Cambodia maintains distance on Myanmar poll
THE Cambodian government has adopted a wait-and-see approach to the upcoming elections in Myanmar, amid mounting criticism of a process many observers see as a charade to legitimise military rule.
Myanmar election offers no comfort for refugees
MAE LA REFUGEE CAMP, THAILAND—IT’S no wonder that Saw Tun Wai has little desire to return to Myanmar, even after upcoming elections that its military rulers describe as a step toward democracy. The wiry 52-year-old teacher fled to Thailand on foot over rugged mountain terrain in 2006, escaping a vicious and largely unseen army campaign...
PM orders closure of UN office
PRIME Minister Hun Sen has ordered United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to remove the head of the local UN human rights office, who he accused of acting as a “spokesman” for opposition groups.Foreign Minister Hor Namhong, who attended a meeting between Hun Sen and Ban yesterday morning, said the premier “proposed” that Christophe Peschoux,...
War crimes and Bangladesh
Is a war crimes tribunal being used to settle political scores? If so, it may unleash social chaos, reports Sebastian Strangio.
From carpet-bombing to friendship-building
As Cambodia and the United States celebrate six decades of diplomatic ties, the Post looks back at a relationship that has moved from alliance to alienation and back. By Sebastian Strangio & Neth Pheaktra.
Armed Forces Day
Occasionally, a copy of the New Light of Myanmar — the Burmese government’s official mouthpiece — winds up in our office and gets passed around for laughs. The paper on March 25, commemorating Armed Forces Day, which marks the start of the Burmese army’s resistance to the Japanese occupation in 1945, was particularly amusing. In...
China’s soft power hardens in Cambodia
PHNOM PENH – A DAY after Cambodian authorities spirited 20 ethnic Uighur asylum seekers out of the country on an unmarked charter flight, China’s Vice President Xi Jinping touched down at Siem Reap International Airport. During his three-day visit in late December, the Chinese leader signed an unprecedented US$1.2 billion in economic aid agreements with...
Asylum policy failed Uighurs, activists say
REFUGEE advocates have criticised a new sub-decree handing responsibility for asylum cases to the Ministry of Interior, two days after 20 Uighur asylum seekers were deported to China in the face of international protests. Khieu Sopheak, spokesman for the Ministry of Interior, said on Sunday that the sub-decree, signed by Prime Minister Hun Sen on...
Uighurs’ fate seen as stain on Kingdom
HUMAN rights activists have lashed out at the government’s deportation of 20 Uighur asylum seekers to China on Saturday, claiming it has committed a “grave breach” of international law under pressure from Beijing. Interior Ministry spokesman Khieu Sopheak said that 20 Uighurs departed Phnom Penh International Airport at 9pm on Saturday aboard a chartered flight...
Adjusting to life in China’s shadow
As the government accepts millions of Chinese aid and investment dollars, observers remain divided on whether Beijing’s meteoric rise will help or hinder the country over the long term.
Ethnic minorities lose land, livelihoods to rampant land grabs
RATANAKKIRI PROVINCE—THE Toyota Landcruiser arrives in the village just as the morning sun breaks through the trees, casting long shadows across the rust-coloured earth. After exchanging a few quiet words with the driver, half a dozen young villagers – no more than teenagers – get into the vehicle, which pauses for a moment and then...
