geovalin

The October 1 closure of Lucky Mall in Siem Reap signified farewell to the last vestiges of the retail boom that erupted in 2008 when a clutch of cash-registered Temples of Mammon thrust forth, all eager to profit from the tourism wealth flowing from the Temples of Angkor, a flow that was thought would never ebb– until it did. The retail rush began early in 2008 when the four-storey Angkor Trade Centre opened on the riverside with a batch of trendy stores alongside, such as Swensen’s and The Pizza Company. This was followed in August with the splashy opening of Lucky Mall, while simultaneously ground was being cleared for construction of another large Canadia Bank-financed mall, The Angkor Shopping Arcade, on National Road 6. Plus nearing completion was the construction of the supposed four-storey, 18-escalator, two-glass-encased-elevator, 430-store Royal Shopping Galleries. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501371460/lucky-mall-bust-bursts-retail-bubble/

Six people were killed, six were injured, 15,549 houses were inundated and 22,713 hectares of paddy fields were flooded from January till September. Flood waters laid to waste 4,000 hectares of the paddy fields. National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM) spokesman Soth Kim Kolmony said yesterday that from January to September 25, 19 provinces and Phnom Penh were affected by floods. He said provinces hit by floods were Pursat, Siem Reap, Kampong Thom, Preah Vihear, Ratanakiri, Mondulkiri, Kratie, Stung Treng, Kampong Cham, Tboung Khmum, Kandal, Kampong Chhnang, Kampong Speu, Takeo, Preah Sihanouk, Kampot, Koh Kong, Kep, and Oddar Meanchey. According to Kolmony, the floods this year affected 29,489 families living in 15,549 houses and 2,029 families were moved to safe grounds. Some 106 houses, he added, were destroyed. “This year’s floods also inundated 1,297 hectares of mixed crops and 22,713 hectares of paddy fields. Some 4,000 hectares of the paddy fields were destroyed. Six cattle were killed and 6,878 cattle had to be relocated because of the floods, he said. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501371469/flood-woes-continue-in-19-provinces/

Public outcry over proposed new taxes prompts an angry voicemail from the retired leader. After a public uproar – and apparent input from his father – new Prime Minister Hun Manet this week reversed a government plan to introduce new taxes and raise existing taxes. The announcement on Tuesday followed the release of a voicemail that former leader Hun Sen sent to government ministers about widespread criticism of the tax proposals. “For the tax issue, please take a look into it,” Hun Sen said in the voicemail, which was released earlier this week on Facebook. “Why is it exploding? We are not taking any action yet, but the talk is causing an outcry.” Hun Sen, 71, stepped down in August after leading the country since 1985. Hun Manet, his eldest son, was appointed prime minister on Aug. 22 – a move that had been planned for years. The voicemail shows that Hun Sen continues to control the government behind the scenes and remains a potent political force, said Seng Sary, a Cambodian political analyst granted asylum in Australia. Cambodia is attempting to recover from the economic damage brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused inflation, a decline in trade and increase in job losses in the vital garment sector. As a result of the downturn, the government’s General Department of Taxation reported that collections during the first eight months of 2023 were 21% lower than what was projected in the annual budget. ‘We have to be on top of the timing’ The department’s increased efforts at collecting taxes helped spark the recent outcry on social media, Seng Sary told Radio Free Asia. Hun Sen noted in the voicemail that the tax issue came up just as Hun Manet was settling into office and while neighboring Thailand has proposed debt forgiveness measures and other ways to help people deal with economic hardship. “Some problems, we have to be on top of the timing,” he said in the message to the ministers. “If we are not on top of the timing, we may go wrong. Please help with the direction of the government.” On Tuesday, Hun Manet spoke in front of 20,000 workers in Phnom Penh, telling them the government won’t be creating any new taxes or increasing the old ones. “We did not take it and we will not take it,” he said of a decision on taxes. “So be clear on this.” He noted that the government doesn’t currently levy taxes in some areas, such as farmland, agricultural materials and products, real estate worth less than 100 million riel (US$25,000) and inheritance. Details on future tax policies will be released in November, after the annual Government-Private Sector Forum in Phnom Penh, he said. The current tax payment procedures make it easier for corrupt tax officials to commit corruption and oppress taxpayers, Seng Sary said. “Hun Manet should announce the reform of how to collect taxes effectively and reduce corruption in the tax sector so the people can have a positive view on the government of Hun Manet,” he said. Translated by Sok Ry Sum. Edited by Matt Reed and Malcolm Foster. https://www.rfa.org/english/news/cambodia/hun-manet-taxes-10042023162542.html Copyright © 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036.

Cambodia Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA) has confirmed that 26 landmine casualties were reported over the past nine months, with four dead, 14 injured and eight crippled by the explosions. Ly Thuch, First-Vice President of the CMAA, said yesterday that the 23 explosions led to 26 victims. “In 2022, there were 28 explosions with 40 victims compared to the same period this year. The number of victims since January this year is a decrease of 35% compared to the same period last year. “We observed that out of 23 cases this year, 13 were mine accidents and 10 were explosive remnants of war (ERW),” Thuch said. He said the four provinces with the most victims were Banteay Meanchey, Oddar Meanchey, Battambang and Ratanakiri followed by Preah Vihear, Siem Reap, Tboung Khmum, Pursat, Kampong Thom, Kampong Chhnang, Kratie and Takeo. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501369989/four-dead-in-23-landmine-erw-cases-says-cmaa/

27 Filipino nationals have been rescued by the Anti-Trafficking Department as they were being transported from the Thai border at Oddar Meanchey Province to work in Koh Kong Province. Anti-Human Trafficking and Juvenile Protection Department Forces in collaboration with the Anti-Gambling Department stated that the 27 victims of Human Trafficking has been subjected to passport confiscation and forced labor fraud at O’Smach Resort, Oddar Meanchey Province. On September 28, 2023, specialized forces found 3 Chinese and 1 Malaysian suspects as the masterminds of the operation, which was reportedly connected with cryptocurrency scam.The Department of Anti-Human Trafficking and Protection of Minors has coordinated with social officials to receive the 27 victims to provide social services, legal services and other necessary procedures. The suspects are being prosecuted by the Anti-Gambling Department. https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501369204/27-filipinos-rescued-3-chinese-1-malaysian-arrested-by-anti-trafficking-department/

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — A court in Cambodia on Monday barred three environmental activists who are serving suspended prison sentences for their advocacy work from traveling to Sweden next month to receive the prestigious Right Livelihood Award. A copy of a letter from the Phnom Penh Municipal Court’s chief prosecutor, Chreung Khmao, said the trip by the members of the group Mother Nature Cambodia was “not necessary.” The letter, seen by The Associated Press, came in response to a travel request from the activists. Thon Ratha, 31, Phuong Keo Reaksmey, 22, and Long Khunthea, 25, asked for permission to make a Nov. 24- Dec, 1 trip to receive the award, which is sometimes characterized as the “Alternative Nobel.” read more https://www.thestar.com/news/world/asia/cambodian-court-bars-environmental-activists-from-traveling-to-sweden-to-receive-alternative-nobel/article_255f2dc2-3421-510a-827b-a2f5104f0372.html

A prominent Cambodian-American was transferred from a remote prison to one in the city a day after aid was resumed. The resumption of US$18 million in U.S. aid to Cambodia just two months after it was suspended in protest against the legitimacy of the country’s July 23 election does not mean the United States now recognizes the vote as fair, according to a spokesperson for the State Department. A spokesman for the ruling Cambodian People’s Party told The Khmer Times on Wednesday that the sudden unfreezing of the aid meant that the American government “has recognised the national election.” But that the reversal, which was revealed by Cambodia’s government after new Prime Minister Hun Manet met with Acting Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland on Sept. 22, was not tied to election legitimacy, a State Department spokesperson told Radio Free Asia speaking on condition of anonymity under rules set by the State Department. “Of course we still have concerns about the elections, which we’ve conveyed clearly,” the spokesperson said in an email. “We decided to make this gesture for two reasons: first, because these programs benefit the Cambodian people; second, to encourage the new government to live up to its stated intentions to be more open and democratic and to work more closely with us on shared priorities,” they said. ‘Free and fair’ Last month, Manet met with Nuland on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, where he falsely told world leaders that the July 23 vote – the second in a row in which the country’s main opposition party was prevented from participating – was “free and fair” and “credible and just.” The CPP won 120 of 125 available seats at the election, after which former Prime Minister Hun Sen subsequently handed formal power over to Hun Manet, his son, after 38 years in power himself. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the day after the election that the aid cut was because “the elections themselves were neither free nor fair” and that it would last beyond just this year. “It’s a serious amount of money both this year, and in coming fiscal years,” Miller said at his regular press briefing on July 24. But some in the State Department now seemingly hold out hope the 45-year-old West Point graduate could usher in improved ties after more than a decade of tensions over Hun Sen’s usurpation of the country’s fledgling democracy and the rise of China as an ally. Business as usual Cambodia’s government, meanwhile, has shown little interest in change, and has appeared at pains to show it’s business as usual. Hun Sen penned a letter to Chinese Premier Li Qiang in late July saying that ties between the two countries would not change under his son, and Hun Manet made his overseas trip as prime minister to Beijing last month prior to the U.N. General Assembly in New York. Among the few positive steps in ties was the transfer of Cambodian-American lawyer Theary Seng – a prominent member of the country’s opposition jailed on treason charges – from a remote prison on the northern border with Thailand to one in Phnom Penh. The decision, revealed last week, was made on Sept. 23, the day after Hun Manet and Nuland’s meeting, according to Cambodian officials. Sophal Ear, author of Aid Dependence in Cambodia and an associate professor of global political economy at Arizona State University, said there were still open questions about the unfreezing of the aid just two months after it had been frozen due to a stage-managed election. “It’s disappointing to see the U.S. not explain transparently why the $18 million was released,” Ear told RFA. “Releasing it is up to the U.S., but this strategic ambiguity is sometimes not helpful.” https://www.rfa.org/english/news/cambodia/hun-manet-aid-10022023133445.html Copyright © 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036.

PHNOM PENH, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian authorities had arrested 14,722 drug-related suspects, including 331 foreigners, during the first nine months of 2023, the country's Anti-Drug Department said in a report on Sunday. Some 51 percent of the suspects were drug traffickers, manufacturers and transporters, while the rest were drug users, the report said. "A total of 2.68 tonnes of illicit drugs and some 911 kilograms of ingredients were seized in the suspects' possession during the January-September period of 2023," the report said. Most of the seized drugs were ketamine, heroin, ecstasy, cocaine, crystal methamphetamine, methamphetamine pills, and cathinone. Compared to the same period last year, Cambodia saw a spike in drug arrests, but a decline in drug seizures, the report said, adding that the kingdom arrested 11,431 drug suspects, confiscating 6.25 tonnes of narcotics during the first nine months of 2022. The Southeast Asian country has no death sentence for drug traffickers. Under its law, someone found guilty of trafficking more than 80 grams of illicit drugs could be jailed for life. https://english.news.cn/20231001/d592d26f5a424ac9957821226f6b3201/c.html

Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin’s decision to visit Cambodia this week is a measure of the solid relationship between the two countries. It is the first time that a newly elected Thai leader has chosen Cambodia for his first foreign trip, attendance at the UN General Assembly notwithstanding. The one-day visit, which came less than a month after assuming prime ministerial duties, was aimed at strengthening bilateral relations in all respects, including trade, investment, border area management and development, and the new economy. Government spokesman Chai Wacharonke described Srettha’s trip as the beginning of “a new era” in the relationship between the two countries, which share an 817km border. Their relationship has gone through many ups and downs, though, due to boundary disputes and overlapping claims. Their friendship has, however, been closer for the past several years and the personal rapport between the countries’ leaders has been amicable. Both sides have elevated their ties to a strategic partnership, according to Chai. In addition, as newly elected leaders, Srettha and Hun Manet had an opportunity to become acquainted. read more https://www.thaipbsworld.com/thai-cambodian-ties-entering-a-new-era/

Prime Minister Hun Manet has announced a raise in garment workers’ minimum wages for 2024. The PM announced the increase in wages for workers in the textile, garment, footwear and travel products and bags will be $4 more for 2024, which will increase the minimum wage of workers to a total of $204 dollars per month The Prime Minister confirmed through his official Facebook page that “A while ago, I received a report from HE Heng Sour, Minister of Labor and Vocational Training on the election results of the National Council for the Minimum Wage on three figures: $ 202, $ 204, and $ 213, of which $ 202 received 46 out of 51 votes and $ 213 received 5 out of 51 votes. According to the vote on each figure and according to the law on the minimum wage, the National Minimum Wage Council will set the figure of $ 202 as the minimum wage figure for 2024. I have been following this minimum wage discussion from the beginning. Helping to improve the living standards of the people, including the workers, is the highest priority of the Royal Government. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501368227/garment-workers-minimum-wages-raised-for-2024/

PHNOM PENH Cambodian investigative sources said Thursday that mobile phones seized by local authorities after they raided an apartment in Phnom Penh used as a base by over 20 Japanese nationals for alleged fraud were destroyed before the raid. The group's members, who have been detained by Cambodian authorities, are suspected of committing multiple cases of fraud in Japan from the location. Investigators from Japan have been sent to Cambodia and the suspects will likely be deported, according to the Japanese police. Cambodian authorities raided the apartment on Sept. 11 and confiscated dozens of mobile phones, as well as computers and documents that appear to be manuals for committing fraud, the sources said. About 20 of the phones have been broken, they said. The suspects said that they had been instructed to destroy the phones and documents if people other than the group's members sought to enter the apartment. There has been a series of cases involving Japanese scam groups using locations in Southeast Asian countries as hideouts. In April, Cambodian authorities deported 19 Japanese nationals over their alleged involvement in phone scams, who were arrested once they were returned to Japan. read more https://japantoday.com/category/crime/japanese-detained-in-cambodia-over-fraud-destroyed-phones-sources

Police in Phnom Penh arrested an elderly Swiss national yesterday accused of sexually abusing three Cambodian boys and sent him to the Phnom Penh Municipal Court for questioning. Lieutenant Colonel Keo Kimheng, Deputy Chief of Municipal Anti-human trafficking and juvenile protection office in Phnom Penh, said yesterday that the suspect was arrested on Tuesday in Prek Leap commune, Phnom Penh’s Chroy Changvar district. Lt Col Kimheng said that according to the police, in June this year the suspect, who is a Swiss tourist, gave $150 to a poor Cambodian woman, the mother of the three boys, living in Kork Klaing village, Prek Leap commune, to have sex with them. The suspect would take the young boys to his rental room in Chroy Changvar district three to four times a month where he had sex with them, he said. After engaging in immoral liaisons with the young children, he would give them a small amount of money, buy them food and other items, he said. The suspect was arrested on Tuesday morning after he went to meet the three young boys in Kork Klaing village in order to have sex with them again, Lt Col Kimheng said. The police were following his activities and observed that he always took boys, aged 10 to 14, for walks around the city, he said. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501368373/elderly-man-arrested-for-abusing-3-boys/

Theary Seng is serving a 6-year sentence for treason. Cambodian authorities have transferred an outspoken Cambodian-American lawyer and human rights defender from a remote jail to the country’s largest prison on the outskirts of the capital Phnom Penh, a Prison Department official said Friday. Theary Seng, a 52-year-old American citizen, has been serving a six-year sentence in Preah Vihear Prison, in the north, since June 2022, when she was convicted treason, stemming from her failed efforts in 2019 to bring about the return to Cambodia of political opposition leader Sam Rainsy. The Ministry of Interior transferred her to Prey Sar II Prison, which houses detained women, in the capital on Sept. 23, said Prison Department spokesman Nuth Savna. “There is no reason for the transfer,” he told Radio Free Asia. “It was the decision of the ministry’s leadership.” Theary Seng’s lawyer and supporting NGOs requested her transfer because her appeal case is being tried in the capital. Sam Chamroeun, her attorney, said the transfer will enable Theary Seng to work with her defense team and to meet with her family in Phnom Penh. Theary Seng was one of many casualties of former Prime Minister Hun Sen’s government ahead of a July 23 general election that the ruling Cambodian People’s Party won in a landslide. But Western governments and opposition activists deemed it a sham because officials prevented the main opposition Candlelight Party from participating on a technicality. In the months leading up to the election, Hun Sen used a combination of legal action, threats, harassment and arrests to target the political opposition, activists, independent media and civil society groups. People wait at an entrance to Prey Sar Prison on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in an undated file photo. Credit: RFA/Uon Chhin Though Sam Chamroeun filed an appeal against the guilty verdict handed down by a court in the Phnom Penh verdict, the Appeals Court has not yet scheduled a hearing. He said that he will meet his client soon to discuss further steps. “I received two statements from the Prison Department to meet with Theary Seng, so there will be no obstacle for a meeting between client and lawyer because she is nearby,” he said. Hunger strike After her arrest, authorities sent the activist from Phnom Penh Prison to Preah Vihear on June 15 to ensure public security and order, according to the Prison Department. While in Preah Vihear Prison, Theary Seng went on a 10-day hunger strike five days after the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention issued a judgment calling her detention “arbitrary, politically motivated, and in violation of international law.” Jared Genser, Theary Seng’s pro bono international human rights lawyer, told RFA on Wednesday that he will use the working group’s report to build momentum for her case. He will also push for the United States to designate her case as “wrongfully detained” under the Levinson Act, a 2020 law that would allow sanctions to be imposed on individuals responsible for holding U.S. nationals hostage. Humanitarian groups said that the transfer was meant to politically persecute her since her case is being handled by the Phnom Penh court. Soeung Sengkaruna, a spokesman for the rights group Adhoc, urged Cambodia’s judiciary to speed up Theary Seng’s appeal process so she can receive justice because she did not commit a crime. “We haven’t seen the new government improve freedom spaces yet,” he said, referring to the government of Prime Minister Hun Manet, Hun Sen’s son who came to power following the July election, won by the ruling Cambodian People’s Party in a landslide. “We will continue to monitor the situation and hope that Theary Seng’s case is a start for resuming freedom and political space,” Soeung Sengkaruna said, referring to the government’s illiberal rule and rights violations. Translated by Yun Samean for RFA Khmer. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster. https://www.rfa.org/english/news/cambodia/theary-seng-09292023161027.html Copyright © 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036.

Responding to questions about the living conditions of the people, Prime Minister Hun Manet stated that through the 39-month programme to support poor and vulnerable families, the Royal Government had spent a total of 4,805,801,699,000 riels (or $1,172,146,756; that is, nearly $1.200 billion). According to the statement on the official Facebook page of Prime Minister Hun Manet on September 29, “Some people have questioned how the Royal Government of Cambodia has taken into account the lives of people who have a difficult life.” In response to this question, the premier presented as an example the daily report that the Minister of Social Affairs, Veterans, and Youth Rehabilitation sent to him for September 28, 2023. According to the study, the government has released monetary data to assist poor and vulnerable people, pregnant women and children under the age of two, and vulnerable families in dealing with inflationary pressures through three cash subsidies: 1. Supporting Poor and Vulnerable Families during COVID-19, the programme started on June 24, 2020, and has been running for 39 months. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501368830/royal-government-released-more-than-1200-billion-to-help-the-poor-and-vulnerable-in-39-months/

The Prime Minister of Cambodia, Dr. Hun Manet, received Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin who is on an official visit to Cambodia. Thavisin arrived in Cambodia this morning, September 28, 2023, for a full-day official visit. The visit is at the invitation of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet. A statement from the Cambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that during his visit to Cambodia, the Prime Minister of Thailand will lay a wreath at the Independence Monument and pay tribute to His Majesty King Norodom Sihanouk, the former King of the Kingdom of Cambodia, at the Royal Palace. The two Prime Ministers will hold bilateral meetings aimed at deepening the direction of action to further deepen and expand cooperation in all areas of mutual benefit within the bilateral and multilateral frameworks. The two sides will also exchange views on regional and international issues of common interest and concern. In addition, the two leaders will hand over the “Centre for Rehabilitation and Rehabilitation for Victims of Trafficking in Persons and Other Vulnerable Groups” located in Poipet, an initiative of bilateral cooperation. Srettha Thavisin will pay a courtesy call on Say Chhum, Acting Head of State and President of the Senate; Hun Sen, Chairman of the King’s Personal Advisory Council; and Khuon Sudary, President of the National Assembly. Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin’s first official visit to Cambodia will further strengthen the traditional ties and promote multifaceted cooperation between the two countries in the spirit of “Strengthening Partnership for Peace and Prosperity”, which provides mutual benefits for the people of the two countries and contributes to the promotion of peace, stability, and prosperity in ASEAN and the international community. https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501368176/pm-hun-manet-receives-thai-pm-during-his-official-visit-to-cambodia/

The Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts has issued a statement regarding the construction of a temple in Thailand – that social media commentators have blasted as an ‘Angkor copy’ The temple is located in Borei Rom Province, Thailand and have recently inspired a resurgence in critical comments from Cambodian social media denizens – including a comment from Tycoon Chea Tong Hour, who stated “???? Does the ministry know how to be brainwashed? People criticize all over the country and why are they silent ??? His Excellency, Excellency, Businessmen, famous stars, journalists and lotions sellers, why are you all silent? Why don’t you get hurt, don’t you protest or be strong, but you can only separate about useless things. What is the meaning of having money and wealth for being abused on our head as Khmer forever like this? Angkor Wat temple of Khmer was stolen and placed on Thailand under the word “Builder” !!! If the Ministry of Culture works as hard as the Ministry of Taxation, how good it is. In our country, the tourism sector is declining. Suddenly, foreigners steal the temple of the Khmer flag and take no action. I’m very disappointed as a Khmer citizen, who live with cowards, fearful, who dare not to face protest on the matter, only to protect their national interests in the case of the construction of a temple at Wat Phu Man Fa in Borei Rom Province, Thailand.” read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501367338/ministry-of-culture-confirms-action-on-angkor-replica-temple-construction-in-thailand/

Phnom Penh — One of Cambodia’s last independent media outlets, which was shuttered earlier this year, is set to reopen in Tacoma, Washington, in the Pacific United States. Cambodian authorities revoked the license for Voice of Democracy in February in a move that shocked press freedom advocates and the media outlet’s journalists. But a statement on the news outlet’s Facebook page this month said it will relaunch with half-hour broadcasts aired on Facebook, YouTube and TikTok beginning October 2. Voice of Democracy will operate under Pa Nguon Teang, founder and former executive director of the Cambodian Center for Independent Media, which managed the outlet before it was closed. He left Cambodia more than five years ago and resigned from the center in August. He told VOA Khmer he decided to resume Voice of Democracy because he saw a need for Cambodians to access accurate information and independent journalism. The relaunch will also help promote press freedom and free expression, he said. The approach of the media outlet will be the same, but Pa Nguon Teang said the journalists reporting for him will not be in Cambodia. Nop Vy, executive director of the Cambodian Journalists Alliance, or CamboJA, said that broadcasting from overseas presents challenges. “Although we now have advances in technology, social media, online communication, we cannot guarantee that local people can communicate or use all of them,” he said. Still, Nop Vy said, the relaunch of Voice of Democracy has been applauded by many and is seen as an opportunity for audiences to access information. Founded in 2003, the organization had been a trusted source of information until the Ministry of Information revoked its license on the orders of then-Prime Minister Hun Sen. FILE - Supporters of online media outlet Voice of Democracy (VOD) hold placards in front of VOD office in Phnom Penh, Feb. 13, 2023. read more https://www.voanews.com/a/cambodian-media-outlet-to-relaunch-from-the-us/7284282.html

11 people in southern Dong Nai Province were sentenced to jail on Monday for trafficking hundreds of people to Cambodia. Vuong Van Thanh, 36, was sentenced to 12 and a half years in prison for human trafficking by Dong Nai People’s Court. Ten other people were sentenced from three and half years to up to eight years in jail as Thanh’s accomplices or for organizing illegal emigration. From February to June 2022, Thanh and three accomplices used online accounts to recruit workers, promising them high incomes, in order to lure them to Cambodia for work. For each person sent to Cambodia, Thanh would get $600 as payment. The group then sent the workers to several companies based in Cambodia and managed by Chinese people so they could be exploited. The workers had to work overtime, make scam calls and persuade others to gamble, among other tasks, under close supervision. If a worker wanted to come back to Vietnam, their family would have to pay a ransom to the group in Cambodia, which ranged from VND61-130 million ($2,500-5,300) per person. The human trafficking ring was busted thanks to a call for help by a victim in July last year. At the trial, members of the group admitted to their crimes. Vietnam, with its long border and high number of gates and paths, makes human trafficking prevention complex, involving the cooperation of forces inside and outside the country, according to the authorities. Over the past four years, authorities have rescued over 350 victims of human trafficking and received 545 victims who managed to return, according to the Judiciary Committee of the National Assembly. VN Express https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501367210/11-people-jailed-for-trafficking-hundreds-of-jobseekers-to-cambodia/

WASHINGTON — Cambodia’s government congratulated tech giant Meta on its decision late last month to reject a recommendation from the company’s own Oversight Board to suspend former Prime Minister Hun Sen’s Facebook account. That feeling wasn’t shared by other groups closely following the case, which centered on a video of Hun Sen making explicit threats of physical violence toward his political opponents. Meta’s Oversight Board — along with human rights groups and digital security experts — skewered the decision in interviews and email exchanges with VOA Khmer this month. “It is hard to imagine a clearer case of a political leader using social media to amplify threats and intimidation,” Oversight Board co-shair Michael McConnell said in an emailed statement. He noted the video was part of a “concerning pattern of behavior from the Cambodian government” using social media as a tool of political suppression, in what Freedom House described as “digital authoritarianism.” “Our decision sets out clear guidance to Meta to deter public figures who would exploit its platforms to incite violence. Meta’s inaction is a failure to ensure its platforms do not contribute to these harms,” added McConnell, a Stanford law school professor. On June 29, Meta’s Oversight Board — a group of prominent global experts that makes mostly non-binding recommendations on some of the company’s thorniest policy questions — released a report recommending the suspension of Hun Sen’s Facebook account and a series of additional policy changes. The response from Hun Sen’s government was swift. Oversight Board members were promptly banned from the country, while the prime minister proactively shut down his own account and suggested he might block the platform entirely in Cambodia. FILE - Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen holds a mobile device during the celebrations of the 65th anniversary of the ruling Cambodian People 's Party in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Tuesday, June 28, 2016. read more https://www.voacambodia.com/a/meta-s-decision-on-hun-sen-skewered-as-failure-to-deter-violence/7283297.html

PHNOM PENH, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia has produced more than 8.28 tonnes of dore bars with 90 percent pure gold solution since commercial mining started in June 2021, a senior official said on Monday. Ung Dipola, director general of the General Department of Mineral Resources under the Ministry of Mines and Energy, said that currently, the country has six gold mining companies. "As of Sept. 22, 2023, the six companies had produced 919 gold bars, totally weighing 8,288 kilograms," he said in a news release, adding that the government earned more than 13 million U.S. dollars in royalties from those mining firms. The Southeast Asian country commenced extracting gold at a gold mining site in Keo Seima district in Mondulkiri province in June 2021. https://english.news.cn/20230925/4470bc219b214bacbb39ade1e4f38b2c/c.html

Apsara Authority has denied rumours of blanket ban on photography inside the Angkor Wat area, but it said prior permission is needed for filming of the UNESCO heritage site for business purposes. The confirmation comes after renewed allegations of photography restrictions at the Angkor Archeological park area. Long Kosal, Spokesman for the Apsara Authority, told the local media: “There aren’t any restriction for the visitors to take photos with their family and friends and to post them on social media which talks about the culture, traditions, the greatness on the works of art, its engineering and the construction skills of our Khmer ancestors.” However, he added that YouTube filmmakers and advertisers have to obtain permission well in advance from the authority to use images of Angkor Wat or any part of the Angkor archeological park area. The authorities can stop them from filming if they fail to do so. Giving the reason for the ban, he said that YouTubers and advertisers trade the images to make money which sometimes affect the historical content. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501366202/no-blanket-ban-on-photography-inside-angkor-wat/

To boost bilateral trade and communications between Thailand and Cambodia, Sa Kaeo authorities have asked for the opening of a permanent checkpoint, linking Sa Kaeo province with Banteay Meanchey of Cambodia. The request was made during a visit by Deputy Prime Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara who is also foreign minister to Sa Kaeo on Monday. Parnpree went to observe the progress of the building of the Thai-Cambodian Friendship Bridge, linking Ban Nong Ian in Aranyaprathet district with Cambodia’s Ban Stung Bot in Oddar Meanchey district. A checkpoint building is also under construction and is expected to be completed this November. Parnpree was asked whether, when the checkpoint opens, it can become a permanent one, to facilitate the travel and trade. The authorities would also like the Foreign Ministry to open temporary passport office in Aranyaprathet district and a Thai consular office in Cambodia. Mutual border trade in Sa Kaeo province, between October 2022 and August 2023, was Bt103.6 million, Bt79.6 million of which were Thai exports. Sa Kew governor Parinya Phothisat accompanied Parnpree during the visit. https://www.thaipbsworld.com/permanent-border-thai-cambodian-checkpoint-mooted-for-sa-kaeo/

A brand new study published by the Documentation Center of Cambodia (DC-Cam), with a focus on Oddar Meanchey’s Anlong Veng district, explores the crucial roles of Cambodian women in the revolution and rebuilding of society, but also reveals the impact on those women in the post-genocidal era. Located in Oddar Meanchey province’s Dangrek Mountains area, Anlong Veng was known as the last stronghold of the Khmer Rouge to come under government control in 1998 and the final resting place of Saloth Sar, aka Pol Pot, the former prime minister and Brother Number One in the genocidal Democratic Kampuchea (1975–1979). It has been estimated that over 35% of the population in the district, both male and female, were former Khmer Rouge soldiers. Recently published by DC-Cam, the report entitled Women in Anlong Veng studies the daily life and work assignments taken up by women in Anlong Veng in the course of Khmer Rouge’s guerrilla warfare between 1979 and 1998. The study is conducted based on interviews with numerous Khmer Rouge survivors. read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501366323/dc-cam-anlong-veng-womens-roles-in-kr-and-peace-building/

Large images of Hun Manet loomed over the New York landmark as he spoke at the United Nations. Images of Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Manet lit up a large digital billboard display in New York’s Times Square over the weekend as the newly appointed leader spoke at the U.N. General Assembly. “Congratulations!” said the flashing billboard ad at the busy, iconic intersection in the center of Manhattan. Also included in the ad was an image showing Hun Manet in a business suit, with his hands folded together in the traditional Khmer sampeah greeting. Another image showed him in uniform from his days as a cadet at West Point, the U.S. Military Academy. The ad was paid for by a Cambodian-American businessman named David Soth, Hun Manet said on his Telegram channel. Other billboards with similar images and messages were also displayed around New York over the weekend, he said. “Thanks to little brother David Soth for coordinating with the advertising company to post welcome pictures of me on a billboard in some of New York City’s major areas, especially in Time Square for free and without asking anyone,” Hun Manet wrote. “This is your kind heart for me, as well as the Royal Government of Cambodia.” It was unclear where Soth resided in the United States. The billboard included the text: “CPP Chapter of San Francisco, CA.” CPP stands for the Cambodian People’s Party – the political party that has ruled the country since the 1980s when Hun Manet’s father, Hun Sen, first became prime minister. Hun Sen handed power to his son last month after the ruling party claimed victory in an election that did not include the main opposition Candlelight Party. The CPP won 120 of the 125 available seats in the July 23 parliamentary election. Speech at the United Nations Hun Manet spoke to the U.N. General Assembly in English on Friday as Cambodian-Americans and former opposition party leaders protested his appearance from outside the U.N. building. The prime minister’s office issued a statement on Monday confirming that the billboards weren’t paid out of the national budget. Um Sam An, a senior official from the banned Cambodia National Rescue Party, said he believes that money spent placing the ads promoting Hun Manet will eventually come at the expense of “the blood and sweat of the people.” “Why is a Cambodian leader so special that a company would do this for free?” he asked Radio Free Asia. “It’s never like that. The money could come from an individual, or from the government budget.” RFA could not immediately reach government spokesman Pen Bona for comment on Monday. But Jean-Francois Tan, a delegate minister to the prime minister, told reporters after arriving in Cambodia from the United States that the billboards were not intended to gain recognition from any world leader. “If the accusation intends to say that Cambodia needs to use this image to convince the international community or other foreign delegations present at the U.N. General Assembly to recognize Samdech Hun Manet, it is not true,” he said, using an honorific. Translated by Sok Ry Sum. Edited by Matt Reed and Malcolm Foster. https://www.rfa.org/english/news/cambodia/hun-manet-times-square-09252023163404.html Copyright © 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036.

The highway runs through the forest like a black ribbon, down to the sea and to what must be one of the world's largest tourism projects. Fifteen years after it began, there is still not much to see of the Dara Sakor Seashore Resort in southern Cambodia. It is a grandiose scheme by a Chinese company to build a self-contained tourist city. A Chinese colony, some have called it a venue for "feasting and revelry", according to the company, complete with international airport, deep-sea port, power stations, hospitals, casinos and luxury villas. The airport is still unfinished. A single casino, with an attached five-star hotel and apartments, sits alone near the sea, fronted by an unmade road, and surrounded by a construction site. As a tourist business it has barely got started. But it has already had a damaging impact on one of Asia's richest natural environments, and on the thousands of people who live there. China's economic footprint in Cambodia now dwarfs that of any other country. It provides half of all direct investment and most of its foreign aid. read more https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-66851049