod or laptop; expects better accommodation and more amenities; seeks to explore the world but not give up comforts. Flashpacking is backpacking for the 21st century.

Except for our ages - my wife Gloria and I are in our late 50s - this description probably applies to us. Our long-awaited trip after retiring, intended to flee a good chunk of winter, finally came down to deciding where to go. Picking the brains of recent travellers and doing plenty of online research, we concluded Southeast Asia was our best bet.

People our age consider winging it through five countries an example of adventure travel. After a 32year career with Edmonton Fire Rescue, I didn't want extreme adventure. Gloria would take it in small doses.

Everyone asked if we would be on a tour. Tours are expensive and too regimented for us. They do have advantages, but being on a leash doesn't appeal to us. Finding a piece of paradise and having to abandon it in an hour can be very disappointing.

Winging it has plenty of logistical challenges and self-reliance is paramount. Our have-to stops were a few UNESCO World Heritage sites, including Angkor Wat, Halong Bay and China's Great Wall. Our lazy, unstructured itinerary left plenty of time at each and in between.

Most challenging was packing efficiently. With only one medium suitcase each, we fretted over what, or what not, to take. That turned out to be a total time-waster.

Clothes are everywhere and cheap in the markets in Cambodia and Vietnam. International companies have large factories there and the irregulars/seconds are dumped locally. They'll also tailor any type of outfit and ship it home for you. For $110, you can get a made-toorder silk suit in one day.

Usually when we travel, we book ahead only for the first night or two of accommodation. If we like a place, we'll stay - if not, we saddle up. Hotel photos can be very creative.

We took a laptop and it was invaluable: for banking; as an alarm clock; checking e-mail and weather; searching for accommodation and sights; updating ourselves on travel warnings and scams; and as a telephone to talk, using Skype, with our children regularly. We also bought landline time from Skype.

Many eateries, cafes, and just about all hotels/guest houses have free Wi-Fi, sometimes with a shared computer in the lobby. Dedicated Internet places offer Skype, photocopying, printing and CD burning. Bank-account passwords and passport copies were uploaded to a server and saved in an e-mail. Internet maps provided locations of train and bus stations. If we got lost, we'd simply hop in a cab.

Only two types of plug-in converters were necessary for China, Korea, Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos. Both had two cylindrical prongs, with one device smaller than the other. As they say in Southeast Asia: "same, same, but different."

English books can be found in scattered bookstores or hotel book swaps. Books take up space so an e-book reader was the way to go. It's small and can download stories in seconds with a decent Wi-Fi signal.

We got our first entry visa online direct from the Cambodian embassy. The remainder were applied for on the fly at foreign embassies. It's cheaper and faster - except for China; the slowest at four days. They squeeze time-constrained tourists by steering them to an "express" option at double the cost.

Avoid visa-on-arrival letters. Pay close attention to visa time limits, as some begin upon entry and others begin as soon as you receive them. The bar code on our Cambodian entry visa didn't print out at home and caused some concern at the Phnom Penh airport.

But they love tourists there and let me use their immigration computer. ASEAN countries are presently ironing out a unified "one visa."

Do bring duct tape, laundry bar soap and a length of clothesline to hang out wet clothing, although your laundry can be done for a dollar or two per kilogram.

We took U.S. cash and Amex traveller's cheques, which are useless to a thief. It's a chore trying to cash them, however, because it requires a passport. We kept our passports and cash bagged in small packets and carried them with us most of the time. Other times we stowed valuables in a vault in the room or at the hotel desk, wrapped in a bag and ducttaped.

My debit card wouldn't fit into a few ATMs in Vietnam and Cambodia, while others accepted it; however, you get a better rate for U.S. cash. Visa is not widely accepted at smaller hotels, so booking online as you go works well.

Don't worry about being homeless for a night, as there are more hotels off the grid than on. The farther away you venture from touristy areas, the more you'll need local currency.

Our budget was $50 to $60 per day or under $2,000 per month (food and accommodation with some transportation). We based it on $20 to $30 hotel rooms, with a flush toilet, private washroom, and pool. For the most part, we stayed within the budget; often below it.

Many young backpackers stay at $3-a-night-and-up guest houses. If you choose to live large, a budget of $60 to $100 per day will certainly do it.

Cabs and tuk-tuks (motorcycles pulling a four-seater cart) in Asia are cheap transport.

Hiring one for the day is worthwhile, but you'll have to be a savvy negotiator. It helps to look at a city map before you arrive anywhere.

Don't buy tours or tickets on the street. Hotels and guest houses, along with travel agents, are your best option for travel/tour tickets, as they'll save you time and legwork - and you'll have someone to yell at if your trip goes sour.

In Cambodia, if you book a room ahead, someone will meet you at the bus station, holding up a VIP sign with your misspelled name. It's hilarious.

Vietnamese National Railways filled up faster than we expected. Rail-car seating is a maze of options: hard seats, soft seats, suites, first class, A/C, sleepers, slow vs. fast trains, etc. Call in the travel agent on that one.

In Cambodia, use the Mekong Express: good Japanese buses, a stewardess, free pastries, moist towelettes, karaoke music videos, and employees who gleefully wave as you leave the terminal. A competitor bus company we used once broke down, requiring us to stand in the heat for an hour. But that's Asia. Everyone accepts these things. Perseverance is compulsory here.

English is prevalent in many places in varying degrees. Not as much in China. Expect to occasionally pantomime what you need, and carry a "quick guide" of words in the local language. The locals appreciated our attempts to communicate. Hello, goodbye and thank you saw us through.

Checking English-language websites of local newspapers kept us apprised of events and weather. While in Asia, 12 people drowned when a tour boat sank in Halong Bay and the tsunami hit Japan.

It made us wary of the cheapest tours.

We spent a lot of time cruising riversides and seashores. It seems that even the poorest towns in Asia have improved theirs, turning them into vibrant gathering places.

Booking transport and rooms too far ahead resulted in us missing a few events. But that's winging it.

Do research on local festivals and events, and try to time your trip to them.

Our biggest decision was where and what to eat, and discussing options for our next move. Cambodian, Lao and Vietnamese menus are similar, hence, "same, same, but different." Patrons can linger at eateries for long periods, as the owners like having bodies at tables to attract passersby.

Fruit here is plentiful and cheap and we ate it for nearly all our lunches. Bring a thin cutting board and sharp knife. Although we ate some street food, we didn't get sick, crediting a combination of Dukoral medication, food wariness, chilies and luck. No salads, uncooked meals, smoothies with crushed ice, or ice-cube drinks.

Definitely no tap water. After eating at one busy place, we happened to see the dishwashing area and figured we'd be laid up. People told us if we happened to get seriously hurt or sick, to go directly to Thailand. Do not pass go.

Five countries were a bit much, as the many currency conversions and languages overlapped in our heads and at times became confusing. We should have spent more time on the Cambodian coast and less in northern Vietnam, as somewhat cooler temperatures there in February and March surprised us.

At no time did we feel threatened or unsafe. Locals were accommodating and friendly and older people are generally accorded more respect. We underestimated the trek on the Janshanling section of the Great Wall. It was a tough haul, but we did it.

The sights, sounds and smells in Southeast Asia can almost be overwhelming, akin to being dropped onto another planet.

Riding in an open tuk-tuk is almost magical. Pungent frangipane scents mix with exhaust, charcoal cooking fires, incense and the odd whiff of fish and sewage. It's a heady mix.

Small children and extended families create lively street scenes and are present in almost every business.

Their world is public and much work is still done on the sidewalks, from moto repair to haircuts to barbecuing entire hogs.

The really good news was that beer is still a buck, and even cheaper in some places. Deja vus all over again.

The bad news is coming home and having to cook again. There were a lot more people there our age and older winging it. All it takes is a bit more effort.

If You Go

Here are some helpful websites if you are planning a trip to Southeast Asia: Talesofasia.com, Agoda. com, travelfish.org, Tripadvisor. com, asiarooms.com and Foreign Affairs Canada at international. gc.ca/international/index.aspx.

Cambodian boy finds Southland hospital, surgeon for heart


3-year-old Bunlak Song is comforted by his sister, Bunlak Song, after arriving at Los Angeles International Airport from Cambodia on March 6. Bunlak Song was brought to the United States by Hearts Without Boundaries, a Long Beach, Calif.-based non-profit group, to help repair his heart. (Jeff Gritchen / Staff Photographer)

By Greg Mellen,
Press-Telegram Staff Writer
Posted: 07/29/2011

LONG BEACH — The trip of an impoverished Cambodian boy halfway around the world for life-saving surgery was only a part of the journey.

Now it looks as if Bunlak Song, a 3-year-old suffering from several heart defects, won't have to travel much farther from the Long Beach home where he is staying to receive the open-heart surgery he desperately needs.

Children's Hospital Los Angeles agreed to admit the boy, and renowned surgeon Vaughn Starnes has said he will perform the operation and waive his fee.

Starnes is the same surgeon who operated on Davik Teng, another impoverished Cambodian child, in 2008.

Although a date has yet to be set, it could happen as early as the coming week.

"We've been waiting for today to come for many weeks," Peter Chhun, founder of the nonprofit sponsoring Bunlak, said shortly after he sent a payment to the hospital. "It is beyond my belief."

The Los Angeles hospital has also agreed to provide what could be extended postoperative care after Pasadena obstetrician Shaun Grady, with the help of a fundraiser, offered to pay a hefty portion of the hospital bill, which could be about $60,000.

To get to this point, however, has been a long and at times frustrating journey.

When Bunlak was brought to the U.S. by nonprofit Hearts Without Boundaries, Chhun didn't know exactly how he would find someone to give the boy the surgery needed to fix the hole in his heart and save his life.

"I brought
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him without a concrete plan," Chhun admits. "But once you make a commitment, you have to believe you'll have help along the way."

That help came from Grady, who chanced by a fundraiser that Hearts Without Boundaries was holding in Long Beach.

Grady was smitten by Bunlak and agreed to stage a fundraiser at his home, which raised about $40,000. Then, after negotiating with Children's Hospital Los Angeles, he was able to agree on a price and to cover the shortfall from the fundraiser.

Although Children's Hospital does not release financial information about patients, Chief Operating Officer Rod Hanners did say in a statement that the hospital made services available to those unable to pay to the extent it was able.

"As a nonprofit medical center with limited charity care funds available, however, we are also committed to managing those resources responsibly," the statement says. "We are grateful to Hearts Without (Boundaries) and our cardiothoracic surgeons for helping to offset some of the costs associated with this case."

Although there was an option to have Bunlak travel to Honduras or the Dominican Republic for treatment from a mission of traveling surgeons, at a lower cost, Grady believed it was important to keep Bunlak close in case of complications or an extended hospital stay.

"I think that we went with the best doctor and the best hospital," Grady said.

For Bunlak, who already had missed two of the international missions and had been turned away by Miller Children's Hospital in Long Beach because of complicating factors, it seems his fate changed as time was running out.

Still, his case is not easy. It was already known that Bunlak had a hole in his heart, or a ventricular septal defect, plus a less severe defect called a patent ductus arteriosis.

However, Miller Children's Hospital also found his lungs were suffering from hypertension that was barely relieved by drugs and almost beyond fixing. He also had a problem with his aorta that had previously gone undiagnosed.

"We are not quite prepared for this type of a challenge," cardiologist Dominic Blurton said at the time.

"I would like to believe someone can help him, but it is going to be a rough ride," Blurton said.

Without surgery, Blurton predicted, the boy likely would survive five to 10 years through declining health and "never getting better."

With Starnes and Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Bunlak may yet have his best shot at a full and healthy life.

greg.mellen@presstelegram.com, 562-499-1291

Kouprey head-butting the UK on its human rights records

Re: Civilian deaths probed [Thai human rights groups investigate the killings of Cambodians by Thai soldiers]

Anonymous said...

I don't know people here seem to condemn the US because the US don't take part in solving Cambodia-Thai conflict. How about United Kingdom? UK is a very silent one: never said a word.

Opinion by Kouprey

Well, yes the UK's human rights record isn't something to boast about either. Many UK nationals who married Cambodian citizens in Cambodia and tried to bring their spouses over to join them in the UK can testify to the nightmare and humiliation of the visa application process. Khmer nationals are often required to attend the entry clearance interview in Bangkok, and more likely than not only to hear their application is rejected on the flimsiest of pretexts.

This would be followed by a year or more of separation endured by the married couple while the appeal awaits hearing, eventually only for the judge to overrule the Home Office's decision in favour of the couple without - in some cases - going through any proper hearing process. The judge having browsed the arguments put forth by both parties in his office prior to turning up at the hearing chamber would simply signal to the solicitors that the appeal is granted, leaving the anxious appellant momentarily stunned before regaining enough self-composure to say 'Thank-you, Your Honour!'.

Of course, at least the UK's justice system allows this kind of appeal and outcome eventually and after a great deal of stress endured and financial expenses paid towards all the costs of a legal paperwork.

This may not amount to human rights violation in any brutal sense, but a form of outright discrimination that is nonetheless just as painful and unjust to the victims.

Perhaps, one of the UK's most shameful records on human rights in recent memory had been the mistreatment of Vietnamese refugees quarantined on the former British territory of Hong Kong in the eighties and beyond. The refugees had been forced to remain in this cage-like concentration camp (where rape and suicide were daily horrors for inmates) because London had been determined to deter further waves of Vietnamese 'boat-people' from seeking refuge on its territory. I believe most of the refugees on the islands of Hong Kong (who had been lucky enough to have lived through their ordeals) had eventually been repatriated to Vietnam. And that's where their dream of a better life ended.

The UK is a loyal ally of the US. It has made some contribution in the context of third world development as well as peace-keeping. In relations to Cambodian-Thai conflict, London would prefer the role of a silent bystander for a number of reasons. However, the Thais have always been indebted to the British historically, and members of the Thai elite tend to be enamoured with the English high culture, from uniforms, horses and costumes to Eton [an elite high school] where the departing Thai PM [Abhisit Vejjajiva] had been groomed.

England had been asked by Siam to put pressure on France over territorial claims and treaty negotiations [to establish the Siam-Cambodian borderline]. This British historical influence had resulted in the 1904/1907 Franco-Siamese demarcation Treaty between Siam and French Indochina [Cambodia and Laos] which would have been accepted by Siamese rulers at the time as something of a favourable deal for Siam who still held on to most of the former Khmer provinces, but not by their descendants today who see nothing wrong in reneging on the treaty because one of the parties to that agreement - France - is not in Indochina anymore!

Kouprey

The hotel de la saved [but the former owner, Dap Chhuon's wife, might not be saved]



Top: The crumbling facade of the original 1957 Hôtel de la Paix before its demolition in the early 2000s. Photo by: DARRYL COLLINS​
Bottom: Hôtel de la Paix’s Christian de Boer meeting with Chan Oudomsak, the wife of his hotel’s original owner, at her home in Tbeang Kert Village. Photo by: MICHAEL SLOAN

Friday, 29 July 2011
Michael Sloan
Phnom Penh Post

A FORMER sorceress and rich woman who had fallen far down the economic ladder into destitution and was no longer able to afford her own medical bills was featured in a Phnom Penh Post article last Tuesday, July 19 – a story which led to the discovery that she was the owner of the original Hôtel de la Paix, a prime Siem Reap property now worth well over a million dollars.

The woman, 83-year-old Chan Oudomsak, the wife of former anti-French guerrilla fighter and later governor of Siem Reap, Dap Chhuon, now lives in a remote village on the outskirts of Siem Reap.

But she once owned substantial property in the city, including the original 1957 hotel, according to local historian Darryl Collins.

Collins alerted the hotel’s sales and marketing director Christian de Boer to the article by journalist Ou Mom, chronicling the ups and downs of Chan Oudomsak’s tumultuous life.

De Boer told 7Days that he was moved by a description of Chan Oudomsak’s medical difficulties and the sad sweep of her life which saw her rise from the ranks of the anti-French Khmer Issarak guerrilla movement into a position of the first lady of Siem Reap.

But this ended abruptly when Dap Chhuon was executed after his arrest on suspicion of plotting a coup against King Sihanouk in 1959.

The property became Chan Oudomsak’s but quickly fell into disrepair.

The article spurred De Boer to offer to pay at least $500 towards Chan Oudomsak’s medical and living expenses, which he says fits with the hotel’s slogan of “respect the past, embrace the future”.

“We want to highlight the fact that this lady is the original owner of the hotel and help her out in some way,” said de Boer. “This is her hour of need and with a limited effort we can make a massive difference.”

He said he discussed her plight with the current owners of the hotel and it was agreed to donate the money to “make sure her life is as comfortable as it can be”.

Chan Oudomsak, now living near her two daughters in Tbeang Kert village, in the same house where Dap Chhuon was arrested over 50 years ago, is frail and in bad health according to her daughter Kherng Bronorm, who explained her mother has been unable to speak following a severe illness three months ago.

“A few days ago I took her outside and she had a bad fall. There always has to be someone with her. If I leave my mother alone she will … scream because she feels afraid.”

A visit by de Boer and Collins, accompanied by hotel staff, to Chan Oudomsak’s home on Monday yielded a list of preliminary ideas to make the ailing great grandmother’s life more comfortable, including the purchase of a new mattress and maintenance work on her roof to stop it leaking when it rains, which de Boer explained “is just a first step”.

Collins told 7Days that several iconic buildings and statues in Siem Reap were owned by Dap Chhuon’s family during his term as governor between 1954 and 1959, including a villa along the road to the Angkor Archaeological Park, and the Preah Ang Chek and Preah Ang Chom gold statues now housed in a shrine opposite Independence Park.

According to Collins, Dap Chhuon’s family also built the original Hôtel de la Paix, which was bulldozed in the early 2000s to make way for the current incarnation of the hotel, which opened in 2005 trading under the same name.

“The original hotel was built in 1957 but was only in operation until the early 70s,” explained Collins. “Most of Siem Reap became unstable by about 1971 or 1972 because there was so much fighting in the area. I would say the hotel closed close to 1970 and then remained closed during the Pol Pot years. I don’t think the hotel ever reopened because it was in a very bad state when I saw it in the early 2000s.”

Chan Oudomsak’s niece Pout Sha told 7Days that Dap Chhuon built a hotel for one of his daughters to manage during the 1950s, which she believes is the original Hôtel de la Paix, but said she could not confirm this as the daughter in question vanished during the Khmer Rouge years.

The Preah Ang Chek and Preah Ang Chom statues, however, are a part of family lore said Pout Sha, and used to be housed on the family farm before being hidden following Dap Chhuon’s arrest.

The statues later ended up in the hands of city authorities.

As Pout Sha told the story of Dap Chhuon’s rise and fall, her aunt proved that while she may be unable to speak, she can certainly still listen, frequently interrupting by clearing her throat when she feels her niece is skipping over important points.

According to Pout Sha, Dap Chhuon’s life began and ended at the very house where we sat as she recounted his story, and it was from there that he fled in 1959, pursued by government troops following the revelation of the so-called “Bangkok Plot”, an alleged conspiracy to topple King Sihanouk initiated by rightwing politicians sparked by his close ties with Communist China.

Surrounded inside the farmhouse, with Dap Chhuon bleeding heavily from an arm wound, Pout Sha explained that her mother was handed a pistol by her husband, who asked her to shoot him.

But after she talked him into surrendering, he parted with the words: “We’ll meet each other in the next life and forever after.” A promise that Pout Sha said her mother still holds true.​​​