By SHINO YUASA, Associated Press Writer
TOKYO – An American father on a mission to reclaim his young children in Japan was arrested over their alleged abduction while they were walking to school with his ex-wife, officials said Wednesday.
Christopher John Savoie snatched his two children — an 8-year-old boy and a 6-year-old girl — by force Monday in the southern city of Fukuoka, shoved them into a car and drove away, said Akira Naraki, a police spokesman in the city.
He was arrested by Japanese police as he tried to enter the U.S. Consulate in Fukuoka with the children, said Tracy Taylor, a spokeswoman at the consulate.
The number of such cases is growing in Japan — mostly with Japanese mothers bringing their children back to the country and refusing to let their foreign ex-husbands visit them. The United States, Canada, Britain and France issued a joint statement in May urging Japan to address the problem.
Savoie, a 38-year-old from Franklin, Tennessee, was arrested after his ex-wife, Noriko, alerted the police. The children were returned to her, Taylor said. Efforts to reach her were unsuccessful.
Local police said they received permission from the court to keep Savoie in custody for 10 days.
The divorced couple and the two children were living in Tennessee, but Noriko Savoie came to Japan with the two children in August without telling her ex-husband, Taylor said.
In Japan, if a couple gets divorced, one parent often gets sole custody of their children — almost always the mother. Divorced fathers typically don't get much access to their children.
Japan has yet to sign the 1980 Hague Convention on International Child Abduction, which seeks to standardize laws among participating countries to ensure that custody decisions can be made by appropriate courts and protect the rights of access of both parents. Japan has argued that refusing to sign the Hague Convention helped shield Japanese women and their children fleeing from abusive foreign husbands.
The United States, Canada, Britain and France in May urged Japan to sign the Hague Convention. At least 70 dispute cases exist between Japan and the U.S., but Tokyo does not have the exact number.
Japanese tend to prioritize the mother's role over the rights of the father or children, said Hideki Tani, a lawyer who is an expert on the issue.
"In Japan, it's not considered a serious problem if a mother takes her children with her without telling her ex-husband when they get separated or divorced," Tani said. "But for many people outside Japan, that's outrageous."
Japan and the U.S. have very different approaches to divorce and raising children, said David Marks, U.S. Embassy spokesman in Tokyo. "Japanese privacy laws can create frustrations for 'left-behind' parents."
Japan is aware of the need to address the issue and that it is seriously considering joining the Hague convention, said Kosei Nomura, a Foreign Ministry official in charge of international law.
"The problem is growing, and it has become a diplomatic issue," Nomura said. "The question is if we should insist on the Japanese traditional standard to resolve disputes over children as a result of broken international marriages."
The couple was divorced in January and the mother was given primary custody of the children, according to records from the Chancery Court for Williamson County in Tennessee that were posted on the Web site of Nashville television station WTVF.
Savoie has since remarried. His wife, Amy, told CBS that Noriko was not letting the children talk to him on the telephone after she took them to Japan. Amy said she doesn't know if she and her husband will ever see the children again.
"We hope if she is granted custody over there, that they will come and find us when they are in their 20s maybe and come see that we still love them," she said.
American Consulate officials have twice visited Savoie, who now has American and Japanese lawyers, Taylor said.
A lawyer for Savoie, Jeremy Morley, told NBC he had about 100 clients with difficulty seeing their children after ex-spouses took them to Japan.
"This is an untold story," he said.
U.S. Representative Chris Smith, a New Jersey Republican, told The Associated Press he has introduced a bill called the International Child Abduction Prevention Act of 2009, which would penalize countries that show a pattern of not cooperating to resolve such cases. Penalties could include being denied military aid and certain loans, he said.
"It is abominable what has happened here," Smith said early Wednesday.
He also said he had "guarded hope" that Japan's new prime minister, Yukio Hatoyama, would use the situation as a chance to take another look at the country's policy.
___
Associated Press Writers Mari Yamaguchi and Malcolm Foster in Tokyo and Bernard McGhee in Atlanta contributed to this report.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Friday, September 25, 2009
Statement at the Conclusion of an IMF Staff Mission to Cambodia
Press Release No. 09/325
September 24, 2009
Source: IMF
The following statement was issued in Phnom Penh on September 23 at the conclusion of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) staff mission to Cambodia:
“An IMF mission visited Cambodia during September 9-23, 2009 to conduct the annual Article IV discussions. During the visit, the mission took stock of recent economic and financial developments and held policy discussions with ministers and senior officials of the Royal Government of Cambodia on their macroeconomic and financial policies. The mission also met a wide range of representatives from the business community and Cambodia’s development partners.
“The global economic crisis is having a larger impact on Cambodia’s economy than previously anticipated, and as a result, real GDP growth is now projected to be negative 2¾ percent in 2009.
• Garment export volumes are projected to decline by 15 percent this year, mainly due to lower consumption in the United States (Cambodia’s key garment export market) and intense competition from regional producers, who have raised their market share by strengthening competitiveness.
• In the tourism sector, air arrivals have fallen by double digits, reflecting the global recession, rising unemployment, and falling incomes in most of Cambodia’s tourism-source countries. As a consequence, overall tourism spending is sharply lower, despite the increase in same-day and land arrivals from neighbor countries.
• With few notable exceptions, work on large construction projects has slowed significantly in the wake of falling property prices. New project approvals are sharply lower, and imports of construction materials are down significantly compared to 2008, with bank lending to the property also down.
• Agricultural production is a bright spot, with a good harvest expected in 2009. Investment in rural roads and irrigation systems should raise productivity and reduce operating costs in the period ahead.
“Looking to 2010, there are some hopeful signs that the global downturn may be bottoming out. A pick-up in external demand is expected to lead to a modest recovery in Cambodia’s economy. Growth in 2010 is projected at about 4¼ percent, though risks remain tilted to the downside, given uncertainties over the strength of the global recovery.
“With lower domestic demand and commodity prices, inflation pressures have eased in 2009, with headline inflation expected to be around 5¼ percent (year-on-year) by end-2009. Inflation should remain in the mid-single digits through 2010. However, vigilance is required to ensure that fiscal stimulus does not lead to renewed inflation pressures.
“Policy discussions focused on how best to provide adequate support targeted at priority sectors, while at the same time maintaining macroeconomic stability and low inflation.
“With respect to fiscal policy, the mission welcomed indications that the 2009 budget’s revenue target would likely be met, largely due to commendable administration efforts. However, on current trends, very large increases in the civil service and military wage bill and higher capital spending are projected to raise the budget deficit to 6¾ percent of GDP in 2009 from around 2¾ percent in 2008. The mission estimated that domestic financing of this deficit would imply a drawdown of government deposits of about 1¼ percent of GDP, reversing a long trend of deposit accumulation. This situation bears close watch, since domestic financing of deficits in the past has contributed to macroeconomic instability, placing pressure on the exchange rate and consumer prices. The mission noted that over the remainder of the year, efforts should focus on ensuring continued strong revenue collection and avoiding non-priority spending.
“For 2010, the mission recommended the budget aim to reduce the deficit to under 5½ percent of GDP. This level of deficit would eliminate the need for further large-scale domestic financing, while at the same time provide adequate fiscal space for spending on priority sectors and pursuing key development objectives. The mission cautioned against allowing significant increases in the wage bill to become entrenched, as this could risk crowding out spending on priority sectors such as health, education, and operations and maintenance, and further increase domestic financing needs if not accompanied by significant revenue gains.
“With respect to monetary policy, the mission noted that ample liquidity now exists in the banking system, and agreed with the authorities that there was no need for a reduction in the reserve requirement. The mission also noted that greater exchange rate flexibility through limiting intervention to smoothing volatility would help protect international reserves, deepen the foreign exchange market, and allow the exchange rate to play a greater role in facilitating external adjustment.
‘The mission commended the National Bank of Cambodia for taking actions to safeguard the health of the banking system. As in many other countries, the downturn in Cambodia’s growth has been accompanied by rising non-performing loans at banks. The mission and the authorities fully agreed that close supervision of banks and strong enforcement of prudential regulations needs to continue, especially proper asset classification and provisioning of non-performing loans.”
September 24, 2009
Source: IMF
The following statement was issued in Phnom Penh on September 23 at the conclusion of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) staff mission to Cambodia:
“An IMF mission visited Cambodia during September 9-23, 2009 to conduct the annual Article IV discussions. During the visit, the mission took stock of recent economic and financial developments and held policy discussions with ministers and senior officials of the Royal Government of Cambodia on their macroeconomic and financial policies. The mission also met a wide range of representatives from the business community and Cambodia’s development partners.
“The global economic crisis is having a larger impact on Cambodia’s economy than previously anticipated, and as a result, real GDP growth is now projected to be negative 2¾ percent in 2009.
• Garment export volumes are projected to decline by 15 percent this year, mainly due to lower consumption in the United States (Cambodia’s key garment export market) and intense competition from regional producers, who have raised their market share by strengthening competitiveness.
• In the tourism sector, air arrivals have fallen by double digits, reflecting the global recession, rising unemployment, and falling incomes in most of Cambodia’s tourism-source countries. As a consequence, overall tourism spending is sharply lower, despite the increase in same-day and land arrivals from neighbor countries.
• With few notable exceptions, work on large construction projects has slowed significantly in the wake of falling property prices. New project approvals are sharply lower, and imports of construction materials are down significantly compared to 2008, with bank lending to the property also down.
• Agricultural production is a bright spot, with a good harvest expected in 2009. Investment in rural roads and irrigation systems should raise productivity and reduce operating costs in the period ahead.
“Looking to 2010, there are some hopeful signs that the global downturn may be bottoming out. A pick-up in external demand is expected to lead to a modest recovery in Cambodia’s economy. Growth in 2010 is projected at about 4¼ percent, though risks remain tilted to the downside, given uncertainties over the strength of the global recovery.
“With lower domestic demand and commodity prices, inflation pressures have eased in 2009, with headline inflation expected to be around 5¼ percent (year-on-year) by end-2009. Inflation should remain in the mid-single digits through 2010. However, vigilance is required to ensure that fiscal stimulus does not lead to renewed inflation pressures.
“Policy discussions focused on how best to provide adequate support targeted at priority sectors, while at the same time maintaining macroeconomic stability and low inflation.
“With respect to fiscal policy, the mission welcomed indications that the 2009 budget’s revenue target would likely be met, largely due to commendable administration efforts. However, on current trends, very large increases in the civil service and military wage bill and higher capital spending are projected to raise the budget deficit to 6¾ percent of GDP in 2009 from around 2¾ percent in 2008. The mission estimated that domestic financing of this deficit would imply a drawdown of government deposits of about 1¼ percent of GDP, reversing a long trend of deposit accumulation. This situation bears close watch, since domestic financing of deficits in the past has contributed to macroeconomic instability, placing pressure on the exchange rate and consumer prices. The mission noted that over the remainder of the year, efforts should focus on ensuring continued strong revenue collection and avoiding non-priority spending.
“For 2010, the mission recommended the budget aim to reduce the deficit to under 5½ percent of GDP. This level of deficit would eliminate the need for further large-scale domestic financing, while at the same time provide adequate fiscal space for spending on priority sectors and pursuing key development objectives. The mission cautioned against allowing significant increases in the wage bill to become entrenched, as this could risk crowding out spending on priority sectors such as health, education, and operations and maintenance, and further increase domestic financing needs if not accompanied by significant revenue gains.
“With respect to monetary policy, the mission noted that ample liquidity now exists in the banking system, and agreed with the authorities that there was no need for a reduction in the reserve requirement. The mission also noted that greater exchange rate flexibility through limiting intervention to smoothing volatility would help protect international reserves, deepen the foreign exchange market, and allow the exchange rate to play a greater role in facilitating external adjustment.
‘The mission commended the National Bank of Cambodia for taking actions to safeguard the health of the banking system. As in many other countries, the downturn in Cambodia’s growth has been accompanied by rising non-performing loans at banks. The mission and the authorities fully agreed that close supervision of banks and strong enforcement of prudential regulations needs to continue, especially proper asset classification and provisioning of non-performing loans.”
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Cambodia's economy hit hard by U.S. slowdown - IMF
PHNOM PENH, Sept 23 (Reuters) - Cambodia's economy, one of the fastest growing in Southeast Asia just two years ago, will probably contract by about 2.75 percent this year, hit hard by the slowdown in the United States, the IMF said on Wednesday. "The global economic crisis is having a larger impact on Cambodia's economy than previously anticipated," David Cowen, deputy division chief for the International Monetary Fund's Asia and Pacific Department, told a news conference.
However, the economy will rebound next year with growth of 4.25 percent, added Cowen, who led a team that recently met with local finance officials as part of an IMF mission to Cambodia.
After decades of war and upheaval, including the Khmer Rouge "killing fields", Cambodia witnessed an unprecedented boom before the global financial crisis struck, its economy expanding at around 10 percent annually in the five years leading up to 2008.
The growth, fuelled mainly by garment manufacturing, tourism and real-estate development, came to an abrupt halt during the global recession. Garment export volumes are likely to fall by 15 percent this year, hit by the weak U.S. economy, Cowen said.
Tourist arrivals have fallen by double digits, Cowen said, noting that recent signs of improvement may reflect day-tripping arrivals from across the border rather than wealthier tourists from other parts of the world whose spending lifts the economy.
"Exports are contracting. So we are likely to see negative export growth in Cambodia in 2009. Imports are contracting at an even faster rate," he added, noting that some of that reflected falls in fuel prices.
"The overall level of petroleum imports will be down quite significantly this year," he said.
He expected annual inflation of more than 5 percent near the end of 2009, rising further to about 6 percent next year.
Even though the economy remains one of Asia's smallest, with gross domestic product of around $8.9 billion, international investment had been rising sharply, flowing heavily into the hotel sector, before reversing course in the financial crisis.
Foreign direct investment probably nearly halved to an estimated $490 million this year from $815 million in 2008, with the drop led mainly by construction investment, Cowen said.
Large construction projects have slowed, new project approvals are sharply lower and imports of construction materials are down significantly from last year, he added.
"There's negative growth in construction imports and negative growth in consumer imports."
Bank lending for property was also down, he said, following a real-estate boom that turned the once-sleepy capital into a building site.
But Cambodia's vast agricultural sector, which makes up about 34 percent of the economy, has held up well, with a good harvest expected this year.
And there's ample liquidity in the banking system.
"There has been healthy deposit growth in the system as a whole this year, in part due to very attractive term deposit rates that banks are paying in Cambodia. We have expressed some concern that these high deposit rates could have some impact on bank profitability going forward."
(Writing by Jason Szep; Editing by Alan Raybould)
However, the economy will rebound next year with growth of 4.25 percent, added Cowen, who led a team that recently met with local finance officials as part of an IMF mission to Cambodia.
After decades of war and upheaval, including the Khmer Rouge "killing fields", Cambodia witnessed an unprecedented boom before the global financial crisis struck, its economy expanding at around 10 percent annually in the five years leading up to 2008.
The growth, fuelled mainly by garment manufacturing, tourism and real-estate development, came to an abrupt halt during the global recession. Garment export volumes are likely to fall by 15 percent this year, hit by the weak U.S. economy, Cowen said.
Tourist arrivals have fallen by double digits, Cowen said, noting that recent signs of improvement may reflect day-tripping arrivals from across the border rather than wealthier tourists from other parts of the world whose spending lifts the economy.
"Exports are contracting. So we are likely to see negative export growth in Cambodia in 2009. Imports are contracting at an even faster rate," he added, noting that some of that reflected falls in fuel prices.
"The overall level of petroleum imports will be down quite significantly this year," he said.
He expected annual inflation of more than 5 percent near the end of 2009, rising further to about 6 percent next year.
Even though the economy remains one of Asia's smallest, with gross domestic product of around $8.9 billion, international investment had been rising sharply, flowing heavily into the hotel sector, before reversing course in the financial crisis.
Foreign direct investment probably nearly halved to an estimated $490 million this year from $815 million in 2008, with the drop led mainly by construction investment, Cowen said.
Large construction projects have slowed, new project approvals are sharply lower and imports of construction materials are down significantly from last year, he added.
"There's negative growth in construction imports and negative growth in consumer imports."
Bank lending for property was also down, he said, following a real-estate boom that turned the once-sleepy capital into a building site.
But Cambodia's vast agricultural sector, which makes up about 34 percent of the economy, has held up well, with a good harvest expected this year.
And there's ample liquidity in the banking system.
"There has been healthy deposit growth in the system as a whole this year, in part due to very attractive term deposit rates that banks are paying in Cambodia. We have expressed some concern that these high deposit rates could have some impact on bank profitability going forward."
(Writing by Jason Szep; Editing by Alan Raybould)
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Drought could have destroyed ancient city
2009/09/23
AP
A PROLONGED and intense drought may have contributed to the demise of Cambodia’s great ancient city Angkor, an American researcher said .
Brendan M Buckley said bands on tree rings that he and his colleagues have examined show that Southeast Asia was hit by a severe drought from 1415 until 1439.
That would coincide with the time period during which many archeologists believe Angkor collapsed. From the city of famed temples, Angkorian kings ruled over most of Southeast Asia between the ninth and 14th centuries.
During that time, they oversaw construction of architectural stone marvels, including Angkor Wat, regarded as a marvel of religious architecture and designated as a World Heritage Site by Unesco.
“Given all the stress the Khmer civilisation was under due to political reasons and so forth, a drought of the magnitude we see in our records should have played a significant role in causing its demise,” said Buckley, a research scientist at Columbia University’s Tree-Ring Laboratory in New York. Scientists have a historical record of droughts with the thickness of a tree’s rings. Since trees grow more during wet periods, the rings will grow thicker at those times. Trees grow less in dry times, so those rings will be thinner.
While the 1431 invasion from Siam – now Thailand – has long been regarded as a major cause of Angkor’s fall, archaeologists working at the sprawling temple site have long suspected that ecological factors played a role. The Greater Angkor Project is run by the University of Sydney in collaboration with the French archaeological group Ecole Francaise d’Extreme Orient and Apsara, the body responsible for the management of the Angkor World Heritage Park. The project concluded in 2007 that ancient Angkor had become unwieldy and that efforts to expand rice production to support a population of one million had led to vast deforestation, top-soil degradation and erosion.
Last year, the group went further to show that the deforestation resulted in flooding and huge amounts of sediment clogging the network of canals that was at the heart of the city’s vital water management system.
Dan Penny, a University of Sydney researcher who is a director at the Greater Angkor Project, said the new findings on drought will help researchers gain a greater understanding of why Angkor collapsed.
“Angkor was a civilisation obsessed with managing water. It was an agrarian society,” Penny said. “It’s hard to imagine that a society like that could have shrugged off 20 or 30 years of drought.”
However, Penny said it was likely that the drought was more of a contributing factor to the kingdom’s demise than a driving force. Not only was it forced to contend with the impacts of deforestation, but also attacks from the Siamese and the Cham of southern Vietnam.
“We have these droughts occurring on top of pre-existing pressures,” Penny said.
“Climate change was an accelerant,” he said. “It’s like pouring petrol on a fire. It makes social and economic pressures that may have been endurable disastrous.”
AP
A PROLONGED and intense drought may have contributed to the demise of Cambodia’s great ancient city Angkor, an American researcher said .
Brendan M Buckley said bands on tree rings that he and his colleagues have examined show that Southeast Asia was hit by a severe drought from 1415 until 1439.
That would coincide with the time period during which many archeologists believe Angkor collapsed. From the city of famed temples, Angkorian kings ruled over most of Southeast Asia between the ninth and 14th centuries.
During that time, they oversaw construction of architectural stone marvels, including Angkor Wat, regarded as a marvel of religious architecture and designated as a World Heritage Site by Unesco.
“Given all the stress the Khmer civilisation was under due to political reasons and so forth, a drought of the magnitude we see in our records should have played a significant role in causing its demise,” said Buckley, a research scientist at Columbia University’s Tree-Ring Laboratory in New York. Scientists have a historical record of droughts with the thickness of a tree’s rings. Since trees grow more during wet periods, the rings will grow thicker at those times. Trees grow less in dry times, so those rings will be thinner.
While the 1431 invasion from Siam – now Thailand – has long been regarded as a major cause of Angkor’s fall, archaeologists working at the sprawling temple site have long suspected that ecological factors played a role. The Greater Angkor Project is run by the University of Sydney in collaboration with the French archaeological group Ecole Francaise d’Extreme Orient and Apsara, the body responsible for the management of the Angkor World Heritage Park. The project concluded in 2007 that ancient Angkor had become unwieldy and that efforts to expand rice production to support a population of one million had led to vast deforestation, top-soil degradation and erosion.
Last year, the group went further to show that the deforestation resulted in flooding and huge amounts of sediment clogging the network of canals that was at the heart of the city’s vital water management system.
Dan Penny, a University of Sydney researcher who is a director at the Greater Angkor Project, said the new findings on drought will help researchers gain a greater understanding of why Angkor collapsed.
“Angkor was a civilisation obsessed with managing water. It was an agrarian society,” Penny said. “It’s hard to imagine that a society like that could have shrugged off 20 or 30 years of drought.”
However, Penny said it was likely that the drought was more of a contributing factor to the kingdom’s demise than a driving force. Not only was it forced to contend with the impacts of deforestation, but also attacks from the Siamese and the Cham of southern Vietnam.
“We have these droughts occurring on top of pre-existing pressures,” Penny said.
“Climate change was an accelerant,” he said. “It’s like pouring petrol on a fire. It makes social and economic pressures that may have been endurable disastrous.”
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
By March 2009, 4.3 Million Mobile Subscribers (penetration 29%) Were Recorded In Cambodia
New report provides detailed analysis of the Telecommunications market
Published on September 21, 2009
by Press Office
(Companiesandmarkets.com and OfficialWire)
LONDON, ENGLAND
Cambodia - Telecoms, Mobile, Internet & Forecasts
Despite its status as a least developed country and remaining one of the poorer countries in Southeast Asia, Cambodia’s efforts to expand and upgrade its telecom infrastructure are bearing fruit. There was very little infrastructure remaining from before the tumultuous Khmer Rouge days. As a result, Cambodia bypassed rebuilding the fixed-line market and quickly launched into alternative technologies, jump-starting its telecommunications infrastructure with digital technology. Not surprisingly, mobile services have completely overwhelmed the market. By early 2009, there were nine mobile operators vigorously competing with each other in a market segment that was growing at an annual rate of more than 50%. There were 4.3 million mobile subscribers (penetration 29%) in the country by March 2009. The market was still in a very strong growth phase, as evidenced by the keenness shown by foreign operators seeking to be part of it.
Some limited fixed-line growth had earlier come about through investment under foreign assistance, but this has mainly benefited Phnom Penh and geographical coverage has not increased significantly since that effort in the 1990s. The number of fixed-line services was relatively static at around 40,000 by 2008. In the absence of any real fixed-line growth, mobile telephone services continue to completely dominate the overall telecom market in Cambodia, with mobiles representing more than 99% of the total number of telephone services in the country. This disparity has been growing more significant each year.
The expansion of Internet services has also been overshadowed by the mobile phenomenon. In fact Internet take-up remains disturbingly low, one of the lowest penetrations in the region. Of course, the limited fixed line infrastructure has been a major inhibiting factor in the roll-out of both dial-up and ADSL Internet services. One encouraging feature has been the general availability of Internet access in provincial towns.
It is worthwhile noting that wireless technology has been especially advantageous for Cambodia in achieving rapid network rollout and replacement of a fixed network badly damaged by 20 years of war. In addition to the thriving mobile networks, Wireless Local Loop has been useful for rapid provision of a limited number of fixed-line services. However, while Cambodia has exemplified the fact that WLL offers a viable option for rapidly expanding telecom access in developing countries with low levels of fixed infrastructure, the potential of this technology has yet to be fully exploited in the country.
Key highlights:
The year 2008 saw Cambodia’s mobile market continue on its positive expansion path, with annual growth of 56% for the year and continuing at 50%+ into 2009;
With 29% mobile penetration by March 2009, the mobile market had passed the 4 million subscriber milestone earlier in 2009;
With 3 new mobile operators coming to the market in 2008/09, Cambodia has a total of 9 operators in what has become a crowded and highly competitive market;
The development of fixed-line and Internet services continue to languish; the latter is particularly disconcerting as online access is crucial to national growth;
On the broader political front, National Assembly elections were held in 2008, with Hun Sen being returned to power; while the elections were generally regarded as credible, deficiencies remain.
This report provides an overview of the trends and developments in the telecommunications markets in Cambodia. Subjects covered include:
Key Statistics;
Market and Industry Overviews;
Major Operators (Mobile and Fixed)
Regulatory Environment;
Infrastructure;
Mobile Market;
Internet Market;Telecom market forecasts for selective years to 2018.
Cambodia - Telecoms, Mobile, Internet & Forecasts: http://www.companiesandmarkets.com/r.ashx?id=MS6ACE94T157551
Published on September 21, 2009
by Press Office
(Companiesandmarkets.com and OfficialWire)
LONDON, ENGLAND
Cambodia - Telecoms, Mobile, Internet & Forecasts
Despite its status as a least developed country and remaining one of the poorer countries in Southeast Asia, Cambodia’s efforts to expand and upgrade its telecom infrastructure are bearing fruit. There was very little infrastructure remaining from before the tumultuous Khmer Rouge days. As a result, Cambodia bypassed rebuilding the fixed-line market and quickly launched into alternative technologies, jump-starting its telecommunications infrastructure with digital technology. Not surprisingly, mobile services have completely overwhelmed the market. By early 2009, there were nine mobile operators vigorously competing with each other in a market segment that was growing at an annual rate of more than 50%. There were 4.3 million mobile subscribers (penetration 29%) in the country by March 2009. The market was still in a very strong growth phase, as evidenced by the keenness shown by foreign operators seeking to be part of it.
Some limited fixed-line growth had earlier come about through investment under foreign assistance, but this has mainly benefited Phnom Penh and geographical coverage has not increased significantly since that effort in the 1990s. The number of fixed-line services was relatively static at around 40,000 by 2008. In the absence of any real fixed-line growth, mobile telephone services continue to completely dominate the overall telecom market in Cambodia, with mobiles representing more than 99% of the total number of telephone services in the country. This disparity has been growing more significant each year.
The expansion of Internet services has also been overshadowed by the mobile phenomenon. In fact Internet take-up remains disturbingly low, one of the lowest penetrations in the region. Of course, the limited fixed line infrastructure has been a major inhibiting factor in the roll-out of both dial-up and ADSL Internet services. One encouraging feature has been the general availability of Internet access in provincial towns.
It is worthwhile noting that wireless technology has been especially advantageous for Cambodia in achieving rapid network rollout and replacement of a fixed network badly damaged by 20 years of war. In addition to the thriving mobile networks, Wireless Local Loop has been useful for rapid provision of a limited number of fixed-line services. However, while Cambodia has exemplified the fact that WLL offers a viable option for rapidly expanding telecom access in developing countries with low levels of fixed infrastructure, the potential of this technology has yet to be fully exploited in the country.
Key highlights:
The year 2008 saw Cambodia’s mobile market continue on its positive expansion path, with annual growth of 56% for the year and continuing at 50%+ into 2009;
With 29% mobile penetration by March 2009, the mobile market had passed the 4 million subscriber milestone earlier in 2009;
With 3 new mobile operators coming to the market in 2008/09, Cambodia has a total of 9 operators in what has become a crowded and highly competitive market;
The development of fixed-line and Internet services continue to languish; the latter is particularly disconcerting as online access is crucial to national growth;
On the broader political front, National Assembly elections were held in 2008, with Hun Sen being returned to power; while the elections were generally regarded as credible, deficiencies remain.
This report provides an overview of the trends and developments in the telecommunications markets in Cambodia. Subjects covered include:
Key Statistics;
Market and Industry Overviews;
Major Operators (Mobile and Fixed)
Regulatory Environment;
Infrastructure;
Mobile Market;
Internet Market;Telecom market forecasts for selective years to 2018.
Cambodia - Telecoms, Mobile, Internet & Forecasts: http://www.companiesandmarkets.com/r.ashx?id=MS6ACE94T157551
Monday, September 21, 2009
Thai Nationalism Heats Up
Monday, September 21, 2009
By PAVIN CHACHAVALPONGPUN
The Irrawady
Thailand has not only been plagued by divisive domestic political turmoil. Its relations with neighboring Cambodia have also deteriorated and intensified, resulting in fatal clashes along their common border.
Competing political factions have incessantly used nationalism to legitimize their political activities. The violent confrontation between Thai nationalists and Cambodian villagers in the past few days could further strain this vulnerable bilateral relationship.
Nationalism in Thailand has become a highly destructive force both in domestic and international politics. From late 2007, in their campaign to topple the governments that emerged from the post-coup elections, the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD), and some elements of the Democrat Party, claimed to represent the true face of Thai nationalism.
In this, they claimed to stand on the side of righteousness by protecting the nation’s territorial integrity, to rid the people of corrupt politicians, and in their duty to challenge an allegedly predatory neighbor.
Former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and successive pro-Thaksin governments were grouped together with alien foreigners, like Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen, who was regarded as a deranged person. These alien characters were represented as having a single objective: selling the country out and tarnishing the good reputation of Thailand built up by past monarchs.
The conflict over the Preah Vihear Temple, to the PAD, was indeed a conflict between those who are true Thais versus Thaksin suporters. It saw its duty as that of protecting Thailand’s national interests, and the best way to do so was to stir up nationalistic feelings.
At first glance, nationalism seemed to serve the political need of both the PAD and the Democrat Party. Both were unable to unseat Thaksin-backed governments of Samak Sundaravej and Somchai Wongsawat and to uproot Thaksin’s influence in politics. The Preah Vihear Temple issue emerged at the right moment when the PAD and also the military that supported anti-Thaksin sentiment were facing a legitimacy crisis themselves.
But little did they know that in employing the Preah Vihear conflict to eliminate Thaksin, the PAD was also jeopardizing its position in politics, and in particular endangering its representation of Thai nationalism. It played along with the theme of lost territories, falsifying historical facts and portraying Thailand as a vulnerable state perpetually victimized by immoral foreigners.
In this paranoid narrative, Thaksin was helping immoral foreigners to take away the country’s sacred assets and pride. The PAD then adopted certain nationalistic tactics against its opponents, such as condemning them for selling out the country and through its own rhetoric provoking military confrontations with the Cambodians.
The reality is that Preah Vihear Temple belongs to Cambodia, according to the International Court of Justice ruling of 1962. But the loss became an unacceptable political reality because it deals with the national pride that has been deeply ingrained in the mindset of Thais.
The outcome of these political tactics has been destructive. Thai domestic politics has become increasingly polarized. Thailand’s relations with Cambodia have reached a critical point, verging on full-blown war. Who has gained what out of this nationalistic crusade?
As a consequence, the issue of overlapping territories returned to the attention of the Thai public. The spirit of nationhood was high. Thaksin was once again labeled as a Thai who betrayed his motherland.
However, the PAD also became a casualty in the game of nationalism. It opened up a Pandora’s box of bewilderment about Thai self-identity. Was the PAD brand of nationalism a reflection of the Thai way to express love for country?
Didn’t its call for war with Cambodia run against its earlier representations of Thainess: of being a peaceful nation, as enunciated in the words of Thailand’s national anthem?
The PAD might have found nationalism an effective way of deposing of the Thaksin-backed regimes in the past, but the nationalist flame has been fanned and the conflagration has shown the potential to rage out of control.
The latest clashes near the Thai-Cambodian border demonstrated that the PAD is not willing to give up its nationalist tactics.
This is perhaps due to the fact that the PAD recently transformed itself into a legitimate political party—the New Politics Party. It now hopes to exploit the Preah Vihear Temple issue to score political points should elections be called by the current government in the next few months.
It is therefore anticipated that the temple issue will become more intense as Thailand heads into an even more uncertain future.
Dr Pavin Chachavalpongpun is a visiting research fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in Singapore.
By PAVIN CHACHAVALPONGPUN
The Irrawady
Thailand has not only been plagued by divisive domestic political turmoil. Its relations with neighboring Cambodia have also deteriorated and intensified, resulting in fatal clashes along their common border.
Competing political factions have incessantly used nationalism to legitimize their political activities. The violent confrontation between Thai nationalists and Cambodian villagers in the past few days could further strain this vulnerable bilateral relationship.
Nationalism in Thailand has become a highly destructive force both in domestic and international politics. From late 2007, in their campaign to topple the governments that emerged from the post-coup elections, the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD), and some elements of the Democrat Party, claimed to represent the true face of Thai nationalism.
In this, they claimed to stand on the side of righteousness by protecting the nation’s territorial integrity, to rid the people of corrupt politicians, and in their duty to challenge an allegedly predatory neighbor.
Former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and successive pro-Thaksin governments were grouped together with alien foreigners, like Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen, who was regarded as a deranged person. These alien characters were represented as having a single objective: selling the country out and tarnishing the good reputation of Thailand built up by past monarchs.
The conflict over the Preah Vihear Temple, to the PAD, was indeed a conflict between those who are true Thais versus Thaksin suporters. It saw its duty as that of protecting Thailand’s national interests, and the best way to do so was to stir up nationalistic feelings.
At first glance, nationalism seemed to serve the political need of both the PAD and the Democrat Party. Both were unable to unseat Thaksin-backed governments of Samak Sundaravej and Somchai Wongsawat and to uproot Thaksin’s influence in politics. The Preah Vihear Temple issue emerged at the right moment when the PAD and also the military that supported anti-Thaksin sentiment were facing a legitimacy crisis themselves.
But little did they know that in employing the Preah Vihear conflict to eliminate Thaksin, the PAD was also jeopardizing its position in politics, and in particular endangering its representation of Thai nationalism. It played along with the theme of lost territories, falsifying historical facts and portraying Thailand as a vulnerable state perpetually victimized by immoral foreigners.
In this paranoid narrative, Thaksin was helping immoral foreigners to take away the country’s sacred assets and pride. The PAD then adopted certain nationalistic tactics against its opponents, such as condemning them for selling out the country and through its own rhetoric provoking military confrontations with the Cambodians.
The reality is that Preah Vihear Temple belongs to Cambodia, according to the International Court of Justice ruling of 1962. But the loss became an unacceptable political reality because it deals with the national pride that has been deeply ingrained in the mindset of Thais.
The outcome of these political tactics has been destructive. Thai domestic politics has become increasingly polarized. Thailand’s relations with Cambodia have reached a critical point, verging on full-blown war. Who has gained what out of this nationalistic crusade?
As a consequence, the issue of overlapping territories returned to the attention of the Thai public. The spirit of nationhood was high. Thaksin was once again labeled as a Thai who betrayed his motherland.
However, the PAD also became a casualty in the game of nationalism. It opened up a Pandora’s box of bewilderment about Thai self-identity. Was the PAD brand of nationalism a reflection of the Thai way to express love for country?
Didn’t its call for war with Cambodia run against its earlier representations of Thainess: of being a peaceful nation, as enunciated in the words of Thailand’s national anthem?
The PAD might have found nationalism an effective way of deposing of the Thaksin-backed regimes in the past, but the nationalist flame has been fanned and the conflagration has shown the potential to rage out of control.
The latest clashes near the Thai-Cambodian border demonstrated that the PAD is not willing to give up its nationalist tactics.
This is perhaps due to the fact that the PAD recently transformed itself into a legitimate political party—the New Politics Party. It now hopes to exploit the Preah Vihear Temple issue to score political points should elections be called by the current government in the next few months.
It is therefore anticipated that the temple issue will become more intense as Thailand heads into an even more uncertain future.
Dr Pavin Chachavalpongpun is a visiting research fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in Singapore.
Ex-reporter helps Cambodia face up to past
Sep. 21, 2009
Norimasa Tahara
Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent (Japan)
PHNOM PENH--Thirty years after the end of the Khmer Rouge regime that killed nearly 2 million people, a former Japanese news reporter has been appointed as a public relations officer at Cambodia's special war tribunal.
Yuko Maeda assumed the post at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, which was jointly set up by the United Nations and the Cambodian government to try former senior members of the regime led by Pol Pot, who died in 1998.
Since taking up the post, Maeda has been up to her ears dealing with media interviews.
"I believe that after these trials end, Cambodia at long last can become a normal country again," Maeda, 45, said.
After working as a reporter for The Kobe Shimbun, Maeda studied journalism at Michigan State University.
She first became interested in Cambodia in 1996, when she came across The Cambodia Daily, an English-language newspaper, while studying war and media coverage in Michigan. After graduating in 1997, Maeda became a reporter for the daily newspaper in 1998.
Maeda worked day in and day out reporting on how the country was rebuilding itself.
During this time, "I started feeling that I wanted to play a role in reconstructing a country," she recalled. This ambition inspired Maeda to go to Liberia in 2005 and work as a public relations officer for the U.N. mission in the African country.
When she returned to Phnom Penh, the skyline showed more high-rise buildings than before as the city showed definite signs of growth.
However, Maeda strongly believes the psychological scars of the Cambodian people have yet to heal.
"That's precisely why the special tribunal's role in helping to settle the past is so significant," Maeda said. "When I have time, I'd love to sit with a group of Cambodian people and listen to their stories about the Pol Pot era."
Maeda's spirit as a passionate reporter remains undimmed.
Norimasa Tahara
Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent (Japan)
PHNOM PENH--Thirty years after the end of the Khmer Rouge regime that killed nearly 2 million people, a former Japanese news reporter has been appointed as a public relations officer at Cambodia's special war tribunal.
Yuko Maeda assumed the post at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, which was jointly set up by the United Nations and the Cambodian government to try former senior members of the regime led by Pol Pot, who died in 1998.
Since taking up the post, Maeda has been up to her ears dealing with media interviews.
"I believe that after these trials end, Cambodia at long last can become a normal country again," Maeda, 45, said.
After working as a reporter for The Kobe Shimbun, Maeda studied journalism at Michigan State University.
She first became interested in Cambodia in 1996, when she came across The Cambodia Daily, an English-language newspaper, while studying war and media coverage in Michigan. After graduating in 1997, Maeda became a reporter for the daily newspaper in 1998.
Maeda worked day in and day out reporting on how the country was rebuilding itself.
During this time, "I started feeling that I wanted to play a role in reconstructing a country," she recalled. This ambition inspired Maeda to go to Liberia in 2005 and work as a public relations officer for the U.N. mission in the African country.
When she returned to Phnom Penh, the skyline showed more high-rise buildings than before as the city showed definite signs of growth.
However, Maeda strongly believes the psychological scars of the Cambodian people have yet to heal.
"That's precisely why the special tribunal's role in helping to settle the past is so significant," Maeda said. "When I have time, I'd love to sit with a group of Cambodian people and listen to their stories about the Pol Pot era."
Maeda's spirit as a passionate reporter remains undimmed.
Once Slave to Luxury, Japan Catches Thrift Bug
The New York Times
By HIROKO TABUCHI
Published: September 20, 2009
TOKYO — Not long ago, many Japanese bought so many $100 melons and $1,000 handbags that this was the only country in the world where luxury products were considered mass market.
Even through the economic stagnation of Japan’s so-called lost decade, which began in the early 1990s, Japanese consumers sustained that reputation. But this recession has done something that earlier declines could not: turned the Japanese into Wal-Mart shoppers.
In seven years operating in Japan, through a subsidiary called Seiyu, Wal-Mart Stores has never turned a profit. But sales have risen every month since November, and this year, the retailer expects to make a profit.
That is an understatement. Across the board, discount retailers are reporting increases in revenue — while just about everyone else is experiencing declines, in some cases, by double digits.
As a result, the luxury boutiques, once almighty here, are reeling.
Sales at LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, makers of what has long been Japan’s favorite handbag, plunged 20 percent in the first six months of 2009. In December, as the global economic crisis unfolded, Louis Vuitton canceled plans for what would have been a fancy new Tokyo store.
In the 1970s and ’80s, and even as the economy limped through the ’90s, a wide group of consumers spent generously on Louis Vuitton bags and Hermès scarves — even at the expense of holidays, travel and, sometimes, meals and rent.
Now, the Japanese luxury market, worth $15 billion to $20 billion, has been among the hardest hit by the global economic crisis, according to a report by the consulting firm McKinsey & Company. Retail analysts, economists and consumers all say that the change could be a permanent one. A new generation of Japanese fashionistas does not even aspire to luxury brands; they are happy to mix and match treasures found in a flurry of secondhand clothing stores that have sprung up across Japan.
“I’m not drawn to Louis Vuitton at all,” said Izumi Hiranuma, 19.
“People used to feel they needed a Louis Vuitton to fit in,” she said. “But younger girls don’t think like that anymore.”
In the new environment, cheap is chic, whatever the product.
In supermarket aisles, sales of lowly common vegetables — like bean sprouts, onions and local mushrooms — are up. (Bean sprouts, which sell for as little as 25 cents a bag, are a particularly good substitute for cabbage, which can go for about $4 a head.)
And instead of melons, Japanese shoppers are buying cheap bananas, pushing imports up to records.
“I’ve cut down on fruit since last year, because of the cost,” said Maki Kudo, 36, a homemaker shopping at a Keikyu supermarket in central Tokyo. “Instead of brands, I now look much more at cost.”
Thrift is being expressed even in unlikely measures like umbrella sales, which have spiked as more Japanese opt to brave rainy weather on foot rather than hail a taxi, according to a survey by the Dai-Ichi Life Research Institute.
In 2008, average household spending fell a record 69,509 yen, or $762, to 3.5 million yen, or $38,475, from a year earlier, and is expected to fall again this year, said Toshihiro Nagahama, chief economist at Dai-Ichi Life.
Underlying Japan’s accelerating frugality is a “deflationary gap” of 40 trillion yen in the Japanese economy, a situation where total demand falls short of what an economy produces. When this happens, companies cut prices, but since they still do not make money, they have to lay off workers. Fewer workers mean still less demand, creating a vicious circle, and prices fall further.
The dismal economy encourages thrift, too. Unemployment is at a record high of 5.7 percent, compared with 9.7 percent in the United States. A troubled government pension system, as well as ballooning government debt, has driven a widespread fear of the future, prompting people to save, not spend.
The Democratic Party, which rode a wave of discontent over the economy to electoral victory last month, has pledged to increase household incomes through tax breaks and generous subsidies for families with children. But economists here worry that the deflationary cycle could prove hard to break as competitive price-cutting rages.
A heated price war has erupted, for instance, in the already cut-rate category of “imitation” beers, a poor man’s brew made with soy or pea protein instead of barley and hops.
In July, Seven & I Holdings Company, which runs the 7-Eleven chain, introduced a new line of imitation beer for $1.35 a can; the same month, the Aeon shopping center brought out its own beer beverage for about $1.09. The Daiei supermarket chain then lowered prices on its beer to less than a dollar.
U.G. — the sibling brand of Uniqlo, the global clothing retailer known for its low-cost fleeces and T-shirts — started a jeans war when it introduced pants for 990 yen this year. Aeon soon followed suit with jeans selling for 880 yen.
Seiyu, the wholly owned Wal-Mart subsidiary, says it plans to sell similarly priced jeans this year.
Of course, for some retailers the circle is more virtuous than vicious.
Thrift has propelled Hanjiro, a secondhand clothing store chain popular among young Japanese, to 19 stores, from just one store in 1992. When Hanjiro opened a new store in Saitama, which borders Tokyo, in April, about 1,000 eager young fans lined up for a door-buster 290-yen T-shirt special. Of course, frugality is good for Wal-Mart, which posted better-than-expected second-quarter earnings last month. Japanese consumers are snapping up Seiyu’s $6 bottles of wine — sourced through Wal-Mart’s international network — as well as $86 suits and $87 bicycles.
In fact, Seiyu has ignited a price war of its own, with its “bento” lunch-in-a-box of rice and grilled salmon for 298 yen. Abandoning a custom here for supermarkets to make their bento boxes on site, Seiyu cut costs by assembling the lunches at a centralized factory.
Seiyu bet that Japan’s frugal consumers would not care about the change, as long as the bentos were cheap. Seiyu was right; the bentos have set off a line of copycat supermarket bentos.
“Price is No. 1 in my mind,” said Chie Kawano, an elderly shopper at Seiyu’s Akabane store in northern Tokyo, a bento box in her basket. “I don’t need anything fancy.”
By HIROKO TABUCHI
Published: September 20, 2009
TOKYO — Not long ago, many Japanese bought so many $100 melons and $1,000 handbags that this was the only country in the world where luxury products were considered mass market.
Even through the economic stagnation of Japan’s so-called lost decade, which began in the early 1990s, Japanese consumers sustained that reputation. But this recession has done something that earlier declines could not: turned the Japanese into Wal-Mart shoppers.
In seven years operating in Japan, through a subsidiary called Seiyu, Wal-Mart Stores has never turned a profit. But sales have risen every month since November, and this year, the retailer expects to make a profit.
That is an understatement. Across the board, discount retailers are reporting increases in revenue — while just about everyone else is experiencing declines, in some cases, by double digits.
As a result, the luxury boutiques, once almighty here, are reeling.
Sales at LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, makers of what has long been Japan’s favorite handbag, plunged 20 percent in the first six months of 2009. In December, as the global economic crisis unfolded, Louis Vuitton canceled plans for what would have been a fancy new Tokyo store.
In the 1970s and ’80s, and even as the economy limped through the ’90s, a wide group of consumers spent generously on Louis Vuitton bags and Hermès scarves — even at the expense of holidays, travel and, sometimes, meals and rent.
Now, the Japanese luxury market, worth $15 billion to $20 billion, has been among the hardest hit by the global economic crisis, according to a report by the consulting firm McKinsey & Company. Retail analysts, economists and consumers all say that the change could be a permanent one. A new generation of Japanese fashionistas does not even aspire to luxury brands; they are happy to mix and match treasures found in a flurry of secondhand clothing stores that have sprung up across Japan.
“I’m not drawn to Louis Vuitton at all,” said Izumi Hiranuma, 19.
“People used to feel they needed a Louis Vuitton to fit in,” she said. “But younger girls don’t think like that anymore.”
In the new environment, cheap is chic, whatever the product.
In supermarket aisles, sales of lowly common vegetables — like bean sprouts, onions and local mushrooms — are up. (Bean sprouts, which sell for as little as 25 cents a bag, are a particularly good substitute for cabbage, which can go for about $4 a head.)
And instead of melons, Japanese shoppers are buying cheap bananas, pushing imports up to records.
“I’ve cut down on fruit since last year, because of the cost,” said Maki Kudo, 36, a homemaker shopping at a Keikyu supermarket in central Tokyo. “Instead of brands, I now look much more at cost.”
Thrift is being expressed even in unlikely measures like umbrella sales, which have spiked as more Japanese opt to brave rainy weather on foot rather than hail a taxi, according to a survey by the Dai-Ichi Life Research Institute.
In 2008, average household spending fell a record 69,509 yen, or $762, to 3.5 million yen, or $38,475, from a year earlier, and is expected to fall again this year, said Toshihiro Nagahama, chief economist at Dai-Ichi Life.
Underlying Japan’s accelerating frugality is a “deflationary gap” of 40 trillion yen in the Japanese economy, a situation where total demand falls short of what an economy produces. When this happens, companies cut prices, but since they still do not make money, they have to lay off workers. Fewer workers mean still less demand, creating a vicious circle, and prices fall further.
The dismal economy encourages thrift, too. Unemployment is at a record high of 5.7 percent, compared with 9.7 percent in the United States. A troubled government pension system, as well as ballooning government debt, has driven a widespread fear of the future, prompting people to save, not spend.
The Democratic Party, which rode a wave of discontent over the economy to electoral victory last month, has pledged to increase household incomes through tax breaks and generous subsidies for families with children. But economists here worry that the deflationary cycle could prove hard to break as competitive price-cutting rages.
A heated price war has erupted, for instance, in the already cut-rate category of “imitation” beers, a poor man’s brew made with soy or pea protein instead of barley and hops.
In July, Seven & I Holdings Company, which runs the 7-Eleven chain, introduced a new line of imitation beer for $1.35 a can; the same month, the Aeon shopping center brought out its own beer beverage for about $1.09. The Daiei supermarket chain then lowered prices on its beer to less than a dollar.
U.G. — the sibling brand of Uniqlo, the global clothing retailer known for its low-cost fleeces and T-shirts — started a jeans war when it introduced pants for 990 yen this year. Aeon soon followed suit with jeans selling for 880 yen.
Seiyu, the wholly owned Wal-Mart subsidiary, says it plans to sell similarly priced jeans this year.
Of course, for some retailers the circle is more virtuous than vicious.
Thrift has propelled Hanjiro, a secondhand clothing store chain popular among young Japanese, to 19 stores, from just one store in 1992. When Hanjiro opened a new store in Saitama, which borders Tokyo, in April, about 1,000 eager young fans lined up for a door-buster 290-yen T-shirt special. Of course, frugality is good for Wal-Mart, which posted better-than-expected second-quarter earnings last month. Japanese consumers are snapping up Seiyu’s $6 bottles of wine — sourced through Wal-Mart’s international network — as well as $86 suits and $87 bicycles.
In fact, Seiyu has ignited a price war of its own, with its “bento” lunch-in-a-box of rice and grilled salmon for 298 yen. Abandoning a custom here for supermarkets to make their bento boxes on site, Seiyu cut costs by assembling the lunches at a centralized factory.
Seiyu bet that Japan’s frugal consumers would not care about the change, as long as the bentos were cheap. Seiyu was right; the bentos have set off a line of copycat supermarket bentos.
“Price is No. 1 in my mind,” said Chie Kawano, an elderly shopper at Seiyu’s Akabane store in northern Tokyo, a bento box in her basket. “I don’t need anything fancy.”
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Phchum Ben Days in Cambodia
Men wrestle during an annual ceremony at Virhear Sour village in Kandal province, 50 km (31 mi) northwest of Phnom Penh September 19, 2009. The ceremony, which started more than 70 years ago, is held to honour the Neakta Preah Srok pagoda spirit.REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea (CAMBODIA SOCIETY ANNIVERSARY)
Cambodian men ride buffaloes during an annual buffalo-racing ceremony at Virhear Sour village in Kandal province, 50 km (31 mi) northwest of Phnom Penh September 19, 2009. The ceremony, which started more than 70 years ago, is held to honour the Neakta Preah Srok pagoda spirit. After the ceremony, the buffaloes are auctioned off to the highest bidder.REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea (CAMBODIA SOCIETY ANIMALS ANNIVERSARY)
A Cambodian man prepares to race his buffalo during an annual buffalo-racing ceremony at Virhear Sour village in Kandal province, 50 km (31 mi) northwest of Phnom Penh September 19, 2009. The ceremony, which started more than 70 years ago, is held to honour the Neakta Preah Srok pagoda spirit. After the ceremony, the buffaloes are auctioned off to the highest bidder.REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea (CAMBODIA SOCIETY ANIMALS ANNIVERSARY)
A Cambodian boy rides his buffalo during an annual buffalo-racing ceremony at Virhear Sour village in Kandal province, 50 km (31 mi) northwest of Phnom Penh September 19, 2009. The ceremony, which started more than 70 years ago, is held to honour the Neakta Preah Srok pagoda spirit. After the ceremony, the buffaloes are auctioned off to the highest bidder.REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea (CAMBODIA SOCIETY ANIMALS ANNIVERSARY IMAGES OF THE DAY)
Cambodian men prepare to race buffaloes during an annual buffalo-racing ceremony at Virhear Sour village in Kandal province, 50 km (31 mi) northwest of Phnom Penh September 19, 2009. The ceremony, which started more than 70 years ago, is held to honour the Neakta Preah Srok pagoda spirit. After the ceremony, the buffaloes are auctioned off to the highest bidder.REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea (CAMBODIA SOCIETY ANIMALS ANNIVERSARY)
Cambodia firm to export chopsticks
Saturday, Sept. 19, 2009
PHNOM PENH (Kyodo) Green Field Cambodia Co. plans to export chopsticks to Japan early next year to meet rising demand in the Japanese market, a company representative said Friday.
Chan Sophal, president of the company, said he signed an agreement Tuesday with Hashiya Co. of Japan to export chopsticks to Japan beginning early next year.
Sophal said a five-hectare factory in Kompong Speu Province, about 120 km west of Phnom Penh, will produce the chopsticks.
The plant will turn out as much as 100,000 pairs of wooden chopsticks a day. They are produced from bamboo, rubber trees, palm trees and acacias. The products will be exported by Hashiya.
San Phiruna, director of multilateral relations department of the Commerce Ministry, said Cambodia is reviewing other possible Cambodian exports to Japan.
The Japanese market will be Cambodia's "next destination" because Japan has given Cambodia duty-free and quota-free export status, he said.
PHNOM PENH (Kyodo) Green Field Cambodia Co. plans to export chopsticks to Japan early next year to meet rising demand in the Japanese market, a company representative said Friday.
Chan Sophal, president of the company, said he signed an agreement Tuesday with Hashiya Co. of Japan to export chopsticks to Japan beginning early next year.
Sophal said a five-hectare factory in Kompong Speu Province, about 120 km west of Phnom Penh, will produce the chopsticks.
The plant will turn out as much as 100,000 pairs of wooden chopsticks a day. They are produced from bamboo, rubber trees, palm trees and acacias. The products will be exported by Hashiya.
San Phiruna, director of multilateral relations department of the Commerce Ministry, said Cambodia is reviewing other possible Cambodian exports to Japan.
The Japanese market will be Cambodia's "next destination" because Japan has given Cambodia duty-free and quota-free export status, he said.
Friday, September 18, 2009
No joy for Thailand three years after coup
By AMBIKA AHUJA,Associated Press Writer
Friday, September 18
BANGKOK – Three years after a bloodless coup that was supposed to end months of bitter political turmoil and restore stability, Thailand is as divided and volatile as ever.
The Sept. 19, 2006, military takeover that toppled Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was greeted with relief by many Thais, especially those who had been demonstrating to demand he step down for alleged abuse of power and disrespect to the crown.
That initial reprieve, however, was followed by the installation of a poorly regarded interim government; an election that returned Thaksin's allies to power and his opponents to the streets, to seize the seat of government and the capital's two airports; and two major riots in the streets of the capital. The instability has scared away foreign tourists and investors at a time when the economy is struggling through the world recession.
The country appears to be locked in an endless cycle of protest and counter-protest by Thaksin's supporters and opponents, even as Thaksin himself remains in self-imposed exile, but still able to rally his fans if only by phone. They will hold a rally this Saturday marking the coup's anniversary.
So insecure is the government of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, Thaksin's top rival, that it has invoked a special public security law to allow the military to restore order should the unrest again turn violent.
"The coup turned out to have been easier to execute than to manage. ... Thai politics three years after the coup has become more convoluted, and the stakes have increased," said Thitinan Pongsidhirak, a political scientist at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University.
Underlying the political wrangling is a growing anxiety about the eventual question of succession since the 81-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej has traditionally been the country's unifying figure. Government efforts to shut down debate over the future of the revered monarchy _ through arrests of critics and censorship of the Internet _ have only highlighted the problem.
"Everyone is positioning themselves, and we may see many realignments among the military, the traditional elite, the activists, and various interest groups to protect their interests and ensure the survival of their institutions at the expense of the country," said Charnvit Kasetsiri, one of Thailand's most prominent historians.
On one side are Thaksin's opponents among the Bangkok elite: assorted royalist groups, political activists, middle-class citizens, and elements of the military, many of whom felt their privileges under threat from Thaksin's populist brand of politics as well as his massive business empire. They also accuse the multimillionaire of trying to usurp the king's authority.
The other side includes anti-coup activists who resent the military's meddling in politics, and Thaksin's followers, especially among the poor who benefited from his policies. They often cast the turmoil as a class conflict, describing their foes as the "aristocracy."
Despite efforts to eradicate his influence by dismantling his political party, prosecuting him on corruption charges, freezing his assets and canceling his Thai passport, Thaksin's opponents have failed to dent his popularity among the marginalized poor. Thaksin's supporters demonstrated their faith by voting his political allies into power in a December 2007 election.
Thaksin was the first leader in modern Thai history to systematically address the concerns of the poor with a slew of social welfare plans.
Thaksin's 2001-2006 administration awakened the once-silent rural electorate who now feel that they, too, are stakeholders in the nation's future, analysts said.
"The top-down political submissiveness and contentment with status-quo of the past is gone," said Charnvit. "People are becoming more politically assertive and conscious of their influence."
But it was anti-Thaksin demonstrators who ruled the streets last year, adding to the pressure that eventually forced Thaksin's allies out of office and brought Abhisit to power. Their rivals have since taken a page from their book, staging their own big protests and calling for Abhisit's resignation.
Saturday's rally will see the anti-Abhisit demonstrators repeat their call for fresh elections, claiming that he came to power illegitimately with the help of the military and the judiciary, two pillars of the establishment.
Few expect Saturday's protest to be a tipping point, despite concerns raised by the government.
Analysts said the event is likely to pass without violence, and the possibility of another overt military intervention in the near term is unlikely, after the trouble and scorn their 2006 intervention brought.
But Abhisit's government appears to be at a loss over how to achieve political reconciliation, and Thaksin's supporters are split over how to coherently assert their demands for change.
"There are fewer and fewer options for people who want change, especially if the government continues to try to close the lid on them and pretend everything is well," Charnvit said. "This makes things dangerous and potentially explosive when the right moment comes."
Friday, September 18
BANGKOK – Three years after a bloodless coup that was supposed to end months of bitter political turmoil and restore stability, Thailand is as divided and volatile as ever.
The Sept. 19, 2006, military takeover that toppled Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was greeted with relief by many Thais, especially those who had been demonstrating to demand he step down for alleged abuse of power and disrespect to the crown.
That initial reprieve, however, was followed by the installation of a poorly regarded interim government; an election that returned Thaksin's allies to power and his opponents to the streets, to seize the seat of government and the capital's two airports; and two major riots in the streets of the capital. The instability has scared away foreign tourists and investors at a time when the economy is struggling through the world recession.
The country appears to be locked in an endless cycle of protest and counter-protest by Thaksin's supporters and opponents, even as Thaksin himself remains in self-imposed exile, but still able to rally his fans if only by phone. They will hold a rally this Saturday marking the coup's anniversary.
So insecure is the government of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, Thaksin's top rival, that it has invoked a special public security law to allow the military to restore order should the unrest again turn violent.
"The coup turned out to have been easier to execute than to manage. ... Thai politics three years after the coup has become more convoluted, and the stakes have increased," said Thitinan Pongsidhirak, a political scientist at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University.
Underlying the political wrangling is a growing anxiety about the eventual question of succession since the 81-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej has traditionally been the country's unifying figure. Government efforts to shut down debate over the future of the revered monarchy _ through arrests of critics and censorship of the Internet _ have only highlighted the problem.
"Everyone is positioning themselves, and we may see many realignments among the military, the traditional elite, the activists, and various interest groups to protect their interests and ensure the survival of their institutions at the expense of the country," said Charnvit Kasetsiri, one of Thailand's most prominent historians.
On one side are Thaksin's opponents among the Bangkok elite: assorted royalist groups, political activists, middle-class citizens, and elements of the military, many of whom felt their privileges under threat from Thaksin's populist brand of politics as well as his massive business empire. They also accuse the multimillionaire of trying to usurp the king's authority.
The other side includes anti-coup activists who resent the military's meddling in politics, and Thaksin's followers, especially among the poor who benefited from his policies. They often cast the turmoil as a class conflict, describing their foes as the "aristocracy."
Despite efforts to eradicate his influence by dismantling his political party, prosecuting him on corruption charges, freezing his assets and canceling his Thai passport, Thaksin's opponents have failed to dent his popularity among the marginalized poor. Thaksin's supporters demonstrated their faith by voting his political allies into power in a December 2007 election.
Thaksin was the first leader in modern Thai history to systematically address the concerns of the poor with a slew of social welfare plans.
Thaksin's 2001-2006 administration awakened the once-silent rural electorate who now feel that they, too, are stakeholders in the nation's future, analysts said.
"The top-down political submissiveness and contentment with status-quo of the past is gone," said Charnvit. "People are becoming more politically assertive and conscious of their influence."
But it was anti-Thaksin demonstrators who ruled the streets last year, adding to the pressure that eventually forced Thaksin's allies out of office and brought Abhisit to power. Their rivals have since taken a page from their book, staging their own big protests and calling for Abhisit's resignation.
Saturday's rally will see the anti-Abhisit demonstrators repeat their call for fresh elections, claiming that he came to power illegitimately with the help of the military and the judiciary, two pillars of the establishment.
Few expect Saturday's protest to be a tipping point, despite concerns raised by the government.
Analysts said the event is likely to pass without violence, and the possibility of another overt military intervention in the near term is unlikely, after the trouble and scorn their 2006 intervention brought.
But Abhisit's government appears to be at a loss over how to achieve political reconciliation, and Thaksin's supporters are split over how to coherently assert their demands for change.
"There are fewer and fewer options for people who want change, especially if the government continues to try to close the lid on them and pretend everything is well," Charnvit said. "This makes things dangerous and potentially explosive when the right moment comes."
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Contracts law set for Council of Ministers
The Phnom Penh Post
By Chun Sophal
Tuesday, 15 September 2009 15:01
THE long-awaited law on contracts will go before the Council of Ministers for consideration in mid-October, Ministry of Commerce Secretary of State Mao Thora said.
Legal experts from the Commerce Ministry are currently doing last edits on the final draft of the law, he said, adding that he hoped the new legislation would boost confidence in the Kingdom’s legal environment among the business and investment community.
“We hope that the law’s approval will help build up trust in trade and business in Cambodia,” he said.
The proposed law, which consists of 10 chapters and 240 articles, will replace an existing law on contracts, known as Decree 38, that has been in place since October 1988.
Mao Thora said the new law would make it easier for the court to rule on cases involving breach of contract and would also determine appropriate penalties.
Cambodia is required to pass 42 trade laws, including the law on contracts, under the terms of its 2004 admission to the World Trade Organisation.
Mao Thora said Cambodia had so far approved half of the required laws, with the remainder at various stages of completion.
The ministry was scheduled to meet with the International Monetary Fund today to review progress made to date and determine priorities for action, he added.
SRP says Decree 38 not enough
Sam Rainsy Party lawmaker Son Chhay said Decree 38 was insufficient for the needs of the Kingdom’s commercial environment but added that an overhaul of the country’s judiciary was also needed, as it was not sufficiently independent to hear cases fairly.
“I think that the new law is of vital importance, but the government must also make sure that the law is practised fairly in its justice system in order to build up confidence among businessmen and traders,” he said.
The World Bank has also noted the lack of certainty in dispute resolution in Cambodia.
In a 2009 country memorandum, it wrote that many firms took measures to avoid having to enter dispute-resolution processes, such as insisting on payment up front for sales and maintaining high inventories of key inputs.
Eang Sopheak, a lawyer at the Asia Cambodia Law Firm in Phnom Penh, said the absence of many laws made it difficult for judges to make accurate and fair decisions.
“Once we have a law on contracts, judges will have a legal framework to depend on when judging business cases,” he said.
By Chun Sophal
Tuesday, 15 September 2009 15:01
THE long-awaited law on contracts will go before the Council of Ministers for consideration in mid-October, Ministry of Commerce Secretary of State Mao Thora said.
Legal experts from the Commerce Ministry are currently doing last edits on the final draft of the law, he said, adding that he hoped the new legislation would boost confidence in the Kingdom’s legal environment among the business and investment community.
“We hope that the law’s approval will help build up trust in trade and business in Cambodia,” he said.
The proposed law, which consists of 10 chapters and 240 articles, will replace an existing law on contracts, known as Decree 38, that has been in place since October 1988.
Mao Thora said the new law would make it easier for the court to rule on cases involving breach of contract and would also determine appropriate penalties.
Cambodia is required to pass 42 trade laws, including the law on contracts, under the terms of its 2004 admission to the World Trade Organisation.
Mao Thora said Cambodia had so far approved half of the required laws, with the remainder at various stages of completion.
The ministry was scheduled to meet with the International Monetary Fund today to review progress made to date and determine priorities for action, he added.
SRP says Decree 38 not enough
Sam Rainsy Party lawmaker Son Chhay said Decree 38 was insufficient for the needs of the Kingdom’s commercial environment but added that an overhaul of the country’s judiciary was also needed, as it was not sufficiently independent to hear cases fairly.
“I think that the new law is of vital importance, but the government must also make sure that the law is practised fairly in its justice system in order to build up confidence among businessmen and traders,” he said.
The World Bank has also noted the lack of certainty in dispute resolution in Cambodia.
In a 2009 country memorandum, it wrote that many firms took measures to avoid having to enter dispute-resolution processes, such as insisting on payment up front for sales and maintaining high inventories of key inputs.
Eang Sopheak, a lawyer at the Asia Cambodia Law Firm in Phnom Penh, said the absence of many laws made it difficult for judges to make accurate and fair decisions.
“Once we have a law on contracts, judges will have a legal framework to depend on when judging business cases,” he said.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Bureaucrats' final meeting?
Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2009
Kyodo News
Bittersweet gathering as DPJ prepares to pull plug on traditional power base
The nation's top bureaucrats on Monday held their last meeting under the government of Prime Minister Taro Aso to set the agenda for the following day's Cabinet meeting.
It was possibly the final such ritual because the Democratic Party of Japan, which will take the reins of government Wednesday, has vowed to shift power from bureaucrats to politicians.
The meetings of administrative vice ministers, held in the prime minister's office Mondays and Thursdays — the days before Cabinet meetings — are believed to date back to the establishment of the Cabinet structure during the Meiji Era (1868-1912) and have long been a symbol of bureaucratic control over the decision-making process.
Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Iwao Uruma, who has been chairing the meetings and is resigning from his post Wednesday, urged his fellow vice ministers to speak their minds when necessary regardless of whether the meetings are abolished.
"Even if the meetings are done away with, it is important for the members of the meetings to boost their horizontal cooperation and speak to Cabinet ministers if something is likely to be done to the detriment of the nation and the people," he said during Monday's meeting.
The DPJ, which advocates abolishing the meetings to give elected officials greater power in making decisions, will be launching a new Cabinet after Yukio Hatoyama is voted in as prime minister.
While a Cabinet meeting is the government's highest decision-making body, attended by every minister, what is discussed has been decided in advance by the administrative vice ministers, or the highest-ranking bureaucrats, in their twice-weekly meeting. There is, however, no legal basis for the vice ministers to hold their meeting.
The DPJ also aims to abolish the regular news conferences the vice ministers have held after their meetings, on the grounds "there will be no administrative vice ministers' meetings anymore," as DPJ Secretary General Katsuya Okada put it last week.
Brushing aside concerns this will limit public access to information, Okada said, "It won't infringe upon the public's right to know."
Uruma said the current format has served for generations by enabling bureaucrats to coordinate policies before Cabinet members gathered to make decisions.
But now that the venue is expected to be abolished, "I hope both (bureaucrats and politicians) will bring their wisdom together as they go about building a system in which Cabinet meetings will run smoothly in unanimity," he said at a news conference.
Several administrative vice ministers said at their news conferences after Monday's meeting they also open to the new administration's policy.
"I don't think (the meetings) are the one and only measure to ensure the unity of the Cabinet," said vice farm minister Michio Ide.
Kyodo News
Bittersweet gathering as DPJ prepares to pull plug on traditional power base
The nation's top bureaucrats on Monday held their last meeting under the government of Prime Minister Taro Aso to set the agenda for the following day's Cabinet meeting.
It was possibly the final such ritual because the Democratic Party of Japan, which will take the reins of government Wednesday, has vowed to shift power from bureaucrats to politicians.
The meetings of administrative vice ministers, held in the prime minister's office Mondays and Thursdays — the days before Cabinet meetings — are believed to date back to the establishment of the Cabinet structure during the Meiji Era (1868-1912) and have long been a symbol of bureaucratic control over the decision-making process.
Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Iwao Uruma, who has been chairing the meetings and is resigning from his post Wednesday, urged his fellow vice ministers to speak their minds when necessary regardless of whether the meetings are abolished.
"Even if the meetings are done away with, it is important for the members of the meetings to boost their horizontal cooperation and speak to Cabinet ministers if something is likely to be done to the detriment of the nation and the people," he said during Monday's meeting.
The DPJ, which advocates abolishing the meetings to give elected officials greater power in making decisions, will be launching a new Cabinet after Yukio Hatoyama is voted in as prime minister.
While a Cabinet meeting is the government's highest decision-making body, attended by every minister, what is discussed has been decided in advance by the administrative vice ministers, or the highest-ranking bureaucrats, in their twice-weekly meeting. There is, however, no legal basis for the vice ministers to hold their meeting.
The DPJ also aims to abolish the regular news conferences the vice ministers have held after their meetings, on the grounds "there will be no administrative vice ministers' meetings anymore," as DPJ Secretary General Katsuya Okada put it last week.
Brushing aside concerns this will limit public access to information, Okada said, "It won't infringe upon the public's right to know."
Uruma said the current format has served for generations by enabling bureaucrats to coordinate policies before Cabinet members gathered to make decisions.
But now that the venue is expected to be abolished, "I hope both (bureaucrats and politicians) will bring their wisdom together as they go about building a system in which Cabinet meetings will run smoothly in unanimity," he said at a news conference.
Several administrative vice ministers said at their news conferences after Monday's meeting they also open to the new administration's policy.
"I don't think (the meetings) are the one and only measure to ensure the unity of the Cabinet," said vice farm minister Michio Ide.
Southeast Asia's deep malaise
September 14, 2009
By Jonathan Manthorpe
Vancouver Sun (British Columbia, Canada)
On the streets of the Indonesian capital of Jakarta last week, dozens of vigilantes armed with sharpened bamboo poles set up barricades and demanded identification from every passing pedestrian, motorcyclist and driver.
They were looking for Malaysians and were threatening to impale them on the bamboo poles if they found any.
Fortunately, they did not.
This sinister incident stems directly from the bizarre story of Indonesia alleging -- absolutely erroneously -- that Malaysian authorities used images of a traditional pendet dance from Indonesia's island of Bali in tourism promotion ads.
But this silly squabble is a symptom of much deeper strife between Indonesia and Malaysia, which share a common language and ethnicity, as well as similar cultures. Not least of these problems is the arbitrary, often brutal way Malaysian authorities and the police deal with Indonesian migrant workers.
The darker side of the relationship can be seen immediately in the name of the vigilante gang. They are called Ganyang Malaysia (Crush Malaysia) and were founded in the mid-1960s by Indonesia's founding president Sukarno to fight against the formation of the Malaysian confederate state out of several former British colonies.
Sukarno roused Indonesia to a hysteria of fear about Malaysian expansionism and for years pursued a policy of threatened invasion of neighbouring countries.
The threat to regional security posed by Sukarno led to his own overthrow by the army's commanding general Suharto in 1966, with American backing.
With Suharto as president, it also led to the formation of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 1967. A prime aim of ASEAN, which 42 years later now includes all 10 countries of Southeast Asia, was to bring Indonesia into the regional fold and stop it being a threat to its neighbours.
There is no doubt that ASEAN has achieved much in its four decades, but as it prepares for the annual summit of leaders, who will be joined by government heads from India, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand in Thailand next month, the organization seems to have stalled.
Several member states are showing serious political fragility, and others are in the hands of authoritarian regimes which show no signs of embracing political, social or in some cases economic liberalization.
This ragged appearance raises questions about how effective or impressive the gathering of ASEAN and its four neighbours -- a potential G16 with great clout -- can be. It also puts a question mark over plans to turn ASEAN into a common market along European lines by 2015.
Ironically, Indonesia is not among the causes for concern. Since the ouster of president Suharto in 1998 Indonesia has defied gloomy expectations and become one of the region's most stable democracies with a good deal of economic and social forward momentum.
The fact that this year's ASEAN summit is to be held in the northern Thai coastal resort of Cha-am illustrates part of the story. The summit started in Pattaya in April, but was abandoned and ministers rushed for their limousines when the hotel was attacked by red shirted-supporters of deposed prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Thailand is now under the control of an increasingly authoritarian government of monarchists and the military, which is in a perpetual paralysing confrontation with the red shirts.
At the same time Thailand faces a continuing uprising by majority Muslims in its three southern states ordering Malaysia. There are disturbing stories of the government and the palace arming militias in the Buddhist villages of the three states. These are meant to be self-defence forces, but there are many reports of them acting as vigilantes against Muslims.
On its eastern border Thailand is in a military standoff with neighbouring Cambodia over the ownership of the 900-year-old Preah Vihear temple complex, a UNESCO world heritage site. At least nine soldiers on both sides have died in fighting since the confrontation began in June.
Despite attempts by the United Nations to bring democracy to Cambodia, the country remains firmly under the thumb of Prime Minister Hun Sen who was first put in power after the Vietnamese invasion in 1979.
Hun Sen's showed his disdain for any voice of authority other than his own when he lashed out last week at the Pre-Trial Chamber of the war crimes court trying former members of the Khmer Rouge for "killing fields" atrocities.
The Pre-Trial Chamber ruled that more former members of the Khmer Rouge should be investigated than the five now in custody and facing charges.
Hun Sen has always tried to limit these trials to a few chosen scapegoats. He warned last week that broadening the inquiry could lead to civil war, his usual threat when thwarted.
The Malaysian government got a nasty jolt last week with the news that Japan's governing Liberal Democratic Party was conclusively dumped by voters after five decades in power.
Malaysia has been ruled by one party, the Barisan Nasional coalition, since independence from Britain in 1957.
And despite trying to tone up its image with the introduction of a new prime minister, Najib Razak, he is so tainted by murder, corruption, and arms deals scandals that a Japan-like experience seems certain.
Singapore, when founding father Lee Kuan Yew was more active, was the brains and backbone of ASEAN. Not any more.
Burma remains a grubby military dictatorship that is now an economic colony of China. Ruling communist parties in Vietnam and Laos resist change and no one has ever taken the Philippines very seriously. Brunei, an absolute monarchy, bobs merrily on its bubble of oil.
jmanthorpe@vancouversun.com
By Jonathan Manthorpe
Vancouver Sun (British Columbia, Canada)
On the streets of the Indonesian capital of Jakarta last week, dozens of vigilantes armed with sharpened bamboo poles set up barricades and demanded identification from every passing pedestrian, motorcyclist and driver.
They were looking for Malaysians and were threatening to impale them on the bamboo poles if they found any.
Fortunately, they did not.
This sinister incident stems directly from the bizarre story of Indonesia alleging -- absolutely erroneously -- that Malaysian authorities used images of a traditional pendet dance from Indonesia's island of Bali in tourism promotion ads.
But this silly squabble is a symptom of much deeper strife between Indonesia and Malaysia, which share a common language and ethnicity, as well as similar cultures. Not least of these problems is the arbitrary, often brutal way Malaysian authorities and the police deal with Indonesian migrant workers.
The darker side of the relationship can be seen immediately in the name of the vigilante gang. They are called Ganyang Malaysia (Crush Malaysia) and were founded in the mid-1960s by Indonesia's founding president Sukarno to fight against the formation of the Malaysian confederate state out of several former British colonies.
Sukarno roused Indonesia to a hysteria of fear about Malaysian expansionism and for years pursued a policy of threatened invasion of neighbouring countries.
The threat to regional security posed by Sukarno led to his own overthrow by the army's commanding general Suharto in 1966, with American backing.
With Suharto as president, it also led to the formation of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 1967. A prime aim of ASEAN, which 42 years later now includes all 10 countries of Southeast Asia, was to bring Indonesia into the regional fold and stop it being a threat to its neighbours.
There is no doubt that ASEAN has achieved much in its four decades, but as it prepares for the annual summit of leaders, who will be joined by government heads from India, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand in Thailand next month, the organization seems to have stalled.
Several member states are showing serious political fragility, and others are in the hands of authoritarian regimes which show no signs of embracing political, social or in some cases economic liberalization.
This ragged appearance raises questions about how effective or impressive the gathering of ASEAN and its four neighbours -- a potential G16 with great clout -- can be. It also puts a question mark over plans to turn ASEAN into a common market along European lines by 2015.
Ironically, Indonesia is not among the causes for concern. Since the ouster of president Suharto in 1998 Indonesia has defied gloomy expectations and become one of the region's most stable democracies with a good deal of economic and social forward momentum.
The fact that this year's ASEAN summit is to be held in the northern Thai coastal resort of Cha-am illustrates part of the story. The summit started in Pattaya in April, but was abandoned and ministers rushed for their limousines when the hotel was attacked by red shirted-supporters of deposed prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Thailand is now under the control of an increasingly authoritarian government of monarchists and the military, which is in a perpetual paralysing confrontation with the red shirts.
At the same time Thailand faces a continuing uprising by majority Muslims in its three southern states ordering Malaysia. There are disturbing stories of the government and the palace arming militias in the Buddhist villages of the three states. These are meant to be self-defence forces, but there are many reports of them acting as vigilantes against Muslims.
On its eastern border Thailand is in a military standoff with neighbouring Cambodia over the ownership of the 900-year-old Preah Vihear temple complex, a UNESCO world heritage site. At least nine soldiers on both sides have died in fighting since the confrontation began in June.
Despite attempts by the United Nations to bring democracy to Cambodia, the country remains firmly under the thumb of Prime Minister Hun Sen who was first put in power after the Vietnamese invasion in 1979.
Hun Sen's showed his disdain for any voice of authority other than his own when he lashed out last week at the Pre-Trial Chamber of the war crimes court trying former members of the Khmer Rouge for "killing fields" atrocities.
The Pre-Trial Chamber ruled that more former members of the Khmer Rouge should be investigated than the five now in custody and facing charges.
Hun Sen has always tried to limit these trials to a few chosen scapegoats. He warned last week that broadening the inquiry could lead to civil war, his usual threat when thwarted.
The Malaysian government got a nasty jolt last week with the news that Japan's governing Liberal Democratic Party was conclusively dumped by voters after five decades in power.
Malaysia has been ruled by one party, the Barisan Nasional coalition, since independence from Britain in 1957.
And despite trying to tone up its image with the introduction of a new prime minister, Najib Razak, he is so tainted by murder, corruption, and arms deals scandals that a Japan-like experience seems certain.
Singapore, when founding father Lee Kuan Yew was more active, was the brains and backbone of ASEAN. Not any more.
Burma remains a grubby military dictatorship that is now an economic colony of China. Ruling communist parties in Vietnam and Laos resist change and no one has ever taken the Philippines very seriously. Brunei, an absolute monarchy, bobs merrily on its bubble of oil.
jmanthorpe@vancouversun.com
Monday, September 14, 2009
Can Cambodia play e-government leapfrog?
14 September 2009
By Robin Hicks
futureGov.net
The government of Cambodia’s long awaited e-government guidelines have provided agencies with a roadmap for how to take their services online as the Kingdom looks to get up to speed with the global ICT sector. There is an opportunity for Cambodia to “leapfrog” other developing countries and avoid past mistakes, Madhav Ragam, Director, Government & Education, Healthcare & Life Sciences at IBM’s Growth Markets Unit told FutureGov.
Cambodia’s National Information Communications Technology Development Agency (NIDA) has stated that the project would build ICT capacity in government and help track progress of government projects. There would also be a focus on information security to ensure that sensitive information was protected from intruders.
“This is a master map for us to walk together in the right direction for all [government and private] institutions to get up to speed with the global ICT sector,” NIDA’s Secretary General Phu Leewood was quoted as saying.
The guidelines were based on a needs analysis conducted by all the key ministries in 2007, with technical assistance from the Japan International Cooperation Agency. They identify areas in which e-government can be used to build the public service competency of government institutions, provide guidelines for collecting data and help establish a blueprint for expanding government services.
Ragam at IBM notes there are three key areas Cambodia needs to focus on as it starts out on its e-government journey: “First, Cambodia needs to improve network connectivity, both in terms of bandwidth and access points,” he said.
“Second, key internal government systems need to be established, including tax collection, integrated financial management across all agencies, licensing applications, and so on. The final stage is to establish a presence for government online.”
Leapfrogging other developing could be possible if good use is made of public-private partnerships, Ragam added, while e-government rankings that take into account use of online services as well as the number of services online would be the best way to chart its success.
Cambodia is ranked among the lowest Asian countries for e-government across a number of surveys, with only Laos and East Timor ranked beneath it in the recent United Nations e-government table. The e-government project has a budget of some US$15 million to connect offices within each province to one another, and another US$20 million to connect each province to the government in Phnom Penh. Three data centers - in Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Sihanoukville - will act as hubs for surrounding provinces.
By Robin Hicks
futureGov.net
The government of Cambodia’s long awaited e-government guidelines have provided agencies with a roadmap for how to take their services online as the Kingdom looks to get up to speed with the global ICT sector. There is an opportunity for Cambodia to “leapfrog” other developing countries and avoid past mistakes, Madhav Ragam, Director, Government & Education, Healthcare & Life Sciences at IBM’s Growth Markets Unit told FutureGov.
Cambodia’s National Information Communications Technology Development Agency (NIDA) has stated that the project would build ICT capacity in government and help track progress of government projects. There would also be a focus on information security to ensure that sensitive information was protected from intruders.
“This is a master map for us to walk together in the right direction for all [government and private] institutions to get up to speed with the global ICT sector,” NIDA’s Secretary General Phu Leewood was quoted as saying.
The guidelines were based on a needs analysis conducted by all the key ministries in 2007, with technical assistance from the Japan International Cooperation Agency. They identify areas in which e-government can be used to build the public service competency of government institutions, provide guidelines for collecting data and help establish a blueprint for expanding government services.
Ragam at IBM notes there are three key areas Cambodia needs to focus on as it starts out on its e-government journey: “First, Cambodia needs to improve network connectivity, both in terms of bandwidth and access points,” he said.
“Second, key internal government systems need to be established, including tax collection, integrated financial management across all agencies, licensing applications, and so on. The final stage is to establish a presence for government online.”
Leapfrogging other developing could be possible if good use is made of public-private partnerships, Ragam added, while e-government rankings that take into account use of online services as well as the number of services online would be the best way to chart its success.
Cambodia is ranked among the lowest Asian countries for e-government across a number of surveys, with only Laos and East Timor ranked beneath it in the recent United Nations e-government table. The e-government project has a budget of some US$15 million to connect offices within each province to one another, and another US$20 million to connect each province to the government in Phnom Penh. Three data centers - in Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Sihanoukville - will act as hubs for surrounding provinces.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Finished Reading a Book...
Democracy, Governance and Economic Performance is an interesting book explaining and analyzing the relationship between the three factors experienced in Asian countries: South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong (China), the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. Cambodia can learn a lot from this experience...
Cambodia's Trial of the Century, Televised
Time Magazine
By Christopher Shay Friday, Sep. 11, 2009
Like any pair of good TV news hosts, Neth Pheaktra and Ung Chan Sophea deftly play off each other, finishing each other's thoughts and building on each other's ideas. But unlike the playful banter of most local news shows, neither host ever cracks a joke, or even smiles. Instead, the two veteran Cambodian journalists look directly into the camera and talk to viewers every Monday at 1 p.m. about torture, murder and the law.
Neth Pheaktra and Ung Chan Sophea's 24-minute weekly show summarizing and analyzing the trial of Kaing Guek Eav, better known as 'Duch,' the chief of the Khmer Rouge's notorious S-21 interrogation facility also known as Tuol Sleng, has become a sleeper hit in Cambodia. With one in five Cambodians watching the show every week, Duch on Trial has become the main way many young Cambodians, who were not taught about the Khmer Rouge in school, learn about the historic Khmer Rouge tribunal unfolding in Phnom Penh — and, in a lot of cases, hear about this dark chapter of their country's history for the first time.
From 1975 to 1979, the ultra-Maoist Khmer Rouge emptied Cambodia's cities, abolished money and turned its upper classes into de facto slave laborers in an attempt to form a radical agrarian utopia. More than 30 years later, Cambodia is still rebuilding — both economically and socially. For overseeing the execution of more than 15,000 people during that era, Duch has been charged by the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), a hybrid Cambodian-international court backed by the U.N., with war crimes, crimes against humanity, homicide and torture. S-21, the facility that he headed from 1976 until 1979, was a local Phnom Penh high school that the KR transformed into what one scholar later called "the anteroom to death." (See pictures of the rise and fall of the Khmer Rouge.)
Not surprisingly, testimonies at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) have been grim since the trial started in February of this year. Duch, a mathematics teacher before joining the Khmer Rouge, admitted that his guards smashed babies against trees. One guard on the stand outlined the process of live blood-letting, and a rare survivor described the pain of having his toenails ripped out.
Despite the gruesome tales, Duch on Trial has attracted up to three million viewers a week in recent months — a whopping 20% of the country's population. The success of the show, which premiered in April, rests on its ability to decode the trial's complex proceedings to a mass audience — no small task in this largely rural, poorly educated country where only about 30% of students who enter school graduate from grade 9. The ECCC was established as a hybrid court after years of negotiation between the U.N. and the Cambodian government, and the result is a complex hodgepodge of international and domestic law.
Matthew Robinson, the British producer of Duch on Trial and executive director of Khmer Mekong Films, took the show's predecessor — a pretrial miniseries about the ECCC — to focus groups around the country, fine tuning the show's language to ensure it could be understood. But while the show may keep it simple, it is still able to highlight complex themes raised in the trial — like mental health and forgiveness — that are relevant to people's daily lives in a nation still suffering from collective post-traumatic stress.
The endeavor was something of a gamble. With the Khmer Rouge only being introduced into the school curriculum this fall, many born after 1979 know little about Cambodia's darkest period. And for those who did, before the Duch trial, over two-thirds of people born after the Khmer Rouge rule said they rarely or never talked about the era. Robinson said before he produced the first episode, he went to his local eatery and asked the staff if they would be interested in a half-hour show about the Duch trial. "They said, 'No, no, no.' But I was there on the Monday [when the show first launched], and all of them were watching. At the end, they gave me a big thumbs up." Now the restaurant shows Duch on Trial every Monday at lunch.
The show, largely funded by the British government, is played on the Cambodian Television Network (CTN), Cambodia's most watched channel. Controlled by Cambodia's richest businessman, Kith Meng, CTN is not playing the show in a prime-time slot as a public service, but because it glues so many Cambodians to the TV screen.
Nonetheless, Duch on Trial is helping fulfill one of the Court's central mandates, according to ECCC chief spokesperson Reach Sambath: to educate Cambodians about the Khmer Rouge. In the last seven months, some 23,000 Cambodians have come to the courts to watch the trial, and the Documentation Center of Cambodia has discussed the trials with nearly 100,000 villagers throughout the country. The trial "is an education. It's equal to a professor of history," says Reach Sambath. (Read TIME's 199 cover story about Cambodia's genocide.)
But with its millions of viewers in Cambodia, television has proven to be better positioned to bring the trial into people's homes. "You'll go out to the local little village in the middle of Kampong Speu [a province in Cambodia], and there will be almost nothing there," says Gregory Stanton, the president of the Washington-based NGO Genocide Watch. "Yet there will be a TV set hooked up to set of car batteries, and people watching."
Though the government has not publicly commented on the show, Robinson says he's heard that high-ranking government officials also watch it to keep tabs on the trial. The current government contains many former members of the Khmer Rouge, including Prime Minister Hun Sen, who was a low-level cadre and even lost his eye fighting for the Khmer Rouge during the invasion of Phnom Penh. It was Hun Sen who initially asked the U.N. for help in establishing a tribunal in 1997, but he has since been accused by critics like Human Rights Watch for trying to limit the trial's scope in order to protect members of his own Cambodian People's Party (CPP).
But for Reach Sambath and many other Cambodians, this trial is not just about teaching the public or finding justice but about accelerating a long-overdue healing process. "The witnesses cry. The accused cries. The audience that comes to the court or watches on television cries," Reach Sambath says. "But they cry not to be more painful, but to release their pain that they have been holding for 30 years."
Duch is only the first Khmer Rouge member to sit behind the bulletproof glass at the ECCC. A joint trial of four other defendants will start within the next two years, and on Sept. 8 despite objections from Hun Sen, prosecutors submitted a list of five additional former high-ranking members of the Khmer Rouge who may one day end up at the tribunal. No matter how open Duch is about the horrific details of S-21, he cannot supply all the answers about the Khmer Rouge, as he played no policy role. "The people we've interviewed say, 'We want to know why these educated people did this to our country?'" Robinson said. "And they won't really get this answer through the Duch trial."
The next hearings, however, expected begin in 2010, will include several people who did derive the Khmer Rouge philosophy, like Pol Pot's second-in-command Nuon Chea and the Khmer Rouge's former head of state Khieu Samphan. Robinson is hoping Khmer Mekong Films will be there too, helping give millions of Cambodians the answers they've been waiting three decades to hear.
By Christopher Shay Friday, Sep. 11, 2009
Like any pair of good TV news hosts, Neth Pheaktra and Ung Chan Sophea deftly play off each other, finishing each other's thoughts and building on each other's ideas. But unlike the playful banter of most local news shows, neither host ever cracks a joke, or even smiles. Instead, the two veteran Cambodian journalists look directly into the camera and talk to viewers every Monday at 1 p.m. about torture, murder and the law.
Neth Pheaktra and Ung Chan Sophea's 24-minute weekly show summarizing and analyzing the trial of Kaing Guek Eav, better known as 'Duch,' the chief of the Khmer Rouge's notorious S-21 interrogation facility also known as Tuol Sleng, has become a sleeper hit in Cambodia. With one in five Cambodians watching the show every week, Duch on Trial has become the main way many young Cambodians, who were not taught about the Khmer Rouge in school, learn about the historic Khmer Rouge tribunal unfolding in Phnom Penh — and, in a lot of cases, hear about this dark chapter of their country's history for the first time.
From 1975 to 1979, the ultra-Maoist Khmer Rouge emptied Cambodia's cities, abolished money and turned its upper classes into de facto slave laborers in an attempt to form a radical agrarian utopia. More than 30 years later, Cambodia is still rebuilding — both economically and socially. For overseeing the execution of more than 15,000 people during that era, Duch has been charged by the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), a hybrid Cambodian-international court backed by the U.N., with war crimes, crimes against humanity, homicide and torture. S-21, the facility that he headed from 1976 until 1979, was a local Phnom Penh high school that the KR transformed into what one scholar later called "the anteroom to death." (See pictures of the rise and fall of the Khmer Rouge.)
Not surprisingly, testimonies at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) have been grim since the trial started in February of this year. Duch, a mathematics teacher before joining the Khmer Rouge, admitted that his guards smashed babies against trees. One guard on the stand outlined the process of live blood-letting, and a rare survivor described the pain of having his toenails ripped out.
Despite the gruesome tales, Duch on Trial has attracted up to three million viewers a week in recent months — a whopping 20% of the country's population. The success of the show, which premiered in April, rests on its ability to decode the trial's complex proceedings to a mass audience — no small task in this largely rural, poorly educated country where only about 30% of students who enter school graduate from grade 9. The ECCC was established as a hybrid court after years of negotiation between the U.N. and the Cambodian government, and the result is a complex hodgepodge of international and domestic law.
Matthew Robinson, the British producer of Duch on Trial and executive director of Khmer Mekong Films, took the show's predecessor — a pretrial miniseries about the ECCC — to focus groups around the country, fine tuning the show's language to ensure it could be understood. But while the show may keep it simple, it is still able to highlight complex themes raised in the trial — like mental health and forgiveness — that are relevant to people's daily lives in a nation still suffering from collective post-traumatic stress.
The endeavor was something of a gamble. With the Khmer Rouge only being introduced into the school curriculum this fall, many born after 1979 know little about Cambodia's darkest period. And for those who did, before the Duch trial, over two-thirds of people born after the Khmer Rouge rule said they rarely or never talked about the era. Robinson said before he produced the first episode, he went to his local eatery and asked the staff if they would be interested in a half-hour show about the Duch trial. "They said, 'No, no, no.' But I was there on the Monday [when the show first launched], and all of them were watching. At the end, they gave me a big thumbs up." Now the restaurant shows Duch on Trial every Monday at lunch.
The show, largely funded by the British government, is played on the Cambodian Television Network (CTN), Cambodia's most watched channel. Controlled by Cambodia's richest businessman, Kith Meng, CTN is not playing the show in a prime-time slot as a public service, but because it glues so many Cambodians to the TV screen.
Nonetheless, Duch on Trial is helping fulfill one of the Court's central mandates, according to ECCC chief spokesperson Reach Sambath: to educate Cambodians about the Khmer Rouge. In the last seven months, some 23,000 Cambodians have come to the courts to watch the trial, and the Documentation Center of Cambodia has discussed the trials with nearly 100,000 villagers throughout the country. The trial "is an education. It's equal to a professor of history," says Reach Sambath. (Read TIME's 199 cover story about Cambodia's genocide.)
But with its millions of viewers in Cambodia, television has proven to be better positioned to bring the trial into people's homes. "You'll go out to the local little village in the middle of Kampong Speu [a province in Cambodia], and there will be almost nothing there," says Gregory Stanton, the president of the Washington-based NGO Genocide Watch. "Yet there will be a TV set hooked up to set of car batteries, and people watching."
Though the government has not publicly commented on the show, Robinson says he's heard that high-ranking government officials also watch it to keep tabs on the trial. The current government contains many former members of the Khmer Rouge, including Prime Minister Hun Sen, who was a low-level cadre and even lost his eye fighting for the Khmer Rouge during the invasion of Phnom Penh. It was Hun Sen who initially asked the U.N. for help in establishing a tribunal in 1997, but he has since been accused by critics like Human Rights Watch for trying to limit the trial's scope in order to protect members of his own Cambodian People's Party (CPP).
But for Reach Sambath and many other Cambodians, this trial is not just about teaching the public or finding justice but about accelerating a long-overdue healing process. "The witnesses cry. The accused cries. The audience that comes to the court or watches on television cries," Reach Sambath says. "But they cry not to be more painful, but to release their pain that they have been holding for 30 years."
Duch is only the first Khmer Rouge member to sit behind the bulletproof glass at the ECCC. A joint trial of four other defendants will start within the next two years, and on Sept. 8 despite objections from Hun Sen, prosecutors submitted a list of five additional former high-ranking members of the Khmer Rouge who may one day end up at the tribunal. No matter how open Duch is about the horrific details of S-21, he cannot supply all the answers about the Khmer Rouge, as he played no policy role. "The people we've interviewed say, 'We want to know why these educated people did this to our country?'" Robinson said. "And they won't really get this answer through the Duch trial."
The next hearings, however, expected begin in 2010, will include several people who did derive the Khmer Rouge philosophy, like Pol Pot's second-in-command Nuon Chea and the Khmer Rouge's former head of state Khieu Samphan. Robinson is hoping Khmer Mekong Films will be there too, helping give millions of Cambodians the answers they've been waiting three decades to hear.
Centenarians in Japan top 40,000 mark
Fri Sep 11, 12:07 pm ET
TOKYO (AFP) – The number of centenarians in Japan has topped 40,000 for the first time, a government survey showed Friday, amid fears of a looming demographic crisis in the world's number two economy.
There are expected to be 40,399 people aged 100 and older in Japan by mid-September, up 11 percent from a year earlier, the health ministry said.
Nearly 35,000, or 87 percent, of the group are women, the survey showed.
The oldest person in Japan is a 114-year-old woman living in southern Okinawa, famous for having Japan's highest concentration of centenarians. That longevity has been attributed to the island's warm climate and a vegetable-based diet.
Okinawa counts roughly 67 centenarians for every 100,000 people, while Japan's urban areas have the lowest concentration of 100-year-olds and over.
A 112-year-old hailing from the western prefecture of Kyoto is the country's oldest man. With more than 36 descendants, he has previously said his secrets to longevity are spending hours reading the newspaper and not being a fussy eater.
Japan has one of the world's oldest populations, with many young people putting off starting a family because of the burden on their lifestyles and careers.
The government is struggling to find ways to boost Japan's birthrate trend to avert a future crisis as a shrinking number of workers is asked to support a growing mass of pensioners.
The fertility rate edged up to 1.37 children per woman in 2008, but the population is on an overall downward trend because the number of women has steadily fallen and fewer people are marrying, the government has said.
TOKYO (AFP) – The number of centenarians in Japan has topped 40,000 for the first time, a government survey showed Friday, amid fears of a looming demographic crisis in the world's number two economy.
There are expected to be 40,399 people aged 100 and older in Japan by mid-September, up 11 percent from a year earlier, the health ministry said.
Nearly 35,000, or 87 percent, of the group are women, the survey showed.
The oldest person in Japan is a 114-year-old woman living in southern Okinawa, famous for having Japan's highest concentration of centenarians. That longevity has been attributed to the island's warm climate and a vegetable-based diet.
Okinawa counts roughly 67 centenarians for every 100,000 people, while Japan's urban areas have the lowest concentration of 100-year-olds and over.
A 112-year-old hailing from the western prefecture of Kyoto is the country's oldest man. With more than 36 descendants, he has previously said his secrets to longevity are spending hours reading the newspaper and not being a fussy eater.
Japan has one of the world's oldest populations, with many young people putting off starting a family because of the burden on their lifestyles and careers.
The government is struggling to find ways to boost Japan's birthrate trend to avert a future crisis as a shrinking number of workers is asked to support a growing mass of pensioners.
The fertility rate edged up to 1.37 children per woman in 2008, but the population is on an overall downward trend because the number of women has steadily fallen and fewer people are marrying, the government has said.
Corn plant to begin exporting by year's end
The Phnom Penh Post
May Kunmakara
Friday, 11 September 2009 15:00
HLH Agriculure Cambodia Co Ltd, a Singaporean-owned company that this year invested US$15 million in a corn-processing factory in Kampong Speu province, told the Post Thursday it would begin exporting by the end of the year.
Rort Veasna, purchasing officer at HLH, said his company would export about 300 tonnes of processed red corn to Singapore in November.
"It is our first phase of exports to foreign markets," he said, adding that the corn would be sold at $200 a tonne.
HLH has recently produced 800 tonnes of corn on its 450-hectare farm in Omlaing commune in Thpong district, Kampong Speu, he said, adding that it purchased an additional 1,000 tonnes from local companies and farmers.
An additional 10,000 hectares are being planted in nearby Oral district, he added.
Rort Veasna said that demand from the region had reached 50,000 tonnes for the last quarter of this year, but that HLH had so far not been able to keep up with demand.
"We have not had sufficient capacity for this huge amount because my business plan has only just been completed and some of our crop was sold on the domestic market," he said, adding that HLH had completed sales to CP Group and SCF Company to produce pet food.
Overall, the company has invested $30 million, he said, and plans to spend more - current capacity is 300 tonnes a day with two Chinese-made corn-drying machines and five planting machines.
"Although we cannot currently meet market demand, we will keep trying to purchase domestically and from overseas to enlarge and improve our plantation for exporting not only to Asia, but also European markets," said Rort Veasna.
Cambodia last year exported more than half a million tonnes of red corn within the region, said Mao Thora, secretary of state at the Ministry of Commerce.
Last year Cambodia planted 141,264 hectares of corn, according to official figures, and the Kingdom produced 561,584 tonnes in 2008.
Government promotes exports
"We welcome more foreign investors in the sector to export abroad," adding that Cambodian operations had consistently produced high-quality corn for overseas markets.
The ministry would be ready to assist farmers in exporting the crop, said Mao Thora.
"If a company wants to raise sufficient quantities for export, they should cooperate [with the ministry]," he said.
May Kunmakara
Friday, 11 September 2009 15:00
HLH Agriculure Cambodia Co Ltd, a Singaporean-owned company that this year invested US$15 million in a corn-processing factory in Kampong Speu province, told the Post Thursday it would begin exporting by the end of the year.
Rort Veasna, purchasing officer at HLH, said his company would export about 300 tonnes of processed red corn to Singapore in November.
"It is our first phase of exports to foreign markets," he said, adding that the corn would be sold at $200 a tonne.
HLH has recently produced 800 tonnes of corn on its 450-hectare farm in Omlaing commune in Thpong district, Kampong Speu, he said, adding that it purchased an additional 1,000 tonnes from local companies and farmers.
An additional 10,000 hectares are being planted in nearby Oral district, he added.
Rort Veasna said that demand from the region had reached 50,000 tonnes for the last quarter of this year, but that HLH had so far not been able to keep up with demand.
"We have not had sufficient capacity for this huge amount because my business plan has only just been completed and some of our crop was sold on the domestic market," he said, adding that HLH had completed sales to CP Group and SCF Company to produce pet food.
Overall, the company has invested $30 million, he said, and plans to spend more - current capacity is 300 tonnes a day with two Chinese-made corn-drying machines and five planting machines.
"Although we cannot currently meet market demand, we will keep trying to purchase domestically and from overseas to enlarge and improve our plantation for exporting not only to Asia, but also European markets," said Rort Veasna.
Cambodia last year exported more than half a million tonnes of red corn within the region, said Mao Thora, secretary of state at the Ministry of Commerce.
Last year Cambodia planted 141,264 hectares of corn, according to official figures, and the Kingdom produced 561,584 tonnes in 2008.
Government promotes exports
"We welcome more foreign investors in the sector to export abroad," adding that Cambodian operations had consistently produced high-quality corn for overseas markets.
The ministry would be ready to assist farmers in exporting the crop, said Mao Thora.
"If a company wants to raise sufficient quantities for export, they should cooperate [with the ministry]," he said.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Destitute, polite robber, 24, easily gives up when he's asked to by store clerk
Thursday, Sept. 10, 2009
OSAKA (Kyodo) A 24-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of attempted robbery Wednesday in Osaka after being persuaded by a convenience store clerk to give up and quietly wait in the back for police.
The police said Ryo Miyata, who is unemployed and has no fixed address, entered a FamilyMart in Kita Ward at 3:30 a.m., brandished a utility knife and politely said, "Could you give me some money, please?"
The clerk, whose name is being withheld, instead said, "Why don't you stop this?"
Miyata immediately said "OK" and put knife down on the counter, the police said.
"He looked quite timid," the clerk was quoted as saying.
The clerk then put Miyata in a back room and summoned the police.
Miyata sat quietly and waited for the officers to arrive, they said.
Miyata, who had very little money on him when he was arrested, said he tried to rob the store because he was indigent.
"I did (the robbery) because I didn't have money. I bought the cutter at a nearby ¥100 shop," he was quoted as saying.
OSAKA (Kyodo) A 24-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of attempted robbery Wednesday in Osaka after being persuaded by a convenience store clerk to give up and quietly wait in the back for police.
The police said Ryo Miyata, who is unemployed and has no fixed address, entered a FamilyMart in Kita Ward at 3:30 a.m., brandished a utility knife and politely said, "Could you give me some money, please?"
The clerk, whose name is being withheld, instead said, "Why don't you stop this?"
Miyata immediately said "OK" and put knife down on the counter, the police said.
"He looked quite timid," the clerk was quoted as saying.
The clerk then put Miyata in a back room and summoned the police.
Miyata sat quietly and waited for the officers to arrive, they said.
Miyata, who had very little money on him when he was arrested, said he tried to rob the store because he was indigent.
"I did (the robbery) because I didn't have money. I bought the cutter at a nearby ¥100 shop," he was quoted as saying.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Politics, confusion stall temple solution
September 2, 2009
By Supalak Ganjanakhundee
The Nation
The dispute with Cambodia over Preah Vihear Temple will not end easily since political forces in Thailand are keen only on presenting more problems, rather than pushing for a constructive solution. The unnecessary conflict with Cambodia broke out more than 13 months ago when the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) and the Democrat Party, then in opposition, forced the Thai government to object to Cambodia's proposal to list the 11th century Khmer sanctuary as a world heritage site.
Since the Thai attempt to block the World Heritage Committee's decision to grant the status failed, the fight should now be over. Two border skirmishes in October last year and April this year, which claimed seven soldiers on both sides and injured many others, should have been a high enough price for Thai jealousy.
People in the border province of Si Sa Ket were supposed to have resumed their businesses, earning income from the attractive world heritage listed site. Closure of the tourism site for more than a year is not good for anybody.
Thousands of troops from both sides, deployed to the disputed area adjacent to the Hindu temple more than a year ago, should have a chance to relax and rejoin their families. There's no point in having troops confront each other, since the two countries have no real intention of waging a war.
Thai and Cambodian commanders have no desire for conflict. They have talked several times and agreed again and again to solve the problem peacefully.
In the latest development, the Cambodian army has cut 50 per cent of its troops at the disputed area and withdrawn to their barracks in the southwest Kampot province - the outcome of a meeting last week between Thai Supreme Commander General Songkitti Jaggabatra and his Cambodian counterpart, General Pol Saroeun. Nevertheless, a significant number of troops remain and the Preah Vihear stays closed.
Foreign ministries from the two countries have made it clear they should sit together for talks and end the conflict diplomatically. They began their work late last year when the Thai-Cambodian Joint Commission on Demarcation for Land Boundary (JBC) met in November in Siem Reap, the first ever after the Preah Vihear new riff. The JBC met twice this year in February and April to lay out plans for boundary demarcation and provisional arrangements.
However, further discussion could not be pursued since the Thai Constitution's article 190 requires the Foreign Ministry to bring minutes of the three meetings back for Parliament's consideration.
It is widely misunderstood among some academics and senators that the JBC has set the provisional arrangements, causing a loss of Thai sovereignty over the disputed area of 4.6 square kilometres. Some senators threatened to reject the committee reports during a session on Wednesday, blocking further talk of the JBC.
In fact, what the JBC has done regarding the provisional arrangement for the disputed area has been to reach an agreement to name security units there as 'temporary military monitoring'. The real arrangement has yet to be done.
The provisional arrangement is needed for both sides to jointly run the disputed area as long as the demarcation remains unfinished. It includes a plan for troop redeployment in the disputed area.
It remained unclear whether it is purely the PAD-backed senators' misunderstanding or political motivation driving their objection to the JBC report.
The opposition Pheu Thai Party, supposedly experts on the matter since their experience in government last year, managed to delay the Parliament session on Monday, cornering Defence Minister Pravit Wongsuwan over Cambodia's road construction in the disputed area.
They know very well that the road problem can be solved only through the JBC, but intend to delay JBC talks by derailing the Parliament session to discredit and gain revenge on the Democrat-led government.
As Parliament has opened a session for Preah Vihear debate again today, all politicians should not delay it again but encourage the JBC to work to bring peace into the border area.
By Supalak Ganjanakhundee
The Nation
The dispute with Cambodia over Preah Vihear Temple will not end easily since political forces in Thailand are keen only on presenting more problems, rather than pushing for a constructive solution. The unnecessary conflict with Cambodia broke out more than 13 months ago when the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) and the Democrat Party, then in opposition, forced the Thai government to object to Cambodia's proposal to list the 11th century Khmer sanctuary as a world heritage site.
Since the Thai attempt to block the World Heritage Committee's decision to grant the status failed, the fight should now be over. Two border skirmishes in October last year and April this year, which claimed seven soldiers on both sides and injured many others, should have been a high enough price for Thai jealousy.
People in the border province of Si Sa Ket were supposed to have resumed their businesses, earning income from the attractive world heritage listed site. Closure of the tourism site for more than a year is not good for anybody.
Thousands of troops from both sides, deployed to the disputed area adjacent to the Hindu temple more than a year ago, should have a chance to relax and rejoin their families. There's no point in having troops confront each other, since the two countries have no real intention of waging a war.
Thai and Cambodian commanders have no desire for conflict. They have talked several times and agreed again and again to solve the problem peacefully.
In the latest development, the Cambodian army has cut 50 per cent of its troops at the disputed area and withdrawn to their barracks in the southwest Kampot province - the outcome of a meeting last week between Thai Supreme Commander General Songkitti Jaggabatra and his Cambodian counterpart, General Pol Saroeun. Nevertheless, a significant number of troops remain and the Preah Vihear stays closed.
Foreign ministries from the two countries have made it clear they should sit together for talks and end the conflict diplomatically. They began their work late last year when the Thai-Cambodian Joint Commission on Demarcation for Land Boundary (JBC) met in November in Siem Reap, the first ever after the Preah Vihear new riff. The JBC met twice this year in February and April to lay out plans for boundary demarcation and provisional arrangements.
However, further discussion could not be pursued since the Thai Constitution's article 190 requires the Foreign Ministry to bring minutes of the three meetings back for Parliament's consideration.
It is widely misunderstood among some academics and senators that the JBC has set the provisional arrangements, causing a loss of Thai sovereignty over the disputed area of 4.6 square kilometres. Some senators threatened to reject the committee reports during a session on Wednesday, blocking further talk of the JBC.
In fact, what the JBC has done regarding the provisional arrangement for the disputed area has been to reach an agreement to name security units there as 'temporary military monitoring'. The real arrangement has yet to be done.
The provisional arrangement is needed for both sides to jointly run the disputed area as long as the demarcation remains unfinished. It includes a plan for troop redeployment in the disputed area.
It remained unclear whether it is purely the PAD-backed senators' misunderstanding or political motivation driving their objection to the JBC report.
The opposition Pheu Thai Party, supposedly experts on the matter since their experience in government last year, managed to delay the Parliament session on Monday, cornering Defence Minister Pravit Wongsuwan over Cambodia's road construction in the disputed area.
They know very well that the road problem can be solved only through the JBC, but intend to delay JBC talks by derailing the Parliament session to discredit and gain revenge on the Democrat-led government.
As Parliament has opened a session for Preah Vihear debate again today, all politicians should not delay it again but encourage the JBC to work to bring peace into the border area.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Cambodia: Legal Foundation And Framework For The Country's Judiciary Required
Tuesday, 1 September 2009
Press Release: Asian Human Rights Commission
The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) wishes to bring to the attention of the Human Rights Council a major lacuna that constitutes one of the most fundamental obstacles to the enjoyment, protection and promotion of human rights in Cambodia. The lack of the required laws on the statute of judges and prosecutors as well as the lack of the legal underpinning to the organisation of the judiciary are resulting in the judiciary not functioning effectively. This crucial institution is fundamental to the actualisation of human rights and remains ineffective and lacking in independence and capacity to function. It is imperative for any discussion on human rights in Cambodia, for these issues to take centre-stage. Without an effective, legally established and independent judiciary, human rights violations have no effective deterrent and impunity is guaranteed.
By virtue of the Paris Peace Agreements of 1991, Cambodia is bound to all relevant international norms and standards of human rights. It is to set up an independent judiciary so that, as §2 of Annex 5 on the “Principles for a New Constitution for Cambodia” to the “Agreement in a Comprehensive Political Settlement of the Cambodia Conflict,” aggrieved individuals will have the courts adjudicate and enforce their rights.
Cambodia has since honoured many of its international obligations as it has adhered to international human rights instruments and has enshrined many human rights in its 1993 Constitution. As spelled out clearly in the preamble to this Constitution, Cambodia is supposed to be a pluralistic liberal democracy governed by the rule of law and respecting human rights. Its Art.31 states that “The Kingdom of Cambodia shall recognize and respect human rights as stipulated in the United Nations Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the covenants and conventions related to human rights, women’s and children’s rights.” In its decision dated 10 July 2007, Cambodia’s Constitutional Council declared that all recognised human rights have become an integral part of Cambodian law.
Cambodia is a constitutional monarchy and, according to Art.8 of its Constitution the king is the guarantor of the rights and freedoms of his people. To perform this duty he has the assistance of the judiciary which, for its part, is also the protector of the rights and freedoms of the Cambodian people (Art.128 if the Constitution).
The Constitution has specifically stipulated a number of laws that need to be enacted, namely, the law on the statute of judges and prosecutors and also the law on the organization of the judiciary (ART. 135 of the Constitution). However, since the creation of the Constitution, these two important laws have not seen the light of day. Amongst the main reasons for this are corruption and executive control of the judiciary. As a result, Cambodians are not in practice entitled to be tried by an independent, competent and impartial tribunal established by law under Art.14-1 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Cambodia is a State party.
Over this relatively long period of time, tens of thousands of people have been tried by judges whose status have not been defined by the required law and by courts of law whose establishment has never been based on a law on the organization of the judiciary, although both of these laws that have been specifically stipulated in the Constitution of 1993.
The Cambodian government has delayed, the enactment of these two important laws for what will be 16 years this coming September 24th; a delay that should by itself amount to an unconstitutional omission on the government’s part, although the country’s Constitution is silent on this omission. The delay in the enactment of these two laws stands in stark contrast to the law on the statute of civil servants and the law of members of the armed forces, both of which were enacted more than ten years ago, in the mid-1990s.
The government has preferred to continue to apply the old law on the nomination of judges and the activities of courts, enacted in the communist days on the eve of the country’s pluralistic liberal democracy. This particular law no longer befits the new system of government that abandoned communism and embraced liberal democracy, in order, purportedly, to be governed by the rule of law. This new system adopts the principles of separation of powers, the independence of the judiciary and the jurisdiction of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy as an independent body belonging to the judiciary, and as the supreme judicial body of the judiciary, whose jurisdiction is the nomination and discipline of judges and prosecutors. Furthermore, this particular pre-liberal democracy law is not among laws and regulations that should continue to apply under the transitional provisions of the country’s constitution (Art.158 of the Constitution).
The Constitution’s transitional provision only recognizes the validity of past laws and standard documents pertaining to state properties and the rights and freedoms pertaining to lawfully acquired properties in the past. Art 158 on this transitional provision says: “Laws and standard documents in Cambodia that safeguard State properties, rights, freedom and legal private properties and in conformity with the national interests, shall continue to be effective until altered or abrogated by new texts, except those provisions that are contrary to the spirit of this Constitution.”
The absence of the law on the statute of judges and prosecutors ensures that there are no guarantees concerning the independence of individual judges and prosecutors. The Supreme Council of the Magistracy belongs to the independent judiciary and is chaired by the king. It nominates and disciplines judges and prosecutors, both of which belong to this Council. This Council assists the king in ensuring the independence of the judiciary.
Due to the absence of this law, no age of retirement of judges and prosecutors has been fixed and there have been charges of favouritism levelled about older judges or prosecutors (including four of them recently), who have wished to remain in active service. Furthermore, there have been cases of infringement by the Ministry of Justice and even the government itself on the jurisdiction of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy. The Ministry of Justice controls the Secretariat of the Council, and has made nomination proposals and got the Council to approve them and submitted them to the king for signature, without the Council having much say at all in the process.
A couple of recent examples have illustrated the government’s infringement upon the jurisdiction and independence of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy. On June 21, 2009, the government ignored the Supreme Council of the Magistracy altogether when it retired and replaced four out of eight (two-ex officio and two (of three) appointed) members of the Council and submitted the whole proposals for the king for signature. More recently, on August 4, the Minister of Justice proposed the appointments of over 32 judges and prosecutors (including four over the de facto age of retirement of 60), and had the Council approve them and submitted these to the king for signature.
This practice is very much indicative of the executive’s control over the judiciary. It is unconstitutional, but there is no procedure for constitutional review of acts of government by the country’s Constitutional Council in the same way as the constitutional review of laws operates. This loophole should be removed, lest Cambodia continues to be ruled by decree instead of the rule of law, and the government continues to exercise control over the judiciary.
The prolonged absence of the law on the statute of judges and prosecutors poses a problem concerning the legitimacy of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy as well as of the Constitutional Council itself. Due to necessity during its formative years beginning in 1994, and the then-inability to enact the law on the statute of judges and prosecutors in time, an interim arrangement was made to appoint three judges as members of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy, pending the enactment of that law through which they would be elected by their peers. Since 1994, the law in question has not been passed despite the government’s repeated promises to do so. The election of these three judges has been upheld and they have continued to be appointed. As time passes by the legitimacy of the composition of the Council is becoming increasingly questionable.
The dubious legitimacy of the composition of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy in turn puts into question the legitimacy of the composition of the country’s Constitutional Council, whose jurisdiction is to ensure the constitutionality and interpretation of all laws and to serve as the court of final appeal for election conflicts. Three of the nine members of the Constitutional Council are appointed by the Supreme Council of the Magistracy whose composition lacks legitimacy. When the legitimacy of latter’s composition is also dubious, it is very doubtful whether the Constitutional Council’s authority has its full weight.
With the absence of the law on the statute of judges and prosecutors, and also of the law on the organization of the judiciary, both of which have been specifically stipulated in the country’s constitution, the whole of Cambodia’s justice system do not have any legal foundation and framework.
Recommendations
There is still a long way to go before anyone in Cambodia can be guaranteed being tried by an independent, competent and impartial court established by law. However, it should not take very long to enact a law on the statute of judges and prosecutors and another law on the organization of the judiciary, in order to ensure that a trial court is at least established under the law and that judicial officers in charge of investigations and trials have proper legal status as judges or prosecutors. The Cambodian judiciary can no longer function as a judiciary without a proper legal foundation and framework.
The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) therefore recommends that the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia and the members of the Human Rights Council pay special attention to the need for an effective, independent judiciary with a proper, constitutionally legal foundation and framework. Without this, all discussions about and work on human rights in Cambodia is unrealistic and unlikely to lead to successes.
The ALRC recommends that the government of Cambodia enact the two laws on the statute of judges and prosecutors and on the organization of the judiciary, if it has any pretence of being serious about the protection and promotion of human rights and democracy in the country. This would greatly improve the conditions of nominations of judges and prosecutors, their independence, the prohibition on their political affiliation, the prohibition on their removal without their consent, their competence and impartiality, salaries, promotion, discipline and removal from judicial services under grave circumstances, and the age of retirement.
With these two laws, the judiciary would become one of the three branches of government with an equal footing with the legislature and the executive and could ensure a system of checks and balances befitting a pluralistic liberal democracy, which Cambodia is under its Constitution. The two branches of government should respect the principle of separation of powers and also the independence of the judiciary as enshrined in Articles 51 and 128 of the Constitution.
# # #
About the ALRC: The Asian Legal Resource Centre is an independent regional non-governmental organisation holding general consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations. It is the sister organisation of the Asian Human Rights Commission. The Hong Kong-based group seeks to strengthen and encourage positive action on legal and human rights issues at the local and national levels throughout Asia.
Press Release: Asian Human Rights Commission
The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) wishes to bring to the attention of the Human Rights Council a major lacuna that constitutes one of the most fundamental obstacles to the enjoyment, protection and promotion of human rights in Cambodia. The lack of the required laws on the statute of judges and prosecutors as well as the lack of the legal underpinning to the organisation of the judiciary are resulting in the judiciary not functioning effectively. This crucial institution is fundamental to the actualisation of human rights and remains ineffective and lacking in independence and capacity to function. It is imperative for any discussion on human rights in Cambodia, for these issues to take centre-stage. Without an effective, legally established and independent judiciary, human rights violations have no effective deterrent and impunity is guaranteed.
By virtue of the Paris Peace Agreements of 1991, Cambodia is bound to all relevant international norms and standards of human rights. It is to set up an independent judiciary so that, as §2 of Annex 5 on the “Principles for a New Constitution for Cambodia” to the “Agreement in a Comprehensive Political Settlement of the Cambodia Conflict,” aggrieved individuals will have the courts adjudicate and enforce their rights.
Cambodia has since honoured many of its international obligations as it has adhered to international human rights instruments and has enshrined many human rights in its 1993 Constitution. As spelled out clearly in the preamble to this Constitution, Cambodia is supposed to be a pluralistic liberal democracy governed by the rule of law and respecting human rights. Its Art.31 states that “The Kingdom of Cambodia shall recognize and respect human rights as stipulated in the United Nations Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the covenants and conventions related to human rights, women’s and children’s rights.” In its decision dated 10 July 2007, Cambodia’s Constitutional Council declared that all recognised human rights have become an integral part of Cambodian law.
Cambodia is a constitutional monarchy and, according to Art.8 of its Constitution the king is the guarantor of the rights and freedoms of his people. To perform this duty he has the assistance of the judiciary which, for its part, is also the protector of the rights and freedoms of the Cambodian people (Art.128 if the Constitution).
The Constitution has specifically stipulated a number of laws that need to be enacted, namely, the law on the statute of judges and prosecutors and also the law on the organization of the judiciary (ART. 135 of the Constitution). However, since the creation of the Constitution, these two important laws have not seen the light of day. Amongst the main reasons for this are corruption and executive control of the judiciary. As a result, Cambodians are not in practice entitled to be tried by an independent, competent and impartial tribunal established by law under Art.14-1 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Cambodia is a State party.
Over this relatively long period of time, tens of thousands of people have been tried by judges whose status have not been defined by the required law and by courts of law whose establishment has never been based on a law on the organization of the judiciary, although both of these laws that have been specifically stipulated in the Constitution of 1993.
The Cambodian government has delayed, the enactment of these two important laws for what will be 16 years this coming September 24th; a delay that should by itself amount to an unconstitutional omission on the government’s part, although the country’s Constitution is silent on this omission. The delay in the enactment of these two laws stands in stark contrast to the law on the statute of civil servants and the law of members of the armed forces, both of which were enacted more than ten years ago, in the mid-1990s.
The government has preferred to continue to apply the old law on the nomination of judges and the activities of courts, enacted in the communist days on the eve of the country’s pluralistic liberal democracy. This particular law no longer befits the new system of government that abandoned communism and embraced liberal democracy, in order, purportedly, to be governed by the rule of law. This new system adopts the principles of separation of powers, the independence of the judiciary and the jurisdiction of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy as an independent body belonging to the judiciary, and as the supreme judicial body of the judiciary, whose jurisdiction is the nomination and discipline of judges and prosecutors. Furthermore, this particular pre-liberal democracy law is not among laws and regulations that should continue to apply under the transitional provisions of the country’s constitution (Art.158 of the Constitution).
The Constitution’s transitional provision only recognizes the validity of past laws and standard documents pertaining to state properties and the rights and freedoms pertaining to lawfully acquired properties in the past. Art 158 on this transitional provision says: “Laws and standard documents in Cambodia that safeguard State properties, rights, freedom and legal private properties and in conformity with the national interests, shall continue to be effective until altered or abrogated by new texts, except those provisions that are contrary to the spirit of this Constitution.”
The absence of the law on the statute of judges and prosecutors ensures that there are no guarantees concerning the independence of individual judges and prosecutors. The Supreme Council of the Magistracy belongs to the independent judiciary and is chaired by the king. It nominates and disciplines judges and prosecutors, both of which belong to this Council. This Council assists the king in ensuring the independence of the judiciary.
Due to the absence of this law, no age of retirement of judges and prosecutors has been fixed and there have been charges of favouritism levelled about older judges or prosecutors (including four of them recently), who have wished to remain in active service. Furthermore, there have been cases of infringement by the Ministry of Justice and even the government itself on the jurisdiction of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy. The Ministry of Justice controls the Secretariat of the Council, and has made nomination proposals and got the Council to approve them and submitted them to the king for signature, without the Council having much say at all in the process.
A couple of recent examples have illustrated the government’s infringement upon the jurisdiction and independence of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy. On June 21, 2009, the government ignored the Supreme Council of the Magistracy altogether when it retired and replaced four out of eight (two-ex officio and two (of three) appointed) members of the Council and submitted the whole proposals for the king for signature. More recently, on August 4, the Minister of Justice proposed the appointments of over 32 judges and prosecutors (including four over the de facto age of retirement of 60), and had the Council approve them and submitted these to the king for signature.
This practice is very much indicative of the executive’s control over the judiciary. It is unconstitutional, but there is no procedure for constitutional review of acts of government by the country’s Constitutional Council in the same way as the constitutional review of laws operates. This loophole should be removed, lest Cambodia continues to be ruled by decree instead of the rule of law, and the government continues to exercise control over the judiciary.
The prolonged absence of the law on the statute of judges and prosecutors poses a problem concerning the legitimacy of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy as well as of the Constitutional Council itself. Due to necessity during its formative years beginning in 1994, and the then-inability to enact the law on the statute of judges and prosecutors in time, an interim arrangement was made to appoint three judges as members of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy, pending the enactment of that law through which they would be elected by their peers. Since 1994, the law in question has not been passed despite the government’s repeated promises to do so. The election of these three judges has been upheld and they have continued to be appointed. As time passes by the legitimacy of the composition of the Council is becoming increasingly questionable.
The dubious legitimacy of the composition of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy in turn puts into question the legitimacy of the composition of the country’s Constitutional Council, whose jurisdiction is to ensure the constitutionality and interpretation of all laws and to serve as the court of final appeal for election conflicts. Three of the nine members of the Constitutional Council are appointed by the Supreme Council of the Magistracy whose composition lacks legitimacy. When the legitimacy of latter’s composition is also dubious, it is very doubtful whether the Constitutional Council’s authority has its full weight.
With the absence of the law on the statute of judges and prosecutors, and also of the law on the organization of the judiciary, both of which have been specifically stipulated in the country’s constitution, the whole of Cambodia’s justice system do not have any legal foundation and framework.
Recommendations
There is still a long way to go before anyone in Cambodia can be guaranteed being tried by an independent, competent and impartial court established by law. However, it should not take very long to enact a law on the statute of judges and prosecutors and another law on the organization of the judiciary, in order to ensure that a trial court is at least established under the law and that judicial officers in charge of investigations and trials have proper legal status as judges or prosecutors. The Cambodian judiciary can no longer function as a judiciary without a proper legal foundation and framework.
The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) therefore recommends that the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia and the members of the Human Rights Council pay special attention to the need for an effective, independent judiciary with a proper, constitutionally legal foundation and framework. Without this, all discussions about and work on human rights in Cambodia is unrealistic and unlikely to lead to successes.
The ALRC recommends that the government of Cambodia enact the two laws on the statute of judges and prosecutors and on the organization of the judiciary, if it has any pretence of being serious about the protection and promotion of human rights and democracy in the country. This would greatly improve the conditions of nominations of judges and prosecutors, their independence, the prohibition on their political affiliation, the prohibition on their removal without their consent, their competence and impartiality, salaries, promotion, discipline and removal from judicial services under grave circumstances, and the age of retirement.
With these two laws, the judiciary would become one of the three branches of government with an equal footing with the legislature and the executive and could ensure a system of checks and balances befitting a pluralistic liberal democracy, which Cambodia is under its Constitution. The two branches of government should respect the principle of separation of powers and also the independence of the judiciary as enshrined in Articles 51 and 128 of the Constitution.
# # #
About the ALRC: The Asian Legal Resource Centre is an independent regional non-governmental organisation holding general consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations. It is the sister organisation of the Asian Human Rights Commission. The Hong Kong-based group seeks to strengthen and encourage positive action on legal and human rights issues at the local and national levels throughout Asia.
The Challenge of Extracting Oil from Cambodia
Monday, August 31, 2009
Nightly Business Report
Public Broadcasting System (USA)
"We are not going to use this money to pump corruption or to encourage corruption, but the money properly managed, properly monitored and properly spent in the right places" - Cham Prasidh's boasting
SUSIE GHARIB: China is the world's second largest oil consumer and until the recession hit, its appetite for fuel was driving economies around the globe, including Cambodia. As Rian Maelzer reports, the global slowdown has raised doubts about Cambodia's plans to tap recent finds of oil and gas.
RIAN MAELZER, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT CORRESPONDENT: strong demand from the U.S. and EU had been keeping Cambodia's sewing machines working at full tilt. But in the past year, garment exports to those markets have slumped, costing thousands of workers their jobs. Arjun Goswami of the Asian Development Bank says it's a huge blow for a country that still relies on foreign aid for close to half the government's budget.
ARJUN GOSWAMI, COUNTRY DIRECTOR, ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK: This is an open economy, it's a small economy and it's not very diversified, so there have been serious impacts.
MAELZER: With tourism also hit hard, Cambodia had hoped it would start to see revenues this year from the country's first ever oil and gas finds. The waters off Cambodia's coast are estimated to contain about two billion barrels of oil -- small by global standards, but significant for one of the world's least developed countries. Subbu Bettadapura of consultancy Frost and Sullivan warns that extracting Cambodia's reserves will be challenging.
SUBBU BETTADAPURA, ENERGY ANALYST, FROST AND SULLIVAN: They are not in a big reservoir where you can go in and tap them. They are in various pools, so there is a technical challenge for the oil companies to go in and try to monetize these reserves.
MAELZER: Chevron has been the most active company in exploring Cambodia's oil potential. Chevron isn't saying how much oil it thinks might be in its offshore block or when it might start commercial operations. A company spokesman said Chevron still has to hammer out legal and financial frameworks with the Cambodian government and those are serious shortcomings cited by multilateral agencies and aide donors working in what is one of the most corrupt countries in Asia. Eleanor Nichol of the watchdog group Global Witness has studied Cambodia's nascent energy and mineral sectors.
ELEANOR NICHOL, RESEARCHER, GLOBAL WITNESS: What you have is two sectors operating in what is effectively a regulatory vacuum with no public or parliamentary oversight. Also, what we've seen happen previously in the forestry sector is that money generated from logging and extraction of that resource never reached the state coffers and we want to try and avoid is a duplication of the same patterns occurring in the oil and mineral sectors.
MAELZER: Commerce Minister Cham Prasidh rejects those concerns.
CHAM PRASIDH, CAMBODIAN MINISTER OF COMMERCE: We are not going to use this money to pump corruption or to encourage corruption, but the money properly managed, properly monitored and properly spent in the right places.
MAELZER: Cambodia is still hoping the oil will start flowing by 2012. Analyst Bettadapura says the timing could end up being a blessing.
BETTADAPURA: If they wait for a little while longer until oil prices pick up, then they are going to get much higher returns and you need to consider the fact that the lifespan of this field is only 10 years.
MAELZER: The government estimates it should reap at least half a billion dollars a year from oil and gas, a huge boost to its revenues, which barely topped $1 billion last year. Rian Maelzer, Cambodia.
Nightly Business Report
Public Broadcasting System (USA)
"We are not going to use this money to pump corruption or to encourage corruption, but the money properly managed, properly monitored and properly spent in the right places" - Cham Prasidh's boasting
SUSIE GHARIB: China is the world's second largest oil consumer and until the recession hit, its appetite for fuel was driving economies around the globe, including Cambodia. As Rian Maelzer reports, the global slowdown has raised doubts about Cambodia's plans to tap recent finds of oil and gas.
RIAN MAELZER, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT CORRESPONDENT: strong demand from the U.S. and EU had been keeping Cambodia's sewing machines working at full tilt. But in the past year, garment exports to those markets have slumped, costing thousands of workers their jobs. Arjun Goswami of the Asian Development Bank says it's a huge blow for a country that still relies on foreign aid for close to half the government's budget.
ARJUN GOSWAMI, COUNTRY DIRECTOR, ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK: This is an open economy, it's a small economy and it's not very diversified, so there have been serious impacts.
MAELZER: With tourism also hit hard, Cambodia had hoped it would start to see revenues this year from the country's first ever oil and gas finds. The waters off Cambodia's coast are estimated to contain about two billion barrels of oil -- small by global standards, but significant for one of the world's least developed countries. Subbu Bettadapura of consultancy Frost and Sullivan warns that extracting Cambodia's reserves will be challenging.
SUBBU BETTADAPURA, ENERGY ANALYST, FROST AND SULLIVAN: They are not in a big reservoir where you can go in and tap them. They are in various pools, so there is a technical challenge for the oil companies to go in and try to monetize these reserves.
MAELZER: Chevron has been the most active company in exploring Cambodia's oil potential. Chevron isn't saying how much oil it thinks might be in its offshore block or when it might start commercial operations. A company spokesman said Chevron still has to hammer out legal and financial frameworks with the Cambodian government and those are serious shortcomings cited by multilateral agencies and aide donors working in what is one of the most corrupt countries in Asia. Eleanor Nichol of the watchdog group Global Witness has studied Cambodia's nascent energy and mineral sectors.
ELEANOR NICHOL, RESEARCHER, GLOBAL WITNESS: What you have is two sectors operating in what is effectively a regulatory vacuum with no public or parliamentary oversight. Also, what we've seen happen previously in the forestry sector is that money generated from logging and extraction of that resource never reached the state coffers and we want to try and avoid is a duplication of the same patterns occurring in the oil and mineral sectors.
MAELZER: Commerce Minister Cham Prasidh rejects those concerns.
CHAM PRASIDH, CAMBODIAN MINISTER OF COMMERCE: We are not going to use this money to pump corruption or to encourage corruption, but the money properly managed, properly monitored and properly spent in the right places.
MAELZER: Cambodia is still hoping the oil will start flowing by 2012. Analyst Bettadapura says the timing could end up being a blessing.
BETTADAPURA: If they wait for a little while longer until oil prices pick up, then they are going to get much higher returns and you need to consider the fact that the lifespan of this field is only 10 years.
MAELZER: The government estimates it should reap at least half a billion dollars a year from oil and gas, a huge boost to its revenues, which barely topped $1 billion last year. Rian Maelzer, Cambodia.
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