"What Is the Kangaroo Court Waiting For?": Sam Rainsy
Dec 16, 2009
16 December 2009
WHAT IS THE KANGAROO COURT WAITING FOR?
Mr. Pao Pheap, 40, second deputy chief of Samraong commune (Chantrea district, Svay Rieng province) from the Sam Rainsy Party has been summoned by the Svay Rieng Provincial Court to appear before a judge on 22 December 2009. The summons is in connection with the “incitement” and “public property destruction” charges that the same Court has levied against me following the 25 October incident in Samraong commune’s Koh Kban Kandal village where I uprooted six wooden poles in the middle of a rice field at the request of its owner. Those poles purported to be tentative border posts but were actually false boundary markers illegally planted on a private property.
Why hadn’t the Court summoned me first? As the main “suspect” or “accused” of an obviously political crime I should be the first person to be summoned and interrogated. Why judicial proceedings to “punish” me have come to a standstill? Why the CPP-controlled authorities were in such a hurry to remove my parliamentary immunity on 16 November without first asking me any question? Why is it so quite now? How much time do they need to continue to test the waters? Is it so embarrassing for them?
I want their kangaroo court to prosecute me now.
Sam Rainsy
Member of Parliament
Why hadn’t the Court summoned me first? As the main “suspect” or “accused” of an obviously political crime I should be the first person to be summoned and interrogated. Why judicial proceedings to “punish” me have come to a standstill? Why the CPP-controlled authorities were in such a hurry to remove my parliamentary immunity on 16 November without first asking me any question? Why is it so quite now? How much time do they need to continue to test the waters? Is it so embarrassing for them?
I want their kangaroo court to prosecute me now.
Sam Rainsy
Member of Parliament
Pardon Exposes Inconsistent System: Opposition
The By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
Original report from Wahington
16 December 2009
The surprising pardon last week of a Thai man convicted on espionage charges demonstrates the ongoing politicization of the judicial system, observers say.
Siwarak Chothipong, a 31-year-old engineer for the Thai company that monitors Cambodia’s air traffic control, was facing a seven-year sentence and a 10 million riel fine, about $2,500, before he was pardoned by King Norodom Sihamoni just four days after his conviction.
Siwarak was found guilty on Tuesday, Dec. 8, of leaking information about a flight to Thai Embassy officials, as ousted Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra arrived in Cambodia as a the newest economic adviser to Prime Minister Hun Sen.
By Friday, he had been pardoned, and on Monday he received a Mercedes escort from Prey Sar prison to Hun Sen’s Phnom Penh residence, in the shadow of Independence Monument, where he met with the prime minister and other officials. Thaksin, whom the Thais want extradited to serve a two-year jail term for corruption, arrived the day before—his second trip to Cambodia in recent weeks—and met with Siwarak at Prey Sar.
His pardon was unprecedented in recent Cambodian judicial history, Son Chhay, a lawmaker for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, said Monday.
What’s more, he said, the quick release, reportedly at the behest of a political party association with Thaksin, ran counter to earlier public remarks by Hun Sen, who has said prisoners should be incarcerated for at least two-thirds of their sentence before they can be pardoned.
“In principle, we want a court in our country to make a proper judgment,” Son Chhay said. “A criminal convicted must be prosecuted according to his wrongdoing and should not be used for political influence,” he said. “That is shameful to our court system.”
The government should look into injustices perpetrated against Cambodians in the court system, he said, such as those jailed for protesting alleged land theft or other issues.
“Our citizens who have been victimized by land violations and detained have proposed to His Majesty, the king, the same,” he said. “The government should give a green light and ask the king to grant them a pardon too.”
So much effort spent over a Thai national, he said, “we still think it’s not normal.”
Government officials say Hun Sen had the right to make a decision in Siwarak’s case. Phay Siphan, a spokesman for the Council of Ministers, said the decision was made in the national interest.
Chea Vannath, an independent political analyst, pointed to the five-year detention of two men widely thought innocent in the killing of a labor leader in 2004: Born Samnang and Sok Samoeun. Neither of the men was pardoned, despite a plea from the former king, Norodom Sihanouk.
With strong legal institutions, she said, enforcement of the law would be consistent. “But in [Siwarak’s] case, we see that it is far different from previous cases.”
Siwarak Chothipong, a 31-year-old engineer for the Thai company that monitors Cambodia’s air traffic control, was facing a seven-year sentence and a 10 million riel fine, about $2,500, before he was pardoned by King Norodom Sihamoni just four days after his conviction.
Siwarak was found guilty on Tuesday, Dec. 8, of leaking information about a flight to Thai Embassy officials, as ousted Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra arrived in Cambodia as a the newest economic adviser to Prime Minister Hun Sen.
By Friday, he had been pardoned, and on Monday he received a Mercedes escort from Prey Sar prison to Hun Sen’s Phnom Penh residence, in the shadow of Independence Monument, where he met with the prime minister and other officials. Thaksin, whom the Thais want extradited to serve a two-year jail term for corruption, arrived the day before—his second trip to Cambodia in recent weeks—and met with Siwarak at Prey Sar.
His pardon was unprecedented in recent Cambodian judicial history, Son Chhay, a lawmaker for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, said Monday.
What’s more, he said, the quick release, reportedly at the behest of a political party association with Thaksin, ran counter to earlier public remarks by Hun Sen, who has said prisoners should be incarcerated for at least two-thirds of their sentence before they can be pardoned.
“In principle, we want a court in our country to make a proper judgment,” Son Chhay said. “A criminal convicted must be prosecuted according to his wrongdoing and should not be used for political influence,” he said. “That is shameful to our court system.”
The government should look into injustices perpetrated against Cambodians in the court system, he said, such as those jailed for protesting alleged land theft or other issues.
“Our citizens who have been victimized by land violations and detained have proposed to His Majesty, the king, the same,” he said. “The government should give a green light and ask the king to grant them a pardon too.”
So much effort spent over a Thai national, he said, “we still think it’s not normal.”
Government officials say Hun Sen had the right to make a decision in Siwarak’s case. Phay Siphan, a spokesman for the Council of Ministers, said the decision was made in the national interest.
Chea Vannath, an independent political analyst, pointed to the five-year detention of two men widely thought innocent in the killing of a labor leader in 2004: Born Samnang and Sok Samoeun. Neither of the men was pardoned, despite a plea from the former king, Norodom Sihanouk.
With strong legal institutions, she said, enforcement of the law would be consistent. “But in [Siwarak’s] case, we see that it is far different from previous cases.”
Two Khmer Rouge To Face Genocide Charges
Nuon Chea (L) and Ieng Sary (R)By Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
16 December 2009
At least two senior leaders detained at the Khmer Rouge tribunal will be charged with genocide, an escalation of atrocity crimes charges against them, officials said Wednesday.
Nuon Chea, who was Pol Pot’s lieutenant and an influential ideologue for the communists, and Ieng Sary, the former foreign minister, will be charged with the crime in an upcoming case against them. Both already face charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Investigating judges read their decision to prosecutors, defense lawyers, and the accused in hearings Monday and Wednesday, tribunal spokesman Reach Sambath said Wednesday.
“This is the first additional charge following a more than two-year investigation by investigating judges,” Reach Sambath said.
Two more leaders in tribunal detention, Khieu Samphan and Ieng Thirith, will have similar hearings in coming weeks. Defense lawyers said Wednesday the two are also expected to be charged with genocide.
The new charges are based on mass killings of Vietnamese and Cham Muslims under the regime.
Cham Muslims were singled out and killed in the central, eastern and northwestern zones, Reach Sambath said. “And especially in the village of Trea II, in Krouch Chhmar district, and in the O’Takuon pagoda, in Kang Meas district,” in Kampong Cham province, he said.
Son Arun, a defense lawyer for Nuon Chea, said Wednesday he will appeal to strike the genocide charge. “This is a very serious charge, because my client was ignorant of some areas,” he said.
However, Youk Chhang, executive director of the Documentation Center of Cambodia, called the genocide charge a good step.
“Genocide is the right word to describe the difficulties of the people and the atrocities in Democratic Kampuchea’s regime,” he said. “This charge is not only important legally but it is important historically.”
The Documentation Center, which has spent decades researching Khmer Rouge crimes, estimates between 100,000 and 400,000 Cambodian Muslims were killed under the regime.
The total number of Vietnamese killed is not known, though at least 200,000 Vietnamese were expelled from Cambodiain the 1970s, and at least 345 Vietnamese soldiers and civilians were killed in the Khmer Rouge’s Tuol Sleng prison. Many Vietnamese were seized by the Khmer Rouge in Prey Veng and Svay Rieng provinces during armed conflict in the 1970s.
Nuon Chea, who was Pol Pot’s lieutenant and an influential ideologue for the communists, and Ieng Sary, the former foreign minister, will be charged with the crime in an upcoming case against them. Both already face charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Investigating judges read their decision to prosecutors, defense lawyers, and the accused in hearings Monday and Wednesday, tribunal spokesman Reach Sambath said Wednesday.
“This is the first additional charge following a more than two-year investigation by investigating judges,” Reach Sambath said.
Two more leaders in tribunal detention, Khieu Samphan and Ieng Thirith, will have similar hearings in coming weeks. Defense lawyers said Wednesday the two are also expected to be charged with genocide.
The new charges are based on mass killings of Vietnamese and Cham Muslims under the regime.
Cham Muslims were singled out and killed in the central, eastern and northwestern zones, Reach Sambath said. “And especially in the village of Trea II, in Krouch Chhmar district, and in the O’Takuon pagoda, in Kang Meas district,” in Kampong Cham province, he said.
Son Arun, a defense lawyer for Nuon Chea, said Wednesday he will appeal to strike the genocide charge. “This is a very serious charge, because my client was ignorant of some areas,” he said.
However, Youk Chhang, executive director of the Documentation Center of Cambodia, called the genocide charge a good step.
“Genocide is the right word to describe the difficulties of the people and the atrocities in Democratic Kampuchea’s regime,” he said. “This charge is not only important legally but it is important historically.”
The Documentation Center, which has spent decades researching Khmer Rouge crimes, estimates between 100,000 and 400,000 Cambodian Muslims were killed under the regime.
The total number of Vietnamese killed is not known, though at least 200,000 Vietnamese were expelled from Cambodiain the 1970s, and at least 345 Vietnamese soldiers and civilians were killed in the Khmer Rouge’s Tuol Sleng prison. Many Vietnamese were seized by the Khmer Rouge in Prey Veng and Svay Rieng provinces during armed conflict in the 1970s.
Cambodia: Cut off by Khmer Rouge, film scene revives at refugees return
Guests attend ‘Golden Reawakening,’ an exhibition about the golden era of Cambodian filmmaking in the 1960s and ’70s. (Photo: James Grant)In Cambodia, filmmakers are slowly returning after decades as refugees who fled the Khmer Rouge.
December 16, 2009
By Geoffrey Cain and Kounila Keo
The Christian Science Monitor
Phnom Penh, Cambodia — Just before the communist Khmer Rouge marched into the capital in 1975, Tea Lim Koun, the director of the classic Cambodian film “The Snake Man” (1972), escaped bloodshed by fleeing to Canada. Over the next four years, the genocidal regime executed most of Phnom Penh’s remaining directors and actors, wiping out Cambodia’s vibrant filmmaking scene.
Traumatized, Mr. Koun vowed never to make a film again. But he was overwhelmed when he learned that Davy Chou, the French Cambodian grandson of a famous director who disappeared in late 1969, had returned to Cambodia last summer to start an annual film festival. “The younger filmmakers will give hope to Cambodian society again,” Koun says.
He sent his daughter to represent him and his films at the exhibition called “Golden Reawakening.”
As the post-Khmer Rouge generation of Cambodians grows up, they’re producing a flurry of films that mimic the vintage style of the 1960s – widely considered the country’s golden era. Much of the revival is owed to educated filmmaker refugees who are repatriating to Cambodia from France and the United States and opening the country’s first film institutes at local universities.
Mr. Chou, the grandson of Van Chann and a film professor at the Royal University of Phnom Penh, is at the forefront of the movement with his new film, “Twin Diamonds,” released in October. “People thought this would never happen, that Cambodians wouldn’t be able to come together and revive the arts,” he says. “Young people here are doing amazing things.”
“Twin Diamonds” was screened at the festival among scores of Cambodian films, most of which explored themes of family dynamics and infidelity.
December 16, 2009
By Geoffrey Cain and Kounila Keo
The Christian Science Monitor
Phnom Penh, Cambodia — Just before the communist Khmer Rouge marched into the capital in 1975, Tea Lim Koun, the director of the classic Cambodian film “The Snake Man” (1972), escaped bloodshed by fleeing to Canada. Over the next four years, the genocidal regime executed most of Phnom Penh’s remaining directors and actors, wiping out Cambodia’s vibrant filmmaking scene.
Traumatized, Mr. Koun vowed never to make a film again. But he was overwhelmed when he learned that Davy Chou, the French Cambodian grandson of a famous director who disappeared in late 1969, had returned to Cambodia last summer to start an annual film festival. “The younger filmmakers will give hope to Cambodian society again,” Koun says.
He sent his daughter to represent him and his films at the exhibition called “Golden Reawakening.”
As the post-Khmer Rouge generation of Cambodians grows up, they’re producing a flurry of films that mimic the vintage style of the 1960s – widely considered the country’s golden era. Much of the revival is owed to educated filmmaker refugees who are repatriating to Cambodia from France and the United States and opening the country’s first film institutes at local universities.
Mr. Chou, the grandson of Van Chann and a film professor at the Royal University of Phnom Penh, is at the forefront of the movement with his new film, “Twin Diamonds,” released in October. “People thought this would never happen, that Cambodians wouldn’t be able to come together and revive the arts,” he says. “Young people here are doing amazing things.”
“Twin Diamonds” was screened at the festival among scores of Cambodian films, most of which explored themes of family dynamics and infidelity.
Photos Show Chams in Another Light
Two brothers (Photo: Emiko Stock)
Cham Women (Photo: Emiko Stock)Additional photos from Emiko Stock can be viewed here
By Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
16 December 2009
In one photo a Cambodian Cham carries a traditional scarf over his left shoulder, his home festooned with lights to welcome friendly spirits and keep the malicious at bay. In another, three old Cham men in white dress and headscarves worship at a mosque. Such are the divergent portrayals in a new photo exhibition highlighting nine years of work by Emiko Stock, a French anthropologist who studies the minority group here.
“The exhibition is to show the public that there is not just one group of Chams, or the same Cham community, in Cambodia,” said Stock, whose 88 black and white photos were on display Monday night at Phnom Penh’s Reyum Institute. “In fact, the Chams in Cambodia have various characteristics in terms of celebrating marriages, religious rituals, or even the way they address their parents.”
The photos were taken from 2000 to 2009, in the provinces of Kampong Cham, Kampong Chhnang and Mondolkiri, as well as Phnom Penh.
“I think the show will enable viewers to understand that the Chams are different from Islam or Muslims, as is widely misunderstood,” Leb Ke, a Cham, said at the exhibition.
The Chams are descendents of the lost Champa empire, located in today’s Vietnam. When the Vietnamese conquered the kingdom in the 15th Century, the Chams were forced to move into southern Vietnam and Cambodia.
In Cambodia, the group numbers nearly half a million, and most—but not all—are Muslim. And though the group has been here a long time, it is little understood.
“Some people who were led to believe bad rumors about the Cham will better understand their ethics,” said Nos Sles, an undersecretary of state at the Ministry of Education, of the exhibition.
The exhibition, which was shown in Malaysia in October, will move to Hawaii in January.
“The exhibition is to show the public that there is not just one group of Chams, or the same Cham community, in Cambodia,” said Stock, whose 88 black and white photos were on display Monday night at Phnom Penh’s Reyum Institute. “In fact, the Chams in Cambodia have various characteristics in terms of celebrating marriages, religious rituals, or even the way they address their parents.”
The photos were taken from 2000 to 2009, in the provinces of Kampong Cham, Kampong Chhnang and Mondolkiri, as well as Phnom Penh.
“I think the show will enable viewers to understand that the Chams are different from Islam or Muslims, as is widely misunderstood,” Leb Ke, a Cham, said at the exhibition.
The Chams are descendents of the lost Champa empire, located in today’s Vietnam. When the Vietnamese conquered the kingdom in the 15th Century, the Chams were forced to move into southern Vietnam and Cambodia.
In Cambodia, the group numbers nearly half a million, and most—but not all—are Muslim. And though the group has been here a long time, it is little understood.
“Some people who were led to believe bad rumors about the Cham will better understand their ethics,” said Nos Sles, an undersecretary of state at the Ministry of Education, of the exhibition.
The exhibition, which was shown in Malaysia in October, will move to Hawaii in January.
Hun Sen launches another savage blast at Abhisit
Hun Sen (L): Waiting for 'the next government'
17/12/2009
Thanida Tansubhapol and AFP
Bangkok Post
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has launched a fresh attack on the Thai government, saying relations will continue to simmer while the Abhisit government remains in office.
Relations between the two countries, which have fought a string of deadly gun battles along their border since last year, plunged last month when fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra became an economic adviser to Cambodia.
Both recalled their ambassadors last month and diplomatic tensions were further raised when Phnom Penh refused to extradite Thaksin during his first visit as economic adviser.
"I tell you [Mr Abhisit] I'm waiting for the next Thai government to come to power and for them to send back the ambassador," said Hun Sen in a speech at a Phnom Penh ceremony.
Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said in a four-page statement yesterday the already sour relationship between Bangkok and Phnom Penh had been worsened by Hun Sen's interference in Thai affairs and his insults of the Thai judicial process.
"The Thai-Cambodian relationship was normal up to Oct 21, but it became worse after that [when Hun Sen came out to criticise Thai politics and appoint Thaksin as his economic adviser]. It is necessary to tackle the problem at the root in order to solve it," he said.
But Hun Sen said yesterday the issue which had soured ties was the dispute over the ancient Preah Vihear temple.
"You raise the issue of Thaksin, but you forget the issue of Preah Vihear," he said, in reference to the 11th century Khmer temple at the centre of the deadly border dispute between the two countries.
"I want to say that relations cannot be normalised as long as you are still invading me," Hun Sen said.
Mr Kasit yesterday also came out in defence of Kamrob Palawatwichai, the diplomat under attack for his part in the jailing in Cambodia of convicted spy Sivarak Chutipong.
"The minister never ordered Mr Kamrob to carry out any espionage action in Cambodia nor did it order him to undertake a task inappropriate to the diplomatic framework," Mr Kasit said in the statement released yesterday by the Foreign Ministry on his behalf while he is in China.Mr Kamrob was expelled from Cambodia on Nov 12 for telephoning Sivarak, a Thai aviation engineer working for Cambodia Air Traffic Services, on Nov 10 to check Thaksin's flight arrival details.
Mr Kasit said the root of the problem was Thaksin who had entered Cambodia despite being a fugitive from Thai justice.
read more “Hun Sen launches another savage blast at Abhisit”
17/12/2009
Thanida Tansubhapol and AFP
Bangkok Post
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has launched a fresh attack on the Thai government, saying relations will continue to simmer while the Abhisit government remains in office.
Relations between the two countries, which have fought a string of deadly gun battles along their border since last year, plunged last month when fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra became an economic adviser to Cambodia.
Both recalled their ambassadors last month and diplomatic tensions were further raised when Phnom Penh refused to extradite Thaksin during his first visit as economic adviser.
"I tell you [Mr Abhisit] I'm waiting for the next Thai government to come to power and for them to send back the ambassador," said Hun Sen in a speech at a Phnom Penh ceremony.
Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said in a four-page statement yesterday the already sour relationship between Bangkok and Phnom Penh had been worsened by Hun Sen's interference in Thai affairs and his insults of the Thai judicial process.
"The Thai-Cambodian relationship was normal up to Oct 21, but it became worse after that [when Hun Sen came out to criticise Thai politics and appoint Thaksin as his economic adviser]. It is necessary to tackle the problem at the root in order to solve it," he said.
But Hun Sen said yesterday the issue which had soured ties was the dispute over the ancient Preah Vihear temple.
"You raise the issue of Thaksin, but you forget the issue of Preah Vihear," he said, in reference to the 11th century Khmer temple at the centre of the deadly border dispute between the two countries.
"I want to say that relations cannot be normalised as long as you are still invading me," Hun Sen said.
Mr Kasit yesterday also came out in defence of Kamrob Palawatwichai, the diplomat under attack for his part in the jailing in Cambodia of convicted spy Sivarak Chutipong.
"The minister never ordered Mr Kamrob to carry out any espionage action in Cambodia nor did it order him to undertake a task inappropriate to the diplomatic framework," Mr Kasit said in the statement released yesterday by the Foreign Ministry on his behalf while he is in China.Mr Kamrob was expelled from Cambodia on Nov 12 for telephoning Sivarak, a Thai aviation engineer working for Cambodia Air Traffic Services, on Nov 10 to check Thaksin's flight arrival details.
Mr Kasit said the root of the problem was Thaksin who had entered Cambodia despite being a fugitive from Thai justice.
Thai-Cambodian row a popularity boost for govts
December 17, 2009
By Supalak Ganjanakhundee
The Nation
From a government point of view, conflict is not all bad - as long as the two governments limit their disagreements and avoid consequences that could backfire. But for either country, any kind of conflict will never bring a good result.
Normalisation of bilateral relations between Thailand and Cambodia remains an uphill task at this moment as both sides continue to enjoy - for domestic consumption - political benefits from the dispute.
The Thai government has set conditions for normalisation of relations - Cambodia must respect the Thai judiciary; stop interference in Thailand's internal affairs; and remove fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra from the position of adviser to the Cambodian government.
Cambodia, on the other hand, says it wants Thailand to return its ambassador to Phnom Penh, otherwise relations can never get back on track.
The Thai government reply is it would not return its ambassador to resume duty as long as Thaksin remained an adviser to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, and continued to avoid extradition to face punishment following his conviction in Thailand for corruption.
Thaksin has been at the core of the bad relations between the two countries since Hun Sen gave him the economic adviser's post in October. But even before this, feelings had been bad due to the conflict over the Hindu temple of Preah Vihear.
The two governments intentionally put the Thaksin issue into the context of bilateral relations because they wanted to use the issue to boost popularity at home and cover their respective administrative failures.
The Democrat-led government badly needed the Thaksin issue to justify its reason for being in power. Conflict with Cambodia over Thaksin has helped improve the popularity of Abhisit Vejjajiva's administration.
Thaksin is a perfect decoy to divert attention from the administration's failure to revive the economy.
The government could easily shift the blame to Thaksin and his red-shirted group for any economic failure. Political stability is indeed a key factor for economic recovery.
On the foreign policy front, Thailand has a good excuse to delay a resolution on the conflict with Cambodia over Preah Vihear. The issue is complicated and many government supporters, notably the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), don't want the country to end the dispute over the temple.
They believe - wrongly- that if Thailand delays settlement on Preah Vihear until February next year, the World Heritage Committee would remove the temple from its listing.
Prime Minister Abhisit might know that perception is wrong but as long as it keeps the PAD away from putting pressure on the government, it's fine.
The opposition too can benefit from the Thai-Cambodian conflict as it uses the case of Thai engineer Sivarak Chutipong to move a censure motion against Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya.
They blame Kasit for instructing Thai diplomat Kamrob Palawatwichai to get Thaksin's flight information from Sivarak, who was later pardoned from a seven-year jail term on the spying charge.
Cambodia also wanted the Thaksin issue to fuel its conflict with Thailand to boost support for the government. Angered by the Preah Vihear case, many Cambodian people wanted Prime Minister Hun Sen to take a tough stance against Abhisit's government.
Thaksin is a powerful weapon for Hun Sen to wield against the current Thai government as the issue could cause the Thai prime minister and his foreign minister to lose direction in handling the situation.
Thaksin is also useful for Cambodia in real terms as Hun Sen can utilise his connections with international investors to bring capital into the Cambodian economy. Thaksin himself has planned to invest in the country's tourism and energy sectors.
From a government point of view, conflict is not all bad - as long as the two governments limit their disagreements and avoid consequences that could backfire. But for either country, any kind of conflict will never bring a good result.
read more “Thai-Cambodian row a popularity boost for govts”
By Supalak Ganjanakhundee
The Nation
From a government point of view, conflict is not all bad - as long as the two governments limit their disagreements and avoid consequences that could backfire. But for either country, any kind of conflict will never bring a good result.
Normalisation of bilateral relations between Thailand and Cambodia remains an uphill task at this moment as both sides continue to enjoy - for domestic consumption - political benefits from the dispute.
The Thai government has set conditions for normalisation of relations - Cambodia must respect the Thai judiciary; stop interference in Thailand's internal affairs; and remove fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra from the position of adviser to the Cambodian government.
Cambodia, on the other hand, says it wants Thailand to return its ambassador to Phnom Penh, otherwise relations can never get back on track.
The Thai government reply is it would not return its ambassador to resume duty as long as Thaksin remained an adviser to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, and continued to avoid extradition to face punishment following his conviction in Thailand for corruption.
Thaksin has been at the core of the bad relations between the two countries since Hun Sen gave him the economic adviser's post in October. But even before this, feelings had been bad due to the conflict over the Hindu temple of Preah Vihear.
The two governments intentionally put the Thaksin issue into the context of bilateral relations because they wanted to use the issue to boost popularity at home and cover their respective administrative failures.
The Democrat-led government badly needed the Thaksin issue to justify its reason for being in power. Conflict with Cambodia over Thaksin has helped improve the popularity of Abhisit Vejjajiva's administration.
Thaksin is a perfect decoy to divert attention from the administration's failure to revive the economy.
The government could easily shift the blame to Thaksin and his red-shirted group for any economic failure. Political stability is indeed a key factor for economic recovery.
On the foreign policy front, Thailand has a good excuse to delay a resolution on the conflict with Cambodia over Preah Vihear. The issue is complicated and many government supporters, notably the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), don't want the country to end the dispute over the temple.
They believe - wrongly- that if Thailand delays settlement on Preah Vihear until February next year, the World Heritage Committee would remove the temple from its listing.
Prime Minister Abhisit might know that perception is wrong but as long as it keeps the PAD away from putting pressure on the government, it's fine.
The opposition too can benefit from the Thai-Cambodian conflict as it uses the case of Thai engineer Sivarak Chutipong to move a censure motion against Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya.
They blame Kasit for instructing Thai diplomat Kamrob Palawatwichai to get Thaksin's flight information from Sivarak, who was later pardoned from a seven-year jail term on the spying charge.
Cambodia also wanted the Thaksin issue to fuel its conflict with Thailand to boost support for the government. Angered by the Preah Vihear case, many Cambodian people wanted Prime Minister Hun Sen to take a tough stance against Abhisit's government.
Thaksin is a powerful weapon for Hun Sen to wield against the current Thai government as the issue could cause the Thai prime minister and his foreign minister to lose direction in handling the situation.
Thaksin is also useful for Cambodia in real terms as Hun Sen can utilise his connections with international investors to bring capital into the Cambodian economy. Thaksin himself has planned to invest in the country's tourism and energy sectors.
From a government point of view, conflict is not all bad - as long as the two governments limit their disagreements and avoid consequences that could backfire. But for either country, any kind of conflict will never bring a good result.
ADB keeps Cambodia forecast at 1.5pc drop
Wednesday, 16 December 2009
Chun Sophal
The Phnom Penh Post
THE Asian Development Bank on Tuesday lifted its prediction of economic growth for developing Asia in 2009 and 2010, although the lender kept its Cambodia forecast unchanged at negative 1.5 percent for this year, the latest sign the Kingdom is faring worse than many of its neighbours in its bid to recover from the global downturn.
The ADB lifted its 2009 forecast for 45 developing Asian countries to an average 4.5 percent, up from 3.9 percent in September. In 2010, gross domestic product in the region was expected to hit 6.6 percent, a small improvement on the 6.4 percent forecast made in September.
“The prospects for much of the region look rosier than they did in September,” said Jong-Wha Lee, ADB’s chief economist. “Fiscal and monetary stimulus policies and a moderate improvement in the G-3 economies of Europe, Japan and the US helped East Asia and Southeast Asia in particular.”
By contrast, Cambodia was expected to see growth of just 3.5 percent next year.
“Cambodia’s economy was badly hit by a sharper-than-expected decline in garment exports, construction, and tourism,” the report said.
An International Monetary Fund report on December 9 showed that Cambodia had largely failed to benefit from external stimulus spending, as demand for the Kingdom’s garments in the US – the country’s largest export market – declined 23.1 percent in the first eight months compared to an 14.3 percent drop on average across all suppliers.
The government increased spending 28 percent this year on 2008 levels, according to the ADB.
read more “ADB keeps Cambodia forecast at 1.5pc drop”
Chun Sophal
The Phnom Penh Post
THE Asian Development Bank on Tuesday lifted its prediction of economic growth for developing Asia in 2009 and 2010, although the lender kept its Cambodia forecast unchanged at negative 1.5 percent for this year, the latest sign the Kingdom is faring worse than many of its neighbours in its bid to recover from the global downturn.
The ADB lifted its 2009 forecast for 45 developing Asian countries to an average 4.5 percent, up from 3.9 percent in September. In 2010, gross domestic product in the region was expected to hit 6.6 percent, a small improvement on the 6.4 percent forecast made in September.
“The prospects for much of the region look rosier than they did in September,” said Jong-Wha Lee, ADB’s chief economist. “Fiscal and monetary stimulus policies and a moderate improvement in the G-3 economies of Europe, Japan and the US helped East Asia and Southeast Asia in particular.”
By contrast, Cambodia was expected to see growth of just 3.5 percent next year.
“Cambodia’s economy was badly hit by a sharper-than-expected decline in garment exports, construction, and tourism,” the report said.
An International Monetary Fund report on December 9 showed that Cambodia had largely failed to benefit from external stimulus spending, as demand for the Kingdom’s garments in the US – the country’s largest export market – declined 23.1 percent in the first eight months compared to an 14.3 percent drop on average across all suppliers.
The government increased spending 28 percent this year on 2008 levels, according to the ADB.
Two more Khmer Rouge leaders to face genocide charges
Wed, 16 Dec 2009
DPA
Phnom Penh - At least two more senior leaders detained at the Khmer Rouge tribunal will be charged with genocide, officials said Wednesday. Nuon Chea, who was former Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot's lieutenant and an influential ideologue, and former foreign minister Ieng Sary are to be charged with the crime in their upcoming trials.
Both already face charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Two other former officials of the radical regime, Khieu Samphan and Ieng Thirith, will have similar hearings in coming weeks, court officials said. Defense lawyers said Wednesday the two are also expected to be charged with genocide.
The Khmer Rouge tribunal, known as the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, earlier this month completed hearing the case against Kaing Guek Eav, aka Duch, the former head of the Khmer Rouge torturecentre in Phnom Penh known as S-21.
Acting international co-prosecutor William Smith was widely seen as having done a good job, particularly in the trial's final week when the defence imploded and fielded two opposing arguments before the court.
The trial took 77 days of hearings. Duch was tried for crimes against humanity and war crimes, as well as crimes under Cambodian law, and will be sentenced early next year. At least 15,000 people were tortured and executed at S-21.
The Khmer Rouge ruled Cambodia between 1975-79. Up to 2 million people are thought to have died during that time from execution, starvation and overwork. Pol Pot died in 1998.
read more “Two more Khmer Rouge leaders to face genocide charges”
DPA
Phnom Penh - At least two more senior leaders detained at the Khmer Rouge tribunal will be charged with genocide, officials said Wednesday. Nuon Chea, who was former Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot's lieutenant and an influential ideologue, and former foreign minister Ieng Sary are to be charged with the crime in their upcoming trials.
Both already face charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Two other former officials of the radical regime, Khieu Samphan and Ieng Thirith, will have similar hearings in coming weeks, court officials said. Defense lawyers said Wednesday the two are also expected to be charged with genocide.
The Khmer Rouge tribunal, known as the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, earlier this month completed hearing the case against Kaing Guek Eav, aka Duch, the former head of the Khmer Rouge torturecentre in Phnom Penh known as S-21.
Acting international co-prosecutor William Smith was widely seen as having done a good job, particularly in the trial's final week when the defence imploded and fielded two opposing arguments before the court.
The trial took 77 days of hearings. Duch was tried for crimes against humanity and war crimes, as well as crimes under Cambodian law, and will be sentenced early next year. At least 15,000 people were tortured and executed at S-21.
The Khmer Rouge ruled Cambodia between 1975-79. Up to 2 million people are thought to have died during that time from execution, starvation and overwork. Pol Pot died in 1998.
Normal relations impossible
Dec 16, 2009
AFP
'I want to say that relations cannot be normalised as long as you are still invading me' - Hun Sen
PHNOM PENH - CAMBODIAN Prime Minister Hun Sen said on Wednesday that foundering relations with Thailand would not be normalised until Bangkok's current government was voted out of office.
Relations between the countries, which have fought a string of deadly gunbattles on their border since last year, plunged last month when fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra became an economic adviser to Cambodia.
Both recalled their ambassadors in November, and diplomatic tensions were further raised when Phnom Penh refused to extradite Thaksin during his first visit as economic adviser.
'I tell you (Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva) I'm waiting for the Thai next government to come to power and for them send back the ambassador,' said Mr Hun Sen in a speech at Phnom Penh ceremony. 'You raise the issue of Thaksin, but you forget the issue of Preah Vihear,' he said, in reference to the 11th century Khmer temple at the centre of the deadly border dispute between the two countries.
'I want to say that relations cannot be normalised as long as you are still invading me,' Mr Hun Sen added. Thaksin, who arrived back in Cambodia on Sunday, stepped up his economic advisory role on Wednesday as he addressed senior government officials on how to boost investment and tourism.
The telecoms mogul, ousted in a 2006 coup, was credited this week by the Cambodian government for the release of a Thai air traffic control employee jailed for seven years for spying on Thaksin's previous visit.
read more “Normal relations impossible”
AFP
'I want to say that relations cannot be normalised as long as you are still invading me' - Hun Sen
PHNOM PENH - CAMBODIAN Prime Minister Hun Sen said on Wednesday that foundering relations with Thailand would not be normalised until Bangkok's current government was voted out of office.
Relations between the countries, which have fought a string of deadly gunbattles on their border since last year, plunged last month when fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra became an economic adviser to Cambodia.
Both recalled their ambassadors in November, and diplomatic tensions were further raised when Phnom Penh refused to extradite Thaksin during his first visit as economic adviser.
'I tell you (Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva) I'm waiting for the Thai next government to come to power and for them send back the ambassador,' said Mr Hun Sen in a speech at Phnom Penh ceremony. 'You raise the issue of Thaksin, but you forget the issue of Preah Vihear,' he said, in reference to the 11th century Khmer temple at the centre of the deadly border dispute between the two countries.
'I want to say that relations cannot be normalised as long as you are still invading me,' Mr Hun Sen added. Thaksin, who arrived back in Cambodia on Sunday, stepped up his economic advisory role on Wednesday as he addressed senior government officials on how to boost investment and tourism.
The telecoms mogul, ousted in a 2006 coup, was credited this week by the Cambodian government for the release of a Thai air traffic control employee jailed for seven years for spying on Thaksin's previous visit.
ASEAN hopes dispute between Thailand, Cambodia not jeopardizes its solidarity
JAKARTA, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- The Association of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) said on Wednesday that it hopes border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia would not jeopardize its solidarity.
"The dispute is one thing but the most important thing is that the incident would not pose risk to the ASEAN's solidarity," Tommy Koh, Chairperson on the High-Level Task Force on the Drafting of the ASEAN Charter, told the press after the second ASEAN Secretariat Policy Forum at its secretariat here.
He said that member countries have offered solutions but both countries rejected them so far.
"We try to calm the situation down all the time," said Koh.
ASEAN's Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan said diplomacy is still going on to find a solution.
Koh said delegations are doing their job for the maximum restraint.
The two ASEAN members met with diplomatic problem after Cambodia appointed ousted former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra as an economic advisor to Cambodia's government and Prime Minister Hun Sen on Nov. 4.
After the appointment, the Thai government recalled its ambassador to Cambodia and the Cambodian government, in response, announced a recall of its ambassador to Thailand.
read more “ASEAN hopes dispute between Thailand, Cambodia not jeopardizes its solidarity”
"The dispute is one thing but the most important thing is that the incident would not pose risk to the ASEAN's solidarity," Tommy Koh, Chairperson on the High-Level Task Force on the Drafting of the ASEAN Charter, told the press after the second ASEAN Secretariat Policy Forum at its secretariat here.
He said that member countries have offered solutions but both countries rejected them so far.
"We try to calm the situation down all the time," said Koh.
ASEAN's Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan said diplomacy is still going on to find a solution.
Koh said delegations are doing their job for the maximum restraint.
The two ASEAN members met with diplomatic problem after Cambodia appointed ousted former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra as an economic advisor to Cambodia's government and Prime Minister Hun Sen on Nov. 4.
After the appointment, the Thai government recalled its ambassador to Cambodia and the Cambodian government, in response, announced a recall of its ambassador to Thailand.
Cambodia must not return Uighurs to China: Amnesty
Wed, Dec 16, 2009
AFP
PHNOM PENH - Amnesty International urged Cambodia Wednesday not to deport 22 Uighurs who are seeking UN refugee status in Phnom Penh, saying they risked torture at home in China.
The right group's appeal came after China warned Tuesday that UN refugee programmes "should not be a haven for criminals" and said the 22 Uighurs, including three children, were involved in crimes.
"Amnesty International understands that the Chinese government has formally requested the Cambodian authorities to send these asylum seekers back to China," Sam Zarifi, the group's Asia-Pacific director, wrote in an open letter to Cambodian Interior Minister Sar Kheng.
"We urge you not to return the 22 Uighur asylum seekers and to ensure that they have access to a fair asylum process," he said.
"Amnesty International believes that these Uighurs would be particularly vulnerable to torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment."
Cambodia's government says it is cooperating with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to interview the Uighurs to see if they can be granted asylum.
The group arrived at the UNHCR office after fleeing deadly unrest in northwest China's Xinjiang region in July, and their presence in Phnom Penh was first made public two weeks ago.
The July clashes between Xinjiang's Muslim Uighur community and China's majority Han ethnic group left 197 people dead and more than 1,600 injured, according to an official toll.
read more “Cambodia must not return Uighurs to China: Amnesty”
AFP
PHNOM PENH - Amnesty International urged Cambodia Wednesday not to deport 22 Uighurs who are seeking UN refugee status in Phnom Penh, saying they risked torture at home in China.
The right group's appeal came after China warned Tuesday that UN refugee programmes "should not be a haven for criminals" and said the 22 Uighurs, including three children, were involved in crimes.
"Amnesty International understands that the Chinese government has formally requested the Cambodian authorities to send these asylum seekers back to China," Sam Zarifi, the group's Asia-Pacific director, wrote in an open letter to Cambodian Interior Minister Sar Kheng.
"We urge you not to return the 22 Uighur asylum seekers and to ensure that they have access to a fair asylum process," he said.
"Amnesty International believes that these Uighurs would be particularly vulnerable to torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment."
Cambodia's government says it is cooperating with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to interview the Uighurs to see if they can be granted asylum.
The group arrived at the UNHCR office after fleeing deadly unrest in northwest China's Xinjiang region in July, and their presence in Phnom Penh was first made public two weeks ago.
The July clashes between Xinjiang's Muslim Uighur community and China's majority Han ethnic group left 197 people dead and more than 1,600 injured, according to an official toll.
Thai FM never directed official to collect intelligence in Cambodia: Minister
BANGKOK, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- The Thai Foreign Ministry has never directed its Thai diplomat to collect intelligence information from Siwarak Chutipong in Cambodia, hence he is not required to explain about the matter, Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said Wednesday, Thai News Agency reported.
Siwarak, 31 years old, who worked as an engineer at Cambodia Air Traffic Services Co Ltd, had been arrested in Cambodia from Nov. 11, according to an arrest warrant of prosecutor of Phnom Penh Municipality Court.
Cambodia's court had charged Siwarak of having had the confidential information affecting Cambodia's national security.
Siwarak was sentenced to seven years in jail last week, but he was granted a royal pardon from Cambodia's King on Dec. 11, and he was set free on Dec. 14.
As Kasit said he is glad Siwarak has been freed and arrived safely in Thailand, the Thai foreign minister has also insisted the ministry has never directed such the order to the Thai diplomat, Kamrob Palawatwichai as charged.
Kamrob, who was a former first secretary of Thailand's Embassy in Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh, was allegedly ordered to collect the intelligence information from Siwarak.
Kasit also said the Thai ministry had fully attempted to help Siwarak, while he was fighting in Cambodia's court for freedom.
read more “Thai FM never directed official to collect intelligence in Cambodia: Minister”
Siwarak, 31 years old, who worked as an engineer at Cambodia Air Traffic Services Co Ltd, had been arrested in Cambodia from Nov. 11, according to an arrest warrant of prosecutor of Phnom Penh Municipality Court.
Cambodia's court had charged Siwarak of having had the confidential information affecting Cambodia's national security.
Siwarak was sentenced to seven years in jail last week, but he was granted a royal pardon from Cambodia's King on Dec. 11, and he was set free on Dec. 14.
As Kasit said he is glad Siwarak has been freed and arrived safely in Thailand, the Thai foreign minister has also insisted the ministry has never directed such the order to the Thai diplomat, Kamrob Palawatwichai as charged.
Kamrob, who was a former first secretary of Thailand's Embassy in Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh, was allegedly ordered to collect the intelligence information from Siwarak.
Kasit also said the Thai ministry had fully attempted to help Siwarak, while he was fighting in Cambodia's court for freedom.
Police chief accuses SRP of assault
Police officers and local residents face off during an SRP visit to the border with Vietnam on Monday. (Photo by: Zela Chin)Wednesday, 16 December 2009
Meas Sokchea
The Phnom Penh Post
"When the authorities exaggerate ... how can people have confidence in them?"SVAY Rieng provincial police Chief Prach Rim says 15 police officers were injured by Sam Rainsy Party parliamentarians who scuffled with them in an attempt to investigate the Cambodian-Vietnamese border on Monday.
Around 40 provincial police were dispatched to an area near the border in Svay Rieng’s Chantrea district where the SRP delegation and local residents planned to visit the site of an October demonstration by opposition president Sam Rainsy to protest alleged Vietnamese incursion into Cambodian territory.
“They pushed and hit police officers. Some were injured in the head, some on the cheek, some on the hands and legs,” Prach Rim said. “My police did not hit back – they just held on.”
Prach Rim added that he regretted the fact that his officers could not hold back the SRP delegation because of the pushing and shoving.
The SRP rejected the allegations of violence in a press release issued on Tuesday.
“This news is not true – it is twisted, without basis, in order to defame the SRP, which has always struggled for freedom, justice and democracy in Cambodia,” the statement read, adding that it was the police who had armed themselves in an effort to prevent the delegation from visiting the border.
The SRP called the police chief’s accusations an attempt to hide the fact that the border markers have been placed in locations that deny Cambodian residents their ancestral land, and asked the government to review the demarcation process with Vietnam.
On Monday afternoon, Chantrea district residents and about 20 SRP parliamentarians engaged in a minor scuffle with provincial police as the officers attempted to block the delegation from accessing the site where Sam Rainsy joined local villagers in uprooting six wooden border posts in October.
The SRP leader says he is facing charges of incitement and destruction of property in connection with the incident, though Svay Rieng court officials on Tuesday declined to comment on the case.
Nget Nara, Svay Rieng provincial coordinator for the rights group Adhoc, was part of the group that travelled to the border Monday. He dismissed the allegations of violence as politically motivated.
“The parliamentarians’ group did not hit or injure police. This is an unreasonable statement – the parliamentarians and people just wanted to see the border demarcation,” Nget Nara said. “The police had shields and bats to block them.”
SRP Secretary General Ke Sovannroth said that the provincial police chief’s accusations called into question the government’s credibility.
“When the authorities exaggerate like this, how can people have confidence in them?” she said.
Thai Foreign Minister stands by his man over arrest of engineer
BANGKOK, Dec 16 (TNA) – Thailand’s Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya issued a statement Wednesday on the arrest of a Thai engineer by the Cambodian authorities, saying that Thai diplomat Kamrob Palawatwichai is not required to explain himself as he did his duty.
Mr Kasit said he was glad that Siwarak Chutipong has been freed and arrived safely in Bangkok. The ministry of foreign affairs had offered help to him and his family, according to the statement.
The chairmen of the National Human Rights Committee and the Lawyers Council of Thailand and representatives from Human Rights Watch were invited to discuss the issue but the ministry must respect the decision of the family to seek assistance from the opposition Puea Thai party.
Mr Kasit confirmed that the ministry has never claimed that Mr Siwarak and his family set up the whole situation but it views that he is a Thai national, having trouble overseas.
Speaking about a claim by some groups that Mr Kamrob, the former first secretary of Thailand's embassy in Phnom Penh was ordered to collect intelligence information from Mr Siwarak, Mr Kasit insisted that the ministry has never directed such an order to Kamrob as charged.
However, ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra, convicted of misusing his authority, travelled to Cambodia as a fugitive wanted by the Thai authorities. Touching on calls for Mr Kamrob to clarify the issue, he said it is not the practice of a government official who does his duty.
Mr Siwarak is the Cambodia Air Traffic Services (CATS) employee who was arrested by Cambodian police on November 12 on charges of espionage--passing to Mr Kamrop information on the flight details of Mr Thaksin during his first visit to Cambodia after being appointed economic adviser to the Cambodian government.
A Cambodian Court sentenced Mr Siwarak to seven years jail and fined him Bt100,000 (US$3,000) but he was released following the Cambodian king's royal pardon. Before his release, Mrs Simarak and the fugitive Thai premier visited Mr Siwarak at Preysar Prison Sunday evening.
On Monday morning Mr Siwarak, his mother, and Puea Thai MPs met with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen who gave him the official letter of royal pardon before leaving to Thailand in the afternoon.
read more “Thai Foreign Minister stands by his man over arrest of engineer”
Mr Kasit said he was glad that Siwarak Chutipong has been freed and arrived safely in Bangkok. The ministry of foreign affairs had offered help to him and his family, according to the statement.
The chairmen of the National Human Rights Committee and the Lawyers Council of Thailand and representatives from Human Rights Watch were invited to discuss the issue but the ministry must respect the decision of the family to seek assistance from the opposition Puea Thai party.
Mr Kasit confirmed that the ministry has never claimed that Mr Siwarak and his family set up the whole situation but it views that he is a Thai national, having trouble overseas.
Speaking about a claim by some groups that Mr Kamrob, the former first secretary of Thailand's embassy in Phnom Penh was ordered to collect intelligence information from Mr Siwarak, Mr Kasit insisted that the ministry has never directed such an order to Kamrob as charged.
However, ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra, convicted of misusing his authority, travelled to Cambodia as a fugitive wanted by the Thai authorities. Touching on calls for Mr Kamrob to clarify the issue, he said it is not the practice of a government official who does his duty.
Mr Siwarak is the Cambodia Air Traffic Services (CATS) employee who was arrested by Cambodian police on November 12 on charges of espionage--passing to Mr Kamrop information on the flight details of Mr Thaksin during his first visit to Cambodia after being appointed economic adviser to the Cambodian government.
A Cambodian Court sentenced Mr Siwarak to seven years jail and fined him Bt100,000 (US$3,000) but he was released following the Cambodian king's royal pardon. Before his release, Mrs Simarak and the fugitive Thai premier visited Mr Siwarak at Preysar Prison Sunday evening.
On Monday morning Mr Siwarak, his mother, and Puea Thai MPs met with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen who gave him the official letter of royal pardon before leaving to Thailand in the afternoon.
SRP rejects accusation leveled by the Svay Rieng province authority
14 Dec. 2009: Svay Rieng cops attempt to block SRP MPs and local villagers from visitng the location where Mr. Sam Rainsy uprooted border stakes no. 185 in Samrong commune, Chantrea district (Photo: Uon Chhin, RFA)15 Dec 2009
By Uddom
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
Click here to read the article in Khmer
On Tuesday 15 December, the SRP issued a statement rejecting the accusation leveled by the Svay Rieng province authority claiming that the SRP MPs and their supporters used violence and caused injuries to 15 cops.
On 15 December 2009, the SRP secretariat issued a statement rejecting the accusation leveled against SRP MPs and their supporters for creating an incident and attacking police officials during their visit of the border stakes located in Samrong commune, Chantrea district, Svay Rieng province, on 14 December 2009.
The rejection statement came after some local news media quoted Svay Rieng cops as claiming that during their visit to Samrong commune, the SRP MPs and their supported used violence on the cops stationed there, and caused injuries to 15 of these cops.
On 15 December 2009, the SRP secretariat issued a statement rejecting the accusation leveled against SRP MPs and their supporters for creating an incident and attacking police officials during their visit of the border stakes located in Samrong commune, Chantrea district, Svay Rieng province, on 14 December 2009.
The rejection statement came after some local news media quoted Svay Rieng cops as claiming that during their visit to Samrong commune, the SRP MPs and their supported used violence on the cops stationed there, and caused injuries to 15 of these cops.
UN-Backed Court Charges 2 Ex-Khmer Rouge Leaders With Genocide
DECEMBER 16, 2009
PHNOM PENH (AFP)--Cambodia's U.N.-backed warcrimes court has for the first time issued genocide charges against two leaders of the brutal Khmer Rouge regime, a tribunal spokesman said Wednesday.
Former Khmer Rouge number two Nuon Chea and foreign minister Ieng Sary were both charged over the hardline communist regime's slaughter of Vietnamese people and ethnic Cham Muslims during the 1970s, spokesman Lars Olsen said.
"This week both Nuon Chea and Ieng Sary have been brought before the investigating judges and informed they are being charged with genocide against the Cham Muslims and the Vietnamese," Olsen said.
"This is the first time that anyone has been charged with genocide" at the U.N.-backed tribunal, he added.
Former Khmer Rouge number two Nuon Chea and foreign minister Ieng Sary were both charged over the hardline communist regime's slaughter of Vietnamese people and ethnic Cham Muslims during the 1970s, spokesman Lars Olsen said.
"This week both Nuon Chea and Ieng Sary have been brought before the investigating judges and informed they are being charged with genocide against the Cham Muslims and the Vietnamese," Olsen said.
"This is the first time that anyone has been charged with genocide" at the U.N.-backed tribunal, he added.
SRP MPs: Border delimitation led to loss of Cambodian territories
Khmer anti-riot troops prevent Khmer MPs from visiting the encroached area15 Dec 2009
By Uon Chhin
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
Click here to read the article in Khmer
Following their visit to review border post installations in Svay Rieng province, a group of SRP MPs claimed that the border delimitation between Cambodia and Vietnam indeed led to losses of Cambodian territories.
Even though the authority tried to set obstacle for them, delegates of a group of opposition MPs were able to travel to their destination, and they indicated that the planting of border posts was not performed correctly.
Following the visit of 21 SRP MPs and a number of other opposition officials to the site of border post no. 152, located in Pong Teuk commune, Romduol district, and the site of border post no. 185 located in Samrong commune, Chantrea district, Svay Rieng province, on Monday 14 December, Yim Sovann, SRP spokesman, determined that the border delimitation between Cambodia and Vietnam led to the loss of Cambodian territories.
Yim Sovann said: “The government and the National Assembly, in particular the [National Assembly’s] border and foreign affairs committee should take immediate measures to review the border post planting. There are thousands of border posts, we just saw 4 or 5 them and they affect the people’s lands that much already, what will happen when it comes to thousands of border posts, how much [land] will be lost?”
Var Kim Hong, the chairman of the Cambodian joint border committee, said that the claim made by SRP MPs has no technical basis, he added that the action taken by the opposition MPs was done for political gain.
Var Kim Hong said: “They should be fortuneteller, that would be more befitting. If they are not fortunetellers, they wouldn’t know that there were [territories] lost. We have all the necessary technique and we still don’t know clearly yet, how about them who only went to look, and they heard the villagers told them this and that. This is difficult to say.”
The visit of SRP MPs to Samrong commune, Chantrea district, was met with police barrage. The cops were equipped with riot shields, batons, electric baton. The cops also brought in large trucks to block traffic to the Wat Ang Romdenh pagoda.
Nevertheless, the car convoy carrying the SRP MPs took a detour through rice fields and ultimately arrived at Wat Ang Romdenh pagoda.
Inside the pagoda, the MPs met with about 100 villagers. Tense negotiations took place with about 20 cops and several other border troops so that the MPs can visit the location where Mr. Sam Rainsy uprooted border stakes last 25 October.
After they were refused access, local villagers who are already incensed by the situation decided to push through the police barrage. Finally the MPs and the local villagers were able to reach the location [where Sam Rainsy uprooted the border stakes which is located] about 300-meter from Wat Ang Romdenh pagoda.
Even though the authority tried to set obstacle for them, delegates of a group of opposition MPs were able to travel to their destination, and they indicated that the planting of border posts was not performed correctly.
Following the visit of 21 SRP MPs and a number of other opposition officials to the site of border post no. 152, located in Pong Teuk commune, Romduol district, and the site of border post no. 185 located in Samrong commune, Chantrea district, Svay Rieng province, on Monday 14 December, Yim Sovann, SRP spokesman, determined that the border delimitation between Cambodia and Vietnam led to the loss of Cambodian territories.
Yim Sovann said: “The government and the National Assembly, in particular the [National Assembly’s] border and foreign affairs committee should take immediate measures to review the border post planting. There are thousands of border posts, we just saw 4 or 5 them and they affect the people’s lands that much already, what will happen when it comes to thousands of border posts, how much [land] will be lost?”
Var Kim Hong, the chairman of the Cambodian joint border committee, said that the claim made by SRP MPs has no technical basis, he added that the action taken by the opposition MPs was done for political gain.
Var Kim Hong said: “They should be fortuneteller, that would be more befitting. If they are not fortunetellers, they wouldn’t know that there were [territories] lost. We have all the necessary technique and we still don’t know clearly yet, how about them who only went to look, and they heard the villagers told them this and that. This is difficult to say.”
The visit of SRP MPs to Samrong commune, Chantrea district, was met with police barrage. The cops were equipped with riot shields, batons, electric baton. The cops also brought in large trucks to block traffic to the Wat Ang Romdenh pagoda.
Nevertheless, the car convoy carrying the SRP MPs took a detour through rice fields and ultimately arrived at Wat Ang Romdenh pagoda.
Inside the pagoda, the MPs met with about 100 villagers. Tense negotiations took place with about 20 cops and several other border troops so that the MPs can visit the location where Mr. Sam Rainsy uprooted border stakes last 25 October.
After they were refused access, local villagers who are already incensed by the situation decided to push through the police barrage. Finally the MPs and the local villagers were able to reach the location [where Sam Rainsy uprooted the border stakes which is located] about 300-meter from Wat Ang Romdenh pagoda.
Kasit defends ministry, Kamrob
16/12/2009
Bangkok Post
Mr Kamrob only performed his duty by trying to get information on Thaksin's whereabouts and report it to the Foreign Ministry, so that it could coordinate with the Office of the Attorney-General to seek the extradition of the fugitive former prime minister, Mr Kasit said in his statement.
Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya on Wednesday issued a statement defending the role of the Foreign Ministry and Kamrob Palawatwichai, first secretary to the Thai embassy in Phnom Penh, in the events surrounding Thai engineer Sivarak Chutipong.
Mr Kasit said the Foreign Ministry congratulates Mr Sivarak and his family on his being granted a royal pardon after being convicted on spy charges for supplying information on former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's flight schedule to the Thai government.
He said the ministry had never accused Mr Sivarak or his family of staging the case. The ministry and its officials knew well that Mr Sivarak was in trouble and entitled to assistance and had done what it could to help him.
The minister denied he had ordered Mr Kamrob to use Mr Sivarak as a tool for spying or to do anything else beyond the duty of a diplomat.
read more “Kasit defends ministry, Kamrob”
Bangkok Post
Mr Kamrob only performed his duty by trying to get information on Thaksin's whereabouts and report it to the Foreign Ministry, so that it could coordinate with the Office of the Attorney-General to seek the extradition of the fugitive former prime minister, Mr Kasit said in his statement.
Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya on Wednesday issued a statement defending the role of the Foreign Ministry and Kamrob Palawatwichai, first secretary to the Thai embassy in Phnom Penh, in the events surrounding Thai engineer Sivarak Chutipong.
Mr Kasit said the Foreign Ministry congratulates Mr Sivarak and his family on his being granted a royal pardon after being convicted on spy charges for supplying information on former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's flight schedule to the Thai government.
He said the ministry had never accused Mr Sivarak or his family of staging the case. The ministry and its officials knew well that Mr Sivarak was in trouble and entitled to assistance and had done what it could to help him.
The minister denied he had ordered Mr Kamrob to use Mr Sivarak as a tool for spying or to do anything else beyond the duty of a diplomat.
Kamrob just performed his duty : Kasit [-The plot thickens in Bangkok?]
Kamrob Palawatwichai, Thai embassy first secretary who was kicked out of CambodiaWed, December 16, 2009
The Nation
Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said Wednesday that he has never ordered Thai Embassy in Cambodia's First Secretary Kamrob Palawatwichai to seek flight information of former PM Thaksin Shinawatra.
"Kamrob performed his normal duty in accordance with Thai judicial enforcement to have extradition of convicted Thaksin " Kasit said in a statement.
The Foreign Ministry's seeking extradition of Thaksin is no different from the ministry extraditing other convicted fugitives who have fled justice, he said.
Following confirmation of Thaksin's arrival in Phnom Penh, the Thai embassy has a duty to report back to the ministry so that it may inform the Office of Attorney General to process the extradition request, Kasit said.
Pardoned spy Sivarak Chutipong who was convicted for seven years on charge of spying on Thakin's flight information demanded Kamrob to explain why he asked the engineer to share such information and who was behind the action.
Thaksin said Tuesday that Kamrob got an assignment from his boss in Bangkok to seek the flight information.
Government's spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said earlier that the diplomat Kamrob would come out to tell his account soon.
However Kasit said it is not the norm of the foreign ministry to have it official explain to public such normal function.
Both Chutipong and Kamrob are political victims as their cases were used as a political tool, Kasit said.
Both of them have already taken the legal consequence as Kamrob was expelled from Cambodia as a persona non-grata while Sivarak had to serve jail term.
The diplomat Kamrob has provided necessary assistance to Sivarak and expressed his regret for the incident, the minister said, adding that both have known each other for long time.
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