Category: Cambodia

Cambodian government critic killed over money, accused says

A police officer stands guard in front of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court during the trial of Chuop Somlap, who is accused of murdering the political commentator and prominent government critic Kem Ley, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, March 1, 2017. A man accused of murdering prominent Cambodian government critic Kem Ley told a court on Wednesday that he killed him over money, in a shooting that drew suspicions of a political motive.

Tribunal won’t try rest of Case 002

Former Democratic Kampuchea second-in-command Nuon Chea looks on during a trial hearing in the Khmer Rouge tribunal’s Case 002 in Phnom Penh. ECCC The Khmer Rouge tribunal yesterday announced it will not try senior Khmer Rouge leaders Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan for more than a dozen allegations that still remain stacked against them in Case 002.

The bucolic life of Grandma Chaem

Im Chaem fertilises cucumber plants behind her house in O’Angre village, in Anlong Veng, on February 3. A UN-backed tribunal’s investigating judges quietly dropped charges against Chaem, who was accused of overseeing the killings of tens of thousands. Omar Havana/The New York Times The tiny 74-year-old lives peacefully in a snug, stilted house surrounded by papaya, lime and custard-apple trees.

CPP calls for action over speech

The Cambodian People’s Party has demanded authorities take action against two more CNRP figures, including a lawmaker, over a speech in France that referred to the ruling party regime as a “beast” and “puppets of Vietnam”. Sending yet another chill down the spines of government opponents and critics, the letter by the CPP singled out French-based activist Ly Poeung and lawmaker for Prey Veng province Tout Khoeut.

Another bank’s logo on notice

A man passes the head office of Sathapana Bank in Phnom Penh yesterday, which was recently stripped of its corporate logo. Sathapana Bank has begun removing its logo from signage at some of its branches in preparation for a possible network-wide logo change – though it has not received any direct notification from the central bank that it must abandon its corporate branding, a bank executive said yesterday.

Jolie to unveil Khmer Rouge film in ‘second home’ Cambodia

Angelina Jolie will unveil her new film on the horrors of the Khmer Rouge era on Saturday at the ancient Angkor Wat temple complex in Cambodia, a country the star shares a deep affinity with through her adopted son Maddox. Cambodia’s king and survivors of the communist regime will be among some 1,500 people invited to the debut screening of “First They Killed My Father”, directed by Jolie and based on the memoirs of Loung Ung.

Angelina Jolie attends premiere with kids

Angelina Jolie took her six children with her as she made her first red carpet appearance since splitting from Brad Pitt. The ‘Maleficent’ actress was joined by her kids – Maddox, 15, Shiloh, 10, Pax, 13, Zahara, 12, and eight-year-old twins Vivienne and Knox – at the film premiere of ‘First They Killed My Father’ in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Cambodian king to open Jolie’s film on Khmer Rouge survivor

This Nov. 16, 2013 file photo shows Maddox Jolie-Pitt, with Angelina Jolie on the red carpet at the 2013 Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Governor Awards, in Los Angeles. Cambodia’s King Norodom Sihamoni will preside over the premiere of Angelina Jolie’s film based on a memoir from a Khmer Rouge survivor.

Cambodia’s estates look to reap benefits of Thai ‘Industry 4.0’ drive

THE GOVERNMENT’S “Thailand 4.0” development drive is seen as providing a potential windfall for Phnom Penh Special Economic Zone Plc , whose industrial-estate operators hope manufacturers from Thailand and other countries with production at the Industry 1.0 or Industry 2.0 stage will shift their operations to Cambodia’s economic zones. PPSEZ, which was founded in 2006, runs two industrial estates one in the capital and the other in the Poipet Special Economic Zone.

Cambodian opposition chief resigns from party

In this Aug. 16, 2015 file photo, Sam Rainsy, leader of the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party , waves from a car upon his arrival at Phnom Penh International Airport in Phnom Penh, Cambodia as hundreds of cheering supporters greeted him on his return from a trip abroad. The head of Cambodia’s opposition party has announced his resignation from the group after the country’s long-serving prime minister announced plans for a law that could lead to the party’s dissolution.

Suspect in Thailand murder found: report

Cambodian authorities were yesterday prepared to hand over to Thai authorities one of two men wanted in the murder of British national Tony Kenway in Pattaya last month, according to a Bangkok Post report attributed to a senior police official. While numerous Cambodian border control and police officials contacted by The Post yesterday denied knowledge of the alleged arrest and transfer, Houth Borom, chief of staff of Koh Kong province’s international checkpoint seemed to indicate there was truth to it.

At Valentino’s, a palatial club for late-night revellers

A new venue in the heart of Phnom Penh is aiming to offer Cambodia’s gay community something it doesn’t have yet: a place to dance until daybreak. “We’re going to have three floors of music blaring everything from 1970s, ’80s, and ’90s music to Rihanna,” says William Sanz, the club’s Spanish manager who has been working in the capital’s sizeable bar and restaurant scene for three years.

Appeal Court upholds Rainsy’s guilty verdict

The Appeal Court yesterday upheld a defamation conviction against opposition leader Sam Rainsy for accusing a Cambodian People’s Party official of ordering members to artificially boost Prime Minister Hun Sen’s Facebook “likes”. Presiding judge in the case Sam Rith Sophal ruled to uphold the November decision delivered by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court, which ruled in favour of CPP official Som Soeun.

Khmer Krom ethnic group denied many rights: report

While Cambodia in theory offers full citizenship to members of its Khmer Krom minority, in practise, many members of the community remain in a legal shadowland, unable to access a wide range of rights, a new report released yesterday shows. Despite a professed open-door policy to the ethnic Khmer group from Vietnam, an estimated 20 to 30 percent still lack identity cards, a fact that prevents them from voting and accessing employment.

Three arrested in rosewood bust

Three Vietnamese nationals arrested for illegal transportation of Timber by Forestry Administration earlier this week and were sent to jail yesterday. Photo supplied Three Vietnamese nationals were charged and jailed yesterday for collecting and transporting more than 150kg of luxury rosewood in Preah Vihear province’s Chheb district.

Money for nothing in Siem Reap

In the tourist game, tuk-tuk drivers play an outsized role in their customers’ food and entertainment choices – and they expect to be paid. The practice of paying tuk-tuk drivers and concierges to push diners to your door is ubiquitous in Cambodia’s tourist capital, say frustrated restaurant owners, and doing no one any favours.

Cambodia’s explanation for killing of activist draws doubt

In this April, 6, 2016, file photo, Cambodian prominent political analyst Kem Ley smiles as he celebrates the 67th anniversary to commemorate the Kampuchea Krom territory’s return to Vietnam by the French government at Chroy Changvar in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Kem Ley, a poor farmer’s son turned champion of Cambodia’s have-nots, was killed in a still-unresolved case that has both silenced opposition figures and ignited a pro-democracy surge.