Siem Reap Gears Up for First Sangkran Festival Since 2019, Thousands Expected
Traditional games and dances, three major concerts, performances on the river, golf and boxing competitions — Siem Reap is bringing back the Sangkran festival next week, with one organizer expecting more than 1 million participants over five days.
Photo Essay: Behind the Scaffolding
In Cambodia, construction workers and their families often live inside the buildings they are constructing, despite dozens being killed in building collapses in recent years. Few labour protections leave them vulnerable to site accidents and exploitation.
Behind the Scaffolding: Cambodia’s Construction Workers Suffer as City Skylines Soar
In Cambodia, construction workers and their families often live inside the buildings they are constructing, despite dozens being killed in building collapses in recent years. Few labour protections leave them vulnerable to site accidents and exploitation.
Kampot Governor Orders Hun Sen’s Photo in Every Classroom
Kampot education must build a “culture of gratitude” with a photo of Prime Minister Hun Sen in every classroom and a daily routine of bowing to it and giving thanks for the roofs under which students learn, the provincial governor has said.
‘Alarming’ Loss in Student Learning Due to Covid-19 Disruptions
Cambodian students are failing at Khmer language and Math at significantly higher rates post-pandemic — with bigger drops for boys and city dwellers — an official survey has found.
Candlelight Party’s Pailin Chief Hit With Two Lawsuits
A former doctor in Pailin is facing two lawsuits after becoming head of the Candlelight Party in the province.
‘We Will Not Remain Silenced’: Jailed Activists Are Back With More Petitions
Activists who served jailtime delivered a petition to the Russian Embassy asking for peace in Ukraine, signaling their intent to continue speaking out.
Eviction Stalled for Floating Communities, but Options Limited for Ethnic Vietnamese
The floating communities in Phnom Penh have been allowed three more years on the water, but the majority ethnically Vietnamese families say they have few options on Cambodian land.
Candidate Rejections Are Done: Elections Spokesperson
The opposition Candlelight Party has been entirely stripped of candidates in 11 communes, but the national elections body is now done removing nominees for the June election, a spokesperson said on Monday.
Petition to End NagaWorld Violence as Protests Pause Pending Negotiations
NagaWorld protesters have entered a brief hiatus on protests until renewed labor negotiations this week, as social activists filed a petition with two ministries calling for an end to authorities’ violence against strikers.
Hun Sen Suggests End to Mask Mandate
Cambodian provinces could begin easing requirements to wear Covid-19 face masks, Prime Minister Hun Sen suggested in a speech on Monday, citing costs for people and the reality that many gatherings are already taking place without masks.
‘I Saw My Face. I Don’t Want to Live Anymore’: Woman Still Waiting for Husband’s Arrest After Acid Attack
Every two days, a doctor comes to visit Heng Sophy to clean the acid burns covering her face, chest and arms, allegedly given by a husband who threw acid at her in mid-March after years of harassment.
Thach Setha Interview: ‘I Am Asking People to Unite Behind the Candlelight Party’
The last time the Candlelight Party contested elections, it was known as the Sam Rainsy Party. Returning for the June commune election, Candlelight Party president Thach Setha called on opposition supporters to unite behind his party rather than remain fractured.
Rare Gaur, a 1-Ton Wild Cow, Captured After Injuring Three Villagers
Thinking it was a buffalo, the three local residents had tried to kick the bovine out of their farms before it charged them.
11 Men Tied to Ketamine Plant at Agribusiness Compound Sentenced to Life
A Phnom Penh judge sentenced 11 men to life in prison following their conviction on charges of running a ketamine mass-production plant at a Kampong Speu location that also housed a prominent agribusiness.
Six More Phnom Penh Communes See Removal of All Candlelight Candidates
The committee has been disqualifying opposition candidates for being illiterate or not filling out their own candidacy documents.
Hun Sen’s Sister, Canadia Bank, Senator’s Family Receive State-Land Plots
A tranche of government documents released this week shows hundreds of hectares of state-land plots privatized for connected individuals and companies across the country.
Opinion: Amid Rising Debt, a Case for Personal Bankruptcy Law, Stronger Protections
Overindebtedness was a growing problem in Cambodia even before the pandemic struck. According to the Cambodia Socio-Economic Survey of 2019-2020, the average outstanding loan of $4,435 per household was an increase of around 85 percent compared to 2017 and a significant increase of 339 percent compared to 2014.
LGBT Couples Pursue Adoptions in a System That Doesn’t Recognize Them
Same-sex couples in Cambodia cannot legally marry, which means they cannot fully adopt children either. Thanks to understanding local officials and willing parents, some couples have been able to semi-officially start families — but risks remain.
Former General Nhek Bun Chhay Cleared of Drug Charges
Small party president and former general Nhek Bun Chhay had charges of drug production and procurement of precursors dropped by a Phnom Penh court this week, in a case dating back to 2007.
Activists Say Sewage Treatment Pools Rented Out as Fish Farms
A video that a previously jailed Mother Nature activist says he shot in January shows a Siem Reap sewage treatment pool teeming with fish.
Two Falls From Sihanoukville Buildings Under Investigation
Preah Sihanouk provincial police are investigating two falls this week from two separate casino and hotel buildings, with a provincial deputy police chief removed last week from his position handling public security.
District Council Chief, a PM Assistant, Handed Boeng Tamok Lake Land
The government privatized more than 2 hectares of Phnom Penh’s Boeng Tamok to the chief of Phnom Penh’s Pur Senchey district council, who is also an appointed assistant to Prime Minister Hun Sen.
Malaysian Party Alleges Underage Enslavement in Cambodia, Ongoing Rescue Attempts
A Malaysian political party has raised the alarm over human trafficking, physical abuse and forced labor in Cambodia, and brought entrapped victims’ parents to a press conference on Wednesday to plead for rescues, according to local media.
Briefs: Supreme Court Upholds Incitement Convictions Over Chinese Embassy Protest
The Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld guilty verdicts against seven people convicted for attempting to join a 2020 Paris Peace Agreements Day protest outside the Chinese Embassy in Phnom Penh.
Kem Sokha Trial Meanders as Prosecution Asks Again: What Is ‘Change’?
Prosecutors in the Kem Sokha trial resumed questioning him about events in the run-up to the 2013 national election to support their treason charge, though judges wanted to proceed with cross-examination about the election and its aftermath.
Wife Faces Up to 15 Years in Jail After Killing Abusive Husband
After a Banteay Meanchey woman was charged for killing her husband, local police say they knew he abused her, providing an insight into domestic violence and lacking intervention methods.
Violence Flares Up Again at NagaWorld Protests as Negotiations Stall
The stalemate between NagaWorld executives and laid-off workers continued as a fourth negotiation meeting at the Labor Ministry failed to deliver a resolution.
3,000 Thais to Be Repatriated From Cambodian Scam Compounds: Thai Police
A Cambodian police official said he would potentially welcome — but disclosed little about — Thai authorities’ reported plan to send officers and a navy ship to Cambodia to remove some 3,000 Thai nationals from online scam operations.
Child Adoptions Resuming After Controversial Past, Pending With Two Countries: Social Affairs
More than a decade after they were put on halt, international adoptions are in the process of resuming, with adoptions pending to the U.S. and Italy, a Social Affairs Ministry official said on Tuesday.
