Khmer News
May 10, 2011 Leave a comment
៧០លានដុល្លារថតរឿងហូលីវូដនៅកម្ពុជា
September 26, 2010 Leave a comment
Source: Sabay
អត្ថបទ៖ សុខ ឧត្ដម
កែសម្រួល៖ ចេង វណ្ណា
សន្និសីទដ៏ធំ រវាងក្រុមផលិតករភាពយន្តហូលីវូដ គឺលោកតូនី(Tony Schiena) និងមន្ត្រីជាន់ខ្ពស់កម្ពុជា មកពីក្រសួងព័ត៌មានកាលពីម្សិលមិញ បានឈានដល់ការសម្រេចអោយថតរឿង «មហាអធិរាជខ្មែរ» ដែលលើកឡើងពីប្រវត្តិពិតរបស់មហាក្សត្រខ្មែរដ៏ល្បីល្បាញគឺព្រះបាទជ័យវរ្ម័ន ទី៧ ជាផ្លូវការហើយ ដោយគ្រោងចំណាយថវិកាដល់៧០លានដុល្លារ និងថតទាំងស្រុងនៅលើទឹកដីនៃព្រះរាជាណាចក្រកម្ពុជាផ្ទាល់តែ ម្ដង។
ឯកឧត្ដម ម៉ៅ អាយុទ្ធ រដ្ឋលេខាធិការក្រសួងព័ត៌មាន បានអោយ”សប្បាយ”ដឹងថា ក្រោយការសិក្សាលម្អិតពីប្រវត្តិដ៏អស្ចារ្យរបស់ព្រះមហាក្សត្រ ខ្មែរ គឺព្រះបាទជ័យវរ្ម័នទី៧ ក្រុមផលិតករហូលីវូដ និងផលិតករនៃប្រទេសហូឡង់ បានដាក់សំណើរសុំថតប្រវត្តិមហាក្សត្រខ្មែរមួយអង្គ នេះ នៅលើទឹកដីកម្ពុជា។ ឯក ឧត្ដម ថ្លែងថា «តាមការពិភាក្សា ខាងហូលីវូដ នឹងចំណាយប្រាក់ចំនួន៧០លានដុល្លារ ហើយថតរឿងនេះនៅលើទឹកដីអង្គរយើងទាំងស្រុង នាអំឡុងខែមករាឆ្នាំក្រោយ ហើយសន្យាថានឹងប្រើរយៈពេលបីឆ្នាំថតអោយចប់ស្រេចមហាភាពយន្តនេះ »។ មន្ត្រីជាន់ខ្ពស់រូបនេះ បន្តថា ជាជោគវាសនាធំធេងណាស់ ដែលផលិតករហូលីវូដដ៏ល្បីល្បាញរបស់ពិភពលោក បានសម្រេចចងក្រងប្រវត្តិរបស់ព្រះមហាក្សត្រខ្មែរ ដើម្បីថតជាខ្សែ ភាពយន្ត ខណៈដែលរឿងនេះ ទោះ១០ ឬ២០ឆ្នាំទៀត ក៏កម្ពុជាគ្មានលទ្ធភាពថតអោយល្អឥតខ្ចោះដូចផលិតកម្មនេះ ដែរ។ ឯកឧត្ដមនិយាយថា «កម្ពុជាប្រគល់រឿងនេះ អោយហូលីវូដថត មិនមែនមានន័យថាកម្ពុជាគ្មានអ្នកផលិតនោះទេ ប៉ុន្តែរឿងប្រវត្តិសាស្ត្របែបនេះ ដាច់ខាតមិនអាចថតលេងសើច ដោយប្រើដើមទុនតិចតួច ហើយធ្វើអោយខូចភាពអស្ចារ្យក្នុងជំនាន់ព្រះអង្គឡើយ»។
ឯកឧត្តម ម៉ៅ អាយុទ្ធ
សន្និសីទ ដែលប្រកាសអោយដឹងពីគម្រោង ថតរឿងព្រះបាទជ័យវរ្ម័នទី៧ នៅលើទឹកដីខ្មែរ នាដើមឆ្នាំក្រោយ ខាងមុខនោះ មិនបានបញ្ជាក់ថា តារាខ្មែរណាម្នាក់ នឹងបានដើរតួសំខាន់ក្នុងខ្សែរឿងឡើយ ខណៈដែលតំណាងផលិតករហូលីវូដ អះអាងជាសាធារណៈប្រាប់ដល់អង្គសន្និសីទថា តួអង្គព្រះបាទជ័យវរ្ម័នទី៧ គឺសម្ដែងដោយ តារាល្បីល្បាញ ចន ស៊ីណា ដែលមានមាឌធំខ្ពស់ និងតួឯកស្រី គឺសម្ដែងដោយ តារាស្រីកូរ៉េ នាង ហាន់ ជីអ៊ុន ព្រមទាំងតារាហូលីវូដ អែនជឹលីណា ជូលី និង លី លានជា (Jet Li) ទៀតផង។
លោក តូនី ជាផលិតករ និងជាតារាសម្ដែងល្បីល្បាញ ក្នុងក្រុមហ៊ុនហូលីវូដ និយាយថា «តាមរយៈការសិក្សា ពីលក្ខណៈសម្បត្តិ និងរូបរាង របស់ព្រះបាទ ជ័យវរ្ម័នទី៧និង តួអង្គពាក់ព័ន្ធ ខ្ញុំយល់ថា មិនសក្ដិសមនឹង តារាខ្មែរណាម្នាក់ឡើយ ប៉ុន្តែយើងក៏បានផ្ដល់ឱកាសអោយពលរដ្ឋខ្មែរ បានដើរតួរាយរង ពិសេសក្នុងតួជាកងទ័ពដែលត្រូវប្រើដល់អាចរាប់ពាន់នាក់ក្នុង ពេលថតផងដែរ»។ លោកអះអាងថា ក្រុមហ៊ុនហូលីវូដ នឹងដំណើរការថតរឿងនេះ នៅលើទឹកដីអង្គរ ដោយនឹងប្រឹងសម្រាំងអោយត្រឹមត្រូវតាមប្រវត្តិសាស្ត្រដែលបានចូល រួមសិក្សាដោយអ្នកប្រវត្តិវិទូខ្មែរ មុនពេលឈានដល់ការប្រកាសក្នុងសន្និសីទនេះ អោយបាន១០០% ។
ផលិតករហូលីវូដ តូនី
លោក ទេព រិនដារ៉ូ និង លោក យុត្ថារ៉ា ឆានី ព្រមនឹងភិរយា ថ្លែងក្នុងអារម្មណ៍រំភើបថា បើទោះជាខ្លួនមិនត្រូវបានជ្រើសអោយដើរតួ ក្នុងរឿងប្រវត្តិសាស្ត្រខ្មែរដ៏សំខាន់ដំបូងនេះក៏ដោយ ក៏ពួកបង្ហាញទស្សនៈស្របគ្នាប្រកបដោយការ សប្បាយចិត្ត។ តារាជើងចាស់ទាំងពីរ បានថ្លែងក្នុងឱកាសសន្និសីទកាលពីម្សិលមិញថា «ពួកយើងមិនគិតថា មិនគប្បីដែលខាងផលិតករហូលីវូដ មិនជ្រើសតារាខ្មែរ អោយដើរតួសំខាន់នោះទេ ព្រោះពួកគាត់ដឹងថា តួយ៉ាងម៉េចទើបស៊ីនឹងប្រវត្តិនាអតីតកាលនោះ ដូច្នេះយើងមានតែសប្បាយ ពេលក្រុមផលិតភាពយន្តដ៏ល្បីល្បាញ លើពិភពលោកនេះ សម្រេចថតរឿងរបស់ខ្មែរនៅលើទឹកដីខ្មែរ ដើម្បីបង្ហាញពីសក្ដានុពលខ្មែរ អោយសកលលោកបានឃើញនាពេលអនាគត »។ មិនទាន់មានការអះអាងថា រឿងនេះ នឹងអាចត្រូវបញ្ចាំង ក្នុងទីផ្សារស្រុកខ្មែរ ឬយ៉ាងណានៅឡើយទេ ប៉ុន្តែខ្សែរឿងនេះ នឹងទទួលជោគជ័យខ្លាំង ក្រោយពេលថតចប់ ខណៈដែលតួសម្ដែងសុទ្ធតែជាតារាល្បីលើលោក និងមានការចំណាយដល់៧០លានដុល្លារ ក្នុងដំណើរថតរឿង ដែលជាចំនួនច្រើនលើសលប់មិនធ្លាប់មាន ក្នុងចំណោមខ្សែភាពយន្តខ្មែរ ដែលធ្លាប់តាក់តែងឡើង តាំងពីអតីតកាលនោះ។
លោកទេពវិនដារូ
Beautification claims first home
August 31, 2010 Leave a comment
TUESDAY, 31 AUGUST 2010 15:02
RANN REUY
PHNOMPENHPOST
Photo by: Rann Reuy Police gather near homes in Siem Reap’s Salakamroek commune that are set to be cleared as part of a beautification project that could ultimately displace 300 families.
Siem Reap province
ABOUT 50 Siem Reap city officials and hired workers yesterday demolished one home in Salakamroek commune and promised to return in a week’s time to clear two more as part of a beautification effort that officials say will ultimately displace some 300 families.
Oeun Pov, the deputy governor of Siem Reap city, said officials had initially planned to tear down all three structures on Monday, but had postponed the destruction of two houses after the owners begged for a grace period.
A total of 32 families in Salamkroek’s Wat Damnak village are set to be displaced by a road and park project, which is being funded by a US$300,000 grant from France and is part of the broader beautification effort.
Oeun Pov said half of the affected families in Wat Damnak village had already accepted a compensation package of US$300 each and a 1-hectare plot of land in Banteay Srei district’s Run Ta Ek commune, as well as lumber and corrugated sheeting to help with the construction of new homes.
He said that the families were not eligible for land titles “because they live along the river”.
Moeun Naisim, the widow whose house was torn down by officials yesterday, said the relocation site is unacceptable because it is more than 30 kilometres from Siem Reap city.
“I do not have a motorbike, I do not have a bicycle. How can I live there?” she said.
Cheam Yeap cursed those who cursed Hun Sen
August 31, 2010 Leave a comment
By Khmerizarion
Source: DAP News
Mr. Cheap Yeap (pictured), a senior MP from the ruling Cambodian People’s Party and chairman of the National Assembly’s Finance and Audit Committee, has cursed those who cursed Hun Sen, saying that they will be destroyed or killed by a lightning. Mr. Cheam Yeap said Prime Minister Hun Sen is a national hero who should not be insulted.
Mr. Cheam Cheap’s curse followed the report by ASTV Manager Online, a TV owned by a Thai ultra-nationalist Mr. Sodhi Limthongkul, on 29th August that a Thai group calling itself Vishnu Lovers has performed a ritual ceremony in Vishnulok province by paying homage to King Nuresuan, a great 16th century Thai king who defeated the Burmese invaders and who ruled Cambodia from 1594-1595 when they ransacked the Cambodian royal capital of Longvek. During the who ceremony it was reported that the 50 or so participants bowed to the statue of King Nuresuan. After that, they replaced Nuresuan’s statue with Hun Sen’s picture and they stick it to a banana tree and cut off the banana tree and tossed it away to rid off bad luck. The report said that they participants cursed Hun Sen by saying that he is an ungrateful person to King Nuresuan who had saved and ruled Cambodians.In response to the actions of these Thai ultra-nationalists, aided and abetted by Mr. Sondhi Limthongkul, Mr. Cheam Yeap said that these Thai people forgot that they were the invaders who ransacked Longvek and annexed many Cambodian provinces, including Kauk Khan (Sisaket), Surin, Nokor Reach Seima (Korat) etc. Mr. Cheam Yeap called these Thai ultra-nationalists as inhuman, barbarians, bastard jungle robbers and religion blasphemers who can’t differentiate between bad deeds from good deeds and who dare to curse and insult Cambodia’s hero, Samdech Hun Sen, who was respected by all Cambodians. He said if Mr. Sondhi and his group continue to insult Mr. Hun Sen he will meet with misdeeds and death like on 17th April 2009 when he was riddled with bullets during a failed attempt on his life.
President of Human Rights Party summoned to court
August 31, 2010 Leave a comment
By Khmerization
Source: DAP News
Mr. Kem Sokha (pictured), president of the Human Rights Party (HRP), has been summoned by the Phnom Penh Court to answer charges of breach of trust, document forgery and defamation brought on by 16 former employees of Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) in 2006 when he was the president of the centre.
The lawsuits were lodged by the 16 employees when they were laid off due to restructures and due the shortage of funds caused by the cut of financial supports from some backers.
Dr. Chhim Phalvirun, former deputy president of CCHR and current president of Institute on Population, accused that Mr. Kem Sokha had withheld part of their salary, forged their signatures and had intentionally destroyed the reputation of CCHR when he gave interview to a number of media and radios in Cambodia.
At the time of this article going to press on 30th August, Mr. Kem Sokha was unavailable for comment. However, Mr. Yem Ponharith, Secretary General of the HRP and MP from Prey Veng, said he had received the letter from Phnom Penh Court’s prosecutor, Mr. Sok Roeun, requesting Mr. Kem Sokha to appear before the court at 2 pm on 6th September. He said he is trying to contact Mr. Kem Sokha who is on a visit to the United States. He said he will write to the court asking the court to delay the hearing as Mr. Kem Sokha might not be able to return on time for the court hearing on 6th September.
Mr. Sok Roeun, who is in charge of this case, cannot be reached for comment. However, a source close to the Phnom Penh Court, said the court plans to write to the National Assembly asking it to strip Mr. Kem Sokha off his parliamentary immunity to pave the way for the court to proceed with his case.
Mr. Cheam Yeap, chairman of the National Assembly’s Finance and Audits Committee, said he had not received the court’s letter yet, but said the parliament will proceed in accordance with the laws and the constitution when it received the request from the court, meaning it will proceed to lift Mr. Kem Sokha’s parliamentary immunity.
Mr. Kem Sokha (pictured), president of the Human Rights Party (HRP), has been summoned by the Phnom Penh Court to answer charges of breach of trust, document forgery and defamation brought on by 16 former employees of Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) in 2006 when he was the president of the centre. Read more of this post
Khmer Krom: Group calls for monk’s release
August 30, 2010 Leave a comment
MONDAY, 30 AUGUST 2010 15:02
SEBASTIAN STRANGIO
PHNOMPENHPOST
kHMER kROM
THE Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organisation has condemned the reported arrest of an ethnic Khmer abbot in southern Vietnam last month, while decrying the treatment of the country’s Khmer minority. According to a statement issued by the organisation on Wednesday, Thach Sophon was arrested by Vietnamese police on July 29, and his current location is unknown.
“This is only one instance of the many human rights violations carried out by the Vietnamese government,” UNPO General Secretary Marino Busdachin was quoted as saying. The statement called on the Vietnamese government to release Thach Sophon and “allow members of the Khmer Krom minority and other ethnic minorities and religious communities to voice their opinions freely”.
In an August 23 statement, the local Khmer Kampuchea Krom Community also slammed the arrest of Thach Sophon, calling for the Cambodian government to intervene on his behalf.
“We would like to appeal to the Royal Government of the Kingdom of Cambodia and both national and international organisations to legally intervene,” it said.
Riverside families signing petition
August 30, 2010 Leave a comment
MONDAY, 30 AUGUST 2010 15:01
KHOUTH SOPHAKCHAKRYA
PHNOMPENHPOST
Photo by: Pha Lina Residents of a Russey Keo district community set to be affected by a park project at their floating home yesterday.
MEMBERS of more than 100 families in Russey Keo district that are set to be evicted to make way for a public park have thumbprinted a petition to express their outrage over the project.
Huot Danin, a representative of the families in Klaing Saing village, located in Russey Keo commune, said the petition would be sent to Prime Minister Hun Sen this week.
He said the families had been spurred to protest their pending eviction after Russey Keo commune officials instructed them on Friday to tear down their homes, distributing a notice dated August 23 and signed by Russey Keo district governor Khlaing Huot. The notice states that the families have 10 days from the date of the notice to comply with the eviction order, meaning they face a deadline of September 2.
“The commune ordered us to pull down our homes from 10 days after the day the announcement was signed to make way for the public garden, but they did not tell us where we can live after we pull down our homes,” Huot Danin said.
Phnom Penh Governor Kep Chuktema announced the pending eviction, which local officials have said would affect at least 800 families in three Russey Keo villages, during a speech on August 10.
At the same event, Heu Heng, director of Sokimex Company, said the park would be roughly 250 metres long and 100 metres wide. He said that Sokimex, which has a petroleum depot on National Road 5 near the proposed park, is providing US$700,000 to support the project.
Chan Samang, the chief of Russey Keo commune, said she knew that some families were unhappy with the proposed project, but that most were not displeased.
“All the development always has some effects on some people, but this project will also provide many interests to many people in the affected communities,” she said.
No information regarding relocation or compensation plans has yet been provided.
Koh Kong villagers attempt to block road
August 30, 2010 Leave a comment
MONDAY, 30 AUGUST 2010 15:02
MAY TITTHARA
PHNOMPENHPOST
Photo by: Photo Supplied Villagers involved in a land dispute plead with police in Koh Kong province’s Sre Ambel district during a protest on Friday.
VILLAGERS involved in a long-simmering land dispute in Koh Kong province say they will send a new petition to authorities, after four protesters suffered injuries this past weekend while attempting to block a national road.
Ouch Leng, a programme officer for rights group Adhoc, said villagers blocked National Road 48 in Sre Ambel district Friday as part of a demonstration aimed at drawing attention to a dispute that could see 34 families evicted.
But a motorist who was angry with the traffic jam caused by the protest clashed with villagers, resulting in injuries to four of them, Ouch Leng said.
“The car owner tried to crash into the bed that villagers used to block the road,” said Ouch Leng, who described the injuries as “not serious”.
The villagers say they could be on the verge of eviction after a company owned by Koh Kong businessman Heng Huy set today as a deadline for the clearance of roughly 100 hectares of disputed land. The Supreme Court last year ruled that the land belonged to Heng Huy and another businessman.
Pher Nherng, a representative of the villagers, called the protest a “last choice” after Heng Huy began clearing parts of the disputed farmland last week. He said villagers yesterday began preparing a complaint to send to provincial, district and commune officials urging them to stop allowing military police to support Heng Huy. Last week, military police stood by as workers hired by Heng Huy cleared parts of the farmland. Pher Nherng said villagers also want authorities to issue land titles.
Heng Huy yesterday questioned how villagers could be issued land titles.
“How can they issue another land title to villagers if the land is already owned?”
Sre Ambel district governor Tuon Seila said that he would forward the complaint to provincial officials.
Hun Sen Encourages Officials To Care About The National Interest
August 17, 2010 2 Comments
Tuesday 10-08-2010
The Mirror, Vol. 14, No. 677
Hun Xen
“Prime Minister Hun Sen advised high ranking officials yesterday [9 August 2010] that their positions cannot be passed on to theirfamily members of the next generation, but he suggested to focus on creating contributions in the national interest rather than to maintain their positions.
“In a speech during a forum on questions of national development held by the government in Phnom Penh, Prime Minister Hun Sen stated that government officials should respect and act according to their roles to serve the public.
“He added, ‘Do not forget that the positions of minister, deputy prime minister, secretary of state, and under-secretary of state in all institutions are not permanent ones or can be passed on to your children.’ He went on to say, ‘It is the same for the provincial governors. You cannot keep your positions forever or pass them on to your children. What we do is for the future of the whole nation.’
“A son of Prime Minister Hun Sen, Mr. Hun Manet, 32, is a general of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces; he has earned a degree from the US West Point Military Academy and a senior degree in economics from Bristol University of England. However, Prime Minister Hun Sen said that he does not want Mr. Hun Manet to enter politics.” Phnom Penh Post [Khmer Edition], Vol.1, #233, 10.8.2010
NOTE: Thank you Mr. Hun Sen that you spoke as a leader on that day, but I am not sure if your spoke in dream or with your full consciousness . I put doubt because why such things are still not improved and you play deaf ears and blind eyes as observed bellow: Read more of this post
Cambodia a banana kingdoom????
August 16, 2010 Leave a comment
NOTE: Below is an email I received from Chivan who wrote to me, Khmerization, and KI-Media and my reply to him. And I would like to tell Chivan that Thailand is also “A Banana Kingdom” branded recently. You can read some of the articles here and here.
2010/8/16
Suor Sdei,
I don’t know why Sokhoeun Pang, KI and Khmerization keep defending Khmer from Thai aggressors while you all keep insulting mother land Cambodia. You called mother land Cambodia a banana Kingdom that’s what you support Thailand against Cambodia and that’s reflect yourself to what Thailand always insulting Cambodia a banana Kingdom full of crazy bad leaders like Hun Sen, Sok An, Hor Nam Hong etc…. You all don’t need to waste your time calling Thai psychopath because you are yourselves Khmer psychopath as well.
Khmer go in the battle field making war against Thai aggressors for stealing Khmer land and you all telling Thai aggressors in the battle field that Oh! Cambodia is a banana Kingdom full of crazy bad Khmer Yuan leaders!!!
Some Khmer know that Khmer leaders are bad but at least their bad are trying to protect Khmer land from Thai aggressors. We all Khmer need to reunite together fighting against Thai aggressors for stealing Khmer land and when it will be over, you can call Khmer leaders and insult them all you wanted but please just leave mother land Cambodia alone because mother land Cambodia gave birth to you all and you don’t insult mother land Cambodia. And please try not to talk bad about Khmer leaders for a while during this time defending Khmer from Thai aggressors because Thai might think that you are yourself Khmer psychopath not them.
JFK: Ask not what your country can do for you – Ask what you can do for your country.
Thank you. Read more of this post
My brief rebuttal to Abhisit’s letter to UN
August 11, 2010 Leave a comment
By: The Son Of the Khmer Empire
- Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva tells the United Nations that letter of Cambodia’ Prime Minister Hun Sen to the UN concerning Preah Vihear controversy is “misquoted, taken out of context and misunderstood.”
Abhisit Vejajiva and Pang Sokheoun
Doesn’t Thailand have any law to guarantee press, media in order to secure freedom of press, expression and at the same time to secure social and political order, reliable information, reputation, and culture? Hun Sen often quoted his sources from the Nation and Bangkok Post which are the pro-Abhisit’s media and Abhisit always accuses him of being misinformed and misunderstood. So if it is misquoted, it is not Hun Sen’s mistake, but it must be the media that disseminate the wrong information with purposes and they must be held responsible for their crimes as stated by Thailand’s Constitution, Article III pertaining to the Rights and Liberties of the Thai People in Section 36. Or Abhisit must ask them to publish correction for it is a very sensitive issue. But he always fails to do so which makes Sawai Boonma’s Guide to the Perfect Thai idoit perfectly correct about Thai people..
- Abhisit said in his letter signed on August 10 to Vitaly Churkin, President of the United Nations Security Council, that the current border problem between both countries arises from Cambodia’s encroachment of Thailand’s territory in violation of international law. Read more of this post
Sacravatoons No 1801 : ” Honey Sam “
August 8, 2010 Leave a comment
Sunday, August 08, 2010
Source: KI Media
Duch hires Cambodian lawyer
August 7, 2010 Leave a comment
FRIDAY, 06 AUGUST 2010 18:08
By: JAMES O’TOOLE
Phnompenhpost
Photo by: COURTESY OF THE ECCC Tuol Sleng prison chief Kaing Guek Eav (centre) appears at the Khmer Rouge tribunal last year with co-lawyers Francois Roux (left) and Kar Savuth
FORMER Tuol Sleng prison chief Kaing Guek Eav has hired a Cambodian attorney to replace Francois Roux, the international co-lawyer he dismissed last month after breaking with him in stunning fashion during closing arguments of the Khmer Rouge tribunal’s first case.
The Khmer Rouge jailer, better known as Duch, last week became the first person convicted at Cambodia’s war crimes tribunal, receiving a 30-year sentence for crimes against humanity and grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions. With credit for time already served in detention, he stands to spend roughly 19 more years in prison.
Although Duch reportedly wanted a Chinese lawyer to replace Roux – “He doesn’t want a lawyer from a free country to judge the communist people,” defence attorney Kar Savuth explained last month – he will settle for 41-year-old Kang Ritheary, a private practice attorney with the Asean International Law Group in Phnom Penh.
“Kaing Guek Eav had provided the Defence Support Section with certain criterions for the selection of an international co-lawyer,” United Nations court spokesman Lars Olsen said Friday.
“The Defence Support Section did not find any international lawyers that met those criterions. Therefore, Kaing Guek Eav chose instead to be represented by two Cambodian lawyers.”
Defendants at the tribunal are typically represented by one Cambodian and one international lawyer each, with some enlisting additional lawyers and consultants.
Kar Savuth said last week that Duch planned to appeal the judgment against him. Duch has also been a subject of investigation in the court’s second case, but a January order from the court’s Co-Investigating Judges indicated that he would not be indicted; as such, Kang Ritheary’s work with Duch will likely be limited to appeal proceedings before the Supreme Court Chamber.
Kang Ritheary served as an adviser to the Documentation Centre of Cambodia, which has helped gather much of the evidence used by the tribunal, from 1997 to 2001. He served as a government lawyer from 1995 to 2001, according to a copy of his CV posted on the Asean International Law Group website.
Last month, prior to the verdict, the court announced that Duch had dismissed Francois Roux due to a “loss of confidence” in his representation. This followed the dramatic split from Roux by Duch and Kar Savuth during last November’s closing arguments, when the pair bucked the defence’s long-running strategy of expressing remorse and limited responsibility for the crimes committed at Tuol Sleng. Instead, they called for Duch’s acquittal and release, a turnabout that Roux later called a “bad surprise”.
Roux has since moved on to head the Defence Office at the UN-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon.
PCCS union leader warns of more strikes
August 7, 2010 Leave a comment
FRIDAY, 06 AUGUST 2010 15:02
By: KIM YUTHANA AND CAMERON WELLS
Phnompenhpost
AUNION representative at a factory owned by PCCS Garments Ltd threatened yesterday to organise more strikes unless management dropped a court complaint accusing her of faking thumbprints in order to collect the wages of other workers.
Around 3,000 workers from the factory held a 10-day strike following the dismissal of union organiser Morn Channa, who was fired last month after telling management that workers did not need a doctor’s note in order to apply for sick leave.
She was reinstated following mediation between the two parties at the Ministry of Labour’s Arbitration Council, and workers returned to work on Wednesday.
But Morn Channa appeared at Phnom Penh Municipal Court yesterday to answer questions related to a complaint filed by the factory owners on July 22 – a day after her dismissal – accusing her of faking thumbprints so she could cash workers’ wages.
“Being a representative of the workers, I have been asked by them to collect their thumbprints to cash their wages for them, because about 10 workers were sick and asked me to do so,” she said. “The factory allowed this process.”
She said that she would order further strikes if the complaint by the factory was not immediately dropped.
Eric Mah, administration and human resources manager at PCCS, said the company could not withdraw the complaint because it was in the hands of the courts.
He said that the threat of further strikes was an attempt by Morn Channa to use the workers as a “weapon”.
“She thumbprinted to get the money for the people, but the people didn’t know about it,” he said. “In this country, if a criminal breaks the law, can they threaten to use workers to get them free? They cannot.”
On July 27, around 50 riot police descended on the factory and tried to force the estimated 3,000 employees back to work. A handful of workers were injured during the fracas, and some demonstrators pelted policemen with plastic chairs and water bottles.
Boeung Kak land reclassified
August 5, 2010 Leave a comment
THURSDAY, 05 AUGUST 2010 15:02
By: MAY TITTHARA AND SEBASTIAN STRANGIO
Phnompenhpost
Photo by: Sovan Philong An aerial view of the south side of Boeung Kak lake, as seen from the Canadia Bank tower in October last year.
LARGE portions of the city’s Boeung Kak lakeside have been reclassified as state private property under the joint control of City Hall and the local company behind the controversial filling of the lake, according to a recent sub-decree.
The document, signed by Prime Minister Hun Sen on July 20, states that 126.85 hectares of the lake and its surroundings are to be “considered as a state private property for Shukaku Inc Company to develop based on the government’s purpose”.
“The area mentioned above is legally managed and controlled by related Ministries and Phnom Penh Municipal Hall with the cooperation of Shukaku Inc Co Ltd,” the sub-decree states. Unlike state public land, which includes lakes, rivers, roads and parks, state private land can be legally leased or sold to companies or individuals.
In February 2007, Shukaku, an obscure local firm owned by Cambodian People’s Party Senator Lao Meng Khin, signed a lease agreement with the municipality giving it the right to develop the lakeside, then a state public property. The following year, it began filling in the lake to make way for a 133-hectare housing and commercial development at the lakeside. Housing rights advocates say that more than 4,000 families will be displaced by the project. Read more of this post
PM takes firm stand on disease
August 5, 2010 Leave a comment
THURSDAY, 05 AUGUST 2010 15:02
By: TEP NIMOL AND DAVID BOYLE
Phnompenhpost
Photo by: Heng Chivoan Prime Minister Hun Sen speaks at a graduation ceremony at Koh Pich Centre in Phnom Penh yesterday.
PRIME Minister Hun Sen yesterday ordered provincial authorities to suspend the importation of pigs from Vietnam and Thailand in response to an outbreak of diseases that experts said was on the verge of destroying the Cambodian swine industry.
Speaking at a graduation ceremony in Phnom Penh, the premier said an outbreak in Thailand and Vietnam of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome, also known as blue-ear, had spread to Cambodia in May, and posed a threat to public health.
“I would like to appeal to provincial authorities, especially provinces near the borders of Vietnam and Thailand, to suspend pig imports,” he said.
However, Hun Sen conceded that it would be impossible to completely stop the illegal importation of pigs from neighbouring countries.
“This order is not a violation of the World Trade Organisation, but it is a measurement to protect the animals’ lives and prevent infectious disease,” he said.
He also urged pig vendors not to take advantage of any resulting supply shortfall by raising prices.
Agriculture Minister Chan Sarun said at a press conference yesterday that hundreds of pigs had died recently, but that not all had been afflicted with blue-ear. He attributed the outbreak to a recent decision by the Vietnamese government to order pig farmers to slaughter animals affected by the disease.
Instead of complying with that order, Vietnamese pig farmers “evacuated their pigs to Cambodia, the nearest place”, and a lack of regulations on imports fuelled the domestic spread of blue-ear, Chan Sarun said.
He said the government would not compensate farmers affected by the outbreak. Neither he nor Hun Sen said when the import ban would be lifted.
Curtis Hundley, chief of party at USAID’s Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise agency, said blue-ear had the potential to bring the pig industry to its knees, costing investors and farmers tens of millions of dollars.
“We’re talking somewhere between 1 or 2 million pigs, and each pig is worth about US$100 at market, so it’s a huge industry here,” he said.
Nonetheless, he said he welcomed the ban, and urged the government to retain it long enough for the industry to recover and draw investment.
“When the industry is destroyed like it is now, it’s going to take at least five months just to get the pigs ready for the market, and it’s going to take at least a year for this industry to recover,” he said.
During a similar outbreak in 2007, the government banned the importation of pigs from Thailand and Vietnam for eight months.
According to Global Trade Atlas, Thai swine exports to Cambodia rose from 2,273 pigs in 2007 to 866,199 in 2009, and were worth $45 million that year.
Cambodia reports 88 lightning deathes
August 5, 2010 1 Comment
August 05, 2010
Source: Xinhua
Cambodian government said Thursday that 88 people, mostly in rural areas — have died of lightning strikes.
Keo Vy, communication officer of National Committee of Disaster Management said that by the end of July, there were 88 people have died in lightning strikes.
However, he said, the figure is still less than that in the same period last year as 110 died of lightning incidents.
Keo Vy noted that Pursat province, located about 200 kilometers north of Phnom Penh was recorded with more victims than the other 23 provinces and cities throughout the country.
He said last year more than 20 victims reported from Pursat province alone.
By mid June this year, Cambodia recorded only 48 deaths by lightning.
For several occasions, Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen has alerted and made an appeal to public to take more precaution, saying the lightning seemed fiercer in recent years.
Lightning which occurs every year in Cambodia, normally starts in rainy season which begins from May through October.
The report file by the National Committee of Disaster Management showed that the total figure of deaths last year was recorded at 140 and 95 deaths were recorded in 2008.
Most of the victims were living in rural areas.
Hun Sen Praises Tribunal Verdict in Duch Case
August 4, 2010 Leave a comment
Wednesday, 04 August 2010
By: Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh
Source: VOA News
Prime Minister Hun Sen on Wednesday praised the Khmer Rouge tribunal’s sentencing of torture chief Duch, in the premier’s first public statement since the decision last week.(Photo:AP)
Prime Minister Hun Sen on Wednesday praised the Khmer Rouge tribunal’s sentencing of torture chief Duch, in the premier’s firstpublic statement since the decision last week.
Victims have said they are unsatisfied with the commuted sentence of the prison chief, under whose supervision more than 12,000 people were tortured and executed.
Hun Sen said the courts had made an independent decision free of political influence.
“The Royal Government of Cambodia respects the Khmer Rouge tribunal’s decision because the court is independent,” he said in public remarks. “We respect the independence of the court. The court sentenced Duch to 35 years in jail. It is up to the court, which the Royal Government of Cambodia must respect.”
In fact, Duch was handed a commuted sentence of only 19 years, following leniency and time served.
And tribunal observers say the court risks being tainted by political influence, with a number of senior officials refusing to cooperate with the international investigating judge and public statements by the premier against further indictments at the UN-backed court.
“The tribunal is facing problems of independence…relating to summonses of witnesses and progress on Case Nos. 003 and 004,” said Long Panhavuth, a tribunal monitor for the Cambodian Justice Initiative. “The government has not allowed the arrest of more suspects.”
Bu Meng, a former prisoner in Duch’s S-21, was not convinced of the court’s independence.
“The tribunal verdict seems to have had pressure from some circle or someone,” he said. “But [Prime Minister] Hun Sen said the court has independence and non-interference. That’s his right. The rights of the victims are different.”
Tribunal spokesman Reach Sambath said the verdict had the support of donor countries in a decision that was jointly arrived upon by international and national judges.
Union group threatens to strike
August 4, 2010 Leave a comment
WEDNESDAY, 04 AUGUST 2010 15:02
By: MOM KUNTHEAR
Phnompenhpost
Garment workers fill the street in front of the National Assembly last month as part of a demonstration organised in response to the recently approved sector minimum wage.Photo by: Uy Nousereimony
ACOALITION of 13 union leaders sent a letter to the Ministry of Labour and the Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodiayesterday threatening to organise strikes unless talks are scheduled by August 15 to renegotiate the sector’s newly established minimum wage.
The leaders reiterated their objection to a decision last month by the Labour Advisory Committee, a body made up of government officials and industry representatives, to raise the minimum monthly wage for garment workers by US$11 to $61. Some in the labour movement had been calling for the wage to be increased to as much as $93 per month.
“We don’t want conflict, but we want to find justice for the workers who work hard but receive low wages,” said Cambodian Labour Confederation President Ath Thun.
But Chuon Momthol, the deputy director of the Labour Advisory Committee and president of the Cambodian Union Federation, said the wage had already been finalised and dismissed talk of a strike. The LAC ruled that the wage can next be renegotiated in 2014.
“Ath Thun can do this in the factories where members of his union work, but he can’t do it all over the country,” Chuon Momthol said. “We cannot keep holding negotiations again and again just because they ask for them.”
Chuon Momthol said that “90 percent” of workers were satisfied with the wage increase, which will be instituted in October.
The minimum wage for garment workers was last renegotiated in 2006, when it was increased from $45 per month to $50.
In a series of incidents last month, thousands of workers in the garment sector staged wildcat strikes in protest of the new minimum wage.
GMAC secretary general Ken Loo confirmed having received the letter, but said he could not comment as he had yet to read it. Officials at the Ministry of Labour could not be reached for comment.
Thais slash jail terms for 16 Cambodians
August 3, 2010 Leave a comment
TUESDAY, 03 AUGUST 2010 15:02
By: CHEANG SOKHA
Source: Phnompenhpost
ATHAI court has halved the jail terms of 16 Cambodians convicted of entering Thailand illegally to destroy forests a year ago,.jpg)
the foreign ministry said.
The 16 loggers, from Preah Vihear and Oddar Meanchey provinces, were arrested in July last year after entering Thai territory to cut down trees.
In September, a court in Ubon Rachathani province sentenced 15 members of the group to nine years and three months in jail, and a 16th man – 18-year-old San Kros – received a lesser sentence of six years and two months.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Koy Kuong said Ubon Rachathani provincial appeal court ruled yesterday that the 15 would have their sentences slashed to four years and nine months, and that San Kros would serve only three years and two months.
“Of course, our purpose is for them to be released, but we see that the appeal court gave them more justice than the lower court,” Koy Kuong said. “Our consular officials in Thailand and lawyers are in discussion to find a way for their release so that they can return home.”
He said consular officials based in Sa Kaeo province have not yet decided whether to file an appeal to the Supreme Court, since Thailand often reduces the jail terms of prisoners if they behave well in custody.
Café staff accused of running a brothel
August 3, 2010 Leave a comment
TUESDAY, 03 AUGUST 2010 15:02
By: CHRANN CHAMROEUN
Source: Phnompenhpost
Un Samnang leaves Phnom Penh Municipal Court yesterday. He was charged with procuring prostitution after police raided a coffee shop rented under his name.Photo by: Pha Lina.
Two Vietnamese nationals appeared at Phnom Penh Municipal Court yesterday on charges of procuring prostitution for allegedly running a brothel out of a coffee shop in the capital’s Daun Penh district.
Chang Ty Hok, 35, and 23-year-old Un Samnang were arrested on Street 63 in Daun Penh’s Chaktomuk commune in October by police who discovered 25 Vietnamese prostitutes at the scene.
Un Samnang, who also holds a Cambodian identification card, told the court that although he had accepted US$80 to allow the coffee shop’s proprietors to rent the facility under his name, he was not involved in the sale of sex. An elderly Khmer Krom woman named Ky Nang was responsible for the criminal activity, he said.
Judge Suos Sam Ath swiftly rejected this testimony.
“Don’t deny this and put the blame on another person called Ky Nang when there’s no one with this name,” he said.
“Based on the confessions of more than 20 Vietnamese women, it was you who served as the boss of this coffee shop and who collected half the money when the women served sex to customers for $5.”
Chang Ty Hok also denied the allegations against her, saying she had only worked as a cleaner at the coffee shop. Suos Sam Ath, however, said these statements were not credible.
“Don’t deny this, because several prostitutes told police that you always collected 10,000 riels from them on behalf of Un Samnang every time they had a customer,” Suos Sam Ath said. “You were their madam.”
In written testimony read out by a court clerk yesterday, one Vietnamese woman said she had been lured to Cambodia by the promise of a job at the coffee shop earning $50 per month. She said she was then forced to become a prostitute, serving four to five customers each day and giving half her earnings to the shop’s owners.
Another woman said in her written testimony that she had come to the shop voluntarily to work as a prostitute.
Suos Sam Ath said a verdict would be announced on August 12.
Jailed journalist reports graft
August 3, 2010 Leave a comment
TUESDAY, 03 AUGUST 2010 15:02
By: CHHAY CHANNYDA
Phnompenhpost
Freelance journalist Ros Sokhet is led out of Phnom Penh Municipal Court after a hearing in October last year.Photo by: Sovan Philong.
AJAILED journalist whose Appeal Court hearing is scheduled for later this month said yesterday that he had been asked to pay
US$1,000 before court officials would tell him the exact date.
Speaking from Prey Sar prison, freelance journalist Ros Sokhet said his lawyer, Sam Sokong, who was provided free of charge by the legal aid NGO Cambodian Defenders Project, had told him the court had requested the money in exchange for information about the hearing.
“My lawyer said that the court wanted my family to pay $1,000 for telling me the exact date of the hearing,” he said. However, the journalist said he had refused to pay.
“I have no money to pay so I did not get the hearing summons,” he said. “I will not pay. I’ve been in prison for nine months.”
In November, Phnom Penh Municipal Court found Ros Sokhet guilty of spreading disinformation after he sent a series of text messages to well-known commentator and news anchor Soy Sopheap. He was sentenced to two years in prison. His appeal was filed later that month.
Eang Nakry, a clerk at the Appeal Court, said yesterday that Ros Sokhet’s hearing was scheduled for August 18. He declined to comment on Ros Sokhet’s statements about the alleged payment request.
Ros Sokhet said yesterday that it was possible the request had not come from the courts, and that his lawyer might have been trying to collect money to be used as a bribe to secure his release.
“I am wondering if the court ordered it, or it is just from my lawyer who wanted to help me out of prison,” he said.
Sam Sokong could not be reached yesterday, nor could CDP president Sok Sam Oeun.
Duong Sovan, CDP project coordinator, said Sam Sokong would not have asked his client for money because CDP lawyers never ask clients for money in “fee-free” cases.
Soy Sopheap, former publisher of Deum Ampil News and a commentator for Bayon TV, said yesterday that he would not testify at the Appeal Court hearing, and that he had never filed a complaint against Ros Sokhet.
“I have had no involvement in this case since the beginning,” he said. “I did not file a complaint against Ros Sokhet, but against an anonymous person who sent text messages to threaten me.”
During the trial in November, the court heard that the text messages accused Soy Sopheap of demanding money from a woman arrested for firing a pistol illegally in exchange for keeping her story out of the press.
Ros Sokhet told the court that he had sent the messages, but said he was only alerting Soy Sopheap to rumours already in circulation.
Government Looks To Build Reserve Military Force
August 2, 2010 Leave a comment
Monday, 02 August 2010
By: Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh
The broadening of the military comes at a time of increasing countrywide nationalism that has been spurred by on ongoing border dispute between Cambodia and Thailand.(Photo:AP)
The Council of Ministers passed a decree Friday that would begin to create a reserve force, despite previous government policy to
reduce military spending.
Friday’s decree would draw a reservist force from early resignations, soldiers who have completed their enlightenments or even “experts” who have ben involved in military tasks.
The broadening of the military comes at a time of increasing countrywide nationalism that has been spurred by on ongoing border dispute between Cambodia and Thailand. The decree also follows a 2006 law that provides for military conscription.
“The Ministry of Defense will train the reservists on fighting tactics and defense tactics as a base,” Thum Sotheat, a three-star general and a spokesman for the Ministry of Defense, told VOA Khmer.
The training could also include specialties, such as engineering, construction or medical work, he said.
Cambodian Defence Ministry to introduce military conscription soon
August 2, 2010 Leave a comment
By Khmerization
Source: RFA
Cambodian troops based at Preah Vihear temple.
A senior Cambodian Defence Ministry official said on 1st August that the ministry is poised to introduce a military conscription soon after the military reservist conscription sub-decree was signed by the king , reports Radio Free Asia.
Gen. Chhum Socheat, spokesman for the Defence Ministry, said the conscription is necessary to prepare the military force for the defence of the country. He said the conscription will start as soon as the sub-decree was signed by King Sihamoni.
He said the military reserve conscription will include recalling of contracted soldiers, professional retired soldiers or those who retired from the military before retiring age. The new conscripts will be required to perform military duties between 3 to 4 months.
Gen. Chhum Socheat said there is no decision of how many reservists will be conscripted or recruited, saying it all depends on the budget approved by the parliament. Read more of this post
(Siamese) PM Refutes Cambodia’s Claim about Preah Vihear
July 31, 2010 1 Comment
31 July 2010
Source: Thai-Asia News Network
Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An, who represented Cambodia at the
World Heritage Committee meeting in Brazil, claimed the country’s management plan of Preah Vihear Temple has received approval by the meeting.
However, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva (pictured) still uphold earlier news reports that the review of the management plan has been postponed to next year’s World Heritage Committee meeting in Bahrain. He told reporters to go back and read the resolution of the World Heritage Committee meeting carefully.
Tea Banh slaps the greedy Siam right on the face
July 31, 2010 1 Comment
Tea Banh
In the interview Tea Banh, Cambodian Defence Minister, in his answer to the Nation reporter Panya Tiewsangwan regarding to the question asked if the joint management plan over Prasat Preah Vihear managed by the two countries would be the best solution, responded that:
“Cambodia never thinks about violating Thailand’s sovereignty,” Tea Banh said. When asked if a joint development of the site would be a solution, he replied: “There are principles for everything. You cannot try to be co-owners of properties you don’t have rights over them.”
NOTE: It is believable that Siam still brainlessly and shamelessly dare to ask such a question. It seems that it is funny and happy for them to make Cambodians hurt and angry.
A Khmer Was Once the Premier of Thailand: The Traitorous Ahaiwongse family
July 28, 2010 Leave a comment
Khmerization digged up an interesting historical piece on Khuang Aphaiwong (ควง อภัยวงศ์), the former three-time Khmer premier of Thailand. Though he wasn’t really someone we should be proud of, this article is still worth reading. Enjoy!
The Aphaiwong family has ruled Battambang province for over one hundred years from 1795-1907. The first member of the Aphaiwongs to rule Battambang was Chaufa Ben, a native of Takeo province, who was a powerful military commander under the reign of King Ang Eng. In 1795, with the aid of the Thai army with Chau Ponhea Bodin as a commander, Chaufa Ben declared himself the Lord Governor of Battambang and swore allegiance to the Thai kings. He pays homage to the Thai kings and since then Battambang was put under the suzerainty of Siam. As a reward, he was accorded the title of “Chau Ponhea Apheithipess” which in Thai it is called “Chao Phraya Aphaithebet” or “Aphai”. This title was later adopted as a family name of Ben’s descendants of Aphaiwong, when his descendants moved to live in Thailand, after Battambang was returned to Cambodia in 1907.
When Chau Ponhea Apheitipess Ben died in 1809, his son, Pen, ascended the Lordship of Battambang with the same title of Chau Ponhea Apheitipess. Chau Ponhea Pen ruled Battambang for only seven years and died at a young age and was then succeeded in 1816 by his son, Ros, who ruled Battambang for twenty years. When he died in 1835, Chau Ponhea Ros was succeeded by his son, Nong. There was no record of how long Chau Ponhea Nong ruled Battambang, but there was a record which shows that in 1856 he had ordered his official to buy a Tripitaka scripture from Siam to give to Wat Po Veal temple. When Apheitipess Nong died he was succeeded by his son, Year called Nhonh.
Lord Chhum, The Last Lord Governor of Battambang
Chau Ponhea Nhonh was very close with Chau Ponhea Bodin, the Thai military commander for Battambang. As such, he married his eldest daughter, Neak Mchas Klip, to Bodin’s son named Em Singhaseni. When Ponhea Nhon became old, Mrs. Klip took charge of the provincial affairs. The Thai king was so impressed of her managerial skills and so was preparing to appoint her husband, Em Singhaseni, to succeed Ponhea Nhonh. Chhum, the only son of Ponhea Nhonh, knew of the plan and became jealous and had Em Singhaseni assassinated. And when Ponhea Nhonh died in 1895, Chhum succeeded Ponhea Nhonh as the Lord Governor of Battambang. Chhum ruled Battambang for only 12 years when it was returned back to the control of Cambodia. He and most of his relatives, numbers in the thousands, moved to live in Prachinburi province in Thailand. He was, effectively, the last governor of Battambang.
According to eyewitnesses, when Lord Chhum moved to live in Thailand, he brought with him about 100 cartloads of gold and assets, taxed from Khmer farmers in Battambang.
Khuang Aphaiwong, a Khmer Becoming the Prime Minister of Thailand
Lord Chhum, the last governor of Battambang, had more than 40 wives. Among the 40 wives, he had one Thai wife named Rord who bore him a son named Khuang who took the surname of Aphaiwong when his family moved to live in Thailand after Battambang was returned to Cambodia in 1907.
Khuang Aphaiwong was born in Battambang on May 17, 1902 and died on March 15, 1968 in Bangkok, Thailand. He served three times as the prime minister of Thailand.
He attended the Debsirin school and the Assumption College in Bangkok, and studied engineering at the Ecole Centrale de Lyon in France. After his return to Thailand he worked in the telegraph department, finally becoming the director of the department.
Khuang was one of the most important leaders of the 1932 coup that reformed the Thai monarchy from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy.
Khuang received the title as a major, when he joined the guard of King Rama VII, King Prajadipok, in World War II. The Thai king also bestowed upon him the title of Luang Kovit Aphaiwong. He had served as a minister of subsequent Thai governments before elected as prime minister on August 1, 1944. On August 17, 1945, after public pressures, he resigned to make way for a new administration.
In 1946 he was one of the founders of the Democrat Party, and became its first leader. His Democrat Party won the fourth national elections on January 6, 1946, which gained him a second term as prime minister starting on January 31. Only 45 days later, on March 24, his government was censured by a motion in the parliament and he resigned.
On November 10, 1947, he became prime minister a third time following a coup d’état led by Phin Chunhawan. However, the coup leaders were not pleased with the performance of Khuang’s government and forced him to resign on April 8, 1948.
The Aphaiwong Legacy
The Aphaiwongs had ruled well and, at times, misruled Battambang, depending on who you talked to. The Aphaiwong family was both loved and hated by many Battambang natives due to their feudal and oppressive rules. Many people who benefited from their rules loved them and cried when the family moved to Thailand, after Battambang was returned to Cambodian control. Many of these people followed the Aphaiwongs to Thailand but were abandoned by them. Most became destitute and decided to moved back to Battambang. Others, those who were oppressed by their oppressive rules, were overjoyed of their departures.//
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References:
1. Tauch Chhuong, Battambang During The Time Of The Lord Governor
2. Wikipedia, Khuang Aphaiwong.
3. Brittanica, Khuang Aphaiwong.Have Posted in here
Dance Troupe Prepares for Smithsonian Perfomance
July 28, 2010 Leave a comment
Wednesday, 28 July 2010
By:Nuch Sarita
Source:VOA Khmer | Washington, DC
Madame Tes Sam Oeun, (left) along with her husband Tes Saroeum on ‘Hello VOA’ on
Photo: by Men Kemseng
Thursday July 22nd, 2010.
Photo: by Men Kemseng
A US-Cambodian dance troupe under a renowned director is set to perform in Washington. The Dance Troupe of Cambodian American Heritage will perform classic stories of Hinduism and Buddhism Aug. 7 as part of the ongoing “Gods of Angkor” bronze exhibit at the Smithsonian’s Free and Sackler galleries.
The dance troupe will be guided by its director, Tes Sam Oeun, a National Endowment for the Arts heritage fellow.
“Under her direction, the dance troupe has performed in numerous venues, including events of the Smithsonian Institution, the White House, the Kennedy Center, the World Monument Fund, and numerous folk festivals,” Tes Saroeum, president of the Cambodian American Heritage, told “Hello VOA” Thursday.
Tes Saroeum, who is also Tes Sam Oeun’s husband, said the troupe will perform scenes from the mythical Vessantara Jataka, a Buddhist story.
“This story is very popular in Cambodia,” he said.
The story depicts the travails of a prince, Vessantara, who gives away his possessions and even his family in service to charity.
The troupe will also perform scenes from the Ramayana, Tes Saroeum said. All the performances will match the dual influences of both Buddhism and Hinduism in the “Gods of Angkor” exhibition.
Khmer classical dancing can be called Apsara dancing, he said, reflecting a belief that the style stems from the dance practiced in the courts of Angkorian kings.
“So when the Smithsonian asked us to perform something related to the ‘Gods of Angkor’…we decided to perform the story of Prince Vessantara, which is close to the exhibit’s crowned Buddha, and the story of Ramayana, which is related to the Hindu bronze sculptures.”
Senior Khmer Rouge cadre jailed for mass murder and torture
July 26, 2010 2 Comments
Mon Jul 26, 7:59 am ET
By Martin Petty and Prak Chan Thul
Writing by Jason Szep
Editing by Miral Fahmy
PHNOM PENH (Reuters) – The first Khmer Rouge commander to face a U.N.-backed tribunal was sentenced to 35 years in prison on Monday for overseeing 14,000 deaths in the 1970s, but he’ll serve about half that, angering many Cambodians.
Kaing Guek Eav, a 67-year-old former prison chief known as Duch, received less than the maximum 40 years sought by the prosecution for his role in the ultra-communist “Killing Fields” regime blamed for 1.7 million deaths from 1975 to 1979.
Duch was found guilty of murder, torture, rape, crimes against humanity and other charges as chief of Tuol Sleng prison, a converted school known as S-21 that symbolized the horrors of a regime that wiped out nearly a quarter of Cambodia’s population.
He betrayed no emotion as a judge read the verdict, which cut his sentence to 19 years for time already served. He could be released even earlier on parole if authorities believe has been rehabilitated, according to the court.
“We hoped this tribunal would strike hard at impunity but if you can kill 14,000 people and serve only 19 years — 11 hours per life taken — what is that? It’s a joke,” said Theary Seng, a Cambodian who is now a U.S. citizen and lost her father at S-21.
“My gut feeling is this has made the situation far worse for Cambodia,” she said. “It has taken a lot of faith out of the system and raised concerns of political interference.”
Duch had told the court he had no choice but to carry out orders and “kill or be killed.” Prosecutors insisted he was “ideologically of the same mind” as the Khmer Rouge’s top leaders and did nothing to stop rampant torture at his prison.
Some Cambodians wept after hearing the verdict, expressing outrage at the joint U.N.-Cambodian court, which has spent $78.4 million of foreign donations over five years to bring the first of five indicted Khmer Rouge officials to trial.
Click image to see more photos of Khmer Rouge, trial
- Reuters
“There is no justice. I wanted life imprisonment for Duch,” said Hong Sovath, 47, sobbing in the courtroom. Her father, a diplomat, was killed in the prison. Khan Mony, whose aunt was executed after passing through S-21, said she was devastated.
Thousands huddled around televisions in cafes and homes to watch live broadcasts of the verdict.
COMPLEX SENTENCE
The court said it decided against life in prison for several reasons, including Duch’s expressions of remorse, cooperation with the court, his “potential for rehabilitation” and the coercive environment of life under the Khmer Rouge.
“The chamber has decided there are significant mitigating factors that mandate a finite term imprisonment rather than life imprisonment,” the tribunal’s president said in a statement. Cambodia does not have capital punishment.
Now a born-again Christian, Duch had expressed “excruciating remorse” for the S-21 victims, most of them tortured and forced to confess to spying and other crimes before they were bludgeoned to death at the “KillingFields” execution sites during the agrarian revolution, which ended with a 1979 invasion by Vietnam.
Foreign investors see the Khmer Rouge trials as a gauge to whether rule of law is taking root in one of Asia’s fastest-growing frontier markets. Justice, however, could be elusive as controversy surrounds other cadres awaiting trial.
The cases of former President Khieu Samphan, “Brother Number Two” Nuon Chea, ex-Foreign Minister Ieng Sary and his wife, Ieng Thirith are highly complex and politicized. Many fear they may never go to trial, or they might die before seeing a courtroom.
Standing in the way of justice, analysts say, is not just the excessive bureaucracy and a drawn-out legal process, but a powerful single-party government that has never fully backed the tribunal and has historical ties to the Khmer Rouge.
Many former Khmer Rouge members are now part of Cambodia’s civil service and occupy top positions in provincial and central government and experts say they are keen to curtail the court’s progress and limit the scope of future investigations.
Long-serving Prime Minister Hun Sen is himself a former Khmer Rouge foot soldier who says he defected to eventual conquerors Vietnam. He has warned of another civil war if the court expands its probes into the horrors of Pol Pot’s “year zero” revolution.
Finance Minister Keat Chhon has also admitted his involvement as an interpreter for late Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot, while Foreign Minister Hor Namhong has been accused of having Khmer Rouge connections and heading a detention center. He denies the claims.
Thai are suggested to study law now to become a better human
July 26, 2010 Leave a comment
‘Nothing to fear’ from heritage meet
A MUST READ ARTICLE
25/07/2010 at 12:00 AM
Bangkok Post
Thailand has nothing to fear from the World Heritage Committee meeting starting today in Brazil, a source says.
Cambodian soldiers guard Prasat Preah Vihear
The meeting will discuss Cambodia’s management plan for Preah Vihear temple and its buffer zone.
Thailand has yet to see the plan, because it has not been distributed to committee members.
However, the source said any decision by the committee to back the plan is unlikely to affect Thailand’s territorial dispute with Cambodia over land near the temple.
Preah Vihear has been on Unesco’s world heritage list since 2008.
Thailand opposes the plan on the grounds that sovereignty over the buffer zone, the 4.6 square kilometre disputed area claimed by the two countries, has not been settled.
The source, who works on resolving border disputes between Thailand and Cambodia, said endorsement of the management plan would probably have little impact on the territorial dispute.
He cited the World Heritage Convention which says the listing of a world heritage site will not prejudice concerned parties’ right to conduct territorial disputes.
The source insists the world heritage work will not affect demarcation work in the area as both sides reached agreements following a memorandum of understanding on demarcation work in 2000.
The work has made little progress so far, because they first need to identify all 73 land pegs running along the Thai-Cambodia border.
“I think we need to study the law so we can deal with the issue better. At the moment, emotions are running too high,” the source said.
However, he cautioned about possible encroachments on Thai territory by Cambodia following any plan endorsement. Read more of this post
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