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Government, Groups Brace For Vote on NGO Law
With CPP lawmakers expected to pass a highly controversial law regulating NGOs and associations Monday, City Hall said Sunday that it would use “many measures” to ensure that protesters are not able to rally outside the National Assembly.
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Transparency Watchdog Deals Discounts To Fight Corruption
WASHINGTON—Transparency International Cambodia has launched a new campaign to encourage citizens to fight corruption, issuing a card that provides discounts with more than 100 companies to people who vow to work against the practice. The card includes a hotline to report corruption that its holders may face and is issued in exchange for a pledge. Before being issued the card, a person must vow not to pay or seek bribes; to actively work to curtail corruption; and to support for political office only those who demonstrate integrity. “With the new initiative, we are allowing Cambodian people to use the anti-corruption card, individually and collectively,” Preap Kol, executive director of the organization, told “Hello VOA” Thursday. Those who take the pledge to fight corruption and use the card will have discounts at companies that have made agreements with Transparency International.
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Assembly to Approve NGO Curb Law Today
PHNOM PENH (Khmer Times) – Facing an opposition boycott and a European Union threat over foreign aid, the government plans to vote into law today a controversial draft law restricting NGOs. On Friday Prime Minister Hun Sen said the bill will pass his party because his party controls an absolute majority in the National Assembly. “All CPP lawmakers must be present at the National Assembly session,” the Prime Minister told ministers, referring to the ruling Cambodian People’s Party as he spoke at the weekly closed-door Cabinet meeting. Referring to the opposition, he said: “For CNRP lawmakers, if you join the session or not, it is your problem. We, the government, will need at least 62 MPs from the CPP to pass the bill.”
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Being Passionate about LANGO Does Not Mean NGOs/CSOs Should Lose Objectivity
PHNOM PENH (Khmer Times) – The ongoing confrontation and protests against the proposed Law on Association and Nongovernmental Organizations (LANGO) has taken on a whole new dimension with open dissent supported by various overseas agencies, governments and local political parties. While dissent is often welcome in a democratic society, it should not, however, go overboard with continuous ruckus and protests day-in and day-out. This culture of protests and demonstrations has become second nature to the uninitiated and those who seek to create social and civil disorder.
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51 Ethnic Families Deny Proposed Relocation
51 indigenous families in Pichr Chenda district of Mondulkiri province absolutely denied to relocate to new village which were proposed by the local authority in a bid to end the land dispute with VARANASY Co., Ltd. According to Mr. Sok Ratha, a coordinator for local human rights ADHOC in Mondulkiri province, Mr. Yim Lux, deputy governor of Mondulkiri, said before the 51 families in a public forum on 09 July 2015 that to end the dispute over 350 hectares of land with VARANASY Co., Ltd, all families would be requested to move to new location. The human rights worker said, however, those villagers absolutely declined such propose and asked to uproot rubber trees if their reasonable compensation demand are not met.
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EU Adopts Resolution Against NGO Law
The European Parliament adopted a resolution on Thursday calling on the Cambodian government to cancel a draft law that would strictly regulate NGOs and associations in the country, warning that its passage could cost Cambodia up to $700 million in development aid. The National Assembly’s permanent committee, however, met Friday and decided to place the draft NGO law on the agenda for a plenary session of parliament scheduled for Monday, during which the law would be passed, a CPP spokesman said. The E.U. resolution “Urges the Government of Cambodia to withdraw the draft LANGO [Law on Associations and Non-Governmental Organizations].” It says the law is overly restrictive, open to abuse by the government, and conflicts with both Cambodia’s Constitution and international obligations protecting freedom of expression, assembly and association.
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UN Visits Infamous Prey Speu Detention Center
The U.N. and two other NGOs toured the notorious Prey Speu social affairs center in Phnom Penh yesterday, said an official, but he refused to reveal the outcome of the visit. Officially called the Pur Senchey Vocational Training Center, it has again been in the headlines after CNRP and CPP lawmakers from the National Assembly’s health commission on Tuesday toured the facility. According to detainees and rights groups, physical and sexual abuse are rife at the center. Sorn Sophal, director of Phnom Penh’s social affairs department, said U.N. agencies, including Unicef, were joined by Friends International and another unnamed NGO in visiting the center yesterday, but he would not give details. “If you want to know details, you can call the U.N.,” he said.
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51 Ethnic Families Deny Proposed Relocation
51 indigenous families in Pichr Chenda district of Mondulkiri province absolutely denied to relocate to new village which were proposed by the local authority in a bid to end the land dispute with VARANASY Co., Ltd. According to Mr. Sok Ratha, a coordinator for local human rights ADHOC in Mondulkiri province, Mr. Yim Lux, deputy governor of Mondulkiri, said before the 51 families in a public forum on 09 July 2015 that to end the dispute over 350 hectares of land with VARANASY Co., Ltd, all families would be requested to move to new location.
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All-out Attack on Cambodian Democracy
Phnom Penh has been abuzz with protests this week, which is not unusual for the Cambodian capital. Whether it's farmers taking to the streets in protest against state-sponsored land grabs or garment workers pushing for a living wage, Cambodia's vibrant civil society continues to be a thorn in the side of the country's long-serving kleptocratic government. But all this could be about to change. A repressive law which threatens to silence all government critics is in danger of passing on Friday. This should be setting off major alarm bells for foreign governments who still contribute more than a third of Cambodia's budget. In the face of rampant corruption from government elites, these donors rely on civil society groups to deliver many of their promises to alleviate poverty and promote human rights and social justice. Surprisingly though, the international community has been largely silent on one of the biggest threats to democracy in Cambodia's recent history.
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Two Men Charged in Child Rape Cases
The Kratie Provincial Court on Thursday jailed a 28-year-old man on aggravated rape charges after he was caught raping an 8-year-old boy earlier this week, a police official said.
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Koh Kong Land Dispute Nears End with Economic Zone
PHNOM PENH (Khmer Times) – After months of clashes and protests, families in Koh Kong province and the company that manages a local Special Economic Zone have reached a preliminary agreement to work out land issues in the province’s Kiri Sakor district. The understanding was signed yesterday between the Ly Yong Phat Group, owned by CPP senator and businessman Ly Yong Phat, and 135 families. Koh Kong provincial governor Bun Leut attended.
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Tycoon sought in brutal attack
A real estate tycoon accused of launching a brutal attack on a well-known TV presenter at a Phnom Penh restaurant is reported to have fled Cambodia after leaked security camera footage of the incident began to circulate on the internet on Wednesday. A warrant has been issued for local magnate Sok Bun to appear at Phnom Penh Municipal Court and police have confirmed they are seeking his arrest.
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Tycoon compensates 135 families at SEZ
A long-running land dispute between more than 130 families and the company managing the Koh Kong Special Economic Zone (SEZ) is nearing its end, with only seven families left to sign the compensation agreement, officials confirmed yesterday. The dispute over the SEZ – which is located in Kiri Sakor district and is overseen by a company owned by ruling party senator and tycoon Ly Yong Phat – has dragged on since 2007, and has been marked with numerous clashes and the imprisonment of some community representatives.
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LANGO changes ‘too little’
The government yesterday confirmed four changes to the controversial NGO law in response to widespread criticism; opponents, however, say the edits are insignificant and the legislation remains a “severe violation” of Cambodia’s constitution.
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Tycoon sought in brutal attack
A real estate tycoon accused of launching a brutal attack on a well-known TV presenter at a Phnom Penh restaurant is reported to have fled Cambodia after leaked security camera footage of the incident began to circulate on the internet on Wednesday. A warrant has been issued for local magnate Sok Bun to appear at Phnom Penh Municipal Court and police have confirmed they are seeking his arrest.
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Ministry finishes its draft law on alcohol
The Ministry of Health has completed a draft law on alcohol regulation, which will set a minimum drinking age, increase taxes on alcohol and place other controls on the sale, consumption and advertising of alcohol. Dr Ray Rany, head of tobacco and alcohol at the Health Ministry’s National Centre for Health Promotion, yesterday said that Health Minister Mam Bun Heng met with representatives from other ministries and finalised the draft legislation on Wednesday.
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Japan offers NEC tips
The National Election Committee (NEC) and Japanese experts are slated to meet again today to finalise the procedure for electronic voter registration, which is anticipated to launch early next year, Hang Puthea, spokesman of the NEC, confirmed yesterday.
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Myanmar Times: Curtailing civil society in the kingdom – Chak Sopheap
Several laws currently under consideration are threatening to bring about the end of free civil society in Cambodia. Several others have recently been passed, radically reforming the judiciary and rules governing electoral campaigning in a manner that centralises power in the executive branch and erodes the checks and balances that a healthy democracy requires. The recently passed Law on Election of Members of the National Assembly also prohibits civil society organisations from making statements or conducting any other activities deemed to be supportive of political parties during election periods, which some fear could be used to stop civil society from asking questions, criticising candidates or seeking to better inform voters. Others are looming – some shelved, some threatening to pass – focusing on cybercrime, trade unions, land use and other issues related to the free exercise of our human rights.
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Workers at Armani factory still awaiting reforms
In june, workers at an Armani supplier factory in Phnom Penh long plagued by poor conditions erupted in cheers when they were promised reforms that included finally addressing the facility’s sweltering temperatures, seniority bonuses and long-term contracts for employees with extended tenure. But a month later, little has changed, with reforms either half-heartedly implemented or nowhere in sight, workers said yesterday.
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Factory compliance up: BFC
Cambodia's garment factories showed a modest increase in compliance with proper labour standards this year, according to an industry report released yesterday by Better Factories Cambodia (BFC). The analysis of 393 factories under BFC’s purview, conducted from May 2014 to April 2015, concludes that the NGO’s policy of publicly reporting findings from factory inspections – via their online transparency database – had led to improvements in several areas.
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