News
Draft social protection law unveiled
The government has drawn up a “Draft Law on Social Protection System” to ensure minimum standards of well-being and reduce economic and financial vulnerabilities. The draft law is designed to strengthen the income security of the people and promote social equality through the creation and management ...
Thou Vireak
Carving up the Cardamoms: Conservationists fear massive land grab in Cambodia
A new regulation signed into law in March this year but only unveiled publicly in May will see almost 127,000 hectares (313,800 acres) of previously protected land in Cambodia made available for sale or rent, prompting fears among conservationists about a land grab for some ...
GERALD FLYNN & ANDREW BALL & PHOUNG VANTHA
UN Calls for End to ‘Punitive Measures’ Used Against Cambodian Environmental Activists
United Nations human rights and environmental officials called on Wednesday for an end to Cambodian authorities’ use of “punitive measures” against protectors of the country’s environment, following the arrests this month of four young environmental activists. The four activists, members of the Cambodian environmental protection group ...
Reported by RFA’s Khmer Service. Translated by Sok Ry Sum. Written in English by Richard Finney.
Low dry season flows in Mekong drive down Cambodia’s Tonle Sap, countries urged to improve basin-wide management
The Mekong River Commission (MRC) Secretariat has urged the wider exchange of data and information as part of recommendations to improve water resource management in the Lower Mekong Basin, in a bulletin released today. The 18-page Situation Report encourages MRC Member Countries and Dialogue Partners to share ...
Sweden supports Cambodia towards a circular economy
On 28 June, the Cambodian National Council for Sustainable Development of the Ministry of Environment launched the implementation of the National Strategic Plan and Action Plan for a circular economy with financial support from Sweden, Japan, and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). The strategy includes ...
Mette Larsen
Cambodia Charges Eco-Activists With Conspiracy, Royal Defamation
Cambodian and international rights advocates have condemned the harsh charges imposed on three 20-something environmental activists in the country earlier this week, the latest sign of the Cambodian government’s determination to stamp out the last traces of independent political advocacy. On June 16, Sun Ratha, 26, ...
Sebastian Strangio
Min of Agriculture responds to allegations of loss of fisheries
The Ministry of Agriculture yesterday responded to criticism and accusations by opposition groups and the media that the decline and loss of fish production is due to the incompetence of the Ministry, the Fisheries Administration and local officials. The criticism also raised concerns over illegal deforestation, ...
Son Minea
Interview: Pou Sothirak on protecting the Mekong and powering Cambodia
Previously secretary of state at the Foreign Affairs Ministry for the Cambodian government, Pou Sothirak is executive director of the Cambodian Institute for Cooperation and Peace. He is a tireless campaigner for the ecology and communities of the Lower Mekong and particularly Tonle Sap, Southeast ...
Tyler Roney
Justice Delayed For Jailed Activists, RFA Journalists in Cambodia
Family members and colleagues of detained labor and border activist Rong Chhun and youth activist Sar Kanika said they are disappointed that the Phnom Penh Municipal Court denied their bail requests following a hearing on Tuesday. The two activists did not appear at their hearings because ...
RFA’s Khmer Service. Translated by Samean Yun. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.
NGO-run special needs education school incorporated into state framework
The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport has transformed the Hands of Hope Community – an NGO-run autism school in Takhmo commune’s Prek Samrong village in Kandal province’s Takhmao town – into a public high school for the academic year 2020-2021 onwards. According to the ministry’s ...
Long Kimmarita