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Post by hwinpp on Aug 13, 2010 2:37:44 GMT
Leaflets in capital attack CPP, Vietnam ONE suspect has been arrested in connection with the spreading of anti-government leaflets in central Phnom Penh yesterday, police officials said. More than 100 of the leaflets were discovered yesterday near Wat Phnom in Daun Penh district. Angkor Wat temple is pictured on the cover of the leaflets along with the title “Nationalist Khmer Voice”. The leaflets contain strong anti-Vietnamese rhetoric, accusing the ruling Cambodian People’s Party of “selling the nation” to Vietnam. Using a commonword for Vietnamese that some believe to be derogatory, the tracts decry “the flow of yuon immigrants without passports” and “the theft of Khmer territory to include in the Yuon Indochinese federation”. “If we do not stand up to resolve this suffering, it will fall on younger generations,” the leaflet goes on. “That’s why to keep the Khmer nation alive, Khmers must unite to stand up and chase out the yuon.” Phnom Penh municipal police chief Touch Naruth said a man suspected of driving a woman who distributed the leaflets on his motorbike had been arrested and was being held for questioning. Police were still investigating the case, searching for the woman and other suspects who may have been involved, he said. “This man was involved because he was the driver, and the woman was the scatterer,” Touch Naruth said. “When we finish our investigation, we will send him to court.” In January, officials in Takeo province investigated a case in which antigovernment leaflets were anonymously distributed following the January 7 holiday, which commemorates the ouster of the Khmer Rouge regime back Cambodian and Vietnamese troops in 1979. The leaflets said the day should be remembered only as the day that Cambodia became “abused and occupied” by Vietnam. Sam Rainsy Party spokesman Yim Sovann said critics of the government should express themselves without making rude and defamatory statements. “I support freedom of expression, but it must be ethical expression based on facts,” Yim Sovann said. “The SRP has a platform like this.” www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2010081241189/National-news/leaflets-in-capital-attack-cpp-vietnam.htmlOne recurring theme here that's hard to get your head around is the downright xenophobia that a lot of Cambodians show towards Vietnam. This isn't a recent phenomenon. It's been going on since the last century. There were regular pogroms against the Vietnamese under the King, under Lon Nol and of course under the KR it was closer to genocide. The Vietnamese governments never really bothered. The Sam Rainsy Party, which is the party that gets good press in the West, seems to be the party that supports the anti- Viet rhetoric. Their power bases are urban areas. They would like Cambodia to move closer to Thailand. Unfortunately the Thais hate the Cambodians. What a wonderfully confused world.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 13, 2010 4:42:19 GMT
It's not just a Southeast Asian phenomenon. The Balkans, the Turks/Armenians, Palestine, the overseas Chinese in many countries -- many of these grudges are 1000 years old.
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Post by hwinpp on Aug 13, 2010 10:17:31 GMT
Too true.
The difference is that many people think all those wonderful little Buddhist countries in South East Asia are somehow more at peace with each other.
The Balkans have been in the European minds since the Ottomans conquered them.
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 13, 2010 17:54:13 GMT
HW, was the governmental dismay over the pamphlets based more upon the ethnic slur aspect, or the fact that they were critical of the government.
Yeah, you're probably right that it's common to think of SE Asia as a big bunch of homogeneous people only separated by arbitrary political borders.
Do pamphlets such as the ones in the article have any real impact on the thinking of the populace?
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Post by hwinpp on Aug 14, 2010 2:33:20 GMT
The government is made up of ex- KR who deserted and joined the Vietnamese when they invaded Cambodia in 78. They're there by the grace of Vietnam. So they come down very hard on people spouting anti Vietnamese rhetoric. The words probably referred to the Vietnamese as Youn, which means 'barbarian' but is considered worse than it sounds in English. Most Cambodians don't use it because it's considered derogatory. Here's more: Suspect links leafletter to Sam Rainsy PartyPOLICE say a motorbike-taxi driver arrested in connection with the scattering of antigovernment leaflets in Phnom Penh on Wednesday has linked a second suspect to the Sam Rainsy Party, drawing denials from opposition officials. Phnom Penh Municipal police chief Touch Naruth said yesterday that the man, arrested on Wednesday morning, told police that he gave a lift to a woman who scattered the leaflets near Wat Phnom at around 4am. Afterwards, the man reportedly gave her a ride to the SRP’s headquarters on Sothearos Boulevard. “He confessed that he drove the scatterer to the Sam Rainsy Party. This is his answer, and we are continuing the investigation to find out about this suspicion,” Touch Naruth said. He also said police were sceptical about the man’s claims that he did not know the woman when he gave her a lift. “If they do not know each other why did they have appointment at 4:30am to scatter leaflets,” he said. The leaflets, around 100 of which were distributed around Wat Phnom, contained strong anti-Vietnamese rhetoric, accusing the ruling Cambodian People’s Party of “selling the nation” to Vietnam. Touch Naruth said the leaflets should be outlawed because they did not offer constructive criticism but instead “defamed” senior officials including Prime Minister Hun Sen. SRP spokesman Yim Sovann said the allegation that his party was involved in the leafletting was “laughable”, since the SRP had plenty of legal platforms for criticising the government. “There is no reason for the SRP to create leaflets like this. It is laughable that they accused us, and it is not reasonable,” Yim Sovann said. “Do not be interested in this. If the government has acted wrong, throw it away.” Chan Soveth, a senior monitor at the local rights group Adhoc, said that since the leaflets had not affected the King’s reputation or otherwise incited unrest, the authorities should educate the suspect and release him. “If this scattering of leaflets has not seriously affected the prime minister’s reputation and not damaged national security, they should release him,” Chan Soveth said. www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2010081341215/National-news/suspect-links-leafletter-to-sam-rainsy-party.html
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 14, 2010 15:52:41 GMT
Ah well, your first sentence in #4 make everything much clearer. Even though you've alluded to it in other things you've written, I never realized that the ex-KR element in the government was that strong. Since the Vietnamese invasion was 38 years ago, many of these government officials must be either really old, or at least old enough to seem like venerable statesmen to the younger generation.
Has the whole issue of their previous incarnations as Khmer Rouge been shoved under the rug, or at least remained fairly unknown to younger, unpolitical citizens? Speaking from my very scanty grasp of history, were the former KR able to pass themselves off, sincerely or not, as ideologically pure communists, untainted by the evil wrought by the Khmer Rouge regime?
Were these people abruptly thrust into the post-1978 government, or did they sort of filter in after time had blurred their past associations?
I guess Cambodia is like the rest of the world in the sense that the backgrounds of political figures are not exactly hidden, but by and large the voting public doesn't care to go to the trouble of finding out who their aspiring leaders really are.
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Post by hwinpp on Aug 19, 2010 3:33:10 GMT
Ah well, your first sentence in #4 make everything much clearer. Even though you've alluded to it in other things you've written, I never realized that the ex-KR element in the government was that strong. Since the Vietnamese invasion was 38 years ago, many of these government officials must be either really old, or at least old enough to seem like venerable statesmen to the younger generation. The PM was the world's youngest defense or foreign minister when he first was part of the government, he's now the world's longest serving PMs, as far as I know. He ain't that old, just 59. His senior ministers are in their 70s though. Has the whole issue of their previous incarnations as Khmer Rouge been shoved under the rug, or at least remained fairly unknown to younger, unpolitical citizens? Speaking from my very scanty grasp of history, were the former KR able to pass themselves off, sincerely or not, as ideologically pure communists, untainted by the evil wrought by the Khmer Rouge regime? I find the KR issue to be fairly in the open. Generally people know exactly which of their neighbours were KR and which were not. Where there's a bit of a fuzzy area is where people are being considered 'responsible'. Concerning crimes against humanity there needs to be more aggressive education. While the PM himself was just a KR soldier, battalion commander on the VN front, some of his ministers are supposed to have been commanders of similar institutions as S- 21 (there were over 19 of these torture/ killing camps, not just one, something people don't really talk about). The KR themselves thought they were the real deal. By being so radical in all their policies they thought they were building the true people's paradise and that's why they aligned themselves with Maoist China (who had just had their Great Leap Forward and their Cultural Revolution). Were these people abruptly thrust into the post-1978 government, or did they sort of filter in after time had blurred their past associations? I'm not sure when Hun Sen defected but the Vietnamese only installed their government in 79 so he (and the others) would have had a couple of months of grooming before being thrust into the limelight. Everybody knows who's ex- KR in the government. Funny thing is that the last allies of the KR remnants (who fought on until 98) are the FUNCINPEC party, the royalists. They lost credibility completely and are now down to 5% of the electorate. Their founder, Prince Rannaridh, was kicked out and founded the Rannaridh Party, which also languishes at 5%, because they're seen as insanely corrupt (starting with the Prince himself). I guess Cambodia is like the rest of the world in the sense that the backgrounds of political figures are not exactly hidden, but by and large the voting public doesn't care to go to the trouble of finding out who their aspiring leaders really are. Well, yes. Depends a bit on the person. Most are known but some aren't. One of those very dubious figures is the finance minister, Kheat Chhon. He's Sino- Khmer and reputed to have been a close advisor of Pol Pot but there has been no hard evidence to support this. Very unsavoury guy, very slick.
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 19, 2010 23:19:58 GMT
Thanks so much for this, HW -- it's really an education.
This part: Funny thing is that the last allies of the KR remnants (who fought on until 98) are the FUNCINPEC party, the royalists. They lost credibility completely and are now down to 5% of the electorate. Their founder, Prince Rannaridh, was kicked out and founded the Rannaridh Party, which also languishes at 5%, because they're seen as insanely corrupt (starting with the Prince himself). is almost laughable in its sheer, goofy hubris.
Do you feel that by and large elections are on the level there?
pee ess ~~ hope you're feeling better. sorry to answer this so late -- I lost internet svc. for over a day and a half.
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Post by hwinpp on Aug 20, 2010 2:25:01 GMT
If you don't look too closely I think the percentages represented in the national parliament are about right. Vote buying is done by all parties and electoral promises made (and not kept) seem to be universal. Otherwise there are usually some fraud complaints but nothing that'd change the results completely. The story continues: Couple flees country over leaflet accusationTWO opposition Sam Rainsy Party activists suspected of distributing antigovernment leaflets in the capital last week have fled to Thailand for fear of arrest, but continue to deny any involvement in the incident. Chea Socheab and his wife Chea Daly came under suspicion after the fliers appeared around Wat Phnom on the morning of August 11. A motorbike-taxi driver arrested in connection with the incident told police that he took Chea Daly to distribute the leaflets on that day and then dropped her off at the SRP’s headquarters on Sothearos Boulevard. The two fled to Thailand soon afterwards. Speaking by phone yesterday, Chea Socheab denied any involvement in the scattering of the fliers. “My wife has been pregnant for five or six months; how was she able to do that? The government must find clear proof to accuse us,” he said. “I have wondered so much about why they have accused us like this.” He said that the pair had no idea about the origin of the fliers, which lambasted the ruling Cambodian People’s Party and accused senior officials of being stooges of Vietnam. Chea Socheab, a longtime SRP activist who was briefly arrested during election campaigning in 2003, said that he and his wife fled because they did not trust the Cambodian court system to try their case fairly. Phnom Penh municipal police chief Touch Naruth said Tuesday that police had sent the case to the court and he would pursue the couple if requested. “If an offence has occurred, I must follow it. I will not give up,” he said. Ministry of Interior spokesman Khieu Sopheak said yesterday that police have not yet received an arrest warrant for the pair, and that there was little evidence tying the two to the leaflets. “If he flees it is up to him. We do not have anything to put the heat on him,” he said. Chan Soveth, a senior investigator for local rights group Adhoc, confirmed that the pair had contacted his organisation from Thailand seeking help, and called on the authorities to drop the charges. “We must receive the criticism. We are public officials,” he said. SRP spokesman Yim Sovann declined to comment. www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2010081941367/National-news/couple-flees-country-over-leaflet-accusation.html
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Post by Deleted on Aug 20, 2010 5:21:55 GMT
Probably better to make a new life in Thailand rather than languish in a Cambodian prison for a few years...
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Post by gertie on Aug 20, 2010 20:44:26 GMT
Curious, how soon are elections coming up? Call me suspicious, but if elections are imminent, seems to me this could be an attempt to throw suspicion on the SRP party.
This board has certainly been an education in the politics and culture of a part of the world I think a lot of people have little knowledge of. Looking at the photos of the various areas, one begins to want to go and see more. Hearing some of the politics and tales, one feels a bit more uneasy at the idea of travel in some of them. Or at least I do.
Will the Thais extradite the couple back to Cambodia readily if they are convicted?
To me it seems just as likely that poor taxi guy just wanted to earn some money, or am I being naive?
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Post by hwinpp on Aug 21, 2010 5:02:10 GMT
They'd get a pardon from the King, no problem, Sam Rainsy and others have done it before. I don't think this has anything to do with the elections (next year I think). It's that the government wants to show the Vietnamese that they're still dependable
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Post by Deleted on Aug 21, 2010 17:54:43 GMT
Cambodians are very forgiving (pragmatic). I think you can be condemned for heinous reasons and be welcomed back in just a couple of years.
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Post by Jazz on Aug 22, 2010 4:39:38 GMT
Fascinating thread, HW, but I am not at all shocked. This situation would not deter me from visiting SEA, particularily Cambodia and Vietnam. Rivalries ebb and flow, and the people have learned to deal with the situation of the moment. As Kerouac said earlier, comparable differences have existed for thousands of years in other parts of the world…for instance, the Middle East. You are probably very accustomed to the complexity of your political system. This complexity does not matter much to a traveler, but much more so to one who lives there.
The poliical situation of Cambodia would not hold me back. I agree that tourist ‘propanganda’ may lead many people to have a ‘vision’ of Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand that is far from reality. This is normal for most travelers. If you are a mature adult, I think that you are aware that within any country, exists level upon level of complexity. The interplay between your government and Vietnam’s is fascinating.
From Wiki: “Following their leader Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge imposed an extreme form of social engineering on Cambodian society — a radical form of agrarian communism where the whole population had to work in collective farms or forced labor projects. In terms of the number of people killed as a proportion of the populationBOLD (est. 7.1 million people, as of 1975[5]), it was the most lethal regime of the 20th century.[6]”
This almost leaves me speechless. The Khmer Rouge managed to ‘top’ the Nazi’s in WW2 with the Holocaust. The most lethal regime of the 20th century. You live under a regime dominated by ex KR? If this is so, how do you personally strike a balance between your own feelings and the’ex’ KR controlled government? According to you, it seems that most people know who is KR and not KR.
----Hw: "The government is made up of ex- KR who deserted and joined the Vietnamese when they invaded Cambodia in 78. They're there by the grace of Vietnam. So they come down very hard on people spouting anti Vietnamese rhetoric. The words probably referred to the Vietnamese as Youn, which means 'barbarian' but is considered worse than it sounds in English. Most Cambodians don't use it because it's considered derogatory"---
Interesting political situation.
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Post by hwinpp on Sept 2, 2010 7:24:13 GMT
... ... From Wiki: “Following their leader Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge imposed an extreme form of social engineering on Cambodian society — a radical form of agrarian communism where the whole population had to work in collective farms or forced labor projects. In terms of the number of people killed as a proportion of the populationBOLD (est. 7.1 million people, as of 1975[5]), it was the most lethal regime of the 20th century.[6]” This almost leaves me speechless. The Khmer Rouge managed to ‘top’ the Nazi’s in WW2 with the Holocaust. The most lethal regime of the 20th century. You live under a regime dominated by ex KR? If this is so, how do you personally strike a balance between your own feelings and the’ex’ KR controlled government? According to you, it seems that most people know who is KR and not KR. ---- Hw: "The government is made up of ex- KR who deserted and joined the Vietnamese when they invaded Cambodia in 78. They're there by the grace of Vietnam. So they come down very hard on people spouting anti Vietnamese rhetoric. The words probably referred to the Vietnamese as Youn, which means 'barbarian' but is considered worse than it sounds in English. Most Cambodians don't use it because it's considered derogatory"--- Interesting political situation. Well, they are ex- KR, which to me and most here sounds alright. The problem is that with some the line they eventually crossed is not very clear though. On the other hand these are all known so the government could actually clean up their act a bit and sanction those borderline cases. Sorry for replying so late Jazz, didn't realize you'd responded.
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Post by hwinpp on Sept 4, 2010 3:00:01 GMT
This is a different case but touches on some of the points mentioned above re anti Vietnam xenophobia and the SRP and of course the way the government keeps the opposition in line.
SRP points finger at Vietnam
THIS week’s conviction of four men for distributing anti-government leaflets in Takeo province may have come at the behest of the Vietnamese government, an opposition lawmaker said yesterday.
Yont Tharo, a Sam Rainsy Party parliamentarian and head of the Khmer Kampuchea Krom Cultural Centre, connected the convictions with comments made by a top Vietnamese security official in Phnom Penh last month. The official praised Cambodia’s cooperation in disabling anti-Vietnamese “plots” – especially the activities of Khmer Krom activists.
“The sentence of the [men] in Takeo was in parallel to the cooperation raised by Vietnam, on the border issue and the issue of Khmer Krom activists. We see that [Cambodia] has clearly followed the requests from Vietnam,” Yont Tharo said.
On August 3, Vietnamese Vice Minister of Public Security Tran Dai Quang told a conference in Phnom Penh that “cooperation and positive assistance” from Cambodia had helped to “disable plots and operations of hostile forces opposing the Vietnamese revolution”.
In his speech, Tran singled out Khmer Krom activists in the Mekong Delta region as a target of the joint efforts, which he said had recently led to the arrest of one person for illegal possession of weapons and three others for anti-Vietnamese leafletting in the border area.
In the case heard in Takeo provincial court on Monday, three of the men – including one employee of local rights group Licadho – were jailed after being sentenced to two years in prison. A fourth suspect was convicted in absentia and sentenced to three years in jail.
The three were arrested in May for distributing anti-government leaflets in Takeo province, which borders Vietnam, ahead of the January 7 Victory Day celebrations marking the fall of the Khmer Rouge regime.
The fliers reportedly stated that the day should not be viewed as one of liberation, but as the day Cambodia became “abused and occupied” by Vietnam, which supported the overthrow of Pol Pot.
Takeo provincial police commissioner Ouk Samnang could not be reached for comment yesterday.
Khieu Sopheak, spokesman for the Ministry of Interior, did not comment specifically on whether Vietnam helped in the arrest of the three men, but said Cambodia maintained close law enforcement links with many other countries, including the United States, France, Australia, Thailand and Laos.
“We do not concentrate just on Vietnam,” Khieu Sopheak said. “But the cooperation with neighbouring countries is like tooth and tongue.”
He said the three men were arrested for publishing disinformation about current Cambodian leaders and “looking down” on former King Norodom Sihanouk.
Former King Norodom Sihanouk was of course the absolute head of a feudal society, before becoming best friends and figurehead of the KR, then denying everything and pretending to be father of the nation again after he was offered the crown after the KR were defeated. Kim Jong Il and the Chinese are his best friends.
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Post by bixaorellana on Sept 4, 2010 3:21:58 GMT
I feel really stupid, as I didn't know the present government of Cambodia was that repressive. It's somewhat shocking that illegal possession of weapons and anti-Vietnamese leafleting are bracketed as though they are equally bad activities.
HW, from the stories you've shown, this must go on all the time, right? Do people casually talk about their dissatisfaction with the government when they're among friends, or is it considered wiser to keep quiet?
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Post by hwinpp on Sept 8, 2010 8:12:11 GMT
Oh, the press is one of the free- est in South East Asia (check the Journalists without Borders list). And people talk about what they want... mostly.
It's really just the Vietnam issue where the government doesn't joke around.
When an ignorant Thai soap opera starlet claimed in 2004 that Angkor Wat was actually Thai the government didn't step in to stop the burning and looting of Thai businesses in Phnom Penh. You're allowedto complain about the Thais, the French, the Americans, the electricity situation, land grabs, deforestation (up to a point, nowadays most of the deforestation takes place along the VN border, by VNese), just not about VN.
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Post by hwinpp on Sept 9, 2010 2:55:10 GMT
Here's the some news on Sam Rainsy's latest acrobatics on the VN border. His imunity has been lifted, I think this will be the last straw. He won't be allowed back into Cambodia: Rainsy charges heardPhnom Penh Municipal Court announced Wednesday it will hand down its verdict against opposition leader Sam Rainsy on September 23, who is accused of faking border maps showing alleged Vietnamese territorial encroachments. During a heated four-hour hearing on Wednesday lawyers for both sides faced off over allegations the opposition leader spread disinformation and falsified public documents by releasing maps showing Vietnamese border posts encroaching on Cambodian territory earlier this year. Government lawyer Ky Tech pressed his case that the Sam Rainsy Party president, who is currently living in self-imposed exile in Europe, was guilty of using the maps to “deceive” local and international opinion. “He has affected Cambodia’s reputation... and affected Cambodian-Vietnamese cooperation on the demarcation of their border,” Ky Tech said. Rainsy has already been handed a two-year sentence this year for uprooting border post on the border in January and if found guilty on both the new counts, faces up to 18 more years in prison… read the full story in tomorrow’s Phnom Penh Post or see the updated story online from 3PM UTC/GMT +7 hours.www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2010090841897/Online-Edition/rainsy-charges-heard.html
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Post by Deleted on Sept 9, 2010 4:37:13 GMT
I remember the last time I was in Cambodia, the Sam Rainsy party offices were always the most visible everywhere, making me wonder if it was the richest political party.
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Post by hwinpp on Sept 10, 2010 1:52:00 GMT
Now it's mostly CPP, especially in the countryside.
But even in Phnom Penh, SRP's powerbase, you don't see their adverts very much.
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Post by hwinpp on Sept 21, 2010 3:26:17 GMT
As I guessed further up, Sam Rainsy ain't getting no more specials: No deal for SRP chief to return THE head of the Senate has rejected a request from the opposition Sam Rainsy Party that its embattled president be allowed to return to Cambodia under renewed parliamentary immunity. In a letter, Senate President Chea Sim wrote that the body’s hands were tied due to the Kingdom’s constitutional separation of powers. “The Senate will not be able to intervene with the government in order to drop the complaints … because the complaints against HE Sam Rainsy are under the jurisdiction of the judiciary, which is separate from the legislative branch and executive branch,” said the letter, addressed to the SRP’s Acting President, Kong Korm. Chea Sim’s letter, dated Friday, came in response to a request from Kong Korm on September 11, which said the Senate had a “duty” to try to broker a political compromise that would pave the way for Sam Rainsy’s return. The SRP leader, who is in self-imposed exile in Europe, was sentenced to two years in jail after an incident in October last year in which he helped villagers uproot wooden demarcation poles near the Vietnamese border. A verdict on two more charges – brought against him after he released maps showing what he claims are Vietnamese territorial encroachments – is set to be handed down at Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Thursday. Yesterday, Sam Rainsy issued an appeal to “parliamentarians of all countries”, saying that his only crime was an “unyielding denunciation of corruption and human rights abuses” and an “unwavering defence of the people who have elected me as their representative”. Senate Secretary General Oum Sarith declined to comment yesterday, but Council of Ministers spokesman Phay Siphan said that wiping away Sam Rainsy’s charges would set a “bad precedent” for Cambodia, despite the use of such arrangements in the past. “Sam Rainsy wants to make a wave as a celebrity in the media, but he has to take the time to show that he has principles,” he said. Hang Chhaya, executive director of the Khmer Institute for Democracy, said that unlike earlier cases, where Sam Rainsy’s spats with the government were resolved through compromises, officials were showing “no real urgency” to broker his return. “I hope there will be some sign of resolution and Sam Rainsy will be able to come back,” he said. “I hope the issue can be resolved quickly.” www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2010092042141/National-news/no-deal-for-srp-chief-to-return.html
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Post by Deleted on Sept 21, 2010 5:10:55 GMT
I wonder how many ex-despots and wannabe-despots are living all over Europe with their coterie of a half dozen staunch supporters who spend all day praising them and saying how the people are ripe for revolt, paving the way for their triumphant return.
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Post by hwinpp on Sept 22, 2010 4:05:55 GMT
Lots. All those Hutu mass murderers are in Germany, France or Belgium. Then after the Hutu fled to the Congo and got mass- murdered in turn by the Tutsis, their leaders followed...
But Sam Rainsy is no despot. He just overstepped that invisible boundary concerning the Vietnamese ;D
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Post by Deleted on Sept 23, 2010 8:50:00 GMT
Speaking of invisible boundaries, BBC News had this item today: Exiled Cambodian opposition leader given jail termSam Rainsy was sentenced in his absence as he is living in self-imposed exile Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy has been sentenced to 10 years in jail after being found guilty of altering public documents and disinformation.
The government accused Mr Rainsy of manipulating a map to show that Vietnam had encroached on Cambodia's territory.
His party has accused the Cambodian government of ceding territory to its larger and more powerful neighbour.
Mr Rainsy was sentenced in his absence as he has been living in self-imposed exile in France for the past year.Complete article here.
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Post by hwinpp on Sept 24, 2010 4:01:06 GMT
What you might not know is that they officially ceded Phu Quoc in 2005, K2. That surprised me!
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Post by hwinpp on Sept 27, 2010 5:21:51 GMT
It's going to get exciting now. Sam Rainsy is taking the PM to court... in the US! Sam Rainsy sues Hun SenSELF-EXILED opposition leader Sam Rainsy has officially filed a lawsuit against Prime Minister Hun Sen in a United States court, accusing him of involvement in a 1997 grenade attack on an opposition rally that killed 16 and wounded more than 100. The suit, filed in New York last week by Morton Sklar, a lawyer at the World Organisation for Human Rights USA, seeks the prosecution of Hun Sen and other senior officials on charges of allegedly carrying out the attacks and obstructing the course of justice. It recognised that Hun Sen would be difficult to prosecute, but said the purpose of the suit was “to make clear [Hun Sen’s] direct involvement in both the original grenade attack itself, and in the efforts by his subordinates to cover up the crimes”. On March 30, 1997, four grenades were thrown at a rally held by the opposition Khmer Nation Party – the predecessor to today’s SRP – killing and injuring scores of bystanders. In addition to Hun Sen, the lawsuit accuses Generals Huy Pised and Hing Bun Heang – commanders in Hun Sen’s personal bodyguard unit – as well as then-municipal police chief Mok Chito of obstructing a US investigation into the attacks, which injured US citizen Ron Abney. “No one that directly interferes with a US criminal investigation should be treated with impunity because they are foreign citizens, or committed their violations of US law in foreign nations,” the lawsuit says. “If they can avoid responsibility for past acts, they are emboldened to commit further abuses, and that seems to be the pattern that is developing.” The complaint was timed to coincide with Hun Sen’s visit to New York, where he attended a meeting of the United Nations General Assembly and the ASEAN-US Leaders’ Meeting on its sidelines. In 2005, during another visit by Hun Sen to New York, Sam Rainsy filed a similar complaint that resulted in the Cambodian leader’s being served a subpoena by US officials. Unveiling the lawsuit by live videoconference from Paris on Friday, Sam Rainsy said that in 2005, the premier was “terrified” after being subpoenaed by US officials and had implored the SRP leader to withdraw the complaint. He said, however, that he would not agree to a similar deal now. “This time, even if Mr Hun Sen implores me, bows his knee before me, I will not agree,” Sam Rainsy told reporters. Council of Ministers spokesman Phay Siphan dismissed the comments, saying that Sam Rainsy’s lawsuit would have no effect since he was trying to take the law “into his own hands”. “Samdech [Hun Sen] has never implored Sam Rainsy, but Sam Rainsy has implored Samdech,” Phay Siphan said. “Sam Rainsy has never won any case in the world during his lifetime.” Government spokesman and Minister of Information Khieu Kanharith said that the government’s investigation into the grenade attack was still open, and that the whereabouts of three suspects – including one of Sam Rainsy’s bodyguards – were unknown. “The government has never closed this case. If we have something new, we would continue with further investigations,” he said. Tit for tat The lawsuit was made public just days after Phnom Penh Municipal Court sentenced the SRP president to 10 years in prison after being convicted of disinformation and falsifying maps showing alleged border encroachments from Vietnam. The sentence, which comes on top of the two-year term handed down against him by Svay Rieng provincial court in January, drew a strong response from local and international rights groups, who urged the international community to stand up and take note. In a statement issued in New York on Friday, Human Rights Watch said that the verdict had “shattered Cambodia’s pretence of democracy” and urged US President Barack Obama to address the issue during Friday’s ASEAN-US Leaders’ Meeting. “President Obama and other world leaders need to let Hun Sen and his government know that the free ride is over,” Sophie Richardson, acting Asia director at Human Rights Watch, was quoted as saying. “Cambodia cannot sentence the leader of the opposition to 10 years in prison for peaceful expression without expecting serious consequences.” The statement claimed that the sentence was part of a “concerted and longstanding campaign against Rainsy” and urged nations that donate to Cambodia to take major actions – such as withdrawing their ambassadors – in protest. When asked about the HRW comments, Khieu Kanharith said the opposition party had to obey the ruling of the courts. “The free-lunch era is over,” he said. “You can’t enjoy impunity because of your status as opposition party. [If] you commit [an] offence, you have to pay.” WITH ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY NETH PHEAKTRA www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2010092642278/National-news/sam-rainsy-sues-hun-sen.html
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Post by bixaorellana on Sept 27, 2010 5:54:31 GMT
Wow -- this is getting good! It sounds as though the various human rights groups intend to make sure this gets lots of publicity.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2010 6:39:36 GMT
If only trials like that were really about human rights, etc., instead of being manipulated by occult corporate interests placing their pawns for getting access to various jackpots in the future.
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Post by hwinpp on Oct 6, 2010 4:04:01 GMT
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