The Phnom Penh Post – Worker solidarity

The Phnom Penh Post has a paragraph, with a nice photo, of part of the May Day march that took place last Friday. The CGT sent greetings, as did the IWW.

The Phnom Penh Post – Worker solidarity.

Union Links

Trade Unions Discuss Wages of Workers while Buying Orders Decreased to 40% – Tuesday 17.3.2009 [The Mirror]

Busting the Unions [Details Are Sketchy]

Chea Mony calls for a nationwide demonstration [KI Media]

Thousands strike over fired union leaders [VOA Khmer]

Union to march for workers rights [Phnom Penh Post]

Thach Saveth Still “Guilty”

Yesterday, I posted about this, indicating that the new trial of Thach Saveth, the patsy accused of the murder of unionist Ros Sovannareth in 2004, might be a sign of improvement. I was premature.

For the second time, the Court of Appeal of Cambodia decided on Wednesday February 18th to uphold the sentenced issued by the Municipal Court in 2005 against Thach Saveth for the premeditated murder of trade unionist Ros Sovannareth. He had been condemned to 15 years in prison following a very criticised trial. A leading member of the Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia (FTUWKC), Ros Sovannareth was shot by two unidentified men on a motorbike on May 7th 2004 in Phnom Penh.

Ka-set – Information website about Cambodia – Murder of trade unionist Ros Sovannareth: Cambodian justice backtracking?.

Cambodia Link Dump

Busy writing dissertation stuff lately, and have been neglecting my blog. Here are a few things that have happened of note in the last few weeks. At any rate, it’s the Cambodia-centered stuff that I’m interested in…

Andy Brouwer is one of Cambodia’s most famous non-Khmer bloggers (some graciously give us foreign bloggers the honorary title of cloggers, but I prefer ‘floggers,’ since it takes the air out of our unearned pretention). Andy’s posts are most commonly on temples, and are extremely fun and worthwhile. But here’s a post which deals with the mummified, displayed body, of murdered monk Sam Bunthoeurn, who figures briefly in my dissertation. Warning – the pictures can be disturbing for those squeamish about bodies and decomposition….

Mandevu is back, with a couple of fantastic posts on current fieldwork in the agricultural sector. Great photos of field inventories, and on the production of roof thatch. Can’t wait to see how this work turns out!

You must read the second part of Ka-Set’s interview with Richard Rechtman, French psychiatrist and anthropologist dealing with trauma, death, and memory. Fascinating stuff. (see also part one).

Economic stuff is looking bleak for 2009. The ILO reports that 500,000 Cambodians have been significantly affected already, with another million to be affected during 2009. More precise numerical predictions can be found in the article itself over at the Phnom Penh Post, along with a nice little factoid sidebar. Yikes.

Chea Mony, president of the Free Trade Union Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia (FTUWKC), about which I have often written in these pages and elsewhere, has been nominated for the Martin Ennals award in Human Rights. Ennals was the founder and first president of Amnesty International. Mony deserves the recognition, and I hope it accompanies a resurgence in local support and labor activism and solidarity.

Ros Sovannareth was a union official and activist within the FTUWKC, when he was assassinated on May 7, 2004. He worked at the Trinunggal Komara Garment Factory, and was gunned down by two men riding a motorcycle. Just as in the murder of FTUWKC president Chea Vichea months previously (brother of Chea Mony), a patsy was found to take the legal fall. Now, with the accused killers of Chea Mony beginning to possibly receive a new trial, the accused killer of Ros Sovannareth will also receive an appeal. This isn’t justice, but it’s a necessary step forward.

Good news, Dougald O’Reilly, archaeologist, founder of Heritage Watch, and acclaimed scholar (I’m slowly working my way through his engaging book “Early Civilizations of Southeast Asia” in the five minute breaks between getting into bed and falling asleep these days, and am grateful for his work), has received a major award for Heritage Watch’s work. The Archaeological Institute of America’s Conservation and Heritage Management Award, was given to Dougald just a few days ago. Congratulations Dougald!

Some things that happened while I was gone…

I spent the last few weeks in Cambodia, mostly in the service of the workshop Cambodia’s Economic Transformation. The workshop was very nice, and I learned a lot.  I also managed to spend some quality time with friends and my extended Khmer family, which was sorely needed. Lots of photos over at my flickr page.

Lots to say and think about, very little of which will happen here anytime soon. Some things are barely worth noting (such as the planting of three homemade bombs in Phnom Penh, which were detonated in a controlled explosion and offered Hun Manet a nice set of photo-ops).

Some things that happened while I was over there, which readers of this blog might enjoy:

• Born Samnang and Sok Sam Ouern were released. This is good news. They weren’t given their freedom, but were released until the appeal which will happen in about a month. Born Samnang and Sok Sam Ouern are clearly completely unrelated to the killing of local labor leader Chea Vichea. Their release is almost certainly related to the death of brutal top cop Hok Lundy. With him and Heng Pov out of the way, the people who ordered to murder feel relatively certain that no new investigation could implicate them. [Who Killed Chea Vichea, Phnom Penh Post, DAS]
• Keng Vannsak died. The towering figure among twentieth century Khmer intellectuals managed to piss off enormous numbers of folks with his comments about Angkor and especially Jayavarman VII, but his contributions cannot be minimized. Here’s the eulogy given by another great Khmer intellectual, Khing Hoc Dy.
• The Khmer rock opera, Where Elephants Weep, was attacked by elements within the Cambodian sangha. A modernization of the great Khmer epic Tum Teav (and less risque than the original), Where Elephants Weep could be criticized on other fronts, perhaps, but ‘offending’ the honor of the clergy really doesn’t make much sense. I can’t really speak to the content of musical, unfortunately. I was intending to watch its presentation on national television, but thanks to a few stuck up monks, I was unable to do so. Ridiculous. [ShambalaSun, Somongkol, Danny Fisher, DAS]
• Weird news about the American military providing ongoing support to the Khmer military. Geez. Will they never learn? (That’s rhetorical. We know they won’t).
• Less newsy, but no less interesting, AlisoninCambodia continues her valuable archeblogging, with astonishingly good posts on Sambor Prei Kuk and Khmer canals.
• Meanwhile, StuckInCustoms posted a fantastic picture of the inner sanctuary of Angkor Wat.

Link Dump N24

Garment Jobs expected to be cut in Cambodia. Numbers of closed factories range from 25-35, and estimates of those laid off already have reached 20,000. [see also DAS]

Chea Mony, of the FTUWKC, has expressed confidence that the garment sector will survive and be relatively unaffected. I sure hope he’s right.

Obama is the antichrist. Right. via Anthropophagus

Savage Minds wrote a note on the legacy of Studs Terkel for Anthropology. No doubt. Also included are links to the many audio files available on the studsterkel website.

Also over at Savage Minds, a fantastic image of Franz Boas from the cover of a 1936 Time Magazine:

Elephant-sized Link Dump

In a fantastic display of public elephant-bevaior, Tharum posted a series of photos (one is to the left) of famed Phnom Penh elephant Sam Bo doing her thing.

The Cambodian American Heritage Museum in Chicago has begun a new exhibit, titled “Cambodia Born Anew,” which is about the years of struggle and recovery after the years of Democratic Kampuchea (1975-1979) rather than about those years. I hope it’s still up in November, when I’ll be visiting Chicago.

Will Buckingham, a British novelist, philosopher, and self described ‘buddhish‘, (whose blog is wonderful and thoughtful reading, sporadically updated) has a lovely post on approaches to story-telling, with specific relevance to Buddhist literature. Since I’m teaching a class right now on “Buddhist Books”, I plan on forcing it on my students this afternoon:

But there is one final reason that I think that reading Buddhist texts as literature is beneficial, and this relates to the Sudanese storytellers I have quoted above. Think of the following:

This is a Buddhist text.
Right!
It is a lie.
Right!
But not everything in it is false.
Right!

Chea Mony Receives Death Threats For Protest

I was public last week that I think independent unions should focus on economic issues and worker organization, rather than involving themselves in questions of national sovereignty. Regardless of how I feel about such strategic issues, this is disgusting: Chea Mony, President of the Free Trade Union of the Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia, the FTUWKC, has started receiving death threats.

Death Threatening Email Toward Chea Mony

Free Trade Union President CHea Mony claimed to have received a death threat by e-mail on Monday after leading a small demonstration Sunday against the Thai troop presence in the dispute area near Preah Vihear temple.

The e-mail, which threatens Chea Mony with death unless he joins the ruling party, was sent from the address prahvihea@yahoo.com, and its anonymous author claimed to be a union activist as well as an employee of the Interior Ministry.

“If you join the CPP, you can find [assassination former FTU leader] Chea Vichea’s killers, but if you join the SRP, everything will be the same,” said the e-mail “I don’t advise you which way to walk, but you need to have some powerful people behind you to protect your security, otherwise [people] will follow to assassinate you.” Chea Mony said he isn’t putting too much stock in the e-mail. “I am not concerned about my security. I feel normal, “he said.

Interior Ministry spokesman Lieutenant General Khieu Sopheak questioned the letter’s authenticity and denied that any ministry officials were involved. “Chea Mony is not an important person. This is not a threat,” he said.

From the Cambodia Daily by Yun Samean, 21-08-2008

FTU President Chea Mony Received Death Threat E-Mail

FTU President Chea Mony received a death threat letter by email on Monday 18, August 2008 at 4:15 PM after riot police cracked down his rally on Sunday 17, August 2008 for a small peaceful demonstration against the Thai presence in the dispute area near Preah Vihear Temple and Ta Moan Thom Temple.

An anonymous e-mail accused Chea Mony joined with the Human Right Party who led by Kim Sokha and warned that the rally of both Rong Chhun and Chea Mony against Thai troop invasion was wrong.

The unknown author e-mail which was received on August 18, 2008 at 4:15 PM meaning both threatening and pity when the big political parties such as Sam Rainsy Party and Cambodian People Party have been functioning in the society, Chea Mony did not join with these two parties but Human Right Party which the e-mail claimed that this party has relationship to an opposition party in Thailand.

The e-mail also threaten that all documents or e-mails have been followed up and controlled and all his activities have been hunted by police.

Chea Mony rejected that he did not have any relation to any political party and he also did not file a complaint to authorities to the author of this threatening letter.

“I don’t involve in Kim Sokha’ s party at all. The author uses me to get something else done. I don’t involve in Kim Sokha, I don’t involve in People Party, I don’t involve in opposition party at all so I ignore all political parties but this is another politics of one who want to kill me, he just told me this party, that party to assassinate me then answer that this party murder that party”

Cambodian Independent Teacher Association President Rong Chhun who led with Chea Mony on Sunday rally said that”We know that at the end there is the threatening to Chea Mony’s insecurity…..all the points in the letter worry us via e-mail.”

Until today, Chea Mony does not file any complaint to the authorities because he loses confidence in the inefficient, corrupted and dependent judiciary system related to this anonymous author of this letter.

“I don’t file a complaint because none impartial investigation have been made or any suspects have been arrested in many high profile assassination over years including Ven. Som Bunthoeun, Funcinpec official Oam Rathsady, Apsara dancer Piset Pilika, FTU leader Chea Vichea, Ros Sovannret, Yim Ry, Hy Vuthy, popular singer Touch Sonich, Pov Pahnapich,Funcinpec Radio Journalist Chour Chetharith, Radio Ek Mongkul, opposition journalist Thun Bunly, Phnom Penh judge Soksetha Moni, as well as the recent murder of an opposition journalist Khem Sambo and his son who were shot in July ahead of national election, all have gone unsolved…they are death with injustice.”

Interior Ministry spokesman Lieutenant General Khieu Sopheak told Kampuchea Thmey Daily that he didn’t receive any complaint from Mr. Chea Mony at all just to be aware of this information via journalist who interviewed him. He said that if Mr. Chea Mony files a complaint or not, it’s his right, no one force him and perhaps he thinks that he can responsible for himself.

“Chea Mony’ s accusation for another reason that I believe that this kind of accusation is an purpose that Chea Mony wants and let’s see this image….he might get escape to the third country or other place then claims that seeking threatening asylum “ added Khieu Sopheak “It just serves benefit Chea Mony wants…..don’t need to care at all.”

Labor Leader Receives Threat After Rally

By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
Original report from Washington
21 August 2008

A labor leader received a threatening letter Wednesday, following demonstrations over the weekend by workers upset by the ongoing Preah Vihear standoff.

Chea Mony, who became the president of the Free Trade Union after the murder of his brother, Chea Vichea, in 2004, said he received a threatening letter by e-mail, asking to join the ruling Cambodian People’s Party or live in insecurity.

“They threatened me, wanting me to join the CPP and Human Rights Party,” Chea Mony said Wednesday.

Chea Mony led a demonstration of several hundred workers on Sunday to protest troop deployments at Preah Vihear temple, but authorities broke up the rally.

He had not filed a complaint with authorities, Chea Mony, said, because he had no faith in their ability to protect him.

Chea Vichea was gunned down in broad daylight, and two men widely believed to be innocent are serving 20-year sentences for the murder.

No suspects have ever been arrested in a number of high-profile murders over the years, including union leaders Ven Som Bunthoeun and Ros Sovannaret, Funcincpec official Oam Rathsady and film star Piseth Pilika.

The murder of an opposition journalist, Khim Sambor, who was shot in July ahead of national elections, has so far gone unsolved.

Ministry of Interior spokesman said it was Chea Vichea’s right whether to file a complaint, but he said the police have “tried our best” to arrest suspects in the murders.

Chan Saveth, a rights investigator for Adhoc, said the authorities should take the threat seriously.

“If it’s true, we are concerned about the safety of Mr. Chea Mony,” Chan Saveth said.

Press Release From the FTUWKC Union

Union organizers from the Free Trade Union of the Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia (FTUWKC) have been fired from their jobs at the Shoe Premier Factory in Cambodia. Hoeurn Tarith and Sen Sithourn, both of the FTUWKC, were fired fro their positions at the factory. This firing is an illegal action, according to Cambodian law. The press release follows after the jump. See also the union’s response to the claim that strikes are the Garment Industry’s “HIV”, a claim made by an official of the Garment Manufacturer’s Association of Cambodia (GMAC).

Article on the recent successful Cambodian Garment Worker Strike

Since I just wrote a short post on the FTUWKC, here’s an older, short article, published in the April edition Industrial Worker, the newspaper of the IWW, on the successful strike led by the FTUWKC.