Neokhmer newsletter to Sihanouk : Regretfully (2005-Feb-11)          Dear Mr Sihanouk:          With all due respects to an elder. What will you like people to remember about you? Even more so, which legacy of yours will you like to chronicle in permanent history of Kambuja, as you had called it? Khmer people especially those who survived the satanic butcher DK regime and then the Viet occupation still feel that you had not come out with the whole truth on those Khmer Rouge leaders whom you had staunchly condemned in the 60's but in the 70's you passionately embraced every chance you've gotten. (...) Those who stood against you and your KR were wiped out after the victorious liberation day. People fell down for your namesake and thousands in proud military uniforms voluntarily walked into the firing squad lines in Battambang Province. (...) The world knew that you were the GRUNK / FUNK and then DK supreme leader. I find it rather a bald hypocrisy you claimed you had done nothing wrong. (...) People seem to forgive you every chance they've got but you have not yet done your duty in return, "speaking the truth." You would like people to paternalistically revere you.

           Ly Diep : Click here for Neokhmer Newsletter where you can see photos of Sihanouk in Beijing and in Cambodia jungle with Pol Pot, Khieu Samphan, Huy Nim, ... in the 1970s. Also pictures of Sihanouk, Khieu Samphan and Son Sann as leaders of the Tripartite Coalition in the 1980s. And more...

CPP officials fear US sanctions (2005-Feb-06)
         Khmerintelligence.org : One of the sanctions from the US Administration that CPP leaders and officials fear most is a possible visa ban that would prevent them and their families from entering the United States. As previously pointed out, the USA has been the favorite destination for members of Cambodia's establishment traveling abroad for pleasure, who have bought properties there [Hun Sen has bought a property at Long Island, in the State of New York], and who would like to see their children study in American schools, colleges and universities. The White House's decision on 12 January 2004 "to suspend entry as immigrants or non-immigrants of persons engaged in or benefiting from corruption" was bad news for corrupt government officials and their families that form Cambodia's insolent elite.

Former CPP Prime Minister supports US Senator (2005-Feb-06)
         K.I. : In a today's statement, former CPP Prime Minister Pen Sovann (1979-1981) says he supports US Senator Mitch MacConnel, who has recently condemned the lifting of three Cambodian opposition lawmakers' parliamentary immunity and asked for sanctions against the current Phnom Penh government.

Hun Sèn : M. Rainsy est grand supporteur de Mme. Aung San Suu Kyi mais n'est pas aussi courageux que cette dernière. Il aurait dû rester à Phnom Penh et laisser les juges décider. Sam Rainsy : Pourquoi coucher en prison? Ranariddh lui-même a pris la poudre d'escampette chaque fois! Ranariddh : Holà! Attention! Le roi khmer actuel est Sihamoni, petit-fils de Mme. Pomme, une Vietnamienne de Saïgon!

         PHNOM PENH (AFP) - Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy left the country and one of his deputies was arrested after parliament stripped them of immunity from prosecution in a vote that drew swift US condemnation, party officials said. Sam Rainsy, who faces defamation suits including one from Prime Minister Hun Sen and his ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) for accusing the premier of plotting to kill him, was seen boarding a flight around 12:30 pm (0530 GMT). His final destination was unknown, although, the flight was said to be going to Singapore. His deputy Cheam Channy was arrested about six hours later and taken to a military court, party spokesman Ung Bun Ang said.
         The government has accused the MP of allegedly building an army as part of a coup plot, which analysts have dismissed as extremely unlikely. Sam Rainsy's departure and Cheam Channy's arrest came soon after Cambodia's parliament voted behind closed doors to strike down rules protecting them and a third politician from prosecution, clearing the way for the three to face charges, Hun Sen said. Sam Rainsy briefly attended the session of parliament and told reporters he was "not worried at all about this case," but his party said he left Cambodia later in the morning. It was not revealed when he planned to return. He has said he feared arrest if his immunity was lifted.
         Hun Sen meanwhile said parliament had voted to lift the immunity of the leader of the Sam Rainsy Party and two of his deputies, but insisted this did not mean they would necessarily be convicted. "Parliament withdrew their immunity because they have violated the rights of others," Hun Sen said. "Withdrawing their immunity does not mean they will be convicted, but it opens the way for the courts to proceed with the case, following legal procedures." he said. Cambodian courts are notoriously corrupt. Hours after the vote, Sam Rainsy Party secretary general Eng Chhay Eang told AFP that the politician had left the country to draw international attention to the issue. "Sam Rainsy left this morning to go abroad," he said. "He is going to let the donor community know what is happening here. This shows that Cambodia's parliament is not democratic." The party called the parliamentary vote "a sad day for democracy in Cambodia," and condemned Cheam Channy's arrest, saying the warrant was illegally issued.
         The US embassy also condemned the vote, calling it "a major setback to democracy." "We are deeply concerned that the National Assembly has chosen to occupy itself with political activity that appears designed to silence the opposition," it said in a statement. Sam Rainsy enjoys strong support from leading US lawmakers. The royalist FUNCINPEC party, led by national assembly president Prince Norodom Ranariddh, has filed defamation suits against Sam Rainsy and fellow lawmaker Chea Poch for alleging that Ranariddh accepted bribes before joining Hun Sen's coalition government. Ranariddh's decision to join Hun Sen's government in July 2004 ended a year of feuding among politicians, after months of covert talks. His joining the government resolved a deadlock caused by inconclusive 2003 elections, which left Hun Sen without enough seats to form a government.
         In addition, Sam Rainsy alone faces a five-million-dollar defamation suit launched in January 2004 by Hun Sen and the CPP, for accusing the premier of planning to kill him and four other prominent figures. Sam Rainsy made the claim one week after the assassination of top union boss Chea Vichea, who was gunned down in Phnom Penh in January 2004. Hun Sen did not say how the decision would immediately affect Sam Rainsy and his two MPs but suggested the legal proceedings that had been launched against them could carry forward. Sam Rainsy was a finance minister after FUNCINPEC's success in the 1993 elections, but he was expelled and became Hun Sen's most vocal critic.

Beijing reaches out to rest of world (2005-Jan-30)
         By William Ickes in Davos, Switzerland : CHINA'S Deputy Prime Minister told global leaders overnight that his country could not fully develop on its own, saying Beijing saw a socialist market economy as being far from perfect. In a widely anticipated address to power brokers and business leaders from almost all continents, Huang Ju said China "cannot develop itself in seclusion and the world cannot develop without China's development". He said Beijing would allow the yuan to float freely on foreign exchange markets following an unspecified period of preparation, and urged investors to set up shop in the country. "A more open and prosperous China will not only benefit its 1.3 billion people but also provide considerable investment opportunities and a vast market for other countries, so being a powerful engine for world economic growth."
         China's average growth rate of 9.4 per cent from 1979 to 2003 has cooled only slightly since, and countries from the United States to South Africa and South Korea are keen to see how official policies will affect their own growth prospects. The deputy PM appealed frankly to foreign investors, saying: "The socialist market economy system has been basically viewed in China as far from perfect. "The Chinese Government warmly welcomes and encourages foreign investment in high tech industries, modern agriculture, modern services, environment." He promised continued improvement in the investment environment and  legal system, protection for intellectual property rights, and  increased access to the country's massive pool of potential consumers. "China will as always honour its commitments on its accession to the World Trade Organisation, further improve its economic rules and regulations and open up more areas," he said.
         Earlier this week, the Chinese Government received strong praise from US software giant Bill Gates, who told an informal meeting that China had created "a brand new form of capitalism, and as a consumer it's the  best thing that ever happened". "This generation of leaders is so smart, so capable, from the top down, particularly from the top down," Mr Gates said, pointing to a process of rotating top civil servants on a merit basis through universities so they could "really think about state allocation of resources and the welfare of the country". In his speech, Mr Huang said an important experience in China's modernisation drive "is that the government should try to satisfy the  people in all its endeavors and maintain harmony and stability". Rural areas and Muslim inhabited regions in western China have been identified by observers as places where Beijing could face problems if economic development does not keep pace with cities close to the coast. "We will provide more financial and policy support to rural areas and western regions and gradually narrow the gap between the urban and rural areas and between different regions," the influential minister said.
         He was also careful to reassure regional neighbours and the rest of the world that China had only peaceful intentions regardless of how strong it became. "China's development will by no means pose a threat to other countries. It is our set policy that we will not menace others even when we are developed." Turning to foreign exchange rates, the Chinese minister said the renmimbi, or yuan, would be allowed to float freely once market mechanisms, financial systems and all parts of the country were prepared. "We'll have a phased or step-by-step method to relax the restraints on the cross border trade of currency and gradually realise the convertibility of the renmimbi," he said. "We do not have a specific timetable for the exchange rate regime." Officials would also choose an appropriate time to avoid market speculation, but the Chinese leader pledged: "We will gradually and steadfastly press ahead with this undertaking."

Moto-ambulance cambodgienne (2005-Jan-26)          Romduol, Svay Rieng : Ruos Sarin, 36 ans, paysan sans rizière ni boeufs, aide à construire des maisons juste pour des repas quotidiens. Le 20 janvier, il est tombé du toit, fait une chute de 3 mètres et perd connaissance. On le transporte à l'hôpital de Svay Rieng. L'hôpital n'a ni radiologue ni chirurgien pour traiter un traumatisme cranien et doit envoyer le blessé à Phnom Penh. Mais le transport par ambulance coûte 80 $U.S., ce que Ruos Sarin et sa famille ne peut payer. On a dû alors ramener le blessé à la maison en le mettant sur une moto à trois, le corps attaché au conducteur, les jambes liées à la moto, le troisième passager monté à l'arrière soutenant le patient et tenant ... le paquet de sérum. Deux touristes étrangers, témoins de la scène, secouent leurs têtes avec compassion et disent que les autorités ne prennent pas leurs responsabilités vis-à-vis des indigents, et qu'ils n'ont jamais vu un blessé traité en animal comme ici.

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