Giant Development in Cambodia Hinges on Chinese Buyers

By CHRIS HORTON

The New York Times

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Cambodia Courts Chinese Buyers

Cambodia Courts Chinese Buyers

Credit

Luc Forsyth for The New York Times

MAY 6, 2014 

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — There is an island in Cambodia that, unlike others in Southeast Asia, is not the object of an ownership dispute. But it is equally clear whom its current owners would like to land there: Chinese property buyers.

If all goes according to plan, Koh Pich — Diamond Island in English — a 100-hectare, or about 250-acre, spit of land hugging downtown Phnom Penh’s shoreline, will be home to more than 1,000 condominiums, hundreds of villas, two international schools, a replica of the Arc de Triomphe, a near-clone of Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands Hotel and one of the world’s tallest buildings.

But in a city with a history of stalled real estate projects, the future of the island, in the Mekong River, is far from certain.

Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital, is coming into its own as a regional business destination, and investment in its property market totaled $1.9 billion in the first half of 2013, compared with $1.2 billion in 2011, according to Leng Vandy, senior associate at the financial services company SBI Royal Securities. Even as mainland Chinese property investors have pushed prices up in Hong Kong, London and Vancouver, they are also injecting piles of cash into smaller cities, including Yangon, Myanmar; Chiang Mai, Thailand; and Vientiane, Laos.

Phnom Penh, a city of nearly two million, is no different.

“Mainland Chinese, especially Shanghainese, are very impressive,” said Um Bun An, sales manager at Casa Meridian, a development that, when completed in 2017, will feature two 33-story condominium towers. “They don’t need loans. They make their purchases in cash.”

With street signs featuring the simplified Chinese characters used on China’s mainland (elsewhere in Phnom Penh street signs are in Khmer and English only) and sales executives fluent in Mandarin, Diamond Island seems ripe for Chinese investment.

Eight years ago, the entire island was handed over to the local conglomerate, the Overseas Cambodia Investment Corporation, which in Mandarin calls itself the Cambodia Overseas Chinese-Cambodian Investment Corporation. Phnom Penh’s municipal spokesman, Long Dimanche, declined to disclose terms of the deal; there is no public information available about the corporation. The island’s previous residents, small-scale farmers, were either bought out or evicted.

Touch Samnang, the corporation’s deputy chief executive, also declined to discuss terms of the deal. The group has sold several plots on the island to developers for projects, including Casa Meridian, the gated villa development Elite Town, the pedestrian mall La Seine and The Élysée, a proposed mixed-use project that is to include a replica of the Arc de Triomphe.

After Cambodia passed a law in 2010 allowing foreigners to buy condominiums in towers above the first floor of approved buildings, developers in Phnom Penh have begun catering to growing foreign demand. A report in March by the Phnom Penh office of the property consultancy CBRE noted that 20 condominium projects had been completed or were under construction in the city.

Cambodian Orphans 'Strive' in Performing Arts Documentary

Christie’s to Return Cambodian Statue

By TOM MASHBERG and RALPH BLUMENTHAL

The New York Times

MAY 6, 2014

Christie’s will return this 10th-century sandstone sculpture to Cambodia. Credit Christie's

Christie’s will return this 10th-century sandstone sculpture to Cambodia. 

Credit

Christie's

Yet another ancient statue looted in the 1970s from a single remote temple in the jungles of Cambodia has turned up in the United States, this time at Christie’s, which is voluntarily paying to return it to its homeland.

Christie’s sold the statue, a 10th-century sandstone depiction of a mythological figure known as Pandava, to an anonymous collector in 2009, but bought it back earlier this year after officials determined that the sculpture had been looted.

In just the past three years, Cambodian officials say they have traced seven statues in the United States to the same Khmer temple, called Prasat Chen, about 75 miles northeast of Angkor Wat, a site pillaged during the upheaval of that country’s civil war. The Metropolitan Museum of Art voluntarily returned two of them last year and Sotheby’s, after a lengthy court battle that ended in a settlement, has agreed to return a third.

On Tuesday, after reviewing a Cambodian claim for more than a year, the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, Calif., said it too would return a huge statue that Cambodian officials have said was stolen from the same temple.

Photo

The statue of Bhima that the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, Calif., agreed on Tuesday to return to Cambodia.

Credit

Norton Simon Art Foundation

“The dam has broken,” Helen Ibbitson Jessup, an expert on Khmer sculpture who is helping Cambodia recover the statues, said of the returns, now totaling five items. “One assumes they were looted at the same moment, then widely distributed,” she added.

Cambodian experts say that two other American museums, the Denver Art Museum and the Cleveland Museum of Art, have statues from the temple, but officials at those museums say they have received no evidence that their works were illicitly taken.

The two latest returns coincide with a ceremony on Wednesday at which federal officials in New York will return a statue to Cambodia that Sotheby’s had hoped to sell for $3 million in 2011. Sotheby’s pulled the item from sale, and, in late 2012, the United States Attorney’s Office in Manhattan sued the auction house on Cambodia’s behalf, contending that it had trafficked in stolen property. In a settlement reached last December, the auction house agreed to surrender the statue and the federal government said it found no fault with the auction house’s conduct.

The Christie’s statue depicts a character that antiquities experts say sat on a pedestal only a few feet from the Sotheby’s statue, a far larger sculpture representing a mythic Hindu warrior known as Duryodhana. Both were part of a unique grouping of 10th-century sandstone works created at the height of the Koh Ker dynastic period, known for its huge yet sophisticated statuary.

តុលាការ​ក្រុង​ភ្នំពេញ​បើក​សវនាការ​រឿង​លោក​វន់​ពៅ

Russian debt emerges as billion-dollar question [Will Hun Sen also call this debt a 'dirty debt' like he called the Lon Nol-era's debt owed to America?] របបហ៊ុន សែន ជំពាក់បំណុលប្រទេសរុស្ស៊ី១៥០០លានដុល្លារ

Tue, 6 May 2014 Phnom Penh Post

May Kunmakara

An unsettled, decades-old $1.5 billion loan from the then-Soviet Union to Cambodia’s Vietnam-backed 1980s government emerged as the key talking point during a meeting between Foreign Minister Hor Namhong and Russia’s new ambassador to Cambodia yesterday, a ministry spokesman said.

The meeting between Namhong and Russian Ambassador Dmitry Tsvetkov was held behind closed doors, and a Russian Embassy representative declined to comment on the context in which the debt was brought up, or which side was the first to mention it.

“The important issue [of the meeting] was that our government owed the former Soviet Union; both sides agreed to try to resolve [the issue] in a friendly spirit in the interest of both countries,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Koy Kuong told reporters after the meeting.

“The minister of economics and finance was invited to visit Russia to discuss the resolution of the [debt],” he added, noting that a date for the trip had not been set.

Cambodia borrowed the money from Moscow in the 1980s, and several requests in recent years to have the debt forgiven have failed. The Kingdom has similarly sought the forgiveness of a $460 million debt to the US incurred under the Lon Nol regime, also to no avail.

Lera Merkulova, secretary to the Russian ambassador, said in a message yesterday that the meeting “was a protocol visit of H.E. Mr. Dmitry Tsvetkov to H.E. Mr. Hor Namhong”.

“During the 30 minutes long meeting, the main topics of international relations agenda were discussed,” she said.

“The sides also gave close attention to the issues of bilateral cooperation in trade and economic, investment spheres, cultural and humanitarian cooperation.”

[Vietnamese] Firm ‘evicts’ families ក្រុមហ៊ុនយួនបណ្តេញខ្មែរចេញពីដីរបស់ខ្លួននៅខេត្តក្រចេះ

People implore Sam Rainsy to help them after their houses were demolished/burned and they were evicted from their land by a Vietnamese company named Dai Nam.

Post by News cbd III.

Heng Kimheak, a representative of more than 400 families involved in a land dispute, sits in Phnom Penh’s Wat Botum park yesterday after travelling from Kratie province to submit a petition. Heng Chivoan

Tue, 6 May 2014

Khouth Sophak Chakrya

Representatives of over 400 families embroiled in a land dispute with a company in Kratie’s Snuol district travelled to Phnom Penh yesterday to submit a petition calling for the government to intervene.

“In the last few days, the company has hired Vietnamese forces to cooperate with Cambodian armed forces to evict us,” said Heng Kimheak, 50, one of the 35 village representatives that came to the capital.

In a letter obtained by the Post yesterday, a company called Bin Pheurk Rubber Plantation is accused of using vehicles to destroy crops spanning 2,025 hectares, an area that hundreds of villagers call home.

Only 84 families originate from Snuol district, the letter says, while the rest are impoverished migrants originally from Kampong Cham and Prey Veng province.

“Authorities and the company destroyed 266 houses owned by villagers on May 2 and 3,” said Khy Chhay, 58.

District police chief Chan Sokin said authorities were acting in cooperation with judicial police. The company could not be reached for comment.

Contact author: Khouth Sophak Chakrya

Police and authority try to disperse people from joining the CNRP's election campaign in Battambang 6/5/14

Post by Mu Sochua.

Sam Rainsy: Respect for human rights, not political theatre

Fri, 2 May 2014

Sam Rainsy's Letter to The Phnom Penh Post

Dear Editor,

I would like to express my disappointment with the headline of the Post’s Friday, April 18, article "Rainsy courts Vietnamese".

I had no electoral consideration in mind when giving my point of view on the issue you raised. My only concern then was to help the public understand that the CNRP will implement the rule of law regardless of any ethnic consideration.

As a matter of fact, given the current mindset of many Khmer-born citizens, I think the CNRP would lose more votes from the large Khmer-descent majority than it would gain from the small Vietnamese-descent minority.

But this is a political risk worth taking and an educational challenge worth facing for the sake of the nation, which must progress on the basis of the rule of law and respect for human rights.

Sam Rainsy

President,

Cambodia National Rescue Party

Cambodian Centre for Independent Media (CCIM) to complain to the ICC about the beating of VOD Radio reporter by the security forces នឹង​ប្ដឹង​ទៅ​តុលាការ​ករណី​កង​សន្តិសុខ​វាយ​អ្នក​យក​ព័ត៌មាន​របស់​វិទ្យុ​VOD

ដោយ ទីន ហ្សាការីយ៉ា 2014-05-06

កង​សន្តិសុខ​សាលា​រាជធានី​ភ្នំពេញ យាម​ការពារ​មិន​ឲ្យ​មាន​ការ​ជួប​ជុំ​គ្នា​ហែ​ក្បួន ជិត​ទីលាន​ប្រជាធិបតេយ្យ នៅ​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​២ ខែ​ឧសភា ឆ្នាំ​២០១៤។

RFA/Morm Moniroth

សាលា​រាជធានី​ភ្នំពេញ បាន​ប្រើប្រាស់​កង​កម្លាំង​សន្តិសុខ​ដែល​មិន​មែន​ជា​កង​កម្លាំង​អាជ្ញាធរ​មាន​សមត្ថកិច្ច ទៅ​បង្ក្រាប​ការ​ហែ​ក្បួន​នានា និង​បង្ក្រាប​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​ធ្វើ​បាតុកម្ម ហើយ​បាន​ប្រើ​អំពើ​ហិង្សា​មិន​រើស​មុខ​នោះ​ឡើយ។ មជ្ឈមណ្ឌល​កម្ពុជា ដើម្បី​ប្រព័ន្ធ​ផ្សព្វផ្សាយ​ឯករាជ្យ (CCIM) ឲ្យ​ដឹង​ថា គេ​នឹង​ដាក់​ពាក្យ​ប្ដឹង​ទៅ​តុលាការ​ក្នុង​ពេល​ឆាប់ៗ ពី​ករណី​កង​សន្តិសុខ​វាយ​អ្នក​យក​ព័ត៌មាន​របស់​វិទ្យុ​សំឡេង​ប្រជាធិបតេយ្យ (VOD) ម្នាក់​រង​របួស​ធ្ងន់​នោះ។

ការ​ប្រកាស​ដាក់​ពាក្យ​បណ្ដឹង​ទៅ​តុលាការ​នេះ នៅ​បន្ទាប់​ពី​ក្រសួង​ព័ត៌មាន បាន​ចេញ​សេចក្តី​ថ្លែងការណ៍​មួយ ចាត់​ទុក​ការ​ប្រើ​អំពើ​ហិង្សា​លើ​អ្នក​សារព័ត៌មាន គឺ​ជា​ការ​រំលោភ​បំពាន​ធ្ងន់ធ្ងរ​ដល់​សេរីភាព​សារព័ត៌មាន​នៅ​កម្ពុជា។

មេធាវី​របស់​មជ្ឈមណ្ឌល​កម្ពុជា ដើម្បី​ប្រព័ន្ធ​ផ្សព្វផ្សាយ​ឯករាជ្យ កំពុង​រៀប​ចំ​ពាក្យ​ប្ដឹង​ដាក់​ទៅ​សាលា​ដំបូង​រាជធានី​ភ្នំពេញ ប្ដឹង​ពី​ករណី​សន្តិសុខ​ខណ្ឌ​ដូនពេញ ប្រើ​អំពើ​ហិង្សា​លើ​អ្នក​យក​ព័ត៌មាន​របស់​ខ្លួន​ឲ្យ​របួស​ធ្ងន់ ក្នុង​ពេល​បំពេញ​បេសកកម្ម។

ប្រធាន​នាយកដ្ឋាន​អភិវឌ្ឍន៍​ប្រព័ន្ធ​ផ្សព្វផ្សាយ​នៃ​មជ្ឈមណ្ឌល​កម្ពុជា ដើម្បី​ប្រព័ន្ធ​ផ្សព្វផ្សាយ​ឯករាជ្យ លោក ណុប វី បាន​ឲ្យ​ដឹង​នៅ​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​៦ ឧសភា ថា មេធាវី​តំណាង​ឲ្យ​អង្គការ​លោក​កំពុង​ពិនិត្យ​មើល​ផ្លូវ​ច្បាប់ ក្នុង​ការ​ដាក់​ពាក្យ​ប្ដឹង​រក​អ្នក​ទទួល​ខុស​ត្រូវ ចំពោះ​ការ​ប្រើ​អំពើ​ហិង្សា​លើ​បុគ្គលិក​របស់​លោក ថា​តើ​ត្រូវ​ប្ដឹង​ទៅ​តុលាការ ប្ដឹង​អភិបាល​រាជធានី​ភ្នំពេញ ឬ​ប្ដឹង​អភិបាល​ខណ្ឌ​ដូនពេញ ក្នុង​ការ​ប្រើប្រាស់​សន្តិសុខ​ប្រើ​អំពើ​ហិង្សា​ធ្វើ​ឲ្យ លោក ឡាយ សាមៀន អ្នក​យក​ព័ត៌មាន​វិទ្យុ​សំឡេង​ប្រជាធិបតេយ្យ ឲ្យ​រង​របួស​ធ្ងន់​កាល​ពី​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​២ ឧសភា នោះ។

«សំឡេង»

លោក ណុប វី បន្ថែម​ថា លោក ឡាយ សាមៀន មាន​ស្ថានភាព​ធូរ​ស្រាល​បន្តិច​ហើយ ប៉ុន្តែ​លោក​មិន​ទាន់​បាន​និយាយ​ស្ដី និង​បរិភោគ​អាហារ​បាន​ស្រួល​នៅ​ឡើយ ពីព្រោះ​លោក​បាន​បាក់​ឆ្អឹង​ថ្ពាល់​ផ្នែក​ខាង​ក្រោម និង​របួស​រួប​រាង​កាយ​ខ្លាំង​ទៀត។ លោក ណុប វី បាន​រំឭក​ថា លោក ឡាយ សាមៀន រង​របួស​នៅ​ខណៈ​លោក​បាន​ថត​រូប​ក្រុម​សន្តិសុខ​បាន​ប្រើ​អំពើ​ហិង្សា​លើ​ព្រះតេជព្រះគុណ លួន សាវ៉ាត ស្រាប់​តែ​ភ្លាមៗ​នោះ ក្រុម​សន្តិសុខ​ទាំង​នោះ​បាន​បង្វែរ​មក​ដក​ហូត​ម៉ាស៊ីន​ថត ប្រើ​អំពើ​ហិង្សា​លើ លោក ឡាយ សាមៀន វិញ។

«សំឡេង»

ឆ្លើយ​តប​នឹង​បញ្ហា​នេះ មន្ត្រី​នាំ​ពាក្យ​សាលា​រាជធានី​ភ្នំពេញ លោក ឡុង ឌីម៉ង់ មាន​ប្រសាសន៍​ថា ការ​ចង់​ប្ដឹង​សាលា​រាជធានី​ភ្នំពេញ ដើម្បី​ឲ្យ​ទទួល​ខុស​ត្រូវ​លើ​ការ​ប្រើប្រាស់​អំពើ​ហិង្សា​លើ​អ្នក​សារព័ត៌មាន​នេះ ជា​សិទ្ធិ​របស់​ស្ថាប័ន​មជ្ឈមណ្ឌល​កម្ពុជា ដើម្បី​ប្រព័ន្ធ​ផ្សព្វផ្សាយ​ឯករាជ្យ។ ប៉ុន្តែ លោក​អះអាង​ថា អ្នក​ដែល​ទទួល​ខុស​ត្រូវ​លើ​ករណី​ប្រើប្រាស់​អំពើ​ហិង្សា​នេះ គឺ​អ្នក​ដែល​ហែ​ក្បួន​កាល​ពី​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​២ ឧសភា គឺ​សំដៅ​លើ​គណបក្ស​សង្គ្រោះ​ជាតិ។

«សំឡេង»

ក្រសួង​ព័ត៌មាន បាន​ចេញ​សេចក្តី​ថ្លែងការណ៍​មួយ​កាល​ពី​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​៤ ឧសភា ដោយ​ចាត់​ទុក​ការ​គំរាម​កំហែង អំពើ​ហិង្សា ការ​រឹប​អូស​សម្ភារៈ និង​ការ​ប្រមាថ​ចំពោះ​អ្នក​សារព័ត៌មាន ជា​ការ​រំលោភ​បំពាន​ធ្ងន់ធ្ងរ​ដល់​សេរីភាព​សារព័ត៌មាន​នៅ​កម្ពុជា។ ក្រសួង​ព័ត៌មាន អំពាវនាវ​ដល់​ក្រុម​អ្នក​តវ៉ា បាតុករ និង​អាជ្ញាធរ​មាន​សមត្ថកិច្ច កង​កម្លាំង​រក្សា​សន្តិសុខ​សណ្ដាប់ធ្នាប់ ត្រូវ​ប្រកាន់​យក​នូវ​ការ​អនុវត្ត​សិទ្ធិ​សេរីភាព និង​សមត្ថកិច្ច​របស់​ខ្លួន​ឲ្យ​បាន​ត្រឹមត្រូវ​តាម​ច្បាប់។

ក្រៅ​ពី​ប្រើ​អំពើ​ហិង្សា​លើ​ព្រះតេជព្រះគុណ លួន សាវ៉ាត និង​លោក ឡាយ សាមៀន ឲ្យ​រង​របួស​ធ្ងន់​នោះ ក្រុម​សន្តិសុខ​ក៏​ប្រើប្រាស់​អំពើ​ហិង្សា​វាយ​អ្នក​យក​ព័ត៌មាន​ជា​ជន​បរទេស​ម្នាក់​ទៀត​ដែរ។

Hang Meas TV: Rich and powerful people grabbed villagers' land in Poipet who owned them more than 20 years already

Post by ខែ្មរ សុវណ្ណភូមិ.

Sam Rainsy and Kem Sokha campaign in Pursat 6/5/14 ឃោសនាបោះឆ្នោត ខេត្តពោធិ៍សាត់

Post by Sam Rainsy.

Post by បវត្តិសាស្រ្ត និង សង្គមខ្មែរ បសខ-The Khmer History and Society.

Post by អ្នករាយការណ៍ពិសេស.

Post by Virak chun.

Opposition youth detained [This is typical of communist rule!]

Tue, 6 May 2014

Vong Sokheng

A Cambodia National Rescue Party youth activist was briefly detained by police in Phnom Penh’s Russey Keo district yesterday and stripped of more than 300 pro-opposition CDs he was ferrying to CNRP district headquarters there, police said.

Youth activist Im Nam Kea, 29, was delivering a box of CDs containing songs about Koh Tral – an island the opposition accuses the government of having wrongfully ceded to Vietnam – to be used by the CNRP in campaigning for the upcoming district and provincial council elections, which only allow elected commune councillors to vote.

Kea was questioned for about an hour before being released. Officials yesterday gave differing reasons for his detention.

“The police and village security guard suspected him of delivering illegal drugs in the commune and called on him to stop, but he tried to run away, so we have to detain him for questioning, but it was not an arrest,” said Huy Mora, chief of Russey Keo’s Chraing Chamres I commune.

National Election Committee secretary-general Tep Nytha said Kea was detained because a CNRP banner attached to his motorbike constituted unauthorised campaigning, and “he did not inform local authorities” beforehand.

Meanwhile, district CNRP chief Kin Narun said that Kea had been initially accused of making insults in public.

Opposition defies ban again [The ban is unconstitutional!]

Cambodia National Rescue Party supporters drive motorbikes and tuk-tuks though Phnom Penh during a campaign rally for council elections. Heng Chivoan

Tue, 6 May 2014

Meas Sokchea and Alice Cuddy

Hundreds of opposition supporters once again defied a ban on public assembly yesterday by rallying through the streets of Phnom Penh – and once again their event remained free from the type of government-inflicted violence seen last week.

A motorcade set off from the Cambodia National Rescue Party headquarters in the capital’s Meanchey district for the second day running at about 3:30pm yesterday, leading supporters around the city.

While the activity defied a newly reinforced ban on public assembly – which will remain in place for the duration of the council election campaign – and follows the violent suppression of CNRP supporters on Thursday and Friday, those joining the march said they were not afraid.

“They can hit the protesters, but we want a change in government, so we will keep coming back. There is too much corruption. We need to change that,” 45-year-old Hor Leksmey said. “We want justice, we want freedom.”

Another supporter, 28-year-old Oun Sitha, agreed.

“We want this to be a real election,” he said, referring to the disputed results of the national polls in July.

“We still want to change the current government but we will try to make a change now in the [local] elections,” he said.

Villagers in Svay Rieng accused authority of ignoring Vietnam's planting of border stake inside Cambodian territory អ្នកភូមិ​​នៅ​ស្វាយរៀង​ចោទ​អាជ្ញាធរ​ថា​មិន​អើពើ​​រឿង​វៀតណាម​បោះ​បង្គោល​ចូល​ដី​ខ្មែរ

Vietnam secretly planted borders stakes deep inside Cambodian territory in Svay Rieng province.

Post by Vibol Mao.

ដោយ​ ​ហ៊ុំ ចំរើន 2014-05-05

ស្ដាប់ ឬ ទាញ​យក​សំឡេង 

តម្រុយ​បង្គោល​ដែល​ពលរដ្ឋ​អះអាង​ថា អាជ្ញាធរ​វៀតណាម ចូល​មក​បោះ​លើ​ដីស្រែ​ចម្ការ​របស់​អ្នក​ភូមិ​នៅ​ស្រុក​រំដួល ខេត្ត​ស្វាយរៀង។ រូបថត​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​០២ ឧសភា ឆ្នាំ២០១៤។ This is a border stake just freshly planted by the Vietnamese authority deep inside Cambodian territory in Rumduol district, Svay Rieng province.

RFA/Hum Chamroeun

អ្នកភូមិ​នៅ​ឃុំ​ថ្នាធ្នង់ ស្រុក​រំដួល ខេត្ត​ស្វាយរៀង ចោទប្រកាន់​អាជ្ញាធរ ស្រុក​នេះ​ថា មិន​អើពើ​សកម្មភាព​វៀតណាម មក​បោះ​បង្គោល​ចូល​ដីស្រែ​ចម្ការ​របស់​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​តាម​ជាយដែន​កម្ពុជា វៀតណាម។ ពួកគាត់​បាន​សម្ដែង​ក្ដី​បារម្ភ​ថា ដី​ដែល​វៀតណាម ចូល​មក​បោះ​បង្គោល​ទាំង​នោះ វា​នឹង​បាត់បង់​ក្នុង​ពេល​ឆាប់ៗ ប្រសិនបើ​អាជ្ញាធរ​នៅ​តែ​បន្ត​ឲ្យ​គេ​ចូល​មក​បោះ​បង្គោល​លើ​ទឹក​ដី​ខ្មែរ​ដោយ​សេរី ដែល​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​ធ្វើស្រែ​ចម្ការ​ជា​យូរលង់​មក​នោះ។

អ្នកភូមិ​ម្ចាស់​ស្រែចម្ការ​ដែល​រស់​នៅ​តាម​ជាយដែន​កម្ពុជា-​វៀតណាម អះ​អាង​ថា ដីស្រែ​ចម្ការ​របស់​ពួកគាត់​ជាច្រើន​ហិកតារ រួមមាន​ដីចម្ការ​ស្វាយចន្ទី​ផង បាន​ដាំ​ដុះ​អាស្រ័យ​ផល​លើ​ផ្ទៃដី​នោះ ត​ពី​ដូនតា​ជា​យូរលង់​មក​ហើយ។ តែ​ថ្មីៗ​ត្រូវ​បាន​អាជ្ញាធរ​របស់​វៀតណាម ចូល​មក​បោះ​បង្គោល​លើ​ដី​ដែល​ខ្លួន​ធ្លាប់​ដាំ​ដុះ​អាស្រ័យ​ផល​មក​នោះ ស្ទើរតែ​អស់​ទៅ​ហើយ។ អ្នកភូមិ​បញ្ជាក់​ថា ចាប់​តាំង​ពី​វៀតណាម​ចូល​មក​បោះ​បង្គោល មក​គេ​តែងតែ​ដាក់​កម្លាំង​ការពារ​យ៉ាង​តឹងរ៉ឹង​លើ​ផ្ទៃដី​នោះ​ជា​បន្តបន្ទាប់។

អ្នកភូមិ​ដែល​វៀតណាម បោះ​បង្គោល​លើ​ដី​ម្នាក់ គឺ​លោក ថន សុខនឿន រស់នៅ​ភូមិ​ធ្នង់ ឃុំ​ថ្នាធ្នង់ ស្រុក​រំដួល ថ្លែង​បញ្ជាក់​ថា ដី​ស្វាយចន្ទី​របស់​លោក​ប្រមាណ ៤​ហិកតារ ត្រូវ​បាន​អាជ្ញាធរ​វៀតណាម មាន​ប៉ូលិស និង​ទាហាន​ផង បាន​ចូល​មក​បោះ​បង្គោល​តម្រុយ​លើ​ដី​របស់​ខ្លួន​តាំងពី​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​៣ មេសា មក​ម្ល៉េះ។ លោក​ថា​ពេល​នោះ​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​បាន​នាំ​គ្នា​ផ្អើល​ទៅ​មើល ហើយ​តវ៉ា​ជាមួយ​អាជ្ញាធរ​ វៀតណាម មិន​ឲ្យ​បោះ​បង្គោល​លើទឹក​ដី​ខ្មែរ​នោះ​ទេ។ ប៉ុន្តែ​អាជ្ញាធរ​វៀតណាម​ទាំងនោះ​មិនបាន​ក្រែង​រអា​ពី​ការ​តវ៉ា​របស់​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​ខ្មែរ​ឡើយ ហើយ​ពួកគេ​បន្ត​បោះ​បង្គោល​តម្រុយ​បាន​ជា​ច្រើន​កន្លែង បាន​ប៉ះពាល់​លើ​ដី​ស្រែចម្ការ​របស់​អ្នកភូមិ​ប្រមាណ ៣០​ហិកតារ។

លោក​ថា បន្ទាប់ពី​នាំ​គ្នា​ទៅ​រារាំង​អាជ្ញាធរ​វៀតណាម​មិន​ឲ្យ​បោះ​បង្គោល​លើ​ដី​របស់​ខ្លួន​មិន​បាន​សម្រេច ក៏​នាំគ្នា​ទៅ​ប្ដឹង​អាជ្ញាធរ​ខ្មែរ​ឲ្យ​ជួយ​ដោះស្រាយ​បញ្ហា​នេះ ប៉ុន្តែ​អាជ្ញាធរ​ហាក់​ធ្វើ​ព្រងើយ មិន​អើពើ​ពី​ទុក្ខ​លំបាក​របស់​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​ទេ៖ «ព្រោះ​អី​វា​ច្រើន​ជំនាន់​បង​អើយ តាំងពី​តា​ខ្ញុំ​ឪ​ខ្ញុំ បន្ទាប់មក​ខ្ញុំ វា​ប្រមាណ​ចង់​ជាង ១០០​ហើយ​កាន់កាប់​រហូត។ ហើយ​រហូតដល់​មាន​បង្កាន់ដៃ​គ្រប់គ្រង​ដី​ទៀត​បង​! ថា​ហួសចិត្ត​​រឿង​ថា​អាជ្ញាធរ​មក​មិន​ថា​កាន់​ជើង​ខាង​គេ តែ​អត់​ជួយ​ឈឺឆ្អាល គេ​និយាយ​ថា គេ​អត់​ដឹង​ដែរ គេ​តាម​តែ​ថ្នាក់​លើ​ឲ្យ​យាម​បង្គោល​ព្រំដែន យាម​ហើយ​មិន​ធ្វើ​ម៉េច​គេ បើ​មេ​ដាក់​មក​អ៊ីចឹង​ដែរ។ ...ទឹកដី​អាយុជីវិត​របស់​ខ្ញុំ ហើយពី​ណា​មិន​សោកស្ដាយ កូន​ខ្មែរ​មួយ​រូប ទោះ​មិនមែន​ដី​ខ្ញុំ ក៏​ខ្ញុំ​មានការ​សោកស្ដាយ​ដែរ។ ខ្ញុំ​ជា​កូន​ខ្មែរ​ម្នាក់​សោកស្ដាយ​យំ​រាល់ថ្ងៃ នឹក​គិត​ថា ដី​មិន​ងាយ​រក​បាន​ទេ​បង!»។

បង្គោល​តម្រុយ​ដែល​អ្នក​ភូមិ​អះអាង​ថា អាជ្ញាធរ​វៀតណាម ចូល​មក​បោះ​លើ​ទឹកដី​ខ្មែរ តាម​ដីស្រែ និង​ដីចម្ការ​ស្វាយចន្ទី ស្ថិតនៅ​ចំណុច​ភូមិ​ធ្នង់ ឃុំ​ថ្នាធ្នង់ ស្រុក​រំដួល ខេត្ត​ព្រៃវែង។ ដោយ​អាជ្ញាធរ​ទាំង​នោះ​បញ្ជាក់​ប្រាប់​អ្នក​ភូមិ​ថា តំបន់​បោះ​បង្គោល​នោះ​ជា​តំបន់​ស មិន​អនុញ្ញាត​ឲ្យ​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​យក​ដី​លក់ដូរ ឬ​ធ្វើស្រែ​ចម្ការ​នៅ​ទីនោះ​ទៀត​ឡើយ។

អ្នកភូមិ​ដែល​ត្រូវ​វៀតណាម បោះ​បង្គោល​លើ​ដី​ម្នាក់ទៀត លោក ញាន ឡន រៀប​រាប់​ថា អាជ្ញាធរ​វៀតណាម​បោះ​បង្គោល​តម្រុយ​លើ​ដី​ស្រែ​ពី​ដូនតា​របស់​ខ្លួន ប្រមាណ ៣​ហិកតារ យក​អស់​គ្មាន​សល់ ដោយ​ពុំ​មាន​អាជ្ញាធរ​ណា​អើពើ​ពី​រឿង​នេះ​ឡើយ។ លោក ញាន ឡន បញ្ជាក់​ថា លោក​សោកស្ដាយ​ទៅ​លើ​ដី​របស់​ខ្លួន​ដែល​គេ​ចូល​មក​បោះ​បង្គោល​ដោយ​សេរី​នោះ ហើយ​ដី​នោះ​វា​អាច​នឹង​បាត់បង់​នៅ​ថ្ងៃ​ណាមួយ​ជាក់​ជា​ពុំខាន ប្រសិនបើ​អាជ្ញាធរ​ខ្មែរ​នៅ​តែ​ពុំ​មាន​វិធានការ​ដោះស្រាយ​ឲ្យ​បាន​ទាន់​ពេល​នោះ។

លោក​ថា ការ​ថ្លែង​ដូចនេះ ដោយសារ​អាជ្ញាធរ​វៀតណាម ទប់ស្កាត់​មិន​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​ខ្មែរ​ធ្វើស្រែ​ចម្ការ​លើ​ដី​របស់​ខ្លួន​ដូច​ពេល​មុនៗ​ឡើយ៖ «អាជ្ញាធរ​ទាហាន​វៀតណាម គេ​ថា​អ៊ីចឹង​តែម្ដង គេ​ថា​នេះ​ទឹកដី​ខ្មែរ​ត្រឹម​នេះ វៀតណាម​វា​យក​អ៊ីចឹង​តែម្ដង។ ខ្ញុំ​ប្រជាជន​ខ្ញុំ​អត់​សុខចិត្ត​ទេ ព្រោះថា​ខ្ញុំ​រស់​នៅ​ក្នុង​រាជរដ្ឋាភិបាល​មែនពិត ប៉ុន្តែ​ខ្ញុំ​តវ៉ា​រឿង​ដី​ហ្នឹង​ដែរ។ ព្រោះ​មិនមែន​ថា ឲ្យ​គេ​យក​តាម​ចិត្ត ហើយ​អត់​មាន​សិទ្ធិ​តវ៉ា​ទេ ព្រោះ​ប្រជាជន​មាន​សិទ្ធ​តវ៉ា​អ៊ីចឹង។ ហើយ​រឿង​ទឹកដី ដើម​ត្នោត ខ្ញុំ​ថា​ដែរ ខ្ញុំ​ថា​ចុះ​បង ដើម​ត្នោត​ជាប់ ១​ពាន់​ដើម បង​ឯង​គិត​ម៉េច? គេ​ថា​គេ​ដាក់​ពាក់​កណ្ដាល​ឲ្យ​យើង ខ្ញុំ​ថា​ចប់​ហើយ​អ៊ីចឹង​នោះ។ ខ្ញុំ​និយាយ​ត្រង់​តែម្ដង ខ្ញុំ​អ្នក​ពូកែ​រឹង​រុះ​ដែរ​ហ្នឹង ខ្ញុំ​តវ៉ា​ដែរ​បើ​ខ្ញុំ​ធ្វើ​ប្រជាជន​នៅ​កន្លង​ហ្នឹង»។

Rithy Phach, a military policeman, threatened to kill councillor Sin Rozeth and parliamentary candidate Sourn Chamroeun after they stopped three Vietnamese from digging for treasure at Battambang Bridge

Watch videos of Miss Rozeth and Mr. Chamroeun stopping the Vietnamese men digging for treasure here.

Post by ទូច រស្មី.

Phnom Penh court under tight security during questioning 25 protesters

 

 1 of 5  

PHNOM PENH (The Cambodia Herald) – The Phnom Penh Municipal Court heard Tuesday case of 25 people arrested at violent clashes on Veng Sreng Street, at Yakjin factory and in front of Stung Meanchey pagoda. 

The security in front of the court was tightened as anti-riot police were seen deployed. Streets in front of and around the court were blocked with barricades. 

Hundreds of protesters were gathering and shouting near the barricades to demand the release of the arrestees including Vorn Pov, President of the Independent and Democracy and Informal Economic Association. 

In room number 1, the court asked only two people among ten arrested at Yakjin factory, but Vorn Pov, Chan Puthisak and Theng Savoeun were not among those questioned today. 

In room number 2, the court questioned ten people who were among 13 arrested following the violent clashes on Veng Sreng Street that left at least five people dead, and over 40 injured. 

Regarding the case of SL factory, the judge has already questioned the two arrestees, and will announce their verdicts on May 30. 

The court will hear the case of Vorn Pov and other protesters on May 20.

Probe shows French family were murdered in Cambodia

AFPProbe shows French family were murdered in Cambodia

Phnom Penh (AFP) - A Frenchman and his four young children, whose skeletal remains were found in a submerged car in Cambodia two years ago, were murdered, a judge said Tuesday, after a probe by forensic experts.

The family's badly decomposed bodies were discovered inside widower Laurent Vallier's white 4x4 vehicle after it was retrieved from a large pond behind his house in southern Kampong Speu province in January 2012.

Vallier, 42, and his two sons and two daughters -- aged between two and nine -- had been missing since September 2011.

Chhim Rithy, a Cambodian investigating judge at Kampong Speu, said tests carried out in conjunction with French experts on the remains showed that Vallier and three of the four children did not die from drowning.

"It means they died before being (put in the car) and were pushed into the water," Chhim Rithy said.

Only the youngest child was alive before the car was pushed into the pond, he added, citing French forensic work on the bones.

"I and the French side have jointly concluded that it is a murder case," the judge said.

Ten French investigators, including a judge and scientific and forensic police, arrived in Cambodia in March last year to help probe the deaths.

Days later the French embassy in Phnom Penh said the investigation had ruled out the possibility of suicide.

Bloodstains found inside Vallier's house were not his, tests showed, while a pair of flip-flops recovered from the driver's side of the car did not belong to the father.

Anonymous Declares War on Cambodian Government Following Arrests

• 
• By David Gilbert 
  May 6, 2014

Anonymous has 'declared war' on the government of Cambodia after two more of its members were arrested for attacking a government website.

Following the arrest of two Anonymous members last month, the authorities in Cambodia have now confirmed the arrest of two month Anonymous members for their part in taking the Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) website offline for two hours.

"We arrested two men and they were both sent to the ACU's headquarters at 2 a.m. today," ACU chairman Om Yentieng told The Cambodia Daily. "We have collected enough evidence to prove the two perpetrators are guilty of hacking activities and we will send them straight to court."

The two men have not been named so far.

The arrests come a month after Anonymous Cambodia members Bun Khing Mongkul Panha and Chou Songheng - both 21 - were arrested and charged for attacking 30 government websites and stealing data.

Declare War

The latest arrests have also led Anonymous to 'declare war' on the authorities in Cambodia.

In a video posted online after the arrests, the group said:

"You have made an enemy of Anonymous. You have angered us considerably and we now pose a significant threat to you. You have once again disregarded the requests of the people, and continue to operate for your own unfair, selfish and pathetic gain.

"We are not a small group of people residing in Cambodia for you to ignore. We are an organised, globally active collective of like-minded individuals and our message to you is clear: we declare war on the system you have imposed on us, your worst enemy is now your own people."

Attack government websites

Cambodian Factory Workers End Strike, Return to Work ‘Reluctantly’

Striking garment workers demonstrate in Phnom Penh, Dec. 31, 2013.

RFA

Thousands of Cambodian garment and footwear factory workers returned to work on Monday after a court ruled that they would lose their jobs if they did not end their strike, and after employers agreed to consider their demands for a U.S. $50 one-time bonus, prominent union leaders said. 

Workers at dozens of factories in special economic zones in Svay Rieng and Kampong Cham provinces had gone on protest since late last month, some of them after learning that colleagues at two plants had received the U.S. $50 bonus payments for avoiding recent walkouts. 

Most of the workers returned to work reluctantly after a court order over the weekend warned they would be fired if they did not, Ath Thon, head of the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers Democratic Union (CCAWDU), told RFA’s Khmer Service. 

“This Monday workers at most of the factories returned to work and only those at two or three factories are still on strike. Those factories are in Kampong Cham and Kandal province,” Ath Thon said. 

“The workers were forced to return to work by court’s orders which said that they would be fired [if they didn’t],” he said.

“They are not happy about returning. Only a few factories resolved [their disputes] with their workers before the workers’ return.” 

Don't send refugees to Cambodia, human rights groups warn

Human rights groups have voiced concern about the conditions refugees would face in Cambodia, if the Australian Government goes ahead with a plan to send people there from offshore detention centres.

• Australia 'requests refugee deal with Cambodia'
• Is Cambodia next for a refugee deal with Australia?
• Watch Dateline tonight at 9.30pm on SBS ONE.

Activists say existing refugees are already facing poverty and mistreatment, and Cambodia’s record on corruption and human rights mean it’s not a suitable place to send more of them.

"Corruption is pretty widespread, it’s one of the worst in the world," Ou Virak from the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights tells David O’Shea from SBS’s Dateline.

David travelled to the capital Phnom Penh to find out what refugees from Australia could expect for a report to be broadcast on Dateline tonight at 9.30pm on SBS ONE.

"You cannot turn to the government for protection, that’s speaking as a Cambodian citizen, imagine refugees," Virak says.

Many already there have been forced to turn to support groups like the Jesuit Refugee Service in order to survive.

"We're looking at stateless people, we're looking at trafficked people, labour migration, and the land evictions, all of which are key issues for Cambodia to solve before it can take on the issues of refugees," says Sister Denise Coghlan from the JRS.

She’s lived in Cambodia for 24 years, helping provide support, accommodation and food to refugees. She has no time for Australia’s potential plan.

"It’s trying to shelve its moral responsibility and its legal responsibility off onto a country that is very poor, that has much less space than Australia has and has not a good record in human rights," she says.

Her group has helped provide a loan to a group of ethnic Rohingyas from Myanmar so they can establish a business selling Indian-style bread on the street.

"If the JRS wasn’t here, we’d all be dead," one of them tells David, but life is still very hard.

"The locals can't survive. Even the Cambodians can't make a living. How can I?" he says.

They also tell David that what they do earn is also often extorted by police.

The Cambodian Government said last week that it has agreed in principle to Australia’s request to accept refugees, but the Australian Government declined to comment to Dateline.

Human Rights Watch has also tried to find out more, including meeting with Australia’s Ambassador to Cambodia, Alison Burrows.

"It ended up being a one sided conversation where I told her what Human Rights Watch thought about this idea," says Phil Robertson from HRW. "She took notes and said she’d send the note back to Canberra."

"We view this as a fundamental threat to refugee protection in the region, so it will become a major issue for us if it goes forward. We will fight it tooth and nail."

Miss Sin Rozeth campaigns for municipal election in Battambang ទឹកចិត្តកូនខ្មែរខេត្តបាត់ដំបងចង់ដូរ!!! ថ្ងៃទី4/5/2014

Post by Sin Rozeth.

Kem Sokha's election campaign 5/5/14 កឹម សុខា បិទកម្មវិធីហែក្បួនថ្ងៃទី៥

Post by Ly Sovichea.

Post by ប្រភពចំលង ចែកចាយ.

Sam Rainsy's speech to people at Kratie provincial Sport Stadium សម រង្សុី ជួបជាមួយប្រជាពលរដ្ឋនៅពហុកីឡាដ្ឋាន ខេត្តក្រចេះ

Post by អ្នករាយការណ៍ពិសេស.

Post by Sam Rainsy.

Security forces allowed opposition's election rally to break through សមត្ថកិច្ចនិងកងកម្លាំងរង់ចាំយើងជានិច្ច

Post by Mounh Sarath.