2012-11-27
Xinhua
Web Editor: luodan
The Cambodian Red Cross (CRC) and the Red Cross Society of China
(RCSC) on Tuesday pledged to further enhance bilateral relations and
cooperation in humanitarian activities.
The pledge was made
during a meeting between Annie Sok An, CRC' s first Vice President, and
Hua Jianmin, RCSC's president and Vice Chairman of the Standing
Committee of the National People's Congress.
Hua said his first visit to Cambodia was to strengthen and expand cooperation between the two humanitarian agencies.
He
said the RCSC decided to donate humanitarian aid worth 200, 000 U.S.
dollars to the CRC for humanitarian activities and the aid will be
delivered later.
Hua also highly spoke of long-standing
relations between China and Cambodia, and thanked Cambodia for its
staunch support for China on issues related to China's core interests.
Annie Sok An said Hua's visit would further promote bilateral ties between the two humanitarian bodies.
She said the CRC and the RCSC have offered mutual assistance in natural disasters.
"On
behalf of the Cambodian Red Cross and Cambodian people, I'd like to
express my gratitude to the RCSC for its humanitarian assistance to
Cambodia during difficult times such as storm or flood disasters," said
Annie, who is wife of Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An.
She also reiterated that Cambodia fully supports one-China policy and the stance would never change.
Hua
arrived in Cambodia on Monday for a four-day visit during which he will
also pay tribute to late King Father Norodom Sihanouk at the Royal
Palace.
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Agreement Signed for Construction of Lower Sesan 2 Dam
The Cambodia Daily
By Kuch Naren and Dene-Hern Chen
November 27, 2012
Local conglomerate Royal Group yesterday signed a deal in Phnom Penh with China’s Hydrolancang International Energy Co. Ltd. to build the controversial Lower Sesan 2 dam in Stung Treng province.
After the investment agreement was signed between Royal Group’s chairman Kith Meng and Hydrolancang’s chairman Huang Guangming, representatives from both companies then signed a separate agreement with the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Industry, which allows for construction on the project to move forward.
According to a statement released at the ceremony, construction will take place over a five-year period and the dam will be operated for 40 years before ownership is transferred to the government.
China’s state-run news agency Xinhua reported yesterday that the total investment in the dam is worth $781 million. Once the project is operational, the government will earn tax revenues of $29.6 million per year.
According to a Ministry of Industry document obtained earlier this month, Royal Group will hold a 90 percent stake in the project in partnership with Hydrolancang, while Vietnam’s state-owned electricity giant Electricity Vietnam has a 10 percent stake.
It was not explained yesterday why representatives of Electricity Vietnam were not present at the signing ceremony and Mr. Huang of Hydrolancang declined to comment on his company’s involvement in the project. According to the ministry documents, the consortium made up of Royal Group, Hydrolancang and Vietnam Electricity will be known as Hydro Power Lower Sesan 2 Co. Ltd.
Located near the confluence of the Sesan and Srepok rivers in Stung Treng, the 400-megawatt dam project is set to displace about 5,000 villagers, though environmentalists believe that thousands more villagers will be affected. One report also estimated that the Lower Sesan 2 dam could cause a 9.2 percent loss of fish stocks to the entire Mekong River Basin.
Speaking on the sidelines of the signing ceremonies in the Royal Group-owned Cambodiana Hotel, Mr. Meng said all the dam’s energy would be supplied to Cambodia.
“It will 100 percent be provided to the Cambodian people to develop their economy,” Mr. Meng said.
Downplaying concern by the thousands of villagers who must move to make way for the dam, Mr. Meng said an inter-ministerial committee would be set up to make sure that resettlement and compensation is fair.
Despite Mr. Meng’s assurance, Chan Thon, a villager representative in Srekor commune said villagers had yet to receive any information regarding their future.
“Would you be happy if you will be displaced, lose your livelihoods and your careers?” Mr. Thon asked.
By Kuch Naren and Dene-Hern Chen
November 27, 2012
Local conglomerate Royal Group yesterday signed a deal in Phnom Penh with China’s Hydrolancang International Energy Co. Ltd. to build the controversial Lower Sesan 2 dam in Stung Treng province.
After the investment agreement was signed between Royal Group’s chairman Kith Meng and Hydrolancang’s chairman Huang Guangming, representatives from both companies then signed a separate agreement with the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Industry, which allows for construction on the project to move forward.
According to a statement released at the ceremony, construction will take place over a five-year period and the dam will be operated for 40 years before ownership is transferred to the government.
China’s state-run news agency Xinhua reported yesterday that the total investment in the dam is worth $781 million. Once the project is operational, the government will earn tax revenues of $29.6 million per year.
According to a Ministry of Industry document obtained earlier this month, Royal Group will hold a 90 percent stake in the project in partnership with Hydrolancang, while Vietnam’s state-owned electricity giant Electricity Vietnam has a 10 percent stake.
It was not explained yesterday why representatives of Electricity Vietnam were not present at the signing ceremony and Mr. Huang of Hydrolancang declined to comment on his company’s involvement in the project. According to the ministry documents, the consortium made up of Royal Group, Hydrolancang and Vietnam Electricity will be known as Hydro Power Lower Sesan 2 Co. Ltd.
Located near the confluence of the Sesan and Srepok rivers in Stung Treng, the 400-megawatt dam project is set to displace about 5,000 villagers, though environmentalists believe that thousands more villagers will be affected. One report also estimated that the Lower Sesan 2 dam could cause a 9.2 percent loss of fish stocks to the entire Mekong River Basin.
Speaking on the sidelines of the signing ceremonies in the Royal Group-owned Cambodiana Hotel, Mr. Meng said all the dam’s energy would be supplied to Cambodia.
“It will 100 percent be provided to the Cambodian people to develop their economy,” Mr. Meng said.
Downplaying concern by the thousands of villagers who must move to make way for the dam, Mr. Meng said an inter-ministerial committee would be set up to make sure that resettlement and compensation is fair.
Despite Mr. Meng’s assurance, Chan Thon, a villager representative in Srekor commune said villagers had yet to receive any information regarding their future.
“Would you be happy if you will be displaced, lose your livelihoods and your careers?” Mr. Thon asked.
Monday, November 26, 2012
Cambodian ex-king to be cremated on February 4
26 November 2012
PHNOM PENH: Cambodia's beloved former monarch Norodom Sihanouk, who died aged 89 last month, will be cremated on February 4 following an elaborate ceremony, Prime Minister Hun Sen said on Monday.
The cremation will be preceded by a procession on February 1 that will see Sihanouk's coffin carried from the royal palace in Phnom Penh to a funeral pyre in a nearby park, the premier said in a speech on national radio.
"It will be a big ceremony," Hun Sen said.
More than a million mourners are expected to line the streets for the lavish procession, which will be broadcast live on television, government spokesman Khieu Kanharith told AFP.
"After the procession, the body will stay at the (cremation) site for three days to give people a chance to pay their respects," he said.
A tall cremation pyre is already under construction near the royal residence.
Sihanouk, who abdicated in 2004 after steering Cambodia through six decades marked by independence from France, civil war, the murderous Khmer Rouge regime and finally peace, died of a heart attack in Beijing on October 15.
The death of the popular royal, who is currently lying in state at the palace, plunged his nation into deep mourning. Hundreds of thousands filled the capital's boulevards when his body returned home from China last month.
Out of respect for the late monarch, the government has cancelled this week's Water Festival celebrations, an annual event that usually draws millions of visitors to the capital to enjoy dragon boat racing, fireworks and concerts.
"It's not appropriate when the royal body lies inside the royal palace for us to laugh happily outside the palace," Hun Sen said.
- AFP/de
PHNOM PENH: Cambodia's beloved former monarch Norodom Sihanouk, who died aged 89 last month, will be cremated on February 4 following an elaborate ceremony, Prime Minister Hun Sen said on Monday.
The cremation will be preceded by a procession on February 1 that will see Sihanouk's coffin carried from the royal palace in Phnom Penh to a funeral pyre in a nearby park, the premier said in a speech on national radio.
"It will be a big ceremony," Hun Sen said.
More than a million mourners are expected to line the streets for the lavish procession, which will be broadcast live on television, government spokesman Khieu Kanharith told AFP.
"After the procession, the body will stay at the (cremation) site for three days to give people a chance to pay their respects," he said.
A tall cremation pyre is already under construction near the royal residence.
Sihanouk, who abdicated in 2004 after steering Cambodia through six decades marked by independence from France, civil war, the murderous Khmer Rouge regime and finally peace, died of a heart attack in Beijing on October 15.
The death of the popular royal, who is currently lying in state at the palace, plunged his nation into deep mourning. Hundreds of thousands filled the capital's boulevards when his body returned home from China last month.
Out of respect for the late monarch, the government has cancelled this week's Water Festival celebrations, an annual event that usually draws millions of visitors to the capital to enjoy dragon boat racing, fireworks and concerts.
"It's not appropriate when the royal body lies inside the royal palace for us to laugh happily outside the palace," Hun Sen said.
- AFP/de
Cambodia breaks ground for 3rd flyover in capital
Xinhua | 2012-11-26
Cambodia on Monday broke ground for the construction of a $19-million flyover in Phnom Penh's southwestern part to meet the growing number of vehicles.
Prime Minister Hun Sen said it will take 28 months to complete the construction of the 429-meter flyover.
"The sky bridge will not only help ease traffic congestion, but also uplift the beauty of the city," he said at the groundbreaking ceremony.
The premier said that currently the city has more than one million motorcycles and nearly a million cars, buses and trucks.
It will be the third flyover in the kingdom. The first one was inaugurated in June 2010 and the second one opened to traffic in January 2012.
Cambodia on Monday broke ground for the construction of a $19-million flyover in Phnom Penh's southwestern part to meet the growing number of vehicles.
Prime Minister Hun Sen said it will take 28 months to complete the construction of the 429-meter flyover.
"The sky bridge will not only help ease traffic congestion, but also uplift the beauty of the city," he said at the groundbreaking ceremony.
The premier said that currently the city has more than one million motorcycles and nearly a million cars, buses and trucks.
It will be the third flyover in the kingdom. The first one was inaugurated in June 2010 and the second one opened to traffic in January 2012.
Russia should focus on Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia and Vietnam
Nov 26, 2012
Since the historic U.S. defeat in
Vietnam in 1973, South East Asia has been a hard nut for Washington to
crack. It seems that America may now have a chance to restore its former
influence and, at the same time, to solve the Chinese problem;
currently dominating modern U.S. foreign policy. The question for Russia
is how to react?
The best evidence of South East
Asia's growing importance to Washington lies in the fact that the
re-elected U.S. President has paid his first international visits to
three key regional powers. It is also important to remember that in
China, which is rapidly becoming the leading U.S. antagonist, a new
leadership was installed in November. The so-called “fifth generation”
came to power in Beijing and announced an increase in defence spending,
to include the creation of an ocean Navy; thus challenging U.S.
dominance in East Asia and the Pacific.
Strategically there are two main reasons for the United States to maintain warm relations with countries in South East Asia. First, the Malacca Strait, the very narrow route for a key energy pipeline; controlling that could potentially allow the U.S. to paralyse the Chinese economy in a month. Then there is Taiwan, the most probable focal point of any future U.S.–China confrontation. In the hypothetic event of conflict, America's military presence in South East Asia will help to divert at least a part of Chinese forces from Taipei. Hardly a realistic scenario at the moment but, theoretically possible.
The big question remains, what foreign policy position Russia should adopt as the inevitable rivalry between the United States and China takes shape? Also it is far from clear how, and in what form, relations with various South East Asian countries might best serve Russian interests. Arguably the best tactic might be to steer clear of confrontation but it is doubtful that Russia would be able to do so. Both Washington and Beijing will do their best to secure Moscow as ally. In the event of a Russia–China alliance, America's containment plans become meaningless. The two great military and economic powers combining forces would pose a serious threat to any American plans to maintain its current domination on the Pacific Ocean. On the other hand, a U.S.-Russia rapprochement, along with other American allies already active in East Asia, would totally isolate China.
Russia's significance as a regional player means that both sides of the potential new Pacific Cold War will be keen to court Moscow as a partner and it will be hard to stay out of the rivalry. Nevertheless, the country could play a role in smoothing things over and encouraging balance. This could help avoid serious confrontation and the need to make unpleasant, and unprofitable, choices. The best step in this direction could be to establish good relations with the countries that the United States plans to use in its 'Chinese containment network'.
Russian foreign policy makers should pay close attention to countries like Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia and Vietnam as well as other Asian states. Some will feel as though they are on the horns of a dilemma (the USA or China?) and, with a good relationship, Russia may be able to suggest another, non-partisan way forward. For now though, all of that is no more than a theoretical possibility far from being realised. Nevertheless, the overall trends concerning the region are more than clear and Russia must prepare for the future today.
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan protest map of territorial claims in new Chinese passports
By ,
Ng Han Guan/Associated Press -
A Chinese man holds up a Chinese passport with details on a
page that shows dashes which include the South China Sea as part of the
Chinese territory outside a passport office in Beijing, China, Friday,
Nov. 23, 2012. The Philippines has protested China’s depiction of its
claims over the entire South China Sea in an image of a map printed on
newly issued Chinese e-passports.
TAIPEI, Taiwan — China has enraged several neighbors with a few dashes on a map, printed in its newly revised passports that show it staking its claim on the entire South China Sea and even Taiwan.
China’s official maps have long included Taiwan and the South China Sea as Chinese territory, but the act of including them in its passports could be seen as a provocation since it would require other nations to tacitly endorse those claims by affixing their official seals to the documents.
Ruling party and opposition lawmakers alike condemned the map in Taiwan, a self-governed island that split from China after a civil war in 1949. They said it could harm the warming ties the historic rivals have enjoyed since Ma Ying-jeou became president 4 1/2 years ago.
“This is total ignorance of reality and only provokes disputes,” said Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council, the Cabinet-level body responsible for ties with Beijing. The council said the government cannot accept the map.
Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario told reporters in Manila that he sent a note to the Chinese Embassy that his country “strongly protests” the image. He said China’s claims include an area that is “clearly part of the Philippines’ territory and maritime domain.”
The Vietnamese government said it had also sent a diplomatic note to the Chinese Embassy in Hanoi, demanding that Beijing remove the “erroneous content” printed in the passport.
In Beijing, the Foreign Ministry said the new passport was issued based on international standards. China began issuing new versions of its passports to include electronic chips on May 15, though criticism cropped up only this week.
“The design of this type of passports is not directed against any particular country,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a daily media briefing Friday. “We hope the relevant countries can calmly treat it with rationality and restraint so that the normal visits by the Chinese and foreigners will not be unnecessarily interfered with.”
It’s unclear whether China’s South China Sea neighbors will respond in any way beyond protesting to Beijing. China, in a territorial dispute with India, once stapled visas into passports to avoid stamping them.
“Vietnam reserves the right to carry out necessary measures suitable to Vietnamese law, international law and practices toward such passports,” Vietnamese foreign ministry spokesman Luong Thanh Nghi said.
Taiwan does not recognize China’s passports in any case; Chinese visitors to the island have special travel documents.
China maintains it has ancient claims to all of the South China Sea, despite much of it being within the exclusive economic zones of Southeast Asian neighbors. The islands and waters are potentially rich in oil and gas.
There are concerns that the disputes could escalate into violence. China and the Philippines had a tense maritime standoff at a shoal west of the main Philippine island of Luzon early this year.
The United States, which has said it takes no sides in the territorial spats but that it considers ensuring safe maritime traffic in the waters to be in its national interest, has backed a call for a “code of conduct” to prevent clashes in the disputed territories. But it remains unclear if and when China will sit down with rival claimants to draft such a legally binding nonaggression pact.
The Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam are scheduled to meet Dec. 12 to discuss claims in the South China Sea and the role of China.
___
Associated Press writers Oliver Teves in Manila, Philippines, Chris Brummitt in Hanoi, Vietnam, and researcher Zhao Liang in Beijing contributed to this report.
Obama finds Southeast Asia much tougher than he thought
Murray Hunter, Kuala Lumpur
Sat, November 24 2012
Coded slight? First Lady Rany greeted the president with a pressed-hands greeting typically used only with servants
US President Barack Obama’s visits to both Thailand and Myanmar went symbolically well. He did all the right things in Thailand and in spite of all the reservations about Obama’s Myanmar visit, he may have sent all the right messages, particularly through the way the visit was orchestrated and his speech at Rangoon University where he talked strongly about inclusiveness. Local news reports in local papers warmly reported the visit.
However the same could not be said for his visit to Cambodia.
Like Myanmar, Obama’s trip to Cambodia was also criticized by some human rights activists. And probably it was a visit with more concerns because, unlike Myanmar’s Thein Sien who has started on a road of liberalization and opening up to the world, Hun Sen is reluctant to carry out any major reform in the country.
Human rights watch published a list of numerous breaches of human rights in Cambodia over the last 20 years, forcing Obama’s hand to declare publicly that his visit to Cambodia was only to attend the ASEAN and East Asian Summits.
There are many reports that Obama’s meeting with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen upon arrival in Cambodia was a very tense one. The Obama administration, although not Obama directly, had previously criticized Hun Sen for his human rights record, political intimidation, imprisonment of opposition leaders, forced expulsion of peasants from the land, and the failure to hold free and fair elections.
A report in The Cambodian Daily reported the meeting between the two leaders and gave a very different account to the version that Obama aides gave the media.
According to Reuters quoting US deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes the meeting was almost totally devoted to human rights, but speaking at a press conference after the meeting, the Cambodian Council of Ministers Secretary of State Prak Sokhon said that Obama had only raised human rights issues because of being asked to by US lawmakers.
Ahead of the meeting Obama was specifically urged to ask for a pardon for opposition leader Sam Rainsy so he could return to Cambodia without having to serve an 11 year jail sentence believed to be politically motivated. According to Prak Sokhon this matter was not brought up by Obama at all.
According to Prak Sokhon, Hun Sen did request that a US$400 Million loan with interest given to the Lon Nol Government back in the 1970s be converted to 30 percent of that amount with a 1 percent interest rate, where the Cambodian government could spend the rest of the loan amount on education and cultural projects. Sohkon remarked that this request was met with silence by Obama.
Hun Sen is a long-time politician in the region seasoned by frequent criticism from other foreign leaders over the years. Obama is just another one of those leaders and Hun Sen may even outlast Obama in office. Cambodia receives aid from China, South Korea and even Vietnam with little in the way of conditions over the use of the funds or rhetoric about human rights, something he continually says publicly. Therefore Obama’s visit and statements to Hun Sen just went on deaf ears.
Consequently, the US pivot into Asia is unlikely to include Cambodia. It appears naval ship visits, joint military exercises, counter terrorism training, and cooperation on human trafficking over the last five years have done little to warm up US-Cambodian relations. On the contrary, Obama’s visit to Cambodia has benefitted Hun Sen who could bask in the photo and TV opportunities with the US President which were all displayed prominently on Cambodian television.
The ASEAN Summit once again failed to reach any consensus in regards to territorial sea disputes with China. The Philippines even lodged a formal protest against Cambodia accusing it of suppressing discussion on disputed territorial areas with Vietnam. No questions from the media were answered on these matters during the summit.
This was a good close-up and personal lesson for Obama on the difficulty of reaching agreement to act within the region. The President’s Asia pivot is necessary for the US to create free trade agreements so the economy can continue to grow and maintain a balance of power in the region vis a vis China.
If Obama’s time on the ground in Cambodia is an example of his effectiveness in achieving his Southeast Asian policy objectives, it’s going to be a tough road ahead.
The writer is an associate professor at University Malaysia Perlis, and the author of a number of books on agriculture, economics, and entrepreneurship.
Sat, November 24 2012
US President Barack Obama’s visits to both Thailand and Myanmar went symbolically well. He did all the right things in Thailand and in spite of all the reservations about Obama’s Myanmar visit, he may have sent all the right messages, particularly through the way the visit was orchestrated and his speech at Rangoon University where he talked strongly about inclusiveness. Local news reports in local papers warmly reported the visit.
However the same could not be said for his visit to Cambodia.
Like Myanmar, Obama’s trip to Cambodia was also criticized by some human rights activists. And probably it was a visit with more concerns because, unlike Myanmar’s Thein Sien who has started on a road of liberalization and opening up to the world, Hun Sen is reluctant to carry out any major reform in the country.
Human rights watch published a list of numerous breaches of human rights in Cambodia over the last 20 years, forcing Obama’s hand to declare publicly that his visit to Cambodia was only to attend the ASEAN and East Asian Summits.
There are many reports that Obama’s meeting with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen upon arrival in Cambodia was a very tense one. The Obama administration, although not Obama directly, had previously criticized Hun Sen for his human rights record, political intimidation, imprisonment of opposition leaders, forced expulsion of peasants from the land, and the failure to hold free and fair elections.
A report in The Cambodian Daily reported the meeting between the two leaders and gave a very different account to the version that Obama aides gave the media.
According to Reuters quoting US deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes the meeting was almost totally devoted to human rights, but speaking at a press conference after the meeting, the Cambodian Council of Ministers Secretary of State Prak Sokhon said that Obama had only raised human rights issues because of being asked to by US lawmakers.
Ahead of the meeting Obama was specifically urged to ask for a pardon for opposition leader Sam Rainsy so he could return to Cambodia without having to serve an 11 year jail sentence believed to be politically motivated. According to Prak Sokhon this matter was not brought up by Obama at all.
According to Prak Sokhon, Hun Sen did request that a US$400 Million loan with interest given to the Lon Nol Government back in the 1970s be converted to 30 percent of that amount with a 1 percent interest rate, where the Cambodian government could spend the rest of the loan amount on education and cultural projects. Sohkon remarked that this request was met with silence by Obama.
Hun Sen is a long-time politician in the region seasoned by frequent criticism from other foreign leaders over the years. Obama is just another one of those leaders and Hun Sen may even outlast Obama in office. Cambodia receives aid from China, South Korea and even Vietnam with little in the way of conditions over the use of the funds or rhetoric about human rights, something he continually says publicly. Therefore Obama’s visit and statements to Hun Sen just went on deaf ears.
Consequently, the US pivot into Asia is unlikely to include Cambodia. It appears naval ship visits, joint military exercises, counter terrorism training, and cooperation on human trafficking over the last five years have done little to warm up US-Cambodian relations. On the contrary, Obama’s visit to Cambodia has benefitted Hun Sen who could bask in the photo and TV opportunities with the US President which were all displayed prominently on Cambodian television.
The ASEAN Summit once again failed to reach any consensus in regards to territorial sea disputes with China. The Philippines even lodged a formal protest against Cambodia accusing it of suppressing discussion on disputed territorial areas with Vietnam. No questions from the media were answered on these matters during the summit.
This was a good close-up and personal lesson for Obama on the difficulty of reaching agreement to act within the region. The President’s Asia pivot is necessary for the US to create free trade agreements so the economy can continue to grow and maintain a balance of power in the region vis a vis China.
If Obama’s time on the ground in Cambodia is an example of his effectiveness in achieving his Southeast Asian policy objectives, it’s going to be a tough road ahead.
The writer is an associate professor at University Malaysia Perlis, and the author of a number of books on agriculture, economics, and entrepreneurship.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
