Khmer Krom Witness Quizzes Khieu Samphan on Missing Relative

By Lauren Crothers - May 24, 2013

The Cambodia Daily


Civil party witness Chau Ny—who was the first member of the Khmer Krom community to testify at the Khmer Rouge tribunal in November—was recalled to the stand Thursday to answer questions on claims he made previously that defendant Khieu Samphan had information related to the death of one of his relatives.
In court Thursday, he was given the opportunity to directly address former head of state Khieu Samphan about the disappearance of his family member and receive an immediate response.

In his victim impact statement on November 23, 59-year-old Mr. Ny—who survived Pol Pot’s brutal regime partly by changing his name and accent—told the court that Khieu Samphan had allegedly written to his wife’s uncle, Chau Sao, a prominent Khmer Krom banker.

The letter allegedly called for Chau Sao to come to Phnom Penh. When Chau Sao refused, a second letter was sent, after which he disappeared.

Mr. Ny asked Khieu Samphan at the time: “Where did he die? This is what I want to know. If I know where he died, I can find his skeletal remains, so that I can carry out a religious ceremony for his soul.”

This exchange prompted Khieu Samphan’s defense team to call on the Trial Chamber to have Mr. Ny return to the stand so that he could be asked about the allegations.

In having that request granted, Mr. Ny was on Thursday able to directly ask Khieu Samphan, who has been charged with crimes against humanity, genocide and grave breaches of the 1949 Geneva Con­ventions, about the fate of his relative, who he described as “famous” in the Khmer Krom community and “a person of justice, not corrupt.”

“Mr. Khieu Samphan, what was the letter you sent to my uncle about? Because during the first time, he refused to return to Phnom Penh unless all the people were allowed to return,” he said.

“Why has Mr. Chau Sao disappeared ever since? If Khieu Samphan knows where Chau Sao died or disappeared, if so, can Mr. Khieu Samphan tell me please where he could have disappeared…where we can hold a traditional ritual ceremony?”

Khieu Samphan, 81, then stood to directly respond to the question and denied having ever written the letters.
“Allow me to inform you that I used to know Mr. Chau Sao during the 1960s,” Khieu Samphan said. “He was the president of a bank, the National Credit Bank. I understand your feelings, your suffering, and how your family could have felt by trying to find out about your uncle’s whereabouts and information on his fate…. Unfortunately, I have no information at all about the fate of your uncle. And I did not have any information about him during Democratic Kampuchea.”

Khieu Samphan insisted that there were no soldiers under his command that he could compel to deliver such a letter, and said that he too had had to flee Phnom Penh and abandon his family.

“I fully understand that you have the sympathy toward your uncle and for this reason, I’d like to take this opportunity to talk to you in person so that you understand my heart. I am talking from the bottom of my heart so that everything is clear and your mind is clear.”

Jennifer Holligan, a senior legal associate with Access to Justice Asia, which represents 134 Khmer Krom civil parties in Case 002, said the direct exchange was un­precedented in the case, and made her “pleasantly surprised.”

“[Mr. Ny] felt extremely grateful to the court for being there and having the opportunity to raise questions about Khieu Samphan, but he’s not satisfied with the answer,” she added.

Khmer Krom, or lower Khmer, which refers to the ethnic Khmer community in Southern Vietnam, were specifically targeted under the Khmer Rouge regime. Next week, hearings will focus primarily on the suffering experienced by civil parties.

Cambodia records 30% premium growth in first quarter

PHNOM PENH, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia's insurance industry earned a total premium of 12 million U.S. dollars in the first three months of 2013, up 30 percent compared with the same period last year, according to the industry's report released Wednesday.

The main sources of the premium were from fire insurance of 28 percent, motor insurance of 18 percent, personal accident insurance of 18 percent, health insurance of 14 percent and miscellaneous insurance, said the report of the General Insurance Association of Cambodia (GIAC).

It said during January-March period this year, the total amount of claims paid out by local insurers was 1.5 million U.S. dollars, down 78 percent compared with the same period last year.

GIAC's President Chhay Rattanak said Wednesday that sharp growth in the sector was thanks to better economic performance and more trust from the public.

Currently, the country has nine insurers including six general insurance companies and three life insurers.
In the whole year of 2012, the sector earned a total revenue of 36 million U.S. dollars, up 21 percent year-on-year.

Editor: Wang Yuanyuan

ASEAN power chiefs to follow up power grid plan

May 23 (Xinhua)

PHNOM PENH-- Leaders of ASEAN power utilities and authorities gathered on Thursday to follow up the progress of the ambitious ASEAN power grid action plan, which was set to inter-connect power lines in the 10 ASEAN member states by 2020.

Speaking to reporters after the opening of the 29th meeting of the Heads of ASEAN Power Utilities and Authorities Council, Keo Rottanak, director general of the Electricity of Cambodia, said the meeting enabled the bloc's member states to be informed of the latest development and development objectives of the energy sector in each ASEAN country.

"Heads of ASEAN power utilities will discuss ways to accelerate the development of energy sector in order to fully realize ASEAN power grid by 2020 under the ASEAN Vision 2020," he said.

Meanwhile, Rottanak said that by 2020, about 80 percent of the Cambodian population would be able to access to electricity.

Ith Praing, secretary of state at Cambodian Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy, said that the regional power grid inter-connection would be the main driver for green energy and reduced damages to the environment.

"To achieve this objective, it requires a more effective framework of regional cooperation," he said at the meeting.

Musa Bin Metali, acting director of the Department of Electrical Services of Brunei, said at the meeting that ASEAN power grid was still a big task for ASEAN.

"We have yet to accomplish the realization of the ASEAN power grip," he said, adding that some issues need to be addressed including regulations, commercial, legal, and technical standards, and other related matters.

He urged all ASEAN states to increase all efforts in sharing energy information, technology and know-how in order to realize the ambitious goal for the prosperous future of ASEAN.

Founded in 1967, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

ILO to Release More Information on Non-Compliant Factories

By Dene-Hern Chen - May 23, 2013 

The Cambodia Daily

The International Labor Organization’s (ILO) Better Factories Cambodia (BFC) program has agreed to release more information on garment factories that fail to comply with labor standards, in an effort to hold manufacturers accountable for their employees’ safety.

“BFC will be releasing selected non-compliance information linked to factory names,” Mau­rizio Bussi, director of ILO’s Decent Work Team for South­east Asia, said by email on Tuesday. “We intend to roll out this public disclosure approach during the course of this year.”

Mr. Bussi did not say how much information related to factories would be released. However, the move does show a willingness by the ILO to render the current system—which does not disclose the names of factories flouting safety regulations—more transparent.

A report published in February by researchers from Stanford Law School charged that the lack of transparency in the Better Factories program had actually set back garment industry standards for Cambodian workers, compared to their counterparts in China, Indonesia and Vietnam.

Earlier this month, the ceiling of the Taiwanese-owned Wing Star Shoes factory collapsed in Kompong Speu province, leaving two young workers dead. And earlier this week, a concrete building on stilts being used as a dinning hall at the Top World Garment factory in Phnom Penh collapsed, injuring 23 workers.

Mr. Bussi said the main challenge with full public disclosure is doing it in a way that is “meaningful and targeted and a catalyst for change.”

Currently, the Better Factories program is voluntary, and many factories participate precisely because their names are not publicly released when safety problems are uncovered.

“We want to give factories the opportunity to be the architects of their own improvements but there are certain issues that some factories have had high non-compliance on for many years and certain factories that show little signs of change after many opportunities,” Mr. Bussi said.

While the Better Factories program does not monitor Wing Star Shoes, Top World Garment, which produces clothes for the U.S. label Gap, is monitored.

According to Mr. Bussi, the structure that collapsed on Monday at the factory was brought to the attention of ILO monitors two years ago, when it was being used as a child care facility for the children of workers at the factory.

Although the factory relocated the child care center, it continued to be used by workers as a place to eat during their break.

“At the moment, we are un­aware of any factories under the BFC program that currently have significant structural problems which could lead to serious worker injury,” Mr. Bussi said.

David Welsh, country director of the Solidarity Center, a U.S.-based organization that advocates for workers, said that while the ILO’s decision to disclose more information linked to non-compliant factories is a positive step, the program can only go so far before running risks of being shut down.

“The more transparent [the Better Factories program] becomes or the more power they try to acquire to enforce that factories make changes or penalize those where the findings aren’t up to scratch, the less likely they will be able to stay in the country,” Mr. Welsh said.

Anti-Corruption Unit Issues Warning to Prince Thomico

By Neou Vannarin - May 22, 2013 

The Cambodia Daily

The Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) has issued a warning letter to Prince Sisowath Thomico, an election candidate for the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), telling him to declare his assets with the body within a week or face the possibility of imprisonment, according to a letter obtained Tuesday.

The letter, which was signed Monday by Om Yentieng, president of the ACU and an adviser to Prime Minister Hun Sen, states that Prince Thomico is the only one among 149 officials or members of the royal family not to have declared his assets to the government in 2013, an act that is required under Cambodia’s Anti-Corruption Law.

“The ACU would like to warn Prince Thomico and insist that he declares his assets and debts,” Mr. Yentieng said in the letter.

“If Prince Thomico will not declare his assets and debts within a week after this warning letter is issued, excluding holidays, the ACU will take the case to the court.”

The letter added that the ACU had already asked Prince Thomico on two earlier occasions to declare his assets and that if he did not abide by the law he could face up to one year in jail.

Prince Thomico, who recently joined the CNRP and is the personal secretary for the Queen Mother, said Tuesday that officials from the Royal Palace had arrived at his home on Monday night and handed him a plain white envelope containing the letter. He said that he refused to take the letter since the envelope did not come bearing the emblem of the ACU. He also said that the royal family had not engaged in any corruption.
“First, the letter was inside an unmarked white envelope,” Prince Thomico said.

“Secondly, I am the member of the Royal Palace, which is an independent institution that is not involved in any corruption.”

He added that he had already declared his assets two years ago after being advised to do so by late King Father Norodom Sihanouk, to whom he served as personal assistant for many years.

“They [the CPP] are using this issue to intimidate me. The ACU is a tool of the CPP and is being used in the same way that the judicial system is used to attack the opposition party,” the Prince said.

Prince Thomico received the letter just hours after he had participated in a 3,000-strong rally organized by the CNRP at Freedom Park in Phnom Penh on Monday, where he spoke out against the government’s policies and the leadership of Mr. Hun Sen.

Top Sam, who chairs the National Council for Anti-Corruption, defended the warning letter sent by Mr. Yentieng.

“This is not to intimidate, it is just the implementation of the law, which everyone needs to follow,” he said.
By law, all government officials ranked above department director are obligated to declare their assets and debts once every two years. Those declarations are made privately to the ACU.

Students Protest At UN Envoy’s University Lecture

By Simon Lewis - May 22, 2013

The Cambodia Daily

No more UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Cambodia? Photo: RFA

U.N. human rights envoy Surya Subedi on Tuesday received a thorny reception from hundreds of students at a Phnom Penh university, who angrily questioned his impartiality and unfurled banners calling for him to end his work in Cambodia.

Special rapporteur Subedi delivered a lecture to about 1,000 students packed into a room at the Cambodian Mekong University (CMU) on the theme of “The challenge of reconciling competing interests in the law of foreign investment.”

Mr. Subedi, a professor in international law at the University of Leeds, England, spoke technically and generally about the importance of legal protections for international investors as well as the rules to prevent abuses by companies, making only slight references to Cambodia.

“You young people are the hope for this country,” Mr. Subedi concluded at the end of his lecture. “The future belongs to you, and be alert and aware of this development and prepare yourselves to be the future leaders of this society. Thank you.”

As the floor was opened up for questions from students, 23-year-old Chea Chheng, a student of public administration at the Royal University of Law and Econom­ics, took the microphone.

“You say Cambodia is the hell of human rights. Your report contains 180 pages describing all bad things about Cambodia. Why?” asked Mr. Chheng, referring to a report on Cambodia by Mr. Subedi in July, which was met with an angry response from the government at the time.

“Another question is: Why do we need a special rapporteur for Cambodia? Because in Cambodia, compared with other countries, the human rights situation is much better,” the student continued.
Receiving strong applause from the crowd, Mr. Chheng carried on, “Cambodia has no human rights problems. Cambodia is a sovereign state.”

Five other students from CMU and other universities around Phnom Penh then took the microphone to set about dishing out similar critiques of Mr. Subedi’s reports, which have covered matters such as land rights, independence of the judiciary and electoral reform, to yet more enthusiastic applause from the assembled young people.

Another student, who gave his name as Roth and described himself as “a normal student,” said he had read Mr. Subedi’s reports.

“It’s about a million bad things that relate to elections, law, land, property. The result [is that you agree with] the small group that we call the opposition party,” he told the U.N. envoy.

“So today, I don’t have any question, because I’m so disappointed with you,” he said.

Another student, who did not give his name, said Mr. Subedi’s reports were “full of darkness.”
“Foreigners do not know about Cambodia well. But as a Cambodian, when I read, it is impossible to believe your report,” the student said.

Another of Mr. Subedi’s inquis­itors, Chet Sidet, 24, who is studying for a master’s degree in human rights law at CMU, said after the event that she asked a question simply because she thought Mr. Subedi had treated Cambodia unfairly.

“Other countries have human rights problems, why don’t they have a special rapporteur?” she asked.
Mr. Subedi told the students that he welcomed their questions.

“I was very pleased that you have the courage to ask such questions. As I said when I concluded my lecture, the future belongs to you,” he told the audience.

“But each of you will know the importance of my work in 20 years time—when you enter the real world, when you know the plight of a person who is facing the threat of eviction from land they have been living on for a long time,” he said.

Mr. Subedi also pointed out that Cambodia was not being singled out by the U.N., which has 74 rapporteurs around the world covering specific countries and issues.

“I am impartial, I’m objective, I’m independent,” Mr. Subedi insisted.

“I can understand your sentiments, but at the same time, the purpose of my lecture was not to talk about human rights in Cambodia, it was [about] the international investment law,” he added.

Once the envoy’s lecture came to a close, the students brought out banners which they had prepared with messages, in English, including, “No more U.N. Special Rapportur for Human Rights in Cambodia, please,” and “Surya Subedi—No Justice for Cambodia.” As they unveiled the banners they shouted in unison “very bad” in English.

The event finished with the university’s chancellor, Ich Seng, saying that it was “important to have a human rights forum.”

Mr. Subedi left the lecture room quietly through a back exit as groups of students held up their anti-Subedi banners and posed for photographs.

Global Witness responds to HAGL’s claims over inaccuracy of Rubber Barons report

For Immediaterelease

20th May 2013

 

Global Witness understands that Hoang Anh Gia Lai (HAGL) CEO Doan Nguyen Duc held a press conference during which the company contested evidence in Global Witness’ report ‘Rubber Barons’. This report highlights how the company’s rubber plantations in Cambodia and Laos are violating laws and contributing to environmental and human rights abuses.

Global Witness stands by all of its assertions and evidence. The organisation has documented systemic legal violations by HAGL’s rubber plantations in both Cambodia and Laos during 2012. The extensive evidence presented in ‘Rubber Barons’ exposes how HAGL has acquired vast amounts of land, almost five times the maximum legal size limit in Cambodia, and how the company has openly ignored legal environmental and social safeguards, devastating local livelihoods and intact forests in the process.

“Instead of addressing the evidence in the report and improving the situation for the hundreds of affected peoples on the ground, HAGL seems more concerned with protecting its public image. What is the company going to do to bring a stop to the destruction it is responsible for?” said Megan MacInnes, Head of the Land campaign at Global Witness.

Global Witness met with HAGL representatives on August 22 2012 in Pleiku, Vietnam, to present this evidence and recommend steps the company should take to remedy these problems. Mr. Duc now denies that this meeting ever took place, which is untrue. The meeting was followed by several email exchanges over a number of weeks, during which the company stated it was not willing to implement these recommendations. In March 2013 Global Witness wrote to HAGL asking for an update on what action the company had taken since August 2012, but the company declined to answer.

Global Witness is in dialogue with Mr. Duc and his colleagues about meeting again in Pleiku in June 2013. Whilst Global Witness welcomes the invitation from the company to visit their rubber plantations, we have already visited these projects a number of times during 2012. At this stage, we therefore believe it would be more productive to sit down with the company directly to discuss the findings of our research and what action can be taken to address the problems.