A culture on the brink of change Anne Renzenbrink and Deborah Seccombe

Friday, 27 January 2012

Orange dirt holds to our skin, secured by the dry sweat from a day of trekking through rainforests, down dusty roads, and past rivers, waterfalls and elephants. Our allegedly English-speaking guide disappears down the hill, leaving us alone in the empty village. He returns 20 minutes later, with his family of 10 at his heels and the key to his hut.

THE ONCE-RECLUSIVE BUNONG TRIBE IN MONDULKIRI PROVINCE IS BEGINNING TO OPEN UP TO NEW TECHNOLOGY AND

DIFFERENT CULTURES. DEBORAH SECCOMBE

THE ONCE-RECLUSIVE BUNONG TRIBE IN MONDULKIRI PROVINCE IS BEGINNING TO OPEN UP TO NEW TECHNOLOGY AND

DIFFERENT CULTURES. DEBORAH SECCOMBE

CHILDREN GATHER AROUND A TELEVISION FOR KARAOKE AND SOAP OPERAS IN BURANG VILLAGE. ANNE RENZENBRINK

“Where is the toilet?” we ask. “Sorry, ma’am. The toilet is the jungle,” Ly Orm replies. Ly Orm is part of the Bunong tribe – an ethnic minority in Mondulkiri province, near the border of Vietnam, which is believed to date back 2,000 years. The 27-year-old Bunong man and his family are among 60 Bunong people living in Burang village, close to Mondulkiri’s capital Sen Monorom.

Though Ly Orm and his family are Cambodian, he is one of the few who speaks Khmer, and the only one who speaks English. The Bunong people have their own, unwritten language and their history is passed down through oral tradition. According to Ly Orm, the few Bunong elders who could write in their language died before passing on the knowledge. “All this information is being lost. The traditional ways are vanishing fast and the elders who know the tradition are very rare,” says French linguist Sylvain Vogel, who recently published a study Aspects de la Culture Traditionnelle des Bunoong du Mondulkiri. His book, published in French and Khmer, provides insight into the culture, traditions and language of one of Cambodia’s overlooked ethnic minorities. Blaise Kilian, coordinator of the Creative Industries Support Programme at the UNESCO Phnom Penh office approached Vogel to conduct the study. He says Vogel’s work is important because any form of publication on the Bunong culture is scarce compared with other “popular” topics like Angkor. Vogel studied the Bunong people for 15 years, living with them on and off during that time. “I was impressed with the diversity of Bunong traditional oral literature, as with the consistency that their culture shows. There is a way to speak with the gods, a way to speak with the dead, a way to speak when hunting in the forest,” he says. The Bunong people believe the forest is a spiritual entity, with each rock, tree and waterfall possessing a soul. Their culture strives to keep man and nature in balance. According to 23 year-old Bunong fisherman Norb, “Everything belongs to everyone in our village. When you have food you give it to me. When I have food I give it to you.” The inside of the straw hut was dark. The only source of light was a small flame from a lantern that hung above our heads. Ly Orm’s sister lit a fire in the centre of the hut and started to prepare dinner – a variety of rice with beef and yam, beef and bamboo and for the less adventurous, just plain beef. As our eyes adjusted to the darkness and the embers brightened the room, we saw more of the Bunong home. Empty rice wine jars lined the side of the hut, dried corn hung from the ceiling, pots and tools cluttered one corner and in the other sat a small, old TV and DVD player. It wasn’t long after that we heard the roar of a generator burst into life and the family flocked around the TV for karaoke and soapies. Modernity has stretched its legs into Burang village. “Nothing is how it used to be,” says Norb. Life for the Bunong people has started to change. While we rough it in a primitive straw hut, a few other houses are a step up in construction and only three to four years old. The newer homes give way to the classic house form. One entrance is painted in yellow, red and green. We ask Ly Orm if these colours are significant to the Bunong. "Yes, yes, yes… colours… yes,” he says. You be the judge. Norb is an example of modernity among the Bunong. He went to a private school in Sen Monorom to learn English and he knows how to use the internet. “I can learn everything, I can adapt,” he says, adding that young Bunong people don’t see the change as a problem. Like Norb and Ly Orm, most Bunong people wear western clothes; jeans, hoodies, sandals and beanies. Maybe we can be described as girls of comfort, but in our logic we thought toilets and running water would take precedence over western clothes and television.

“Mobile phones are used for security. Phones and TV help with communication and information. They also provide cheap entertainment. Running water and toilets were not problems in the past with abundant forest, rules for where to go to the toilet, and no big villages. The Bunong are interested in new music and films, and learning about the world, whether western or Asian,” says Has Thoeun. Has Thoeun is the associate director of International Cooperation Cambodia, an NGO which works closely with Bunong and which, it claims on its website, is “committed to serving the least-served across the Kingdom of Cambodia.” But it is not just Western influence that is making its mark. Norb says that it’s Khmer-Cambodians exploiting the land for profit. He and his cousin have just come back from fishing with empty nets. “There was still a lot of fish in my grandparent’s days, but now there is hardly any left,” he says. “When we fish, we only take as much as we need to feed the village. But when the Khmer come, they take more than they need.” Besides a shortage of fish, Norb says a lot of trees in Pu Tang have either been sucked dry of their resin or cut down. Resin is the Bunong’s most important source of cash. Because of their spiritual ties with the forest, Bunong don’t think anyone can claim ownership of the land, making them vulnerable to investors. “The environment has changed a lot in Mondulkiri and other remote provinces over the past years. Increased access due to the development of infrastructure, new investors from abroad and from the lowlands have placed Indigenous customs, languages and ways of life under strong pressure,” Killian says. The once remote and secluded minority tribe has gradually etched their way into the broader community. But while their presence is occasionally noticed, there is still a big void of communication between the Khmer and Bunong . ICC has been supporting the minority since 2001 when they launched the Research, Education and Development initiative. READ has Bunong staff on their team, thus giving them a unique connection with and insight to Bunong culture. They have been teaching the Bunong how to use the computer and internet, explaining basic health principles like sleeping under mosquito nets, and providing them with rice. Against the backdrop of these changes, Killian says the preservation of Bunong culture and way of life is under pressure. “The younger generations of the indigenous people are even more tempted by modernity. It is therefore important to document and to safeguard when possible these customs and languages as the possibility of their disappearance is real on the medium term,” he says. Vogel has written a second book on the Bunong oral tradition which will be published in February. “Nobody besides a small number of academics seems to worry about so many cultures and

languages disappearing unrecorded,” Vogel says. Some Bunong people have expressed a similar concern, saying they want to share their ways with the outside world to help preserve it. Norb says, “When the foreigners first came to our village no-one could talk to them to explain who we were and what we do. I decided to learn English so when the foreigner comes I can tell our story.” Squeak, squeak, squeak. The three-year-old Bunong son of Ly Orm’s sister runs around on a dirt patch outside his mother’s hut in western sneakers that squeak with each step. Regardless of the language barrier and the 20 year age gap, the boy is determined to gain our approval by trying to win a friendly fight with his older brother. The two tackle and charge, every now and then glancing to see if we are still captivated by them. Though fully aware of our foreign presence, in their innocence they remain unaware of the change and outside influences that are building momentum around them. The future and direction of the Bunong culture may lie in the small hands of young boys and girls like these

KRT pay freeze will linger Bridget Di Certo with additional reporting by David Boyle

Monday, 30 January 2012

Cambodian staff at the Khmer Rouge Tribunal will not be paid any salary until April at the earliest, administration directors told staff in a “town hall” meeting on Friday. Nearly all of the roughly 300 Cambodian staff employed by the tribunal gathered in the public gallery of the courtroom yesterday and were told that in addition to not receiving their January salaries, they will not be paid for another three months, tribunal public affairs officer Huy Vannak told the Post yesterday. “The Cambodian side of the court continues to face a financial crisis, and staff will not be paid starting this month,” Huy Vannack said, adding that Cambodian judges have not been paid since October 2011. “The acting director of the ECCC said that what he wants to see in the future is that when funds are received by the United Nations, these funds should be split between the Cambodian and International side of the court,” Huy Vannack said. The tribunal employees 480 staff, 180 of which are international staff whose salaries are paid by funds collected by the UN from international donors. Under the Law on the Establishment of the ECCC, expenses and salaries of Cambodian staff “shall be borne by the Cambodian national budget”; however, Huy Vannack said this has not been the practice of the court. “The Royal Government of Cambodia contributes funds for water, electricity, security, transportation of staff and outreach activities and they have been giving this funding on time,” Huy Vannack said. “The Cambodian salaries have been funded by international voluntary contributions; the government is not obliged to pay these salaries.” Anne Heindel, legal adviser at the Documentation Centre of Cambodia, said it has been common practice for Cambodian salaries to be paid from voluntary international contributions to the Cambodian government. “Donors either give money to the UN side or the Cambodian side,” Heindel said. But Huy Vannack said these international donations had “completely dried up”. “We usually receive funds annually, and normally, the director and deputy director of administration fly to New York in November to apply for donations, but right now they are still here,” he said, adding there was a tentative plan for the directors to fly to New York next month. Despite the requirement under the tribunal law for Cambodian salaries to be paid out from the national budget, an unofficial translation of the 2012 Budget Law reveals there is no provision for any funding.

Chairman of the National Assembly Finance and Banking Commission Cheam Yeap said last week the government had a separate budget for the tribunal outside the national budget, but he had not received any proposals for 2012 funding. UN-appointed Special Expert David Scheffer said during a press conference last week that it was his “job” to ensure there was adequate financial support for the tribunal. “We need to ensure that there’s that infusion of funding from relevant sources into the tribunal on a regular basis,” he said.

SRP touts senate gains Meas Sokchea and David Boyle

Monday, 30 January 2012

The Sam Rainsy Party was celebrating unofficial senate election results yesterday, claiming to have increased its number of seats in the upper house from two to 11 despite the incumbent government winning an overwhelming majority of the preliminary ballot results.

Heng Chivoan/Phnom Penh Post

Officials count votes for the national senate election yesterday at a polling station in a school in the capital’s Boeung Trabek commune.

Early results showed the SRP had won 21.93 per cent of the vote. The ruling Cambodian People’s Party dominated as expected, with 77.81 per cent after initial polling by the National Election Committee ahead of official results to be announced on Saturday. Fifty-seven of the 61 seats in the Cambodian senate are being contested in the election. Two of the remaining four will be appointed by the legislative house of parliament, the National Assembly, and the others by King Norodom Sihamoni. In a vote derided by some analysts and observers as undemocratic because its participants are limited to commune-council members rather than the public, the SRP last night claimed a modicum of success. From France, where he lives in self-imposed exile after a spate of criminal convictions in Cambodia, Sam Rainsy hailed the result as a brilliant success that was particularly meaningful because in this ballot, the SRP was pitted solely against the CPP. “Even though the election system and the broadcast media remain very biased toward the CPP . . . if we are still there and we not only maintain our presence but increase it from two to 11 when the current is against us, we must be very strong to swim against the current,” he said. “The CPP tried to buy us like hell. They have the power of money. In a poor country like Cambodia, another party would have disintegrated,” Sam Rainsy said, referring to several

alleged and one confirmed attempt by their political rivals to buy SRP votes. But in an election uncontested by all other opposition groups including Funcinpec, the Norodom Ranariddh Party and the Human Rights Party, others were less upbeat about the SRP’s gains. Son Soubert, an outspoken government critic and high privy councillor to King Norodom Sihamoni, said the preliminary results suggested the party had not fully absorbed the void left by the absence of other opposition contenders. “Well, it’s not a bad result, but it’s not enough, because the HRP did not register any candidates, but instead told their members to vote in favour of the SRP. [The SRP] should have gotten more,” he said. “If they could have 20 seats or something like that, it would be an occasion to rejoice,” he said. In Cambodia’s bicameral parliament, senators, who serve six-year terms, play a largely advisory role through committees. The senate has no power to veto or even add amendments to legislation from the National Assembly. Senior CPP lawmaker Cheam Yeap said he was not worried about SRP gains, pointing out that his party still held a two-thirds majority in the senate and the National Assembly. “This result is normal, but CPP has still won a landslide number,” Cheam Yeap said. “Don’t accuse the CPP or don’t say the election is not just any more, and don’t boycott any more.” COMFREL executive director Koul Panha said his organisation had chosen not to appoint its officers to participate in the vote because about $US500,000 had been spent on a useless election that allowed only members of political parties to vote along party lines. “Commune councillors vote for their party, what does it mean? Because they have no choice. They vote for their party, so it is meaningless. “This election system is meaningless,” he said. In total, 11,412 votes had been cast by 11,470 eligible commune officials, the NEC reported. The strongest result for the CPP – 81.45 percent – was recorded in region 7, which comprises Kampong Speu, Kampong Chhnang, Pursat, Koh Kong and Preah Sihanouk provinces, while the SRP fared best in region 1 – Phnom Penh – with 34.76 per cent of the ballot.

Twitter key in judge’s rejection Bridget Di Certo

Monday, 30 January 2012

The Supreme Council of the Magistracy is of the view that UN-nominated reserve international co-investigating judge Laurent Kasper-Ansermet is “compromising the confidentiality and integrity of investigations” and has violated judicial ethics with his use of Twitter, the council said in a summary report issued on Saturday.

Photos Supplied

Khmer Rouge tribunal reserve co-investigating judge Laurent Kasper-Ansermet (left) has been rejected from assuming his official judiciary duties with co-investigating judge You Bunleng (right).

The report, issued by the Council of Ministers’ Press and Quick Reaction Unit, states that the council met on January 13 to “vote and count the ballots concerning the proposed appointment of the International Co-Investigating Judge”. “According to the results […] the members of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy decided not to appoint Mr Laurent Kasper-Ansermet,” the report, dated January 13, stated. “Following discussion, the meeting reached the view that Judge Laurent Kasper-Ansermet’s posting of a considerable number of documents on his Twitter account concerning the ECCC, and specifically concerning cases 003 and 004 since his appointment as Reserve International Co-Investigating Judge, would appear to violate the Code of Judicial Ethics, the Internal Rules and legal principles” of the tribunal, the council said in the report. According to the report, Kasper-Ansermet’s distribution of information in the form of posting links to various news articles was in violation of several principles of the tribunal. The council said that Kasper-Ansermet’s posting of articles relating to the tribunal constituted “criticising both of his own colleagues, Co-Investigating Judges You Bunleng and Siegfried Blunk”. Bunleng and Blunk came under fire after they closed investigations into the government-

opposed Case 003 in April, without having conducted key elements of investigation such as interviewing the suspects. A mass staff walkout over the investigations ensued and Blunk abruptly resigned in October, citing perceptions of government interference in cases 003 and 004 as his motivation. “Furthermore, this distribution could have an adverse impact and cause confusion or doubts regarding [his/her] impartiality,” the council said, adding in bold font that it could also “undermine the standing and integrity of the ECCC”. Court monitor Open Society Justice Initiative’s Clair Duffy said the real concerns about independence were with the Supreme Council of the Magistracy itself. “The ECCC’s national co-prosecutor, Chea Leang, and national co-investigating judge, You Bunleng, both sit on the SCM and were part of that decision-making process,” Duffy said. “So not only did the SCM act outside its authority on this issue, there are also obvious concerns around its independence.” The Supreme Council of the Magistracy is not a proper forum to challenge the impartiality of any ECCC judge, Duffy said, adding that proper procedure was for a party to the proceedings to bring a motion for disqualification of a judge. UN-appointed Special Expert at the tribunal, David Scheffer, said in a press conference on Wednesday that the decision to appoint the judge was strictly up to the discretion of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, not the Supreme Council of the Magistracy

UN rights office and government sign pact Vincent MacIsaac

Monday, 30 January 2012

As expected, the government has extended by two years its agreement with the Office of United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights for it to have a presence here, the rights body announced late on Friday.

Heng Chivoan/Phnom Penh Post Former Representative of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Cambodia.

The government and OHCHR signed “a memorandum of understanding extending the technical cooperation program for human rights in the country by both parties for another two years”, OHCHR said in a press release. Early last year, there had been some speculation that the government would not renew its MoU with the rights body. This followed calls the previous year from Prime Minister Hun Sen that it be shut and its then country representative, Christophe Peschoux, be expelled for “acting as a spokesman for the opposition”. Peschoux left Cambodia last May, saying his departure was voluntary. The MoU expired on December 31. The new one took effect on January 1, the press release said. It did not say whether there had been any changes in its terms, and UN staff have been tight lipped when asked about possible changes to them. Ek Tha, spokesman for the Council of Ministers and deputy director of its press department, said the new MoU reaffirmed that the government “respects human rights” and “follows the path of

democracy”. “This extension of two years sends a very positive message to the international community, including the stakeholders and foreign investors that we are a democratic government,” he said. Although there had been some “misunderstanding” with NGOs critical of the government in the past, Cambodia is “a haven, a paradise for NGOs”, he added. “We regard them as friends, not foes,” he stressed. Ou Virak, president of the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights, said negotiations over the MoU lasted more than six months. Although he had not seen the new one he was confident it had not been watered down. “I’m pretty sure [staff at the rights office] would not accept the MoU unless it allowed them to do their jobs,” he said.

Uncertainty over Uighurs Mary Kozlovski with additional reporting by Cassandra Yeap

Monday, 30 January 2012

The United States is attempting to confirm recent media reports that as many as four of the 20 ethnic Uighur asylum seekers deported from Cambodia to China in 2009 have been sentenced to life in prison. “We’re seeking to confirm these reports with the Chinese,” State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland said at a press briefing on Friday, adding that the US goverment “has repeatedly called on the Chinese...to provide information on the whereabouts of all 20 of the Uighur asylum seekers”. In December 2009, 20 Uighur asylum seekers were deported to China after attempting to seek refugee status through the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Phnom Penh. They were reportedly held at the Interior Ministry on December 18 before being flown to an undisclosed location in China the following day. It was reported that a few days after the deportation, China signed off on US$1.2 billion in economic aid agreements with Cambodia. On Thursday, a Radio Free Asia report, which cited “family sources” and authorities in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region in northwestern China, stated that two asylum seekers had been sentenced to life imprisonment, and a third had received a 17-year jail sentence. The following day, an RFA report stated that a further two asylum seekers had received life sentences and another 12 had received various jail sentences, attributing the information to family sources and lawyers. US Embassy spokesperson Sean McIntosh said via email yesterday that the embassy was aware of the reports but could not provide “independent confirmation”. Yang Tianyue, spokesman for the Chinese embassy in Phnom Penh, told the Post that he had not been contacted about the matter. In a statement released on Friday, the World Uighur Congress condemned the reported sentences “in the harshest possible terms”.

S-21 survivors still struggle Vong Sokheng and Bridget Di Certo

Wednesday, 01 February 2012

As a survivor of horrific detention, interrogation and torture at Phnom Penh’s S-21 interrogation and detention facility, Chum Mey is no longer interested in the promises of long-delayed justice from the Khmer Rouge tribunal – he is interested in money.

Heng Chivoan/Phnom Penh Post Former S-21 interrogation and detention facility prisoner Chum Mey speaks in front of the Toul Sleng Genocide Museum on Monday.

“I can sell 5 to 30 magazine biographies a day,” 81-year-old Chum Mey said, squinting into the sun. “I will spend less time out at the court because the tribunal is biased towards the suspects and does not take care of the victims,” he said, adding: “I am old now and I don’t have much time to save money, therefore I have to make money from selling my story.” Chum Mey, and fellow S-21 survivor, artist Bou Meng, said they each make between US$50 and $100 profit a day selling their biographies to tourists visiting what is now the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. “I participated in the 77 days of hearing during the trial of Duch,” Chum Mey said. “But I compare my current living conditions against those of Duch – who is living in prison and has a good bed and good health care.” While the Documentation Centre of Cambodia has assisted Chum Mey to publish his biographical magazine, Khmer Rouge tribunal public affairs officer Huy Vannak penned Bou Meng’s biography, which he began selling last year around the start of Case 002. “At this former torture centre, I survived because of my paintings, and now I am surviving here by selling my biographies,” said Bou Meng, who, like the recently deceased Vann Nath, was

kept alive so that his artistic abilities could be used by the Khmer Rouge regime. Huy Vannak said he authored the book to help bring some measure of reprieve to long-suffering survivor Bou Meng. “ I am happy to see Bou Meng make some benefit from my book and to improve his living conditions in the future and as the author, I am not looking for any of his income,” Huy Vannak told the Post. When Vietnamese forces swept through Phnom Penh on January 7, 1979, they found only seven survivors shackled in the detention facility that had interrogated, tortured and ultimately executed more than 12,000 people Bou Meng and Chum Mey are the only two survivors who are still alive. While Bou Meng was kept alive by the murderous regime for his artistic abilities, Chum Mey’s clever technical skills made him a useful asset at the centre, where both were spared a deadly fate. However, sitting outside his humble book stand, Bou Meng said he feels nervous to hear talk of a sentence reduction for former S-21 chairman, Kaing Guek Eav alias Duch. Duch’s lawyers have appealed the sentence against him and have asked the tribunal to acquit their client and release him. “I no longer care about the tribunal, because that court ignores me,” Bou Meng said. The Khmer Rouge tribunal hands down its decision on Duch’s appeal this Friday.

Shooting blamed on firm May Titthara

Wednesday, 01 February 2012

Prime Minister Hun Sen yesterday threatened to fire one of his advisers, TTY Company director Na Marady, and withdraw his company’s economic land concession licence if the tycoon did not turn in security guards wanted over the shooting of villagers during a protest in Kratie on January 18.

Heng Chivoan/Phnom Penh Post

Villagers blocked road 76A, after security shooting villagers.

A provincial court official announced yesterday that security guards Koe Sovanna, 29, Yon Chhaina, 32, and Phin Oeun, 35, were wanted for questioning over the shooting. Speaking at the inauguration of national road number 76 in Mondulkiri province, Hun Sen said Na Marady had a responsibility to bring the wanted men to police and find a lawyer for them, warning that if he refused to comply, it would him being questioned. “I will fire you as PM adviser [if you do not turn them in],” Hun Sen said. “The company is not free from blame – we have to ask how the company got guns like these and who the shooters are, because we have the picture.” If TTY was found to be protecting the three men, it would be punished, he said. A TTY security guard fired an AK-47 assault rifle into a crowd of about 400 that had tried to block the company’s bulldozers from clearing their cassava plantations in Veal Bei village in Phi Thnou commune, Snuol district, on January 18. One man was left in serious condition with multiple gunshot wounds and three others were also hit by bullets. A photo later emerged of a security guard standing on machinery pointing an assault rifle at

villagers. “I regret this issue, and I regard it as a serious issue that cannot be pardoned – we’re dealing with villagers’ blood here,” Hun Sen said. “I condemn this activity and cannot pardon it. I am sorry to the victims’ families . . . it should not have happened.” In 2008, TTY was granted a more than 9,000-hectare economic land concession that included farms and homes in Veal Bei village. But last week, during a visit to Veal Bei, Environment Minister Mok Mareth promised to return the villagers’ land. Hun Sen said yesterday that he had already ordered Interior Minister Sar Kheng to arrest the security guards who fired on villagers and also urged the alleged perpetrators to hand themselves in, warning that Interpol officers would catch them if they fled abroad. Heng Sarath, deputy-general of TTY, said he did not have information about the whereabouts of the security guards. “I am investigating those who destroyed the company,” he said, adding that the security guards’ actions had resulted in the government taking back land. Hak Hoin, deputy provincial prosecutor in Kratie, said details about the case had already been sent to an investigating judge and he could confirm that the three security guards wanted for questioning were Koe Sovanna, Yon Chhaina and Phin Oeun. “The investigating judge will take a measure according to law and do more investigating to learn about their background.” The prime minister also threatened action against companies who used violence against villagers. “We will withdraw all licences from companies who received economic land concessions if they use violence,” he said. Any company given the right to develop land has a duty to ensure villagers were not mistreated and to find resolutions for those affected by development, he said. Hun Sen challenged companies to develop in areas that would force fewer people from their farmland. Ouch Leng, head of the land program for rights group Adhoc, said he welcomed the prime minister’s speech, but asked why the perpetrators were not arrested at the time of the shootings. “If the gunmen are arrested now, Hun Sen will be shown to be a justice-maker. If they are not arrested, Hun Sen’s speech will have been made for his own political benefit.”

Skin conditions, diarrhoea hit B Keila evictees

Khouth Sophakchakrya

Wednesday, 01 February 2012 Hundreds of evicted Borei Keila residents living at a relocation site in Kandal province are suffering from diarrhoea, skin ailments and fever after consecutive days of rain, an NGO doctor said yesterday.

Heng Chivoan /Phnom Penh Post Living conditions of evicted Borei Keila children at Ponhear Leu district’s Srah Po village.

Dr Nhean Sarin, a medical officer with rights group Licadho, told the Post yesterday that Borei Keila residents relocated to Ponhear Leu district’s Srah Po village in early January were also at more risk of catching malaria and cholera. “The raining over a few consecutive days caused them to develop fever, chills and diarrhoea due to them having inadequate sleep because their plastic, no-wall tents cannot stand the rain,” he said, adding that many were also suffering from a shortage of food. “We have deep empathy for these people after seeing them shaking with blankets, mosquito nets and clothes on their wet bodies.” Hul Srey Neang, 23, who was evicted from Borei Keila and moved to the relocation site, told the Post yesterday that she had developed a urinary infection after drinking and using water from a pumping well that development firm Phan Imex had built for residents. “The medical staff from Licadho said they would pay for me to seek treatment at Cambodian-Russian Friendship Hospital, but I cannot leave because the company has not measured land for me yet,” she said.

Another resident, Ros Sokhea, 29, is suffering from similar complaints after drinking the same water. “I don’t know what liquid is in the well, but when I used it for drinking and cooking food it made my stomach ache and I got diarrhoea, and I am itchy when I take a bath,” she said. Touch Khorn, 49, a representative of the evicted Borei Keila residents, said water in the pumping well was contaminated and the residents didn’t have a clean-water tank as an alternative. The site is full of flies, mosquitoes and without a toilet, causing villagers to “defecate anywhere, which makes the environment at the site worse and worse”, he said. Touch Khorn said that officials from Licadho, Adhoc and the United Nations visit to check resident’s health every three days and provide food, water and some medicines. “We are facing many difficulties because we don’t have suitable houses and enough food,” he said. “Eleven families with HIV/AIDs are living hard lives because they lack medicines and are constantly exposed to hot weather.” Dr Nhean Sarin, said he and other officials had brought some medicines, noodles, rice, fish sauce and oil for residents and had treated 79 people. Phan Imex company owner Suy Sophan could not be reached for comment.

Vietnam relationship back in KRT spotlight Mary Kozlovski

Wednesday, 01 February 2012

Former Khmer Rouge Brother No 2 Nuon Chea testified yesterday that he was “concerned” for the future of his country because of what he claimed were territorial ambitions of Vietnam, echoing earlier testimony in describing the situation as “a snake which tries to suffocate a rabbit”.

ECCC POOL

Former Khmer Rouge Brother No 2 Nuon Chea attends court.

Under questioning from his co-defence counsel, Michiel Pestman, about his early life, Nuon Chea said he did not know “what the future will hold” for Cambodia. The 85-year-old defendant said that while in the past the two countries had cooperated, the “Vietnamese were regarded as enemies because they had the ambition to swallow Kampuchean territory”, Nuon Chea said. “They were just ready and prepared to swallow us, even at present.” Trial Chamber president Nil Nonn asked that Nuon Chea respond only to questions that were asked of him and stay within the confines of the first “mini-trial” of Case 002. During evidence hearings in December last year, Nuon Chea testified that Vietnam had attempted to “swallow” Cambodia, in comments that prompted criticisms from civil parties and court observers. Student Chhoeun Vathana, 17, who attended yesterday’s hearing, said he had been told that people from Cambodia and Vietnam had never liked each other. “I heard from my grandfather that Khmer and Vietnam never liked each other,” he said. “They always had arguments and sometimes they fought.”

Nuon Chea also testified that he had been in contact with current National Assembly President Heng Samrin and Senate President Chea Sim – both former Khmer Rouge cadre before fleeing to Vietnam to join the resistance against the regime – after he returned to Cambodia in the pre-1975 period. Under earlier questioning from civil party lawyer Barnabé Nékuie, Nuon Chea said people who lived and worked in cooperatives in the countryside were not permitted to leave. “If they were to live in the cooperatives they could not go anywhere, they would stay and live and work in the cooperatives,” he said. Nuon Chea testified on Monday that he was not responsible for cooperatives organised by the Khmer Rouge.

Cruel attack on woman first under new acid law

Mom Kunthear with additional reporting by Mary Kozlovski

Thursday, 02 February 2012 A 23-year-old garment factory worker on Tuesday night became the first victim of an acid attack since a law was passed last year to better control access to acid and punish those who use it to attack others.

Photo Supplied/Phnom Penh Post Rith Savan recovers in a hospital bed yesterday after being the victim of an acid attack the previous night.

Rith Savan had been doused with acid by another woman about 8pm in her room in the Tuol Sangke commune, in the capital’s Russei Keo district, police said. Tuol Sangke commune police chief Huy Hean said the victim was rushed to Calmette hospital for treatment. “Almost every part of her body was burned by acid: her face, chest, stomach and legs,” he said. Torn Puth, the victim’s mother, arrived from her village in Battambang province’s Banan district yesterday morning to comfort her daughter, but became overwhelmed with grief herself. “I was shocked. When I saw my daughter, I was overwhelmed with pity,” Torn Puth said. “Only a truly cruel person could have done that to my daughter. I want whoever did it arrested and punished.” Huy Hean said the attack had been carried out by a woman who was familiar with the victim. The suspect had entered the victim’s room while she was alone, carrying a bowl of acid hidden in a black plastic bag.

Rith Savan was sitting on the floor at the time and her door had been unlocked, Huy Hean said. The suspect called her name, and when Rith Savan turned to look at her, she tossed the acid on her, he said. Torn Puth said the assailant targeted her daughter’s face, and the acid dripped from her face on to the rest of her body. Huy Hean said police were unsure of the motive for the attack because the victim was now unable to see and speak because of her burns. “We are investigating the attack and will arrest the suspect,” he said. “We know the suspect is female, but I cannot tell you more than that.” Torn Puth said her daughter was able to speak, but could not do so in sentences. It was physically painful for her to move her lips and she could speak only one word, then wait a while to say another. She was able to say that the suspect had no real reason for attacking her, Torn Puth said. “My daughter and the suspect know each other, but they were not close friends,” Torn Puth explained. “One day, I received the phone call from the suspect, who I just know by the name ‘Kha’. “She asked me to take my daughter back home because she had fallen in love with her husband. Then she hung up the phone. “I told my daughter about the phone call and she called the woman, but her sister answered the phone. “Then my daughter told her to tell her sister not to spread lies and warned her that she could be jailed if she did. “I don’t believe my daughter loved the other woman’s husband. I will not allow the suspect to live freely. She must be punished by the law.” The Acid Law was passed in November by the National Assembly and signed by King Norodom Sihamoni on December 21. It imposes harsh sentences for acid attacks, including up to 20 years in prison for “torture and cruel acts” using acid and up to five years in prison for “intentional violence” using acid. According to the Cambodian Acid Survivors Charity, the number of acid attacks fell from 19 in 2010 to 10 last year, four of which occurred in Phnom Penh. Ziad Samman, project manager at the NGO, said a man had been injured with acid accidentally in Kampong Cham province last month, but the Tuol Sangke incident was the first attack. “We’ve made contact with the victim and her family,” he said.

“The burns cover quite a large area of her body.” Another CASC staff member said the charity had offered the victim treatment at its centre. Ouk Kimlek, under-secretary of state at the Interior Ministry and deputy director of the committee that drafted the law, said it would be up to the court to decide how long the perpetrator was jailed.

DC-Cam director vouces for docs Mary Kozlovski

Thursday, 02 February 2012

Youk Chhang, director of the Documentation Centre of Cambodia, testified at the Khmer Rouge tribunal yesterday that the organisation’s archives were accessible to all parties at the court, including defence teams that have recently claimed the organisation is biased.

Will Baxter/Phnom Penh Post

Youk Chhang, director of the Documentation Centre of Cambodia, pictured last month at Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, took the stand at the ECCC yesterday.

Under questioning from senior assistant co-prosecutor Tarik Abdhulhak, Youk Chhang said that since 2006, prosecution, defence and civil party lawyers had been allocated days during which they could conduct research at DC-Cam. “They may ask questions or sometimes they hold their internal discussions and if they have any questions for us, then they will put questions to me,” he said. “The documents that we have indicate that they are the documents belonging to the Democratic Kampuchea period, based on the content, the physical appearance, the source of the document.” Under earlier questioning from the prosecution, Youk Chhang said he could immediately identify a “Khmer Rouge document”. “The language is so specific, it is not that difficult to distinguish, or to have to have a doctoral degree, to distinguish this type of document,” he said. “Reading documents is like having breakfast for me.” In recent evidence hearings, defence teams have suggested that DC-Cam’s research is biased against the defendants in Case 002, and have requested that Youk Chhang be called to testify.

Civil party lead co-lawyer Elisabeth Simmoneau Fort later questioned Youk Chhang about a statement he gave to investigators in 2009, in which he said he had received “veiled threats” in 1999 that led him to “put a pause” on his research. Michael Karnavas, co-defence counsel for Ieng Sary, objected that the question was “non-relevant”. The Trial Chamber, however, allowed Youk Chhang to answer the question, to which he responded that his sister was told to inform him to stop “conducting these activities”, but that he had refused. DC-Cam was established as an independent NGO in 1997 and has provided about 500,000 documents to parties at the ECCC. Defence teams will begin questioning Youk Chhang in court today.

Evictees detained again Khouth Sophak Chakrya with additional reporting by Shane Worrell

Thursday, 02 February 2012

Five former Borei Keila women who escaped from the Prey Speu social affairs centre last month after being detained without charge were among six arrested when a protest turned violent in Phnom Penh yesterday.

VILLAGERS FROM BOREI KEILA, SEVERAL OF WHOM WERE DETAINED AT THE PREY SPEU SOCIAL AFFAIRS CENTRE, CLASH

WITH POLICE OUTSIDE PHNOM PENH’S CITY HALL YESTERDAY. PHA LINA

FEMALE PROTESTERS SCUFFLE WITH AUTHORITIES BEFORE SEVERAL OF THEM WERE ARRESTED YESTERDAY. PHA LINA

SEVERAL OF THE PROTESTERS FROM BOREI KEILA ARE PUSHED INTO A POLICE VEHICLE AFTER BEING ARRESTED. PHA LINA

Women shouted at officials and two tore off their clothes and bared their breasts as more than 50 female evictees from Borei Keila and Boeung Kak blocked traffic outside the city hall on Preah Monivong Boulevard in a bid to have municipal governor Kep Chutema listen to them. Their requests were familiar – they wanted officials to resolve their land disputes through proper housing or compensation and release seven Borei Keila evictees who have been detained in Prey Sar prison since January 3, when more than 200 homes were demolished at Borei Keila. Yesterday’s protest turned violent when Daun Penh district governor Sok Sambath ordered security forces to arrest protesters using the ratio of “five [security guards or police] to each woman”. Guards in blue uniforms were the first to use force, followed by police, who rushed to restrain women – some of them frail or elderly – and dragged or carried them to a municipal police truck. Some of the women ran away in fright as others fought with police and security guards. One woman fainted after a struggle with officials, while a security guard passed out after receiving a blow to the groin. Five of the six women arrested had been detained in a similar protest on January 11 and held without charge at Prey Speu social affairs centre before climbing the walls and escaping a week later. The other woman arrested was a former resident of Boeung Kak. Among those police tried to detain was Chum Ghan, an evictee of Borei Keila. She escaped the clutches of police and disappeared into the crowd of screaming protesters, but later told the Post she had been injured during the scuffle and expected she would be arrested. “In spite of a crackdown from the police, we will keep protesting until we receive a proper resolution from the municipal authority,” she said.

Earlier, the women had gathered with their letter of requests and an intervention paper from Heng Samrin, president of the national assembly. Villagers said Heng Samrin had signed a complaint from them on January 19 requesting that Kep Chutema find a resolution to the dispute. The women’s banners showed images of development firm Phan Imex’s machinery destroying their homes at Borei Keila last month, and they repeated calls for the company to finish the final two of 10 buildings it had agreed in 2003 to construct. Chan Soveth, an investigator for the human-rights group Adhoc, said the authorities’ constant use of violence to break up protests was an abuse of the villagers’ rights. “We are really disappointed when the authorities use violence,” he said. Sia Phearum, the secretariat director of the Housing Rights Task Force, shared this view. Kiet Chhe, city hall deputy administration chief, declined to answer questions put to him about the arrests. “I have two eyes and you have two eyes, so what I saw you also saw,” he said. Earlier, more than 100 former Boeung Kak residents, who agreed to accept US$8,500 in compensation, gathered to demand more money, claiming they could only afford to buy land but not houses to build. Many, however, had left for home by the time the main protest began. The Phnom Penh municipality released a statement yesterday criticising the former Boeung Kak protesters for asking for another $20,000 per family. “They violated their agreement,” the statement reads. SRP lawmaker Mu Sochua condemned the treatment of the protesters and said authorities should have listened to Prime Minister Hun Sen’s speech the day before, in which he ordered an end to violent land disputes. “This is exactly what he is speaking about,” she said. The arrested women were being targeted by Phan Imex and protesters were being ignored, Mu Sochua said. “This is continued harassment that is an attempt to keep them silent.” But Mu Sochua doubted harassment would deter villagers and cited Boeung Kak evictees as an example of people who had remained strong despite losing their houses and land. “Their spirit is stronger than ever,’’ she said. “Who in the government has ever spoken to these protesters? There has been a total lack of accountability.”

MFIs still seeing significant growth May Kunmakara

Thursday, 02 February 2012

Outstanding loans and deposits in 28 of Cambodia’s microfinance institutions rose between 30 and 40 per cent year-on-year in 2011, official data from the Cambodian Microfinance Association indicated. The CMA’s data showed outstanding loans rose 41.5 per cent from US$916.3 million with 1.3 million borrowers in 2011, compared to $647.8 million with 1.22 million borrowers a year earlier. Deposits grew by 32 per cent to $1.26 billion with 1.1 million depositors, compared to $952.2 million with 36,776 borrowers in 2010. MFIs in the Kingdom first began to take deposits in early 2010. Non-performing loans (NPL) declined from 1.3 per cent of the loan total to 0.4 per cent. Officials and insiders said a strong macro-economy performance and clear regulations were responsible for the shift. National Bank of Cambodia director general and spokeswoman Ngoun Sokha recognised the favourable direction the economy was heading, especially in the agricultural sector, which she believed was responsible for the rising demand for loans. “The government supports the agricultural sector, especially the export of milled rice. So we promoted the adoption of MFI loans for agriculture and actually received a lot of growth in that area, adding up to more than 50 per cent of all loans,” she said. Bun Mony, director of CMA and chairman of Sathapana Microfinance, told the Post that loan portfolios at Sathapana rose about 65 per cent to $94.6 million compared to $57 million in 2010. The number of borrowers grew from from 43,565 to 55,001. “There was a high demand for loans as business activities continue to grow, and we don’t even seem to have any problems with repayment,” he said, adding that the NPL rate declined to from 0.93 per cent to 0.22 last year. Sathapana provides loans to all sectors, with 40 per cent going to retail and small businesses, and more than 20 per cent to the agricultural sector. The country’s biggest MFI, Prassac Microfinance, reported that by December 2011 its gross loan portfolio was $151 million, an increase of 43.6 per cent, with active borrowers increasing 10.9 per cent to 125,127. “In general, I think that the industry performed well last year because all MFIs grew their portfolios while the NPL rate decreased,” Sim Senacheert, president and CEO of Prassac, said. Prassac loans to the agricultural sector accounted for 33 per cent of its total portfolio, with trading and service making up 47 per cent. Hout Ieng Tong, general director of Hattha Kaksekar Microfinance, reported that loan portfolios rose 70 per cent to $75 million with 62,703 borrowers, from $44 million with 47,952 borrowers the year pior.

He added that NPL declined from 0.9 to 0.07 per cent, and that agricultural loans accounted for 35 per cent of total stocks at his compay. Sathapana Microfinance’s total deposits rose 129.4 per cent from $39 million to $17 million, while Hattha Kaksekar’s total deposits grew more than 160 percent to reach $15.78 million compared with only $5 million the year before. Prassac reported smaller increases, as its operations just began in mid-2011. The successes are tempered, however, by the uncertain economical fates of the EU and US, where much of the industry gets its primary funding. “We are a bit worried,” said Bun Mony. “We see the EU in a crisis, and think there could be some slight impact on us, specifically regarding investments.” Ngoun Sokha suggested a solution, saying, “We try to teach MFIs good governance, and to strengthen their internal capacity for infrastructure, so that they will be able to easily seek a source of funds domestically rather than just looking abroad

Opening Doors tour launches in Kampot Deborah Seccombe

Thursday, 02 February 2012

A series of music concerts by local and international artists will provide free music performances and cultural entertainment to underprivileged people living in Cambodia’s rural areas from February 4 to 11. The Opening Doors tour aims to “bring the music to the people” who would not otherwise have access to live music or cultural activities. “All we want to do is bring entertainment and cultural activities to people in the provinces who can’t afford to enjoy it,” Marcel Crompvoets, who helped organise the tour, says. The first Opening Doors concert will be at Kampot Music School for Disabled and Orphaned Children, run by the Khmer Cultural Development Institute. Local musician Kong Boran, son of traditional musician Kong Nay, will play the chepai, a Cambodian two-stringed, long-necked guitar. Conrad Keely, lead singer of the US band And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead, will perform acoustic versions of folk, rock and punk classics with the Kampot Playboys. “There's a lot of passion and love by the artists who do it. Our artists who participate do it for free, and the international artists pay the way for the Cambodian musicians,” Keely says. Students from the school will get a chance to perform classical Khmer music and dance. “They are very excited, calling me every day and checking to see if we’re still coming,” Crompvoets says. Other musicians in the villages will be given an opportunity to perform at the shows. “We invite and encourage them all to perform, so we never know if a show is going to be two hours or five hours long.” Crompvoets says he was encouraged to take Opening Doors into the province once more after a successful tour in November with the Canadian performance group Corpus. Corpus performed its award-winning play Les Moutons to several villages and orphanages in the countryside. “More than 600 people showed up and stayed for the entire performance. There was so much joy from the villagers, who rarely have access to cultural activities.” After Kampot, Kong Boran and Conrad Keely will travel to Chamkar Bey village, in the Phnom Voar region. The last three shows will be held at villages in Kompong Chhnang province.

Borei Keila and Boeung Kak women freed Khouth Sophakchakrya

Friday, 03 February 2012

Authorities yesterday released the six Borei Keila and Boeung Kak women who were arrested in a violent protest outside Phnom Penh city hall on Wednesday.

Khouth Sophak Chakrya/Phnom Penh Post

Evicted Borei Keila women, including Ngin Sarith, were given roses and showered with water yesterday after being released from police custody.

The women’s freedom was secured in an agreement signed by eight of their supporters and authorities after about 30 women gathered to protest outside the municipal court yesterday morning. Touch Vanna, 50, a representative of the women, said Kiet Chhe, deputy chief of city administration, had agreed to release the women if they stopped their “illegal” protesting, which “spoiled public order, tradition and the dignity of women”. Two women tore off their clothes and bared their breasts during Wednesday’s protest as more than 50 others blocked traffic outside city hall on Preah Monivong Boulevard. Violent scenes followed as police dragged women into a nearby van. “We came to an agreement about this problem and we will face the full force of the law if we do not respect it,” Touch Vanna said yesterday. However, they would continue to demand development firm Phan Imex construct two more buildings – as promised in 2003 – and push authorities to release seven evictees detained in Prey Sar prison since violent clashes at Borei Keila on January 3. “We told Kiet Chhe and some officials in the meeting that we will continue to protest if the Phnom Penh authority and the company don’t provide us houses,” she said.

Five of the arrested women are Borei Keila evictees who were detained on January 11 and held without charge at the Prey Speu socials affairs centre, while the sixth woman is a former Boeung Kak resident. One of the women released yesterday said the six had been ordered not to phone their relatives or journalists while in custody. “I told those police officers that we were just protesting because Phan Imex and 7 Makara district officials destroyed our houses,” she said. Kiet Chhe, deputy chief of administration at Phnom Penh municipality, was not available for comment yesterday.

Duch sentenced to life in prison Bridget Di Certo

Friday, 03 February 2012

The man who ran the Khmer Rouge regime’s “factory of death” will spend the rest of his life behind bars.

KANG GUEK EAV, ALIAS DUCH, PICTURED AT THE ECCC IN JULY 2010, WHERE HE WAS SENTENCED TO TO 35 YEARS

IMPRISONMENT, HAD HIS PRISON SENTENCE INCREASED TO LIFE IN AN APPEAL RULING TODAY BY THE KHMER ROUGE TRIBUNAL’S HIGHEST JUDICIARY CHAMBER. ECCC POOL

SUN THARY, A PLAINTIFF IN CASE 001, IS OVERCOME WITH GRIEF YESTERDAY DURING A CEREMONY AT TUOL SLENG. HENG

CHIVOAN

PORTRAITS OF VICTIMS WHO PERISHED AT THE INFAMOUS S-21 PRISON. HENG CHIVOAN

Kaing Guek Eav, alias Duch, prison chief at the notorious S-21 detention facility, had his prison sentence increased to life in an appeal ruling today by the Khmer Rouge tribunal’s highest judiciary chamber. “In the Supreme Court Chamber’s view, [Duch’s] leadership role and particular enthusiasm in the commission of his crimes are aggravating factors that should be given significant weight in the determination of his sentence,” Supreme Court Chamber president Kong Srim read from a summary of the judgment yesterday, adding that the “particularly shocking and heinous character” of his crimes over an “extended period of time … undoubtedly place this case among the gravest before international criminal tribunals.” Duch had originally been sentenced to 35 years in prison by the Trial Chamber, of which he was slated to serve about 19 years behind bars. However, the Supreme Court Chamber today said that undue weight had been given to mitigating factors, such as Duch’s expressions of remorse and cooperation, and replaced the penalty with a life sentence. The Chamber ruled that Duch has served 12 years and 269 days of his sentence so far, including time he was illegally detained by the Cambodian Military Court from May 1999, as his detention there was for “broadly similar” reasons as his ultimate conviction. Civil parties who appealed the Trial Chamber’s decision will be disappointed with the Supreme Court Chamber’s decision to not grant any additional reparations requests. The Chamber adopted in full the Trial Chamber’s decision on reparations.

Duch, who was present in the docks, listened attentively to the pronouncement of the Supreme Court Chamber, and bowed his head, raising both hands in a prayer at the conclusion of the judges’ statement. The pronouncement of the appeal decision in Duch’s case signals the conclusion of the tribunal’s landmark first case.

Move ‘worries’ Prey Lang reps Mom Kunthear

Friday, 03 February 2012

More than 100 conservation activists from across four provinces are “worried” about a recent government sub-decree aimed at protecting Prey Lang forest, claiming the measure lacks broad input and will not prevent illegal logging in the area. The representatives of the Prey Lang network, a group that advocates for the protection of the forest, met earlier this week to discuss a sub-decree establishing the Prey Lang forest as a conservation area. Network member Seng Sok Heng said yesterday that the group “found some points that we don’t like, such as the fact that the Prey Lang communities were not invited to join discussions of the sub-decree, and some articles are unclear”. The network also claimed the proposed conservation area excluded a large swath of land dense with rosewood trees, and therefore would not be effective in preventing illegal logging. The advocates also took issue with the fact that the sub-decree prohibits villagers from collecting vines and roots from the forest. Yem Sokhouy, a member of the Prey Lang network from Stung Treng province, said more than 10,000 residents from more than 300 villages earn a living from the forest by collecting such items for medicinal use. Following the two-day meeting, the network sent a letter to Chan Sarun, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, outlining its feedback. “We…demand three points from the ministry and the government: the government must include civil society and villagers in the discussion, it must stop providing land concessions in Prey Lang to private companies, and it must create a larger area of coverage,” Seng Sok Heng said. “We are worried about this sub-decree,” he added. MAFF Minister Chan Sarun could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Returning maids have horrific tale Sen David and David Boyle

Friday, 03 February 2012

A Cambodian maid who reportedly gave birth in prison to a child conceived after she was kidnapped and raped in Malaysia, returned with her baby and 11 other alleged victims of vicious abuse yesterday.

Pha Lina/Phnom Penh Post

One of the 12 maids who returned home from Malaysia yesterday, where they claimed they were physically abused and raped.

The sobbing, visibly traumatised women arrived at Phnom Penh International Airport yesterday, one in a wheelchair because she was too weak to walk. At least two had escaped attempted rapes while others were beaten and worked almost non-stop before they were thrown in prison as illegal immigrants, rights groups Licadho and the Cambodian Legal Education Centre said yesterday. An 18-year-old victim recounted how she was repeatedly raped over a two-month period by a man after escaping from an abusive employer about 10 months ago, and then arrested when police raided the perpetrator’s house because her passport had been confiscated. “She stayed in prison for seven months…the police kept her in prison until she delivered the baby,” he said, adding she was allowed to give birth in a medical facility before being taken back to prison. When another of the women, who escaped an attempted rape, took the matter to a Malaysian court, she was promised legal support by the Cambodian embassy which never materialised and was thrown in prison for immigration violations, he said. Officials from the Cambodian embassy in Malaysia were not available for comment.

Article 25 of Malaysia’s 2007 Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act protects victims of trafficking from criminal prosecution for immigration offences, though in practice these provisions are frequently not applied. Muhammad Sha’Ani Bin Abdullah, a commissioner at the independent Malaysia Human Rights Commission, said foreign trafficking victims were “not in safe hands” if they went to his country’s police, which treated them like criminals. “We would actually recommend that police are cut out of these matters. The Human Rights Commission is very unhappy about the situation, with repeated denials by police but repeated incidences of criminal activity,” he said. Orn Srey Neang, 24, from Kampong Speu province, said it was like hell working for her employer, who let her sleep for only three hours per day. “They ordered me to work so much. There was no time for resting or eating. I only ate spoiled food each day. I am also human, so why they did they give me spoiled food? I could not endure,” she said. Bowing her head and crying, Chan Thy, 23, thanked the government, and their NGO partners – the International Organisation for Migration and the International Red Cross – for saving her from an employer and agency that hadn’t paid a cent of her salary. “I had no rights. They considered me as a slave,” she said. Chhiv Phally, deputy of the Ministry of Interior’s anti-human trafficking and juvenile protection department, said the victims were now being interviewed by police and would soon return to their families. “During interviews, they said they had escaped from their employer’s house after labour abuses,” he said, urging Cambodian girls not to rush into job opportunities abroad.