Sar Kheng Snubs Opposition, Sihanoukville Floods, Delta Variant Spreads
Good morning, Cambodia. It's Friday, August 27, and this is your Weekly Dispatch.
WITNESS TO HISTORY: Elizabeth Becker, the award-winning author and journalist, speaks to the Cambodia Daily about America’s withdrawal from Kabul — and Phnom Penh.
NEVER FORGET: Hundreds of Asian elephants were located in Mondulkiri province, but rampant deforestation is an escalating threat.
OIL & WATER: The tanker that took off with $20 million worth of Cambodian oil was found hiding off the coast of Indonesia — Cambodia wants it back.
THE LEDE
Rights Rebuke
Finger-pointing and political sniping threaten to sink Cambodia’s newly proposed human rights commission.
It was a week of fierce dispute: Critics said the government’s history of rights abuses proved it was incapable of delivering impartial justice. The government dismissed the allegations, saying the critics had no real interest in improving the country’s human rights — only in insulting its leaders.
The commission might be dead on arrival, or doomed to irrelevance without the support of rights groups. The government likely doesn’t care. It will wave away civil society’s concerns and create a commission that serves its own interests, like the Anti-Corruption Unit of 2006, which was launched with fanfare but has done nothing to reign in rampant graft.
U.N. Blasted
Cambodia fired back at United Nations observers who denounced the recent conviction of Rong Chhun, a popular union leader sentenced to two years in prison for suggesting the government ceded land to Vietnam.
Two of his supporters were given 20 months for protesting for his release.
The U.N. said: “We are seriously concerned that the Cambodian government uses the vaguely-worded Articles 494 and 495 of the Criminal Code against ‘incitement to create felony’ to crack down on dissent and to stifle free expression.”
Cambodia retorted: “Cambodia’s Constitution protects freedom of expression, but not freedom to spread fake news, throw slander, incite violence and sow racial hatred.”
Rong Chhun’s lawyer called the conviction a “complete injustice” and is seeking permission to appeal.
French Connection?
The ruling party dashed opposition hopes of a high-level meeting with Interior Minister Sar Kheng, who is visiting France.
Opposition members in Paris said a sit-down with the minister could open a pathway to political reconciliation, but CPP officials slammed that door fast and hard.
"The rebel groups have no role for the CPP to meet them," a party spokesperson said.
The supreme court disbanded the Cambodian National Rescue Party, the main opposition group, in 2017 and barred 120 of its members from politics for five years. Sam Rainsy, the CNRP co-founder and de facto opposition leader, has lived in exile in Paris since 2016.
TALKING POINTS
The Fall
The Cambodia Daily sat down with Elizabeth Becker, the renowned American journalist and author, who discussed the fall of Kabul, Saigon and Phnom Penh. English starts at the 12-minute mark.
Crude Allegations
The Indonesian navy found the tanker that fled with Cambodia’s oil hiding off the coast of Sumatra with its transponder turned off. The tanker holds 300,000 barrels of oil worth more than $20 million, and Cambodia wants it back.
Sihanoukville Floods
Nearly 30cm of rain unleashed flash flooding on Sihanoukville, causing untold property damage and at least one death. Authorities said climate change, poor trash collection and urban development exacerbated the crisis. Residents have complained for years.
Mondulkiri Elephants
Conservationists said DNA analyses suggested that around 300 Asian elephants were living in the Srepok and Phnom Prich protected areas in Mondulkiri. But deforestation is a huge problem, and getting worse.
Wage Talks
Labor unions will ask for an $8 increase in the monthly minimum wage when negotiations begin Sept 7. The Ministry of Labor suggested garment workers should be happy to have jobs.
Identity Theft
The Cambodian culture police are hot in pursuit of brand usurpers. A group of investigators is going back to Thailand to further inspect a temple that looks like Angkor Wat. The Cambodian Embassy in Washington is hunting down noodle sellers with offensive packaging.
Covid-19 Watch
Good: Seventy-five percent of the adult population is fully vaccinated.
Bad: New daily infections are inching back up as Delta spreads.
BACKPAGES: From The Cambodia Daily Vault
Sam Rainsy Book Banned
August 27, 2001
“Light of Justice,” a 48-page book written by opposition party leader Sam Rainsy and published July 3, has been banned by the government, which has ordered police to confiscate all copies.
Gov’t Blasted For Inaction On Corruption
August 23, 2001
Prime Minister Hun Sen and his administration may contend that corruption could be dealt with better if more funding were thrown at the problem, but foreign officials said Wednesday there are steps the government needs to take now to show their commitment lessen the risk of losing the support of donors.
Hun Sen Says Sam Rainsy Could Face Arrest
August 23, 2001
Prime Minister Hun Sen suggested Wednesday opposition leader Sam Rainsy could face arrest because he incited farmers to march in the capital under the pretext of seeking food assistance.
Prey Veng Villagers Still Remember KR Regime
August 22, 2001
As progress toward a Khmer Rouge tribunal moves forward, the Cambodia Daily is running a series in which the people who lived through the Khmer Rouge regime share their stories. Subsequent stories will appear in future issues of The Cambodia Daily.
WEEKEND READING
Cambodia risks becoming a hub in the Mekong region’s thriving drug trade
Uncertainty and turmoil in the Golden Triangle, Southeast Asia's long-time narcotics hub, means syndicates are casting an eye across the Mekong for next steps. With soaring meth seizures, Cambodia is showing signs of becoming central to the region's drug trade
Are cosier China-Cambodia ties a sign Beijing’s plan to set up military bases overseas is gathering steam?
Experts say China has a strategic interest in having more such bases worldwide, not just to project military power but also to safeguard its global interests. But while Beijing may be exploring this route in response to US-led efforts to counter its influence, the path to a network of outposts abroad is hardly straightforward.
On Huge Resort’s Land, Villagers Live Under Threat of Demolition
Whenever a resident needs to leave Ta Ni village, one person has to stay behind and watch the land. If not, the ever-present security guards could come with tools, sometimes guns, to take apart their homes.
Credits: Hun Sen image via Wikipedia.
