FREEDOM

It's time to end the wars

2010-01-02T06:23:00.000-08:00

Reported on Saturday, January 2, 2010

Dear Editor:

The more I read about these two foreign wars our government has gotten us involved in the more upset I become, and I have every right to feel this way, since I served in the Vietnam War. The high number of military suicides, and the numerous amounts of post traumatic syndrome cases our soldiers are suffering with, the more I don't understand why our government doesn't realize these wars are causing more harm then good for the American people. What could possibly be worth all of the suffering American families are going through right now, from the loss or critical injuries inflicted upon their loved ones, while fighting in these senseless conflicts in countries halfway around the world?

Our government officials must not have learned anything from our history of sticking our nose in other countries business like Vietnam. Do they remember America losing over 52,000 lives of military personnel, or over 300,000 who came home severely wounded both mentally and physically, and for what? The same communist government is still in power in Vietnam to this day, and now Americans are even touring in Vietnam, like it was some beautiful vacation spot. How many more American lives are we going to lose in foreign wars which will never benefit America in any way?

It makes more sense to be having our borders and internal structures in America being protected from outside infiltration from our enemies with our military in home defense. Our soldiers are much too vulnerable and unprotected in an environment like Iraq and Afghanistan, where they don't know who their real enemies are, and even when they do know who their enemies are they can't get to them, because they're either hiding in among innocent civilians, or they're held up in mountainous terrain only they are familiar with.

Now, we are hearing our President is about to increase the number of our military forces in Afghanistan in hopes it will end our involvement there sooner. President Nixon also tried this approach in Vietnam by sending more troops to further infiltrate into Laos and Cambodia, where he was informed more of our enemies were encamped. This action only proved to be more hopeless in defeating the North Vietnamese Armies causing only more American lives lost, and finally led to Nixon pulling our American forces out of Vietnam a short time later as a lost cause.

At what point, do we say "enough is enough" and as much as we as Americans want to stand behind, and support our military forces in any necessary war, if it is not directly benefiting the people of the United States of America, then how could it possibly be worth the loss of so many precious American lives?

John M. "Jack" Selby

Hometown

Ninth Session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues

2010-01-02T00:39:00.000-08:00

Posted: 2/01/2010

19-30 April 2010
UN Headquarters, New York

Special Theme: Indigenous peoples: development with culture and identity; articles 3 and 32 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Provisional Agenda

1. Election of officers.
2. Adoption of the agenda and organization of work.
3. Discussion on the special theme for the year, “Indigenous peoples: development with culture and identity: articles 3 and 32 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples”.
4. Human rights:
(a) Implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples;
(b) Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people and other special rapporteurs.
5. Half-day discussion on North America.
6. Comprehensive dialogue with six United Nations agencies and funds.
7. Future work of the Permanent Forum, including issues of the Economic and Social Council and emerging issues.8. Draft agenda for the tenth session of the Permanent Forum.
9. Adoption of the report of the Permanent Forum on its ninth session.

Pre-registration

Registration for indigenous peoples' organizations, NGOs with ECOSOC consultative status and academic institutions wishing to attend the 9th Session of the UNPFII as observers is now open. Please click on the appropriate link below to be taken to the online registration page

Indigenous peoples organizations attending for the first time

Academic institutions attending for the first time

-Indigenous peoples' organizations and academic institutions that have previously attended UNPFII sessions, and NGOs in consultative status with ECOSOC
You must sign in to the online system using your assigned username and password (use the "Click here to Sign In" in the upper right corner once you reach the website) then click on the link "Invitations" that appears on the left side menu bar. You will then see the link to the forum event where you can pre-register, designate your representatives and download your letter of invitation. In case you cannot use the online pre-registration system for any technical reason, please get in touch with us.

For any additional questions on the registration process, please contact Talei Cama (cama@un.org).

Practical Information for Participants

Frequently asked questions on NGO participation:
[Accreditation and Pre-registration]
[Participation]
[Submission of written statements]

Handbook for Participants at the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues

The handbook is available in English, Spanish, French and Russian.

Logistical information (accommodation, transportation and other useful information) -please note that some of this information may become outdated.

Media accreditation

Guidelines for the use of visual recording equipment at the session

Woojung fund grants scholarships to Vietnamese students in RoK

2010-01-02T06:14:00.000-08:00

2/01/2010
VOVNews

The Woojung culture and education fund on December 31 granted 30 scholarships to Vietnamese students in the Republic of Korea (RoK), each worth KRW3 million.

Addressing the ceremony, Vietnamese ambassador to the RoK, Pham Tien Van, highly praised these scholarships for Vietnamese students and expressed his hope that those students will make great contributions to Vietnam’s development, build good relationships and promote friendship between Vietnam and the RoK.

The Woojung culture and education fund was established on December 30, 2008 with the support of the Chairman of the Booyoung Construction Company, Lee Joong Keun. The fund aims to assist talented students who have outstanding achievements in studying and social activities and also to support poor students.

In late 2009, the fund coordinated with the embassies of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia to choose the students who most deserved for being granted scholarships.

Six ASEAN Countries Start Zero-Tariff Trade

2010-01-02T06:16:00.000-08:00

2/01/2010
Windsor Genova - AHN News Writer

Jakarta, Indonesia (AHN) - Six members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) started trading goods at zero tariff Friday when the bloc's free trade deal took effect.

The no-tariff import and export will apply to Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. The move is aimed at developing a single market for the region and would mean savings for 600 million consumers in the said countries, the ASEAN secretariat said in a statement.

Among the products covered by zero tariff are air conditioners, chili, fish, soya sauces, motorcycle components, motor car cylinders, iron and steel, plastics, machinery and mechanical appliances, chemicals, prepared foodstuff, paper, cement, ceramic, and glass.

Four other members of ASEAN -- Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam - will be covered by zero-tariff by 2015 under the bloc's free trade agreement forged in 1993.

Con: Obama must win fast in Afghanistan or risk new wars across the globe

2010-01-02T00:21:00.000-08:00

By JAMES JAY CARAFANO
Saturday, Jan. 2, 2010

WASHINGTON — EDITOR’S NOTE: The writer is addressing the question, Will Afghanistan become a quagmire in 2010?

There’s little chance Kabul will become Saigon 1968. If the war in Afghanistan starts going south for allied forces, President Obama will probably quit rather than risk getting bogged down.

President Lyndon B. Johnson considered Vietnam more a distraction than a national mission, yet he ramped up the troop commitment all the same. In 1968, the North Vietnamese launched a major offensive during the Tet holiday. They lost that battle. Badly! But the fact that they were able to mount such a large-scale offensive gave many Americans—including Walter Cronkite—the impression that the war wasn’t winnable. As “the U.S. is bogged down” became the common view, Johnson’s presidency fell to ashes.

Not much chance Obama will go that route. If the violence skyrockets next year and it looks as though the president’s ambitious objectives can’t be met, Afghanistan could look a lot more like Vietnam in 1973. U.S. forces withdrew. Our abandoned ally was soon overrun. South Vietnam became a gulag; Cambodia sprouted the killing fields; life in Laos was just plain lousy. By 1979, the Sino-Vietnamese war erupted.

We can expect similar results if Obama’s Afghan strategy fails and he opts to cut and run. Most forget that throwing South Vietnam to the wolves made the world a far more dangerous place.

The Soviets saw it as an unmistakable sign that America was in decline. They abetted military incursions in Africa, the Middle East, southern Asia and Latin America. They went on a conventional- and nuclear-arms spending spree. They stockpiled enough smallpox and anthrax to kill the world several times over. State-sponsorship of terrorism came into fashion.

Osama bin Laden called America a “paper tiger.” If we live down to that moniker in Afghanistan, odds are the world will get a lot less safe. Al-Qaida would be back in the game. Regional terrorists would go after both Pakistan and India—potentially triggering a nuclear war between the two countries.

Sensing a Washington in retreat, Iran and North Korea could shift their nuclear programs into overdrive, hoping to save their failing economies by selling their nuclear weapons and technologies to all comers. Their nervous neighbors would want nuclear arms of their own.

The resulting nuclear arms race could be far more dangerous than the Cold War’s two-bloc standoff. With multiple, independent, nuclear powers cautiously eyeing one another, the world would look a lot more like Europe in 1914, when precarious shifting alliances snowballed into a very big, tragic war.

The list goes on. There is no question that countries such as Russia, China and Venezuela would rethink their strategic calculus as well. That could produce all kinds of serious regional challenges for the United States.

Our allies might rethink things as well. Australia has already hiked its defense spending because it can’t be sure the United States will remain a responsible security partner. NATO might well fall apart. Europe could be left with only a puny EU military force incapable of defending the interests of its nations.

None of this is to suggest that staying in Afghanistan is an easy option. Wars never are. They require good men and women to put their lives on the line every day for our security. We should put them at risk only for an issue of vital national interest. Afghanistan is one such issue.

And that—not cost—is the real bottom line. The war won’t bankrupt America. Multitrillion dollar proposals like “cap and trade” environmental schemes or government-managed health systems might well kill our economy. But the $30 billion required for the Afghanistan surge represents about 0.20 percent of our GDP.

In terms of D.C. budget debates, that’s a rounding error. But in terms of national security, the cost of failure in Afghanistan would be incalculably high.

James Jay Carafano is a senior research fellow for national security at The Heritage Foundation and directs its Allison Center for Foreign Policy Studies. Readers may write to the author in care of The Heritage Foundation, 214 Massachusetts Avenue NE, Washington, D.C. 20002; Web site: www.heritage.org.

Chinese deal tops busy year for Asean

2010-01-01T23:04:00.000-08:00

By Kevin Brown in Singapore
January 2 2010

China and the 10-country Association of South-East Asian Nations launched the final stage yesterday of the world's biggest regional trade agreement, measured by population, in spite of Indonesia's last-minute attempts at renegotiation.

The launch of the China-Asean Free Trade Agreement, which covers nearly 1.9bn people, coincides with the implementation of a similar deal with Australia and New Zealand and a deepening of Asean's own internal trading agreements.

Taken together with earlier deals with Japan, South Korea and India, the New Year's day accord puts south-east Asia at the centre of a series of trade agreements extending from Beijing to Wellington and from New Delhi to Tokyo.

The China-Asean deal takes effect following the completion last summer of an agreement on investment rules, the last leg of an eight-year negotiating marathon that produced earlier agreements on goods and services.

Tariffs have been falling since 2005, with 90 per cent of goods due to be tariff-free from yesterday for China and the six core Asean members - Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei. The target is 2015 for the other four - Laos, Cambodia, Burma and Vietnam.

However, the deal re-mains short of genuine free trade. The trade in goods agreement provides for each country to register hundreds of sensitive goods on which tariffs will continue to apply, in many cases until at least 2020.

Sensitive products incl-ude various types of electronic equipment, motor vehicles and automotive parts and chemicals, as well as items such as popcorn, snowboarding equipment and toilet paper.

The deal creates the third largest regional trading agreement by value after the European Union and the North American Free Trade Agreement, covering countries with mutual trade flows of $231bn (€161bn, £143bn) in 2008 and combined gross domestic product of about $6,000bn, according to China's ministry of commerce.

Jayant Menon, principal economist in the Asian Development Bank's office of regional economic integration, said it could eventually lead to a wider trade agreement involving Asean, China, Japan, South Korea and the US - an idea floated in November by Yukio Hatoyama, the Japanese prime minister. "There is a lot of expectation of this FTA," said Mr Menon.

Surin Pitsuwan, Asean's secretary-general, said the agreement would allow the Asean countries to benefit more from the growth of China, which is already south-east Asia's third largest trading partner, with about 11 per cent of total two-way trade.

"When China grows, Asean has to ensure that we are on the supply line towards that growth," he said.

Asean, which has a population of 580m and a combined economy bigger than that of India, has substantial reserves of resources such as oil, natural gas and coal that China desperately needs to keep its factories operating.

China, which runs a substantial trade surplus with Asean, stands to benefit hugely from easier access to the bloc as it seeks new Asian markets for goods that can no longer be sold to consumers in Europe and North America.

"China and the Asean countries have many products that complement each other," Zhang Kening, a director at the ministry of commerce, said earlier this week. "We can see great potential to adjust our trade patterns by importing more from Asean countries."

The deal remains deeply controversial within the region, where suspicion of China's economic clout and political ambitions vies with the desire to capitalise on the export potential of its fast-growing economy.

Indonesia has led opposition to the pact, seeking to delay its implementation because of fears that sectors from steel and petrochemicals to cosmetics and herbal medicines would face overwhelming competition from cheap Chinese imports.

Jakarta has announced a review of the impact of the deal but drew back from tougher action after the industry minister told parliament his attempts to renegotiate elements of the deal with the other 10 countries had failed.

The co-ordinating minister for the economy warned on Wednesday that there could still be clashes between Jakarta and Beijing. "When a nation has cheap products, we must see whether there's unfair trade in it, such as unfair subsidies," he said. "We must be proactive."

The world in 2010: China continues its unstoppable economic charge

2010-01-01T23:01:00.000-08:00

Saturday, 2 January 2010
By Alistair Dawber
Source: Independent

China and six other South-east Asian countries yesterday toasted the inauguration of the biggest free trade area in the world, when the Association of South East Asian Nations, or Asean-6, was formally launched.

Covering nearly 2 billion people in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, along with China, Asean-6's stated aim is to eliminate tariffs on almost all traded goods between its members.

China, by far the biggest member, holds the whip hand in the bloc, with some voicing concerns that the country's manufacturers, who have become the engine behind the world's economy for a number of years, will force overseas competitors out of business. Indeed, four members of Asean have opted not to join the founding six countries in the free trade area. Vietnam and Cambodia, for example, are only due to join in five years' time.

The launching of Asean-6 further demonstrates China's growing and seemingly unstoppable rise as a global economic superpower, however, and even if 2009 was benign by Beijing's recent history, by Western standards growth in the world's most populous nation was breathtaking. The World Bank predicted in June that the planet's third biggest economy (behind the US and Japan) would grow by 7.2 per cent in 2009 (the Chinese themselves predicted a slightly more impressive 8 per cent), a marked improvement on the "disappointing" 6.1 per cent of GDP growth recorded in the first quarter of last year, which was China's worst three-month performance since 1990.

Last week, Premier Wen Jiabao gave a cautious outlook for China's performance in 2010, adding that it was too early to bring a halt to the huge 4 trillion yuan stimulus package, which was introduced to offset the impact of falling global demand for its products.

"In 2010, the external environment will remain rather grim but it will not deteriorate further," said Zhang Liqun, an economist at the Chinese State Council's Development Research Centre, which yesterday predicted growth of 9.5 per cent for this year. The think tank's 2010 forecast is well above Beijing's stated target of 8 per cent, which it sees as vital for job creation and ensuring social stability.

The Asian Development Bank has put its 2010 economic growth forecast at 8.9 per cent, while the International Monetary Fund predicts 9 per cent.

Whatever the eventual figure, the worst is seemingly over for the Chinese economy, which several analysts have forecast will eventually surpass that of the US as the world's biggest. Goldman Sachs, for example, reckons China's GDP will surpass that of the US by 2027. Despite the improving outlook for 2010, Chinese authorities are also aware of the threat of inflation. In his address, Premier Wen warned that officials needed to be watchful for a better than expected recovery leading to a hike in prices, especially in the real-estate sector: some Chinese cities saw residential property prices rise by about a third last year, and real-estate investment in China accelerated in November, up 17.8 per cent for the first 11 months of 2009 compared with the same period in 2008. "Parts of the economy are not balanced, not co-ordinated, and not sustainable," Mr Wen said, adding that "it would be better if lending by Chinese banks was not on such a large scale".

Manufacturing will continue to be China's breadwinner. The sector recovered well in the last few months of last year, with rises in new orders and output driving the purchasing managers' index to a 20-month high of 56.6 in December, from 55.2 in the previous month.

That will cheer companies supplying the Chinese economy. Both BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto, the London-listed mining giants, have said recently that it is too early to predict real Chinese demand for raw materials. Meanwhile, Rio still has concerns over the incarceration of 4 of its employees who were arrested last summer on charges of bribery and "illegally obtaining commercial secrets". Rio has moved most of its China-based staff to Singapore.

And China shows no sign of easing the controversy over its exchange rate in 2010. A host of top-level international policymakers and politicians have urged Beijing to allow the yuan to appreciate, which would make Chinese exports more expensive. However, in his speech last week, Premier Wen dashed hopes that the new year would lead to a change of policy. The currency has been virtually pegged to the dollar since the start of the financial crisis in the middle of 2008.

"We will not yield to any pressure of any form forcing us to appreciate. As I have told my foreign friends, on one hand, you are asking for the yuan to appreciate, and on the other hand, you are taking all kinds of protectionist measures," he said. "The true purpose [of the calls] is to contain China's development."

Abhisit: Violence won't triumph

2010-01-01T22:58:00.000-08:00

Negotiations with Thaksin a possibility

2/01/2010
Bangkok Post

People should refuse to support anti-government demonstrators who hold the nation hostage, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva says.

The government wanted to see the nation progress in a climate of righteousness, peace and reconciliation, he told reporters at Government House yesterday.

"If people share the same goal, they should help the government achieve it," Mr Abhisit said, adding that if the public lets violent groups dominate the country, it would be plagued by unrest.

Mr Abhisit's call comes as the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship plans a rally this month to oust the government.

The UDD is also calling for a pardon for fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Thaksin was sentenced in 2008 to two years in jail for a conflict of interest in his former wife's purchase of land in Ratchadapisek in 2003, when he was the government leader.

"We have always stressed that if they exercise their rights properly, they can carry on protesting.

"But if they are about to move violently, the government has to enforce the law," the prime minister said, referring to Thaksin supporters.

"I would like to repeat that they are wrong to think that violence will bring them closer to their goal. No one will get what they want by using violence because Thai society is not a society that accepts violent means," he said.

Asked if he was prepared to enter negotiations with Thaksin, he said any talks would have to be held in accordance with the law.

But Mr Abhisit said he would not enter any negotiations intended to compromise the national and the public interest for an individual's interest.

Nor would the government discuss proposals to free a wrongdoer.

"I welcome negotiations as long as they concern the public interest. If negotiations are proposed and an individual's interests are raised, I will not negotiate.

"I will negotiate in my capacity as the representative of the national interest which cannot be traded for any individual's interest. If it is about the national interest in various respects, I can negotiate," he said.

Asked how he could protect the nation from violence, the prime minister said his government would respect people's rights under the constitution.

A government which violated people's constitutional rights would always lead the country to crisis, Mr Abhisit said.

The prime minister said Thaksin could continue to express his opinions as long as he did not break the law by doing so.

"If Thaksin violates any law, he will face more charges," he added.

Asked if the government will keep up its attempts to arrest Thaksin, Mr Abhisit said the government would seek the extradition of Thaksin if he visits countries which have extradition agreements with Thailand.

Thaksin visited Cambodia twice last year after being appointed by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen as his personal adviser and as an economic adviser to the government.

Thailand and Cambodia have an extradition agreement, but the Cambodian leader has refused to extradite Thaksin, as he regards Thaksin as a victim of Thai politics.

To reject trade protectionism, actions matter

2010-01-01T07:12:00.000-08:00

01 Jan 2009
Xinhua

BEIJING -- A free-trade agreement between China and Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) took effect on the first day of the 2010, a solid move from the two sides to demonstrate their craving for and determination on cooperation and free trade while some other nations are looking to trade protectionism as savior of crisis.

Under the accord, China and six ASEAN countries - Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, will scrap tariffs on 90 percent of imported goods, covering 7,000 product categories. The other four ASEAN members, including Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam and Cambodia will follow suit in 2015.

The China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA) covers a population of 1.9 billion from 11 developing nations. The bilateral trade totals4.5 trillion U.S. dollars and the combined gross domestic product hits six trillion U.S. dollars.

The operation of the CAFTA is the common wish for governments, enterprises and people, as the CAFTA promises a huge market for enterprises and a decline of products prices. China's general tariff stood at 9.8 percent in 2009 while that on imports from ASEAN was 2.4 percent.

As of Jan. 1, 2010, the six original ASEAN members will slash the average tariff on Chinese goods from 12.8 percent to 0.6 percent.

The idea of CAFTA has gone through almost a decade from being proposed in 2000 to being put into place. During the decade, China and ASEAN have been pursuing a common principle - friendship, trust and free trade. The CAFTA will definitely bring the two sides much closer.

The rising bilateral trade volume showed the closer relationship between the China and ASEAN. The trade volume topped more than 231.1 billion U.S. dollars in 2008, a great leap from the merely less than eight billion U.S. dollars in 1991.

The first 11 months of 2009 saw the trade volume at 187.05 billion U.S. dollars, down 13.2 percent year on year because of the shrinking global demand amid the global economic downturn. But the decline rate was smaller than that between China and European Union, United States and Japan.

The financial crisis originated in the United States in September of 2008 not only dragged the world economy into recession, but also undermined market confidence and credit systems. No country was free from fallout of the crisis, but the persistence and resolution from China and ASEAN on cooperation for free trade will ultimately get the two sides out of trouble.

Looking back into history, every time when a global economic crisis stroke, trade protectionism emerged to the surface as nations pinned hope on such measures to protect their own industry and employment.

However, globalization and cooperation is unstoppable. To see others as sole competitor and adopt protectionism measure would do nothing good but extend the fallout of the lingering crisis and stifle the recovery of the world economy.

The same happened during the global economic crisis this time. Some nations in the western world did not seek cooperation as a way to lead them out of the turmoil. Instead, they preferred isolating themselves from other nations and adopted trade protectionist measures.

Such measures never stand alone. One country's protectionist measures would result in chain effect and trigger retaliatory policies, which would create a vicious circle and stifle world trade and jeopardize international relationship.

Global Trade Alert (GTA) launched by the UK' s Centre for Economic Policy Research estimated in its report in September of 2009 that in the first half of 2009 approximately 70 measures likely to harm foreign commercial interests were imposed by governments.

From September to the beginning of December of 2009, 105 additional measures had been identified, which was almost nine times the number of benign or liberalizing measures implemented in the same period, the report said.

China, whose strong growth helped contribute to the recovery of the world economy, fell victim to the increased protectionist measures. China was the most frequent target of protectionism, according to the report.

Data from the country' s Ministry of Commerce showed that from Jan. 1 to Nov.3 of 2009, 19 nations or regions launched 101 trade investigations against Chinese products, with a total trade volume of 11.68 billion U.S. dollars.

However, China and ASEAN still stick firmly to their stance on further opening their market and expanding cooperation to cope with the global economic crisis. They rolled up sleeves and said "No" to the rising protectionism.

The establishment of CAFTA was in line with the development trend of the world economy, and an active instrument to spur economic growth and boost confidence of two sides in combating the crisis together. It would also lift Asian economy by advancing regionalization in Asia and move forward integration of world' s economies.

Some leaders of nations have denounced protectionist measures and vowed to reject protectionism. But to deal with the issue needs more than just words. As Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said in the interview with Xinhua News Agency," China will join hands with other nations to oppose protectionism and push forward progress in Doha round of talks. The urgent need now is action."

THAI PM PLEDGES TO UPHOLD NATIONAL INTEREST; CONCERNED OVER POLITICAL CONFLICT

2010-01-01T03:31:00.000-08:00

01/01/2010
NNN-TNA

BANGKOK, Jan 1 (NNN-TNA) — Expressing concern regarding Thailand?s ongoing political conflict, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on New Year?s Day said he would continue to uphold the nation?s interests in 2010 and will not allow lawlessness to exist in the country.

The government would like to see the country move forward on the principle of righteousness which could lead to peace and reconciliation among the people, Mr Abhisit said, adding that he is concerned about the country?s anti-government movements as various conflicts remain intact.

The prime minister said his government must be cautious and be sure that society moves in a positive forward direction.

?Those who believe that violence can enable them to achieve their goals are wrong,? Mr Abhisit said. ?Thai society won?t accept it, and while the government respects the public?s rights under the constitution, it will not allow the country to become lawless?.

His remarks were made as the anti-government United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship plans to hold a major rally in mid-January with the aim to oust the coalition government, while the opposition Puea Thai Party plans to lodge a no-confidence debate against the government when Parliament reconvenes this month.

Regarding charter amendments proposed by his government but opposed by the Puea Thai Party, Mr Abhisit said he is ready to negotiate if it could result in serving the public interest, but he said he would not support amendments that serve the interests of individuals.

He said that fugitive prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra would continue to travel to countries which do not have extradition treaties with Thailand, excepting Cambodia.

?Ending the problem hinges on Thai society,? Mr Abhisit said, ?whether it wants to choose the country or a bargainer [any person of group who would trade the national well-being for personal advantage]. But I as prime minister won?t trade this for the future [well-being]of the country,? Mr Abhisit.

Ousted from power in a bloodless coup in September 2006, Mr Thaksin was convicted and sentenced to two years imprisonment in connection with a Bangkok land deal conducted to benefit his former wife while he was in power.

Convicted of crimes under Thai law, he fled the country rather than to receive the judgement, and has become an international traveller with no fixed address ?

Opposition leader repudiates ‘political’ charges against him

2010-01-01T00:54:00.000-08:00

Photo by: Heng Chivoan

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy speaks during a Sam Rainsy Party press conference early last year.

It’s useless because the decision has been made
beforehand.

01 January 2010
by Meas Sokchea
Phnom Penh Post

THE Svay Rieng provincial court has issued an arrest warrant for Sam Rainsy in connection with an October incident in which he led local residents in a protest against alleged Vietnamese encroachment on Cambodian territory.

Lawyer Choung Chou Ngy said he received the warrant Thursday afternoon, and that it had been issued after his client failed to appear in court on Monday for questioning – a move Sam Rainsy scorned, saying that there was no point in explaining himself to politically biased judges.

“The arrest warrant was issued one day after he did not appear in court. This is a procedure to force Sam Rainsy to appear,” Council of Ministers spokesman Phay Siphan said, adding the Sam Rainsy Party president can now be arrested at any point of entry into Cambodia.

Investigating judge Long Kesphyrom, who issued the warrant, could not be reached for comment on Thursday.

Sam Rainsy was charged with racial incitement and destruction of property in early December after removing border markers from the Vietnamese frontier in Svay Rieng’s Chantrea district on October 25. His parliamentary immunity was revoked in November, paving the way for the charges.

Speaking by phone from Paris, Sam Rainsy said he was unconcerned about his failure to appear at the provincial court hearing, arguing that a verdict against him was a foregone conclusion.

“Whether I go [to the court] or don’t go, it is the same. … It’s useless because the decision has been made beforehand,” he said.

Sam Rainsy accused the Cambodian People’s Party of pressuring the provincial court, saying that he would continue his work as a parliamentarian despite the “politically motivated” charges against him.

“I will find a political way for justice…. I can resolve my own problems, but justice [must be had] for the farmers who lost their rice fields,” he said.

Sam Rainsy is in Europe, having met with the European Parliament in Belgium and the Inter-Parliamentary Union in Switzerland last month.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY SEBASTIAN STRANGIO

China, Vietnam mark holidays with repression

2010-01-01T00:50:00.000-08:00

Friday, January 1, 2010
Source: The Washington Post

THE WEST'S Christmas holiday season has become a season of repression for Asia's authoritarian regimes. On Christmas Day, China sentenced one of its foremost dissidents, Liu Xiaobo, to 11 years in prison for the "crime" of helping create the democracy manifesto Charter 2008. Days earlier Beijing induced Cambodia to hand over 20 Uighur refugees who should have been under the protection of the United Nations.

Now Vietnam, whose communist leadership often takes its cues from China, is having its turn. On Monday, a pro-democracy campaigner named Tran Anh Kim was handed a 5 1/2 -year sentence by a state-controlled court in the first of a series of trials of leading democracy activists. Five activists were arrested in June for peacefully advocating freedom of speech, free elections and other reforms. Like several of the others, Mr. Kim, a 60-year-old retired general, is a member of the Democratic Party of Vietnam and of Bloc 8406, a group of pro-democracy petitioners.

The four other activists, who are expected to be put on trial soon, include Le Cong Dinh, a 41-year-old Tulane University-educated lawyer. He has defended other human rights campaigners in court. Originally charged with spreading anti-government propaganda, Mr. Dinh and at least two of the other dissidents were re-charged last month with the capital crime of subversion.

They are only the most prominent of dozens of human rights activists, bloggers and monks whom the government has arrested or otherwise persecuted in recent months. In October, one of the country's best-known novelists, Nguyen Xuan Nghia, and eight other people were given sentences of two to six years for displaying pro-democracy banners on bridges.

Some Vietnam analysts believe the government's crackdown is intended to set the stage for a ruling party congress scheduled for 2011. Yet surely Vietnam, like China, has taken note of the Obama administration's relaxed attitude toward supporting dissidents and its public proclamations that human rights issues must be balanced against other interests. While the U.S. Embassy in Vietnam has criticized the crackdown, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said nothing in public about the arrests when she met Vietnam's foreign minister in October. Instead she focused attention on the "tenfold" increase in bilateral trade she said had taken place since 2001.

That trade boom makes Vietnam sensitive to Western criticism of its human rights record. So the staging of trials of pro-democracy activists during the holiday season is almost certainly not a coincidence. The tactic just might be working: A State Department spokesman said Wednesday that no public statement had been made about Mr. Kim's case, because "no one asked." He then e-mailed us a statement saying "the United States is disappointed in the results of the trial" and noting that Mr. Kim's case was among those raised during a U.S.-Vietnam dialogue on human rights in November. No doubt Hanoi regards such talk as perfunctory; certainly, the Obama administration has done nothing that would suggest otherwise.

The Government denies media speculations on Thaksin Sinawatra - Foreign Ministry

2010-01-01T00:46:00.000-08:00

Jan 1, 2010
Source: News.lk

With reference to the recent media speculation that former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Sinawatra is poised to be appointed as an economic adviser to the Government of Sri Lanka, the Foreign Ministry wishes to state that these speculations are baseless. The Government would like to categorically deny the information that Thaksin Shinawatra will be appointed as an economic adviser.

The Government of Sri Lanka assures that such speculations will not anyway affect the excellent bilateral relations that exist between Sri Lanka and Thailand. During a telephone conversation Thai Foreign Minister Mr. Kasit Piromya had with Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama yesterday, the latter assured thatthe Government of Sri Lanka greatly values the relationship with the government and the people of Thailand, and will not allow any room for jeopardising the warm relations that exist between the two countries. Both ministers also discussed ways of strengthening future cooperation.

76 Journalists killed in 2009 according to RSF

2009-12-31T07:25:00.000-08:00

31/12/2009
Écrit par CSH (Cambodgesoir)
Translated by Monikhemra Chao

Hang Chakra, editorial director of the daily Khmer Machas Srok.
© Pring Samrang

As every year, Reporters without borders (RSF) publish an appraisal of the freedom of the press in the world. In Cambodia, if no professional of mass media was killed in 2009, arrests really took place.

In 2009, 76 journalists were killed, that is 16 more than in 2008. Nothing in Philippines, the organization recalls the "30 journalists slaughtered on the island of Mindanao", while they covered the try of an opponent to the local governor to register as candidate for the local elections of 2010. "Having less known international public opinion than big reporters; however, it is these local journalists who pay the heaviest price, every year, to guarantee our right to be informed on conflicts, corruption or destruction of environment", declared Jean-François Julliard, general secretary of Reporters without borders.

In the course of the year, 573 journalists were also stopped. In Cambodia, Hang Chakra, editorial director of the newspaper of opposition, Khmer Machas Srok, was stopped and condemned in one year of prison for articles hostile to the government. But according to the Club of the Cambodian journalists, 31 associates were stopped, but for 29 of them it was about business of blackmail, fraud, theft, or for other offences.

On the number of detained journalists, Africa and Asia would be "shoulder to shoulder ", definite RSF. " On December 30th, 2009, at least 167 journalists are imprisoned in the world. It is necessary to go back up at the beginning of 1990s to find such an important number of journalists imprisoned in the world. Although the special reporter of United Nations on the freedom of expression repeats scores of times that the prison was a disproportional trouble in an affair of press ", points out the press release of the organization.

RSF also notes that 1 456 journalists were attacked or threatened and that 570 mass media was censored.

Blogueurs and "Nets-citizens" were not spared, 151 of them, were stopped and 61 attacking. Censure on Internet carries well, 60 countries practice, among which the Thailand and Vietnam. "In Thailand, a half a dozen of nets-citizens one called out to which or intimidated to have recalled crisis within the kingdom. Simple fact to have put in contact the health of the king and the fall of the Stock Exchange prices of Bangkok, made targets of choice for authorities", raises RSF. As for the "famous Burmese actor Zarganar", this one has another 34 years of prison to be purged, reminds the organization.

For the first time, RSF includes in the balance sheet "the figure of the journalists forced to leave their country further to threats to their life or their freedom". In all, 157 professionals of media were forced to borrow the roads of banishment.

ASEAN-China FTA makes Vietnam-China trade easier and better: VCCI vice chairman

2009-12-31T07:22:00.000-08:00

31/12/2009
(Xinhua)
By Vo Mai Nguyen Phuong, Han Qiao

The establishment of the Free Trade Area (FTA) between China and ten member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) makes Vietnam's trade with China easier and better, said Doan Duy Khuong, Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) here on Thursday.

In an exclusive interview with Xinhua here on Thursday, Khuong said that Vietnam, as an ASEAN member, is expecting both opportunities and challenges brought about by the FTA.

Scheduled to take effect as of Jan. 1, 2010, the ASEAN-China FTA includes China and ten Southeast Asian countries namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The FTA is expected to become world's third largest free trade area with a combined population of 1.9 billion and a combined gross domestic product (GDP) close to 6 trillion U.S. dollars.

Khuong said that FTA means tariff reduction and simplification of administrative procedures such as customs and investment licensing. Therefore, Vietnamese products will have better access to the Chinese market and vice versa.

For Vietnam, China has become a leading trade partner as statistic figures show, according to Khuong. In 2009, bilateral trade between the two countries is estimated at roughly 20 billion U.S. dollars. Trading with China has been of great significance to Vietnam so far, said Khuong.

Khuong said that under the FTA scheme, tariff will be lowered, therefore helping reducing the illegal trading along the border between China and Vietnam.

The FTA will also make cooperation among Vietnam, China and other ASEAN members in production of a particular product become easier, said Khuong.

Countries within the FTA can produce different parts of a product based on their strength so that consumers could enjoy a higher-quality but lower-cost finished product. The cooperation in the manufacturing process would not only help businessmen tap the markets of China and ASEAN countries, but also pave the way for them to enter other markets such as the European Union and Africa.

However, FTA brings tougher competition for Vietnamese companies as there are similarities in manufacturing products between Vietnam and the other countries within the FTA.

Level of competition would be different in various sectors, according to Khuong.

Though, competition would do good to both Vietnamese manufacturers and consumers, Khuong said. Competition makes companies have to improve themselves to produce better products and therefore consumers benefit from that.

Next year, Vietnam will hold the ASEAN Chairmanship, Khuong said. The country will make efforts to improve the connection between ASEAN and China and bring cooperation to a new height. Therefore, it would promote the implementation of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area.

Vietnamese Defence White Paper 2009

2009-12-31T07:20:00.000-08:00

Pankaj K Jha
December 31, 2009

In his December 22, 2009 speech on the eve of Vietnamese People’s Army (VPA) Day, President Nguyen Minh Triet urged the Army to develop defence industry, improve tactical skills and upgrade weaponry to counter the high-tech weaponry and enhanced military strength of Vietnam’s enemies. Though no particular reference was made to China, the underlying theme was the need to counter the increasing assertion of Vietnam’s bigger neighbour. This was a stark departure from the posture adopted in the defence white paper released two weeks earlier.

Vietnam’s third national defence white paper (the first two were released in 1998 and 2004 respectively) shows its commitment to greater transparency in defence modernization and strategic planning. It clearly articulates the priorities for Vietnam but is quite restrained with regard to outlining policy and strategic plans for the future. The foreword by Defence Minister General Phung Quang Thanh categorically states that

“on the basis of the thorough grasp of the party and the state's guidelines of independence, self-reliance, peace, cooperation and development in external affairs and the foreign policy of openness, multilateralization and diversification in international relations, the Vietnamese people’s army should enhance defence diplomatic activities; expand and consolidate ties and cooperation with all countries (first and foremost with neighbouring and regional ones, and other major partners etc.), and conduct deepened, effective, stable, sustainable , mutually confident international relations that contribute to the successful implementation of the party and state's foreign policy, and meet the needs of building the Vietnamese People Army (VPA) under new conditions.”.1

The white paper makes only an indirect reference to China on the issue of military strategy, galloping defence expenditure, advanced weapon systems and technologies. It also lays emphasis on the increasing gap in defence capabilities between the major powers and developing countries. The white paper also discusses the issue of natural disasters and non-traditional threats in general.

The 155 page document is divided into four sections. The first section deals with the security situation and configuring the national defence policy. The white paper lists the country’s major achievements in terms of demarcating the land borders and the settlement of maritime borders with China in the Gulf of Tonkin. However, subsequent passages refer to Vietnam’s sovereignty over and security concerns in the South China Sea. The paper cautiously asserts Vietnam’s sovereign rights over the East Vietnam Sea (otherwise known as South China Sea), which includes the Spratly and Paracel islands. It stresses the importance of building national power through resources and people. It categorically abjures joining any military alliances and maintains the policy of not allowing any country to use its military bases for carrying out activities against a third country. Most interestingly, there are repeated references to developing defence ties with all countries through mutual respect, independence and sovereignty. The one striking example of benefits of defence diplomacy has been cooperation between Vietnam’s defence intelligence agency and its counterparts in other countries on strategic and defence issues. The white paper also discusses Vietnam’s role in peacekeeping operations, though here it expresses the need to gain further knowledge about legal systems and legal liabilities in UN peacekeeping operations.

Part two of the defence white paper discusses comprehensive national power including the whole gamut of factors and actors in building the national defence capability. Here, stress has been laid on developing the science and technology base. The white paper also provides details of the functions of the various departments and the role of leaders and their functional responsibilities. There is also a section devoted to the historical timeline of the development of the VPA and how the divisions were constituted during the First Vietnam War. This section also encapsulates the process of reunification of Vietnam in 1975 and the building of a unified country. It also clarifies the conditions under which Vietnam was forced to invade Cambodia.

The white paper also specifies that the strength of the Vietnamese people's Army (VPA) to be about 450,000, with five million reservists. It clearly states that Vietnam’s defence expenditure was Dong 16,278 billion in 2005 (approximately US $0.997 billion) and that it increased to 27,024 billion Dong ($1.8 billion) in 2008. Military expenditure as a percentage of GDP is in the range of 1.8 to 2.5 per cent.

In the defence white paper, an effort has been made to provide information about the various wings of the defence forces. Their areas of operation and responsibilities are also clearly demarcated. While stress has been laid on building the politico-spiritual strength of the personnel, there is no roadmap for providing them with enhanced training. The white paper lays great stress on enhancing the country’s technological capability, developing domestic defence industry and procuring advanced weaponry. It expresses clear apprehensions about the technical depth of the national defence industry and its capability to supply the military with advanced weaponry. A separate section is dedicated for broadening and intensifying international defence cooperation.

The last part of the white paper emphasises upon management of local defence units, strengthening them, training them and building greater awareness about among them about the emerging challenges. The concluding section highlights the need for greater convergence and integration. It also emphasizes the need for developing better relations with neighbours and the importance of striving for peace, democracy and progress in society. The appendices provide information about the country’s defence set up.

While the effort has been commendable, the white paper suffers from a few shortcomings. It falls short of identifying the major external and internal security challenges. While an attempt has been to be more transparent, the white paper does not give any information about the status of weapons, personnel training, and of the defence industry in terms of production. Although the white paper provides a comprehensive overview of the historical developments as well as the need for upgrading the defence forces and making them more efficient, it ignores the importance of network centric warfare and new modes of training like simulation, scenario building and war gaming. And finally, while Vietnam has the political will and national mandate for building strong, powerful and efficient defence forces, in terms of articulation there is a wide gap between perception and projection.

1. Vietnam National Defence, Ministry of National Defence, Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Hanoi 12,2009

Backgrounder: Development of China-ASEAN trade relations

2009-12-31T01:25:00.000-08:00

31/12/2009
Source: Xinhua

BEIJING, Dec. 31 (Xinhua) -- China and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will establish a free trade zone on Friday to strengthen their trade cooperation and liberalize two-way investment.

The following are some key facts about the development of China-ASEAN trade relations.

China and ASEAN started their dialogue in 1991. With their economic links becoming closer, their trade volume jumped from 6.3billion U.S. dollars in 1991 to 18.44 billion dollars in 1995 and more than 20 billion dollars in 1996.

In December 1997, leaders of the two sides issued a joint declaration at the first China-ASEAN summit in Kuala Lumpur, establishing guidelines and common policies to build their relationship in the 21st century.

Bilateral trade volume continued to grow, registering 27.2 billion dollars in 1999, 39.52 billion dollars in 2000, more than 40 billion dollars in 2001.

China and ASEAN signed the Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Cooperation in November 2002, with the aim of establishing a China-ASEAN free trade zone by 2010.

In November 2004, China and ASEAN signed a free trade goods agreement and dispute settlement agreement at the eighth China-ASEAN Summit in Vientiane, capital of the Laos.

In the same year, bilateral trade reached a record 105.9 billion dollars, exceeding the 100-billion-dollar target a year ahead of schedule.

The two sides began reducing tariffs at the start of 2005. In that year, their trade topped 130 billion dollars, more than 15 times the 1991 total.

In 2007, their trade reached a new high, registering 202.6 billion dollars. Last year, it grew to 231.12 billion, maintaining14 percent growth despite the global financial crisis.

So far, China has become the third largest trading partner of ASEAN, while ASEAN has become the fourth largest of China.

The China-ASEAN free trade agreement, covering a combined population of 1.9 billion and a combined gross domestic product close to 6 trillion dollars, will be the world's third largest free trade area.

The free trade area incorporates China and Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Editor: Wang Guanqun

Cambodian-Americans should be represented in the US congress

2009-12-31T01:23:00.001-08:00

Dear Editor,

Today, I am making a personal appeal to leniently ask all Cambodian-Americans, and all citizens in general, who are eligible to vote and living in the US cities of Lowell, Lawrence, Mathuen, Dracut, Chelmsford and Tyngsboro to vote for – or donate to – Mr Sam Meas’s campaign for US congress.

Though the United States has one of the largest Cambodian populations in the world outside Cambodia itself, we have never had a voice in the US congress.

I urge all Cambodian-Americans and all American citizens to send Mr Sam Meas to congress to represent that voice which has yet to be heard.
Your vote will make history as it puts the first Khmer-American into the US congress!

To vote Sam Meas into congress means to vote for yourself, your children and your grandchildren. Sam Meas has promised to fight for the Khmer citizens deported from the United States back to Cambodia.

I hope you vote at the primary election on September 15, 2010, and then the general elections on November 2, 2010, if Sam Meas wins the primary.

Please consider making a contribution to his campaign.

Any amount you can afford to help cover the cost of airtime, newspaper advertisements, radio and TV advertisements, brochures and printing, and to hire campaign staff.

Any legal US resident can donate from anywhere in the US.

Donations can be made online at www.sammeasforcongress.com.

Vicheka Lay
Phnom Penh

Khmer Krom continue lobby of govt for citizenship, aid

2009-12-31T01:15:00.000-08:00

31/12/2009
Sen David and Cameron Wells
Phnom Penh Post

Photo by: Sovan Philong

Choav Heng, 56, examines documents from the Vietnamese government regarding his arrest warrant and the resulting violence against his family.

Agroup of 24 ethnic Khmer Krom deported from Thailand earlier this month has resolved to continue seeking government assistance despite being denied refugee status by the UN refugee agency and amid fears that the government may seek to deport them to Vietnam, a rights group advocating on their behalf said Wednesday.

We need safety. i’m afraid the government has a secret plan to deport us.

The group, which has said it fled to Thailand because of persecution and religious repression in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta region, was deported to Cambodia on December 5. They arrived Monday at the offices of the local office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees seeking refugee status and assistance with food and housing.

A UNHCR spokesman confirmed Wednesday that they were unable to help because of a sub-decree signed by Prime Minister Hun Sen on December 17 that made issues related to asylum seekers the sole responsibility of the government.

Ang Chanrith, executive director of the Khmer Kampuchea Krom Human Rights Organisation, said the group will continue to write letters to the government and commune chiefs in a bid to garner a response.

“The group now knows the UNHCR’s position,” he said. “They will wait to see if the response letter is negative or positive. If it is positive, they can live [here]. If it is negative, they can take the letter back to the UNHCR and say, ‘Look, we have nowhere to stay."

Ang Chanrith added that the NGOs currently providing shelter for the group could not continue to do so indefinitely, but could only do so “for another one to two months”.

Thach Soong, 49, a Khmer Krom representative for the group, said Wednesday that the group still fears being sent back to Vietnam.

“We need safety. I am afraid the government has a secret plan to deport us.”

Ministry of Interior spokesman Khieu Sopheak said Wednesday that no such plan exists.

“They have enough rights,” he said, adding that as ethnic Khmer Krom, they possess the same general rights as anyone of Khmer ethnicity.

“The government cannot find land and shelter for them because many other citizens do not have land or shelter either. The asylum seekers must realise that the right for asylum is no longer under the authority of the UNHCR,” Khieu Sopheak said.

Poor Cambodians face eviction under new law: report

2009-12-31T00:53:00.000-08:00

31/12/2009
(AFP)

A new law in Cambodia has given authorities legal grounds to seize private property for public development projects

PHNOM PENH — Hundreds of poor communities in the Cambodian capital face potential forced evictions after parliament this week passed a controversial law, rights groups warned Thursday.

Lawmakers on Tuesday voted through a law on expropriations which will give the authorities legal grounds to seize private property for public development projects in Cambodia.

The law still needs to be approved by the senate and promulgated by King Norodom Sihamoni, but it has raised concerns from rights groups about a surge in forced evictions.

"The existence of a law on expropriation which was just recently passed... will create more negative effects on the poor people in the city," the rights groups said in a joint statement.

The statement said there were 410 vulnerable communities of urban poor in Phnom Penh, with 74 of them threatened with eviction.

"These (74) communities have already received notifications from the government authorities that ordered them to voluntarily move away from their homes with little compensations, the groups said.

The Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee, the Housing Rights Task Force, and the NGO Forum on Cambodia also said they had "deep concern about potential forced evictions of urban poor people from their communities in the near future".

The Cambodian government has faced mounting criticism for a spate of forced evictions throughout the country over the past few years at the hands of the army and police as land prices have risen.

Cambodia in September ended a World Bank-financed land-titling programme amid increasing property disputes and allegations of land-grabbing.

Land ownership is a controversial problem in Cambodia, where legal documents were destroyed under the Khmer Rouge regime in the 1970s and civil war that ended in 1998.

Let light shine on repatriation of Hmong refugees

2009-12-31T00:35:00.000-08:00

Source: twincities.com
31/12/2009

St. Paul is the center of Hmong-American culture in the way that Boston was home to first-generation Irish-Americans. So we feel tremors from the latest incident on the Lao-Thai border as if it happened in our own backyard.

The government of Thailand has uprooted 4,000 to 5,000 Hmong from a Thai refugee camp and sent them back to Laos. The diplomatic euphemism for such an act is "forced repatriation." The BBC reported that the Hmong arrived in Laos this week. Little is known of their fate.

The Hmong are the hill-dwelling tribal culture that saw it in their own interest to side with the U.S. in the Southeast Asian wars a half-century ago. In Laos, the Hmong joined the CIA-directed "Secret War" aimed at preventing a communist takeover and protecting U.S. troops fighting in the public war across the border in Vietnam.

Laos fell to the communists along with Vietnam and Cambodia in May 1975 and the Hmong began fleeing, usually via Thailand to the U.S. as refugees. St. Paul and the region became a national center of Hmong resettlement. While Hmong Americans prospered in Minnesota, those left behind in Laos faced terrible persecution and hardship at the hands of the victors.

Thailand, itself a poor country, was inundated with refugees after the war and understandably has wanted to move on. This latest action, affecting refugees living in Petchabun Province, has been denounced by the U.S. State Department, the U.N., European nations and human rights agencies.

Thailand argues that most of the Hmong are not war refugees but asylum-seekers who want a better life. The government of Laos says the Hmong will not face sanctions when they are returned.

There is no way to find out if either statement is true. On Monday, as the Thai army moved in on the camp, a local reporter, Doualy Xaykaothao, told National Public Radio that reporters were kept away from the camp as the operation took place. Doualy said independent observers have not been able to interview the Hmong to determine how many are war refugees who have a legitimate fear of returning.

And the Lao People's Democratic Republic is a rigid communist society that does not allow international observers. Its borders are closed — to its own citizens. It is impossible to find out what happened to Hmong people who have escaped from Laos and been "repatriated" in the past. Consider this report from Amnesty International, the human rights group, on a repatriation of 1,700 Hmong people from Thailand earlier this year.

"Many returnees went through a transit centre in the town of Paksan, Borikhamsay Province. According to state-controlled media, authorities 'educated' the returning Hmong in the ideology of the Communist Party. Many were resettled in the newly constructed Phalak village, Kasi District in Vientiane Province. Others were sent back to their home provinces. It was unclear whether the choice of resettlement site was voluntary. No independent monitoring was allowed."

In other words — who knows?

That is why state Sen. Mee Moua and state Rep. Cy Thao, Hmong-American St. Paulites who escaped Laos with their families after the war, are so concerned.

Moua said in a statement that "international law could not be clearer that the involuntary return of persons entitled to protection is inconsistent with precedents and international agreements established in the wake of World War II." She adds that "refugees and asylum-seekers cannot be forcibly returned to countries where they could face persecution and death." Thao told this newspaper: "I fear for political refugees the most.''

The U.S. cannot police every trouble spot. But it remains a beacon of freedom and can reflect this light on dark places on the planet. St. Paul is a city that was enriched by the diaspora of the Hmong and Lao people after the war. We join in the widespread international demand that Thailand and Laos open up this action to international monitors and allow eligible refugees to leave Laos peacefully.

Government urged not to let 'boat people' in

2009-12-30T21:42:00.000-08:00

By Fergus Black
Thursday December 31 2009

THE government was advised against accepting refugees from Indo-China because of the state of the economy -- three years before the first group of Vietnamese "boat people" arrived in Ireland.

By 1976, thousands of displaced Indo-Chinese refugees were looking for new homes following upheaval in South Vietnam and Cambodia. Ireland had already accepted over 100 Chilean refugees who were victims of political repression.

But according to Department of Foreign Affairs documents, there was no "domestic public outcry" to accept Indo-Chinese refugees -- apart from an interest in adopting Vietnamese orphans.

"Given our current economic circumstances, very high unemployment with shrinking markets and our continuing commitment to successfully settle our Chilean refugees in the midst of these difficulties, the practical case for accepting Indo-Chinese refuges at present is very weak," wrote one official.

"Economic upswing and higher employment may cause us to reconsider such a request at a future date."

But by August 1979, the situation had changed and the first group of so-called Vietnamese boat people arrived under a major resettlement programme.

- Fergus Black

Irish Independent

Border provinces exchange work experience

2009-12-30T21:40:00.000-08:00

31/12/2009
Vietnam Net

A delegation from the Cambodian province of Kratie on December 28 held talks with leaders of the Binh Phuoc Provincial People’s Council, highlighting developments and cooperation in the region.

During the meeting, leaders from the border provinces expressed delight at the growing friendship and multifaceted cooperation between Vietnam and Cambodia in general and between Kratie and the southern province of Binh Phuoc in particular.

They agreed that authorities of both provinces have incessantly strengthened bilateral relations by exchanging delegations on a regular basis, signing cooperation agreements and working together for the implementation of border landmark plantation as agreed by the governments of both countries.

They have also facilitated entry and exit procedures for people from Binh Phuoc and Kratie to travel across the shared border.

Kratie is a north-eastern province of Cambodia that borders Vietnam to the south.

Arrest warrant issued for Cambodian opposition leader

2009-12-30T21:38:00.000-08:00

31/12/2009
Source: monstersandcritics.com

Phnom Penh - A Cambodian court has issued an arrest warrant for the leader of the main opposition party after he failed to appear in court earlier this week, a government spokesman confirmed Thursday.

The move follows an incident in October in which opposition leader Sam Rainsy was accused of removing border markers between Cambodia and Vietnam, an act that riled Hanoi.

Government spokesman Phay Siphan said the Svay Rieng provincial court issued the arrest warrant after Sam Rainsy missed the hearing to answer charges of racial incitement and destruction of property.

'He was meant to show up in court on the 28th [of December],' Phay Siphan told the German Press Agency dpa. 'He is out of the country so they issued a warrant on the 29th.'

Sam Rainsy was charged after he had joined villagers in Svay Rieng province and uprooted several wooden posts marking the border.He was stripped of his parliamentary immunity the following month in a vote that was boycotted by the opposition.

Opposition party spokesman Yim Sovann said Sam Rainsy, who is currently in France, would not return to Cambodia until a political solution to the court case was in place.

'We do not trust the court because it is a political tool of the ruling party to crack down on the opposition,' he said, adding that the opposition would petition the king to resolve the issue.

'Sam Rainsy has done nothing wrong - as a member of parliament he has to represent the people,' he said. 'This is a political problem and [it] must be solved by a political solution.'

Yim Sovann blamed the authorities for planting the demarcation poles without consulting local farmers, who object to losing land to Vietnam.

'So now [the farmers] are losing land because of these demarcation poles - the people do not agree with that because they have only a few hectares of land to feed their families, and now they are losing everything,' he said.

The two nations are currently demarcating their 1,270-kilometre long common border in a process that is scheduled to be completed by 2012.

Vietnam is a key investor in Cambodia with significant interests in agribusiness, aviation, telecoms and banking. In December the two nations signed an agreement that could result in investments worth billions of US dollars, including a deal to look for bauxite in Cambodia's border province of Mondulkiri.

Three opposition parliamentarians were stripped of their parliamentary immunity in 2009. Critics charge that the ruling Cambodian People's Party is using the courts to move against its perceived opponents in politics, the media and civil society.

Cambodia's dengue fever death toll sharply falls this year

2009-12-30T21:37:00.000-08:00

31/12/2009
Xinhua

PHNOM PENH, Dec. 31 (Xinhua) -- The number of reported cases of dengue fever rose in 2009, but fatalities significantly fell from 2008 due to improved public awareness, local media reported on Thursday, citing health officials.

Ngan Chantha, director of dengue control at the Health Ministry, was quoted by the Cambodia Daily as saying that there were 11,625 cases of dengue fever and 36 deaths from the disease this year, compared to 9,245 cases and 65 deaths last year.

"We intervened by disseminating information through the media, spraying mosquito insecticide and training doctors and nurses to help dengue victims properly."

"People understand the disease and how dangerous it is, but they still don't change their behavior," he said, referring to the need to keep homes free of places where mosquitoes can breed.

Most of this year's dengue infections occurred in high-density areas in provinces including Kompong Cham, Kandal, Siem Reap and Kampot, as well as the capital Phnom Penh, Chantha added.

Doung Socheat, director of the National Center for Parasitology, Entomology and Malaria Control, agreed with Ngan Chantha that this year's decrease in fatalities was due to improved awareness and public health education on how to treat the disease.

Public health authorities will concentrate on decreasing further the number of both dengue infections and fatalities in the coming year, Socheat said.

Editor: Anne Tang