Regime’s History Should Not Just Come From Tribunal: Researcher

Say Mony,VOA Khmer
Friday,23 December 2011

Dy Khamboly, author of "A History of Democratic Kampuchea" and Huy Vannak,  a Public Affairs Officers at the Khmer Rouge Tribunal, discuss the importance  of youth participation in the Khmer Rouge trial process.

The Khmer Rouge trial currently under way at the UN-backed court should not be the only source of information Cambodians have, especially the youth, a researcher said Monday. Dy Khamboly, who authored a book on the regime for the Documentation Center of Cambodia, told “Hello VOA” that Cambodian youth must understand the history of the regime to avoid confusion or misinformation; however, that history should come from multiple sources.

No Laos Dam for Now, But Mekong's Fate Unclear

Say Mony, VOA Khmer
Tuesday, 20 December 2011

Although Laos has officially put off building a dam in Xayaburi province, researchers say the future of the Mekong is still unclear. Laos's decision to put off the dam was a positive step that recognized the river as common property, but more studies need to be done to find its best use for everyone. (Say Mony, Phnom Penh)

Laos Could Face Major Objections Over Dam: Official

Say Mony, VOA Khmer 
Thursday, 08 December 2011

A senior official for the Cambodian Mekong Committee says that Laos could face a complaint at the International Court if it chooses to go forward with a planned hydroelectric dam without the support of other Mekong countries. The Xayaburi dam project is not supported fully by other Southeast Asian countries, and if it goes forward unilaterally, the country will be in "noncompliance" with a 1995 Mekong River agreement, said Watt Botkosal, deputy secretary-general of the committee.

 Ministers from Mekong countries are scheduled to meet in Siem Reap later this week. (Say Mony in Phnom Penh, interviewing Watt Botkosal.)

With Trial Under Way, Tribunal Faces Questions of Legacy

Say Mony, VOA Khmer | New Jersey
Monday, 05 December 2011

Andrew Cayley,the international prosecutor for the tribunal, who was in the US, spoke to VOA Khmer while giving a talk at Rutgers University, in New Jersey. The international prosecutor at the UN-backed Khmer Rouge tribunal says the court must work to ensure the practice of law if its legacy to Cambodia is to be assured. “We have to show a good example to young lawyers,” Andrew Cayley told VOA Khmer in an interview. Cayley spoke after a talk he gave to law students at Rutgers, in the US state of New Jersey, last month.

Opening Statements Conclude in Khmer Rouge Leaders Trial

Say Mony, VOA Khmer 
Tuesday, 29 November 2011

The Khmer Rouge tribunal in Cambodia wrapped up its opening hearings last week. Prosecutors laid out their case against three individuals accused of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity that were committed while serving in top leadership positions in the movement

Khieu Samphan a 'Liar,' says U.S. Genocide Professor

Say Mony, VOA Khmer 
Thursday, 24 November 2011

Jailed Khmer Rouge leader Khieu Samphan told a UN-backed court on Wednesday he knew nothing about the mass atrocities that took place while he was the nominal head of the regime. For one genocide researcher attending the landmark trial in Phnom Penh, this sounds unlikely. Say Mony reports for VOA Khmer from the court.

Historic Trial Opens for Aging Khmer Rouge Leaders

Say Mony, VOA Khmer
Tuesday, 22 November 2011

The UN-backed tribunal opened a landmark case against three Khmer Rouge leaders in Phnom Penh on Monday, with prosecution claiming the former communists were involved in a criminal policy that led to mass atrocities. The widely welcomed proceedings marked the first substantial hearing for the three leaders, Nuon Chea, 85, the chief ideologue of the regime; Khieu Samphan, 80, its nominal leader; and Ieng Sary, 86, its foreign minister, whose case took four years to investigate and bring to trial. VOA Khmer reports.

US Federal Workers in Annual Charity Drive

Say Mony, VOA Khmer
Tuesday, 08 November 2011 

The Combined Federal Campaign for 2011

US federal employees have begun a fundraising campaign for 2011, in a drive to collect money for local and international organizations. The Combined Federal Campaign is undertaken each year and allows US government employees to deduct money from their incomes to go toward thousands of different organizations, including charities and NGOs.

Cambodians in Washington and Nearby States Held Buddhist Kathina Ceremony

Say Mony and Cheang Sophinarath, VOA Khmer
Thursday, 27 October  2011

Hundreds Cambodians held Kathina ceremony and got free flu shot at Buddhikarama pagoda in Silver Spring, Maryland on Sunday October 23. Participants shared contribution for the ceremony and gave donation to build a stupa for Buddha relics. VOA's Khmer Cheang Sophinarath reports.

Fortune Brings a Family Together, 36 Years Later

Say Mony, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh
Wednesday, 12 October 2011

Never in her life did Chhea Vat imagine she would have such an occasion: meeting her husband again after 36 years. The 73-year-old Cambodian-Canadian had always thought her husband, Peou Nam, was killed when soldiers of the regime took him away, so many years ago. “I never imagined this meeting before, because I thought the Khmer Rouge never left their captives alive,” Chhea Vat said in a recent interview in Phnom Penh, where her family had found him at long last.

Poor Market, Perceived Danger Keep Youth Out of Journalism: Mentor

Say Mony, VOA Khmer

Friday,14 October 2011

Cambodian youth are not so keen on journalism careers, believing the job to be dangerous and underpaid, a journalism mentor says.

“Some young graduates still fear that they might be in danger, or face legal consequences, if they work as journalists,” said Tieng Sopheak Vichea, director of the Cambodia Communication Institute, which offers the country’s only four-year journalism program.

Since the program’s inception, 10 years ago, only about 20 of its 120 graduates have gone on to pursue work as actual journalists, Tieng Sopheak Vichea said, as a guest on “Hello VOA” Monday.

Journalists, Tech-Savvy Students Train in Social Media

Say Mony, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh
Thursday, 25 August 2011

Cambodia accounts for more than 200,000 Facebook users, mostly to connect with friends and professional networking. “Social media such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter have the potential to gather people to voice their opinions in a more effective manner..." Journalists, would-be reporters and other students were taught to better use social media last week, as an increasing number of Cambodians become tech savvy. “Social media such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter have the potential to gather people to voice their opinions in a more effective manner,

Not Enough Cambodians Pitching In for Development: Volunteers

Say Mony, VOA Khmer
Thursday, 15 September 2011

Diep Sovannaroth, left, a program assistant for UN Volunteers, and Chhuon Thavrith,  right, a former volunteer at UN Volunteers who now works for UNDP, were our guests on 'Hello VOA' on Monday.

If more Cambodians do not start pitching in and volunteering, the country risks missing key development goals in coming years, a youth advocate said Monday. Cambodia is trying to meet a series of UN Millennium Development Goals by 2015, but it is lagging behind in key sectors. And while there are a number of foreign volunteers working in the country, there is not enough local help, Diep Sovannaroth, a program assistant for UN Volunteers, told “Hello VOA.”

Lenient Treatment of Tribunal Suspects Upsetting for Some

Say Mony, VOA Khmer
Saturday, 10 September 2011

When Khmer Rouge prison survivor Vann Nath died earlier this week in a quiet Phnom Penh clinic, family members had been scrambling for cash to pay for his treatment. Staff at the UN-backed Khmer Rouge tribunal pooled $500 to offset costs, as Vann Nath lay in a coma after a heart attack Aug. 26. Friends scrambled to collect money online. Meanwhile, the four former Khmer Rouge leaders accused of widespread atrocity crimes and responsibility for the deaths of 1.7 million people are getting free health care with good doctors under the UN-backed court.

Top Healthcare of Tribunal Suspects Upsetting for Some

Say Mony, Kong Sothanarith,VOA Khmer

Saturday, 09 September 2011

When Khmer Rouge prison survivor Vann Nath died earlier this week in a quiet Phnom Penh clinic, family members had been scrambling for cash to pay for his treatment.

Staff at the Khmer Rouge tribunal pooled $500 to offset costs, as Vann Nath lay in a coma after a heart attack Aug. 26. Friends scrambled to collect money online. He died on Monday.

Meanwhile, the former Khmer Rouge leaders accused of widespread atrocity crimes and responsibility for the deaths of 1.7 million people are getting free health care with good doctors under the UN-backed tribunal. Vann Nath’s family members and other regime victims did not fail to notice.

In Ratanakkiri Land Dispute, Long Wait for a Judge

Say Mony, VOA khmer | Ratanakkiri province, Cambodia
Tuesday, 06 September 2011 

Minority villagers who are caught up in a land dispute with the sister of Cambodia’s Finance Minister say they have waited years for the courts to look at their complaints. But in this remote part of the country, they say, they have had little luck getting a judge willing to take on the case. The land dispute is centered around Kong Yu village in Ratanakkiri province. Villagers here say they have waited four years to have a hearing for their complaints against Keat Kolney, the sister of Keat Chhon, who is the Finance Minister and holds the position of Deputy Prime Minister.

Lack of Research Among Academics a ‘Problem’: Lecturer

Say Mony, VOA Khmer
Saturday, 27 August 2011 

Peou Chivoin, a lecturer of media theory and research at the Royal University of Phnom Penh.

Cambodia’s higher education would do well to include more research and critical thinking demands on its professors, a university lecturer said Thursday. “When [academics] do research, it is like they are exercising and it requires them to think critically, thus boosting the overall quality of their abilities and work,” said Peou Chivoin, a lecturer of media theory and research at the Royal University of Phnom Penh.

Engineers Ready, But Nowhere To Go

Say Mony, VOA Khmer
Thursday, 10 August 2011 

Two Cambodian boys fish on an empty drainage pipe at the natural irrigation  canal in Kompong Speu province.

A growing group of young engineers say they are ready for the government to make use of their skills but are facing limited job prospects. “The use of the skills acquired by graduate engineers in the labor market is still limited,” said Chann Rithy, vice president of Techno Charity, a group of engineers, as a guest Monday on “Hello VOA.”

American Students Build Houses for Poor Students

Say Mony, VOA Khmer 
Saturday, 06 August  2011

To help Cambodian children attend schools, volunteer American students are helping a non-governmental organization 'Caring for Cambodia' to build houses for poor families in Siem Reap. Figure shows high percentage of Cambodian boys and girls dropping out of schools because poverty. VOA Khmer's Say Mony reports from Siem Reap.

Hun Sen Pushes for Three-Party Border Talks

Say Mony, VOA Khmer
Wednesday, 27 Jul 2011

Prime Minister Hun Sen on Friday insisted on three-party talks with Thailand and Indonesia in an effort to implement an international court ruling to resolve the border dispute near Preah Vihear temple

More Understanding Needed Among Mekong Countries: Experts

Say Mony, VOA Khmer
Wednesday, 20 July 2011

A fishing boat floats on the Mekong river at Sambor in Cambodia's Kratie Provice, a  site in the country that has been chosen for a proposed 18-kilometer hydro-dam.  Upstream, China has four hydrodams in operation on the Mekong and has plans for four more.

Regional security experts warn that Mekong River countries must do a better job of sharing, as more and more look toward hydropower on the massive river. Experts met in Siem Reap this weekend to discuss ways to mitigate impending conflict over the river, which is a major food source to millions of people but also a huge power supply to growing economies in the region.

Water Experts Warn of Conflict Over Mekong Dams

Say Mony, VOA Khmer
Tuesday, 19 July 2011 

Experts on water security met in Siem Reap on Friday, July 15, 2011, at a two-day conference of the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia Pacific in an effort to address upcoming issues surrounding such projects and other water conflict.

The race for hydropower development among Mekong countries could lead to conflicts or even war over water, regional security experts say. Hydroelectric projects have begun to spring up across the Mekong River, with some already under way and other already creating tensions between Southeast Asian neighbors.

Among Students, Doubts Over Tribunal Suspects’ Defense

Say Mony, VOA Khmer
Friday, 14 July 2011 

Cambodian Students line up to attend the Khmer Rouge trial in Phnom Penh, June 27, 2011.

As more Khmer Rouge leaders are put on trial by a UN-backed tribunal, some Cambodians students say they don’t believe their defense claims, that they established an ultra-Maoist regime to prevent Cambodia from falling into foreign hands. The tribunal has put the crimes of the Khmer Rouge back into the public consciousness, and many of the young generation are now learning more about the regime than they learned from parents who often withhold their own stories of atrocities.

For Victims, More Indictments the Way to 'Justice'

Say Mony, VOA Khmer
Wednesday, 05 July  2011

As the Khmer Rouge tribunal moves toward a trial of four jailed leaders of the regime, many victims say they want more indictments from the UN-backed court. The court has potentially five more suspects to investigate in two more cases, but these are opposed by the prime minister and others. "Just a few of them is not enough, so I want Case 003 and others ," said In Vuthy, a civil party complainant in the upcoming trial, who had 11 relatives die under the Khmer Rouge.

Youth Say They Are Ill Prepared for Asean Inclusion

Say Mony, VOA Khmer 
Thursday, 23 June 2011

Cambodia is slated to fully integrate with Asean markets in 2015, but youth organizers said Sunday the country's next generation is not prepared to take advantage of it. Cambodia is preparing to host a youth summit for the regional body next year.  The Youth Resources Development Program brought together nearly 1,000 attendees, most of them students, on Sunday, to prepare for next year's summit, but organizers said many Cambodians still have little understanding of the benefits of Asean, even as a younger generation will come of age under full Asean market inclusion.

Villagers, Officials See Prey Lang Land Concessions Differently

Say Mony, VOA Khmer
Friday, 10 June 2011

Granting economic land concessions to private companies in the northeastern Cambodia area of Prey Lang means development for the government but to communities depending for generations on the dense forest it means the destruction of their livelihood. Chhoun Long, a 24-year-old farmer in Kampong Thom's Sanden district, says he's concerned about the environmental impact of 'development' in this rural area. Bak Kimsok, 57, is worried for his village's survival.

Delay on Sesan River Hydrodam Unlikely: Officials

Say Mony, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh 
Saturday, 04 June 2011

Government officials say any delay on the construction of a hydropower dam on the Sesan river in Stung Treng province is unlikely, even though residents along the river say they want more impact studies conducted.

Prach Sun, secretary of state for the Ministry of Environment, told VOA Khmer the government has already conducted an impact study, but that it would still deal with river communities on the issue of compensation.

Last month, representatives of communities living on the Sesan in Ratanakkiri province, 40 kilometers from the proposed dam site, appealed to the government to delay construction of the dam, saying they were concerned about their livelihoods and the amounts of resettlement packages.

Villagers See Negative Impacts from Proposed Dam

Say Mony, VOA Khmer
Tuesday, 31 May  2011

River protection groups and villagers along the Sesan River in Ratanakkiri province have appealed to halt the Lower Sesan Dam II project, insisting more studies are needed on the dam's impact on community livelihoods. The appeal followed the government's approval of the dam project during a Vietnam-Cambodia investment conference in Phnom Penh last month.

Plucked From Garbage Scavenging, a Girl Makes Good

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Tuesday, 31 May 2011

Today Chen Sokha, 16, is a student at a prestigious international school and has even been named one of Newsweek magazine’s top 150 women.

When Chen Sokha was a young girl, she found herself, through circumstance and bad luck, an orphan, and a scavenger at Phnom Penh’s notorious Stung Meanchey dump. Things went poorly from Day One. “While I was scavenging on the side of the trash hill, a bulldozer pushed the trash down and the trash covered one of my legs,” she said in a recent interview, recalling the day years before.

Journalist, Mentor, Teacher, Dies at 47

Pich Samnang and Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer
Saturday, 14 May  2011

Reach Sambath, a seasoned reporter, revered journalism mentor and an important public liaison for the Khmer Rouge tribunal to the public, died on Wednesday from an apparent stroke. Reach Sambath started his career as a reporter for the Agence France-Presse, where he earned the respect of his fellow journalists and sources alike. He studied under a prestigious scholarship at Columbia University in New York before becoming a journalism instructor at the Royal University of Phnom Penh.

Schools Not Making Entrepreneurs: Business Leader

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Friday, 13 May 2011

Sila Chy Thmor , national president for the 2011 of Junior Chamber International Cambodia.

A young business leader says Cambodian universities must do better to develop young entrepreneurs, rather than teaching students to become good employees. “In schools, they teach young people how to find jobs, but why don't they teach them how to run their own businesses?” said Chy Sila, president of the Junior Chamber International Cambodia, as a guest on “Hello VOA” Monday.

Few Equate Climate Change With Its Causes: Study

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Friday, 13 May 2011

FILE - In this July 19, 2007 file photo, an iceberg is seen melting off the coast of Ammasalik, Greenland. A new assessment of climate change in the Arctic shows the ice in the region is melting faster than previously thought and sharply raises projectio

The majority of Cambodians have little understanding of the causes of climate change, due to a lack of information, a new poll has found. In a survey by the BBC World Service Trust of 2,401 Cambodians from all walks of life, about 85 percent said they had heard of climate change, although they associated it with disease, farming troubles and drought.

Mekong Dam Hurts Villagers Along The River

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Thursday, 05 May 2011

Lao villagers living along the Mekong river say their livelihood would be harmed by the proposed Xayaburi dam in their country if it is built as planned. Villagars voiced their concerns after the meeting of the Mekong River Commission (MRC) failed to decide if the dam project should go ahead. VOA Khmer's Pich Samnang reports from Vientiane, Laos.

Film Highlights Potential Harm of Mekong Dams

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Friday, 29 April 2011

An extraction from the documentary "Where Have All the Fish Gone? Killing the Mekong Dam by Dam" shows a massive dam under construction on a stretch of the Mekong river in China.

A documentary showing the possible impacts of hydropower dams on the Mekong was screened in Phnom Penh Tuesday night, a week after Mekong countries failed to decide on a dam proposed in Laos. About 200 people, most of them students, watched the film, “Where Have All the Fish Gone?: Killing the Mekong Dam by Dam,” which was directed by journalist Tom Fawtrop and screened at Pannasastra University in the capital.

Opportunity, Possibility for Young Leaders Limited in Cambodia: Youth Leader

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Wednesday, 27 April 2011

Hou Sidany, acting coordinator of Youth Council of Cambodia, left, Chhem Pe, middle, a 2009 champion of Youth Leadership Challenge, a local reality TV show. “

It is not the case that young people in Cambodia do not want to participate in social activities, but the problem is that the possibility and opportunity for their participation is still not widespread, according to a young leadership champion. “Youth's access to information seems limited,” said Chhem Pe, a 2009 champion of Youth Leadership Challenge, a local reality TV show.

Evicted People in Sihanouk Province Continue to Live Desperately

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Saturday, 09 April 2011

Evicted people in Spean Chhes, Sihanouk province continue to live desperately in squatters near the land they were evicted two years ago in the beach city. VOA Khmer's Pich Samnang reports from Sihanouk province.

Risks, Rewards as Economic Corridor Develops

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Wednesday, 30 March 2011 

A system of strip dams cuts into grasslands next to paddy fields in Kampong Thom province.

Cambodia is building up its rural infrastructure in an effort to link itself to its neighbors, under an “economic corridor” project aided by the Asian Development Bank. Proponents of the southern economic corridor, part of the Greater Mekong Subregion project, say it will bring benefits to villagers like those in Kampong Thom district’s Sambo Prey Kuk temple, in Prasat Sambo district.

Economic Corridor Spells Benefits, and Pitfalls

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Saturday, 19 March 2011

Cambodia has joined with regional governments to develop an "economic corridor" that the Asian Development Banks says will hasten economic growth. In Kampong Thom province, better roads and infrastructure could mean more tourists to little known temples and other sites. But it can also mean a hastening of land strife, as the government grants an increasing number of land concessions to outside companies. VOA Khmer's Pich Samnang reports from Kompong Thom province.

As Rape Cases Rise, Officials Searching for Causes

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Friday, 18 March 2011

Lim Mony, deputy head of the women’s section for the rights group Adhoc, and Hor Malin, undersecretary of state for the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, on "Hello VOA" Monday.

Cambodia’s rising number of rape cases is fueled by impunity and poverty, among other factors, a rights activist said Monday. “There has been injustice as the impunity for some offenders still exists,” Lim Mony, deputy head of the women’s section for the rights group Adhoc, told “Hello VOA” Monday. “Another factor is poverty within families, where victims are sent away from home to work or to herd cattle in the fields.”

The Like Me’s Strike a Chord in Cambodia

Pich Samnang, Brian Calvert, VOA Khmer
Saturday, 05 March 2011

Laura Mam and her band, The Like Me’s, are a new group that is fast gaining popularity in the US. The band is on a quick tour of Cambodia that ends with a free show Saturday night at Phnom Penh’s Diamond Island. Born in the US, 24-year-old Mam says she hopes her music will reach even more people in the homeland of her parents.

Parents Mourn Stampede Deaths of Two Daughters with 100 Day Ceremony

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Friday, 04 March 2011

Among the more than 350 revelers killed in the pedestrian bridge calamity in Phnom Penh were 18-year-old Uch Sotheara and 25-year-old Uch Sophany. Their parents, Uch Yoan and Pa Sophat, marked their late November deaths this week on the 100th day with Buddhist offerings. They were grateful they have other younger children and that the government provided them financial support for their unexpected losses.

Husband Remembers Fatal Night on Diamond Bridge

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Wednesday, 02 March 2011

Cambodia University students lay down flowers during a memorial service near a bridge where festival goers were killed Monday in a stampede in Phnom Penh, Nov. 25, 2010.

Like other families of stampede victims on Diamond Bridge, Leung Porn's family decided to hold the 100-day ceremony last weekend at a Buddhist clergyman's suggestion. Leung Porn's wife, Tor Sophal, was one of the 353 victims killed in the stampede on the bridge during last year’s water festival. Leung Porn, who is 54 and now the single father of three children, said the ceremony will help his wife rest in peace.

New Film Exhibit Gives Khmer Rouge a Voice

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Monday, 28 February 2011

An unidentified former soldier looks on near the once Khmer Rouge-stronghold border town of Pailin. The video installation, co-produced by filmmakers Thomas Webner Carlsen and Jan Krogsgard, runs 43 hours in total and examines the lives of the former so

Low-ranking Khmer Rouge cadre, 30 in all, will have their say and then some in a massive video installation opening this week in Phnom Penh. The “Voices of the Khmer Rouge” exhibit contains 30 lengthy interviews with former Khmer Rouge now living in pockets along the Thai border, as men and women aged 38 to 70 give their reasons for joining the movement. And staying with it.

Rice Experts See Better Prospects in New Seeds

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Friday, 25 February 2011

With more than 2.7 million hectares of cultivatable land, agriculture experts hope new methods and seeds can help the country reach a goal of 1 million tons of annual rice export by 2015.

For five years now, Yin Narong has used a new method to plant rice. Instead of planting from the seeds of the previous year’s harvest, he buys new seeds from a local company. The difference, he said in an interview, has been a boost in yield of 200 kilograms of rice each harvest on one-fifth a hectare. “Now with pure seeds we get up to 900 kilograms,” the 52-year-old farmer in Phnom Penh’s Dangkor district said.

Social Media Here More Social Than Political: Researcher

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Friday, 25 February 2011

VOA Khmer on Facebook currently has more than 5000 fans.

Cambodia’s low number of Internet users make a social-media fueled revolution here unlikely, an Internet researcher says. Cambodia’s more than 200,000 Facebook users mostly use the website to connect with friends and maintain professional social networks, said Saray Samadee, who recently co-authored a report for the Cambodia Communication review.

In Northern Preah Vihear, Lao Is a Way of Life

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Saturday, 19 February 2011

Kampong Sra Lao II consists of four villages with more than 380 families, nearly 2,000 people living along the Mekong.

In a remote corner of Preah Vihear province, an identity shift is under way. Here on the border, where the Mekong river spills over rocky falls from Laos into Cambodia, a younger generation is increasingly adopting a Lao way of life. “Their parents only speak Lao with them,” said Neang Phann, an eldery villager in Kampong Sra Lao II commune, in Chaep district. “Some parents aren’t even able to speak Khmer.”

Companies Asked ‘To Curb’ Critical Websites

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Friday, 18 February 2011

Cambodians surf the Internet at a coffee shop in Phnom Penh.

Internet service providers have received an e-mail from an official at the Ministry of Post and Telecommunications reminding them to “take action” against several anti-government websites. The e-mail, a copy of which was obtained by VOA Khmer on Thursday, is a follow-up to a Feb. 10 meeting between the ministry and service provider representatives.

Cambodians Flee Fighting Near Border Temple, Face Food, Shelter Shortages

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Wednesday, 09 February 2011

Cambodian civilians who fled the fighting between Cambodian and Thai armies near Preah Vihear Temple are facing displaced shortage of food and shelter. VOA Khmer's Pich Samnang reports from Siem Reap.

Thai-Cambodian Clash Requires Intervention

Pich Samnang and Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer
Tuesday, 08 February 2011

The fighting on the Thai/Cambodian border is the most serious conflict ever seen between two Asean countries. VOA Khmer's Pich Samnang and Men Kimseng report.

Cambodia Struggling With Paddy Rice Flight

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Monday, 31 January 2011

A Cambodian man carries rice at a paddy rice farm in Bekpeang village, Kampong Cham province. The government wants to see a million tons of milled rice exported by 2015.

One recent afternoon, farmer Hem Preoung was discussing what to do about a small wooden barn full of paddy rice with a group of other farmers. The 62-year-old farmer is a member of the Preah Theat village farm association, in Kandal province’s Kandal Stung district. For the past five years, she has kept 15 kilograms of harvested paddy rice in the small barn as a kind of bank.

On Patrol, Forest Rangers as Teachers and the Law

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Thursday, 20 January 2011

A ranger of Cambodia's 3,000 square kilometer Phnom Samkos Wildlife Sanctuary stands next to three Cambodian youth who were found entering the park illegally and made to agree not to enter again in the future, before they were released. The sanctuary lies

On a recent afternoon, a patrol of armed forest rangers came across three teenage boys in the forest of the Phnom Samkos Wildlife Sanctuary. The rangers, who work for the government but are bolstered by a conservation group, jumped out at the boys and told them to stop. They had them lace their fingers behind their heads and sit on the grassy trail for questioning.

Youth Can 'Bridge Gap' for Legacy of Khmer Rouge

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Wednesday, 12 January 2011

Long Khet, executive director of Youth for Peace, on 'Hello VOA' on Monday.

Youth can play a vital role in bringing back some of the trust that was lost in the Khmer Rouge and intervening war years, an youth leader said Monday. “In our community, we've lost our values, solidarity and trust among each other, especially with the Khmer Rouge survivors,” said Long Khet, executive director of Youth for Peace, as a guest on “Hello VOA.”

Chemical Pesticides Still Recklessly Used, Farmers Say

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer 
Tuesday, 11 January 2011

Striving to make a living and eat during a slow economy, Cambodian farmers in Kandal province said this week they continue to use whatever pesticides they can affordably obtain and that they often spray without wearing protective masks and gloves. Cambodia's Ministry of Agriculture is running a campaign to increase awareness about pesticide use. More than 80 percent of Cambodia's 14 million people live in rural areas and heavily depend on farming. (Pich Samnang, Kandal province, VOA Khmer)

Buddhist Monk 'Robes' Trees to Save Them

Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Friday, 07 January 2011

Bun Saluot says that logging and hunting of wildlife has decreased in a forested area in northwestern Cambodia since he and his associates began more than 10 years ago draping ancient and large trees with orange and saffron cloth. He is the director of a Buddhist forestry association in Banteay Meanchey province. He said that local villagers and farmers initially opposed the action but eventually grew to appreciate it as they gained understanding that their livelihoods were tied to a healthy natural environment. ''Robed trees make this forest sacred and powerful,'' he said. (Pich Samnang, Banteay Meanchey province, VOA Khmer)