REAKSMEY KONGKEA

By Brooke Lewis and Buth Reaksmey Kongkea Arrests in Malaysia: MALAYSIAN officials said yesterday that 74 Cambodian nationals were arrested and detained in Malaysia on Saturday, amending earlier reported figures of the number detained. Raja Saifful Ridzuwan, minister counsellor at the Malaysian Embassy in Phnom Penh, said yesterday that the group was composed of 43 adult males, 16 adult females, nine boys and six girls. “They are being held at the immigration depot in Johor pending further investigation and subject to whether they will be charged and sent to court or not,” he said. “Initial investigation showed that this group probably stayed in Malaysia for some time so we are trying to ascertain how they came into the country.” Ridzuwan added that none of the detainess possessed travel documents for Cambodia or any other country. Foreign Ministry spokesman Koy Koung said Cambodian officials would try to repatriate the group as quickly as possible. “We will try our best to help our...

By Buth Reaksmey Kongkea Secretary of State and Council of Ministers spokesman Phay Siphan said yesterday that the government on Friday approved 447 planning projects, aimed at accelerating social development and progress in Cambodia, to be implemented over the next three years through 2013. “The Council of Ministers has approved 447 planning projects rolling out over three years including 183 projects requiring a total of almost US$2.7 billion which are under implementation, and another 264 national strategic development planning projects,” said Phay Siphan. “These projects are very important because they are prioritized projects aimed at providing for the long-term interests and social safety nets for the poor who mostly live in rural areas in Cambodia.” He added that the main purpose behind the approved projects was to empower people through healthcare, sustainable development, economic growth and the strengthening of Cambodia’s economic base. The projects were jointly prepared b...

By Buth Reaksmey Kongkea Two executives from a dubious international finance organisation who were charged with forgery last month are seeking release from detention while the court continues its investigations. Chuon Sunleng, deputy president of the Appeal Court, said yesterday that the suspects – Ray C Dam and Soush Saroeun – would seek out-of-prison detention at a court appearance scheduled for January 27. “The main purpose of the hearing is to consider the request of the two suspects to stay outside [of prison] during the investigations,” he said. Chuon Sophal, Dam’s lawyer, said his client sought release because of how long investigations were taking. “I noted that the court has worked slowly in investigating my client’s case,” said Chuon Sophal. “Therefore, I would like to appeal to the court to authorise my client to stay outside detention during the investigations.” Last month, the suspects were charged with forging documents alleging connections to HSBC Bank, the United Sta...

By Buth Reaksmey Kongkea A TOTAL of 75 Cambodian nationals have been arrested in Malaysia for staying in the country illegally, officials said yesterday, updating unconfirmed reports earlier this week that 65 people had been detained. Koy Kuong, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said yesterday that the group was mostly made up of women and children, some of whom had overstayed their visas. “These Cambodian people are now being detained in one place in Malaysia,” he said. “Our embassy now is also working hard and contacting Malaysian authorities in order to bring them back to their homes in Cambodia. I hope that they will be brought back to their homes soon.” Meas Saneth, programme director for the NGO Coordination of Action Research on AIDS and Mobility, said the group – which had likely entered the country to look for work with the help of illegal brokers – was arrested by immigration police in Malaysia’s Johor province on Saturday. “My organisation is now also workin...

By Buth Reaksmey Kongkea Phnom Penh Municipal Court judge Sin Visal announced yesterday that he would hand down a verdict on January 26 in a contentious case brought against the wife of a prominent businessman and four others accused of attempted murder. “Due to the complexities of the case, the court will continue its conclusions about these five defendants and will officially announce their verdicts on the morning of January 26,” Sin Visal said. Seng Chenda, 48, wife of tycoon Khaou Chuly, and four accomplices have been charged with attempting to murder Suv Chantha, Khaou Chuly’s daughter from a previous wife. Suv Chantha is married to Sun Chanthol, vice chairman of the Council for the Development of Cambodia and a former minister of public works. All five accused have pleaded not guilty. Seng Chenda reiterated her innocence in court yesterday. “I have not committed the acts for which I’m charged. I think this is a trick by His Excellency Sun Chanthol’s family,” she said. “I woul...

By Buth Reaksmey Kongkea MALAYSIAN authorities had decided not to prosecute 49 members of a group of 74 Cambodian nationals who were arrested and detained in Malaysia for working there illegally, Foreign Ministry spokesman Koy Kuong said yesterday. The group – including 43 men, 16 women, nine boys and six girls – was arrested on January 1 by immigration police in Malaysia’s Johor province for not holding proper travel or work documents. Koy Kuong did not explain yesterday why Malaysian immigration officials had decided not to prosecute 49 of the detainees and said he did not know when the group would be released and repatriated to Cambodia. He said, however, that officials are still investigating the cases of the remaining 25 members of the group, who may have to face court in Malaysia. “I am pleased Malaysian authorities have decided not to fine our 49 Cambodian people,” he said. “I would like to request the Malaysian party to fine none of these 74 people and to release them back ...

A TOTAL of 15 Cambodian fishermen who were attacked in early November by Somali pirates were repatriated in December, the spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday, amending a statement last week indicating that the victims had not yet returned. The 15 Cambodian nationals were among 23 victims – including seven Thais and one Yemeni policeman – who were attacked 70 nautical miles off the coast of Somalia by pirates, who hijacked their ship and later sunk it. The fishermen were rescued while adrift in the Gulf of Aden by a Thai ship, the HTMS Pattani. Koy Kuong said yesterday that the Cambodian victims were taken to Oman and then Thailand, before being sent back to the Kingdom. “These people were safely returned to their homes since December 4, 2010,” he said. Last week, Koy Kuong said the Cambodian embassy in Bangkok was “still working hard with Thai naval forces to find out [where they are] and to bring them back to their homes”. BUTH REAKSMEY KONGKEA

ByButh Reaksmey Kongkea and Brooke Lewis Aven, now 24 years old, says she agreed to fake a marriage to a Taiwanese broker and move abroad some five years ago because she thought it would enable her to earn enough money to support her family in Kandal province. Speaking upon her return to Phnom Penh yesterday, however, Aven – who requested her real name to be concealed and is identified here only by her Taiwanese moniker – said the broker confiscated her passport and sold her into slavery almost immediately after their arrival in Taiwan in late 2005. “A week after I arrived in Taiwan, I was sold to work with a … vegetable company there,” she said. “I was forced to work whole days without rest or pay. I didn’t receive enough money as I was promised.” Instead, Aven said, she had only been paid enough to cover the cost of meals. After working for a year as a vegetable seller, Aven was then sold to a plastic manufacturing company, where she worked for a further three years for almost no...

By Buth Reaksmey Kongkea Two Cambodian journalists, including the deputy head of a local press association, were arrested yesterday on suspicion of extorting a commune chief after accepting money from undercover police officers. Sok Sovann, president of the Press Council of Cambodia, said the journalists were arrested at the Sorya bus station in Phnom Penh by police posing as middlemen in a transaction. He said the arrested journalists include Kang Arun, vice-president of the PCC, and Prum San, a reporter with the Kampuchea Sachak newspaper. The police, he said, were acting on a complaint received from Leng Horm, the chief of Pram Yam commune in Kampong Cham province’s Srei Santhor district. Leng Horm alleged the two journalists forced him to pay US$300 in return for not publishing stories about his poor management of the commune. “[The journalists] were arrested while receiving a total of US$200 from policemen who disguised themselves as taxi drivers and brought money from the comm...

By Buth Reaksmey Kongkea Battambang provincial court on Sunday charged a 15-year-old boy with the rape of a 7-year-old girl in Thma Koul district, police said. Chan Nareth, deputy chief of the provincial Anti-Human Trafficking and Juvenile Protection Office, said Heng Virak was arrested on Thursday at his home in Samrong village, in Tameun commune, following a complaint from the girl’s parents. According to the complaint, Chan Nareth said, Heng Virak raped the victim on January 6 while her parents were working in their rice field. “After raping [her], the offender returned to his home and the victim told her mother many days later,” he said. Krouch Chhanpov, a monitor for local rights group Adhoc based in Battambang, said that this was just the latest in a string of similar incidents in the province. On December 21, she noted, Seng Saro, also 15, was charged with the rape of his 6-year-old female cousin at his home in Samlot district. Seng Saro was arrested on December 18 followin...

Buth Reaksmey Kongkea Ousted anti-drug czar Moek Dara will be tried in Banteay Meanchey province in connection with a bribery case that has ensnared a number of senior officials, court staff said yesterday. Moek Dara, formerly the secretary general of the National Authority for Combating Drugs was arrested last week along with Chea Leng, the former chief of the anti-drug office at the Ministry of Interior. The pair were reportedly implicated by former Banteay Meanchey provincial police chief Hun Hean and his deputy, Chheang Sun, who were themselves arrested earlier last week. “Since this case happened in Banteay Meanchey, their hearing will be held in Banteay Meanchey at some point in the next six months,” Banteay Meanchey provincial deputy prosecutor Ton Sihak Teches said. “We don’t know yet whether they will be tried on the same day or not.” Ang Meal Tei, head of the Banteay Meanchey provincial court, said on Sunday that Moek Dara, Chea Leng, Hun Hean and Chheang Sun had been char...

By Buth Reaksmey Kongkea DRIVERS of heavy vehicles expressed concern yesterday about the impact of a newly introduced toll along a road with numerous old bridges in Kandal province’s Sa’ang district, saying it could cut into their bottom line. On Monday, traffic police began handing out fines of between 5,000 and 10,000 riel (US$1.25-$2.50) to drivers of vehicles weighing more than 15 tonnes or carrying more than their legal capacity. The tolls cover the use of National Road 21, which had previously been free. Ty Sarith, a 29-year-old truck driver, said he had been using the road for free to transport cargo for more than three years. “I’m wondering why I’m forced to pay for this crossing. My vehicle weight is only two-and-a-half tonnes, and does not [have a significant] impact on roads or bridges in this area,” he said. He added that the new charges could make it hard to support himself. “I think that if I’m required to pay for road or bridge crossings, I will not gain benefits from...

By Buth Reaksmey Kongkea A TOTAL of 75 Cambodian nationals have been arrested in Malaysia for staying in the country illegally, officials said yesterday, updating unconfirmed reports earlier this week that 65 people had been detained. Koy Kuong, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said yesterday that the group was mostly made up of women and children, some of whom had overstayed their visas. “These Cambodian people are now being detained in one place in Malaysia,” he said. “Our embassy now is also working hard and contacting Malaysian authorities in order to bring them back to their homes in Cambodia. I hope that they will be brought back to their homes soon.” Meas Saneth, programme director for the NGO Coordination of Action Research on AIDS and Mobility, said the group – which had likely entered the country to look for work with the help of illegal brokers – was arrested by immigration police in Malaysia’s Johor province on Saturday. “My organisation is now also workin...

By Buth Reaksmey Kongkea The former chief monk of a pagoda in Kratie province’s Chhlong district was released from police custody on Wednesday after a woman he was accused of raping leapt to his defence and claimed the sex was consensual. Thim Narin, provincial coordinator of rights group Adhoc, said Wednesday that the monk – now defrocked – was detained on Tuesday after the woman’s family filed a complaint alleging he raped the woman in a rice field. Keo Pisey, chief of the provincial office of anti-human trafficking and juvenile protection, said Wednesday that after police questioned the monk and his 29-year-old “victim”, they came to the conclusion that “he and the woman really loved each other” and that the “intercourse was consensual”. “The former pagoda Buddhist monk chief was released after he confessed his deep love for the woman and agreed to marry her, with the approval of the woman and her parents,” she said. Keo Pisey said the couple met each other at Chroy Peakmeak pag...