Editorial | Articles about Cambodia | Khmer
LETTER TO THE EDITOR OF THE PHNOM PENH POST
From the Secretary General of the NEC
Phnom Penh, 14 September 2006
Dear Sir,
The letter from HE Sam Rainsy published in the latest issue of Phnom Penh Post may create confusion among voters as it contains a number of flagrant inexactitudes.
The so-called “sudden elimination of previous voters’ cards (1993, 1998 and 2002)”.
Back in 2002, it was to satisfy the opposition parties that the voter’s cards of the previous elections were abandoned as a valid document both to register and to vote. The rationale is that it was alleged that these voters’ cards (initially originating from UNTAC) had been handed out to everyone on the Cambodian territory with little control over the actual citizenship of their recipient, therefore allowing a number of non-Cambodian individuals to register and to vote. The political decision to change the election law and to abandon those voter cards was taken by the National Assembly in an amendment promulgated in November 2002. Exceptionally, these cards were used validly for the last time for the 2003 National Election. On that last occasion, these voters’ cards were only one among a range of documents that were accepted for voting (such as National Id card, passport, ID document certified by the Commune Chief (form 1018), family book with photo and ID cards from civil servant, police, military and monks). Therefore, this is not the first time that Cambodians will have to prove their identity through other means than voters, cards from long-gone elections.
These old voters’ cards could not be used for the 2004 and 2005 annual registrations and they won’t be for the 2006 registration and all future registrations and elections. There is nothing new here. It is therefore quite surprising to read criticism about a so-called “sudden elimination of this document” that had been repeatedly despised by the opposition as giving a free pass to foreigners to vote.
It should also be made clear that were no voters’ cards issued specifically for the 2003 election as hinted in the letter. Similarly, the assertion that the suppression of the voters’ cards is “the NEC’s initiative” is disingenuous since this decision belonged exclusively to the National Assembly who has adopted the amendment to that effect in the legal framework that NEC is simply bound to implement.
The so-called “imposition of new registration and voting procedures” by the NEC
The assertion that the NEC has changed the voter registration period and its procedures is both untrue and deceptive. As imposed by the electoral law, the period for voter registration begins on October 1st and ends on December 31st; not in the worst of the rainy season from August to October as mentioned in HE Sam Rainsy’s letter.
More importantly, these is no “new registration and voting procedures” imposed by anyone. The 2006 voter registration due to begin in October is, in all respects, similar to the one of 2004 and 2005 for which no substantive complaints were received from the opposition.
Let me emphasize that whatever the NEC undertakes as advertisement campaign to voter and leaflet distribution, such as the voter information notice, before October, belongs strictly to the domain of voter information. By no means can it be branded as “new procedure” generating new obligations or, even worse, be assimilated with the voter registration process itself. Nothing whatsoever in the NEC’s voter information activities undertaken until now would have for effect to deprive voters from their right to register during the registration period or to get their name corrected on the voters’ list if so needed. To the contrary.
It is similarly wrong to assert that “For the first time, potential voters (…) are asked to check the accuracy of their personal election-related data…”. The truth is that for the past three years, at each annual voter registration, the NEC made a huge effort to do just that: convince potential voters in the weeks preceding registration to come over to the office of the Commune/Sangkat to check the accuracy of their registration. However, NEC’s efforts were met only with mitigated success; only small numbers came over to ensure that their name was properly registered and require corrections. Nevertheless, over 290,000 voters registered in 2004 and 234,000 in 2005. To remedy the apathy of the already registered electorate to check their name, the NEC decided basically to bring an extract of the list to the voters so that they can see for themselves if their personal data is correct or not: hence the personalized Voter Information Notice.
At this date, over 76% of these leaflets have been distributed to the registered voters. We already know that at least 5% of the leaflets could not be distributed because their recipients have either move to another commune or are deceased. The actual figure of notices having reached voters is therefore over 81% at this date. It is only at the end of the voter registration process that we will measure the success of this new NEC’s voter awareness campaign through the additional number of voters who will actually come over to register or correct their name during the coming registration period.
The so-called obligation to “wait to receive your personal Voter Information Notice”
HE Sam Rainsy alleges that voters “must wait to receive the Notice” and failing to do so may imperil their right. He goes on describing all kinds of “special demarche required at the commune office… to ensure that you will be able to vote at the next elections”. According to him, another “demarche” is required if there is an error on the list “to put things right” so to preserve your voting right. Failure to get the notice and go through all these “demarches” puts you on Election Day at the mercy of “election officials with discretionary power to turn you down”.
The above strives to portray the registration and voting process as a convoluted system elaborated to discourage voters to register through a maze of “demarches” and eventually deprive them from their right to vote through arbitrary decisions.
The reality is much simpler. In fact, it is relevant to remind the following:
• Over 94% of Cambodians are already registered on the permanent and annually updated voters list (figures from the 2005 voter registration)
• The remaining 6% of potential voters who are not on the list and who want to register should do so between October 1st and October 20th. The procedure is simple and exactly the same as in 2004 and 2005.
• Those whose name or data on the voters’ list appears substantially inaccurate can ask for modification/correction during the registration period.
Contrary to what is alleged in HE Sam Rainsy’s letter, no one “must wait” to receive any notice. The notice is just a tool to help the voter check his/her registration. It saves him/her the trouble of going to the office of the Commune/Sangkat to check the accuracy of his/her data. The notice is strictly informative: it is as if the NEC had posted the voter’s list on all dwellings of Cambodia. It is not needed to register, correct one’s name or to vote. No “special demarches” are needed to register on the voters’ list or to get your name corrected.
By definition, unregistered voters could not, did not and will not get any notice of information for the simple reason that, not being registered, the NEC has no means of knowing who they are! Therefore, it cannot address to them a personalized invitation to register. The unregistered voters will be targeted by a separate campaign of information through media, posters, mobile speakers, etc. to begin soon.
The NEC vigorously denies “creating unnecessary and untimely work and procedures for people most of whom are unable to do it”. In fact, it is quite the opposite because the information notice saves a trip to the Commune/Sangkat to check the list. To pretend that most Cambodians are unable to check the accuracy of their name on a slip of paper is demeaning to the Cambodian population. With a literacy rate of over 60% and with the traditional support provided by the family/community, checking one’s name on the voters’ list is not the insurmountable obstacle to voter registration that he tries to describe.
The letter, published in a foreign language newspaper, also reads that “NEC’s initiative could practically end up depriving millions of citizens of their voting rights”. The NEC considers this contention not only as a wrong understanding of the process, but also as a flawed presumption discrediting the elections in the eyes of the international community.
This could create the impression that millions of voters need to register in addition to millions that must correct their registration data in order to preserve their right to vote.
Common sense and reality shows otherwise: 6.7 million voters are already duly registered; there are approximately 300,000 new voters that are entitled to register each year. This amounts to an average of only 9 new voter registrations per day per commune during the 21 days of the registration process, hardly an overwhelming task. In addition, as in any country with a permanent electoral list, the procedure for correcting a name is swift and easy: simply show up with any legal ID document and the Clerk of the Commune/Sangkat will fill the paperwork for the correction to be done.
And what if names are not corrected? Here is it most important to emphasize the strict regulations published by the NEC to that effect. In short: if a voter shows up with an Id showing a recognizably a photo of him/herself AND that the spoken sound of the name scripted on his/her Id document is roughly the same than what appears on the voters’ list (regardless of the actual spelling), then, this voter must be allowed to vote. Officials at the polling station have no discretion whatsoever to decide who can vote or not on the basis of spelling mistakes on Id documents. Only in cases where the name sounds entirely different than what is on the voters’ list may the official decide to reject the voter. This procedure worked well in 2003 as testified by the absence of complaints from political parties and observers specifically in implementing this no-nonsense approach in view of the multiple ways to write one’s name in Khmer.
Finally, HE Sam Rainsy also alleges that voter information was distributed selectively, excluding systematically his supporters. In that respect, the NEC acknowledges its disappointment towards the performance of a number of village chiefs who have not understood the importance of their work and their duty of neutrality as they are bound by law to represent all villagers, regardless of political allegiance. In spite of our repeated calls, the political parties have not brought a single complaint to our attention on which we could have take action. General unsubstantiated allegations in the newspapers are not conducive for the NEC to taken corrective action against specific individual offenders. Nevertheless, the NEC has issued a stringent directive that is about to be distributed to all village chiefs to clarify their duties and obligations of neutrality, subject to sanction in case of non-compliance.
Personally, I welcome the critics from all our partners. However, the NEC cannot tolerate the propagation of factually erroneous information and ill-conceived presumptions with not other purpose than to damage the standing of the NEC and to disparage pointlessly the Cambodian democratic process. Should it be recalled that the International Community is currently considering its financial support for the coming Commune Council elections.
It is the duty of the NEC to correct flawed and misleading information and to answer any and all such damaging assertions. At anytime, the NEC is open to provide accurate information to political parties and their leaders in meetings and working groups.
Of course, the NEC is learning from its mistakes. Now, how can we do it better? Since political parties are now equipped with the electoral list available to them, they could participate more actively to ensure that their supporters are properly registered on the voters’ list.
Cambodia has gained significant experience in election management; I suggest that all tasks be not handled by the NEC alone. All partners, including political parties and NGOs, should work hand in hand with us. The election process would gain efficiency and transparency.
I would like to thank you very much for bringing this important point to your readers’ attention.
Tep Nytha
Secretary General
National Election Committee
The Public Information Bureau of the National Election Committee
E-mail Address: necinfo@forum.org.kh
Fax/Phone: 023 214 374, (012) 855 018
Website Address: www.necelect.org.kh
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US Embassy To Restart Immigrant Visa Processing
Thursday, September 14, 2006
By Elizabeth Tomei
THE CAMBODIA DAILY
The US Embassy in Phnom Penh will resume processing immigrant visas for Cambodians seeking to live and work in the US, US Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs Maura Harty announced Wednesday.
Since 2002, Cambodians applying for US immigrant visas have had to travel to the US embassy in Bangkok to have them processed. Non-immigrant visas, including tourist and student visas, are currently processed at the Phnom Penh embassy. Officials said immigrant visa processing will begin soon but would not specify a date.
Harty announced the change during a press conference at the embassy. "We intend to resume the processing of immigrant visas...in Phnom Penh so that Cambodian citizens in the future who would like to immigrate to the United States will not have to travel to Thailand to process their visas," Harty said.
Harty said the previous decision to divide services between embassies in Cambodia and Thailand was largely practical: the old Phnom Penh embassy lacked the space and capacity to accommodate the volume of applicants.
Between October 2005 and July 2006, 2,300 immigrant visas were issued to Cambodians in Bangkok, while 2,500 non-immigrant visas were issued in Phnom Penh, said embassy spokesman Jeff Daigle.
The new, larger embassy building next to Wat Phnom has the space and personnel to process all visas in the country, Harty said.
But internal embassy problems have also delayed the start date for processing immigrant visas, officials said.
The embassy recently fired three Cambodian consular employees over issues of visa "malfeasance" following an investigation by diplomatic security officials that began in mid-August and ended several days ago, Daigle said.
"I'm very sad to acknowledge that we recently had to terminate the employment of several of our employees in the consular section," Harry said.
The embassy has "zero tolerance" for any digression from the observation of the rule of law, Harty said. Neither Harty nor Daigle would elaborate on the offenses committed by the employees, or name them.
The embassy will not begin processing immigrant visas until the three vacant positions have been filled and existing consular employees have received additional training, Harty said. Daigle said the embassy has around 570 employees, 500 of whom are Cambodian.
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By Kok Sap
September 12, 2006
Since CCHR inception, none had ever heard its Board of Director public statement to press about organization. Even during its director imprisonment, none ever seen or heard Board Directors utterance over agency function. All have seen and heard of CCHR is Kem Sokha alone.
Also note, Mr. Kem Sokha had stated the problem occurred over a year ago but why did he not correct it internally? It is his job to address management and employee problems. All left impression that CCHR operation must use a singular position which stemmed rivalry in both as policy maker and administrator. Not for profit organization is the most notably difficult for the management to handle even in US but why Mr. Kem Sokha neglected his job for this far?
If it is so, the IRS 501 (c) (3) codes may have been critically as far as entity receiving public funding especially US tax dollars. All understood USAID is the primary funding source and a federal and public supported agency. In accordance with Freedom of Information Act, that has raised legitimate questions for any taxpayer to request copy of annual report, financial statement, internal control policy, financial policy, and audit report if any finding irregularity corrected timely.
It is rather interesting for Mr. Clean to have thorns on side over contractual agreement in let go 12 people due to 30% reduction, if it is credible, in $800,000 budget. This is not unheard of in public funded agency of budget cut and people lost jobs. Also the allegation from laid off workers is normal. But the suspicion is that CCHR Board of Directors has no say so all these years but only Mr. Kem Sokha. It is rather critically and unusually.
Beside it is unlikely for such large US fund given to a foreign country without attaining not for profit organization status. Yet the public needs to know, if the policy making -Board of Directors and administration (Kem Sokha) is in place and separated body. The question remains why no Board of Directors Chairperson comes out to make any statement over the allegations to the public and press. Where is the Board of Directors and what is its position in regard to the internal disagreement?
Out of huge budget cut, if it is true, what is the actual cost to retain 12 workers? What is the operating expense for the entire operations? What is the cost for the President and his assistants in salary? What is CCHR President overseas travel allowance annually? Is there anything can be cut in management to save workers?
Now it is the time if CCHR has a sounding Board with transparency, therefore, it must perform its role and responsibility. It must come out to hear and investigate the allegations. Also if there is a problem in organization such as CCHR employee complaint, it is the Board role to see the merit in part of agency or the administrator.
In all aspects, the consideration should be taken to assure the credibility of the administrator and the Board. The Board of Directors must declare position internally in regard to internal disagreement before any public statement made by its administrator. But all happened seems fit allegations that elevate the lack of credibility of internal control and singular operative.
Clearly, Mr. Kem Sokha has his hands fuller than ever if this situation becomes out of control. Who knows what the ramification could lead to, if the employees' claims merited? The open end conclusion may included but not limited to fraudulency, management impropriety, and best if taxpayers pushed, USAID may have to suspend fund until further notice
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Very recently, Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen stated: "As long as I remain as prime minister, a Miss Cambodian contest will only be permitted until the poverty rate drops to 15 percent or GDP (gross domestic product) per capita reaches $1,000 a year from the current $448." I do and heartfelt endorse such the patriotic stance. To me, I name this quote: patriotic quote of Prime Minister Hun Sen for September 2006. And this quote is the first reason that makes me support his premiership.
Regardless of his many scandals alleged from Cambodia and other countries, his stance on precluding Miss Cambodia contest would save government more time and resources, and transferring these saves to bring faster and more desirable developments to Cambodia.
Like Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen, I have never seen any use from Miss Cambodia's beauty contest. A huge portion of the population are living on less than one US dollar per day, so why Cambodia need to spend for Miss Cambodia? Of course, even in the world's richest country, there are also gaps between the rich and the poor, but the huge gaps are not acceptable. Having such the beauty contest would boost the gaps between the rich and the poor.
I cannot stance seeing huge parts of Cambodian population living with less than one dollar per day, surviving in slums and even the most basic daily physiological needs and facility are not met; whereas a very few young girls, with government supports, compete in indulging with cosmetics, travel abroad, craze with daily unnecessary luxury. Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen is right and absolutely right in balancing the rich and the poor within his administration first, before we go on to compete on the international stage, Cambodian people shall be at the heart of Samdech's every decision.
Satisfying the majority first, to me, is one of the most valid democracy theories, and what the prime minister is doing is to more validate this theory. And I also appreciate another of this quote: There is no need to show a Miss Cambodia at the international arena. The Angkor Wat temple should be a better choice.
Samdech Prime Minister, I hope what you said will become a reality.
Phnom Penh, September 11, 2006, 8:15 P.M.
LAY VICHEKA
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Thursday, September 07, 2006
10 Reasons To Drink More Water
The Ririan Project
http://projectririan.blogspot.com/2006/09/10-reasons-to-drink-more-water.html
I know you've heard this many times - "Drink more water!". Yet, 99% of the people don't heed this advice. Maybe if water was more expensive, people would pay more attention to consume enough of it on a daily basis. We are living in a dehydrated world of carbonated beverages, caffeine and alcohol.
I bet you don't know how important is water for your health, figure and well-being. But sipping water from fancy bottles is not just a trend, it's essential! Everything your body does it does better with a healthy supply of water, every system in your body depends on water.
So here are 10 reasons why drinking water is good for you and why you should make drinking water part of your daily routine:
1. Get Healthy Skin
Nothing will improve the appearance of your skin better than consuming enough water. It's a pity women spend so much money on skin products, while neglecting the cheapest and most effective one - water. Water is the single most important element for cellular integrity. Drinking water moisturizes your skin from the inside out. Water is also essential to maintaining elasticity and suppleness and helps prevent dryness. The real fountain of youth can be found in a glass of water.
2. Flush Toxins
Water helps remove toxins from the body, in particular from the digestive tract. Our kidney system is unique in its filtering capabilities and totally dependent upon water in order for it to work. Daily fluid intake is essential to its efficient operation, particularly because there is some decrease in function with age. Water helps get rid of excess nitrogen, urea, and ketones, so it is particularly important when following a high protein diet. You need even more water to help your kidneys do their work if you’re eating big to gain weight.
3. Reduce Your Risk Of Heart Attack
Researchers at Loma Linda University in California studied more than 20,000 healthy men and women and found that people who drink more than five glasses of water a day were less likely to die from a heart attack or heart disease than those who drank fewer than two glasses a day.
4. Cushion And Lube Your Joints And Muscles
Water makes up a large part of the fluid that lubricates and cushions your joints and muscles. And although not the only element associated with muscle cramps, athletes have long recognized that even mild dehydration can produce cramps. So drinking water before, during and after exercise can also help reduce muscle cramping and premature fatigue.
According to the American College of Sports Medicine, adequate fluid replacement helps to maintain hydration therefore optimizing and enhancing performance of those participating in regular exercise. They suggest flavored waters to promote hydration and to increase palatability. Products such as Gatorade’s Propel Fitness Water are, therefore, terrific substitutes for plain water to increase fluid intake and meet the optimum consumption of water per day, thus enhancing performance and lessening the possibility of dehydration.
5. Get Energized And Be Alert
On average, most adults lose about 10 cups of fluid a day through sweating, exhaling, urinating, and bowel movements. Even minor dehydration can cause impaired concentration, headaches, irritability and fatigue.
Water is also essential for proper circulation in the body. The levels of oxygen in the bloodstream are greater when the body is well hydrated. The more oxygen the body has readily available the more fat it will burn for energy without the presence of oxygen the body cannot utilize stored fat for energy efficiently. Not only will the body burn more fat when well hydrated but because there are increased oxygen levels you will also have more energy.
Drinking more water everyday will help your think more clearly. Research has repeatedly shown that staying hydrated is necessary for the human brain, which is 85 percent water, to function at optimal levels. That is why many school systems throughout the country now encourage students to keep a bottle of water at their desks and to drink it throughout the day.
6. Stay Regular
Water helps prevent constipation by adding fluid to the colon and bulk to stools. Something as simple as fluid plays a major role in preventing constipation. Not only does the liquid encourage bowel movement, but it also softens the stools.
Water is essential for proper digestion, nutrient absorption and chemical reactions. The carbohydrates and proteins that our bodies use as food are metabolized and transported by water in the bloodstream. But no less important is the ability of water to transport waste material out of our bodies.
7. Reduce Your Risk Of Disease And Infection
Consistent failure to drink enough water can lead to Chronic Cellular Dehydration. This condition where the body's cell are never quite hydrated enough leave them in a weakened state, vulnerable to attack from disease. It weakens the body's overall immune system and leads to chemical, nutritional and pH imbalances that can cause a host of diseases.
When you don’t have enough water in your body, your cells start to draw water from the bloodstream. Your heart has to work harder because your blood gets sludgy, and your body starts to redirect blood away from less vital areas. Dehydration can set in even before you start to feel thirsty. This is a great strain on the body because it impairs the kidneys in their vital function of purifying the blood and helping the body get rid of toxins.
Also Michaud and coworkers found that the incidence of cancer in the urinary bladder was reduced significantly by a high fluid intake in a ten-year study involving nearly 48,000 men. The top 20% of subjects who participated in the study drank 2500 ml per day or more, while the bottom 20% drank 1200 ml or less. The authors concluded that within this range, the risk of bladder cancer decreased by 7% for every 240 ml of fluid added.
8. Regulate Your Body Temperature
Water regulates the body's cooling system. Sports drinks are useful when consumed after or during vigorous and prolonged exercise in high heat. But most experts agree that water works better than carbohydrates or sugared beverages for moderate exercise. For instance, if you drink 12 ounces of plain water, your body will absorb 8 ounces of it within 15 minutes. If you drink 12 ounces of a 10% sugar solution, less than 1 ounce will be absorbed in the same period. The typical soft drink is a 10 to 12% sugar solution.
Water is the nutrient your body needs the most. Between 55 and 75 percent of adult body weight is water, and it is critical in regulating all body organs and temperature.
9. Burn More Fat And Build More Muscle
It has been shown that dehydration decreases protein synthesis. Protein synthesis is what builds muscle. It is an energy costly process. When you suppress protein synthesis, fewer calories end up building proteins and more calories end up in your fat stores. It's elementary: calories have two possible fates - they either get burned, or they get stored. When more of the calories you eat get burned, less will get stored.
Increased water consumption can help you control weight by preventing you from confusing hunger with thirst. Water will also keep your body systems, including metabolism and digestion, working properly and give you the energy (and hydration) necessary for exercise.
10. Get Well
The traditional prescription to ‛drink plenty of fluids‛ when you're sick still holds strong. Water can help control a fever, replace lost fluids, and thin out mucus. Water plays a vital role in nearly every bodily function. Lack of water is the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue. A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on a printed page.
Water is the substance of life. Life can not exist without water. We must constantly be adding fresh water to our body in order to keep it properly hydrated. Water can be a miracle cure for many common ailments such as headaches, fatigue, joint pain, and much more.
Be sure to drink even more fluid whenever you increase your physical activity, when eating a high fiber diet, during hot weather, at high altitudes, in low humidity locations, and when you're sick, especially if you have a fever, vomiting, or diarrhea. The best way to figure out if you’re drinking enough water is to look at your urine. It should be a very light shade of yellow. Drink up if it’s darker. Let your thirst guide you, also. You might not need eight glasses to feel hydrated on a mild day. You could crave nine or 10 if it’s hot or you’re exercising. Bottom line? Your body is 90 percent water and needs it for digestion, healthy skin, blood circulation, temperature control and lots of other reasons.
It is important to know that the body can only absorb 4 ounces of water every 10 minutes, so like many things in life, it is important to be proactive with drinking water. Aim to drink one glass of pure water every hour you are awake. And make the process enjoyable. Many people complain that they don't like the taste of water, or that it is boring to drink! Try these tips for making drinking water an enjoyable process:
- Add fresh mint leaves, slices of strawberry, apple, lemon, or lime to a pitcher of water. Serve chilled. Keep a pitcher of "fruit water" in the refrigerator so you always have great-tasting water available.
- Try Glaceu Fruit Water, which is distilled water with added fruit essence, without added sugar or artificial sweeteners. It is available at most health food stores. It comes in a variety of fabulous flavors including, watermelon, honeydew melon, raspberry/lime, and strawberry/banana.
- Drink herbal teas. Herbal teas have a variety of healing properties and come in a multitude of flavors. Try green tea, yerba matte, chai, chamomile, mint, raspberry leaf, and cinnamon/apple. In the summer time you can serve them over ice. In winter, drink them hot. Yogi Tea is one of my favorite brands.
- Add a squeeze of lemon or lime to water. Warm water with the juice of 1 lemon taken in the morning on an empty stomach is a great liver detoxifier, and has been shown to aid in weight loss.
By the way the eHow wiki has an interesting entry on how to drink more water everyday. They offer 7 steps for increasing your water intake, along with several useful tips.
Drink your water! Stay well hydrated! Stay healthy!
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By Vibol Touch
About 1.7 million innocent Cambodian people were slaughtered by the brutal Khmer Rouge regime from 1975 to 1979; Cambodia was known as the Killing Field. The regime destroyed the whole society and led Cambodia into a third world country. Cambodian children, in particular, have lived with hopelessness, no education, and the darkness of their daily lives. One of the greatest crimes of the 20th century has gone unpunished for 30 years. Between 1975 and 1979, the Khmer Rouge systematically tortured, starved, and smashed approximately 2.2 million fellow Cambodians, or between one-fourth and one-third of the entire population (Mussomuli 2006 pg. A.12). Day after day the victims cry for justice. Why is justice so important? And why has this justice taken so long? For over three decades, the questions have remained unanswered. The Khmer Rouge leaders have gone unpunished, some remain in power, and the victims are still the victims.
Now, the Royal Government of Cambodia and the United Nations have agreed to establish the Khmer Rouge Tribunal Trial with the objective of punishing the former Khmer Rouge leaders and finding justice for the victims. The Cambodian people, as well as the rest of the world, applaud the initiative of setting a trial. However, skeptics question whether or not justice will be achieved. The main reason for the skepticism is the seemingly poor choice of the judges who will serve on the trial panel. Mr. Chhang, Director of the Documentation Center of Cambodia, stressed in his welcome statement to the Khmer Rouge Tribunal Staff (December, 2005), It is not possible to emphasize how important it is that all aspects of the trial proceedings are transparent. Transparency should begin with the selection of judges and those who will head various offices and departments for the tribunal. He closed his statement with the demand that If the Cambodian judicial system is to advance and public confidence in it is to grow, the UN and the Royal Government must demonstrate that these personnel are selected in a fair and open way, and one that is free from political influence. The trial has been a long awaited event and is of historic significance. There cannot be miscalculations or misjudgments from the panel of judges. This panel is made up of Cambodian judges affiliated with Cambodian Peoples Party, the ruling political party which has former Khmer Rouge members as leaders; and international judges who have little or no background on the deeply traumatic experiences of the Cambodian people. Because of inadequacies of the qualifications of the panel of the judges, there are valid concerns about the outcome of the trial. An outcome without a proper justice will not only victimize the Cambodian people again but will also reinforce the culture of impunity in Cambodia forever. On the one side, justice must meet international standards and the victims demands; and on the other hand, justice must also address Cambo!
dias
culture. Only by strictly adhering to these requirements, will justice be served.
The trial is important and must move forward. The conclusion of justice, either meets the international standard or serves the victims needs, will be another vital step. To brush aside all these concerns, involvement from the victims, the international community, and all non-governmental agencies must be forcefully and actively engaged and monitor the trial. These groups have the social responsibility and power and must demand accountability. The victims must speak out and demand what they want and what they feel; what form they want justice to take, for what they want the Khmer Rouge leaders held responsible; and what they want to tell the world. Likewise, the world must pay close attention to the trial proceedings and intervene immediately if the trial heads in the wrong direction. Article 28 of the agreement states that The UN can halt its assistance to the RGC should the latter act in a manner that is not in conformance with the agreement. Any verdicts must respond to the victims demands for justice to be truly addressed. Finally, this justice will not only educate the Cambodian people about what happened and why the tragic event occurred, but it will also teach the Cambodian leaders how profoundly this past event affected innocent peoples lives, especially Cambodian children, who were thrown into a world without a welfare system, without education, without a hope for the future. With a bona fide justice, a new chapter for Cambodia will begin.
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Prime Minister Hun Sen,
Dear Mr. Prime Minister,
Deputy Prime Minster; and Minister of Justice
http://groups.google.com/group/camdisc/browse_thread/thread/acb987bc69dcb0bc/5f71e34529e66248#5f71e34529e66248
It has come to my knowledge that that Teang Narith, law and politics lecturer at Sihanouk Raj Buddhist University in Phnom Penh, who was dismissed on 22 August for writing a book critical of the government, was arrested on September 4. The next day he was brought to court where the investigating judge charged him with the criminal offence of disinformation and sent him to prison. The crime of disinformation carries a prison sentence ranging from six months to three years, a fine from one million to ten million Riels, (US$ 250 to $ 2,500) or both.
Teang Narith, 30 years old, has written a book in the Khmer language entitled Political Philosophy that provides an analysis of the country's political development and its relations with Vietnam. The book which has yet to be published, seeks to highlight the danger that Cambodia is currently facing. Teang Narith is critical of Cambodia's current leadership and has held them responsible, among other things, for a grenade attack on peace demonstrators in 1997 that killed nearly twenty persons and wounded more than one hundred, as well as for the relations with Vietnam that are damaging to Cambodia. The book provides evidence and sources that support his claims.
On 3 August 2006, Teang Narith distributed copies of his manuscript to his students at the university. On August 22, the university's Vice-Rector Hing Yan informed about a letter of concern from Secretary of State for Religions and Cults Chhorn Iem to students with a notice that the course taught by Teang Narith was discontinued. This effectively ended Teang Narith's employment and up until then he had been teaching at the university for four years.
I am very much concerned at Teang Narith's dismissal and arrest for writing a book. This is a blatant violation of his right to freedom of expression and publication guaranteed and protected by Cambodia's constitution. The arrest was carried out when his lawsuit against his dismal had not been adjudicated yet. I understand that according to article 62 of the Cambodian criminal law of 1992, commonly known as UNTAC Law there must be the three constitutive elements combined to be able to prove disinformation: (1) the information must be false, fabricated, falsified or untruthfully attributed to a third person; (2) it must be published, distributed or reproduced in bad faith and with malicious intent; and (3) this publication, distribution or reproduction must have disturbed or is likely to disturb the public peace. The prosecution and the investigating judge have not shown even probable evidence to prove that all these three elements are there to charge Teang Narith. I simply know that the situation in Cambodia is stable and peaceful, and the public peace is not disturbed or will ever be disturbed by Teang Narith's book.
I also understand that, under the same Cambodian law as amended, disinformation is a misdemeanour and an offence that bail would be allowed. Considering the lack of probable evidence, Teang Narith should not have been arrested in the first place and, when arrested, should have been allowed bail. He should have his lawsuit against his dismissal adjudicated first.
Teang Narith's arrest and pre-trial detention are very arbitrary. As they have been doing before, the country's leadership has used the courts they control to silence and punish their critics. Teang Narith is yet another victim of such a rule.
I condemn Teang Narith's dismissal from his teaching job, and his arrest and imprisonment. I request the Cambodian government to honour its human rights obligations and stop using the courts to silence its critics. I also request the police, the prosecution and the municipal court of Phnom Penh to drop the charge altogether against Teang Narith.
I further request donor governments, UN agencies, international aid agencies and the international human rights community to work with the Cambodian government and courts to end this persecution of critics of the government and push for Teang Narith's release.
Yours sincerely,
Beatrice J Chuon
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Pol Pot thought of me as a patriot, but intellectual—in other words, incapable of heading the revolution.
By Stéphanie Giry
Newsweek International
Sept. 18, 2006 issue - After a decade of stop-and-start negotiations, a United Nations-sponsored tribunal has finally begun to investigate the handful of Khmer Rouge leaders who are still alive in Cambodia. Prosecutors hope to bring them to trial for crimes against humanity, among other charges, next year. But many Cambodians are skeptical that justice will be done before the elderly former guerrillas die off. Most of the Khmer Rouge leaders continue to deny any knowledge of or responsibility for the estimated 1.5 million deaths that occurred between 1975 and 1979, when their forces emptied out Phnom Penh and radically reorganized the countryside. Khieu Samphan, Cambodia's president during the Khmer Rouge reign, recently spoke about his role with Stéphanie Giry. Excerpts:
Giry: How did you become affiliated with the Khmer Rouge?
Khieu:In the 1960s, after editing a progressive paper, I became a congressman and, briefly, junior minister of Commerce. I supported Prince [Norodom] Sihanouk, who advocated Cambodia's neutrality between the United States and Vietnam. But in 1967, after I was accused of instigating a large peasant riot, I was forced to go into hiding in the countryside. The Khmer Rouge were already active there, mobilizing and organizing the peasantry. The movement seemed like the only path toward social progress.
Your Ph.D. thesis, written in 1959, advocated the democratic collectivization of the Cambodian countryside. What was its relationship to the policies of the Khmer Rouge?
No relationship. It was a very academic, unrealizable thesis. [Khmer Rouge leader] Pol Pot thought of me as a patriotic intellectual. A patriot, but intellectual—in other words, incapable of heading the revolution. When I told him in 1975 that evacuating Phnom Penh would alienate the people from the party, he compared me to Gorky, who, distressed by the famine in the Soviet Union in the 1920s, kept questioning Lenin.
What did you think of the many people who were dying of starvation in the countryside?
Isolated as I was at headquarters in Phnom Penh, I knew nothing of what was happening in the countryside. I knew that people who had been evacuated from Phnom Penh were suffering, but I didn't know they were reduced to starvation.
What did you know about the 17,000 or so people [mostly Khmer Rouge officials accused of treason] who were tortured and executed at the S-21 complex in Phnom Penh?
I did not know of S-21.
How could you have known so little, given your rank?
My title was purely honorific; I had no power to make or execute decisions. My main task was to maintain relations between the party and the prince. [Also,] the Khmer Rouge was the most secretive of communist movements—absolute partitioning, no horizontal communication. The few times I did go to the countryside, I was escorting the prince on tours of new infrastructure projects and I saw only what he was shown.
When did you finally realize all those people had died?
In late 1998, after Pol Pot's death and the collapse of the movement, when I finally had a chance to talk to former Khmer Rouge fighters and cadres.
What did you think?
I was overwhelmed. And then I read and thought a lot. Between 1975 and 1979, the population died mostly of starvation and disease, which existed even before the Khmer Rouge came to power. The countryside had been ravaged by U.S. bombings. Famine was threatening Phnom Penh, which overflowed with refugees. Even a report from the U.S. Agency for International Development predicted a food crisis. Such frightfully difficult conditions must have convinced Pol Pot to go beyond communist orthodoxy by evacuating Phnom Penh and abolishing money.
Do you have any regrets?
I regret that so many lives were lost for nothing. Had we at least advanced economically, the unhappiness would have been good for something.
If today Cambodia were more like China, the experience would have been worth it?
Frankly, yes.
What do you think of the tribunal that will judge crimes committed during the Khmer Rouge regime?
I did everything I could to remain honest toward my country and contribute to its development and independence, and now I'm accused of genocide. I don't understand. And I'm sure most Cambodians don't understand either.
© 2006 Newsweek, Inc.
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/14756011/site/newsweek/_
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Khmer Intelligence News - 10 September 2006
10 September 2006
Corruption scandal at US-financed CCHR (2)
In today's edition of Khmer-language newspaper "Rasmei Kampuchea" there is a report about a large-scale corruption scandal at the US-financed Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) led by former politician Kem Sokha. Sixteen CCHR employees and former employees accuse Mr. Kem Sokha of corruption leading to serious abuses. Over the last few days the CCHR has just embarked on a well-publicized anti-corruption campaign against the government.
Manipulation of voter lists (2)
There is mounting evidence showing that, through the National Election Committee (NEC), the ruling CPP is manipulating voter lists in order to secure victory for the forthcoming local (2007) and national (2008) elections. The results of those elections are being largely decided now through a biased voter registration process. International observers who will come to monitor the upcoming elections in Cambodia will probably see no irregularities and will likely give their stamp of approval. Few people pay attention to the ongoing early but critical stage of the election process. Electoral tricks used by the CPP and the NEC are detailed here.
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Cambodia Law: Adultery, Not in Sihanouk Royal Family Cerebral
(Edited) By Kok Sap
September 8, 2006
Seemingly Sihanouk does not understand how derogative the meaning of adultery. Recently he has poked fun on Heng Samrin newly passed Adultery law. I know Heng Samrin is not quite in direct target zone, the rampant corruption, just yet. However one thing, Sihanouk himself hadn't fully come to grip that all the messes in Cambodia since were his own creation. People of Pol Pot or Heng Samrin and Hun Sen caliber came to power because how delusional Sihanouk had been for the past 37 years to be exact.
Generally speaking, to that matter with minus or plus can, Hun Sen+ which or Sam Rainsy+Saumora or RRidh-Marie or Kem Sokha+how many or Eng Chhay Eang + who or Chak kraum Paung which who or Sok An-which who or Sar Kheng who or Hoc Lung Di lam tin which one or You Hoc Cry who or Kol Pheng who or Monique-which who or Kossamak-which one, or any known personality overtly pronounce as dignified monogamist. Unlikely so,Heng Samrin scored a point ahead of his royal highness beastly nature.
Look at every one of his living children including the adopted ones too; all are despicably one way of the other. Yet he connivingly makes Ouk Phalla unworthy of a person who has caused his abrasive Eng Marie unhappiness. Although, Sihanouk is not naïve that Eng Marie might not have loved but used Rannridh as much to secure her family members posh jobs in royal government then and now. In anyone mind, surely she would have wished to have cut Rannridh balls off with her fruit peeling knife. So after all both profiteering Eng Marie and Ouk Phalla attitude your trash is my treasure are in the same classification with am Bun Rieu Som Heang and dazzling Piseth Pilika agendas out of Khmeng wat Som dach Hun Sen.
Apparently post WWII prior to cong dong Nom Pem CPP moi knew how disgrace Sihanouk family was back then. Example of his own father, Suramarith, was a child of incest between brother and sister. So was Rannridh and Bopha Devi are the children of Sihanouk own disgrace incest between studding nephew and lustily elder aunt. Thus it seems Sihanouk cultural upbringing does not measure up worthiness of his words. None to miniscule. Also note, Kingly stud Suramarith had produced two more illegitimates out of wedlock for leisure, Mr. Sereivudh de Paris le guitarist sans carrière and réfugiée Madame Vachara, out of his so called China woman mistress while lonely Queen birdy Kossamak, his mother, was busy entertaining her young attentive alternate once held Prime Ministership whom later she had sent, in Lon Nol behalf, to appease his illegitimate step son to return to Phnom Penh in the 70's. Unfortunately Sihanouk hated to sight his mother hanky-panky lover with passion in due of his father inability to please her and refused to even speak to the Birdy Queen, his own mother then.
Basically if a person corrupted his/her own relationship of his/her child mother or father, how else would stop he/she from being corruptive? Not to condone or ignore sensibility of such divergent law, but one can see and judge the womanizing and philandering are rooting firmly in the corruption albeit. Fundamentally, as decent human, none appreciated spousal infidelity or disloyalty categorically. But it is usual and traditional in the royal heritage. Yet other people views had never been that important as much except the royal palace or harem progenitors.
Therefore each of us can pray that each individuality shall take responsibility and duty faithfully, despite role in society. To avoid senseless self incrimination of tung dial taum then none be acceptable, not to excuse, laws are made and to be broken by men. Starting with Sihanouk, therefore, men must see to laws are to be blind of other colors but to equally see black and white in the interest of justice for all citizens. Who give a foot what Sihanouk said? Ask Hun Sen for clarification.
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September 9, 2006
CPP PUNISHES DISSIDENTS IN POIPET COMMUNE
Poipet is Cambodia's largest commune with over 100,000 inhabitants.
On September 11, 2006, Poipet commune council led by SRP commune chief Hay Nam Heng will organize a ceremony at the commune office in Banteay Meanchey province to inaugurate eleven village chiefs who have recently been elected by the commune council. Among the eleven village chiefs, five are affiliated with the CPP, four with the SRP, and two with Funcinpec.
Reflecting the outcome of local elections held in 2002, the 11-member commune council is made up of 5 councilors from the SRP (including the commune chief), 4 from the CPP, and 2 from Funcinpec. Earlier this year, despite the fact that they had collected less popular votes than the SRP in 2002, the ruling CPP planned to take the control of all the commune's eleven villages. However, among the four CPP councilors, two refused to obey their party's instructions and suggested instead that the commune's eleven villages be fairly shared among the three political parties represented in the commune council.
On June 14, 2006, an election was held to set up a Commune Election Committee to organize the election of village chiefs. A SRP councilor was elected as President of the Committee thanks to the support from a CPP councilor. The CPP leadership identified councilor Luy Kim Sun as the "traitor" and fired him two days later.
On June 21, 2006, the commune council met and elected the eleven village chiefs as detailed above. The CPP's plan to take the control of the eleven villages was foiled because of the "betrayal" of CPP councilor Pen Tho. The latter was fired a few days later. Then, the CPP started to cry foul and alleged that the election was rigged. After the hasty, hectic and controversial replacement of Luy Kim Sun and Pen Thol with two new councilors who are believed to follow the party's line more faithfully, the CPP is calling for new elections to be held for (only) the four village chief positions won by the SRP.
Given the principles of decentralization, the CCP's current demarche is illegal since the Central Government has no right to intervene in an election of village chiefs that have been organized by commune authorities in accordance with clearly defined rules and procedures. Everything is over now.
The Poipet commune council has invited Members of Parliament from the three political parties, as well as diplomats and NGO leaders, to attend the inauguration ceremony as guests of honor.
We will attend in spite of increasing threat and intimidation.
SRP Members of Parliament
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This article is about a new film, called "The Red Sense," by Khmer Australian director, Tim Pek. The film deals with the Khmer Rouge Regime, and the upcoming trials, from the perspective of modern Khmer young people, living in a western country.
Photos are available upon request.
And the Whole World Would be Blind and Toothless
c, New Australian Khmer Film Calls for Forgiveness in the Wake of the Khmer Rouge Genocide
By Antonio Graceffo
¡°When you set out to seek revenge, first dig two graves.¡±
Ancient Chinese proverb
Your earliest memories are filled with the pain of hunger, privation and torture. The only image you have which is more powerful, is that of your father¡¯s murder, at the hands of the Khmer Rouge. The horror of your early childhood gives way to vague memories of a daring escape to Thailand. Next, there is a period of years wasted in deplorable conditions in a refugee camp, followed by a frightening journey to foreign country, where you began your new life, as an overseas Khmer, one of the lucky few, who was give a second chance at life, after 25% of the population of your home country was slaughtered.
In Australia, where you never quite feel at home, you struggle to learn a new language, adapt to a new culture, and deal with the angst your mother feels when she and the other adults talk about their suffering under the Pol Pot regime.
And of course, you know you will never see your father again.
You struggle to put the past behind you. You have enough to eat, and access to a state education. You grow up and attend university in Sydney. You are moving forward, letting go of your past. You are young, beautiful and bright. You will pave a new path for your family, in a new world.
But all your dreams and hopes for the future come toppling down, as your past catches up with you. It all ends the day you learn that your father¡¯s killer, a former Khmer Rouge soldier, is alive and well, living comfortably in Australia.
What do you do? Do you kill him? Do you turn him in to the authorities? Or do you forgive and forget, embracing the future and letting the past burry the past.
These are the questions that modern Cambodia is dealing with as they move towards a Khmer Rouge trial. These are also the questions Australian Khmer director, Tim Pek explores in his new film, ¡°The Red Sense.¡±
Tim Pek, who has also been involved in the Khmer film, ¡°Buffalo Protecting Child,¡± and the Australian Khmer Rouge film, ¡°Chhay¡±, makes his directing debut, with ¡°The Red Sense,¡± a film which he hopes will motivate modern Cambodians to forget the past, and focus on the future.
Filmed in Australia, ¡°The red Sense¡± features a Khmer cast, all of whom have their own connection to the Khmer Genocide.
Actress Sarina Luy, who plays the role of Kong Jan Melear, the young woman who discovers her father¡¯s murderer in Australia, says ¡°My parents always talk to me about all the difficulties that they went through during that time.¡±
Sarina Luy came to Australia in 1995, arriving from New Zealand, after having left a refuge camp in Thailand, in 1991.
Each member of the crew had a different reason for wanting to do the film, and for feeling ¡°the Red Sense¡± was important.
¡°I think the Khmer Rouge time is a powerful memory in the hearts of older people, and they will never forget and forgive.¡± She says. ¡°I really think this film is very important for overseas Khmers, especially all the teenagers should know about the history and the difficulties that our poor people have gone through.¡±
¡°The red Sense¡± was written by Tim Pek and Rithy Dourng.
¡°I came to Australia in November 1994 at the age of 12.¡± Said Rithy Dourng. Like the others, Rithy also has a personal connection to the Khmer Rouge atrocities.
¡°My grandfather died during the Khmer Rouge time.¡± He explained. ¡°My family does not talk about the times under the Khmer Rouge regime all that much, only when we have family gatherings, to share a bit of what they went through.¡±
Rithy points out that ¡°The Red Sense¡± is a very unique film. ¡°I believe this film would be one of the first Khmer films to incorporate western elements, such as the western style of filming and portraying a story.¡±
Rithy feels the major problem facing overseas Khmer is a loss of culture. ¡°As time goes by, we drift further and further apart from our culture, traditions and particularly our language; and eventually we would loose our identity completely.¡±
He calls to overseas Khmers to help heal the wounds of his people. ¡°There is no one magic solution that could address this issue. The solution has to come from a combination of activities that must be supported by the majority of, if not all overseas Khmers. We need to promote Khmer language education by sending young children to Khmer language school and regular events offering opportunities for community participation. These are key starting points in maintaining the Khmer identity.¡±
In the film, as Sarina Luy seeks the right answer, she calls upon a Khmer monk at a temple in Australia for advice. In pre-Khmer Rouge Cambodia, it was very common for people to go to the monks for advice, or to settle their differences. Today, with the loss of culture and distrust of organizations, seeking the advice of monks may actually be more common in overseas communities than in Cambodia.
As the film deals with the concept of forgetting the past, it is no wonder that many of those involved are against the controversial Khmer Rouge trials. Rithy, for one is against the trials.
¡°I feel the Khmer Rouge trials in Cambodia are not worth the money spent. If they were going to have trials, they should have been held 20 years ago, not now, that most Cambodian people are trying to move forward.¡±
To date, only two Khmer Rouge cadre have been tried or incarcerated. While many Khmers see this as a travesty of justice, wishing the guilty to be punished, many also feel that the trials will only drag up old hatred and open wounds which could potentially heal.
¡°The millions of dollars spent on the trials would be more worthwhile if it was spent on poverty reduction, community development and helping the poor and needy who are desperately in need of food and shelter.¡± Said Rithy.
Kaply Mon, who plays Odom Chen, Melear's lover, says that three of his brothers were killed by the Khmer Rouge. ¡°My family always talks about this.¡±
The film is scheduled for independent release in Australia in November of 2006. There will be a public debut in Phnom Penh and a world DVD release.
Mr. Narith Eng, who plays Chen Vann, the Khmer Rouge killer, came to Australia in 1989. He had this to say, about how the film would be received in Cambodia. ¡°Its hard to say if young people living in Cambodia will understand. For example, my son is very young. He doesn't understand much about Khmer Rouge, the torture, the hardship etc...But, I think this type of younger generation will learn and adapt more easily than older generation.¡±
¡°This move is very important for people who lost their loved ones, to understand, to regain their conscience.
As for forgive and forget, Narith Eng had this to say about the real Khmer Rouge killers. ¡°If I know the killer, I think I would take revenge. They need to pay the price.¡± It came as no surprise that Narith Eng is in favor of the Khmer Rouge trials. ¡°I am very delighted and content about the trials. I have always wished that the trails would go ahead. Again it¡¯s a radical issue.¡±
Ta Mok was one of the highest rnaking Khmer Rouge cadre still living. Since his recent death, there has been even more speculation on the trials, if they should be held, or if there would be reliable witnesses who knew the inner workings of the Khmer Rouge central command.
¡°Since the Ta Mok is dead, things won't be easy anymore, but I hope we can bring justice to everyone.¡± Said Narith Eng.
Director Tim Pek found making the film to be a very emotional experience. ¡°Making the movie blew me away. Even though there were a lot of gruesome memories and pains, I've heard many worse stories from other Khmers, and my heart just melted.¡±
Tim Pek feels the pain of his people, and hopes to bring a healing salve, by promoting forgiveness.
¡°One question which constantly reoccurs to me,¡± began Pek, ¡°why does the Khmer younger generation still seek revenge, after three decades have passed? Why not use this mental energy to turn around and concentrate on building
Cambodian's future.¡±
Tim Pek urges the modern Khmers. ¡°Stop debating this useless point! Let us open a new chapter, and love each other.¡±
Cambodia has seen enough war.
You can see the film trailer and photos at: Websit
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Fighting from the Walls of Angkor Wat
National competitions of Bokator Khmer, the Ancient Cambodian Martial Art, to be held in Cambodia, first time in nearly 1,000 years.
By Antonio Graceffo
During an expedition into China¡¯s Taklamakan Desert, explorer, Sven Hedin, uncovered a piece of parchment, later discovered to be nearly two thousand years old, and counted as one of the world¡¯s oldest documents.
China and much of Europe have had the luck of having a long tradition of recording their history in written form, with books and whole libraries dating back more than 1,000 years. This rich knowledge of their history has given these countries a strong sense of nationalistic pride.
While Cambodia has not been so lucky in terms of printing and preserving books, the history of the Angkorian Empire can be found carved in bass relief on the walls of Angkor Wat. The fabulous temple complex, one of the wonders of the world, is at once a monument to that great empire, and the best source of information about Cambodia¡¯s past.
In the martial tradition of their warrior ancestors, the Cambodians chose Kick Boxing as their national sport. To date, Cambodian kick boxers have been effectively excluded from participating in international competitions because of a row with Thailand, regarding the name of the sport. Cambodians claim that the bass relief carved on the walls of Angkor Wat prove that the Khmers invented kick boxing. They resent the popular name Mauy Thai, which has been adopted by most of the rest of the world. They refuse to join the World Muay Thai Council, on principle. And have consequently become a hermit kingdom of fighters with no place to fight.
Regardless of the outcome of the boxing argument, the Ancient Khmer martial art of Bokator is something which belongs only to Cambodia. The proof is ¡°written in stone,¡± on the walls of Angkor Wat.
Unlike kick boxing, which is a sport fighting art, Bokator was a soldier¡¯s art, designed to be used on the battlefield, against Thailand, and practiced by King Jaya Varman VII. Bokator is a complete martial
Master Sam Kim Saen, Rather than continuing g an age old argument,
Khmer Bokator is a very complete martial art, which uses strikes, throws, drags, trapping, and locking, and ground fighting. In Bokator every single part of the body can be used as a weapon. Bokator practitioners are trained to strike with knees, hands, elbows, feet, shins, and head. Even the fingers, hip, jaw, and shoulders can be used to pound an opponent.
Grand Master Sam Kim Saen is the man credited with reviving this wonderful martial art, which was almost lost.
¡°During the Khmer Rouge time, masters of traditional arts, such as painting, dancing, music, and martial arts were hunted down and killed.¡± Explained Master Sam Kim Saen. ¡°All of my training brothers and students, as well as two of my children, were killed by the Khmer Rouge.¡±
After the Khmer Rouge Regime ended, and the Vietnamese occupation of Cambodia began, martial arts were completely outlawed.
To keep the art alive, Grand Master Sam Kim Saen taught martial arts in secret, but was eventually turned into the authorities by an informant. Afraid for his life, he escaped to a refugee camp in Thailand, and then later, to the USA.
Although he and his family were safe in America, Grand Master Sam Kim Saen was still concerned about his country. ¡°Khmer young people don¡¯t even know their own history. They don¡¯t know about our greatness in the past, the ancient arts which were taught by the grandfathers¡¯ grandfather, which is running in our blood.¡±
He moved back to Phnom Penh, and in 2001, he began teaching Bokator. In the hopes of brining all of the living masters together, he began combing the countryside, looking for any Bokator teachers who had survived. The few men he found were old, ranging from sixty to ninety years of age. After nearly thirty years of oppression, they were afraid to teach the art openly.
¡°I tried to tell them it was OK, we already had permission from the government, but they wouldn¡¯t listen.¡± Said San Kim Sean. The old men wanted to stay in the province. But San Kim Sean insisted. ¡°You have a great gift which was given to you by our ancestors. Do you want to steal it from our children? When you die, the art will die with.¡±
In the end, they believed him.
¡°Some of them broke down in tears.¡± Laughed San Kim Sean, who seemed like he could be persuasive when he needed to. ¡°In April of 2004 we held the first Bokator conference in Phnom Penh. Now, there are schools in eight provinces. And, we are preparing for a national championships.¡±
Bokator, like Chinese Kung Fu, has various styles, which teach the students to emulate the fighting of a particular animal.
According to Sam Kim Saen, the fingers can be trained to be as tough and piercing as the fangs of a lion. With a small movement he can deliver a painful finger strike, piercing a pressure point on an opponent¡¯s body. He demonstrates how a double finger strike can be used to rip out a collarbone.
Bokator Khmer uses colored Krama (traditional Khmer scarves) instead of belts. The art contains ten animal styles. The five white krama animal forms include: king monkey, lion, elephant, apsara (traditional Hindu sacred nymph), and crocodile. The green krama forms include: duck, crab, horse, bird, and dragon.
The first ever National Bokator competition will be held in Phnom Penh, at the Olympic Stadium, September 26, 27, 28, and 29. The competition will comprise 20 teachers, leading teams from 9 provinces.
¡°I feel great.¡± Laughs the Master, ¡°This is the first time in history that we hold a National Bokator competition. We will put on a good show.¡± And hopefully preserve the art.
There will be competition divisions for both teachers and students. The competition will have a demonstration component, where competitors will execute a form, a pre-rehearsed and choreographed series of movements, as well a fighting component. The competition will include demonstration of Bokator weapons, the long and short stick, and short sword.
Bokator fights shall consist of three, three minute rounds, with two minutes rest in between. Unlike in sport fighting, the Bokator fighters will not wear gloves. Instead, their hands will be wrapped with krama (Khmer traditional scarf). Legal techniques will include all kinds of strikes, kicks, elbows, and knees. No head-butts, eye gouges or groin strikes are allowed. Fighters may throw an opponent. Once on the ground, they are permitted to use joint locks or submissions, but no strikes.
In the developed world, Mixed Martial Arts, professional no-holds-barred fighting competitions, which include kicking, punching, knees, elbows, and ground fighting, is quickly becoming an extremely popular, and lucrative, sport. Many of the rules which
distanced boxing, kick boxing, and sport martial arts from their combative origins have now been repealed. As martial artists travel the world, looking for the most effective systems of martial arts to combine into an indomitable fighting art, it is my belief that they need to take a look at ancient arts, which well pre-date sport fighting. Most notably, I believe that Bokator Khmer may prove to be a well-spring of innovative new ideas and concepts. But then, like the re-discovery of Angkor Wat, the world would not be discovering something new. They would be discovering secrets which the Khmer people have known for centuries.
Bokator Khmer will be featured in a new film series, called Martial Arts Odyssey
Directed by Khmer Australian director, Tim Pek, and hosted by adventure writer, Antonio Graceffo
Tim is well-known for his touching film about the Khmer Rouge genocide, "The Red Sense."
Contact Antonio Graceffo: antonio@speakingadventure.com
Contact: Master Sam Kim Saen – Bokator teacher kimseanboxkator@yahoo.com
Tel: 012651845
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The Monk from Brooklyn
Bikes, Boats, and Boxing Gloves
The Desert of Death on Three Wheels
Adventures in Formosa
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By Kok Sap
September 3, 2006
The mischievous politic in Cambodia had made martyr out of young dynamic advocate Mr. Chea Vichea. He was one of the victims of such cowardice politics. Never before, he was nearly a walking time bomb trigger of the unforeseen predicament for Hun Sen infidel regime. People were cheated, frustrated, infuriated, and disrespectfully provoked. On his funeral day, the awesome number of participants and onlookers had undoubtedly put the officials to elevate precaution and cross fingers in wishing no riot occurred. Calmly and grievously, mourners bottled up anger in respect of their hero dignity.
Imagine, on the flip side of the event, if that many people included average public servants, teachers, lowly rank soldiers, city cyclo and motorbike drivers, truck drivers, uniformly boycott the government underhanded the land grabbing or corruption or rigged election for one week straight after that day. Imagine how mighty and irresistible force of people would be. This is notably character of Khmer society, patience and immeasurably tolerance is virtue.
But other question who really want to risk the meager wage or crumbly possession to challenge powerful Hun Sen Clique and crony. Because of the demagogue and misleading tactics, people still did not get it that they have power to make or replace government of their choices. The exceptionally precedents took place in 1970 and 1976 when the almighty god sent dictator Sihanouk was invited to make way for people choice. So this is not impossible to happen to Hun Sen dictatorship or anyone else in that matter either, only time will tell.
Considering Cambodia violence history, of course, people fear of gun barrels that come in naturally. But the gun barrels or violent forces are merely of own victims of government corruption themselves. Theoretically, all gun barrels shall save people sufferings and pains from going through life under long overdue dictatorship and thug operatives. Realistically speaking, politicians are also made of people of individuality with emotion, sentiment, kinship, and conscience. At the same time, soldiers are people children, husbands, fathers, brothers, kin and classmates. Soldiers symbolize people esteem in self defense not the individuality greed in government. They have the job because of people support them in forms and shapes.
Traditionally saying, it takes a forest to affront the storm. A handful of trees is not the forest. Figuratively, the soldiers as if it is a bunch of small trees that make up the forest. The army made of soldiers, not a handful of generals. Other obvious, to make a general it needs only one soldier. Remember large trees can’t replace forest. Otherwise it is a lot easier to make a general than an army. Thus the army can easily replace a general but not all the soldiers.
Conclusively Hun Sen or Sihanouk is stately tree which is dangerously to the livelihood of the forest. It takes a very capable army to remove forest but a marginally force for a tree. Exemplary, it took Hun Sen and crony over 27 years to destroy thousand year existence of forest in Cambodia. If Cambodia is awaken, it may take it a minus second to have adverse consequences on Hun Sen or any one else. Please bear in mind there are less variety of grown trees than the seedlings in the forest. Ultimately, the seedlings are the future forest not the few tallest trees to affront the future storm.
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Transcript and Original "Statement of Heng Peov"
Heng Pov
The following is a transcript of the statement issued anonymously under the name of Heng Pov.
Statement of Heng Peov
Until 27 July 2006, I was the Major General of Ministry of Interior’s Under Secretary of State, and Personal Advisor to Prime Minister Hun Sen. At the same time I retained the position of the Police Commissioner of Phnom Penh until January 2006, a position that he had held since 2001.
On 27 July 2006 whilst I was overseas, my Prime Minister appealed to King Sihamoni to remove me from my position and the King signed the agreement.
I am now in hiding in a neighbouring country and cannot go back to my beloved country Cambodia. My Government has been mounting a propaganda campaign against me since I left Cambodia on 23 July 2006. I have been portrayed by the Cambodian media as a villain and a criminal. My family in Cambodia including my wife who is recovering from cancer and my two year old American born son Pov Justin have been placed under house arrest. They have searched my two houses and confiscated my assets. Most of my staff members have been arrested on trumped up charges. An International Warrant has also been issued for my arrest.
I think it is time to tell the world my story and hopefully by so doing I can clear my already muddied name. I am nothing like what I have been accused of and I have never committed the crimes that they have alleged. I wish to declare to the whole world my innocence. This document is my only means to get my message crossed.
I believe that it was my consistent efforts to eradicate the rampant corruption in Cambodia, my support for the transformation of Cambodia into a democratic society and my position against systemic human rights violations in the country which has resulted in the precarious circumstances I have found myself in. I do not regret what I have done. If I have to die for my beliefs and my country I stand ready and willing to do so.
I was born in Kandal Province on 1 December 1957 and both of my parents were rice farmers. My parents passed away when I was the age of 11.
In 1992, when I was on duty as a police officer in the Anti-Crime Squad in Phnom Penh, I suffered a gunshot injury to my left leg which resulted in my leg being amputated. I lost my left leg for my country.
In 1995, there were wide- spread demonstrations in Cambodia led by Sene Sane for democracy. The Prime Minister Hun Sen ordered to that these demonstrations be quashed. He called for a meeting with Hoc Lundy, General Director of the Police Force. I was invited by Hoc Lundy to the meeting as his friend. (I recall Amson An, Secretary of State of Ministry of Interiors was also at the meeting. The meeting was held at the Prime Minister's residence at Tourle Krarsing, Kandal Province.) At that time, I was the chief of Bureau of Anti Narcotic in Phnom Penh. At the meeting, I heard them saying to do whatever possible to bring to an end the nationwide unrests. I did not know that he would use the grenades at the demonstrators.
The grenades killed over 10 people at the Pagoda. Sene Sane's son was injured by the grenades including 10 other people. I did not know that they would be using the hand grenades against the innocent demonstrators. I was not a party to it. When the grenades exploded, I was at the office of Net Sa Veun talking to him about how Hun Sen had met Hoc Lundy. After that the police were alerted to the explosions and that is when I knew that something bad happened. I only found out that after the grenades exploded. The police were called upon to investigate who was responsible for the bombing, but they did the investigation superficially and were trying to cover the track than to find the person responsible.
During my time at the Anti-Narcotic Bureau, I discovered evidence showing Hun Sen's people being involved in drug trafficking. I went to see Hun Sen with a view to bringing it to his attention. He took me to the cellar of his house which was nicely decorated. Hun Sen asked me whether I knew the names of the people who were into the drugs. I replied that I knew and I told him one name Mon Routy whom I was sure was involved. I suspected other men of Hun Sen were also involved, but I was not 100% sure. Hun Sen did not make any comments. Then Hoc Lundy then arrived with Huy Piseth, Chief of the Hun Sen's bodyguards and distracted my discussion with him. We then talked about the opposition party's protest. Hoc Lundy said to Hun Sen, ' why don't you use hand grenades.' Hun Sen said that it was a good idea... "I can send Seth to do it and he is a good operator." He authorized Hoc Lundy to pay for Huy PiSeth to do the job. Hoc Lundy answered that he would put together the money to pay them. He suggested that I met with Seth. After that, Hoc Lundy ordered me to find the money (US$ 100000) to give to Huy Piseth. The money came from the police.
On 30/3/97, the opposition leader Sam Rainsy led a demonstration calling for the reform of the justice system in Cambodia. The demonstration was held in front of the Assembly of the Nation. I was near the Pro Tom Pagoda and witnessed what happened. My staff took me on his motorbike to see the big protest outside the Assembly. 2-4 minutes after we arrived, I heard a big explosion and people crying and screaming. Then I saw four men running away from the scene. I recognized only two of them that were: Mr Phan Sary Colonel and Mr Ourn Cham Nane Commander; both of them were Hun Sen's men. I did not know the other two. They ran towards the Prime Minister' house. I followed them there to see what they ran away like that for. I talked to General Huy Pheseth and told him that I saw four of his people running away from the scene and that they should not have thrown the grenades. He told me to keep quiet and don't talk to any body. But I was angry and upset. I need to speak to somebody about it. I went to see Hoc Lundy who I considered at the time as my friend. I felt that I had to report to Hoc and could not understand why Hun Sen chose to kill so many people. But he told me the same thing to keep quiet and not to tell anybody about it. Amongst the people who were killed or injured was an American. I understand the American Government sent people to Cambodia to investigate.
In 2003 Phan Sary came to see me in my office. He admitted to me that he was the person who threw the grenades. He said that he was very sad because he killed so many people. He complained that Hun Sen used to pay him money to have things done. When he was in trouble nobody seemed to care about him He said that he did what he did because Hun Sen ordered him and he had to please him. He acknowledged that he killed a lot of people before. He said that he now did not even have money to support his children. I recorded the conversation.
Seizure of 7 tons of cannabis
In 1997, I was the director of anti-narcotic bureau. I seized seven tons of marihuana belonging to Mon Rati's company. Mon Rati was a close friend of Hun Sen. The marihuana was hidden away in two containers and were ready to be shipped to Norway. The seizure occurred at a border port of Siha Nauk Vill, after the seizure, Mr. Ho Sok, the undersecretary of the Ministry of Interior from the Funcinpec Party asked me to arrest Mon Rati. I could not do it as Mon Rati was associated with Hun Sen and he intervened. Hun Sen announced in the media that if Mon Rati was arrested, he would make sure that Mon Rati would not be touched. I therefore could not do anything about it. After that, the Canadian Embassy invited me to go to Canada to brief the Canadian government on the seizure. The Hun Sen was very angry with Ho Sok. Before I was scheduled to leave for Canada, Hun Sen called me to his residence and asked me to consider not to go to Canada. He asked me to tell the Canadian that I was busy and could not accept the invitation. The story of the seizure became bigger than what it was supposed to be because it involved Hun Sen's people. Hun Sen openly vowed to protect Mon Rati. Hun Sen said that if I were to tell the Canadian about the drug seizure, the international community would exert pressure on the Cambodian Government. He suggested that I stay calm and keep quiet. If I did what he told me to do, I would be given a new car by Mon Rati. Mon Rati then paid me a visit shortly after my meeting with the Prime Minister. Hun Sen also asked me to give a press conference denying the seizure ever occurred and to cover it up.
I was afraid of Hun Sen and he was too powerful. I had no option but to obey. I accepted the car from Mon Rati. It was a 1997 Landcruiser Toyota. My office was given a second hand Hilux for use. it has a logo of Mon Rati's on it. Hun Sen subsequently ordered me to go and arrest another person Chai Sok Kom instead as a scapegoat. Chai worked in the military police belonging to Funcinpec Party
Assassination of Ho Sok
Shortly after the above incident, there was a coup d'etat in July 1997 led by Hun Sen to outlaw the Funcinpec Party. Mr. Ho Sok went to the Singapore Embassy in Phnom Penh for asylum because Hun Sen and Hoc Lundy were trying to arrest him as he was from the Funcipec Party. The asylum was refused and Ho Sok was turned away. Hoc Lundy then apprehended him and ordered his bodyguards to take him to General Ma Seun's office of the PPC. Hoc Lundy then gave me direct order to take Ho Sok to my office. When I arrived there, there were 6 armed men sent by Hoc Lundy waiting for me. I knew the two of them and they were Keov Vichet and Bon Na . They shot Ho Sok outside Ma Seun's office. I questioned them as to the killing. Bon Na replied that Hoc Lundy sent them to kill Ho Sok then and there. Hoc Lundy did not like Ho Sok. I was shocked and rang Hoc Lundy who said that if Ho Sok was alive he would create a lot of trouble for us. He asked me to give Bon Na a car from the police vehicle pool as his reward. I did what I was told and gave Bon Na a Camry 97.
There were five people who witnessed the killing, Ma Seun, Thorn Im and three other people including Thorn Lim (General) and Ine Bora (Colonel), Mow So Vanna (Colonel) and the other anti-crime squad,
The Death of Movie Star Piseth Pilika
In 1999, I was heading the Anti- Crime Bureau as deputy director and was in charge of the investigation of the death of the movie star. I found that before she died, she had an affair with Hoc Lundy. Her husband went overseas frequently, leaving her alone in Cambodia. Hoc Lundy often contacted her and took her to parties and buying her presents etc. In due course, a relationship was developed and she bore a son for Hoc Lundy. Then Hoc Lundy introduced her to Hun Sen. Hun Sen met her. Prior to her meeting Hun Sen, she was not that well off. But afterwards, she made a lot of money. Her bank account in Canada Bank showed a balance of US$30,000 at the time of her death. She was also given a brand new Honda CRV and a villa. She was worried about her safety everyday as Hun Sen's wife found out their secret affairs. Hun Sen's wife blamed Hoc Lundy as he was the matchmaker. Hoc Lundy made peace with her and promised that he would try to separate the movie star from Hun Sen. Soon the movie star was killed. I found out that the killer was one of Hoc Lundy's body guards. I went to question Bon Na and he admitted that he was involved together with Keov Vichet in the killing under the order of Hoc Lundy.
Because the crime involved Hoc Lundy, I could do nothing about it. I made no arrest. I was very upset and there an innocent life killed and I being a police officer could do nothing.
Helping the Opposition Party
In 2000, I got in touch with the opposition parties. I did this because I believed that the Hun Sen government was corrupted and that if there was any hope for Cambodia, it would be through the opposition parties. He had too much blood on his hands having killed too many people. I would like to see a change in the Cambodian Government to bring democracy and Justice to Cambodia. When I heard Hoc Lundy and Hun Sen were conspiring to kill them. I went to alert the opposition leaders in secret by contacting people closer to them and to warn them.
I suggested to them joining forces to get a better chance to be elected in the next election in 2008. I also gave some evidence showing how corrupted Hun Sen was to the opposition leaders so that they may expose it to the public. In late June/July 2006, Hun Sen found out that I was speaking to the opposition giving them suggestions etc. He was not happy with me. He accused me of being not loyal to the PPC.
On 23 July, I left Cambodia to Malaysia to have my leg checked and then to Singapore to see my sons and get a prescription glass done by a friend. Before I left, I asked for permission to go overseas and they granted the permission. On 28 July, I heard from Cambodia and friends that I could not go back anymore because Hun Sen was angry with me accusing me of being a traitor to the PPC. They were trumping up charges against me.
I know his real reasons for my arrest. I know too much about him and about his illegal activities. He saw me as a threat to him and wanted to get rid of me.
Speaking out
With all that I found out about Hun Sen and Hoc Lundy, I was in despair. I was like a lost ship in a vast ocean. I have my principles and ideals but in a corrupted world, I was going nowhere. To survive, I have to keep my eyes closed to many evils that I have witnessed. It was killing me inside. On three separate occasions between 1999, 2000 and 2001, I decided to talk to the Human Rights Watch in Cambodia . I spoke to Ms. Pon Chigate(PHON), Director of the LICADO in Cambodia, Eva of Global Witness in Phnom Penh, Henrick, former UNHCR representative in Phnom Penh, Christopher Peschoux, UNHCR in Geneva, Mr. Paul Grover of the US Anti-Drug Intelligence Service and finally Naly of the LICADO in Cambodia.
Killing of Judge Sok Setha Mony
I read in the foreign press that I have been accused by Hun Sen of being involved in the assassination of Judge Sok Setha Mony. This is a total fabrication on Hun Sen's part to justify his campaign against me.
In 2003, the judge was killed by a terrorist group known as the CFF. The military police in Phnom Penh arrested three people suspected of being involved in the assassination. The arrests were coordinated by Colonel Sim Hong, Military police, who headed the investigations. I had nothing to do with the arrest, because it was military police's job.
The people arrested are Chun Ched Tra, and Moul Made but I cannot remember the other person's name.
I had a great respect for the judge and I had personally known him well. There was no way that I would have arranged for him to be killed.
I believe that this is just one of the many trumped up charges they had against me in order to secure my arrest. I know too much and I have treaded on too many toes.
Seizure of 36 kg Heroine
In 2003, I obtained information from an anonymous tip that Lt Colonel Ngur Sambath who was a man of General Sao Sokkha (three-star) and general Dom Hak (2 star) was involved in heroine trade. Following investigations, we attend his residence at Toul Kork District, in Phnom Penh and seized 36 kg of Heroine. Lt Colonel was arrested on the spot but Dom Hak who was residing there fled the scene. We attempted to chase after him to arrest him, but Hun Sen stopped us, ordering not to arrest Dom Hak nor to investigate, saying that there was no need to arrest Dom Hak. I had to stop chasing and investigating. Instead of punishing him Hun Sen surprisingly promoted him to three star about one month later. Ngur Sambath was found killed in the prison. Hun Sen told me not to be too harsh on drug trade.
Not long after this, there was a function organized by Hoc Lundv for all the general. Sao Sokkha was there and I was also invited. Sau Sokkha praised me a lot at the function and wanted me to be close to him. He said to me that if we united together, we could do anything in Cambodia. He then said that there was only one thing referring to my stance on drug trade. He asked me to stop investigating into the drug trafficking as Narcotic did not cause any trouble to Cambodia. I confronted him saving that I did not agree. He became angry and said to me that if you kept investigating, he would use his own sword to kill me
Other people witnessed it and they came over to us trying to calm us down.
Request for court and justice reform
At the beginning of 2005, I requested to my Prime Minister Hun Sen to reform the court and justice system as it was corrupted. Many judges around the country were not happy with me especially the prosecutor OKsa Voth who was known to be the master of corruption. The Prime Minister supported me and he announced in public to reform the country's justice system. People welcomed the move and to commemorate the occasion, they wrote a song in which my name was mentioned. I told them not to as the Prime Minister would not be happy to see my name being promoted too much. Oksa Voth was unhappy with me as he saw the reform would potentially bring to an end what he could do under the current system.
Mv current circumstances -- a direct result of my position in the government and my open defiance against Hoc Lundv and the Prime Minister
In 2005, Hoc Lundy ordered me to kill the Secretary of the State Nut Sa Ann, because Mr Nut Sa Ann had a conflict with Hoc Lundy over a piece of land owned by the police. Hoc Lundy got very angry with him and ordered to arrange for him to be killed. I refused because I respected the man a lot and would not like to see him killed. I had to find an excuse for myself. I explained to Hoc Lundy that Nut Sa Ann had too many bodyguards and it would not be possible.
In December 2005, Hoc Lundy had a conflict with me because he wanted me to cut the lock to the residence of a Cambodian American lawyer David Chinava and to conduct a search. The reason for the search was that the lawyer was said to be drunken one day and drove into the Hun Sen. Public Garden. He fled the scene and kept quiet. About 10 days later, the police started investigating and found the car in his house which he had deserted. The house was locked and that's was the reason why I was ordered to cut the lock to gain access. I did not obey his order and told Hoc Lundy that it was illegal to do that. Hoc Lundy was upset with me for disobeying his order. He shouted at me questioning why amongst all the policemen and women in the country who all respected him, I was the only one who dared to disobey him. He said that he could not tolerate anybody who disrespected him.
At the beginning of 2005, Hoc Lundy's son Hock Lundao also known as Dy Vichea was divorced from his wife, Hun Chantah, the niece of Hun Sen.
All of the above incidents where I refused to obey to him made him very bitter against me. He bears grudges against me. On 25 December 2005, he invited the police commissioners, governors and other senior officials of seven Districts to a meeting at the Governor of Phnom Penh's residence. Around 400 people were present. I was one of the participants. Hoc Lundy conveyed his dissatisfaction openly with me and vowed that he would do whatever possible to strip me off my title in three months. He said that he would make this his objective and that if he did not achieve this, he would give up two of his own stars. To me, he declared a public war against me. He said that he was the head of the Mafia in Cambodia and that nobody could win him, 'not even the Advisor to the Prime Minister'. I have a recording of his speech which was given to me by another police friend who was at the meeting. The Cambodian newspaper also reported the meeting.
Subsequent to the meeting, I approached the Prime Minister for intervention. The Prime Minister told me not to worry, saying that there would be no way he would let Hoc Lundy remove me from my positions. He said that he himself had issues with Hoc Lundy.
Assassination of a Singaporean man
I have also been accused of killing a Singaporean man. It is absurd and why did I have to do that?
I was certainly not involved in the killing of the Singaporean man, Sim Ping Say. I know him pretty well and regarded him as my friend. Sim was gunned down and killed at the beginning of 2004 . To date nobody had been arrested for the killing.
Sim was a Singaporean businessman. He together with another Singaporean Mr. Kok entered into a joint venture with a Cambodian businessman Bun Hy. That was around 10 years ago. The joint venture was to build a hotel with 300 guest rooms. There were problems after problems associated with the building. The three partners eventually ended up not trusting each other. Because of the nature of the project, the Deputy Prime Minister Sao Ka Heng ordered me to intervene and find a solution to their problems. That's how I met Mr. Sim and Mr. Kok.
I recall during a meeting I convened for the three of them shortly after my appointment, Mr Kok complained to me about Mr Sim cheating money from him etc. Mr Sim was not present at the meeting. Mr. Kok also said that he was afraid of Mr. Sim because he may arrange for him to be killed and did not want to go back to Cambodia. That meeting was held in Singapore. Prior to the meeting, I met Mr. Kok several times and also received a letter Mr. Kok in Cambodia. Mr. Sim lost a lot of his investment in the project and would like to get out of it by selling the building. He proposed to sell the building and shared the proceeds amongst them. An agreement was reached in the form of memorandum of understanding and was sealed by the government. Because of their mistrust for each other, I was made the agent for the sale and advertised my number as the point of contact for the sale. Offers were received but we were not able to achieve a sale because they kept upper the prices offered. This was partly because after Mr. Sim was killed his wife took control and communicated directly with the other two parties. That situation made it impossible for me to sell the building. This tug of war continued until mid 2004 when I gave it up. I had had enough of their problems, and besides I had too much on my plate at that time.
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