Just over a week remains until the June 5 commune vote. This week, VOD looked in-depth at election issues in Ratanakiri, Stung Treng, Mondukiri and Kampong Thom — including the politics of a dam resettlement site and the grievances of an indigenous community that had its burial grounds sold off. Reporters also followed a friend’s attempted rescue of a Chinese 22-year-old from an alleged scam compound in Kampot, and checked up on sewage canal cleanups in Phnom Penh. Even as many of the country’s political issues recur in cycles, a handful of new voices — pressing previously neglected issues around gender, environment and minorities — is also emerging.
Featured
Quotes
“I declare here that I will not run away from the people. I also will not associate with bad people who harm the interests of the nation.” — Kem Sokha, former CNRP president
“They took it to cook it and ate it all. I heard my uncle ate the wolf’s meat, and he’s still fine.” — Yot Saem, a Kampong villager, on a wild jackal that bit her
“There is no detention, it is just they do not allow him to get out.” — A commune police officer approached about aiding in a rescue from a scam compound
“We want to change the commune chief. We want a Jarai candidate.” — Ratanakiri’s Pate commune resident Sor Plorn
“The justice system sure is f— up.” — April Reposar, plaintiff who brought a sexual harassment case against Khmer Times publisher T. Mohan
Gallery
A canal in Phnom Penh’s Boeng Trabek has filled up with trash again, on May 24, 2022. (Meng Kroypunlok/VOD)
Pate commune chief Chhay Thy at the commune hall in Ratanakiri’s O’Yadaw district in May 2022. (Ananth Baliga/VOD)
The Candlelight Party’s campaign rally in Phnom Penh on May 21, 2022. (Roun Ry/VOD)
The Candlelight Party’s campaign rally in Phnom Penh on May 21, 2022. (Roun Ry/VOD)
KNUP’s rally in Phnom Penh on May 21, 2022. (Hy Chhay/VOD)
The Grassroots Democratic Party’s rally on Phnom Penh’s Koh Dach island on May 21, 2022. (Ananth Baliga/VOD)
Tay Blong walks near boundary posts on the hills of Mondulkiri’s O’Reang district, in May 2022. (Ananth Baliga/VOD)
A Bunong grave in Mondulkiri’s Sen Monorom commune, in O’Reang district, in May 2022. (Ananth Baliga/VOD)
Headlines
- Across Cambodia, Ruling Party ‘Teaches’ How to Vote CPP
- Illegal Confinement, Torture Trial Over Online-Gaming Business Dispute
- Negotiations Go Nowhere as NagaWorld Holdouts Down to 181
- ‘Wolf’ Attacks Villagers, Gets Eaten
- Inside an Opposition Councilor’s Five Years as Commune Deputy
- In Dam-Divided Srekor, Opposition Candidate Eyes Return With Lofty Plans
- In 30% of Communes, CPP Is Swapping in New Candidates
- Over 12 Tons of Drugs, Precursors Seized, Five Arrested
- Candlelight’s Kung Raiya Faces Complaint Over Money Handed to Candidates
- Running for Reelection After Sale of Indigenous Burial Grounds
- Kem Sokha Hints at Political Breakup During Trial
- After Best-Ever SEA Games, Cambodia Readies to Play Host Next Year
- NagaWorld Protesters Change Up Tactics
- Government Distributes Land to Business Association Deputy, World Bank Project
- Candlelight Party Warned for Not Informing Interior Ministry About VP
- Factory Workers Hope to Raise Dispute to International Buyers
- Gov’t-Linked Groups Dominate Election Observer Registrations
- Canals Flood With Trash Again After Storms, Candidate Seeks Solution
- Man Dies Falling From Condo in Sihanoukville
- Ruling Party Complains Against Candlelight’s ‘Change’ Slogan
- A Friend’s Journey Attempting Rescue From Alleged Slave Compound
- Canteran Garment Factory Workers Take Dispute to Labor Ministry
- CPP Letters on Polling Station Staff Training Raise Red Flags
- Ou Chanrath Interview: ‘I Don’t Want to See Cambodia Become a Second China’
- Mixed Feelings in Ratanakiri Over Chhay Thy’s Roads
- Outrage After Tree-Cutting Workers Kill School Dog
- Khmer Times Publisher Acquitted of Sexual Harassment Charge
- Dam-Displaced Residents Allege Company’s Encroachment
- ‘Adhoc Five’ Lose Appeal Against Convictions
- Campaigning Kicks Off for June 5 Commune Election
