Vietnam Authority Denies a Khmer Krom Buddhist Monk to Visit His Family in His Ancestral Land

According to Khmer Kampuchea -Krom Federation:

On April 1, 2010, a Khmer-Krom Buddhist monk, Venerable Thach Vesna flying from Bangkok to Prey Nokor (renamed Ho Chi Minh) city was denied entry into the country. A student monk studying in Thailand and the holder of a Cambodian passport, Venerable Thach Vesna was planning to celebrate the Cambodian New Year with his family in Preah Trapeang (renamed Tra Vinh) province.

At 9a.m, Venerable Thach Vesna arrived at Tan Son Nhat International Airport and handed his Cambodian passport to a Vietnamese immigration officer. The Vietnamese immigration officer denied his entry stating that it was of “National Security Concern”.

When Venerable Thach Vesna asked them to explain what they meant by “National Security Concern”, the Vietnamese immigration officers could not give a legitimate answer. Instead, they tried to force him to fly back to Bangkok.

When the Vietnamese immigration officers realised that Venerable Thach Vesna refused to go back to Bangkok, they summoned thirty police officers to monitor him. Three of them closely followed Venerable Thach Vesna even when he went to use the Restroom. They denied his attempts to contact the Cambodian Embassy in Ho Chi Minh City.

With officers surrounding and monitoring his movements, Venerable Thach Vesna could not go and find food for his once a day meal. According to Theravada Buddhism, the Buddhist monks cannot eat food after 12p.m., thus he did not eat anything since the 12p.m. the previous day.

When the plan to convince Venerable Thach to go back Bangkok failed, the officers tried to recruit Venerable Thach Vesna as a secret agent to monitor the activities of the Khmer-Krom living abroad. Venerable Thach Vesna refused to cooperate with them.

With the last flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Bangkok leaving at 6p.m. and Venerable Thach Vesna refusing to leave, the Vietnamese polices resorted to the use of physical force to remove him from the immigration area to the gate of the airplane.

Vietnam has been elected as the President of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) for 2010. Vietnam should set an example by respecting the visa exemption agreement between Cambodia and Vietnam to allow their citizens to freely travel between their two countries.

Venerable Thach Vesna is merely a Khmer-Krom Buddhist monk, who practices the non-violence principles of Buddhism and carries a legitimate Cambodian passport. He has no criminal record; all he wanted to do was visit his family during the Cambodian New Year.

In this regards, we would like to urge the Vietnamese government to stop using tactics and excuses of “National Security Concern” to stop Khmer-Krom living abroad from visiting their families in their ancestral land of Kampuchea-Krom. Especially, if the Vietnamese authorities do not have a valid excuse to deny Venerable Thach Vesna’s right to visit his family.

Cambodia, Thai soldiers exchange gunfire at border

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – Cambodian and Thai soldiers engaged in a brief gunbattle in a disputed border area Saturday, with Cambodia accusing its neighbor of instigating their latest clash. No injuries were immediately reported.

Troops fired rifles, machine guns and rockets in the 15-minute gunbattle near the Ou Smach checkpoint in northern Cambodia, said Pech Sokhin, governor of Oddar Meanchey province where the border is located.

The countries accuse each of encroaching on the other's territory.

Pech Sokhin said the Thai soldiers fired shots after Cambodian troops ignored a demand to shift their location deeper into Cambodia.

"Once the Thais got back to their side, Thai forces opened fighting and Cambodia had to respond," Pech Sokhin said, adding that no Cambodian soldiers were wounded.

Thai authorities could not immediately be reached for comment.

Gen. Chea Tara, Cambodia's deputy military commander, said commanders from both sides met and called a truce.

Relations between Cambodia and Thailand have been strained over the status of land at a historic temple at another spot along their border. The International Court of Justice in 1962 recognized the Preah Vihear temple as belonging to Cambodia, a decision only grudgingly accepted by Thailand and still challenged by Thai ultra-nationalists.

Deadly clashes have occurred near the temple.

Thailand also was angered last year when Cambodia named fugitive former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra as an adviser on economic affairs. Tensions worsened after a subsequent visit by Thaksin, and Cambodia's rejection of a formal request from Thailand to extradite him.

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1962 World Court Identified Thai Border: Official

By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
Original report from Washington
18 February 2010

Thai officials should seek clarification from the International Court of Justice if they believe a 1962 judgment does not explain the boundaries between the two countries, Cambodia’s top border negotiator said.

Thai officials have been quoted in the media saying the 1962 judgment of the court awarded Preah Vihear temple to Cambodia, but did not address adjacent land.

However, Var Kimhong (pictured), head of the Cambodian Border Committee, said the court used a map that was agreed on by both sides at the time to reach its decision—that the 11-th Century Hindu temple belonged to Cambodia and thatThai forces would have to vacate it.

(More...)

Ta Mok house at Anlong Veng on Khmer new year

Candaransi Pagoda and Meak Bochea Celebration of Khmer Krom at Kampuchea Krom - 24th April 2010

ពិធីបុណ្យមាឃបូជា ព.ស.២៥៥៣ គ.ស.២០០៩

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Khmer Rouge and Its Evil Revolution

(Pleas Visit More Khmer Rouge Toons: www.khmerrouge-toons.blogspot.com)

A short Khmer-History

(Visit: http://khmerrouge-toons.blogspot.com/)

Cambodian New Year Festival

Khmer New Year (Tiger) B.C 2554
celebrate on 14th April 2010

What is Cambodian New Year ?

Khmer New Year is the greatest traditional festival and national holiday. Khmer New Year begins on April 13th or 14th, depending on the ancient horoscope, “MohaSangkran”. The majority of the Khmer populations are farmers. Farmers reap and harvest their crops from the rice fields all year long, except during April. In April, there is no rain and it is very hot. Therefore, the farmers rest from working in the rice fields and celebrate the New Year.

The first day of New Year is called “Moha Sangkran,” meaning “welcoming their new angels.” This year is the year of the Rooster (Mon), and Moha Sangkran of the New Year will begin on April 13th. The leader of Angels is named KimiteaTevi. Khmer people clean and decorate their homes and prepare fruits and drinks to welcome their New Angels. Elderly people like to meditate or pray the Dharma because they believe that any angel who comes to their homes will stay with them and take care of their family for that whole year. In the morning, Khmer people go to the temple to offer food to the monks and to receive blessing.

The second day of New Year is called “Wanabot,” meaning “to offer gifts to the parents, grandparents and elders.” In the evening, people go to the temple to build a mountain of sand to remember those ancestors who have passed and have the monks give them a blessing of happiness and peace.

The third day is called “Leung Sakk;” that means “the year starts to be counted up from this day.” In the morning, Khmer people go to the temple to perform the ceremony of the mountain of sand to get blessed. The last ceremony is called “Pithi Srang Preah”, meaning to give a special cleansing to Buddha statues, the monks, elders, parents or grandparents to apologize for any mistake they have done and to gratify them. Khmer New Year is not just a great traditional festival. It is also a generation passing on traditions.

(From The Khmer Post): Click Here..

កម្ពុជាមិនលូកដៃចូលកិច្ចការផ្ទៃក្នុងរបស់ថៃទេ ចំណែកថាក់ស៊ីនគឺជាមិត្តភាព

រាជធានីភ្នំពេញ: លោកឧបនាយករដ្ឋមន្រី ហោ ណាំហុង ​បានបញ្ជាក់ថា​.... កម្ពុជា មិនលូកដៃចូលកិច្ចការផ្ទៃក្នុងរបស់ថៃទេ ហើយថ្មីៗនេះលោក​ថាក់ស៊ីនបានសុំ សម្តេចមកកម្ពុជា ប៉ុន្តែសម្តេចតេជោបានហាមឃាត់ថា កុំទាន់អាលមកដោយសារ នៅទីក្រុងបាងកកមានបាតុកម្មធំធេង បើកាលណាថាក់ស៊ីនមក នាំតែគេចោទ ប្រកាន់ពីទំនាក់ទំនងរឿងនយោបាយរបស់ថៃ.....។ អានបន្ត.....

លោកហង្សចក្រាចាងហ្វាងការសែតប្រឆាំងនឹងត្រូវដោះលែងនៅថ្ងៃចូលឆ្នាំថ្មី

ចាងហ្វាងការសែតប្រឆាំងខ្មែរម្ចាស់ស្រុកលោកហង្សចក្រានឹងត្រូវដោះលែងចេញពី​ពន្ធនា​គា​រ​នៅថ្ងៃទី១៤​ ខែមេសា​ ចំថ្ងៃចូលឆ្នាំ។ ​នេះបើតាមការអះអាងចុងក្រោយ​របស់មន្រី​ជាន់ខ្ពស់រាជរដ្ឋាភិបាលកម្ពុជា។ អានបន្តរ.....

Takeo villagers forced to sign land over to NGO: witnesses

Takeo province villagers involved in a land fight with an NGO protest in front of the National Assembly on Wednesday.

POLICE in Takeo province’s Kirivong district surrounded the homes of 50 villagers on Thursday, ordering them to go to the district police office, where they were told to sign an agreement turning over their land to a local conservation NGO, villagers said. Read More(...)

World Bank Forecasts More Growth in 2010

Wednesday, 07 April 2010

Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer | Original report from Phnom Penh

The World Bank said Wednesday that Cambodia’s economy is expected to grow around 4.4 percent this year, signaling a recovery from the economic crisis and a recession in 2009.

A World Bank economist told VOA Khmer Wednesday that growth could climb as high as 6 percent in 2011, a rate that would be close to the galloping growth the country experienced in the years preceding the global downturn.

“Recorded agri-business exports more than doubled, especially in milled rice and rubber exports, year-on-year air tourist arrivals stopped declining, imports of consumer goods stabilized, and both domestic credit and inflows of foreign direct investment began rebounding,” the World Bank said in a statement Wednesday.

Cambodia’s economy contracted 2 percent in 2009, driven by poor exports of garments, less tourism and a 35 percent drop in foreign direct investment, the World Bank said.

Chea Hout, a Cambodian economist for World Bank, said Cambodia still had a high amount of its exports—60 percent—destined for the US, while a full two-third of its imports came from China, Singapore, Vietnam and Thailand.

“Cambodia’s economy is still very narrow,” he said. “So it can be highly vulnerable to the external environment.”

A diversified economy and structural and institutional reform would improve the investment climate, he said, which would in turn help Cambodia compete with other countries to reach the international market.

The World Bank suggested the region’s middle-income countries, including Vietnam and Thailand, invest in physical and human capital to move up the value chain, while low-income countries like Cambodia should focus on manufacturing and on becoming a part of global and regional production networks.

Sang Sinavith, a customs official, told reporters Wednesday Cambodia had exported $3.9 billion in goods in 2009, but he expected exports totaling more than $4.1 billion this year.

However, the country is still running a trade deficit, having imported $5.45 billion in goods in 2009 and potentially $6.38 billion in 2010, he said.

Tribunal Asked To Call Hun Sen: Letter

By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer Original

report from Washington

02 March 2010

Khmer Rouge tribunal investigators were requested to call Prime Minister Hun Sen to testify with other key government figures, but declined, according to a confidential court order obtained by VOA Khmer.

In the days before they concluded their investigation of the tribunal’s second case, judges Marcel Lemonde and You Bunleang decided Hun Sen “was not likely to provide additional evidence” and that he should not be interviewed.

The decision was a response to a request from the defense teams of Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan, who wanted Hun Sen interviewed along with Foreign Minister Hor Namhong, Finance Minister Keat Chhon, and other senior government leaders.

“They are not likely to provide any additional evidence in relation to that already obtained from a large number of documents or from interviews of other witnesses, 725 in total,” You Bunleang wrote.

In January, judges closed the investigation of Case No. 002, which will try Nuon Chea, Khieu Samphan, Ieng Sary, Ieng Thirith and Kaing Kek Iev for atrocity crimes.

Defense for Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan have reportedly filed a complaint to the Pre-Trial Chamber of the UN-backed court over the decision.

The decision raises more questions about the independence of the court, which had sought to question senior Cambodian People’s Party members last year but was refused.

“A critical test for the success of the [tribunal]—as for all courts trying international crimes—is that the judicial process be allowed to run its course without political interference,” James Goldston, executive director of the Open Society Justice Initiative, in New York, told VOA Khmer.

The group remains concerned over government objections to trials of lower-tiered Khmer Rouge and of the senior officials’ refusal to testify, he said.

“It is important for the rule of law in Cambodia that decisions about whom to charge, what to charge and who should testify be made by judges, not politicians,” he said.

Cambodian officials have denied political influence at the court, and tribunal officials say the court works independently, according to agreements between the UN and Cambodia.

Meanwhile, the tribunal retains the right to issue arrest warrants along with subpoenas but has no real way to enforce them.

Abhisit counters Hun Sen's claim

(Photo: Reuters)

7/02/2010
Bangkok Post

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva insisted Thai military officers have not trespassed to Cambodia, as Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen claimed.

"The Thai government will use Prime Minister Hun Sen's comment to explain to the World Heritage Committee that the area around Preah Vihear temple clearly belongs to Thailand," Mr Abhisit said on Sunday.

The Cambodian premier visited the ancient Preah Vihear and Ta Muan Thom temples on Saturday without incident. More than 100 Thai troops were sent to the area.

Thai soldiers will not be withdrawn from the disputed border area yet and more personnel will be deployed to oversee the area around Ta Muan Thom, Mr Abhisit said.

"I don't have to give details whether former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was behind Mr Hun Sen's visit, but the government will continue keeping a close watch on the red-shirts' activities in different areas," he added.

Sdech Kan

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Rainsy sentenced to two years' jail

SVAY RIENG PROVINCE & PHNOM PENH—SVAY RIENG provincial court has found opposition leader Sam Rainsy guilty of racial incitement and destroying demarcation posts on the border with Vietnam, lawyers said. In a closed-door session on Wednesday, Judge Koam Chhean sentenced the Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) president to two years prison in absentia and fined him 8 million (around US$1,927), said Sam Sokong, the defense attorney of two villagers accused on similar charges.

“I cannot accept the trial today, because it did not take evidence and proof into consideration to find justice,” Sam Sokong said. “The court did not base its decision on the evidence.” He added that his clients – local villagers Meas Srey, 39, and Prom Chea, 41 – were also sentenced to one year in prison each on the charge of destroying public property. Rights activists also reported that the three were ordered to pay 55 million riels ($13,253) in compensation for the removal of the border markers.

The charges stemmed from an October 25 incident in which Sam Rainsy joined villagers in uprooting six temporary border markers in Svay Rieng’s Chantrea district. Locals claimed they were placed in their ricefields by Vietnamese authorities. Sam Rainsy is currently in France.

Long Ry, an SRP lawmaker who attended the trial, also rejected the verdict, saying the proceedings were a farce. “The decision was prepared beforehand and everything was decided in advance. The court ‘acted’ very well,” he said.

But one government official said the criticisms were misplaced, since all Cambodian judges followed due process and adhered to the law. “Everyone has different ideas, but we have one law,” said Phay Siphan, spokesman for the Council of Ministers. “We have to accept the judge’s decision.”

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Cambodia Battling Diseases on Two Fronts

By Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer Original report from Phnom Penh 04 January 2010

Cambodia is facing threats from both the H1N1 virus and the avian influenza, health officials warned Monday, announcing that another man fell ill with bird flu in December.

December’s infection brings the total bird flu cases in humans to nine, with seven killed from the disease since in first appeared in 2004.

The most recent case, in Kampong Cham province, was accompanied by the deaths of 143 chickens. (Testing on two of two samples showed positive results for avian influenza.)

Meanwhile, H1N1, sometimes called swine flu, has killed six people and infected more than 500, officials said.

“We have found, every week, two, three or five new cases for H1N1,” said Ly Sovann, deputy director of the Ministry of Health’s communicable disease department. “On Dec. 16, we found a new [bird flu] case in Kampong Cham province, but he has not died.”

“Even though there are a small number of cases of human contamination, we are still worried about these diseases,” he said.

World Health Organization health specialist Nima Asgary confirmed the new case of bird flu, saying Cambodia was now facing infections of both viruses.

However, the H1N1 virus was considered less dangerous than bird flu, he said.

Ly Sovann recommended that Cambodians maintain good hygienic practices, including washing of hands and covering of mouth and nose while coughing, to prevent the spread of H1N1.

He also warned against selling or eating already-dead poultry, to prevent the spread of bird flu.

Groups Continue Opposition of Seizure Law

By Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
30 December 2009
www.voanews.com/khmer

Rights and housing advocates on Wednesday continued to rail against a new law on imminent domain that they say will make it easier for people to lose their land.

The Law on Expropriations passed through the National Assembly on Tuesday, allowing for authorities to move people from their land in the name of national development, such as the construction of an airport or the widening of a road.

The bill had the support of 76 lawmakers from the Cambodian People’s Party and was opposed by members of the opposition Sam Rainsy and Human Rights parties.

“When the law on expropriation is enforced, it will allow the government and the authorities, in the capital and in the provinces, the full ability to easily expropriate real estate of citizens, under a pretext for the sake of fundamental infrastructure,” Ny Chakrya, lead investigator for the rights group Adhoc, told reporters in Phnom Penh.

Cambodia’s poor have faced increasing pressure, from both legitimate authorities and unscrupulous officials and businessmen, in recent years, as the country experienced a boom in land prices. Some people have been evicted by the government or had their land taken, creating a source of unease for many and, critics warn, potential unrest.

“There was the confiscation before the draft law passed without reasonable compensation,” said Kem Sokha, president of the Human Rights Party. “And because of this law, the government will have more ability to confiscate the land of citizens.”

However, Ouk Rabun, secretary of state for the Ministry of Economy and Finance, who defended the bill in the National Assembly this week, said the law was suffering from “negative interpretations.”

“In this case, the government will do the expropriation,” he said. “We must distinguish between legal expropriation and violence and abuse” in land disputes.

The law, which has eight chapters and 39 articles, allows the state to seize land for development in the national interest. That can mean for ports, power structures or an energy network, but it can also mean for security or national sovereignty.

Opponents of the law say it is not clear enough and could allow the government to evict people from their land before a case has been arbitrated. They also warn the law makes no provision for fair market values; instead, compensation will rely on a decision by a national committee.

Ny Chakrya said rights and housing groups sent recommendations for the law to the National Assembly and the government, but they were not heeded.

Cheam Yiep, a CPP lawmaker, said some of the recommendations may find their way into subdecrees when the law is promulgated.

Banteay Chhmar temple wins American preservation grant

ONGOING conservation efforts at the dilapidated Banteay Chhmar temple complex in northwestern Banteay Meanchey province have received a substantial boost in the form of a site-preservation grant from the Archeological Institute of America (AIA), the organisation announced.

Heritage Watch, the grant recipient, is a partner of the Global Heritage Fund, which launched restoration efforts in 2008 in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts and several other NGOs.In a press release, the AIA said: “With new road improvements, the site is expected to become a major tourist attraction for those travelling from Thailand to Cambodia’s major archaeological attraction, Angkor Wat,” making it essential to advance conservation efforts quickly, as well as to establish community-based enterprises that “protect the site, rather than destroy it”.

Conservationists also fear that the road improvements, particularly National Highway 6 linking Siem Reap with Poipet, will accelerate the looting of Banteay Chhmar. The temple’s proximity to Thailand means that antiquities can disappear undetected into the jungles across the border.

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