Cambodia Flooding: CWS situation report

Source: Church World Service (CWS)
Date: 29 Sep 2009

CHURCH WORLD SERVICE EMERGENCY RESPONSE PROGRAM

CWS SITUATION REPORT: CAMBODIA FLOODING

SITUATION: Monsoon rains related to Typhoon Ketsana, which affected the Philippines, have hit Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. Effects are particularly strong in Cambodia, where CWS Cambodia reports that in one province, Kompong Thom, 223 villages - some 14,744 families -- have been flooded out.

CWS RESPONSE: CWS Cambodia has conducted assessments and reports first priority needs in affected regions include food, shelter (plastic sheeting to protect family from the rain and heat), clean water, mosquito netting and water and sanitation units. CWS plans to distribute food and non-food items in Battambang, Banteay Meanchey and Kompong Thom provinces, all in northwest Cambodia. Further details about the response are pending.

For further information about disasters to which Church World Service is responding please visit www.churchworldservice.org or call the CWS

Hotline, (800) 297-1516.

CWS Emergency Response Program special contacts: (212) 870-3151

Program Director: dderr@churchworldservice.org

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Source: http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/ADGO-7WCS7N?OpenDocument

More than 400 Khmer Krom families to demonstrate against canal construction plan

By Sok Serey
Radio Free Asia

A source indicated that more than 400 Khmer Krom families living in Krobao district (renamed Tinh Bien by the occupying Vietnamese regime), Motr Chourk province (renamed An Giang by neo-colonialist Vietnam) plan to hold a peaceful demonstration to protest against the plan to built a canal that would lead to the destruction and loss of several hundreds of hectares of their farmlands without any compensation.

Khmer Krom people among these 400 families told RFA over the phone from Krobao district, Motr Chrouk province, occupied Kampuchea Krom that there will be a joint uprising to stop these mechanical engines used to dig the canal: “For tomorrow, we have prepared ourselves, even if they (Viets) want to kill us, we are not afraid! I will go to the canal ditch on my land, I will not let them continue the digging anymore. We ask them to stop [the digging] right now, if they don’t resolve this issue for us, we will not allow them to continue their work, we’d rather die on our farmlands. They are currently digging [the canal], they will dig tomorrow, tomorrow is their main digging operation day. We have gathered from all the villages, we will not allow them to [dig] tomorrow.”

A representative of the group of protesting Khmer Krom people indicated that his family will lose 2 hectares of land from the plan to dig the canal across the rice fields that belong to 400 families: “The International human rights organization said that they will help Khmer Krom people to own lands for farm productions, just like the Vietnamese people. The Vietnamese families now own large tract of lands each, but for our Khmer people, who are the actual owners of our ancestral lands, we lose everything, there’s nothing left.”

A source indicated that a Vietnamese reporter from Prey Nokor city (renamed Ho Chi Minh city by the Vietnamese occupiers) came to investigate the issue with Khmer Krom people living in this area. The reporter asked whether the loss of farmlands was due to the plan to build the canal or not.

On Saturday 29 August, the Viet embassy in Phnom Penh could not be reached to obtain clarification about the Khmer Krom demonstration planned for 30 August, nobody at the embassy picked up the phone.

Thach Setha, President of the Khmer Krom Community in Cambodia, said that the Viet government should compensate for the damage and loss of these farmlands: “We share the grief of our Khmer Krom people who are facing serious violations from the Yuon authority. We will seek interventions from the international community. At the same time, with the current visit of H.E. Khieu Kanharith in Kampuchea Krom, we are asking him to take a detour to visit [the affected area] and find a resolution for our Khmer people living there.”

A source indicated that the occupying Vietnamese authority in Krobao district, Mortr Chrouk province, occupied Kampuchea Krom, is currently putting in application the plan to dig a 10-km-long by 50-meter-wide canal that will cross the farmlands belonging to 400 Khmer Krom families. This canal will lead to the loss of several hectares of farmlands belonging to Khmer Krom people and no compensation will be provided by this loss.

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Source: Radio Free Asia, 29 August 2009

Posted on KI-Media on 30 August 2009

FAO to donate 12 mln euro to help Cambodia against drought

www.chinaview.cn 2009-08-27 22:50:22

PHNOM PENH, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations will donate 12 million euro (about 17.16 million U.S. dollars) to Cambodia after the country was hit by drought, the FAO official said on Thursday.
"The budget will be signed with Cambodian partner on Sept. 2, but actually we have already helped in fighting against drought in the country," Seung Soy, program assistant for FAO told Xinhua by phone.
"The budget will focus more on helping the training, rice seeds, fertilizers, planting other agricultural crops for local farmers," he said, adding that the finance is from the European Union (EU).
"We also have concern on the food security after it is being hit with drought this year," he added.
Currently, eight provinces in Cambodia have been hit by drought and 40,000 hectares of rice seedlings have been affected by it.
"But Now, Cambodian government has taken actions to save rice seedlings from dry. We used water pumps to help farmers and we prepared seeds for local framers," Chan Tong Ev, secretary of state for Ministry of Agriculture told Xinhua. However, he said he could not comment about the budget, but waiting.
Editor: Yan

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Source:
Article from China View: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-08/27/content_11955457.htm

Veterans, rural poor in line for social land concessions: officials

Written by Chun Sophal   

MONDAY, 27 APRIL 2009

The Ministry of Land Management says it will distribute over 16,000 hectares of land to landless peasants and disabled army veterans

THE government plans to distribute over US$50 million worth of social land concessions to about 10,000 landless families across nine provinces, the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction said at its annual conference Thursday.

Sareth Boramy, president of the ministry's land distribution and economic development project, said Sunday that the ministry would distribute land to families and disabled veterans in nine target provinces. 

"Poor disabled soldiers and widows are given priority in the distribution of land, but they will not be given land ownership certificates until they have lived there for five years," he said. 

According to a report released at last week's conference, 16,097 hectares of land concessions will be granted to families in Siem Reap, Preah Vihear, Oddar Meanchey, Stung Treng, Kampot, Battambang, Pursat, Kampong Chhnang and Kampong Speu. 

All people will receive a plot of land measuring 20 metres by 40 metres, or a cultivation plot of between 1 and 2 hectares, depending on the size of their family. 

"We want people to have their own land so that they are able to earn a living and get themselves out of poverty," he added.

Tackling landlessness
The first stage in this project was launched in November 2008, when the government distributed concession land to 3,000 poor families in Kampong Cham, Kratie and Kampong Thom provinces with support from the World Bank and German development agency GTZ. 

Thun Saray, president of local rights group Adhoc, said Sunday that the plan to distribute social land concessions was to be applauded, but the government should be encouraged to take further action to resolve the problem of rural landlessness. 

"The government should stop giving economic concession land to private companies, and then it must implement the distribution of social concession land to more poor families," he said. 

According to a 2006 Oxfam study, 24 percent of the rural population does not own land.

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This news article is from The Phnom Penh Post:

 

http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2009042725527/National-news/Veterans-rural-poor-in-line-for-social-land-concessions-officials.html

 

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Thaksin "red shirts" gather again in Bangkok

Sat Apr 25, 2009 1:41pm BST

**  

* 12-day state of emergency lifted on Friday

* Protesters want government to quit


(Recasts with protest)

By Panarat Thepgumpanat

BANGKOK, April 25 (Reuters) - About 3,000 supporters of exiled former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra gathered in Bangkok on Saturday for their first rally in the capital since violent street clashes two weeks ago.

Security was tight with 450 police monitoring the crowd of red-shirted protesters at Sanam Luang, a public square near Bangkok's Grand Palace.

"The protest is going well so far. No violence," Police Major General Suporn Pansuea told Reuters.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva ended a 12-day state of emergency in the capital on Friday, saying he wanted to foster reconciliation after the street clashes which killed two people and dented investor confidence.

"Lifting emergency rule doesn't mean the government will give up monitoring the situation," Abhisit told reporters on Saturday.

A leader of the pro-Thaksin United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) said the rally would be peaceful and end around midnight.

"Our request is the same. We want the Prime Minister to quit," Somyos Prueksakasemsuk said.

The UDD plan more rallies in the provinces before returning to Bangkok for a large demonstration in May, he said.

Abhisit, who was elected in a December parliamentary vote with the help of former Thaksin allies, has refused to call an election analysts say his Democrat party would likely lose.

Instead, he has promised constitutional reforms as a way out of the political crisis, but there are doubts it will be enough to heal the deep political rifts in Thai society.

The crisis is a battle between the "yellow shirts" -- royalists, the military and urban, middle-class Thais who back Abhisit -- and the "red shirt" supporters of Thaksin, whose power base is mainly drawn from millions of rural and urban poor who loved his populist policies.



BOTCHED ASSASSINATION

The street violence two weeks ago was the worst Thailand had seen in 16 years, forcing the cancellation of a summit of Asian leaders. The volatile situation was compounded by an attempted assassination of "yellow shirt" leader Sondhi Limthongkul.

Thai media reported on Saturday police want to question five soldiers over a possible connection to the attack on Sondhi.

A senior police official denied the reports, which followed last week's confirmation by Thailand's army chief that some of the bullets used in the April 17 attack were from the military.

Sondhi, who was wounded in the head after gunmen riddled his car with automatic rifle fire, did not speak to reporters as he left hospital on Saturday.

Army chief Anupong Paochinda has denied speculation by Sondhi's colleagues that military personnel may have been involved in the assassination attempt.

Bangkok's deputy police chief, Major General Pongsan Jaimon, rejected the reports that police were looking for five soldiers.

"How do you know this when I don't know?," he asked reporters. "We have to suspect all related people, including influential people, soldiers or whoever".

Sondhi is a co-founder of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), which led a street campaign against former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra before he was ousted in a 2006 coup. The PAD occupied Bangkok's airports last year to protest a pro-Thaksin government that was later dissolved by the courts. (Additional reporting by Arada Therdthammakun and Sinthana Kosopradit; Writing by Darren Schuettler; Editing by Matthew Jones)

 

 

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Article from REUTERS UK: http://uk.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUKLP235029

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Petrodollars v smallholders

Apr 23rd 2009 | BATTAMBANG
From The Economist print edition

 

Disputes erupt over plans to invest millions in rice farming

 

IT SEEMED like the perfect match. Kuwait has a lot of money and needs to import food. Cambodia has a lot of fertile land and wants to attract foreign capital. So, as has been happening around the world since the food-price spike of 2007-08, the government of a poor farming country is planning to hand over vast tracts of land to a richer, oil-producing one.

In a whirlwind courtship, Cambodia and Kuwait have exchanged prime ministerial visits and initialled deals on everything from opening embassies and boosting energy co-operation to opening direct flights and holding football friendlies. Kuwait has now reportedly agreed to offer loans totalling $546m to finance a dam on the Stueng Sen river for irrigation and hydropower and to build a road to the Thai border. The Cambodian government says it has not yet decided what exactly the Kuwaitis will get in return but the speculation in Phnom Penh is that they may be offered 50,000 hectares (124,000 acres) of farmland, possibly on 99-year leases. Kuwait is not alone. Last year the prime minister of another rich Gulf statelet, Qatar, also visited Phnom Penh, with plans to invest $200m in Cambodian agriculture.

Such deals have a way of turning sour because of disputes over details. The Cambodian one seems to be conforming to type. Agreements ratified by the rubber-stamp parliament contain sweeping generalities and less detail than most people would expect when they rent an apartment. Son Chhay, an opposition MP and chairman of the National Assembly’s foreign-affairs committee when the deals were initialled, said he could not now obtain copies. But if foreigners want Cambodian rice, he says, they should buy it, not seek to control vast tracts of land.

The other problem with such deals is that they are made in national capitals and often run into opposition on the ground. Cambodia’s rice-farmers are suspicious enough because the government has a record of throwing them off their land in opaque deals involving rich cronies. Villagers in Battambang province, where the Kuwaiti road will run, say they know almost nothing about the scheme. They concede that a new road, built on what is currently a dirt track being measured by surveyors, would help them get crops to market. And according to one happy rumour, Kuwait has agreed to buy all their produce. But they are worried that their land will be confiscated—as has happened before.

The government insists the deal would be good for the country and for economic growth. Cheam Yeap, the chairman of the parliamentary economics and finance committee, says that “somehow we have to attract investors for national development.” He argues that land conflict is the fault of farmers as well as the government and that farmers have to be realistic.

This is not merely self-serving. Cambodia’s rice yields are about half those in neighbouring Thailand and Vietnam. Many people—not just the Kuwaitis—are seeking to modernise farming, which is the largest employer in Cambodia.

International donors are hoping to improve the lot of small-scale farmers by helping them take advantage of world markets by investing in productivity, food processing and transport infrastructure. Other international businessmen, including some from Israel, are seeking to bring foreign technology and capital into Cambodia’s fledgling agri-business sector.

So the question is not whether investment by Kuwait or anyone else is in Cambodia’s long-term interest. It is whether the terms of the particular deal are beneficial. Alas, it is far from clear in this case whether Cambodia’s rulers have been influenced by economic development—or by the prospect of another quick payday.

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Link: http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displaystory.cfm?story_id=13527987

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Canada closes embassies in Cambodia, Bosnia

Apr 23, 2009 05:44 PM

 JENNIFER DITCHBURN 

THE CANADIAN PRESS

OTTAWA – The Harper government is closing Canada's embassies in Cambodia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, countries still struggling to recover from a violent past.

The announcements were made on the websites of embassies, with the same explanation on both: "The government of Canada continually monitors its representation abroad and periodically shifts resources to meet Canada's needs in an ever-changing world."

The government said the decision was taken "following a serious examination of Canada's current diplomatic representation abroad."

Four other missions have been closed since the Conservatives came to power, in Milan, Italy, St. Petersburg, Russia, and Fukuoka and Osaka, Japan.

The government noted that there has actually been a net increase of 25 missions in the past 15 years – most of them in the United States.

The Foreign Affairs Department said it will keep a humanitarian assistance office open in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh.

The country still has serious problems with crime, drugs and human rights violations. A UN-backed war crimes commission is grilling members of the Khmer Rouge regime for the deaths of an estimated 1.7 million people.

Canada sent peacekeepers to the region for a period in the early 1990s.

Sambo Chhom, executive director of the Canadian Cambodian Association of Ontario, said closing the embassy will have an adverse affect on the lives of Cambodians.

"The Cambodian government feels its being watched by the Canadian government. They wouldn't do anything harsh while they're there because they fear an international outcry," Chhom said.

"Without the Canadian government there, the NGOs will have less contact with outside countries."

Canadians travelling in Cambodia who need consular assistance will be directed to the Australian embassy.

Those who need help in Bosnia-Herzegovina are being directed to an Ottawa-based emergency number, or an office in Budapest, Hungary. A consulate is scheduled to be opened in Sarajevo in the future.

Canada set up an embassy in Sarajevo in 1996 after the bloody civil war there ended. About 40,000 Canadian troops served in the peacekeeping mission there between 1992-2004.

The government will remain a member of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) in Bosnia-Herzegovina, which monitors the country's progress at reaching some of the security and governance goals outlined in the peace agreement reached in 1995.

Some retired diplomats and other observers have criticized budget cuts to the Department of Foreign Affairs that began under the Liberals and continued under the Conservatives.

On Thursday, provincial trade ministers urged the federal government to increase its international profile in order to stimulate more trade and investment with Canada.

One of the Conservative government's first acts in 2006 was to slash $11 million from the diplomacy budget, cash that allows representatives abroad to promote Canada.

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From: http://www.thestar.com/News/Canada/article/623447

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Opposition MP to sue Hun Sen for defamation

Updated April 24, 2009 12:52:53

In Cambodia, Prime Minister Hun Sen is set to be sued for defamation by one of the Kingdom's leading female opposition politicians.

Mu Suchua wants little more than an apology but the move to challenge Cambodia's "Strong Man" in the courts is seen as unprecedented.

Presenter: Robert Carmichael 
Speaker: Mu Suchua, Sam Rainsy Party parliamentarian

 ·                                 Listen:

 ·                                 Windows Media

CARMICHAEL: Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen is not a man to be taken lightly. He takes pride in his reputation as a strong man, and is regarded here with a mixture of fear and respect. He has also reportedly never been sued.

But that could soon change. Unless Hun Sen retracts recent comments, a female opposition MP will begin a court action against him before the end of April. Mu Sochua is a senior MP in the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, or SRP, the largest opposition party. Before she joined the SRP she was the minister for women's affairs in the coalition government.

The SRP is a constant thorn in the prime minister's side, regularly criticizing him and his ruling Cambodian People's Party for not cracking down on corruption and abuses of the law. The comments made by the prime minister and broadcast nationally didn't use Mu Sochua's name directly, but she says she was clearly the target. Government spokesman Khieu Kanharith says the prime minister is not concerned about the case, and says Mu Sochua is simply presenting herself as a victim and trying to discredit Hun Sen. Khieu Kanharith says the MP is simply trying to get noticed by the media, and stresses that Hun Sen did not actually name anyone in his speech. But, he adds, if Mu Sochua feels she has been insulted, she is entitled to seek remedy through the courts.

So what actually happened? Referring to a land grab case in the southern province of Kampot - which Mu Sochua represents - Hun Sen said that those villagers who wanted their case resolved by him ought not to go to 'the opposition female MP'. Five villagers were injured when the army threw them off their land and burned down their homes - another reminder of the ongoing problem of impunity and land rights in Cambodia.

During his speech, says Mu Sochua, Hun Sen referred to her as 'cheung chat' - a derogatory term that she says conveys the meaning of a hustler, somewhere between a gangster and a prostitute. 

That, she claims, was in response to an event during last year's general election when she was campaigning for the SRP and was allegedly assaulted by an army general, losing buttons off her shirt. She sued the general, and that case is now headed for the Appeal Court.

Mu Sochua says that the prime minister ought not to have said anything that could influence the judges in that case. Her chances of getting justice now, she says, are ruined.

Which is why MPs from the two opposition parties sent a letter to the president of parliament demanding that Hun Sen either provide proof for his words or retract his statements.

Mu Sochua admits that a retraction and apology are unlikely. So next week her lawyer will file the case in the municipal court in Phnom Penh. 

So why is she taking on the prime minister?

MU SOCHUA: This is the first time, and I do this on behalf of Cambodian women. I do it on behalf of women in general, because women who are raped, who are assaulted - verbally, sexually, physically and so on - who don't have a voice, cry in silence, are ruined inside. This is a symbolic case and also an unprecedented case.

ROBERT CARMICHAEL: Mu Sochua says she is concerned that her move could prove dangerous. To offset the perceived dangers she has lined up some influential friends. Her office features a photograph of her with US secretary of state for foreign affairs, Hillary Rodham Clinton. 

Mrs Clinton is also linked with US organisations that have pledged Mu Sochua their support in this matter, as are a number of other US politicians and celebrities. 

MU SOCHUA: It is dangerous - if you consider all the killings that have taken place of people who are strong activists, who are human rights activists, and members of the opposition. 

ROBERT CARMICHAEL: So what does she want out of the case? Simply an apology and 500 riel in damages - a symbolic sum of around fifteen Australian cents.

Mu Sochua admits it is unlikely that she will win her case, but says if she does she will frame the red 500 riel banknote and hang it in her office in honour of women around the world who are exploited.

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The article can be found at the following link:

 http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/connectasia/stories/200904/s2551808.htm

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Inferno destroys 1,000 hectares of forest; wildlife in danger

Written by Thet Sambath   

THURSDAY, 23 APRIL 2009

A weekend fire in Battambang and Banteay Meanchey still blazed Wednesday, putting the area's flooded forests and fish refuges at risk.

FIRES have burned through more than 1,000 hectares of the Tonle Sap's flooded forests, and the inferno was still spreading, according to Chet Sameth, Ek Phnom's district police chief.

"We don't know the cause of the fire, but we suspect it was caused by people looking for honey," he said, explaining that people in the area often light fires to smoke bees out of their hives to gain access to their honeycombs.

The forest fire started in Preah Net Preah in Banteay Meanchey but spread into Ek Phnom district in Battambang on Saturday, where the fire detonated at least seven unexploded artillery shells in the forest, accelerating the fire's spread.

"It [the forest] is too dry and we had no rain for two weeks, so it is burning very fast, [and] no one can stop it," Chet Sameth said.

The fire was hitting a wilderness area that is vaunted for its biodiversity, according to Chet Sameth, and the fire was putting animals at risk.

"Turtles and snakes are easily killed by the fire. We are losing wildlife from this fire, and we are losing fish refuges," Chet Sameth said.

The area is also an important fish breeding ground, said Heng Pisith, chief of the Fisheries Administration in Battambang province.

"It affects the fish because they lose their places [to spawn]," said Heng Pisith, adding, "Every year, we always ask during the dry season on the radio for people not to burn the forest to try and prevent any big fires."

Chet Sameth said the fire damaged one house but was extinguished, and no casualties have been reported due to preventive measures taken by villagers. In Bak Prea village, people have already moved their cows and buffaloes to safer places to avoid the fire.

"Fires happen every year," he said. "Normally, they are much smaller, but this year it is a big one."

Cheam Chan Saphon, the director of Battambang's Agriculture Department, expressed his regrets and said agriculture had "nothing to do with [worsening the fire] because it is nature."

 

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This text is from The Phnom Penh Post. It can be found here:

http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2009042325471/National-news/Inferno-destroys-1000-hectares-of-forest-wildlife-in-danger.html

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PVihear damages estimated

Written by Thet Sambath   

WEDNESDAY, 22 APRIL 2009

Residents around the market at Preah Vihear temple say they want compensation from Thailand for what they estimate is about US$9 million in damages.

 

RESIDENTS near the Preah Vhear temple complex where a  market was destroyed by Thai rocket fire in early April have calculated damages in excess of US$9 million, a representative announced Tuesday. 

Some 260 property owners have submitted thumbprints to documents requesting compensation from the Thai government for losses incurred when Thai soldiers opened fire on the market April 3. 

"We've calculated the value of properties destroyed by Thai soldiers at $1.2 million", president of the Khmer CiviliSation Foundation, Moeung Sonn, reported Tuesday. "However, we've submitted a claim for $9.2 million to the Thai government to compensate people's properties, businesses and mental health," he explained. 

Moeung Soun said many victims of property damage have also suffered serious mental health repercussions. "One of the victims has been out of control since her property was burned down by Thai soldiers' rockets," he said. "She's now seriously ill and is being treated in Battambang hospital. Other victims are also experiencing mental health problems."

Moeung Sonn said the complaint will be sent to the Cambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and copies are to be sent to King Norodom Sihamoni, the King Father Norodom Sihanouk, Prime Minister Hun Sen and the Thai embassy. 

He added, however, that compensation will ultimately be determined by the Cambodian government's willingness to confront Thai authorities. 

"Our government has evidence of Thai rocket debris and has a duty to serve Cambodians and resolve the problem for them," he said. 

Koy Kuong, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told the Post Tuesday that the ministry had not yet received the complaint and would meet to determine measures after its receipt. 

Meanwhile, commune officials are working to independently calculate property damages and address losses. 

"Our officials have registered people's property damages, but totals have not yet been calculated", Kao Long, governor of Choam Ksan district, said Tuesday. 

 

 

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This is an article from The Phnom Penh Post.

Original text with photo can be found here: http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2009042225438/National-news/PVihear-damages-estimated.html

Thai Parliament to Debate Emergency Rule, Arrests of Protesters

By Daniel Ten Kate

April 22 (Bloomberg) -- Thai lawmakers will debate last week’s imposition of emergency rule and detention of street protesters, testing Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva’s efforts to bridge an increasingly violent political divide.

Abhisit is urging speedy political reforms after quashing riots by demonstrators backed by former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who is living in exile after losing power in a 2006 coup. The head of a rival protest group, which shut down Bangkok’s airports last November, was shot and wounded last week.

Abhisit’s opponents and coalition partners are pushing for changes to the military-drafted constitution that may threaten his position by weakening his election prospects and alienating his supporters who backed the coup. Unless he can forge a compromise, protests that have plagued Thailand for the past year may resume and his four-month-old administration might fall.

“The prime minister is caught between the horns of the buffalo: he can’t go anywhere,” said Kanin Boonsuwan, a four- time parliamentarian who teaches law at Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University. “It looked like the government won a victory when they dispersed the protests last week, but really they’ve been pushed into a corner.”

Abhisit, 44, took power in December after a court disbanded the pro-Thaksin ruling party and two other groups for vote buying. The ruling was made possible by constitutional changes introduced by a military-appointed panel after the coup. The court decisions, together with a similar ruling in 2007, have left 220 politicians banned from office for five years.

Amnesty Possibility

Abhisit said the government would discuss amnesty for the disqualified politicians as proposed by several coalition members, a move that may damage his prospects should he bow to demands to call an election. His Democrat party hasn’t won the most seats in an election since 1992, and finished with 14 percent fewer lawmakers than the pro-Thaksin party two years ago.

“Any coalition by any party will be at risk if the present state of divisiveness continues,” said Buranaj Smutharaks, a spokesman for the Democrats. “Any process to address legal changes must be transparent, it must not be done by politicians who have a clear conflict of interest in exonerating themselves and it must be accepted by the general public.”

Parties linked to Thaksin have won the past four elections on heavy support from northeast Thailand, the country’s poorest region and home to a third of the electorate. A group of northeastern lawmakers defected to Abhisit, helping his rise to power in December.

Party Dissolutions

“The decisions on party dissolutions and banning executive members were unreasonable and against a democratic society,” said Phongthep Thepkanjana, Thaksin’s spokesman, who is among the disenfranchised politicians. “The good thing in changing them would be that people have many more experienced politicians to choose from.”

Abhisit has said any amnesty wouldn’t apply to criminal charges, so Thaksin himself would remain disqualified. Abhisit is seeking the former leader’s extradition after he fled last year before a court sentenced him to two years in prison for helping his wife buy land from the government while he served as prime minister.

Thaksin, who has split his time between Dubai and Hong Kong, faces three criminal charges from his five years in power, and a civil case targeting almost $2.2 billion of the fortune earned from the telecommunications company he founded. He claims Thailand’s justice system is biased against him.

The government is “quite worried” about Thaksin’s movements overseas, Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban told reporters today.

“The government will try to find other ways apart from asking for help from Interpol to get Thaksin,” he said.

People’s Alliance

The People’s Alliance for Democracy, a street group whose protests helped oust Thaksin and two of his allies since 2006, has proposed a new political system in which elections don’t fully determine the country’s leaders. The group says Thaksin used his money to buy votes and the constitution wouldn’t be a problem if everyone followed the law.

“The fundamental problem is not the constitution -- it has just become a scapegoat and a delaying tactic,” said Chirmsak Pinthong, a People’s Alliance member who helped write the constitution. “The real problem is that Thaksin’s side wants to change the democracy with the king as head of state.”

Thaksin has accused advisers of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, 81, of plotting his downfall. His allies say the constitution gives palace aides, judges, bureaucrats and soldiers too much power over elected officials.

Since King Bhumibol took the throne as an 18-year-old in 1946, the country has seen more than 20 prime ministers and nine coups. Only two of 17 Thai constitutions since absolute monarchy ended in 1932 have mandated fully elected parliaments.

Assassination Attempt

Sondhi Limthongkul, the main People’s Alliance leader, said Dec. 3 his group would return to the streets if the constitution was amended in Thaksin’s favor or to reduce the king’s power. Sondhi survived an assassination attempt last week when gunmen sprayed his car with more than 50 bullets. No suspects have been arrested in the incident.

The political unrest has hampered Abhisit’s ability to jumpstart an economy facing its first contraction in 11 years. The central bank today plans to revise its gross domestic product forecast, and may need a further cut to take into account the anti-government riots last week.

While Abhisit may risk upsetting some supporters with an amnesty or constitutional changes, this may be his best chance to find middle ground because the broader public is tired of protests on both sides, said Jade Donavanik, dean of the law school at Siam University in Bangkok.

“This is the right time as the public is looking forward to reconciliation,” he said. “The government must take this opportunity and run with it because they won’t get another chance.”

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This is a story from Bloomberg. It can be found here: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aRuJgx7errkU&refer=home

To contact the reporter on this story: Daniel Ten Kate in Bangkok at dtenkate@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: April 21, 2009 23:34 EDT 

Reordained, monk Tim Sakhorn flees: NGO

Written by Meas Sokchea   

TUESDAY, 14 APRIL 2009

KHMER Krom activist Tim Sakhorn was ordained again as a monk at a pagoda in Battambang on Friday and has now fled to Thailand where he is seeking refugee status, according to Sann Sang, the deputy director of the Khmer Kampuchea Krom Community.

"Now, it is up to the UNHCR [the UN High Commissioner for Refugees] to determine if he has the right to stay in Thailand," he said. 

He added that Tim Sakhorn would be willing to leave for another country if necessary.

The 41-year-old monk was arrested in June 2007 by Cambodian police and defrocked before being extradited to Vietnam.

But after imprisoning Tim Sakhorn for a year and then keeping him under house arrest, Vietnam allowed him to visit Cambodia, which issued him a visa until April 17.

Even though Tim Sakhorn has said he just wants to live with his family and tend his farm in Cambodia, he did not feel the Cambodian authorities were protecting him, according to Ang Chanrith, the executive director of the Khmer Kampuchea Krom Human Rights Organisation.

"When he was arrested, the [Cambodian] government did not take action to protect him, so he has lost confidence in the government," Ang Chanrith said last week.

Christophe Peschoux, the country representative of the UN's Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, could not confirm that the monk had fled to Thailand.

"If he went to Thailand, it's because he feels unsafe in his own country," Peschoux said. 

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CHRISTOPHER SHAY

 

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The article by The Phnom Penh Post

It can be found here: http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2009041425374/National-news/Reordained-monk-Tim-Sakhorn-flees-NGO.html

29 arrested for assault on Thai border casino

 

Written by Khouth Sophakchakrya   

MONDAY, 20 APRIL 2009

AT least 29 Battambang villagers were arrested and charged with destroying public and private property and assaulting police during clashes along the Cambodian-Thai border on the first day of the Khmer New Year holiday, a court official said.

Sar Yousthavrak, chief prosecutor at Battambang's  provincial court, said Sunday the villagers were arrested Tuesday while they fought with police and attacked a Thai-owned casino near the border in Kamrieng district's Boeung Raing commune. 
"We detained them in Battambang prison on Friday and are awaiting an investigation," he said Sunday.

He added that the villagers, responding to the reported beatings of two Cambodians inside Thailand, had caused serious injuries to two police officers during the clashes, in addition to vandalising a Military Police car and hurling rocks at the Sranasie casino, reportedly owned by a Thai businessman.

New Year gone wrong
Battambang police chief Sar Theth said that fighting started during a New Year's dance, leading to the attack on the casino early Tuesday morning. He said as many as 60 people threw stones at the facade of the main building and at police brought in to quell the violence. 

Police arrested 44 people on the spot, but 15 people were later released when it was found they were innocent of wrongdoing, he added.

"Now we will arrest some more of the inciters of the attack in order to send them to court," Sar Theth said.

Nam Mech, 32, a villager in Kamrieng district's Doung village, told the Post that the villagers who attacked the casino numbered more than 60 and tried to force their way across the Doung border crossing armed with rocks and wooden branches.  

But he said the group was turned back by police and Military Police armed with guns and electric tasers.
"I and other villagers are very nervous because we have never seen this kind of riot before," he said.

 

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This article is from The Phnom Penh Post. It can be found here: http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2009042025392/National-news/29-arrested-for-assault-on-Thai-border-casino.html

 

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Dragon's shadow lengthens over Cambodia

Economic activity between the two countries is being stepped up in the sectors of trade, industry, and tourism. China also offers military assistance, while the percentage of students studying Mandarin is increasing. But the Chinese influence is also bringing corruption and the exploitation of manual labour.

Phnom Penh (AsiaNews) - Chinese influence is growing in Cambodia: the Asian giant, thirsty for energy and raw materials, and interested in extending its influence in the region, is stepping forward as the country's leading investor and trade partner. This influence is not limited to trade and industry, but extends to the social and cultural level, since the Chinese language has become an essential point of reference in the business world, surpassing even the monopoly held until now by English.

Relations between the two countries date back to the end of the 1950's, and were reinforced two decades later during the bloody regime of the Maoist dictator Pol Pot, actively supported by China, in spite of the genocide of the Khmer people, which caused the death of more than one million Cambodians in less than five years. Sources for the Chinese News Agency say that China is one of Cambodia's main trade partners, thanks to the 3,016 Chinese businesses operating in the territory, which produced 1.58 billion dollars at the end of 2007. Last year, bilateral trade grew by 30% compared to 2006, for a total volume of investments of 730 million dollars. This support is not limited to economic exchange, but is also reflected in the country's defence system: China is providing military assistance to Cambodia, strengthening its marine fleet with nine patrol boats in 2007, and five warships in 2005.

But there is another side to the Chinese presence: human rights and anti-corruption activists denounce an exponential growth in illegal logging, land-grabbing, and worker exploitation, and a dizzying increase in corruption levels. According to Simon Taylor, director of the international group Global Witness, "the effect of lots of money coming in with few strings attached, going to a lot of people in the government, is generally exacerbating corruption".

In the meantime, the Cambodian government has approved the construction of two hydroelectric power plants, to be built by Chinese companies. Work will begin by the end of 2008. The project is opposed by environmentalists, who denounce "serious damage to the country's ecosystem, and risks to the lives of thousands of people". The dams will be constructed in the province of Koh Kong, in the southwest of the country. The project will bring an investment of 540 million dollars from the China National Heavy Machinery Corp., and 495.7 million dollars from the Michelle Corp. It is expected to produce 338 megawatts of electricity.

Investments from Chinese companies are also prompting students in the country to study Mandarin over English (which nevertheless remains the most widespread foreign language), because it is becoming indispensable for business: it represents a fundamental resource for finding a better position in the professional arena, in the sectors of industry and tourism. The most important Chinese school in Cambodia is the Duan Hoa Chinese School in Phnom Penh, subdivided into two different sectors with more than 7,000 enrolled students; the second, the Chhung Cheng Chinese School, is fairly popular among Chinese-Khmer families, and numbers about 2,000 students. The government, finally, expects to add Chinese to the obligatory curriculum of its universities.

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Opposition candidate freed on bail in Cambodia

A Cambodian newspaper editor and opposition candidate has been freed on bail after an outcry from human rights activists.

Dam Sith, a candidate for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, was charged last week with defaming Foreign Minister Hor Namhong in an article about the Khmer Rouge, the regime blamed for the deaths of 1.7 million Cambodians in the 1970s.

Amnesty International says Dam Sith's arrest demonstrates how the criminal justice system "is used and abused" to silence critics of the government in the runup to the July 27 general election.

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Democrat calls for FM to reveal Cambodia's new map

The Democrat party called on the Foreign Ministry on Sunday to reveal the new border lines for Preah Vihear Temple proposed by Cambodia in its bid to list the temple as a Unesco World Heritage site.

Deputy party leader Alongkorn Polabutr expressed concern the ministry appeared to be withholding details of the Cambodian proposal.

Phnom Penh's bid to make Preah Vihear Temple a protected site reached a stalemate last year when Bangkok objected to a map attached to the proposal.

Bangkok said it included overlapping zones between both countries and they had to be demarcated first.

Several rounds of negotiations followed and Cambodia agreed to propose a new map which Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama said did not include the overlapping areas.

He doubted the government would compromise on the issue that could benefit former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra who was reportedly keen about investing in Koh Kong province in Cambodia.

Alongkorn said the ministry should make the issue transparent by showing details of the map to the public before Unesco considers the Cambodian proposal between July 2 and 10.

The Cabinet is scheduled to endorse Cambodia's new map next week, enabling Phnom Penh to submit its proposal to Unesco.

Thailand and Cambodia claimed ownership of the temple until the World Court ruled in favour of Cambodia in 1962.

Alongkorn said yesterday was the 46th anniversary of that ruling.

It should be noted the World Court ruled that only the temple, not the areas around it, belonged to Cambodia, he said.

A seminar on the controversy was conducted in Si Sa Ket province yesterday, where many panellists expressed doubts on the Thai government's expected admission of Cambodia's new map.

Last week, some residents in Si Sa Ket called for the removal of Cambodian communities from overlapping areas.

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