Miss Grand Cambodia Uproar, Trafficking Whitewash, Sin Sisamouth Record Reappears

Aug 26, 2022

LOST LOGIC: The Ministry of Interior reported a 63% drop in human trafficking cases and a Khmer-Chinese group blamed the media for exaggerating all those reports of slave labor, extortion and torture.
DICEY MOVE: Two Miss Grand Cambodia 2022 contestants got a little too real when showcasing their province’s top industries: Miss Bavet and Miss Poipet dressed as alluring blackjack dealers.
GOLDEN VOICE: A long-lost Sin Sisamuth record was discovered in a stack of old newspapers in Australia. Most of the beloved crooner’s 2,000 songs disappeared under the Khmer Rouge.

THE LEDE

Battle Plans

The only thing protecting Cambodia from war is the ruling CPP, Hun Sen declared, predicting that an opposition-led nation would quickly devolve into chaos with attacks on neighbors and Robin Hood-style banditry.

The warning — some might call it a threat — comes as the country prepares for national polls in July. The prime minister, whose party dominates the Supreme Court, local police and everything in between, is expected to win easily.

A resurgent opposition could derail the CPP’s plans, which include Hun Manet taking over his father’s leadership.

Return Flight

Sam Rainsy said he’s prepared to face the court, and prison — just let him get on the plane.

The opposition leader is scheduled for trial September 15 in Phnom Penh, where he and 33 supporters are charged with plotting to overthrow the government. Rainsy, who has lived in Paris exile since 2017, holds dual citizenship. He said the Cambodian government has suspended his passport and refused him a visa, effectively banning him from entry.

Rainsy faces more than 150 years in prison. The government denied claims of a travel ban and said he is free to come home.

Bad Press

Laughable statistics and feeble excuses were all the government had to defend itself against an avalanche of media reports detailing widespread human trafficking and employment scams.

The Ministry of Interior reported an implausible 63% drop in trafficking cases in the first half of the year, while a Khmer-Chinese business group blamed the media for exaggerating the problems of debt bondage, extortion and torture.

Police have rescued hundreds of foreign nationals from human trafficking in the last year. Thousands more are still feared to be trapped. Reports of arrests are rare.

TALKING POINTS

Mass Trial

Thirty-four opposition members will face charges of incitement to overthrow the government in a mass trial beginning September 15. The accused include Sam Rainsy, Mu Sochua and several former CNRP leaders who now live abroad. The charges stem from Sam Rainsy’s failed attempt to return to Cambodia in 2019 and lead a national uprising.

Water Hazard

“Progress over preservation” could almost work as the government’s mantra for development. It would certainly serve the Land Ministry, where a spokesperson defended Boeng Tamok’s reclamation by dismissing its importance in flood control, fisheries and livelihoods — and argued that Phnom Penh’s lakes were most valuable when filled with sand.

Foreign Accounts

Education officials said alarm over a new Vietnamese studies department at the Royal University of Phnom Penh was based on outdated fears and nationalistic fervor. Critics see a strategic creep of Vietnamese influence, reinforcing a narrative that Vietnam is plotting to assimilate the country.

Silent Treatment

A profanity-laced Facebook video posted by a popular citizen journalist prompted fiery backlash at the highest levels. Hun Sen sacked the online reporter, who is a soldier in his bodyguard unit, while the Ministry of Information promised to scrutinize social media and blacklist any journalist found using profanity in their reports. Officials made no mention of an assault on journalists by the same bodyguards earlier this month.

Gold Record

A Cambodian living in Australia discovered a vinyl recording of Sin Sisamouth’s “Bid Farewell to Bopha to Join the Army'' in a stack of dusty newspapers collected by his father-in-law. The song was previously believed lost. Experts say the iconic Golden Era crooner published more than 2,000 songs during his career. More than 65% disappeared under the Khmer Rouge. Sin Sisamouth would have turned 90 on Aug 25.

Bad Beauties

The “casino staff” costumes of two Miss Grand Cambodia 2022 contestants were a little too real for viewers’ comfort. Asked to showcase their province’s top industries, Miss Bavet and Miss Poipet sparked a thunderstorm of social-media scorn by dressing like blackjack dealers and parading across stage with oversized aces and dice handbags.

Daft Punk

Phnom Penh special forces arrested an 18-year-old “hitman” after discovering his services on Facebook. The suspect used an assumed name, and it was unclear how police discovered his real identity.

BACKPAGES: From The Cambodia Daily Vault

Gov’t Calls on Nations to Lobby UN on KR

August 23, 2002
Prime Minister Hun Sen put the question of a Khmer Rouge tribunal to the international community Thursday, saying it was up to UN member nations to lobby UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan to restart the negotiations Annan abandoned in February.

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