geovalin

Cambodia has hosted its first international kite flying festival “SkyFest” in the southwester coastal city of Sihanoukville, aiming to preserve traditional culture and inspire the younger generation to pursue their dreams. Under the slogan of “Khmers can fly”, the event held on Saturday was presided over by senior minister Ly Thuch, first vice president of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA). Thuch said the Southeast Asian country was honoured to host kite enthusiasts from nine different countries, saying that each had brought their unique talents and contributions to this extraordinary event. “SkyFest is not only a celebration of our cultural heritage but also an opportunity to learn from each other and build lasting relationships,” he told Xinhua on Sunday. “The theme ‘Khmers Can Fly’ reflects not only the grace of our kites soaring high above us but also the aspirations and dreams of the Cambodian people as we continue to make strides towards a brighter future,” Thuch said. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501286340/cambodia-organizes-intl-kite-flying-festival-in-coastal-city/

The Criminal Police Department of the Ministry of Interior on Saturday afternoon, May 6, 2023, presented two suspects in public They were wanted in connection with a brutal attack with a handgun and a sharp knife on New Zealander Geoffrey Brent McComb on April 29, 2023 at the village of Kbal Damrey, Mak Prang commune Teuk Chhouk district, Kampot province. The attack took place on April 29, 2023, at 22:20. The victim had visited Kampot City with his girlfriend and then went home. A group of suspects locked the victim’s house and entered the house to demand money, but the victim refused to pay and argued. At that time, the suspects pulled out a pistol and shot the victim in the thigh, and then fled On May 4, 2023, at 14:12, the Criminal Police Department, in cooperation with the Battambang Provincial Police, Pursat Provincial Police and Kampot Provincial Police, arrested two suspects. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501285880/2-arrested-for-attempted-murder-of-new-zealander/

Footage showing a senior Cambodian official communicating with smugglers is part of U.S. case against him Hidden camera footage has emerged showing what U.S. prosecutors say is clear involvement by a senior Cambodian official in running a research monkey smuggling operation. In the video, whose existence was first reported by RFA last year, former Cambodian Department of Wildlife and Biodiversity head Kry Masphal is seen facilitating an illicit drop-off of long-tailed macaques at a breeding facility in northern Cambodia, even offering advice on how to move the endangered species more efficiently. “Why don’t you make another road?” Kry is seen asking a worker. “If you make another road, this means [it’s] more safe for your smuggling.” The footage was filmed in 2019 by a confidential informant for U.S. investigators and submitted by prosecutors as evidence against Kry in a high-profile U.S. government smuggling case against him and other conspirators. It was obtained from the court by animal rights group PETA, which shared it with RFA. In aviator sunglasses and a buttoned-down blue checkered shirt, Kry carries himself in the video with a swagger a world apart from the nervous figure who sat in a Miami court two weeks ago listening to his lawyers fight to exclude the contents of his mobile phone from his upcoming trial. Kry was director of Wildlife and Biodiversity in Cambodia’s Forestry Administration at the time of his arrest at New York’s JFK airport in November 2022, where he was transiting on his way to a conference in Panama on the protection of endangered species. He has been charged with being party to a plot to launder wild-caught long-tailed macaques - a primate prized for medical research - from the jungles of Cambodia and Thailand into U.S. research laboratories. In part to conserve dwindling wild populations, but also to preserve the integrity of scientific findings, only captive-bred monkeys can be used in medical experiments. Also accused are Kry’s boss, Forestry Administration Director General Keo Omaliss and six individuals involved in the management of the Chinese-owned Vanny Group’s monkey farms in Cambodia. Kry has pleaded not guilty, while the Cambodian Ministry of Agriculture, which oversees the Forestry Administration, and the Vanny Group have both denied any improper activity took place. However, the video that has emerged among a mountainous pile of evidence against Kry contains damning proof of his involvement and acknowledges the illegal nature of the operation. Kry is seen helping to offload crates of monkeys from the back of a pickup truck at what prosecutors say is Vanny Group’s monkey farm in Pursat province. The person working with him asks how many monkeys Kry has brought with him “this time.” “Twenty-four,” Kry replies. “We cannot take more because many observers, we have to do [it] very quick and go very fast.” In a last-ditch attempt to avoid a trial, Kry’s lawyers – whose firm has been a registered lobbyist for the Cambodian government since January 2022 – have pushed for the case to be dismissed on the grounds that he was acting on orders from his government. For conservationists, the stratagem was a confirmation of their worst fears: that the poaching and laundering of wild-caught macaques from Cambodia was not the behavior of a few rotten apples but the de facto policy of the government. “This means that there is no safe, legitimate and legal supply of monkeys,” Lisa Jones-Engel, a primatologist with PETA, told RFA. “When you have somebody like Kry involved, working so out in the open, saying, ‘This is great for our smuggling.’ From a government official who signs on the dotted line?” “Kry is just another run-of-the-mill monkey juggler, there was nothing that distinguished him from every other person on that video,” she added. An RFA investigation last month showed the deep penetration of the primate industry into Cambodia’s ruling elite, from the immediate family of Prime Minister Hun Sen down through the relevant regulatory and enforcement bodies that are supposed to be policing the trade. Agriculture Minister Dith Tina did not immediately respond to a request for comment on why a public official might need to hide their activities from observers. Vanny has denied the U.S. prosecutors’ central allegation that wild monkeys were laundered through its farm and passed off as captive bred ones for export. However, in conversation with RFA earlier this year an employee at the farm said that in 2022 the practice became almost routine as demand, amped up by spiking prices, vastly outstripped legitimate supply. “There weren’t enough monkeys before because demand was so high, so we bought them from a nearby mountain,” the person said, not wanting to be identified for fear of retaliation. “If they had good eyes, a good body, good fur, then we exported them,” they added. “We have a lab to weigh them and do blood tests to see if they have diseases or not.” The unsealing of the indictment against Kry, Keo and Vanny’s management last November halted exports from the farm, the employee said. Prior to that, they added, the farm’s outbound shipments in 2022 regularly included between 100 and 200 “mountain monkeys,” in clear violation of international laws and regulations governing trade in the species. The employee was insistent that this was something that only took place in 2022. However, the U.S. prosecutors’ case alleges illicit activity to have taken place between December 2017 and January 2022. Kry’s case is due to go to trial in Miami in June. Edited by Boer Deng. https://www.rfa.org/english/news/cambodia/cambodia-monkey-05052023165359.html Copyright © 1998-2020, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036.

Phnom Penh, Cambodia — Cambodia kicked off its first-ever hosting of the Southeast Asian Games on Friday, in a historical ballyhoo of singing, dancing, flag-waving and fireworks. The evening's festivities welcomed athletes from across the region to the biennial multi-sport event while trumpeting the country's rich history and thanking its long-ruling leader for recent modernization. Prime Minister Hun Sen's ruling Cambodian People's Party is keen to build excitement and patriotic fervor around the SEA Games, with a successful event and medals haul likely to boost national sentiment two months ahead of parliamentary elections, which the CPP will almost certainly win. "For me, this event is very wonderful. We have been waiting for this for 64 years," said Seng Meng Hong, a 24-year-old attendee. The SEA Games were first held in Bangkok in 1959. "I'm so happy that the government could organize such an event so the Cambodian people can come and support the national athletes," Meng Hong added. Tickets to the Games have been given away for free — and demand has been high. Inside the Morodok Techo National Stadium on Friday, a clear and balmy evening, all of the venue's 60,000 seats were packed. Cambodian dancers perform during the opening ceremony of the 32nd Southeast Asian Games in Morodok Techo National Stadium outside Phnom Penh, Cambodia, May 5, 2023. Built and paid for by China, the stadium looms over the open, wooded parts of Phnom Penh's far outskirts like a crash-landed spaceship. But its two dramatically cresting pylons also evoke the keel and stern of Chinese trading junks that plied the capital city's waterways hundreds of years ago. Almost all in attendance wafted themselves with handheld fans or brandished Cambodian flags — when not participating in an impeccably observed stadium wave. All stood for the national anthem when soldiers in ceremonial uniform performed a flag-raising ceremony. The main production — a riot of golden finery, elegant costumes and spear-toting warriors — told the story of the kingdom, from its founding myths through the Angkor period. Athletes demonstrated Kun Bokator, the national martial art making its debut at this year's Games. Skipping ahead to mention a bleaker period, a speaker noted only the end of "the dark era of the genocidal Pol Pot" in 1978 and thanked Cambodian leaders since then for "prosperity and peace." The most senior of those leaders were in attendance. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, center right, waves to the crowd as he presides over the opening ceremony of the 32nd Southeast Asian Games in Morodok Techo National Stadium outside Phnom Penh Cambodia, May 5, 2023. Along with dignitaries including the prime minister of Vietnam and the president of Laos, Hun Sen entered the stadium to great applause. The prime minister spoke briefly, expressing his gratitude for peace in the country under his leadership and declaring the opening of the Games. Critics say Hun Sen, one of the world's longest-ruling leaders, has wound back democratic freedoms in the country as he prepares for the general election in July and has used the courts to stifle opposition. Several events of the SEA Games have already been played, and the hosts are top of the medals table for now with five golds. Events kick into full gear Saturday, with the Games running to May 17, before the Para Games in early June. https://www.voanews.com/a/flags-fireworks-as-cambodia-kicks-off-sea-games-/7081009.html

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Four Cambodian prospectors who were digging for gold in the central province of Kampong Thom were killed when earth collapsed into the pit where they were mining, a government official and a fellow villager said Friday. Information Minister Khieu Kanharith on his Facebook page quoted reports from a local official saying the four men who died had been hired by a couple who own the mine in the rural jungle village of Snong An. The accident occurred Thursday morning as the men were digging, said Ven Srey Tith, a villager living near the site. Speaking by phone from her home, she said the pit was only a little more than two meters (six feet) deep, but mounds of excavated earth collapsed into it without warning and no one was nearby to see the men’s plight. read more https://apnews.com/article/cambodia-gold-mine-accident-c25f8683bf851ce7c3d36e6ab3d55291

Cambodia has agreed to resume international adoptions between Italy after the two countries temporarily suspended the process due to legal and technical issues. The agreement came after Minister of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation Vong Sauth met with Vincenzo Starita, Vice-President of Italy’s Commission for Intercountry Adoptions, at the ministry on Wednesday. After the law was drafted, the government announced the resumption of the adoption process, but it was interrupted due to the spread of COVID-19 in Cambodia, as well as in Italy and other countries, Sauth said. “Italy has provided training on adoption procedures, legal training to protect victims and other relevant rights to ensure that adoption is in line with international law to avoid trafficking,” he said. In addition to training and coaching, the Italian side also has its own agency to conduct adoptions and to cooperate with the relevant ministries and institutions to re-commence the adoption procedure, the minister added. Sauth also urged relevant institutions and officials to continue to share and exchange ideas with each other. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501284813/cambodia-agrees-to-resume-child-adoptions-with-italy/

Dissidents typically try to paint Hun Sen as unpatriotic, expert says Prime Minister Hun Sen has announced that he – and not Cambodia’s king – would preside over Friday’s opening ceremony of the Southeast Asian Games, provoking criticism from exiled dissidents who say he is disrespecting the monarchy. Cambodia is hosting the Southeast Asian region's premier sporting event for the first time. The May 5-17 games will include 11 nations in the region competing in 36 events, and the country has built a new Chinese-funded 60,000 seat stadium for the occasion. In host countries, including monarchies, the sitting head of state is usually given the honor of declaring the start of the games at the opening ceremony. Though King Norodom Sihamoni is the official head of state in Cambodia, he rarely exercises his limited powers granted by the constitution and tries to avoid getting involved in politics. Hun Sen, 70, has ruled Cambodia since 1985, and is believed to be manipulating the government and the country’s laws in an attempt to pass his role as leader to his son Hun Manet before retiring. The country is scheduled to hold national elections in July that the ruling Cambodian People’s Party is widely expected to win. At the groundbreaking ceremony for the Sihanoukville container terminal on Monday, Hun Sen mocked his detractors. "You should know well, if you do not know well, don’t act like you are so wise and do not be arrogant and incite conflict between the king and the prime minister,” he said. “The king does not take the role of prime minister, and the prime minister does not take on the role of the king, just as [the king] carried the torch before the SEA Games while the prime minister walked along with him,” he said. Visitors take photos in front of the logo of the 32nd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games - the first time the regional multi-sport tournament will be hosted in Cambodia, in front of the Morodok Techo National Stadium in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, May 2, 2023. Credit: Reuters Finland-based political analyst Kim Sok told Radio Free Asia that Hun Sen’s slight was destroying the achievements of the king, the former king and the ancestors of the Khmer people. “This is not only a violation of the role of the king, but a betrayal of the throne and the king, not only in front of the Cambodian people, but in front of international guests around the world," he said. Driving a wedge Hun Sen’s critics are trying to discredit him by trying to show that there’s a split between the prime minister and monarchy, said David Hutt, a journalist and researcher for the Central European Institute of Asian Studies. “It’s a way for anti-CPP critics to try to paint Hun Sen as unpatriotic, given that he taints most opponents as traitors,” said Hutt. “They probably also reckon it might turn some ordinary Cambodians against the ruling party. But the monarchy has been a political football for some time.” Tensions between Hun Sen and the royal house arise because of the monarchy’s protections, he said. “After all, the monarchy is the only institution left in Cambodia that [Hun Sen’s] ruling party cannot completely dominate,” said Hutt. “Maybe Hun Sen has long thought it may become a rival institution, although that’s less so with King Norodom Sihamoni compared to his father.” Hutt said that Hun Sen sees himself as a monarch, as he is preparing a dynastic succession of the prime ministership to his son. But Kim Sok denied that he and other critics only want to drive a wedge between the king and the prime minister, and compared the treatment of the monarchy with other neighboring monarchies. "In Thailand, when there are big sports events, both national and international, before the athletes enter the arena, they prepare the king's portrait for the athletes to respect him before entering the arena,” Kim Sok said. “But in the Kingdom of Cambodia, we have not seen such preparations yet.” Cambodian Buddhist monk and activist Ven. Bor Bet [right], who fled to Switzerland, says Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen does not respect King Sihamoni. Credit: Bor Bet Hun Sen tends to get angry whenever his critics call him out on his disrespect, Bangkok-based social development researcher Seng Sary said. "The prime minister seems to feel uncomfortable when he is compared to the king, who is protected by the constitution,” said Seng Sary. “The monarchy is a supreme institution that cannot be violated, but the prime minister is only the chairman of the executive branch." Buddhist honors Meanwhile, a Thailand-based international Buddhist organization has granted Hun Sen the honorary title “Patron of the World,” and made his son Hun Manet an honorary “senior advisor,” confusing some members of the organization. The Venerable Buth Buntenh, who lives in exile in Massachusetts, said the Cambodian leader does not deserve the title and he does not understand why the organization gave it to him. “Hun Sen has committed the highest immoral things in Cambodian society,” the monk said, adding that under Hun Sen’s rule, monks have lived in repressive conditions that rival the time when the country was ruled by Pol Pot’s regime, during which the Khmer Rouge defrocked and killed them. “But now, under the rule of Hun Sen, monks are defrocked and put in jail. Or monks are shot dead by unidentified gunmen.” said Buth Buntenh.” So, the Khmer Rouge regime and Hun Sen are the same in terms of persecution of the Buddhists.” Translated by Sok Ry Sum. Edited by Eugene Whong and Malcolm Foster. https://www.rfa.org/english/news/cambodia/king-05042023122856.html Copyright © 1998-2020, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036.

Cambodia Angkor Air announced the launch of a new direct flight connecting Siem Reap and Vientiane, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Laos. The flight is expected to boost the tourism potential of both countries, the airline said in a release. The flight using an Airbus-A321 aircraft is operated once per week, Monday, and is expected to increase the number of flights. Flight K6 908 will depart from Siem Reap International Airport at 6 am and land at Vientiane’s Watey International Airport at 7:05 am. The return flight K6 909 is at 7:50 am, and its arrival time at Siem Reap is 9 am. Cambodia Angkor Air said that the new flight is committed to providing excellent services to tourists to destinations in the shortest possible time. “Travelling to these two rich historic sites is an adventurous tourist’s dream come true about the culture, wonders and natural treasures there. Thus, the new flight will attract many tourists and other travellers, which may contribute to the tourism and economic development of the two countries,” the airline said in a release. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501283283/siem-reap-vientiane-direct-flights-to-revive-tourism/

Preah Vihear provincial authorities discovered remnants of an ancient sandstone temple at Kulen Tboung commune in Kulen district yesterday. Called Neang Ngor, the abandoned temple is located three kilometres away from Ba Taing temple in Kulen Tboung village. Nov Chankong, director of Preah Vihear provincial Department of Culture and Fine arts, said yesterday that they found the abandoned temple. “Experts concerned are preparing to study about the architectural style and age of the temple. Now it is difficult to guess how old it is, or when it was built, or for what purpose it was built,” Chankong said. “The people of Kulen Tboung village are familiar with the temple, but they didn’t pay attention to it until Preah Vihear authorities found it,” said Um Bo, a temple guard in Srayong commune. He added that Srayong is 20 kilometres away from Kulen Tboung commune where the new temple has been found. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501284085/remnants-of-temple-made-of-sandstone-found-in-preah-vihear/

Multi-sport event begins on Friday with parade through 60,000-seat Morodok Techo National Stadium, which China built for US$160 million With the Asian Games later this year and the Paris Olympics in 2024, athletes are looking beyond making a mark regionally Cambodia will welcome thousands of athletes from across the region when the Southeast Asian Games begin on Friday with an opening ceremony at a new stadium built and paid for by China. The capital Phnom Penh will stage the 32nd edition of the biennial SEA Games, the first time Cambodia plays host. More than 11,000 athletes, coaches and delegates from 10 other countries will descend on the country for the Games, which run until May 17. Regional glory is up for grabs but competitors will also have one eye on the Asian Games in China later this year and the 2024 Paris Olympics. Southeast Asia’s finest will take part in a host of competitions including athletics, swimming, badminton and football, as well as more obscure sports such as Kun Bokator, an ancient Cambodian martial art. read more https://www.scmp.com/sport/china/article/3219232/cambodia-poised-host-southeast-asian-games-competitors-keeping-one-eye-hangzhou-event-later-year

Thank you. We'll go to CW ASAP to get the answer from the officers.

Thank you to be honest and clever.

Please study this photo. We see a first and short visa extension then another for one year. From when should we count to determine the day to make the first 90-day reporting. February 1 or February 23 ? First is the "under consideration stamp". Then, we have the final stamp. THANK YOU

PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA — Five years ago, Chinese investors began turning Sihanoukville, a sleepy coastal city with pristine beaches, into a gambling mecca rivaling Macao and Las Vegas, but that ended with a ban on online gambling and the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 200,000 Chinese workers had to return home. Casinos closed and partially built skyscrapers, resorts and condominium projects were left abandoned. One pro-government media outlet described the remaining skyline as “a stark reminder of botched investments, mostly by Chinese nationals.” Housing has slumped by as much as 90% in recent years according to the Cambodian Ministry of Economy and Finance. Chantha Lach, like many small private investors, told VOA he was hoping for better times and foreign investment. “Many Cambodians want the Chinese investor to return because the property prices are dreadful, and we want the Chinese businesspeople to return to help the market to recover,” he said. In response, Cambodia is drawing up an action plan to clean up more than 1,100 incomplete buildings in Sihanoukville. Suggestions include tripling the local population to 1 million with visa-friendly regimes for foreigners and tax breaks for Cambodia’s expanding middle class. Authorities are also considering a 2026 deadline for developers, ordering them to either tear down or complete buildings still under construction. “One of the biggest challenges is to ensure that these half-completed projects, which are dotted around Sihanoukville city, are ready for construction,” said David Totten, managing director of the investment company Emerging Markets Consulting in Phnom Penh. “So there needs to be a process of validating that. In some cases that might involve removing the existing construction, starting over from scratch,” he said. Totten also said about 50% of the incomplete buildings left suspended or abandoned have created legal issues regarding ownership and responsibilities. “A large proportion of those, ownership may be in doubt, legal entities that are the beneficial owners of those projects may no longer exist or be relatively inactive,” he said. “There will be a lot of challenges therefore in claiming those properties from previous owners.” Investors are trickling back A substantial Chinese-funded upgrade of the controversial Ream Naval base, about 30 kilometers east of Sihanoukville, is also under way. The United States is concerned the base could extend China’s military presence in Southeast Asia, where Beijing is increasingly assertive over its contested claims to the South China Sea. Washington said Ream will be China’s second foreign naval base, after Djibouti. However, Beijing and Phnom Penh have dismissed those concerns, saying it is not a Chinese base. Cambodia said the base’s facilities will be open for many nations. Not far from Ream, construction of a new tourist development, known as the Bay of Lights, is being built on 934 hectares of land reclaimed from the sea by Canopy Sands Development, led by Chinese businessman Chen Zhi. The project is expected to be completed by 2028. However, Harrison White, editor of the Cambodia Investment Review news outlet, said much more is planned for the area and further construction could last until 2040. “The project’s going to be bringing a very large amount of investment, approximately $16 billion, could even be more,” he said. “As the project goes along, we’re expecting [the] population to grow to 160,000, as well as 330,000 jobs, as well as many more, maybe even 3 million more tourists that are going to visit the region,” he added. Cambodia wants economic growth to return to pre-pandemic levels, buoyed by Chinese investors and tourists, which, according to the Tourism Ministry topped 2.36 million visitors in 2019 and generated about $1.8 billion in revenue. The ministry also said Chinese investment in tourism-related sectors accounted for more than 50% of total foreign direct investment and there has been speculation that Chinese people will be allowed to emigrate and work there. Some projects, like the Chinese-funded $2.5 billion expressway linking Phnom Penh with Sihanoukville, have been finished. Another expressway will be built by China Road and Bridge Construction from the capital to the Vietnamese border. There are multi-billion-dollar plans to link the Thai and Vietnamese borders and the south coast through a network of high-speed railways. Most will be built by Chinese investors and fit neatly within Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative, which is reemerging in a post-pandemic world. “Cambodia is very much in need of appealing to foreign buyers. The country itself, whilst [having a population of] only 17 million, is sitting in a region of billions, with China, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines and many more, are looking to enter the market,” White said. “So, these sorts of projects are critical for Cambodia to ensure itself open to foreigners, and also to develop its economy,” he added. The cost of these investments is raising eyebrows. On Friday, the minister of public works and transport, Sun Chanthol, said 150 infrastructure projects worth about $30 billion had been prioritized for 2022-2030. A tall order given Cambodia’s GDP was just $27 billion in 2019. Sreynat Sarum contributed to this report. https://www.voanews.com/a/rebuilding-cambodia-s-gambling-mecca/7073219.html

Three opposition figures send hand-written apologies and pre-recorded videos to Hun Sen in recent days. A string of recent defections and public apologies by opposition party officials and critics of Prime Minister Hun Sen has given the longtime leader a boost less than three months before July’s parliamentary elections. The high-profile defections to the ruling Cambodian People’s Party are just the latest – at least nine opposition party officials have switched their allegiance to the CPP since November 2022 as the party works to co-opt and silence opposition figures. On Sunday, the president of the little-known Khmer Win Party was appointed to be the secretary of state of the Council of Ministers. Suong Sophorn has been a fierce critic of Hun Sen and once served as the youth movement leader of the Cambodia National Rescue Party, the country’s main opposition party before it was banned in 2017. “I, Suong Sophorn, have made a clear decision to join my political life with the CPP,” he said in a pre-recorded video addressing both Hun Sen and the prime minister’s son and presumed successor, Hun Manet. “I love my nation and love my people dearly. However, being in the opposition, I appear to think that I have contributed so little to the nation and our homeland, so I have made a clear decision to join the government so that I may use my abilities to serve our people directly.” Cambodian army chief Hun Manet, center, a son of Prime Minister Hun Sen, attends a ceremony of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces at the Defense Ministry in Phnom Penh, on April 20, 2023. Credit: Heng Sinith/AP ‘I was too young’ The video was posted on Hun Sen’s Telegram channel. On Monday, the prime minister posted on the same channel a handwritten apology letter and a pre-recorded video from the deputy chief of the opposition Candlelight Party’s organization in Takeo province. Ir Channa, a Norwegian citizen and a former outspoken border critic, was arrested last year after he returned from exile to support the Candlelight Party in last year’s local commune elections. Speaking from jail, he apologized for information he shared on Facebook in 2020 regarding the possible return to Cambodia of a top opposition leader. “I admit all these mistakes and leniently beg you to accept my apologies,” he said. “I pledge to always comply with the national laws and the constitution of Cambodia.” He was released later on Monday, and Hun Sen posted another video clip in the evening of Ir Channa thanking him. Ir Channa did not mention whether he would defect to the CPP in exchange for his release. Another critic, Kean Ponlork, also issued a hand-written apology letter and a pre-recorded video on Monday in which he asked to join the CPP. The former CNRP official was in charge of the party’s training department and has also served as the secretary-general of the Federation of Cambodian Intellectuals and Students. “I, Kean Ponlork, would like to apologize to Samdech Hun Sen for having joined hands with the opposition and civil society, and for providing interviews to Radio Free Asia, Voice of Democracy and The Cambodia Daily to attack your leadership that causes confusion on your legitimate government,” he said. “I was too young to be able to fully understand the depth of Cambodian politics.” Hun Sen responded on Telegram: “I warmly welcome Mr. Kean Ponlork. Since he is residing in Takeo province, the Takeo provincial CPP committee is requested to make proper arrangements for Mr. Kean Ponlork in accordance with the party procedures.” ‘Positions, benefits and titles’ Last month, former CNRP youth leader Yim Sinorn was appointed secretary of state for the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training. Just weeks before that, he was in jail. Yim Sinorn was arrested in March after posting a comment on Facebook that seemed to highlight the political powerlessness of King Norodom Sihamoni. Another opposition activist, Hun Kosal, was also arrested at the same time for similar remarks. They were both released after posting their own online apologies to Hun Sen. Afterward, Yim Sinorn met with the prime minister at his home in Kandal province, where he and his family posed for photos as Hun Sen sat at his desk. Hun Kosal also recently received a government appointment – undersecretary of state at the Ministry of Land Management and Urban Planning. Um Sam An, a former CNRP member of parliament, said he’s not worried about the possibility of more opposition defections in the coming months. The politicians who share a genuine belief in the future of the nation won’t take Hun Sen’s bait, he said. “Both positions, benefits and titles will not be essential for us. What we really want is for a positive change in Cambodia, a true respect of human rights and democracy,” he said. The recent defections will help clean the “rubbish” politicians away from the true democrats, said Seng Sary, a political commentator who lives in Australia. “I accept the fact that some defectors are successful in their political life after defections,” he said. “However, 95 to 99 percent among those defectors have lost their political lives and their reputations in Cambodian politics.” CNRP Vice President Eng Chhai Eang, who lives in the United States, told Radio Free Asia last week that Hun Sen has, in the past, made serious overtures to him about joining the CPP and the government. But last week, the prime minister grew angry after Eng Chhai Eang made critical comments online following the news of the defections of Yim Sinorn and Hun Kosal. “He posted a comment to mock me,” Eng Chhai Eang said. “He said, ‘If you want to get the government positions, first you must join the opposition party. If you want, I will pardon you and appoint you to a position in the government.’” Translated by Keo Sovannarith. Edited by Matt Reed. https://www.rfa.org/english/news/cambodia/opposition-defections-telegram-05012023162643.html Copyright © 1998-2020, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036.

Prime Minister Hun Sen on April 24 signed a sub-decree opening a Cambodian embassy in Brazil. According to the sub-decree, said the embassy has a residence in the capital Brasilia and will be headed by a chief of mission with the rank of ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary. The makeup of other diplomats employed at the embassy, its technical officers and other staff will be determined according to the actual work requirements and the funding system for diplomats. read more https://phnompenhpost.com/national/cambodia-opens-embassy-brazil

Prime Minister Hun Sen confirmed in a message on the occasion of the 137th anniversary of International Labor Day on May 1, that currently there are about 1.3 million Cambodian workers abroad, while the employment rate in the country remained at 99.3 percent. The premier said that the Royal Government has been paying close attention to the development of high-income labor market, continue to strengthen the effectiveness of the labor market coordination mechanism by expanding the scope of employment services and labor market information of the National Employment Agency of the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training. “The current employment rate in Cambodia is 99.3 percent,” he said.Mr Hun Sen continued that along with domestic job opportunities, the Royal Government strives to provide options for people who wish to work abroad by strengthening cooperation with partner countries to provide employment opportunities abroad for workers. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501282502/cambodia-has-1-3-million-migrant-workers-abroad-while-domestic-employment-rate-is-over-99-percent/

Europa 2, a cruise ship sailing under the flag of Malta, paid a day-long visit to Cambodia on April 25. The cruise ship with 343 tourists of 15 different nationalities on board and 367 crewmembers of 24 nationalities, coming from Vietnam, docked at Sihanoukville Autonomous Port at 6:00 am and left for Thailand at around 10:00 pm. According to Sihanoukville Autonomous Port, most of the tourists are German (293), and Swiss (18). The Europa 2 cruise ship is 225.38 meters long, 29.90 meters wide and 6.30 meters deep. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501280407/europa-2-cruise-ship-with-over-300-multinational-tourists-visit-cambodia/

Candlelight Party is having a hard time finding candidates because they fear being assaulted. Several opposition Cambodian political parties have not registered to participate in July’s general election and will wait until the last minute to take action because intimidation, threats and attacks have made it dangerous to do so, domestic civil society groups said. Seven parties, including Prime Minister Hun Sen’s Cambodian People’s Party, or CCP, already have registered and submitted their candidate lists for the July 23 election to elect members to the National Assembly, which is currently dominated by the CCP. Political parties can submit candidate lists to the National Election Committee from April 24 to May 8. The main opposition Candlelight Party is having difficulty recruiting candidates because of intimidation and physical assaults against its activists. Some supporters are afraid of publicly campaigning for candidates. "Activists, especially those in Phnom Penh, were physically attacked,” said Candlelight Party spokesman Kim Sour Phirith. “They are being threatened emotionally. It is not good for our country that one party is discriminating against its opponent.” He said the party is reviewing candidates and will try to register them with the NEC before the May 8 deadline. Other parties also are experiencing difficulties recruiting and registering candidates due to political discrimination, said Sam Kuntheamy, executive director of the Neutral and Impartial Committee for free and fair Elections in Cambodia, an organization that monitors elections. Attacks on activists have tarnished Cambodia’s election environment, he said. “I don’t want to see any violence against political activists because at this stage, the parties are preparing to participate in the election,” said Sam Kuntheamy. “Political violence should be avoided.” Recent attacks Over the weekend, four assailants on motorbikes assaulted a Candlelight Party activist as he was traveling to the capital of Phnom Penh, striking him several times with a metal baton. Another party activist said her car was intentionally rammed by an unknown assailant. Six other opposition party members have reported attacks in the past months. Hang Puthea, spokesman for the NEC, which oversees voting in the country, told Radio Free Asia that the body is reviewing the applications submitted by the seven political parties and will notify them of their status after May 8. The NEC has created an app for all parties to register their candidates to avoid duplication and to prevent fraud, he said. So far, more than 40 political parties have been officially recognized by the country’s Ministry of Interior, which regulates the formation of parties. Translated by Samean Yun for RFA Khmer. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster. https://www.rfa.org/english/news/cambodia/delayed-registration-04262023162845.html Copyright © 1998-2020, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036.

Cambodian leader Hun Sen on Thursday cancelled a law he created just two months ago to protect critically endangered Mekong dolphins as the mammals continue to die from illegal fishing activities. The population of Irrawaddy dolphins in the river Mekong has dwindled from 200, when the first census was taken in 1997, to just 89 in 2020 largely due to illegal fishing and habitat loss. Hun Sen issued a new decree in February creating protection zones in a 120-kilometre (75-mile) stretch of the Mekong, in which fishing is banned, following the death of three dolphins in a week. Conservationists have also stepped up efforts to protect the mammals -- small, shy creatures with domed foreheads and short beaks that once swam through much of the river, all the way to the delta in Vietnam. But two dolphins have since died, including a four-day-old calf found dead last week entangled in fishing nets. Hun Sen said Thursday he had decided to cancel the new decree because "dolphins keep dying and thousands of fishing families were affected". "We want to protect dolphins that are at risk of becoming extinct, but dolphins keep dying," he said at an event in Phnom Penh. read more https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/cambodian-leader-u-turns-rare-050337788.html

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Late in the summer of 1994, as the hot season was finally breaking in Cambodia, three scraggly men in flip-flops showed up at the Phnom Penh Post’s compound looking for American journalist Nate Thayer. The trio, members of Vietnam’s oppressed Montagnard hill tribes, had initially snuck across the border looking for fellow freedom fighters in the decades-long battle against the communist government. But those hopes had given way to weeks of living on the city’s streets and sleeping in pagodas. Their hair was long and stomachs empty. They were paranoid that they would be discovered by Vietnamese agents in Cambodia and returned home to face prison or worse. Now they wanted to secure asylum in America, where hundreds of their people had found safety and a new start. The United Nations refugee agency wouldn’t help them. So a Montagnard contact in America said they should find Thayer. They arrived at the Phnom Penh Post’s office — also the home of the newspaper’s owners and Thayer — and nervously asked for the journalist. Thayer, with a college swimmer’s build and a bald head, walked outside and saluted the men. He welcomed them inside like old friends. For the next few months, the three Montagnards lived with Thayer, his girlfriend, and the Post’s owners, Michael Hayes and Kathleen O'Keefe. They largely kept to themselves, wary of bothering their hosts and limited in their ability to communicate across languages. But it was the nicest place they had ever lived, and they could eat and sleep soundly. Months went by with no progress on securing refugee status. Eventually, Thayer and O’Keefe tearfully told their new friends that they couldn’t help, and the trio covertly made their way back across the border into Vietnam. Even before the U.N. brokered a peace deal in 1991 that restored Cambodia’s monarchy and paved the way for internationally-observed elections in 1993, Thayer had established himself as a journalistic force. He had spent much of the late 1980s on Cambodia’s border with Thailand, where the civil war was raging between the Vietnamese-backed government in Phnom Penh, remaining elements of the Khmer Rouge, and royalist forces loyal to Norodom Sihanouk. Thayer developed close relationships with hardened guerillas during treks through the jungle and with U.N. officials during extended stays at the refugee camps housing tens of thousands famished and shell-shocked Cambodians. Andy Pendleton, a career humanitarian officer who oversaw Thai refugee camps in the 1980s, remembers Thayer showing up on his 125 cc motorbike in areas where U.N. officials would go out in Land Rovers. “He would come in and his little motorcycle would break down on the way, and he’d run and jump in a ditch when the artillery started,” Pendeleton recalled. During one trip across the border, Thayer was in a truck that drove over an anti-tank mine, and Pendleton was called to respond. “I went over and he was limping across the border with bandages on his feet. He was the only surviving person in that truck when it got hit. So pretty brassy.” By the time Cambodia opened up to the foreign press in the early ‘90s, Thayer had a running start. “The vast majority of the journalists on the ground there, they were good and professional, but they didn't know the territory, they didn’t know the layers, and they didn't know the players like Nate did,” Pendleton said. “And when Nate put the screws on something, he had a good chance of making it happen, because he was the number one journalist in Southeast Asia. He was the man to listen to.” While Thayer would become most famous for being the last foreign journalist to interview Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot, just months before his death in 1998, perhaps his most impactful story came years earlier. In the summer of 1992, two years before the Montagnard trio showed up at Thayer’s doorstep, the United Nations became aware of nearly 400 members of the Degar hill tribes hiding deep in Cambodia’s northern jungles. It was a politically volatile discovery, coming as the international community was attempting to steer Cambodia from Vietnamese occupation and civil war to a sovereign multi-party democracy. An UNTAC military official told Thayer at the time: "We have enough problems in Cambodia dealing with the four factions, and now this army we never even heard of turns up.” read (a lot) more https://www.voacambodia.com/a/7068904.html

The Governor of Banteay Meanchey, Oum Rath has assigned the Cambodia-Thailand Border card making team to only charge 20,000 riels for making a border pass, in order to make the process of crossing the border legally easier for citizens who wishes to find work or return back to Thailand to work. The authorities at the Lem International border checkpoint in Kamrieng district, Battambang province, were very displeased that people were required to pay 1300-2000 baht to cross the border back into Thailand, after they returned home for the traditional Khmer New Year. Nokorwatnews https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501279133/banteay-meanchey-governor-assigns-working-group-to-make-cambodian-thai-border-card-for-only-20000-riels/

Bok l’hong, Green Papaya Salad, of Cambodia has earned a place in the Best Salads in the World by the TasteAtlas, an encyclopedia of flavours, a world atlas of traditional dishes, local ingredients, and authentic restaurants. Bok l’hong ranked 28th with a score of 4.2 among the 50 best salads in the world, according to the same source. Bok l’hong, meaning pounded papaya in Khmer, is a Cambodian take on the green papaya salad that is widely consumed throughout Southeast Asia, said the TasteAtlas. According to the TasteAtlas, unlike the Thai version that uses thin strips of papaya and typically requires the fruit to be pounded with other ingredients, the traditional Cambodian version, similar to the Laotian and the Vietnamese versions, uses shredded papaya instead, and it does not involve fruit pounding. https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501279651/bok-lhong-of-cambodia-a-best-salad-in-the-world/

Two more opposition party activists were assaulted over the weekend as they traveled in Phnom Penh – the latest in a series of similar attacks in recent months that members of the Candlelight Party insist are all politically motivated. Thun Chantha, who has worked for the main opposition party for several years, was attacked during the day on Sunday by four assailants who surrounded him on their motorbikes, struck him several times with a metal baton and left him with bruises all over his body. “They followed me along the road and crashed into my motorbike,” he said. “Then they pounced on me.” Another Candlelight Party activist, Thy Sokha, said her car was intentionally rammed into on Saturday night by an unknown assailant who drove a black 470-series Lexus. Thy Sokha is widely known as “Peypeyly” on social media. She and her husband weren’t seriously injured, but the front right part of her car was completely damaged. The assailant wore a bodyguard uniform and ran toward a waiting car, she said. “If I was not lucky enough, I would not have a chance to do this livestream about this incident so that our people may know the truth. I am really horrified by this threat against my life,” she said just after the incident. ‘Every repressive tool’ The Candlelight Party is expected to be the top competitor to the ruling Cambodian People’s Party in the July parliamentary elections. The CPP is stepping up its pressure on political opposition members in advance of the election, just as Prime Minister Hun Sen warned would happen during a speech in Kampong Cham province earlier this year, Human Rights Watch noted. “You have two options, first we could use the court,” Hun Sen said on Jan. 9. “Secondly, we can go to hit you at your home because you don’t listen. Which option do you prefer? The second? Don’t be rude.” Candlelight Party activist Thy Sokha, known as “Peypeyly” on social media, talks on a Facebook livestream on Saturday after her car was intentionally rammed by an unknown assailant. Credit: RFA screenshot from Facebook There have been seven reported acts of violence that have targeted six opposition party members in recent months – not including the two attacks over the weekend, Human Rights Watch said in a statement on Monday. Attacks on four of the six activists had multiple similarities, the New York-based organization said. “All four attacks were carried out by two men in dark clothes with dark motorcycle helmets riding a single motorbike, with the driver remaining on the bike while the passenger assaulted the victim,” the organization said. “In three attacks, the assailants used an extendable metal baton as a weapon. In two attacks, the victims could hear the attackers confirming the victims’ identity moments before they were assaulted. No money or valuables were stolen.” All of the activists interviewed by Human Rights Watch said they believe they were targeted because of their work with the Candlelight Party, the organization said. Human Rights Watch’s deputy Asia director, Phil Robertson, said Hun Sen is using “every repressive tool at his disposal” to rid the country of political opposition, including prison sentences on politically motivated charges. “Foreign governments should send a clear public message that dismantling opposition parties and disqualifying, assaulting, and arresting their members before election day means that there won’t be any real election at all,” he said in the statement. ‘Failure’ to bring justice Katta Orn of the government-backed Human Rights Committee said the Human Rights Watch statement was politically targeted at the government. “It is customary for Human Rights Watch to state something baseless, without proper observations, data or information,” he told Radio Free Asia. “They disseminate the issues to the international community with an aim to put pressure on the royal government.” Council of Ministers spokesman Phay Siphan, CPP spokesman Sok Ey San and National Police spokesman Chhay Kim Khoeun couldn’t be reached for comment on Monday. Soeung Senkarona, spokesperson for the Cambodian rights group ADHOC, voiced concerns over the Cambodian government’s repeated failure to bring any perpetrators to justice in the attacks. “I am concerned that such failure by the Cambodian government to comply with its international obligations may bring further pressure from the international community,” he said. Translated by Keo Sovannarith. Edited by Matt Reed. https://www.rfa.org/english/news/cambodia/weekend-opposition-attacks-04242023164641.html Copyright © 1998-2020, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036.

Yim Sinorn was jailed a month ago for comments posted on Facebook that were critical of Cambodia’s king. A former opposition party youth leader who was recently jailed after he posted comments on Facebook about the government and Cambodia’s king announced on Friday that he was joining the ruling Cambodian People’s Party. Yim Sinorn met with Prime Minister Hun Sen on Friday at his home in Kandal province, where he and his family posed for photos as the longtime leader sat at his desk. The defection of a prominent and outspoken opposition activist comes as the CPP continues to work to silence, intimidate and co-opt opposition figures ahead of the July general elections. Yim Sinorn has been a close ally of Kem Sokha, the leader of the now-banned Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP) who was sentenced to 27 years for treason last month in a decision widely condemned as politically motivated. On Friday, Yim Sinorn blamed officials from the opposition Candlelight Party for ignoring him while he was in detention last month and for accusing him of being a double agent. “Samdech Hun Sen, I want to see Cambodia to have a strong democratic system based on Cambodia’s standard and to comply with the Constitution,” he wrote on his wife’s Facebook page, using an honorific title. “It is my duty to be committed to protect peace and prevent any attempts to destroy the country. I have little education and experience but I want to serve the country and her people,” Yim Sinorn wrote. “If Samdech gives me a chance I would like to join the CPP to be able to serve the people and the country.” Messages from the coffee shop Yim Sinorn was once the head of the CNRP’s youth movement in South Korea, where nearly 50,000 Cambodians work, mostly as factory workers. In 2019, he helped organize a demonstration of workers against the Hun Sen government in Gwangju. Later that year, he and nine colleagues were charged in Phnom Penh Municipal Court with conspiracy and inciting serious social unrest in Cambodia and elsewhere. In September 2021, he wrote a letter to Hun Sen saying the charges against him were unfair and that he never supported leading opposition figure Sam Rainsy. Hun Sen was apparently satisfied with the letter and the court dropped all charges against him and the other nine defendants. Yim Sinorn returned to Cambodia in January 2022. In March, he was arrested after posting a comment on Facebook that seemed to highlight the political powerlessness of King Norodom Sihamoni, who is required by Cambodia’s 1993 Constitution to reign as a national figurehead. “According to the people at the coffee shop, today we clearly know who is truly the king,” Yim Sinorn wrote. He was released a week later after he posted a video and a statement from prison apologizing for the message. “I take this occasion to ask for forgiveness from the king and apologize to Samdech Hun Sen publicly with honesty,” he said at the time. ‘A core person to Kem Sokha’ In February, Radio Free Asia reported that environmental workers and opposition party members are being offered jobs in the government by the CPP as a way of weakening any competition ahead of the July general election. Political analyst Seng Sary said Yim Sinorn’s switch to the CPP makes it even more likely that opposition party activists will continue to defect to the CPP in the coming months. “Yim Sinorn was a core person to Kem Sokha,” he said. “I think there might be more people defecting [to the CPP]. This defection is like a pandemic.” Yim Sinorn said on Facebook that he asked Hun Sen to release his colleague Hun Kosal, who was also arrested last month after posting similar comments about the king. Hun Kosal hasn’t apologized to Hun Sen and is still in jail. Yim Sinorn’s wife, Sophat Makara, posted photos of Friday’s meeting with Hun Sen on her Facebook page, calling the prime minister “my Samdech father.” “My husband and family will try our best to work hard and won’t disappoint my father,” she wrote. “I can survive because of my father and mother.” CPP spokesman Chhim Phalvorun said Yim Sinorn has his political rights and can choose any party that he likes. He said the CPP will look into his request and his qualifications. Hun Sen made no comment on his Telegram account about the latest news, but he did repost an article from the pro-government news site, Freshnews, about his meeting with Yim Sonorn. Translated by Yun Samean. Edited by Matt Reed and Malcolm Foster. https://www.rfa.org/english/news/cambodia/opposition-defector-04212023161700.html Copyright © 1998-2020, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036.